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February Issue No.015

In this issue, you will find:

Message from the Director General: P1 COSTECH awards four clusters: P2

DTBI among the 22+ African tech hubs: P2 COSTECH awards oil processing cluster in Morogoro: P3

TAAS inducts more than 100 new members: P4 New App Turns Your iPhone Into a Mobile Urine Lab: P5

COSTECH continues to nurture grassroots innovators: P6 Bandwidth-sharing app brings connectivity to all tech: P7

Tanzania: Banana Wilt Wipes Out Farms in Kagera: P8 Over 100m/- to be won in entrepreneurship contest: P8

Why We Should Build Software Like We Build Houses: P9 Did you ever know: P10

Scientific research report: P11 Pictorial: P12

Upcoming Events: P13

Message from the Director General

Welcome to the February issue of our eNewsletter for the Tanzania Commission for Science and Technology (COSTECH). In

this issue, various events have been covered both from inside and outside the country.

This month saw incredible positive changes at the COSTECH. It was the end of a-three- year term for the Commission’s

Board. I am thankful to them for serving the COSTECH tirelessly. When it was established in 2010, the Commission was given the

mandate transform the organization. The first thing the Commission started with was to establish a new the COSTECH organization

structure. I am happy to see that through the new organization structure, two more departments have been added; instead of having

four, now we have has six departments namely Life Sciences, Physical Sciences, Social Sciences, Knowledge Management, Innovation

and Entrepreneurship for Competitiveness and Administration and Finance. I am also happy that the outgoing Commission managed

to fulfill its aspirations by recruiting competent staffs to fill the positions as Department Heads, Research Officers and support staffs.

These new departments are going to allow the organization to make huge changes by serving all the sectors ranging from Health,

Natural Resource, Agriculture, Environment, Livestock, Energy, Education, Infrastructure, Industry, Economics, Policy, Demography,

Sociology, to Earth and Geosciences.

Through the outgoing Commission, COSTECH managed to open a branch office in Zanzibar in June 2012, thus making it easy

for the management to get closer to the Zanzibar scientists, researcher, innovators and the general public so that they can benefit

from the activities and opportunities that are available at the Commission.

Through the outgoing Commission, a new Board for the Dar es Salaam Teknohama Business Incubator (DTBi) was

established. The new Board comprises of both nationally and internationally experienced and renowned persons in the ICT sector and

we hope this will make a huge impact in the running of the organization.

I would also like to take this opportunity to thank the Department for International Development (DFID) for investing 30

million Pounds in a new Human Development Innovation Fund (HDIF) for Tanzania; to provide a mechanism to encourage innovation

and support the scaling up of promising approaches in health, education, water and sanitation sectors, to achieve improvements in

the quality and value for money of basic services. A call for the Funding Manager position has been announced. The Manager will

work closely with COSTECH in building its capacity, strengthen the culture of innovation and use of science and technology in

development. In addition, part of the fund will be used to strengthen the capacity of Zanzibar government in evidence-based policy.

Finally, I would like to thank the people who have worked tirelessly in preparing this e-newsletter and would like to invite all

of you to contribute to it in the future issues.

With thanks. Dr. Hassan Mshinda DIRECTOR GENERAL.

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By Michael Haonga 8th February, 2013. The Tanzania Commission for Science and Technology (COSTECH) has awarded four clusters a total of 32m/- to help them expand their business. The four clusters which got 8m/- each include Furniture Cluster Initiatives, Handloom Cluster Initiatives, the ICT Cluster Initiatives and the Wood Carvings. "A Cluster is defined as a group of people of similar objectives positioned or occurring close together." They were handed the cash by the Executive Secretary of the National Economic Empowerment Council, Dr Anaclet Kashuliza at the Kijitonyama based COSTECH headquarters Offices in Dar es Salaam. Dr Kashuliza congratulated each one of them for the exemplary performance and challenged others to emulate or even surpass them in their endeavours for accelerated development in the country. Speaking to representatives of the clusters who attended the event, the COSTECH Director General Dr Hassan Mshinda said what COSTECH does "...is to facilitate you as representatives of the clusters," adding that "COSTECH links you with academicians to develop your business." Bt cotton commercialisation in countries such as South Africa and Burkina Faso has led to increased yields and increased incomes in the farming community. This is because it is resistant to the bollworm pest and requires reduced pesticide application during its growth. As part of executing its roles, he said COSTECH has been supporting several clusters in the country and it has provided seed Fund of more than 80m/- to Zanzibar and Dar es Salaam" and its history dates back from the 1986 when it was established under Act No. 7 of 1986. SOURCE: The Guardian http://www.ippmedia.com/frontend/index.php?l=51016

