The brand new Neuromechanics unit at Stellenbosch University was launched on 6 June. This unit is within the Central Analytical Facilities and support a wide range of human movement research in healthcare, engineering and sport.

Neuromechanics is an interdisciplinary field that integrates neuroscience and biomechanics to understand how the human nervous system and musculoskeletal system interact to control movements. The Neuromechanics unit is well placed to play a leading role in developing this relatively new field in South Africa – it houses state-of-the-art equipment and is staffed by a team of three full-time biomedical engineers.

The unit's high-speed motion capture systems are capable of capturing the three-dimensional posture and movement of the skeletal system in great detail during physical activity. It is also possible to assess three-dimensional ground reaction forces or pressure patterns on the feet during standing, jumping, walking or running tasks. The unit also provides wireless sensors for kinesiological electromyography (assessment of electrical activity in the muscles) and high-density electroencephalography (assessment of electrical activity in the brain), as well as mobile cardiopulmonary exercise testing (assessment of heart and lung function). All of this equipment can be operated simultaneously in a time-synchronized manner. According to dr John Cockcroft, manager of the Neuromechanics Unit, these capabilities are unique in the country and will enable world-class student training and more advanced experiments.

Knowledge of how human movement is controlled and organized in different contexts plays a critical role in efforts to improve the health and well-being of society in a number of fields. It can support the development of assistive devices, surgical procedures and clinical services for persons with impaired physical function due to aging, injury, disability or disease. It can also be used to improve performance in sport and exercise through optimized training and coaching, or to improve workplace productivity and safety through optimized ergonomics.

This new facility at the Coetzenburg Sports Science Complex has been custom-built for neuromechanics research and is one-of-a-kind in the country.

Stellenbosch University (SU) again improved its position on the QS World University Ranking 2017/18. SU is now second in South Africa after it was placed third in the 2016/17 rankings.

SU is now in position 361 on the rankings after it was ranked at number 395 last year. A total of 950 universities (43 more than last year) in 84 countries were included in the latest rankings.

The QS World Rankings for Universities is viewed as one of the most popular international rankings for universities. It is also the only global rankings that have been independently reviewed and approved by IREG, the Observatory on Academic Ranking and Excellence.

Universities included in the latest rankings were evaluated according to the following six performance indicators: academic reputation (40%), employer's reputation (10%), faculty / student ratio (20%), research citations per paper (20%), proportion of international faculty (5%) and proportion of international students (5%).

Prof Eugene Cloete, Vice-Rector: Research, Innovation and Postgraduate Studies, says that SU's view on rankings has always been to not place too much emphasis on them, that academic excellence is non-negotiable, that quality always comes first and that no attempt is being made to artificially influence any rankings.

"That said, we are delighted with our improvement on the rankings and regards it as a confirmation of SU's status as a world-class institution."

The University of Cape Town is still the best in South Africa – 191. The University of the Witwatersrand is now third –  at no. 364. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) still occupies the first place worldwide –  for the 6th consecutive year.

• See www.topuniversities.com for more information.

​

Launched in April 2016, the new MPhil degree in Minimal Access Gynaecological Surgery (MAGS) is in full swing. And, according to programme coordinator Dr Viju Thomas, the first fellow is making great progress.

This innovative programme is offered by the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at Stellenbosch University’s Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences (FMHS). “It’s the first of its kind in South Africa and, to the best of my knowledge, in Africa,” says Thomas.

Traditionally, gynaecologists are trained to perform open surgery using large incisions. But good clinical evidence shows that, for most procedures, keyhole surgery is as effective – and often preferable.

"Keyhole surgery (or minimal access surgery) uses very small incisions to perform surgery that previously needed large incisions," Thomas explains. "The advantages to the patient are numerous and include a shorter recovery time, more aesthetically acceptable incisions, less blood loss and a shorter hospital stay.”

Learning to perform keyhole surgery can take a very long time. As a result, very few South African doctors have mastered the skill.

"Unfortunately traditional curricula only include basic endoscopic training," Thomas explains. He and his team recognised this serious void in surgical training, and decided to offer a solution.

The new MPhil programme now enables gynaecologists with an interest in keyhole surgery to obtain formal training in a safe environment, under the mentorship of skilled endoscopic surgeons.

"It’s important that this type of surgery is taught to all gynaecologists performing minimal access surgery," Thomas emphasises. "These skills should not be self-taught. Instead, they should be transferred to the gynaecologist in a structured and academically sound environment that also guarantees the patient’s safety."

The full-time MPhil programme, which stretches over a period of two years, follows a rigorous academic curriculum that focuses on the essential pillars of endoscopic surgery, followed by one-on-one preceptorship. The curriculum is centred around safety, advanced instrumentation, disease processes, evidence-based interventions and procedural training.

Due to the "one-on-one" training model, the FMHS is currently only able to accept one full-time trainee every two years. However, a four-year, part-time option is also available to young, enthusiastic gynaecological surgeons.

The first MPhil fellow, Dr Annelize Barnard, is a fully certified obstetrician and gynaecologist with a special interest in endoscopy. "She’s a dynamic and enthusiastic surgeon, and we believe she will do very well," Thomas concludes.

​Stellenbosch University is moving towards implementing a full electronic student feedback system. Implementation of this system started on 01 May 2017.  A key priority of the process is to develop an information producing system that will focus on aspects of teaching that are closely linked with improved learning. Moving towards an electronic system will create the opportunity for a more flexible system which could contribute to such teaching and learning conversations. It will allow lecturers greater access to formative feedback possibilities and for reports to be made available quicker so as to enable lecturers to respond to feedback, if necessary. Students will then be able to experience the outcomes of their feedback.

