The scientific tradition in Africa

April 19, 2006 6:58 AM

The scientific tradition in Africa. An interview with Thebe Medupe, a South African astronomer.
posted by Wolfdog (5 comments total)

Great interview. I'm disappointed that the documentary he participated in, Cosmic Africa, does not seem to have been released on DVD. I'd really like to see it.

Trailer here

New Scientist interview with Thebe Medupe.
posted by ursus_comiter at 9:28 AM on April 19, 2006

Cool post. The history of science is always really interesting.
posted by metaname at 1:55 PM on April 19, 2006

Thanks for this. Reminds me of an article by Renee Fossett about Inuit concepts of mapping, based on landmarks and estimated travel times. Of course Europeans who asked Inuit for "maps" were expecting maps based on concrete geographic distances, not individualized travel times, so when trying to follow Inuit maps got them lost, they blamed the Inuit for being know-nothings with no concept of SCIENCE!
posted by cybercoitus interruptus at 2:47 PM on April 19, 2006

thanks, quality post.
posted by Substrata at 2:53 PM on April 19, 2006

Very nice post, cheers. That documentary sounds really interesting.
posted by flashboy at 3:36 PM on April 19, 2006