The Dar es Salaam Teknohama Business Incubator (DTBi, is among the 22+ African tech hubs. The African tech hubs boom has arrived if this recent infographic by mHealth Africa is anything to go by. Featuring about 22 tech hubs, the infographic itemizes African tech hubs from Johannesburg to Egypt that are incubating technology entrepreneurs and laying the early foundations for Africa’s coming tech boom. What makes this interesting is that the infographic below is by no means exhaustive. By some estimates, there are over 50 tech hubs, labs, incubators and accelerators in Africa, covering more than 20 countries

Fig. 1: Some of the tech hubs in Africa

Four years ago, prominent African technologist and blogger, Erik Hersman founded the iHub as an open space for the technologists, investors, tech companies and hackers. His foresight has since inspired many more across the continent and the hub has grown in leaps and bounds since its inception with a membership of over 8,000. The tech hub phenomenon is changing the face of the continent by providing a space where entrepreneurs and developers can work on interesting projects and hopefully launch high potential startups. In many countries, this was previously unheard of and is a welcome breath of fresh air. Now talented young Africans indeed have a shot at developing the next big thing. Many of the hubs were birthed from the efforts of visionary Africans who saw a unique need to support the ecosystem in their individual countries. Their early contributions to Africa’s technology evolution will definitely be remembered and appreciated in years to come. Source: For more information, click here

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By Theophil Laurian Pima

The Morogoro Town Municipality has pledged a big support for the Morogoro town cluster initiatives. The promise was made during the seed fund disbursement held at Savoy Hotel in Morogoro on 06th February 2013. Addressing the members of the Oil processing cluster, who also received a cheque of 8 million Tanzanian shilling from The Tanzania Commission for Science and Technology (COSTECH), the Guest of Honour, Mr Davis Simbeye said the government is very willing to support small entrepreneurs. Mr Simbeye said, despite the challenges of poor water and electricity supply facing the cluster initiatives, the government has already started a plan to allocate a good piece of land in order to facilitate the running of cluster initiatives in Morogoro. “I assure you, the piece of land is there; it is just a matter of following legal procedures to acquire it. Please make sure you remind me from time to time as you know, I have got so many government responsibilities to fulfill,” Mr Simbeye said. On the other side, the Project Coordinator for cluster development program at COSTECH, Mr Omar Bakary said clusters in Morogoro are supposed to be innovative with

good business plan in order to compete in the market economy. “What COSTECH does, is just to facilitate you. COSTECH links you with the academicia to develop your business. Now, in this project, it is your chance to implement what you have learnt,” the project coordinator emphasized. A cluster is a group of people with similar objective positioned or occurring close together. With the COSTECH context, the similar objective is especially in small and medium businesses.

Fig. 2: The Guest of Honour and Director for Morogoro Town municipality Mr Davis Simbeye stresses a point during the occasion to disburse seed fund in Morogoro town recently, the function which was organized by the Commission for Science and Technology (COSTECH).

Fig. 3: A group picture featuring the Guest of Honour, Project Coordinator for cluster development program together with some of the Oil processing cluster members.

Cluster initiative program is a worldwide initiative. In Tanzania, the program needs to be

empowered the same way as it is in Sweden, and in many other countries. Cluster initiatives have become a central feature in improving growth and competitiveness among small and medium enterprises.