For more information, click here:  http://www.sun.ac.za/english/learning-teaching/ctl/Documents/WebsiteInfo_Eng.pdf

​UCM members Wibke de Villiers and Riaan Combrinck presented and helped arrange a CPD short course on concrete as structural engineering material. The course was held at Stias in Stellenbosch on the 12^th of May. Other presenters included George Evans from PPC as well as Gideon van Zijl and Tata van Rooyen also from Stellenbosch University. Topics included fresh concrete, concrete in practice, durability, sustainability, advanced materials and four existing concrete marvels from around the world. The course was attended by 38 people and received positive feedback from all attendees. The course will also be presented in Johannesburg on the 29^th of August at the Aviator near OR Thambo International Airport. More information and registration can be found here: http://shortcourses.sun.ac.za/courses/c-7/2017-4737.html.

The 14^th Stellenbosch International Chamber Music Festival will run from 30 June to 9 July at the Stellenbosch Konservatorium. The Konservatorium is the home of the Department of Music at Stellenbosch University and the SICMF is surely one of its most illustrious projects – a project of hope, world-class education and performance, and diversity.

From the point of view of the concert going public, the evening faculty concerts are a highlight, not only of the SICMF itself, but also of the entire South African classical music calendar. Local concert goers will be hard pressed to find a more inspiring and concentrated series of concerts in which new music is juxtaposed with favourites from the standard chamber music repertoire; all performed by a faculty that includes the likes of Daniel Rowland, Alissa Margulis, and Nicolas Dautricourt (violin), Alexander Buzlov, Thomas Caroll and Peter Martens (cello), James Austin Smith (oboe), a number of principals from the MET Opera Orchestra in New York City, and Nina Schumann and Luis Magalhães of TwoPianists fame to mention just a few.

Composers include Vivaldi, Mendelssohn, Schönberg, Shostakovich, Piazzolla, Mozart, Liebermann, Brahms, Sibelius, Saint-Saëns and Kapustin. The featured living composer is the South African born Robert Fokkens who currently resides in the UK. Maestro Daniel Raiskin, back by popular demand, will conduct the Festival Symphony Orchestra in a programme featuring Rimsky-Korsakov's rousing orchestral showpiece, Scheherazade. Soloists, Billy Hunter – trumpet, and Tatjana Masurenko – viola, will play Arutunian's trumpet concerto and Walton's viola concerto respectively. Dutch maestro, Joost Smeets, will conduct Bizet's Carmen Suites with a Festival Concert Orchestra of over 150 participants!

For a full list of performing artists as well as detailed evening programmes, visit www.sicmf.co.za. Tickets are now on sale at Computicket and if trends of recent years past are to repeat themselves, patrons are well advised to book early as performances will sell out. For further info regarding tickets, contact Fiona Grayer at concerts@sun.ac.za or (021) 808 2358.

Prospective Matie students only have until 30 June 2017 to get their applications in to study at Stellenbosch University (SU). 30 June is also the deadline for applying for accommodation in SU's residences.

Stellenbosch University is rated as one of the top three universities in South Africa and recently improved its position on the QS World University Ranking for 2017-2018. The University also has the highest first-year throughput rate in South Africa with more than 85% of our students annually going on their second year of studies.

"We are very excited about the increase in the number applications for 2018, proving that SU is a first choice university, but we are concerned about the more than 8000 applications that are incomplete and as a result cannot be considered," says Mr Spurgeon Wilson, Advisor at the Centre for Student Recruitment and Career Advice.

"Prospective students are requested to get their applications in rather sooner than later to give themselves some space and time to complete the application that includes uploading the necessary documents and to make changes if necessary."

Wilson adds that it is important that applicants not only know what the minimum requirements for a programme are, but that they need to read the faculty selection guidelines, including selection mark requirements. These are often different to the minimum requirements.

Financial assistance

Applicants can also start to apply for financial assistance. Here the deadline is 31 August 2017. The University manages more than 19 000 under and postgraduate bursaries and loans on behalf of companies, individuals and institutions.

Applications can be done online at www.maties.com. Phone 021 808 9111 for more information, e-mail info@sun.ac.za or do a live chat at www.maties.com (click on the Lets Talk feature).

​The UCM recently purchased an ICAR Rheometer from Germann Instruments to the value of R 340 000. Rheology provides a more scientific measure of concrete's suitability for casting and compaction procedures compared to the traditional slump test. This specific ICAR Rheometer is suitable for testing the rheology of fresh concrete with a stone size up to 19 mm and is the only one of its kind in South Africa. The rheometer is a welcome addition to the UCM laboratory and has already been used by both undergraduate and post graduate students. The UCM gratefully acknowledges the financial contribution of the Engineering Faculty, SubCom B Research Committee as well as the Civil Engineering Department of Stellenbosch University.

​In a statement released today (15 June), Universities SA (USAf) said the first quarter findings of Statistics South Africa's (SSA) Quarterly Labour Force Survey corroborates their belief that tertiary education is an enabler of social mobility and a catalyst for economic equality.

Wishing South Africa a safe, reflective Youth Day, Prof Ahmed Bawa, USAf's Chief Executive Officer, referred to the late Nelson Mandela, who said “It is through education that the daughter of a peasant can become a doctor, that the son of a mineworker can become the head of a mines, and a child of farmworkers can become a president of a great nation."

Read USAf's full statement here. 

Why do some people commit violent crimes seemingly just for fun? Have they had particularly bad childhoods, or are they in some way "pre-programmed" to simply get their kicks from vicious aggression?

In his PhD research, Khethelo Xulu uses his knowledge of molecular biochemistry and genetics to investigate this phenomenon of so-called appetitive aggression. His work forms part of efforts by the SARChI Chair in Posttraumatic Stress Disorders (PTSD) in the Department of Psychiatry to understand how violence and trauma affect South Africans, and why some people cope better than others.

"Those who perpetrate acts of appetitive aggression seem not to be traumatised by what they see and hear while committing such offences, and feel comfortable in unsafe and cruel environments," Xulu explains. His PhD is supervised by Dr Sian Hemmings, Prof Soraya Seedat and Dr Stefanie Malan-Muller.

Xulu's study is the first on the topic to be conducted in a South African population of young male former offenders. Genetic samples were taken from 290 Xhosa men and the 5-HTT gene was assessed. It plays a role in transporting serotonin, a neurotransmitter that influences how people respond to stress. 

