Technology

It is not easy to divine how many South Africans frequent specific social sites, because there is not much research in this field and because the area is notoriously difficult to quantify, with many people having multiple presences on social sites. ... more

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The number of South Africans with access to the internet has increased by 15 percent to reach 5.3-million users in 2009. That means that the internet penetration in the country has surpassed the 10 percent mark. A similar growth rate is expected in 2010, and by 2015 there should be almost 11 million South Africans online. ... more

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The people in the know say that Professor Alberts’ super-thin solar panel technology is “potentially the biggest solar energy breakthrough to date”.

It took more than a decade of research for a team of scientists at the University of Johannesburg in South Africa, led by Professor Vivian Alberts, to achieve the breakthrough, named Thin Film Solar Technology (TFST), an advanced system that is poised to provide the final push needed to make solar power an accessible energy option. ... more

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Developed for diamond mines, Scannex could find deployment at international airports.

The scare with a would-be terrorist who apparently smuggled a bomb into a plane destined for USA on Christmas Day 2009 brought into focus the necessity for improved security. The United States and other Western countries are implemented body searches and have started using full-body scanners at international airports. ... more

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South Africa has a first-world telecom network in the commercial centres, but very low penetration of services in rural and remote areas. The country has over 14 million mobile phone and almost five million fixed line subscribers. Until recently, Telkom was the only licensed provider of public switched telecommunications services. ... more