Wits launches the Earth Observatory and CORES

The University of the Witwatersrand has launched two initiatives that place Africa at the centre of global earth-science innovation.

University of the Witwatersrand

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The Earth Observatory and the African Research Centre for Ore Systems Science (CORES) are a significant step towards a more responsible, inclusive, sustainable and technologically advanced minerals sector.

The Earth Observatory, housed within the Wits School of Geosciences, is the only facility of its kind on the African continent. Its facilities enable a range of cutting-edge geoanalytical techniques, including sample preparation and geometallurgy, as well as isotopic and geophysical analysis. The Observatory’s advanced instrumentation is not all available anywhere else in Africa. For example, automated mineralogy and U-Pb age-determination systems allow researchers, students, and industry collaborators to explore Earth’s deep history and identify resources vital to the clean-energy transition.

South Africa’s mineral wealth is written in some of the oldest rocks on Earth. The Kaapvaal Craton, Barberton Greenstone Belt, and Vredefort Dome tell a 3.5-billion-year story of planetary evolution, meteorite impacts, and mineral formation. For more than a century, Wits scientists have been instrumental in decoding that record.

Wits scientists have shaped the world’s understanding of how the planet’s earliest crust formed and how those ancient processes underpin today’s mineral wealth. The Earth Observatory extends this legacy, translating deep-time knowledge into future sustainability.

Opening the event, Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Research and Innovation, Professor Lynn Morris said the launches symbolised how Wits research “connects the past, present, and future through science that directly serves society.” She noted that Africa’s resource landscape, when guided by ethical, data-driven research, “can drive innovation, sustainability, and opportunity for generations to come.”

From ore to AI

A complementary initiative, the African Research Centre for Ore Systems Science (CORES), will lead the integration of economic geology, extractive processes, and data-driven innovation.

“We meet in the second quarter of the 21st century with fresh challenges and opportunities,” said Professor Glen Nwaila, Director of CORES. “Decarbonisation, energy security, and resilient supply chains hinge on critical minerals. Communities rightly demand that mining be safer, cleaner, and more transparent. CORES is our instrument for that work. We aim to bridge the gap between ore, process, product, and waste through geoscience, engineering, and data science.”

Nwaila noted that CORES’ predecessor, the Economic Geology Research Institute (EGRI), taught the world how to read ancient rocks, but CORES will help the world make better decisions under uncertainty.

The climate crisis and geosciences reimagined

“The climate crisis presents a compelling reason to dedicate a career to geosciences,” said Professor Grant Bybee, Head of the Wits School of Geosciences. He noted that geoscientists, working alongside a responsible mining industry, will facilitate a just and sustainable transition by ensuring the ethical sourcing of critical metals such as lithium, nickel, and copper.

He added that Wits’ heritage continues to evolve: “For over 120 years, Geosciences has shaped industries and scientific frontiers. We will continue to demonstrate that geoscience is indispensable to sustainability and to deliver graduates ready to secure the metals and knowledge that will power a just, green future.”

Bybee honoured the Earth Observatory’s researchers and operations staff who perform and facilitate cutting-edge research, inspiring the next generation of geoscientists. “Every lecturer, technician, and administrator here contributes to South Africa’s scientific future.”

Celebrating collaboration

The launch event, themed Earth, Elements and Innovation, included mining and technology industry leaders and partners, as well as representation from the Minerals Council South Africa. The evening concluded with guided tours of the Earth Observatory and CORES facilities, showcasing this one-of-a-kind facility in Africa, as well as the collaborative ecosystem that enables it.

“These initiatives,” said Morris in closing, “show how science, sustainability, and society can converge. Wits not only contributes to global knowledge, but leads it.”

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Method of Research

News article

 

The escape room challenge: How one person’s narcissism can undermine a whole team

Bournemouth University

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A new study has revealed how different types of narcissism can influence the morale and performance of an entire team. 

Researchers invited over 100 people to complete escape room challenges in small groups, observing their interactions and behaviours throughout the tasks. 

The findings have been published in the journal Behavioral Sciences. 

“Although this took place in a fun, social setting, the teams still needed to build trust, share ideas and plan together to complete the challenges,” explained Dr Reece Bush-Evans, Senior Lecturer in Psychology at Bournemouth University who led the study. “These are exactly the skills needed for success in real-world teams. Our results showed that when one person believes they’re superior to their teammates, it can damage team dynamics and lead to failure.”