Xulu and his co-researchers found no link between aggressive behaviour and specific genetic variations in the serotonin transporter (5-HTT) promoter region of the particular participants.

However, there seems to be an association between appetitive aggression and the presence of the intron 2 (STin2) 10-repeat allele. This bit of genetic material is linked to a low expression of 5-HTT, and in the process to a dysregulated, poorer response to stress. Its presence is linked to a greater likelihood of novelty seeking behaviour and aggressive deeds, as well as a heated temperament.

"Knowing more about the molecular mechanisms and genetic architecture of essential genes that encode for neurotransmitters helps us understand the molecular underpinnings involved in how appetitive aggression and other mental health disorders develop.

"This is particularly important in finding out how PTSD and aggression behaviours develop in a uniquely South African population," Xulu says.

Caption: Khethelo Xulu is investigating a phenomenon called appetitive aggression.

Stellenbosch University student Lauren Billson (22) loves the outdoors and while other people might run the other way, this SA lifesaver relishes the challenge of facing sub-10 degree water, massive waves, a flotilla of bluebottles and the possibility of ocean currents.

Lauren, who is busy with her honours degree in Accounting, has been included in the Commonwealth Team that will represent South Africa at the Festival of Lifesaving Championships to be held in Durban from 10-12 August.

Growing up in Port Elizabeth, Lauren started with surf lifesaving (competing at the beach) at the age of 14 and stillwater lifesaving (competing in a pool) at the age of 18 when she became a Matie.

Surf lifesaving includes a wide variety of events including surf swim, run swim run, board races, ironman (a combination of swim, board and surfski) as well as a few rescue simulated races. Stillwater lifesaving events take place in a pool, often with the use of equipment such as fins and rescue tubes. A few events include rescuing a manikin.

"Being a swimmer I mainly compete in the swimming events," she says.

She is also a member of the Maties Swimming Club and has represented the university at galas and the annual USSA competitions.

 "I am honoured and excited to represent my country again," says Lauren, who represented South Africa at the 2016 World Lifesaving Championships, where she came seventh in the surf swim.

This event was an absolute highlight for her.

"It was incredible to be part of this biennial championships, where a large (and ever growing) number of countries came together to showcase their best lifesavers in both the pool and the surf."

Her dream is to represent South Africa at the 2017 International Surf Lifesaving Championships in New Zealand as well as the 2018 World Lifesaving Championships.

"This would depend a lot on my studies as this is my final year and studies have to come first," she adds.

Lauren will join the accounting firm KPMG in 2018 to complete her accounting articles and board exams.

"I've always been a busy girl, running between the classroom, sports field and swimming pool. I must have picked up some time management on the way. Of course some sacrifices have to be made to ensure I get everything done. But I've always preferred being busy."

Lauren trains approximately 15 hours per week, with sessions in the swimming pool as well as the gymnasium.

"I also do a bit of running in the off season and closer to lifesaving season I fit in a technical session a week. This is where I practise my stillwater events. These are quite technical."

For her lifesaving is a lifestyle as well as a sport.

"There is an event for almost everyone and you get to compete against top athletes from all over the world on some of the world's most beautiful coastlines. What's not to love?"

The only drawback is that lifesaving is not a mainstream sport and therefore not well known.

"It's difficult to explain it to someone that has no knowledge of it. There is a huge lack of recognition for some of the world's best athletes."

• Lauren is not the only Billson sibling to represent South Africa. Her elder sister, Carmel, is the team captain, while her younger sister, Natalie, also a student at Stellenbosch University, was included in the Commonwealth National President's team.
  

On Friday (16 June) we celebrate Youth Day. In opinion pieces published in the media, the following staff members and students from Stellenbosch University focus on some of the pressing challenges facing our youth and what should be done to solve them. Click the links below for the respective articles.

• Prof Yusef Waghid (Mail & Guardian)
  

• Folkers Williams (Cape Argus)

• Sibonele Sosibo (News24)
  

A new look, new tenants, a new shared vision and a new name. This is the story of the Winter Cereal Building Block 6 on Stellenbosch University's (SU) Welgevallen experimental farm. The building reopened last week after extensive renovation work, and is now to be known as the AgroHub.

According to Prof Danie Brink, acting dean of the Faculty of AgriSciences, the building was underutilised for SU purposes, and in addition was old, dilapidated and no longer employee friendly. It was therefore decided to make the building more fit for purpose, and to lease office space to research-related entities in the agricultural industry.

Space has since been taken up by HORTGRO Science, Citrus Research International (CRI) and Agricolleges International, as well as the Plant Breeding Laboratory of the SU Department of Genetics. The building is currently 75% let and negotiations are also under way with other entities.

Funding for the upgrade came from the Central Strategic Fund of Stellenbosch University and its Faculty of AgriSciences. In addition, HORTGRO Science contributed R1 million for the refurbishing of the building, while CRI International signed a long-term lease agreement.

Deon den Hartog of DHQS Projects, and Junaid Gafieldien of SU Facility Management headed the project.

"The project is much more than just a matter of effective space utilisation, but will increasingly help facilitate transdisciplinary research opportunities between the University and other research entities," Prof Brink said at the official opening. He believes it will ensure closer cooperation between industry partners. According to him, the project is part of the "new way" in which institutions in the higher education sector are increasingly functioning.

Prof Brink used the opportunity to thank the agricultural industry in general, as well as loyal partners like the Western Cape Department of Agriculture, for their support of agricultural education and research at Stellenbosch University for nearly a century. He was of the opinion that continued industry partnerships help to keep the Faculty relevant, at the forefront and on track.

At the opening function, Willem Botes of the Plant Breeding Laboratory (PBL) also provided an overview of the upgrades done at Welgevallen that have strengthened the University's cereal breeding activities. New agricultural equipment such as a Wintersteiger experimental harvester and planter, drones and a self-driving tractor were obtained over the past few months. A Perten near-infrared spectroscope (NIR) was also purchased for the quality store.