The Tanzania Commission for Science and Technology (COSTECH) with support from the African Union as well as the Swedish International Development Agency (SIDA) in collaboration with the Tanzania Competitiveness Institute (TCI) through the Pan-African Competitiveness Forum supports cluster initiatives by providing them with the organizational capacity building and seed funds to kick off their project. COSTECH aims at enabling cluster members develop their business competition at the same time encouraging them to use science, technology and innovation so as to produce high quality and quantity products at an affordable price. In Tanzania, the cluster initiatives program was introduced in 2003 when the Tanzania delegates were invited to attend a seminar in Sweden and upon their return, they saw a need to establish these initiatives. Countrywide, more than 26 clusters, including five cluster initiatives in Zanzibar, have been established and a total of 92 million has been disbursed as seed funds to more than 10 cluster initiatives, and the exercise is ongoing to cover most regions.

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On February 7th, 2013 the Tanzania Academy of Sciences (TAAS), hosted an induction event whereby 110 new members were inducted. The event that took place at the Tanzania Commission for Science and Technology (COSTECH), Conference Hall was also attended by a delegation from the Royal Society in the United Kingdom. Giving an account of the organization, the TAAS President, Professor Esther Mwaikambo said that the organization is a learned non-political, non-sectarian, non-profit-making, scientific body established on February 24th, 2004. She also said that its primary objective is to cooperate with the Government of the United Republic of Tanzania, other scientific organizations and the general public in the promotion, advancement and application of science and technology for socio-economic development of Tanzania. He added, “Although the organization is 8 year old, there are some notable achievements that it has acquired. We’ve managed to formulate collaboration with other scientific bodies including the Royal Society and the Ghanaian Science Academy.” “Two of our members have won the 2011 Royal Society PFIZER awards, one in the category of health and the other on engineering,” she added.

The Royal Society Pfizer Award is an annual award designed to recognize research scientists based in Africa who are at an early stage of their research careers and who are making an innovative contribution to the biological sciences, including basic medical science, which contributes significantly to capacity building in Africa.

Fig. 4: A group picture featuring the TAAS leadership, the Royal Society delegation together with newly-inducted TAAS members.

Talking about the importance of a National Science Academy and its role, the Royal Society Foreign Secretary Professor Poliakoff Martyn congratulated the TAAS secretariat for increasing a number of its members. Professor Martyn urged the TAAS to think about how to solve the future challenges. He added, “What we are doing today should live for more than 100 years to come. In order to make the world a better place, the TAAS should find a way to invest in and prepare young scientists for the future.” He also called for the TAAS to promote scientific research to help the government reach evidence- based decisions. “With the discovery of natural gas, the TAAS should have some recommendation to the government,” he added.

He also commended the TAAS for publishing the, Lighting a Fire: 31 Inspiring Stories of Eminent Tanzania Scientists. “Now Tanzanian youth will learn about eminent Tanzania scientists rather than reading about Isaac Newton, Abbott, and the likes,” he added. Prof. Martyn promised that the Royal Society will continue to support the TAASA and other African scientific bodies. He also promised to find a way to support the African PhD students to do post-doctoral studies either in Africa or somewhere in the world. At the same time, the outgoing TAAS President, Professor Matthew Luhanga thanks the Royal Society for being a dependable strategic partner and for supporting most of the TAAS’ causes. Prof. Luhanga also revealed that scientists in the South are underpaid thus encouraging brain drain for the expenses of the North. He also revealed that science education in Tanzania is not appearing, especially in Mathematics and Science subjects. He promised that TAAS will continue to play a central role in teaching, training and guiding the government on how to improve the situation. Delivering the vote of thanks, the TAAS General Secretary, Dr. Gratian Bamwenda thanked the Royal Society, the Government of Tanzania, and the COSTECH for their support. He also promised that the TAAS will work very closely with science stakeholders to make improvements in Tanzania.

