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Amanda Weltman

Prof Amanda Weltman is a theoretical physicist who came to the University of Cape Town after earning her PhD in Physics from Columbia University under the supervision of Brian Greene, and working as a postdoctoral Researcher at Stephen Hawking's research group at the Center for Theoretical Cosmology at Cambridge University. Weltman’s research focus is on the fundamental physics that underlies the nature of the Universe. The goals of her research are to study the Universe as a whole, while gaining insight into its origin, composition, structure, evolution and ultimately its fate. Weltman has recently been awarded a SARChI in Physical Cosmology, and is the first woman in the mathematical or physical sciences to win the prestigious award. Weltman has won several prestigious awards including a Next Einstein Fellow award(2015/2016), the South African Institute of Physics Silver Jubilee Medal (2013), the Elsevier Young Scientist Award (2012) and the NSTF-BHP Billiton, TW Kambule Award (2012), the Women in Science award (2009) amongst many others. She is a member of the Cape Town Science Centre Scientific Advisory Board, the South African Royal Society and on the executive of the South African Young Academy of Sciences. “My training and my interests lie in both high energy particle theory and in cosmology,” says Weltman, “and my research is focused on developing bridges between the two.”

Why it's crucial that young scientists are taught the value of being wrong

Mar 01, 2016 15:51 pm UTC| Insights & Views Law

Albert Einstein is the most famous scientist of all time. From Calgary to Cape Town the image of the wild-haired, contemplative lone genius holed up in a messy office, changing the universe, has evolved into the archetype...

Economy

UK Stocks Slide as Labour Leadership Tensions and U.S.-China Talks Shape Markets

British stocks closed lower on Friday as political uncertainty surrounding the U.K.s ruling Labour Party pressured investor sentiment and weakened the pound for a fourth straight session. The FTSE 100 dropped 0.61%, while...

Cuba Weighs $100M U.S. Aid Offer Amid Fuel Crisis

Cuba said Thursday it is open to considering a $100 million humanitarian aid proposal from the United States, though officials remain doubtful about President Donald Trumps broader intentions as the island struggles...

Asian Currencies Slide as Strong U.S. Data Boosts Dollar and Fed Rate Hike Expectations

Asian currencies weakened on Friday as stronger-than-expected U.S. economic data pushed the dollar higher and reinforced market expectations that the Federal Reserve could maintain a hawkish monetary policy stance through...

Japan Inflation Outlook: Firms Eye Summer Price Hikes Amid Rising Energy Costs

Japan could experience another wave of widespread price increases this summer as companies respond to surging energy costs linked to tensions in the Middle East, according to a Bank of Japan (BOJ) report released Friday....

US Expects China to Boost Purchases of American Farm Products After Trump-Xi Summit

The United States expects China to commit to purchasing double-digit billions worth of U.S. agricultural products following a high-level summit between President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing,...

Politics

Ukraine Begins Major POW Swap as 205 Soldiers Return from Russian Captivity

Ukraine has successfully brought home 205 service personnel from Russian captivity in the first phase of a large-scale prisoner exchange with Russia, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy confirmed on Friday. The operation marks a...

Matthew Wale Elected Solomon Islands Prime Minister After No-Confidence Vote

Matthew Wale has been elected as the new Prime Minister of the Solomon Islands after lawmakers voted out former leader Jeremiah Manele in a no-confidence motion last week. The Solomon Islands parliament selected Wale on...

Rubio Urges China to Release Jimmy Lai and Political Prisoners

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the United States is seeking a positive response from China regarding repeated appeals for the release of jailed Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai and other political detainees....

US Hosts Israel-Lebanon Talks as Ceasefire Deadline Nears

The United States described the latest Israel-Lebanon talks in Washington as productive and positive as diplomats pushed to prevent renewed escalation ahead of a fragile ceasefire deadline. U.S. officials confirmed that...

Pentagon Halts Planned U.S. Troop Deployment to Poland Amid Europe Force Review

The Pentagon has reportedly canceled plans to temporarily deploy 4,000 U.S.-based troops to Poland, according to two U.S. officials, raising fresh concerns over the future of American military presence in Europe under...

Science

Trump Administration Releases New UFO Files and Apollo Mission Records

The U.S. Defense Department has released dozens of previously classified UFO-related files following an order from President Donald Trump, sparking renewed debate over unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP) and government...

China vs. NASA: The New Moon Race and What's at Stake by 2030

The space race is back and this time, its a direct competition between the United States and China for dominance on the lunar surface. NASAs Artemis II mission recently made history when four astronauts flew farther into...

NASA Artemis II: First Crewed Moon Mission Since Apollo Takes Four Astronauts on 10-Day Lunar Journey

NASAs Artemis II mission launched Wednesday, marking humanitys return to crewed lunar exploration for the first time since the Apollo era. Carrying four astronauts aboard the Orion spacecraft, this historic 10-day mission...

NASA's Artemis II Mission: First Crewed Lunar Journey Since Apollo

NASA's Artemis II Crew Arrives in Florida for Historic Moon Mission

The four astronauts chosen for NASAs Artemis II mission have touched down at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, marking the beginning of final launch preparations for the first crewed lunar journey in over 50 years. NASA...

Technology

Applied Materials Forecasts Strong Q3 Revenue as AI Chip Demand Accelerates

Applied Materials posted record fiscal second-quarter revenue on Thursday and issued a stronger-than-expected forecast for the third quarter, fueled by rising global investment in artificial intelligence infrastructure and...

Anthropic Nears $30 Billion Funding Round at $900 Billion Valuation

AI startup Anthropic is reportedly close to securing a massive $30 billion fundraising deal that would value the company at approximately $900 billion, according to a Financial Times report published Friday. The new...

Nvidia’s China AI Chip Sales Remain Frozen Despite U.S. Approval

Nvidias efforts to expand AI chip sales in China remain stalled even after the U.S. approved several Chinese technology giants to purchase the companys H200 processors. Although around 10 Chinese firms, including Alibaba,...

Alibaba Stock Surges After Strong Q4 Earnings Boosted by AI and Cloud Growth

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. (HK:9988) saw its Hong Kong-listed shares jump sharply on Thursday after the Chinese e-commerce and technology giant reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings driven by strong momentum in...

SoftBank Shares Slide Despite Record Q4 Profit Fueled by OpenAI Investment

SoftBank Group Corp. (TYO:9984) shares dropped sharply on Thursday despite the company reporting blockbuster fourth-quarter earnings, as investors grew increasingly concerned about the Japanese tech giants expanding...