According to Botes, the funding for the purchase of the equipment mainly comes from Grain SA and THRIP. These are valuable additions to the PBL's wheat pre-breeding programme.

• Industry partners interested in renting office space in the AgroHub can contact Dr Michael-John Freeborough, faculty manager of the Faculty of AgriSciences: mfree@sun.ac.za or 021 808 4802

Meet the AgroHub's new "residents":

• HORTGRO Science is HORTGRO's research arm. Their staff do research to promote the deciduous fruit industry, among others, while projects and initiatives by other institutions such as SU also receive generous funding. This includes a chair in the Department of Horticultural Science, among others, as well as many projects by Matie researchers and students.

www.hortgro-science.co.za

• Citrus Research International (CRI) does research and makes technical inputs to especially the Southern African citrus industry. CRI operates three offices countrywide: in Nelspruit, Port Elizabeth and Stellenbosch. The organization's chief executive officer, Dr Vaughan Hattingh, and phytosanitary specialist Elma Carstens have offices in the AgroHub. The CRI enjoys alliance partnership with various research institutions. Several CRI scientists work in departments of the SU Faculty of AgriSciences, among others.
  
  www.citrusres.com
• AGRICOLLEGES International works in the field of agricultural education. This cloud-based e-learning institution is using the Brightspace learning management system (LMS) to provide students with affordable, accessible and industry-relevant agricultural course content – hopefully from 2018 onwards.  AGRICOLLEGES international has forged a strategic alliance with Stellenbosch University that will serve as a portal for the establishment of an e-learning curriculum from NQF 5 level. 
  www.agricolleges.com

Photo caption:

Attending the opening ceremony were (from left) Dr Vaughan Hatting of Citrus Research International, Mr Richard Krige of the Wintergrain Trust, Dr Tharina Theron, SU senior director: research and innovation, Ms Theresa Sonnenberg of HORTGRO Science, and Prof Danie Brink, acting dean of the SU Faculty of AgriSciences. Photo: Engela Duvenage

Over the past few years the state of democracy in South Africa has been increasingly threatened by large scale corruption, mismanagement of state funds and improper governance practices under President Jacob Zuma's leadership. This is evident from media reports and public commentary by a range of political analysts. Globally, democracy is also not faring well with rising populism undermining liberal values.

Tracking democracy since the heady days of its global spread in the wake of the collapse of the former Soviet Bloc in the 1990s, the Transformation Research Unit (TRU): Democracy Globally at Stellenbosch University (SU) has taken the lead with a number of other research organisations across the world to interrogate the reasons behind this apparent unravelling of democracy. The TRU, which is based in the Political Science Department in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, focuses on examining South African democracy comparatively in the regional southern African and global contexts from a political, economic and social perspective.

"The proposed data centre is not meant to become yet another data archive. What we envisage instead is the creation of an "Intelligent Node" to help us locate data needed for analyses and teaching in the general area of democracy research by searching the repositories of already existing international archive networks. This will allow us to contribute to the creation of new knowledge in the field of democracy studies, with a specific contextualisation for South Africa, and at the same time we will help integrate South African social research into global networks via the Research Data Alliance (RDA)," says Prof Ursula van Beek, the Head of TRU.

The RDA was launched in 2013 by the European Commission, the United States National Science Foundation and National Institute of Standards and Technology, and the Australian Government's Department of Innovation. The RDA aims to build bridges to enable the global research community to openly share data across technologies, disciplines, and countries to address the grand challenges of society.

Since its inception, TRU has taken a mixed-method approach in its research by combining in-depth qualitative country studies with quantitative analyses. Its heavy reliance on empirical data over the years led TRU's local and international partners to the idea of establishing a data centre.

"During a recent TRU workshop the participants also discussed the growing need for postgraduate students to improve their research methodology skills in quantitative research, which is regarded as a 'rare skills' area in South Africa," explains Van Beek.

To this end, a concurrent training programme has been proposed to expand the pool of young African scholars.

"Postgraduate students will therefore also be instructed by international experts on the data selection process to support their research hypotheses, and they will learn where to look for this data and how to do the analyses by utilising our Intelligent Node."  

TRU also recently completed one of two comparative projects, which was focused on democracy in South Africa, Zimbabwe, Namibia and Botswana.

"I am happy to report that the findings of the all-African team will be published in a dedicated edition of the international journal of politics, the Taiwan Journal of Democracy, on 1 July 2017."

"The second project that TRU is working on is nearing completion and focuses on democracy in South Africa from a global perspective. The research has established a decline in the legitimacy of democracies over the last 20 years in countries like Turkey, where the recent referendum has effectively killed democracy; Poland, where a populist government has come to power; and South Africa, where poor quality of governance has given rise to radicalism and polarisation that are threatening democracy."

"The discouraging findings," says van Beek, "convinced us that further research into the state of democracy in South Africa was imperative and that the investigation ought to be supported by solid empirical evidence. We want to focus on social cohesion, which we consider to be the bedrock of democracy.  We believe that the problem of social cohesion can no longer be meaningfully investigated in isolation from regional and global trends as the globalisation of capital and the mass flows of refugees and immigrants bring additional pressures on efforts directed at attaining social cohesion at the nation-state level. At the same time, one particular research methodology is not likely to add much new knowledge and practical advice on the subject. For these reasons we   decided to create the Intelligent Node and thus integrate into global networks."

PHOTO: A group of national and international academics recently participated in a workshop by the Transformation Research Unit (TRU): Democracy Globally at Stellenbosch University. From the left in the first row are Dr Catherine Musuva (AU: Electoral Commission), Dr Cindy Steenekamp (SU), Prof Ursula van Beek (SU), Dr Nicola de Jager (SU), PhD candidate, Annemie Parkin (SU), and Ms Jordan Fredericks (Honours student, SU). In the second row are Prof Dieter Fuchs (Stuttgart University, Germany), Prof Dirk Berg-Schlosser (Philipps University in Marburg, Germany), Dr Webster Zambara (Institute for Justice and Reconciliation), Prof Hans-Dieter Klingemann (Research Centre, Berlin), and Prof Ursula Hoffmann-Lange (Bamberg University, Germany). In the third row are Dr Krige Sieberts (SU), Prof Laurence Whitehead (Oxford University), Prof David Sebudubudu (University of Botswana), and Ms Helen Kores (MA student, SU).