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By Michael V. Copeland Feb.26.2013 LONG BEACH, California For entrepreneur Myshkin Ingawale the logic was unassailable. Everybody pees. And everyone has a cellphone. “There has to be something going on there,” Ingawale told a chuckling crowd at the TED conference. For the 29-year-old Mumbai-based Ingawale, that something is using the increasingly powerful camera and processing muscle packed in smartphones to run cheap, accurate urinalysis tests. Don’t worry; it doesn’t involved soaking your precious handset, though it does involve peeing in a cup. Dubbed Uchek, what Ingawale has created is a seemingly simple app that analyzes chemical strips by first taking photos with your phone at predetermined times and comparing the results that appear on the pee-soaked strip to a color-coded map. With the color comparisons as a guide, the app analyzes the results, and comes back in seconds with a breakdown of the levels of glucose, bilirubin, proteins, specific gravity, ketones, leukocytes, nitrites, urobilinogen and hematuria present in the urine. The parameters the app measures are especially helpful for those people managing diabetes, and kidney, bladder and liver problems, or ferreting out the presence of a urinary tract infection. In use, the app delivers information that everyone can understand, returning either positive or negative results, numbers, or descriptors like “trace” or “large.” If you don’t know that the presence of leukocytes might indicate a urinary tract infection, you simply tap on the leukocytes tab for more information.

“The idea is to get people closer to their own information,” Ingawale, 29, says. “I want people to better understand what is going on with their bodies.”

Fig. 5: Uchek turns a smartphone into a inexpensive medical device for analyzing urine. Image: Uchek

While it’s being tested in a Mumbai hospital, the app is wending its way through the Apple approval process. Ingawale is optimistic it will be made available to iOS users soon. An Android version is also in the works, though because of all the different cameras in use on all the different Android-flavored phones it will take a bit more time to roll out, he says.

Fig. 6: Myshkin Ingawale, founder of Biosense Technologies, holds a test strip before analyzing it with his phone. Photo: TED.

As far as accuracy, Ingawale says after testing the app with 1,200 samples it did a better job than humans simply reading the color-coded strips. More sophisticated machines may do a better job, but they also cost $1,000 to $10,000 a pop and only read a specific type of test-strip. (There’s that recurring revenue model.) For $20, Ingawale

will give you a packet of strips and the color-coded map to conduct your own tests. Add another 99 cents for the app and your own smartphone and you are ready to go. Ingawale stresses it is for informational purposes; this isn’t meant to diagnose disease, but make you, your doctor, even your family members better aware of health issues. Ingawale’s own father-in-law, who is diabetic, has been an early tester of the Uchek app and system. “My wife is the one who wants the information,” Ingawale says. “She wants to make sure he’s taking care of himself. He just takes the test and e-mails her the results.” Uchek is the second inexpensive test Ingawale, an MIT graduate, has devised. The first, in pilot programs now in India, checks hemoglobin levels without using a needle. Called TouchHb, the device uses LEDs and a photodiodes to analyze the absorption pattern of hemoglobin and thus determine volume. The point of all the smart tech is to help diagnose anemia, a treatable but potentially fatal condition if left untreated – especially in pregnant women. Obviously there is a pattern to what Ingawale is creating and bringing to market through his startup Biosense Technologies. “The medical device industry operates on proprietary, closed hardware and a recurring revenue business model,” Ingawale says. “I am trying to democratize healthcare.” Source: http://www.wired.com/business/2013/02/smartphone-becomes-smart-lab/

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On 20th February, 2013 the Tanzania Commission for Science and Technology (COSTECH) hosted presentations from various grassroots innovators who showcased their innovative tools and ideas they have innovated. The panel for the event composed of experts from COSTECH, Dar es Salaam Institute of Technology (DIT), the University of Dar es Salaam (UDSM) and the National Institute of Transport (NIT). The first innovator to present his equipment was Mr. Jehoshaphat Kabati who innovated a hydraulic potential energy storage machine called the Kabati Mosaic Energy Accumulator Spring.

Fig. 7: Mr. Jehoshaphat Kabati explains to the expert panelists (not pictured) how his machine works.

