Dr Cora Stobie of the Herpetology Department recently investigated the increasing representation of female authors in the journal of the Herpetological Association of Africa (HAA). Her findings have been published in the Association’s newsletter African Herp News.
The National Museum celebrated Arbor Week with a week-long virtual exhibition focusing on five indigenous trees that should be in every garden; trees that are beautiful in their peace and wise in their silence! Arbor Week is celebrated annually by South Africans in the first week of September. This year’s campaign theme was: “Forests and Sustainable Cities”.
Did you know that one of the pioneers of palaeontology and one of the greatest early fossil finders was a woman? Well most people don’t. Her name was Mary Anning and she lived in Dorset, UK in the early 1800’s. Anning, who never married, made a living searching for Jurassic fossils in the sea cliffs at Lyme Regis.
When you think of a palaeontologist what image comes to mind? Is it a woman? For most people probably not. Yet there are many women in all branches of science including palaeontology. Starting from way back in the early 1800’s with Mary Anning who was a pioneer fossil finder, despite not being allowed to participate in research.
John Weston is regarded as the father of aviation in South Africa. Weston was born in an ox wagon near Fort Marshall in KwaZulu-Natal on 17 June 1873. As a young man he travelled widely and trained as an engineer in Belgium. He then worked for various engineering companies – from America to Russia.
Weston returned to South Africa in 1907 where he first lived near Hoopstad in the Free State and in 1909 settled at Brandfort. During this time he built his first aeroplane. It was, however, underpowered and he took it to France in 1910, where it was modified and fitted with a revolutionary seven-cylinder rotary air-cooled Gnome type engine. Weston also qualified as a pilot in France. The following year he returned to South Africa and on 18 June 1911, gave a flying demonstration in his Weston-Farman aeroplane at Kimberley. In the same year Weston founded the Aeronautical Society of South Africa.