Dr Bush-Evans and his team identified two distinct forms of narcissism among participants:  Narcissistic Admiration – where individuals are charming, confident, and drawn to the spotlight, and Narcissistic Rivalry - where people are combative, competitive and quick to dismiss others’ ideas or take offence. 

Before and after the challenge, all participants rated themselves and their teammates on traits including friendliness, confidence, trustworthiness and aggression. The researchers then examined how these perceptions influenced team cohesion, team conflict, and overall performance (i.e., did they escape the rooms).

Teams with higher levels of narcissistic rivalry showed significantly less unity and performed worse in the escape room. 

“We noticed that competitive and rivalrous individuals were more likely to ignore or dismiss their teammate’s ideas, hold back information, and find the experience more frustrating. This wrecked the team bond that was needed to get the job done,” Dr Bush-Evans explained.  

In contrast, narcissistic admiration didn’t seem to help or harm performance, though those individuals were increasingly viewed as less hardworking and more arrogant by their teammates as the challenge progressed. 

“Their charisma may have impressed their colleagues at first, but this wore thin when it wasn’t backed up with useful contributions,” said Dr Bush-Evans. 

The researchers believe these insights are relevant not just for social settings but for modern workplaces – especially in face-to-face, online and hybrid teams. 

“Confidence and charm can easily be mistaken for competence,” Dr Bush-Evans concluded. “Our study shows that these traits can actually limit what a team achieves. The most successful teams weren’t the loudest, but the most cooperative. Leaders should value good listeners just as much as outspoken voices.”

The study was led by Dr Bush-Evans at Bournemouth University in collaboration with researchers at the Universities of Southampton, Portsmouth and Winchester. 

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Journal

Behavioral Science

DOI

10.3390/bs15111461 

Method of Research

Observational study

Subject of Research

People

Article Title

Narcissism in Action: Perceptions, Team Dynamics, and Performance in Naturalistic Escape Room Settings

 

UBCO researchers apply body preservation technique to wood

Researchers test plastination to improve cedar strength and sustainability

University of British Columbia Okanagan campus

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image: 

UBC’s Centre for Interactive Research on Sustainability is one of several buildings on the Vancouver campus where Western red cedar is used as a building material. Researchers at the Okanagan campus are looking at ways to make the wood stronger by using a plastination preservation technique. Don Erhardt.

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Credit: Don Erhardt, UBC

A technique used for the long-term preservation of human and animal remains is now being tested on one of Canada’s most iconic building materials—the Western red cedar.

Plastination, originally designed to embalm the dead, is now being used to improve the functionality and durability of advanced composite materials.

A team from UBC Okanagan’s School of Engineering has been experimenting with the technique and previously published a study that examined the plastination of bamboo to create a strong and durable composite building material.

The researchers have taken that work one step further, and in their latest study demonstrated the technique can also be used on Western red cedar to make it stronger and protect the wood from water damage and decay. The study was published in the journal Materials.

“Western red cedar is prized for its abundance and renewability, though its tendency to absorb moisture is a major drawback,” says doctoral student Olivia Margoto, a researcher with UBC’s Materials and Manufacturing Research Institute. “By applying plastination, we’re preserving the wood’s structure from the inside out—maintaining its strength while dramatically improving its resistance to water.”

Plastination is a new method for managing moisture in wood by replacing water in the cellular structure with a silicone compound to create a durable, hydrophobic barrier that resists swelling, rotting and cracking.

Unlike conventional wood protection treatments—which typically rely on surface coatings, bulk impregnation or chemical treatments—plastination offers a fundamentally different approach by first dehydrating the wood using acetone and infusing it with a compatible polymer.

This replaces water within the cells and preserves the anatomical architecture previously occupied by moisture, explains study supervisor Dr. Abbas Milani, Professor in the School of Engineering. Most importantly, the treatment does not compromise tensile strength and tends to improve the material’s flexibility.

“Plastination offers a powerful alternative to traditional wood preservatives, which often rely on toxic chemicals or short-lived coatings,” adds Dr. Milani. “This technique could extend the lifespan of natural wood products significantly, without sacrificing environmental performance.”

In their recent work, the researchers used advanced imaging and spectroscopy tools to confirm that the silicone deeply saturated the cedar’s microscopic channels, reducing water absorption by nearly 60 per cent and increasing surface hydrophobicity by more than 45 per cent.

They found that Western red cedar performed better than their earlier work on bamboo, likely because of the very different microstructure of these two natural materials. Western red cedar is a softwood composed of long, thin cells with microstructural dimensions up to seven times smaller than those of bamboo.