Stellenbosch University (SU) has long taken a firm stance against all forms of sexual misconduct and violence against women. The Rector's Management Team (RMT) has therefore noted with concern recent complaints about a rape culture at the institution, and has decided to appoint a Task Team to investigate rape culture to urgently look into the matter and make the necessary recommendations.

At its regular weekly meeting on 8 March 2016, the RMT reaffirmed the University approach of zero tolerance towards sexual misconduct. Rape is a serious criminal offence that falls under the jurisdiction of the South African Police Service (SAPS) and the judiciary, and the University provides its full cooperation in all criminal investigations.

Sexual misconduct is also dealt with in terms of the University's Student Disciplinary Code and its Sexual Harassment Policy (for staff members). SU's Division of Legal Services investigates allegations, and University's Sexual Harassment Advisory Committee hears and acts on reported cases of sexual misconduct.

However, what is being raised goes beyond legal and disciplinary aspects. There are complaints of a general culture of disrespect and harassment of women students, and that this is regarded as normal. This should also be seen in the context of challenges in this regard in society as a whole.

Existing counter-measures at SU include ongoing activities on our various campuses to create awareness about gender issues and sexual harassment. Consciousness-raising sessions and sensitivity training for staff members and students take place both in and outside of residences. But more systematic interventions might be required to challenge entrenched practices. Coming up with recommendations in this regard will fall within the ambit of the Task Team's scope of work.

Policies and procedures are constantly under review with a view to strengthening SU's institutional response to sexual misconduct, assault and harassment.

Members of the Task Team are as follows: 

Birgit Schreiber, Chairperson of the Taskteam

Monica Du Toit, Transformation Office                  

Mutina Dunn-Coetzee, Centre for Student Counselling and Development

Amanda Gouws, Sexual harassment Advisory Committee

Ilhaam Gorenewald, Matie Sport

Pieter Kloppers, Student Structures and Communities

Mariana Kruger, Tygerberg campus representative

Melany le Roux, Campus security

Kara Meiring, Student representative

Farai Mubaiwa, Student representative

Mumtaj Parker, Student Counselling and Development

Faith Pienaar, Transformation Office

Danie Roux, Student Discipline

Nicolette van den Eijkel, Facility Management

René-Jean van der Berg, Corporate Marketing

Leslie van Rooi, Student Structures and Communities

Martin Viljoen, Corporate Marketing

Pierre Viviers, Campus Health Services 

A firm grasp of key philosophical concepts is important for prospective teachers if they wish to help address pedagogical and societal challenges in their specific contexts.

This is one of the key messages of a new book by Dr Nuraan Davids and Prof Yusef Waghid of the Department of Education Policy Studies in the Faculty of Education at Stellenbosch University.

Their book Philosophy and education as action: Implications for Teacher Education was published recently by Rowman & Littlefield – Lexington Series

Containing ten chapters, the book focuses on ten key philosophical concepts, namely knowledge, practical reasoning, productive action, education, free speech, craft or art, deliberative engagement, love and friendship, cosmopolitanism, and potentiality (the way things could be as supposed to the way they are). 

Each chapter is presented as a conversation between students and lecturers, and reflects on the afore-mentioned concepts in relation to teaching and learning – emphasising how  action can be engendered within philosophy of education.

According to the authors, Philosophy and education as action: Implications for Teacher Education offers a nuanced and practical understanding of these concepts to pre-service and in-service teachers, as well as academics and researchers.

"In acknowledging the ongoing struggles that prospective teachers, and we would imagine, in-service teachers as well, have in accessing the language of philosophy of education, we have identified the ten key philosophical concepts," says Davids.

"The book is unique in the sense that it attempts to respond to prospective teachers' concerns about the profession and how philosophy of education can be used to respond to pedagogic and societal concerns in Africa," she adds.

The authors say the book also seeks to address their students' resistance to philosophy of education.

"There are a number of reasons for this resistance. On the one hand, the majority of students in our class come from undergraduate programmes where they had not previously encountered philosophy of education. As such, they generally describe the language of philosophy of education as unnecessarily complex and confusing."

"On the other hand, those students who might have encountered philosophy before, or those who might be open to studying philosophy of education, do not necessarily consider the latter as necessary to teaching subjects, such as English, mathematics, or science."

The authors argue for a link between philosophy and education with the potential to effect teacher education practices.

"We endeavour to clarify pertinent philosophical concepts in education and then look at how these concepts impact teaching, learning and management as classroom practices."

The authors say pre-service and in-service teachers, undergraduate and post-graduate students, academics, and researchers may benefit from the book.

"Anyone who is interested in teacher education, teaching, and philosophy of education would find this book very useful. The book has a broader appeal because of our shared experiences with academics and lecturers from other international institutions."

• Philosophy and education as action: Implications for Teacher Education is available through Rowman & Littlefield – Lexington Series and Amazon.

​With its unique approach and dedicated team of healthcare workers, the new stroke unit at Tygerberg Hospital is already making great strides in helping to address South Africa's stroke burden.

Research indicates that dedicated care units can assist in optimising stroke care via relatively simple, low-cost methods. Yet in South Africa, where stroke is one of the top three causes of mortality, such units have not previously been prioritised. This is starting to change thanks to the establishment of the new Tygerberg Stroke Unit (TSU).

The new unit is the result of many months of preparation by Stellenbosch University (SU) and role players at Tygerberg Hospital, including Dr Naeem Brey, consultant neurologist at the Division of Neurology at SU's Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences (FMHS), Dr Neshaad Schreuder, Head of General Specialist Services of the Department of Medicine, Prof Jonathan Carr, Head of the Division of Neurology, and Prof Rafique Moosa, Head of the FMHS' Department of Medicine. Other South African hospitals are now using the unit as a model.

