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New project aims to use innovative automated technology to monitor ocean pollution A UCT Department of Electrical Engineering team lead by Professor Amit Kumar Mishra as the principal investigator – along with Associate Professor Fred Nicolls, senior lecturer Robyn Verrinder and lecturers Jarryd Son and Stephen Paine – will soon undertake Project SMARTPOL, a new venture that will identify sources of pollution in our waters through methods never seen before. 27 Jan 2022
UCT among top 60 most international universities UCT has been ranked 55th by Times Higher Education in their latest list of the most international universities in the world 2022. This position is tied with two universities in the United States: Carnegie Mellon and Princeton. 25 Jan 2022
Alarm sounded over self-spreading vaccine proposals Virus vaccines for animals and humans that can spread on their own are being proposed in Europe and the U.S. 24 Jan 2022
UCT civil engineering professor selected as Research Chair in Smart Mobility - a first for South Africa The CSIR, the DSI and the NRF have jointly established a Research Chair in Smart Mobility, the first of its kind in South Africa. Professor Marianne Vanderschuren, an expert in transport planning and engineering at UCT, was selected to lead the initiative.  19 Jan 2022
UCT Open Textbook Journeys provide access to locally relevant learning materials Lecturers at UCT are adopting innovative pedagogical and content production approaches to provide students with more accessible and locally relevant learning materials.  17 Jan 2022
Small fire at UCT’s Upper Campus fully doused within two hours The University of Cape Town (UCT) confirms that a small fire was reported above Upper Campus on a vacant field near the top dam late on Wednesday, 5 January 2022 and put out shortly thereafter. 06 Jan 2022
Courses to unleash the artist in you – UCT Summer School 2022 The University of Cape Town (UCT) Summer School 2022 offers a range of short courses for budding artists or poets. These courses require no prior experience but do have limited spaces so booking is essential. 05 Jan 2022
Origins of a COVID-19 vaccine or the future of robotic surgery – UCT Summer School 2022 has it all How was the world able to get a COVID-19 vaccine in a few months when it usually takes a few years? At the University of Cape Town (UCT) Summer School, Dr Sean Elias, post-doctoral scientist and public engagement with research leader at the Jenner Institute, United Kingdom will share how the Oxford/Astra-Zeneca vaccine went from concept to licensure. 04 Jan 2022
New website documents the Cape Town urban water cycle A new website on the urban water cycle in Cape Town is linking current research on the urban water cycle in the greater Cape Town area, with the public. It is intended as a generative political engagement with the City and its citizens to empower citizens who are not yet equipped to defend themselves from official rhetoric and reductionist claims about the urban water cycle, justice and sanitation. 27 Jan 2021
New study finds that blood biomarker of TB discriminates between people with high risk and those who remained healthy Researchers from the South African Tuberculosis Vaccine Initiative (SATVI) at the University of Cape Town, in collaboration with various partners in their field, have published the results from a study into a blood-based RNA biomarker. The study, which tested diagnostic and prognostic performance for TB and the efficacy of TB preventive therapy for biomarker-positive individuals, was published in The Lancet Infectious Diseases journal . 26 Jan 2021
UCT to effect revised policy on employment equity The University of Cape Town will press the reset button on employment equity on 1 February 2021, when the revised Policy on Employment Equity comes into effect following Council’s approval last month. 25 Jan 2021
Expert calls for rapid vaccination to achieve population immunity “Without rapid vaccination of at least two thirds of the population, we are not going to get to population immunity in the country, and without that, we will see another wave.” This is according to Professor Marc Mendelson, who recently presented a virtual Summer School lecture titled “COVID-19 insights and lessons”. 20 Jan 2021
Gigantic galaxies discovered with the MeerKAT telescope Two giant radio galaxies have been discovered with South Africa's powerful MeerKAT telescope. These galaxies are amongst the largest single objects in the universe and are thought to be quite rare. 18 Jan 2021
Supporting the publishing of African-centric research – new platform UCT Libraries has developed a new a continental platform for open access publishing in Africa. The platform allows the African research community to take ownership of creating and sharing its own scholarly content (including open access journals and open access monographs and textbooks), which contributes to the growth and development of local research for African society.  12 Jan 2021
UCT Faculty of Health Sciences calls for equitable access to COVID-19 vaccine access in South Africa The havoc wrought by the global COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 created enormous challenges for public health and health services which have been met with exceptional courage and fortitude by healthcare workers across the world. In addition, this new disease has caused substantial social, economic and psychological devastation in all countries.   08 Jan 2021
Win-win for wind energy and eagles – new tool helps locate areas for safe turbine development The rapid uptake of wind energy globally offers hope of a transition towards sustainable renewable energy but it can also present a real threat to soaring birds of prey. A new tool offers hope of a win-win solution that allows developers to rapidly identify the best locations for their wind turbines while minimising the risk of collision for one special bird of prey, the Verreaux’s Eagle.    05 Jan 2021
UCT among top 40 international universities The University of Cape Town (UCT) has been ranked 39th in the recently released Times Higher Education (THE) list of the 200 most international universities. These institutions collaborate on research across the world, have a strong reputation globally and have a high proportion of international students and staff. 31 Jan 2020
New study sheds light on genetics of schizophrenia in South Africa A recent international study including several University of Cape Town researchers emphasises that rare genetic mutations may play an important role in the cause of the illness. The study, “Genetics of Schizophrenia in the South African Xhosa,” published in the journal Science, is the first genetic analysis of schizophrenia in an ancestral African population, the South African amaXhosa. 31 Jan 2020
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