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Welcome to Science in Africa. This is a Nature Africa podcast for African scientists and Africans interested in science. I am Chinyere Opia. On our podcast today, we'll have a review of stories on our website and Did You Know.
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For the first time South Africa's blue carbon storage capabilities have been measured. Suggestions have also been offered on how the country's blue carbon sinks can be restored to sequester more carbon dioxide and help mitigate climate change. Referencing the research, Jack Dutton who wrote about it for Nature Africa, says although 26% of natural area has been lost, there is hope as researchers have observed restoration may be possible. According to the article, blue carbon ecosystems which are made up of mangroves, salt marshes and seagrasses contribute towards climate change mitigation because they are efficient at sequestering atmospheric carbon dioxide into long-term total ecosystem carbon stocks. Blue carbon is organic carbon that is captured and stored by the world oceanic and coastal ecosystems. According to the research, salt marshes have the greatest potential for restoration as the hydrogeology and sediment dynamics can be modified by ecological engineering to help restoration.
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According to an article by Engela Duvenage, researchers are proposing that the age of lions that may be legally shot by trophy hunters be raised from the six-year-old limit currently allowed in some Sub-Saharan African countries to eight years. Previous research has shown that even for experienced hunters, the age of lions that are between four and seven years old, can be overestimated, thereby resulting in shooting animals at peak reproductive age. According to the researchers, the global decline of many large predator populations like lions, would have significant implications for ecosystems integrity and function. As a result of this knowledge, understanding the drivers of the decline is necessary to effectively mitigate these threats. According to writer Engela Duvenage, the research team ran a series of simulations using 20 years of data from a lion study in Zimbabwe's Hwange National Park, which show how easily controlled trophy hunting can become unsustainable and unprofitable if the number of hunts allowed are not carefully managed. This she wrote is notably true in areas in and around protected areas where bushmeat snaring is rife, and committee members might be illegally shooting lions suspected of killing livestock.
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In an article by Di Caelers, researchers are proposing putting resilience at the centre of global food security. There are several threats to global food security. In most recent times, the COVID 19 pandemic, the Ukraine-Russian war and climate change have contributed to this threat and have accelerated the need for an urgent change from existing argument stuck in the local versus global food systems debate. Referencing an article published on Nature Food, the writer noted that without a shift from prevailing local or global perspective arguments, the world will lose out on the opportunity to build resilience into food systems across the spectrum. The researchers argue that advancing widespread food literacy among all actors, from producers to consumers, will accelerate the requisite change. The researchers allude to four major challenges to global food sustainability. These are environmental and nutritional decline, food insecurity and trade, inequity and governance and food systems illiteracy. They note that while the first three are conventional, persistent threats that are particularly polarizing and paralyzing in food systems debate, they predict that food systems illiteracy is the challenge that will grow in importance as food systems evolve and become more complex. For more on these articles and other articles, visit nature.com/natfrica. Next on the show is Did You Know.
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Did you know that Ayodele Awojobi was the first inventor in Nigeria to convert the vehicle from a right-hand drive to a left-hand drive? He later fiddled with the motor engine of a family vehicle and invented a second steering wheel mechanism which he connected to the pre-existing engine at the rear end. This made it possible for the vehicle to move in both forward and backward directions with all four pre-existing gears. He nicknamed the vehicle Autonov One. Autonov one’s central compartment was re-constructed to have a rotating floor mechanism that can turn an occupant around from the rear seat, to the front one and back.
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Did you know that Thomas Odhiambo from Kenya made significant contributions to the understanding of the ecology and behavior of African termites? Odhiambo was a pioneer in researching how to control the insect pests that affect Africa's agriculture. He was an advocate for giving farmers low-cost biological and ecological tools to control insects without using synthetic chemicals.
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Did you know that the human brain has a memory capacity of approximately 2.5 million gigabytes? This is the equivalent of 3 million hours, which is over 300 years of recorded TV. You would have to leave the TV running continuously for more than 300 years to use up all that storage. Now you know!
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And that is it for today's podcast. If you're interested in these stories and other science-based articles, check out our Nature Africa website at nature.com/natafrica. I am Chinyere Opia. Thank you for listening.