The concept stemmed from the recognition of the high stroke burden in South Africa, as well as the positive outcomes seen at Groote Schuur and GF Jooste Hospitals, where similar units were previously successfully established.

"The TSU concept was refined by means of some modification of local and international models," says Brey. "After many meetings and deliberation with the various department heads, the unit was quietly launched on 1 February 2016."

Since the unit opened its doors in what used to be a six-bed hospital ward, approximately 130 patients have been treated. During this time the team also assisted with the care of stroke patients in the medical wards, while working on improving referral streams, optimising various protocols and disseminating information to other hospital units – all in an effort to get the unit running smoothly for the official launch in February 2017.

The multidisciplinary team treating stroke patients at the TSU includes doctors and nurses, as well as occupational therapists, speech therapists, physiotherapists, dieticians and social workers – all of whom received specialised training.

According to Brey hyper-acute, acute and sub-acute stroke patients are all eligible for management by the TSU team. "Depending on the type of stroke and the time of presentation, patients are rapidly assessed for thrombolytic therapy (the administration of medication to dissolve blood clots) ... Those who aren't eligible for this potentially life-changing treatment are managed according to best medical and surgical practices."

Following its success during the first year, other hospitals have been in contact with the team to set up units of their own – a gesture welcomed by Brey and the rest of the TSU team. "To facilitate this process, we have shared our protocols with different hospitals and will shortly be hosting training sessions."

For more information about the TSU, contact Brey at breyn@sun.ac.za or call +27 21 938 5500.

An integral part of the B.Eng Civil degree at Stellenbosch University, is the vacation training that the undergraduate students have to undertake over the course of their studies. To this end, the UCM announced a call for applications earlier this year for vacation training amongst the Civil undergraduate students, for the 2017 winter recess, to be conducted in the Structural Laboratory at Stellenbosch University. After an overwhelming number of applications, the following 8 students were selected (from left to right): Melissa Leonards (3^rd year), Ashton Moran (3^rd), Thilen Govender (4^th), Gina Loedolff (2^nd), Luqmaan Parker (4^th), Jessica Winter (3^rd), Simone Booysen (2^nd) and Lawrence Sterne (4^th).

Following a safety induction, the students are spending three to four weeks in the laboratory, under the supervision of the UCM staff, expanding their skill set in design, construction and experimentation. The tasks include:

• conducting tensile tests and cracking tests on plastic concrete
• developing moulds for textile reinforced concrete
• manufacturing alternative masonry units for thermal testing
• creating demonstration videos of the most commonly used experiments in the laboratory to aid with undergraduate practicals and teaching
• conducting life cycle analyses of alternative masonry units to determine their environmental impact

The students are not only exposed to the practicalities of working in an active laboratory, but the tasks they complete also make a meaningful contribution to the laboratory and current UCM research projects. Hopefully the students are also inspired to consider postgraduate studies in their future! 

Every year a number of babies are born in South Africa with genetic defects that prevent their immune systems from developing, and in the most severe cases leaving them totally defenceless against infection.

Protected in the womb, they grow into healthy new-born babies until they are exposed to the outside world, where they are powerless against the onslaught of viruses and bacteria that "normal" babies can cope with. Even the vaccines they receive at birth may turn against them and spread throughout their bodies – causing illness, rather than preventing it.

Severe Combined Immunodeficiency (SCID), the most severe form of primary immunodeficiency (PID), is a medical emergency. "These children have a severely impaired immune system from birth and usually die before their first birthday," says paediatric immunology specialist, Prof Monika Esser, Head of the National Health Laboratory Unit at Tygerberg Hospital. She also works with the Department of Paediatrics and Child Health at Stellenbosch University's Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences (FMHS). "Unless you put them in a sterile bubble, they just can't survive."

David Vetter

This was actually the case with David Vetter, a boy who was born in 1971 with this severe form of PID. Immediately after his birth at Texas Children's Hospital he was placed in a germ-free plastic chamber, or "bubble". He spent most of his life in similar sterile environments and his case attracted the attention of the media, who dubbed him "Bubble Boy". David died at the age of 12 from Burkitt's lymphoma caused by a dormant virus, Epstein-Barr, which he acquired from a bone-marrow transplant.

PID and its genetic causes were only discovered relatively recently. Before the advent of antibiotics in the early 1900s people, and children in particular, used to die rapidly from infections. Only after the introduction of antibiotics it became apparent that some people were more susceptible to infections than others.

PID covers a wide spectrum of disorders in which a part of the body's immune system is lacking or functioning improperly, or in rarer cases not functioning at all. Most cases of PID develop early in life – generally within the first few months or years of life, but in severe cases it will manifest within a few weeks after birth.

The first sign of PID is an unusual susceptibility to infection. "Severe, persistent, unusual, recurrent infections or unusual features of autoimmunity occur from early in life," Esser explains.

There are many common health issues in South Africa that make children more susceptible to infection and which have to be ruled out before PID can be diagnosed. "We have to screen very carefully for underlying or precipitating causes. If there are other causes for being immune impaired, like HIV, severe malnourishment, premature birth or other risk factors such as anatomic malformations, then obviously you are also going to have an excess of infections."

Genetic screening for severe PID at birth is becoming routine in many developed countries, but this is not envisaged to become a priority in South Africa with its shortages of financial and human resources in the healthcare system for more common diseases. This means that most cases of SCID in South Africa are diagnosed late or not at all, unless there is a family history of infant death due to severe infections.

Stem cell transplant

The only treatment option for severe cases of PID is a stem cell transplant. For it to succeed, it should be performed at the youngest possible age and before the child acquires any infections or is given live vaccines at birth. However, the diagnosis is usually made once the child already starts showing susceptibility to infection – frequently only after multiple infections – unless the doctors are made aware of a family history or a previous genetic diagnosis of the disease.

