Are mathematicians the architects of an unseen world? Sir Michael Atiyah, honorary professor at the University of Edinburgh (UK), lecturing at the TWAS 11th General Conference in Durban, South Africa, proposed that mathematicians, driven by a passion for beauty, discover truth along the way.
Speaking at a symposium on science and technology in South Africa held on the first day of the TWAS 11th General Conference in Durban, Phil Hockey of the University of Cape Town warned that without effective conservation measures the African Penguin could be facing extinction within thirty or forty years.
Naledi Pandor was appointed minister of science and technology of South Africa by president Jacob Zuma in May 2009. She has been a member of South Africa's parliament since 1994 and has previously served as minister of education.
The 2009 CNR Rao Prize has been awarded to Akiça Bahri, Director for Africa of the International Water Management Institute (IWMI), Accra, Ghana.
Mohamed H.A. Hassan, executive director of TWAS, and A.M. Taleb, cultural advisor from the the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research of Iraq (MOHESR), signed a memorandum of understanding on 1 October 2009.
Two organizations with close ties to TWAS have selected new directors – the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), which is responsible for administering the Academy's funds and personnel, and the Abdus Salam International Centre for Theoretical Physics (ICTP), which hosts TWAS's Secretariat in Trieste.
On the eve of TWAS's 11th General Conference in Durban, Daniel Schaffer, the Academy's public information officer, explores the current state of science in South Africa.
Norman Borlaug (TWAS Fellow 1985 and Nobel Laureate for Peace in 1970) has died at age 95.
TWAS and the African Union (AU) Commission have signed a memorandum of agreement (MOU) calling for greater and collaboration between the two organizations.