The Science Inside

The Science Inside is produced and presented by Paul McNally and Anina Mumm.

Technical producer: DJ Keyez

Researcher: Lutfiyah Suliman

Visit scibraai.co.za and journalism.co.za for more content.

You remember what Facebook did to you, right? Playing with your emotions? Manipulating your newsfeed? They used algorithms, maths and science to trick you. Here's how...

The Science Inside is produced and presented by Paul McNally and Anina Mumm.

Technical producer: DJ Keyez

Researcher: Lutfiyah Suliman

Visit scibraai.co.za and journalism.co.za for more content.

The Science Inside is produced and presented by Paul McNally and Anina Mumm.

Technical producer: DJ Keyez

Researcher: Lutfiyah Suliman

Visit scibraai.co.za and journalism.co.za for more content.

Is negligent farming common in South Africa? How dangerous is poor farming practice for humans and animals? Is science and technology being used ethically to improve animal health and productivity? Find out in Episode 22 of The Science Inside.

Protests and strike action are characteristic of a democratic South Africa, for better or for worse. In this show we look at the facts around protests in SA, and we look at the role of crowd psychology. And in light of recent unrest in the platinum belt, we look at platinum as a commodity.

It's no secret that Jacob Zuma is a traditional man. With rumours abound that his health is failing, we wondered whether our president would turn to Western medicine or traditional African medicine should he become seriously ill. We spoke to a traditional healer, a medical doctor and a researcher.

How do you lose a plane? And how do you find it once it's lost? In this episode, a pilot, an air traffic controller, a satellite tracking expert and a researcher working on underwater sensing technologies helps us piece together the mystery of the missing Malaysian flight MH370.

As the lights keep going out in offices and households, cable theft gangs across the country continue to pull up the metal and sell it for scrap. In this episode we looked at power supply, from coal to our kitchen appliances; at the dangers and effects of cable theft, and at possible alternatives to both coal and cables.

Can we rid the world of mosquitoes? Should we? Genetic engineers recently reported the creation of mosquitoes that produce over 95% male offspring. In this episode, we explored what would happen if they were released into the wild, and we looked at South Africa’s pioneering successes in the fight against malaria.

Are we as bad at maths and science as a recent but flawed World Economic Forum report says we are?

In this episode we answer the question of whether the youth is prepared to study science at university level, and we look at a model of maths and science education from a high school in Limpopo that shows South African children can succeed with the right approach, no matter what the circumstances.