This was the case with Vetter's parents, who previously lost a son to severe PID and were warned by physicians that any future male child they conceive would have a 50% chance of also inheriting the disease. So when David was born, doctors were ready to place him in a sterile environment. Sadly for him the knowledge about transplantation and rejection of donor tissue was just in its infancy then.

Tygerberg success

A similar story played out in January 2016 when a woman from Cape Town arrived at Tygerberg Hospital (the academic hospital linked to the FMHS) to deliver her baby. On admission to the maternity ward, she presented a doctor's letter stating that she had previously lost a baby to severe PID and that any future children are at risk of the condition.

"Immediately after birth this infant had to be isolated to minimise exposure to germs in the environment, but that's no easy task. Ideally you need special rooms with sophisticated ventilation, specialised cleaning et cetera, but we don't have all of this at Tygerberg Hospital. The infection control team, with the help of the ward staff, isolated the child in a single room with restricted access to necessary staff only, provided special nursing services that required wearing gloves and masks at all times, and gave special cleaning instructions for anything the child received. Importantly, the new-born received no live vaccines at birth. Also the mom was kept with the child at all times to cocoon and breastfeed, which provided the child with antibodies against infection which he could not produce on his own," Esser recounts.

Blood tests confirmed that the child had severe PID and the Bone Marrow Registry and the transplant team at Groote Schuur Hospital were contacted for tissue typing and donor search for a transplant. The isolation continued while waiting for these results and the baby was given bacterial, fungal and viral prophylaxis, as well as immunoglobulin replacement infusions, to ward off infection until a more permanent solution could be found.

The solution had to come in the form of a stem cell transplant, but with a bone marrow donor list of only about 75 000 for the whole country, no match could be found. Since international bone marrow donor searches are very expensive and lengthy procedures, doctors were left with only one option to give this baby the best chance at life – performing a half-match stem cell transplant with cells harvested from his mother.

"If this is performed very early – preferably before two months of age or earlier – and the child is free of infection and has sustained no organ damage, a good outcome is expected even with a half-identical donor and moderate immune suppression to prevent rejection," Esser explains.

Currently there are only two facilities in the country's public sector where these transplants are performed on infants, resulting in long waiting times.

"International figures show that children who undergo transplants under the age of two months have the best survival rate, and with every day that passes the chance for a successful transplant wanes as the chance for infection increases."

Finally, just about one month after he took his first breath, the boy received a stem cell transplant. His mother's half-matched cells engrafted in his bone marrow and developed a new immune system.

"The transplant was a huge success and a normal immune system was reborn. The child has since been discharged from hospital and is thriving." He only received moderate immune suppression, which doctors believe he eventually might be able to stop altogether.

Very early diagnosis, meticulous nursing care and infection control and prompt access to transplantation saved this child's life – but sadly this is not the case for the great majority of babies with severe PID. Most are diagnosed when they are already struggling with persistent, recurring infections, fail to thrive or after early death. Low awareness of this disease, even in the medical fraternity, results in diagnoses usually being missed, despite obvious warning signs.

"We often make excuses in a country like South Africa endemic with TB, HIV, you name it, and say the child is just overexposed, especially if he or she is from a poor socioeconomic background."

Basic tests

According to Esser there is also a misunderstanding that very advanced immunology laboratories are required for a diagnosis. "The first thing the doctor should ask, is 'why are these infections happening?', 'is this unusual?', 'is there a relevant family history?' Then some first line investigations should be done. You can arrive at a provisional diagnosis with some very basic tests and confirm a definite molecular diagnosis at a later stage."

The warning signs for PID are: when an HIV-negative child disseminates with live vaccines; has persistently low lymphocyte counts; or the presence of certain organisms, especially those which would not be expected to cause illness in someone with normal immunity.

A South African registry was established in 2008 to create a database of all types of PID patients in order to record and profile these hereditary conditions and with increasing awareness help facilitate early diagnosis to ensure the best possible outcomes for PID patients, especially babies born with this condition. Less severe forms of PID can be treated or improved with immune replacement therapy, but best outcome and prevention of organ damage also depend on the earliest diagnosis.

According to Esser SCID causes terrible suffering for both parents and children. "The related morbidity and mortality are inevitable in these children if they are not diagnosed and treated early. And it can all be avoided and cured by means of early diagnosis and a successful transplant."

Caption: Prof Monica Esser

Photo by Luigi Bennett

​"Through the research conducted for our book we essentially investigated what the Constitution means to various stakeholders in South Africa and found that there were three threads of meaning – the one is tied to what the constitution represents to South Africans as a set of rules for a democracy, or also a peace accord; the other is tied to what it embodies – a constitutional contract, a social contract or an expedient through which to gain more power for the initial rulers; and the last one is tied to what it stands for, in other words, is it a set of rules with which to uphold the negotiated exchange of concessions and gains agreed upon on in 1996, a set of rules with which to build a national consensus, or rules through which the ruling party gain complete dominance," explains Prof Pierre du Toit from the Political Science Department at Stellenbosch University (SU) and one of the three co-authors of the book, South Africa and the case for Renegotiating the Peace.

The book was published by SUN Press.

Negotiations for South Africa's Constitution started in 1991 with the Conference for a Democratic South Africa (CODESA). After two years, CODESA was replaced by the Multi-Party Negotiating Forum (MPNF), which adopted the interim constitution in 1993. Following Nelson Mandela's inauguration as President in 1994, a Constitutional Assembly (CA) – Parliament today – would spend the next two years finalising the Constitutional Bill that was eventually passed on 11 October 1996 with an 85% majority. Two months later, the Bill was signed into law.

Yet despite a Constitution that is praised the world over and seen to be the legislative foundation of South Africa's democracy, there has been various indications that its foundations remain shaky due to various understandings of what the Constitution is, argues Du Toit and co-authors, Dr Charl Swart from the Centre for Research on Evaluation, Science and Technology (CREST), and Dr Salomé Teuteberg, from Taylor & Francis publishing.

