5. Inaugural Lectures

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A Glimpse into Mafic Magma Genesis in South Africa: Over the First 1.5 Billion Years of Earth History
(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2011-11) Wilson, Allan
This talk will cover three areas of geology that I believe are important in the igneous history of South Africa spanning the first 1.5 billion years from 3.5 Ga to 2.0 Ga. The high-Mg lavas in Barberton and KwaZulu-Natal called komatiites 3.5 – 3.3 billion years ago. The volcanic rocks of the Pongola Supergroup 3.0 – 2.9 billion years ago. The Bushveld Complex 2.05 billion years ago.
Bones of Contention: Shifting Paradigms in Human Evolution with the Skeletons of Australopithecus sediba
(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2013) Berger, Lee R.
In summary, at first glance Australopithecus sediba appears to add despairing complexity to our present understanding of the emergence of early Homo by adding yet another species, this time with an unexpected mosaic of primitive and derived characters, to what we thought we knew of the experiments occurring between the last australopiths and the first definitive members of the genus Homo somewhere around 2 million years ago. Homo habilis and Homo rudolfensis both appear to show a trend in encephalization without the frontal complexity seen in Australopithecus sediba, as well as a retention of the general megadentia seen in many late australopiths, as well as, at least in the case of Homo habilis, retention of more primitive australopith aspects in its post-cranial anatomy, surprisingly more primitive in some areas than that observed in sediba.
Emergence, risk and enactment: Advancing a multifocal approach to the study of violence
(2021-08-25) Bowman, Brett
Violence, in its many forms, remains a defining and seemingly intractable feature of modern life globally. This lecture outlines emergence, risk and enactment as three scholarly focal points for understanding violence in South Africa and beyond. It addresses how and why violence was first identified for study and intervention by the social and health sciences, describes the promises and limits of the current focus on risk, and reviews recent approaches to studying violence in situ that is, as it unfolds rather than how it is reported for counting or meaning making. The lecture then provides several suggestions for strategically fusing these focal points to produce the enhanced picture of violence required to take violence scholarship and intervention programming forward.
Evolution of therapies in inherited bleeding disorders: a remakable journey from blood to gene therapy
(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2017-04) Mahlangu, Johnny
Not available
From the Earth and back again to the Moon (with a brief stop on Mars)
(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2012-10) Ashwal, Lewis D.
Not available
Reading Between the Lines of the New South African Mineral and Petroleum Resources Royalty Act: A Technical Perspective on its Meaning
(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2009-11) Cawood, Frederick T.
After a prolonged process of drafting and consultation, the new mineral royalty regime for South Africa was signed into law in November 2008. The main purpose of the Act is to compensate the State as the custodian of South Africa’s rich mineral heritage through a royalty charge to holders of mineral development rights from 1 March 2010. Deciding on an acceptable royalty is a complex process, especially when it targets deceptive economic rents. This is achieved with a variable royalty rate that slides in tandem with mine profitability. The base is sales revenue and to compensate for the need to charge for the mineral in its unprocessed form, refined production is charged at a lower rate. Only time will tell if the view expressed in this paper on the policy success, as measured by the motivation for current mineral producers to spend the additional capital to become refiners, is correct. The aims of this paper are to first, discuss the Act in the context of the underlying theory, second, establish the impact thereof, third, measure it against international tax standards and fourth, make an educated guess on the meaning of the Act. This paper argues that most investors will be comfortable with most of the requirements of the Act for most of the time.
The many branches of the tree; a personal view of Palaeobotany in Africa
(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2014-05) Bamford, Marion
Not available
The Potential of Gene Therapy
(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2011-06) Arbuthnot, Patrick
Science of course has a lot to offer the public and effectively communicating the usefulness of science is very important. Scientists researching topics in the health-related fields have valuable practical benefits as a result of creation of interventions, methods, or strategies to treat disease. Moreover, the scientific method has a social function that is useful to nurture an ethic that encourages critical and creative thinking. This presentation is therefore primarily aimed at conveying insights about gene therapy to people who do not have a background in biology or medicine. The topic of gene therapy is rather technical in nature and I am therefore obliged to simplify some of the complex concepts. Also, parts of the talk will necessarily be of a didactic nature, which is important to provide the framework for discussing general issues of the significance of gene therapy in South Africa. The content of this presentation will be divided into 5 main parts, which are: Why genes are important in normal and disease biology; What is gene therapy?; Using silencing techniques to counter hepatitis B virus infection; The Challenges and Relevance of gene therapy research.

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