Latest News Archive

Please select Category, Year, and then Month to display items
Categories
UFS News Media Release Research
Years
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
Months
January February March April May June July August September October November December
Previous Archive
31 October 2018 Photo Charl Devenish
PhD students compete in three-minute thesis competition
The ten PhD students who participated in the Three-Minute-Thesis Competition.
Ten Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) students from five universities across the country were pitted against one another in the robust finals of the annual national Three-Minute Thesis (3MT) competition, held at the University of the Free State (UFS).

Postgraduate School Assistant Officer, Kamogelo Dithebe, said this is a research-communication competition developed by the University of Queensland, whereby PhD students are given three minutes to present a compelling oration on their thesis and its significance.

The competition challenges students to consolidate their ideas and research discoveries to be presented concisely to a non-specialist audience.

Developed in 2008, enthusiasm for the 3MT concept and its adoption in numerous universities has led to the development of an international competition. Students become eligible to participate in the national competition once they have participated in the competition at institutional level.
 
Dithebe stated that the institutional winner and the runner-up become eligible for representation at national level. Institutions that participated in the 2018 national competition were the University of KwaZulu-Natal, the University of Johannesburg, the University of Cape Town, Durban University of Technology, as well as the hosts, the University of the Free State.

Research on water-leakage problems comes out tops

The University of Cape Town’s Civil Engineering student, Rene Nsanzubuhoro, pipped all his counterparts to walk away with a R16 000 prize as well as a People’s Choice prize of R6 000 – this is where the audience were given ballots to vote for their choice. His topic was: Fighting leakage one pipe at a time. 

The core focus of his research was leakage in water-pipe systems. This is a major concern to water utilities for several reasons, including loss of a limited resource, pumping energy, revenue loss, and increased health risk as leaks are potential entry points for contaminants if a pressure drop occurs in the system. In the study, a novel device for assessing the condition of water-pipe systems was designed, constructed, and tested.

Research on clean water takes a second spot

The runner-up was a Chemical Engineering student from the University of Johannesburg, Oluwademilade Fayemiyo, who won a prize of R11 000. Her topic was: From wine to water: Searching within for clean water.

Two students from the University of the Free State, Trudie Strauss and Nokuthula Tlalajoe, represented the institution.

Strauss, who is a Mathematical Statistics student, talked about: Babelish Confusion: Finding statistical structure in the diversity of language.

Tlalajoe, a Health Professions Education student, presented the topic: Multiple transition for undergraduate first-year students in the MB CHB programme: Expectations, Experiences, and Emotions.

News Archive

Breeding of unique game requires a balance between conservation and sustainable use
2014-05-20

 

Game bred for qualities such as unconventional hair colour or horn quality, may on the long term have unexpected consequences for biodiversity and game farming.

This is according to the inaugural lecture of Prof Paul Grobler from the Department of Genetics at the University of the Free State (UFS).

Prof Grobler feels that the consequences of selective breeding should be examined carefully, as there is currently much speculation on the subject without sound scientific information to back it.

“At the moment, colour variation invokes much interest among game farmers and breeders. Unusual colour variants are already available in different game species. These unusual animals usually fetch much higher prices at auctions compared to prices for the ‘normal’ individuals of the species.”

Examples of these unusual variants are springbuck being bred in white, black or copper colours, the black-backed or ‘saddleback’ impala, and the gold-coloured and royal wildebeest.

A black-backed impala was recently sold for R5,7 million.

“Based on genetic theory, good reason exists why these practices need to be monitored, but one should also take care not to make the assumption that selective breeding will inevitably lead to problems,” warns Prof Grobler.

Grobler says that negative characteristics in a species can sometimes unwittingly be expressed during the selection process for a unique colour. “It is seen, for example, in purebred dogs where the breeding of a new race sometimes brings underlying genetic deviations in the species to the front.” He also believes that some of these animals may not be able to adapt to changing environmental conditions.

“However, one should also look at the positive side: because of the good demand for game, including unusual variants, there is much more game in South Africa today than in many decades. Balance should be found between the aims of conservation and the sustainable utilisation of game.”

Research at the UFS’s Department of Genetics is now trying to establish the genetic effects of intensive game breeding and predict the impact on biodiversity.

We use cookies to make interactions with our websites and services easy and meaningful. To better understand how they are used, read more about the UFS cookie policy. By continuing to use this site you are giving us your consent to do this.

Accept