Mr. Kabati, who is professionally a builder, claims that his machine is capable of changing potential energy to mechanical energy. He thinks that his machine is designed to help generate electricity by using heavy weight trucks. “Instead of the trucks destroying the roads, my machine is designed as a weighing scale to the extent that when the trucks presses the roads, instead of roads getting

cracks, the machine will produce potential energy which is electricity,” he added. The second innovator to present his equipment was Mr. Ernest Maranya who claims to have innovated the teaching aid on solar and universal gravitational potential energy. His teaching aid is designed to help students understand clearly the relationship between the sun and the planet and how the gravitational forces assist the planets to revolve around the sun in order to produce day and night. The instrument is also designed to explain why one planet cannot move from its original orbit to collide with the other in a different orbit.

Fig. 8: Mr. Ernest Maranya (left) explains how his equipment works to some of the expert panelists. The third grassroots innovator to present his ideas was Mr. George Nyahende who claims to have innovated the incubator. Different from other regular incubators, Mr. Nyahende claims that his incubator uses regular electricity, solar energy, as well as kerosene.

He also claims that his incubator is capable of incubating 70 eggs at once and it can control humidity without using water. He also claimed that his incubator is equipped with the ability to store the cooling water indefinitely. At the same time, his machine does not necessarily need someone to turn the eggs frequently as it works in many regular incubators instead, with his new invention, eggs are turned only once a day.

Fig. 9: Mr. George Nyahende (far back) explains to the expert panelists on how his incubator works.

Since its esbalishment in the 1980S, COSTECH has been recognizing and awarding grassroots innovators in many ways. Some of them receive equipments, some of them receive seed funds, some of them are sent to technical institutes for further technical studies in order to improve their ideas, some of them receive the Tanzania Science and Technology Award (TASTA), while others are nurtured through the incubation program under the Dar Teknohama Business Incubator (DTBi) for further development and commercialization.

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26 January 2013 MAXED out on your phone's data plan? Stuck in a dead zone? Your neighbour can help. A new app lets users share mobile internet connections with anyone around them, helping the data-starved avoid roaming charges and steep overage fees. Called AirMobs, the app shares a phone's data plan with others through the phone's Wi-Fi signal. For every kilobyte shared, AirMobs awards a data credit that can be used later. "The idea is to extend the principle of 'give and you shall receive' to create an incentive for people to share their data plan," saysEyal Toledano at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, who developed the app. AirMobs aims to help users avoid high charges by connecting to the internet via the phones around them. In places where perhaps only one carrier has coverage, it can provide connectivity for all. "You can use your credit in an area where you don't have a connection," Toledano says. "Maybe the guy next to you has great coverage."

Users can choose how much of their data plan they share. AirMobs runs in the background, regularly checking the phone's battery life and the strength of the cellular connection. It also detects movement, as the signal is more stable when the phone is stationary. When conditions are right, the Wi-Fi transmitter switches on automatically, and others can then connect. Toledano says he has successfully tested the system within MIT, but he is hesitant to release it to the Google Play Store for fear that cellular carriers will object. Bill Menezes, an analyst at Gartner in Denver, Colorado, agrees that's a danger. "Verizon Wireless, for example, specifically prohibits resale of its services to a third party," he says. "The question is how they would enforce it against an app like this." "If networks decided to collaborate and let all devices roam freely, AirMobs would be less needed," Toledano says. "But where operators aren't collaborating, user-to-

user collaboration can fix the situation." If you would like to reuse any content from New Scientist, either in print or online, please contact the syndicationdepartment first for permission. New Scientist does not own rights to photos, but there are a variety of licensing optionsavailable for use of articles and graphics we own the copyright to. Have your say Only subscribers may leave comments on this article. Please log in. Only personal subscribers may leave comments on this article Subscribe now to comment. All comments should respect the New Scientist House Rules. If you think a particular comment breaks these rules then please use the "Report" link in that comment to report it to us. If you are having a technical problem posting a comment, please contact technical support. Source: Click here

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6th February 2013 Dodoma — GOVERNMENT will set aside funds for the campaign of eliminating Banana Bacterial Wilt (BBW) which has badly affected farms and gardens in Kagera region and neighbouring areas. In a separate incident an evaluation undertaken by government shows that about 8,866 people in 15 villages in the region now need food support of at least 266 tonnes between now and April.

