National Research Foundation rates Wits alumni
- By Deborah Minors
Wits science alumni bagged no fewer than six prizes at the prestigious National Research Foundation (NRF) awards ceremony on 14 September 2012. Witsies secured one A1-rating and five A2-ratings. The rating of individuals is based primarily on the quality and impact of their research outputs over the past eight years, and evaluation of the research by local and international peers.
A-rated researchers are "unequivocally recognised by their peers as leading international scholars in their field for the high quality and impact of their recent research outputs", according to the NRF.
Science alumnus and Professor Emeritus in the School of Physiology, Duncan Mitchell received the A1-rating, awarded to "a researcher recognised by all reviewers as a leading scholar in his field internationally for the high quality and wide impact (i.e., beyond a narrow field of specialisation) of his recent research outputs."
A2-rated researchers are "recognised by the over-riding majority of reviewers as leading scholars in their fields internationally for the high quality and impact (either wide or confined) of their recent research outputs." The following alumni received A2-ratings:
- Mathematics education alumna, Prof. Jill Adler (First Rand Foundation South African Mathematics Education Chair in the School of Education)
- Prof. Lewis Ashwal (Professor in the Wits School of Geosciences)
- Physics alumnus Prof. Arthur Every
- Medical School alumna Dr. Glenda Gray (Director: Perinatal HIV Research Unit)
- Mechanical engineering alumnus Prof. Beric Skews (Director: Wits Flow Research Unit)
In addition, Witsies involved in South Africa’s successful bid to co-host the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) telescope were co-recipients of the inaugural Science Team Award, which recognised:
- the commitment, creativity and achievements of the SKA bid team in securing the majority of the SKA project for South Africa
- their contribution to the advancement of human knowledge in the fields of science and technology for the benefit of South African society and the humanity
- the role they played in raising South Africa’s stature in the arena of international scientific research.
The University hosts two South African Research Chairs in Radio Astronomy – the SKA Chair in Radio Astronomy, Prof. Sergio Colafrancesco and the South African Research Chair in Theoretical Particle Cosmology, Prof. Vishnu Jejjala, as well as several string theorists and physicists working in related areas.
Wits is also home to astronomer and alumnus Prof. David Block in the School of Computational and Applied Mathematics, and Dr Clare Flanagan, Director of the Planetarium on the Wits Braamfontein campus.
Source: http://www.wits.ac.za/newsroom/newsitems/201209/17620/news_item_17620.html