Africa Code Week
Inside this issue:
Africa Code Week 1 CESAME in South Africa
1
Student updates
1
Cosmology Group 2 updates Applied Harmonic Analysis
2
Journal Club
2
Visiting Researchers
3
Seminars
3
Public Lectures
3
Staff farewell
3
Lucy Hawking school visits
4
Announcements
4
Africa Code Week was held across Africa from 18-25 October 2017 with the goal of enabling 500 000 young Africans across 35 African countries to learn coding basics. AIMS South Africa was one of the host institutions in South Africa and hosted five interactive coding sessions with learners from local schools. The workshop was a great success and 132 learners
and 6 educators from four schools and one NGO from Khayelitsha attended the activity. The key focal point of the workshop was to introduce learners to coding/programming using Scratch Software; inspire and stimulate interest in learners to pursue computer science and maths careers at a tertiary level
CESAME in South Africa
Prof. Hahne, Ms Kenny and Prof. Green
An exciting opportunity was made possible when AIMS South Africa and the Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf) forwarded a joint expression of interest to host a Centre for Education in Science for Africa, the Mediterranean and Europe (CESAME) for teachers. From 3 to 4 October, Prof. Barry Green, Prof. Fritz Hahne and Ms Sinobia Kenny presented talks in
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support of the CESAME Centre at the African European Mediterranean Academies for Science Education (AEMASE) III Conference at the Institute of France in Paris. The talks were well received and a CESAME in South Africa was approved by the Steering Committee.
The CESAME will run in collaboration with like-minded institutions from South Africa and the international community. The key component of the teacher training at the CESAME will be inquiry-based learning which, for perhaps the first time, will merge mathematics, science and human sustainable development in South African schools.
as well as showing learners that coding can be fun and exciting through real applications, and that it doesn't have to be difficult. Special thanks go to members of staff, tutors and research Master’s students that gave freely of their time to make these sessions possible and very successful.
Student updates
Students say farewell to Prof. Aschman
The eleven students in the January 2017 intake submitted their research projects on 26 October and will be doing their oral presentations from 1 to 3 November. The August intake completed the following courses: Concepts and Problem Solving (David Aschman, Cape Town) and Entrepreneurship Skills (Jonathan Marks, Gordon Institute of Business Studies).
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Research Centre updates Cosmology Group Updates
Applied Harmonic Analysis short course
Prof. Okoudjou with Dr Bah
Deep Learning JEDI participants
A Cosmology Deep Learning JEDI we held from 3 to 6 October at Fynbos Estate in Malmesbury. This JEDI focused on deep learning methods and was a follow-up to the one held in February. Cosmology students and researchers had the opportunity to work and finish off both individual
research projects and student thesis. The participants were Prof. Bruce Bassett, Dr Michelle Lochner, Dr Yabebal Fantaye, Mr Ethan Robert, Mr Kayode Olaye, Dr Etienne Le Roux, Ms Zafiira Hosenie, Dr Shankar Agarwal and Dr Alireza Vafaei.
Journal Club On 3 October, Mr Abdoelnaser Degoot, AIMS South Africa gave a talk titled: ‘A Biophysical Model for Predictions of Peptide:HLADR Interactions Based on Genomic and Structural Data.’
Mr Degoot
LSST Dark Energy Science Collaboration Observing Strategy Task Force Dr Michelle Lochner has been appointed to co-lead of the LSST Dark Energy Science Collaboration Observing Strategy Task Force. The Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST) is an exciting optical telescope under construction in Chile, which is unique in that its science goals range from tracking asteroids all the way to understanding the mysterious accelerating force called dark energy. The LSST Dark Energy Science Collaboration (DESC) is an international collaboration of several hundred astronomers, focused on the cosmology science cases of LSST. The
aim of the Observing Strategy Task Force, that I have been appointed co-lead of, is to determine the observing strategy of the telescope (which parts of the sky to observe, how often to go back to the same patch of sky etc.) that ensures we achieve our important science goals and learn everything we can about dark energy and other intriguing cosmological questions. The Task Force will be the voice of the collaboration to make sure that with LSST we will deliver groundbreaking science.
This course held on 16 October was organised by Dr Bubacarr Bah, the German Research Chair. The presenter was Prof. Kasso Okoudjou from the University of Maryland, Department of Mathematics. There were 16 attendees which included members of the AIMS Research Centre as well as January intake
On 10 October, Prof. Alan Beardon, University of Cambridge and AIMS gave a talk titled: ‘Riemann surfaces: old and new.’ Mr Mhlasakululeka Mvubu, Ms Alice Nanyanzi, Ms Innocenter Amima and Mr Jordan Félicien Masakuna, AIMS South Africa gave a talk titled: ‘Deep Learning: Not a technique, but a powerful tool.’
Prof. Beardon
Ms Amima
Dr Eddy Kimba Phongi, visiting researcher, AIMS gave a talk titled: ‘Nonstandard finitedifference on a singularly perturbed problem. The case of exchange of stability.’ Dr Bruce Bartlett, Stellenbosch University, gave a talk titled: ‘Generators and relations for the bicategory of 3-manifolds.’
