Why big datasets can help solve South Africa's environmental health ills

Mar 18, 2016 08:18 am UTC| Insights & Views Technology Health

There is a severe lack of environmental health data being collected in communities and households in South Africa. As a result of this, environmental health researchers have a significant challenge accessing high quality...

Google's Go victory shows AI thinking can be unpredictable, and that's a concern

Mar 18, 2016 02:27 am UTC| Insights & Views Technology

Humans have been taking a beating from computers lately. The 4-1 defeat of Go grandmaster Lee Se-Dol by Googles AlphaGo artificial intelligence (AI) is only the latest in a string of pursuits in which technology has...

Digital Currency Revolution

How do you mine Bitcoin – and is it still worth it?

Mar 17, 2016 23:39 pm UTC| Digital Currency Technology

Most people are bamboozled by Bitcoin. Its shrouded in jargon and geek speak. It borrows physical metaphors from all over the place adding to the confusion. It talks of coins, but there are no physical coins. Youll hear...

If we can't prove the internet makes children unhappy, we shouldn't lay the blame at its door

Mar 17, 2016 23:33 pm UTC| Insights & Views Technology

Children and youngsters spend more and more time online (as do we all), often alone or at least only in touch with others remotely through the internet. This poses various questions for parents concerned about what their...

Indonesia offers a cool million to whoever can help take the heat off its peatlands

Mar 17, 2016 01:28 am UTC| Technology Science

Last year, fires burned 2 million hectares of peatlands in Indonesia, creating an acrid haze that affected several neighbouring Southeast Asian countries. As nations met in Paris late last year to agree a deal to limit...

Computer's Go victory reminds us that we need to question our reliance on AI

Mar 17, 2016 00:22 am UTC| Insights & Views Technology

The victory of a computer over one of the worlds strongest players of the game Go has been hailed by many as a landmark event in artificial intelligence. But why? After all, computers have beaten us at games before, most...

How long until we can print human faces in the lab?

Mar 16, 2016 14:10 pm UTC| Science Technology

More than 30 people across the world have received face transplants since the first procedure was successfully carried out in France in 2005. The discussion has long since moved on from initial apprehensions to the...