Since 1994 there has been numerous examples of "ongoing discord about what the negotiated transition was about" and "what the negotiated outcome, in the form of the democratic constitution, stood for", write the three academics. These include statements printed in the Sunday Times in 1998 and attributed to Kgalema Motlanthe, the then Secretary General of the ANC.  Motlanthe was quoted as saying that should the ruling party gain a two-third majority in the 1999 election, it "would review the constitutional constraints posed by independent watchdogs such as the Auditor General, the Public Protector and Attorney General" to allow the party to govern "unfettered by constraints". While these statements were later retracted, increased calls to pursue the objectives of the ANC's National Democratic Revolution (NDR) in 2009 saw an uptake in public debates around the purpose of the Constitution. The NDR is a post-apartheid, SACP-generated plan for South Africa consisting of two phases – the transition of political power to the liberation movement followed by measures to gain full control over the economy and preferably move from a more capitalist to socialist system.

In 2011, former President FW de Klerk entered the fray, accusing the ANC's NDR of "seeking to disturb the constitutional balance".

"It became clear and is still clear, that there is a huge difference of opinion on the meaning of the Constitution," says Du Toit. "The debate has now moved to focus more directly on the nature of these negotiated constitutional compromises, on their status and on whether they were core defining aspects of the Constitution, and therefore more or less inviolate, or whether they were merely adjuncts, to be easily discarded. The most obvious current example would be the land question, which centres on the property clause (section 25 of the Bill of Rights)."

These exact sentiments were also conveyed in 2011 in an article by Advocate Ngoako Ramathlodi, a former member of the ANC's National Executive Committee (NEC) who described the concessions made by the party as "fatal" and the Constitution as a "great compromise" which largely favoured white domination.

A year later, former ANC Policy Chief, Jeff Radebe would echo Ramathlodi: "Our first transition embodies a framework and national consensus that may have been appropriate for political emancipation, a political transition, but has proven inadequate and inappropriate for our social and economic transformation phase."

Since then, and at times of various crises within land reform, and the education and mining sectors, there has been calls for a new CODESA. These utterances, argues Du Toit, Swart and Teuteberg, while normal for secure, consolidated democracies, are however problematic for "newly democratised, unconsolidated, post-conflict societies".

"In South Africa, the stakes are very high and rival interpretations of constitutional rules carry implications for policy making that have ramifications for the way in which society and the economy are ordered. Implementing one policy option derived from one particular interpretation of a constitutional rule over another may also carry greater risks of policy failure, with severe costs being incurred, to be borne by citizens.

"We therefore argue in our book that the current unhappiness over policy issues in South Africa, actually has its origin in what was a flawed negotiation process from the outset and that the 85% majority vote of 1996 obscured the divergent interpretations of what the document stood for, represented and embodied for the various parties that participated in the negotiations. The result was that South Africa, from the very start of its democracy, lacked a national consensus on how to go about consolidating democracy, and on how to develop society and the economy."

Based on research conducted by academics Zachary Elkins, Tom Ginsberg and James Melton for their 2009 book, The Endurance of National Constitutions, the median life spans of constitutions were determined to be 19 years on average. The disillusionment that many may feel regarding the country's Constitution is therefore not surprising. The trio determined the life span of constitutions by comparing every democratic constitution in the world, safe for Great Britain, from 1789 to 2005 and by looking at 935 distinct constitutional systems implemented in more than 200 national states. They found that of the 935 constitutions, 746 had been replaced over the years while 189 were still in existence in 2005.

Authors Du Toit, Swart and Teuteberg argue that we can also learn from some notable examples of renegotiation, especially in Malaysia and Lebanon. Over time, says Du Toit, these examples show how longstanding discord over how various stakeholders understand their constitution can lead to chronic policy failure and an eventual national crisis.

"We already see signs of a crisis emerging here, and also how opinion leaders respond. In late 2016, for example, at the height of the state capture crisis, the Nelson Mandela Foundation issued a press statement calling for 'a national convention of stakeholders to begin to reimagine South Africa's future beyond the unsustainable stresses of the moment'."

When crisis conditions become unbearable for the ruling elites and other stakeholders, the authors hope that the road would have been paved for a renegotiation of the meaning of the Constitution rather than a complete overhaul of the Constitution. "This is not a call for a new CODESA, instead it is a call for a process to salvage the very democracy we negotiated in the first place in 1996." 

"The renegotiation of constitutions has taken place in countries like Lebanon, Zimbabwe and Malaysia, but only under conditions of extreme crisis. We may still be able to get away from perceiving what is currently happening in South Africa as a crisis. This is because the elite can still, for example, escape inadequate schooling systems and education in the country by sending their children to private schools," explains Du Toit.

"But, when we reach real conditions of crisis, the same stakeholders who negotiated our Constitution may have to consider returning to the negotiating table to handle the crisis. We do not believe that the Constitution as a whole should ideally be on the agenda, but rather that we should use that opportunity to recalibrate our peace negotiations and reconsider what our Constitution stands for."

However, says Du Toit, for this to happen, it is important to start public discussions about a renegotiation of the Constitution and to make it part of the public debate now. This, he says, is not any different to the climate that allowed for the current Constitution to be negotiated in the first place.

"It's similar to when, in 1978, David Welsh and Frederik Van Zyl Slabbert wrote a book with the title South Africa's Options: Strategies for Sharing Power. They were the ones who for the first time in an academic sense put the case for negotiating a constitution from the apartheid state into the public sphere. Nothing happened at that point, but in 1990, the whole world shifted and the politics of negotiation started. They introduced the concept of the political negotiation to South Africa, so that by the time 1990 rolled around, there was an awareness at various levels that it can be done and that we can reconfigure and re-adapt to what is necessary at the time. That time may arrive for us soon again."

Those interested in purchasing the book, South Africa and the Case for Renegotiating the Peace, can do so by contacting orders@africansunmedia.co.za or by visiting SUN Press' online platform at www.sun-e-shop.co.za.