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Hartmut Winkler

Professor of Physics, University of Johannesburg
A lifelong academic who served stints as Dean of Science and acting Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Academic at the former Vista University in South Africa and was until recently the Head of Physics at the University of Johannesburg.

Research interests range from astrophysics through to atmospheric physics, solar energy and energy supply.

A vocal commentator on South African energy issues, especially the renewables versus nuclear debate.

South Africa’s electricity crisis: what political parties say in their election manifestos about solving it

Mar 28, 2024 12:04 pm UTC| Insights & Views Politics

South Africa is in the middle of a deep electricity crisis. In 2023 the public, many of whom are voters, experienced the worst loadshedding to date, losing power for an average of five hours a day. The power shortages...

South Africa's new plan to end power cuts is seriously flawed. Here's why

Jan 09, 2024 23:03 pm UTC| Economy

South Africa experienced unprecedented electricity shortages in 2023 as ageing coal plants became increasingly prone to breakdowns. The country urgently needs to develop new electricity generation facilities and reduce...

South Africa power outages: some improvement but a long way to go before the grid is stable

Nov 01, 2023 07:12 am UTC| Economy

Over the past few months, South Africas power generation sector has performed better than expected. Four factors explain this: an acceleration of solar power installations, less frequent breakdowns at power stations, a...

South Africa's nuclear sector has failed its test: the Koeberg nuclear plant life extension

Aug 21, 2022 17:23 pm UTC| Science Economy

South Africas only nuclear power plant, Koeberg, has frequently been in the news in 2022, all for the wrong reasons. Its operating licence expires in 2024, and its continued operation thereafter depends on critical...

Global Geopolitics Series

Russia's nuclear power exports: will they stand the strain of the war in Ukraine?

Mar 07, 2022 10:13 am UTC| Politics

Russias invasion of the Ukraine has led to massive sanctions and resulted in heavy blows to its economy. It has also led to unprecedented condemnation of Russias leadership, as well as growing international...

Power shortages will remain a big challenge in a post-COVID-19 South Africa

Apr 21, 2020 12:42 pm UTC| Economy

The decline in economic activity precipitated by the spread of COVID-19 and ensuing lockdown in South Africa is also affecting the countrys electricity supply dynamics. The power outages that were disrupting the economy...

Economy

What should you do if you can’t pay your rent or mortgage?

The cost of living crisis is making it difficult for many people to pay their bills, including housing costs. Private sector rents have increased by an average 9% over the year to February 2024, and rising interest rates...

Reducing energy demand and improving efficiency will help prevent the next gas crisis

Gas prices have relaxed, Europe has come out of the winter with record gas storage levels and a surfeit of liquefied natural gas is set to reach the shores of Europe over the coming years. Many commentators are hopeful...

Minimum wage for South African farm workers: study shows 2013 hike helped reduce poverty even though compliance was poor

Minimum wage policies are typically aimed at reducing poverty. Yet there is little direct evidence of this effect, especially in developing countries. And none for South Africa. In a recent paper, we consider the...

Gas is good until 2050 and beyond, under Albanese gas strategy

The Albanese government is talking up the crucial role of gas as a transition fuel through to 2050 and beyond. In a gas strategy to be released on Thursday, the government envisages the fuels uses would change over...

South Africa’s plan to move away from coal: 8 steps to make it succeed

The South African governments Just Energy Transition Implementation Plan was launched in November 2023. It is a roadmap guiding the country away from reliance on coal-fired power towards renewable energy alternatives by...

Politics

Donald Trump Allegedly Offers Oil Execs a Deal to Scrap EV Incentives for $1B Donation

Former President Donald Trump reportedly proposed a $1 billion deal to oil executives, offering to end electric vehicle (EV) subsidies in return for campaign funding, according to The Washington Post. This move underscores...

US Supreme Court upended decades of precedent in 2022 by allowing voters to vote with gerrymandered maps instead of fixing the congressional districts first

For the 2022 midterm elections, the U.S. Supreme Court allowed Alabama to use congressional districts that violated the law and diluted the voting power of Black citizens. A 5-4 vote by the Supreme Court in February...

Germany lowers voting age to 16 for the European elections

Ahead of the European parliament elections in June, Germany has lowered the age limit on participation to 16. This makes it the largest of just a handful of states in the EU to allow people under the age of 18 to vote....

South Africa will be president of the G20 in 2025: two much-needed reforms it should drive

South Africa will play an important international role in 2025 as president of the G20. The G20 is a group of 19 countries as well as the African Union and the European Union. Between them they represent 85% of global...

What early 2024 polls are revealing about voters of color and the GOP

By the end of winter 2024, the return of Donald Trump to the top of the GOP presidential ticket has revealed a surprising trend in the former presidents base of support: his increasing popularity among Black and Latino...

Science

Why are algorithms called algorithms? A brief history of the Persian polymath you’ve likely never heard of

Algorithms have become integral to our lives. From social media apps to Netflix, algorithms learn your preferences and prioritise the content you are shown. Google Maps and artificial intelligence are nothing without...

IceCube researchers detect a rare type of energetic neutrino sent from powerful astronomical objects

About a trillion tiny particles called neutrinos pass through you every second. Created during the Big Bang, these relic neutrinos exist throughout the entire universe, but they cant harm you. In fact, only one of them is...

The Mars Sample Return mission has a shaky future, and NASA is calling on private companies for backup

A critical NASA mission in the search for life beyond Earth, Mars Sample Return, is in trouble. Its budget has ballooned from US$5 billion to over $11 billion, and the sample return date may slip from the end of this...

Dark matter: our new experiment aims to turn the ghostly substance into actual light

A ghost is haunting our universe. This has been known in astronomy and cosmology for decades. Observations suggest that about 85% of all the matter in the universe is mysterious and invisible. These two qualities are...

A Nasa rover has reached a promising place to search for fossilised life on Mars

While we go about our daily lives on Earth, a nuclear-powered robot the size of a small car is trundling around Mars looking for fossils. Unlike its predecessor Curiosity, Nasas Perseverance rover is explicitly intended to...

Technology

Microsoft Integrates AMD AI Chips into Azure, Competing with Nvidia’s GPU Offerings

Microsoft announced Thursday that it will integrate AMDs MI300X processors into its Azure cloud services, offering a competitive alternative to Nvidias GPUs. Azures New AI Processing Power According to Reuters,...

Altcoins a ‘Relatively Huge’ Risk as Big Returns Fade, Analysts Warn Investors

Analysts caution that altcoins now represent a relatively huge risk, with the days of massive returns fading. Markus Thielen of 10xResearch suggests the high-reward era is over as crypto market narratives...

Bitcoin Has Best Day in 2 Months as SHIB to Get More Scarce with Shibarium

Bitcoin experienced its largest single-day rise in nearly two months, while ShibaSwaps expansion to Shibarium is set to increase SHIBs scarcity by boosting its burn rate. ShibaSwap Launches on Shibarium, Increasing SHIB...

Kia's Electric Pickup Spotted in US Testing, Targets Tesla Cybertruck, Ford F-150 Lightning

Kias upcoming electric pickup, designed to rival the Tesla Cybertruck, Rivian R1T, and Ford F-150 Lightning, has been spotted testing in the U.S., marking a significant step in its development. Kias Strategic Move into...

OpenAI Strikes Deal with Reddit to Bring Content to ChatGPT, Boosting Stocks

OpenAI and Reddit announced a partnership on May 16 to integrate Reddit content into ChatGPT, enhancing the chatbots capabilities and driving Reddits stock up 12% in extended trading. Reddit Diversifies Beyond...