Fibre optics allow for the communication of data at the speed of light. But the amount of data that can be sent along any optic fibre is limited by how much information you can encode into the light wave travelling through it. Currently, optic-fibre technology uses
Author: The Conversation
If you put water on the stove and heat it up, it will at first just get hotter and hotter. You may then conclude that heating water results only in hotter water. But at some point everything changes – the water starts to boil, turning from hot liquid into steam. Physicists
One consequence of the Apple vs FBI drama has been to shine a spotlight on the security of smartphone lock screens. The fact that the FBI managed to hack the iPhone of the San Bernardino shooter without Apple’s help raises questions about whether Pin
With the Panama Papers exposé perhaps we can now say the fortress walls of offshore secrecy are finally cracking. Such havens allow corruption and tax avoidance to take place on a massive international scale by some of the richest and most powerful
The accountability of public governance in South Africa has come a long way since 1994. When the transitional constitution was hammered out in negotiations in 1993, the primary consideration was to establish an unshakeable commitment to government under
The recent announcement of the imminent opening of a rival stock exchange to the Johannesburg Stock Exchange caused considerable media excitement. It is indeed a historic development in South Africa’s economic history and is to
When Anonymous declared “total war” on Donald Trump in early March, the hacktivist group set a countdown clock, calling on “everyone to target Trump websites” on 1 April. But that may not have been its real objective. Regardless of what, if anything
“Even that family, if people feel it has to be brought to book, structures must do that, the officials must call them and talk to them and give them a marching order not through shouting outside because all of us in the NEC [African National Congress National
When you mention virtual reality (VR), most people’s thoughts turn to videogames. Indeed, Sony has just announced its new Playstation VR headset. But VR isn’t just about gaming. There are many other interesting and exciting uses for it. Education
The past 70 years have seen the way we live and work transformed by two tiny inventions. The electronic transistor and the microchip are what make all modern electronics possible, and