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Alex Broadbent

Co-Director, African Centre for Epistemology and Philosophy of Science, and Executive Dean, Faculty of Humanities, University of Johannesburg

Alex Broadbent is Professor of Philosophy and Executive Dean of the Faculty of Humanities at UJ. Previously he held various research, teaching and visiting positions at Cambridge, Vienna, Athens and Harvard, before joining the University of Johannesburg in 2011. Alex is a philosopher of science with particular interests in philosophy of epidemiology, philosophy of medicine, and philosophy of law, connected by the philosophical themes of causation, explanation, and prediction. He is committed to finding philosophical problems in practical contexts, and to contributing something useful concerning them. He holds a P-rating from the National Research Foundation of South Africa (2013-2018) and is a member of the South African Young Academy of Sciences. He has published a number of articles in top international journals across three disciplines (philosophy, epidemiology, law). His first book, Philosophy of Epidemiology, was published by Palgrave Macmillan in 2013, and has been translated into Korean. His second book, Philosophy for Graduate Students: Metaphysics and Epistemology, was published by Routledge in 2016. He is currently working on his third book, Philosophy of Medicine, under contract with Oxford University Press.

Fourth industrial revolution: sorting out the real from the unreal

Sep 24, 2018 07:00 am UTC| Insights & Views Technology

The phrase fourth industrial revolution has become ubiquitous. Its meant to denote a huge shift in the socioeconomic fabric of society, driven by the availability of increasingly intelligent machines. These will be able to...

It will take critical, thorough scrutiny to truly decolonise knowledge

Jun 01, 2017 14:33 pm UTC| Insights & Views Life

It has become unfashionable to admit that one doesnt really understand what phrases like decolonising knowledge or a decolonised curriculum mean. This is unfortunate. The process of coming to understand what decolonisation...

Economy

Canada's Economy Grows Modestly in January 2025, Driven by Energy and Construction

Canadas economy kicked off 2026 on steady footing, with real gross domestic product rising 0.1% in January slightly ahead of market expectations following a 0.2% gain in December 2025. The modest expansion was largely...

RBC Capital: European Medtech Firms Show Minimal Middle East and Energy Risk Exposure

European medical technology companies remain largely insulated from Middle East geopolitical tensions and rising energy costs, according to a recent RBC Capital Markets analysis. The investment bank found that sales...

Gold Prices Rebound in Asia Amid Iran War Ceasefire Hopes

Gold prices climbed in Asian trading on Tuesday, recovering slightly after suffering steep losses throughout March. The partial rebound came as investors reacted to reports that U.S. President Donald Trump was weighing an...

Dollar Surges to Monthly High as Middle East Conflict Rattles Global Markets

The U.S. dollar is on track for its strongest monthly performance since July, emerging as the dominant safe-haven asset amid escalating Middle East tensions that have sent oil prices soaring past $100 per barrel and...

Oil Prices Surge to Record Monthly Highs as Middle East War Rattles Global Markets

Global financial markets closed out a turbulent month under heavy pressure as the ongoing Middle East conflict between the United States, Israel, and Iran continued to shake investor confidence. Oil prices surged to...

Politics

EU Leaders Visit Kyiv on Fourth Anniversary of Bucha Massacre

European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs Kaja Kallas, alongside multiple EU foreign ministers, made a significant visit to Kyiv on Tuesday to commemorate the fourth anniversary of the Bucha massacre. The...

U.S. Senators Challenge FCC Chair Over Nexstar-Tegna Merger Approval

Two prominent U.S. Senators have raised serious concerns over the Federal Communications Commissions (FCC) recent decision to greenlight a major media merger. Republican Senator Ted Cruz and Democratic Senator Maria...

Trump Weighs Ending Iran Campaign With Strait of Hormuz Still Closed

President Donald Trump is reportedly open to halting U.S. military operations against Iran even if the Strait of Hormuz remains blocked, according to a Wall Street Journal report published Monday. The development marks a...

California's AI Executive Order Pushes Responsible Tech Use in State Contracts

California Governor Gavin Newsom signed a landmark executive order Monday, setting new standards for artificial intelligence governance in state contracting. The directive requires companies seeking government contracts to...

Iran Strikes Oil Tanker Near Dubai Amid U.S. Threats and Ongoing Middle East Conflict

Iran launched an attack on a fully loaded crude oil tanker off the coast of Dubai on Monday, setting the Kuwait-flagged vessel Al-Salmi ablaze in one of the most dramatic escalations since the United States and Israel...

Science

NASA's Artemis II Crew Arrives in Florida for Historic Moon Mission

The four astronauts chosen for NASAs Artemis II mission have touched down at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, marking the beginning of final launch preparations for the first crewed lunar journey in over 50 years. NASA...

SpaceX Pivots Toward Moon City as Musk Reframes Long-Term Space Vision

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has revealed a significant shift in the companys near-term space exploration strategy, announcing that SpaceX is now prioritizing the development of a self-growing city on the Moon rather than focusing...

SpaceX Prioritizes Moon Mission Before Mars as Starship Development Accelerates

Elon Musks SpaceX is shifting its near-term space exploration strategy, choosing to prioritize a return to the Moon before pursuing missions to Mars, according to a recent Wall Street Journal report citing sources familiar...

NASA and SpaceX Target Crew-11 Undocking From ISS Amid Medical Concern

NASA has confirmed that the agency, in coordination with SpaceX, is targeting no earlier than 5 p.m. Eastern Time (2200 GMT) on Wednesday, January 14, for the undocking of the SpaceX Crew-11 mission from the International...

Neuralink Plans High-Volume Brain Implant Production and Fully Automated Surgery by 2026

Elon Musks brain-computer interface company Neuralink is preparing for a major expansion, announcing plans to begin high-volume production of its brain implant devices and transition to a fully automated surgical procedure...

Technology

Cybersecurity Stocks Tumble After Anthropic's Claude Mythos AI Leak Sparks Market Fears

Major cybersecurity stocks took a sharp hit Friday following reports that Anthropic accidentally exposed details about its next-generation AI model before its official launch. CrowdStrike fell 7%, Palo Alto Networks...

Chinese Universities with PLA Ties Found Purchasing Restricted U.S. AI Chips Through Super Micro Servers

Procurement records reveal that four Chinese universities, two of which have direct ties to the Peoples Liberation Army, acquired Super Micro Computer servers loaded with restricted Nvidia AI chips over the past year. The...

Federal Judge Blocks Pentagon's Blacklisting of AI Company Anthropic

A federal judge has temporarily prevented the Pentagon from enforcing its designation of Anthropic as a national security supply-chain risk, dealing an early blow to the Trump administration in a growing dispute over...

SMIC Allegedly Supplies Chipmaking Tools to Iran's Military, U.S. Officials Warn

Chinas top semiconductor manufacturer, SMIC (Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation), has reportedly been transferring chipmaking equipment to Irans military industrial complex, according to two senior Trump...

Google's TurboQuant Algorithm Sends Memory Chip Stocks Tumbling

Major memory chipmakers took a significant hit on Thursday after Google researchers introduced a groundbreaking compression algorithm that threatens to reduce artificial intelligence demand for memory chips. Samsung...