The research is supported by industrial partner NetZero Enterprises Inc., a Penticton-based company with a number of global sustainability projects underway. The company is collaborating on three projects with UBC researchers, and holds the Canadian and American patents on the plastination technique.

Other researchers on this project include Netzero Enterprises CEO Grant Bogyo and UBCO students Madisyn Szypula and Victor Yang.

This process shows significant moisture resistance in Western red cedar, which is encouraging for North American construction applications. Future work will explore ways to scale up the method, recover and reuse solvents, and substitute bio-based polymers for silicone to further reduce environmental impact.

“Nature has already given us incredible materials,” Margoto adds. “Our job is to make them last longer in a safe, sustainable and economical way.”

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Journal

Materials

DOI

10.3390/ma18184353 

Method of Research

Experimental study

Subject of Research

Not applicable

Article Title

Towards a New Plastination Technique for Moisture Management of Western Red Cedar Without Loss of Strength and with Enhanced Stability

Leibniz-HKI once again recognized for its personnel management oriented on equal opportunities

“TOTAL E-QUALITY” Award and Sustainability Prize 2025

Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology - Hans Knöll Institute -

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image: 

Christine Vogler (center), Equal Opportunities Officer at Leibniz-HKI, accepted the TOTAL E-QUALITY award and the Sustainability Award. Left: Ulla Weber, Chair of the Board of TOTAL E-QUALITY Deutschland and Central Equal Opportunities Officer at the Max Planck Society for the Advancement of Sciences. Right: Maresa Feldmann, Equal Opportunities Officer for the City of Dortmund and member of the Board of TOTAL E-QUALITY Deutschland e. V.

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Credit: Michael Voigt, TOTAL E-QUALITY Deutschland e. V.

The award for the years 2025 to 2027 recognizes the Leibniz-HKI’s commitment to a sustainable, equitable, and inclusive research culture. “The fact that we have received this rating for the fifth time and have now also been awarded the Sustainability Prize shows that our long-term measures for greater diversity are having an effect,” says Christine Vogler, Equal Opportunities Officer at Leibniz-HKI. “For us, equal opportunities is not a one-off project, but an integral part of our institute’s identity, which we will continue to pursue with determination.”

The TOTAL E-QUALITY award is presented annually by the association TOTAL-E-QUALITY Deutschland e. V. and is valid for three years. In its statement, the jury praised the Leibniz HKI’s equal opportunity-oriented personnel and organizational policy, which excellently fulfills the TOTAL E-QUALITY standards in all areas of activity. Particular emphasis was placed on the comprehensive equality strategy, which is both structurally anchored at Leibniz-HKI and encompasses an inclusive organizational culture. The institute’s equality goals are regularly reviewed by the Leibniz Association as part of external evaluations.

Among the measures that particularly distinguish Leibniz-HKI are the workshop series “Female Empowerment@Leibniz-HKI,” which specifically supports postdoctoral women in their career development on topics such as mental load and conflict management and is supplemented by individual career counseling and networking meetings, as well as the book club “Science meets Society,” which draws attention to topics such as gender equality, diversity, and discrimination in science and reflects the Leibniz-HKI’s socio-political commitment to equal opportunities. The book club, which is organized in collaboration with the Cluster of Excellence “Balance of the Microverse”, aims to promote open exchange among employees on socially relevant topics and to advance the development of an inclusive and reflective organizational culture.

The Leibniz-HKI is also actively involved in promoting girls and young women in STEM careers, for example by participating in Girls’ Day (Forsche Schüler-Tag) and through a wide range of public relations work on women in science through portraits, events, and a presence on social media.

Around 450 people work at the Leibniz-HKI, slightly more than half of whom are women. One-third of all employees come from abroad. Gender parity prevails at all levels in the scientific field. Even the highest management positions are filled in a gender-equitable manner. In administration and technology, the proportion of women is as high as 64%.

This year’s TOTAL E-QUALITY award ceremony was held under the motto “HERE TO STAY” and focused on the factors for successful, diversity-friendly onboarding and long-term employee retention. Nationwide, 61 organizations from business, science, and administration were honored, including numerous institutes of the Leibniz Association.

This year, the association TOTAL E-QUALITY Deutschland e. V. awarded five organizations, including Leibniz-HKI, with a Sustainability Prize.

Credit

Michael Voigt, TOTAL E-QUALITY Deutschland e. V.

The award ceremony took place at the Lichthof conference hotel in Gelsenkirchen, Germany.

Credit

Michael Voigt, TOTAL E-QUALITY Deutschland e. V.