Mr Kimeel Sooknunan, a Master’s student supervised by Dr Lochner and Prof. Bassett has been awarded an SKA Master’s Busary. Mr Mvubu
Dr Kimba
Deep Learning INDABA update It was incorrectly reported in last month’s newsletter that Mr Felicien Jordan Masakuna is a Master’s student when he is in fact a PhD student in the AIMS South Africa Research
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Centre. We are also pleased to note that he along with Mr Mhlasakululeka Mvubu also won prizes for their posters at the Indaba. Mr Masakuna
Dr Bartlett
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Visiting Researchers
Prof. Anguelov
Dr Marais and Dr Bohm
AIMS South Africa welcomed the following visitors from 2-6 October: Prof. Roumen Anguelov, Head of Department of Mathematics and Applied Mathematics at the University of Pretoria; Dr Magdaleen Marais, affiliated with the University of Pretoria and who was also recently confirmed as an Associate Research Fellow for the AIMS Research Centre; and Dr Janko Bohm, affiliated with Kaiserslautern University. Dr Jocelyn Gonessa, affiliated with the University of Bangui in the Central African Republic in the Faculty of Sciences, is visiting the Research Centre from 5 October to 5 December 2017. His research is in the field of Several Complex Variables and Analytic Spaces.
Dr Gonessa
Seminars
Public Lectures
Mr Budden
AIMS South Africa in association with the Muizenberg Festival and the Zandvlei Trust, hosted two public talks on 3 and 5 October 2017: Mr Tony Budden (Hemporium) gave a talk titled: ‘The eco benefits of industrial hemp as an agricultural crop.’ Prof. Mike Bruton author scientist and one of the leading fish biologists of South Africa gave a talk titled: ‘Lessons from the Dodo.
On 10 October the Muizenberg Scitizen Dialogues hosted an evening of informal talks and facilitated dialogue surrounding the central and pertinent issue of water. Invited guests from several research institutions in Cape Town were given an opportunity to engage with each other and most importantly with members of the public through a mediated conversation. Please click here to view an article about this session.
Prof. Bruton Prof. Szekely
Prof. Czabarka
On 12 October, AIMS South Africa hosted two seminars by visitors from the University of South Carolina. The first was by Prof. Laszlo Szekely, titled: ‘kplanar Crossing Numbers’. The second titled: ‘Tangle Crossing Numbers’ was given by Prof. Éva Czabarka.
On 16 October, Dr Eddy Kimba Phongi, visiting researcher, AIMS gave a talk titled: ‘KimbaJacks Maths Puzzle Game’ and on 17 October Prof. Alan Beardon (Cambridge and AIMS) presented a talk titled: ‘Believe it or not’. Muizenberg Scitizen Dialogues
Staff farewell
Prof. Beardon
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At the end of October AIMS said farewell to Mr MacDonald Chapwanya, IT Manager from AIMSSEC. He will be taking up a position in the IT division of the Stellenbosch University Business School. We would like to thank him for his excellent service to AIMS/AIMSSEC and wish him all of the best on the next step of his career.
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AIMSSEC arranges two school visits for Lucy Hawking to promote literacy and numeracy amongst primary school learners
Postdoctoral Fellowship in Data Science Applications are invited for the DAAD funded postdoctoral fellowship in Data Science at AIMS South Africa under the supervision of Dr Bubacarr Bah, the German Research Chair for Data Science. The research area will be Data Science in a very broad sense, see details here. Applications will be submitted through the DAAD portal found here. PLEASE NOTE: In recognition of the higher cost of living in South Africa compared to other Sub-saharan African countries, the salary offered by DAAD will be topped-up by AIMS South Africa and the amount of top-up will be negotiated with the candidate. Closing date for applications: 20 November 2017
Ms Hawking at Inukhanyo Primary
On 17 October 2017 staff of AIMS South Africa accompanied Ms Lucy Hawking (Prof. Stephen Hawking’s daughter) and Dr Carole Bloch (Director of PRAESA) to read alongside Grade 5 learners at Inukhanyo Primary School in Masiphumelele. Ms Hawking’s school visit was supported by AIMS South Africa’s Dr Eddy Kimba Phongi who also demonstrated a mathematics educational game to encourage the inquisitive minds of learners to engage
with problem solving puzzles in mathematics. On 26 October staff of AIMSSEC arrnaged for a reading of Ms Lucy Hawking’s book to Grade 5-7 learners at Ocean View Primary School. AIMSSEC was delighted when their teaching assistant, Chad Boissy, read parts of the book to the learners. Ms Lindiwe Tshuma of AIMSSEC led the visits.
Announcements Applications for the January 2018 intake for the AIMS Master’s in Mathematical Sciences Applications are now OPEN for the AIMS structured Master’s degree in Mathematical Sciences which is awarded by the Universities of Stellenbosch, Cape Town and the Western Cape. The January intake is for students who follow the South African academic calendar and preference will be given to South African nationals. For more information and to apply please visit https:// www.aims.ac.za/en/programmes/aims-structured-masters-inmathematical-sciences/applications-january-intake AIMS NEI Fellowship Program for Women in Climate Change Science: Call for applications Climate change represents one of humanity’s greatest challenges of the 21st century. The continued ascent of our species depends to a significant extent on our ability to limit further catastrophic changes to the climate and to adapt to both past and future changes. In many parts of the world, changes in climatic variables – including incessant increases in temperature and declines in precipitation – are already having detrimental impacts on food security, human health, energy, biodiversity, etc. Some of these impacts further alter the climate – e.g. plant biodiversity loss reduces CO2 sequestration, contributing to temperature rises – creating positive feedback loops with increasingly perilous consequences for humanity. Click here to read more and to apply
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