Fig. 10: Banana bacterial wilt. Photo from the internet.

The Deputy Minister for Agriculture, Food Security and Cooperatives Mr Adam Malima told Parliament that, over 80 per cent of the residents in the region are now aware of BBW symptoms and are advised to follow experts advises to contain it. "We have already received an evaluation on emergency food support to residents now facing hunger and we are working on it in collaboration with the disaster department at the Prime Minister's Office," he said. He said some of the measures suggested by experts at Maruku Research Centre include farmers once detecting BBW to immediately uproot and destroy all affected banana plants to avoid recurrent infections. Mr Malima was responding to a question by Charles Mwijage (Muleba East, CCM) who put government to task to apply what he called scientific approaches in eliminating the vice. Earlier on, Mr Mwijage demanded more explanation on why government was hesitant to conduct a study tour in Uganda and Burundi on reasons the countries have moved several steps ahead in dealing with the problem. Source: Tanzania Daily News (Dar es Salaam)

By Syliverster Domas 11th February 2013 Over 121.12m/- (about USD 75, 000) is to be shared by some 12 finalists of the 2013 Africa’s most inspiring youth entrepreneurs competition alias Anzisha Prize. Andrew Mahiga is the Founder and Managing Director of Maanisha, a local NGO, reported that the South African based African Leadership Academy and the Anzisha Prize programme along with Mastercard Foundation will launch the application registrations next week in Dar es Salaam. The organisation’s representative will hold an info-session this Wednesday and Friday at the COSTECH offices in Kijitonyama and then at the Maanisha offices in Mikocheni B respectively. According to the Prize Programme Manager, Chi Achebe, the winning projects will be those that focus on generating employment and non-profit activities that address entrenched social problems in the community. “We’ve worked hard to make applications and nominations as easy as possible this year…” said Achebe in an exclusive interview with The Guardian in Dar es Salaam . The finalists will enjoy an all-expense paid trip to the African Leadership Academy (ALA) in Johannesburg, South Africa where they will attend a weeklong entrepreneurship conference and awards gala. They will also receive training from ALA’s renowned Entrepreneurial Leadership faculty as well as experienced business mentors. The Anzisha Prize was introduced in an effort to catalyse innovation and entrepreneurship among youth (15-22) across the continent and a good number of applicants have been impacted and report improved ingenuity and scalability of their entrepreneurial efforts. Last year’s finalists saw the highlights of 21 year old Ugandan winner Andrew Mupuya, founder of YELI, Uganda's first registered paper bag making company and runner up Diana Mong’are, who started Planet Green an

environmental waste and recycling project. The deadline for the application is April 1

st, 2013.

Source: The Guardian.

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By Leslie Lamport Architects draw detailed plans before a brick is laid or a nail is hammered. Programmers and software engineers don’t. Can this be why houses seldom collapse and programs often crash? Blueprints help architects ensure that what they are planning to build will work. “Working” means more than not collapsing; it means serving the required purpose. Architects and their clients use blueprints to understand what they are going to build before they start building it. But few programmers write even a rough sketch of what their programs will do before they start coding. Most programmers regard anything that doesn’t generate code to be a waste of time. Thinking doesn’t generate code, and writing code without thinking is a recipe for bad code. Before we start to write any piece of code, we should understand what that code is supposed to do. Understanding requires thinking, and thinking is hard. In the words of the cartoonist Dick Guindon: Writing is nature’s way of letting you know how sloppy your thinking is. Blueprints help us think clearly about what we’re building. Before writing a piece of code, we should write a blueprint. A blueprint for software is called a specification (“spec”). Many reasons have been given why specifying software is a waste of time. For example: Specs are useless because we can’t generate code from them. This is like saying architects should stop drawing blueprints because they still need contractors to do the construction. Other arguments against writing specs can also be answered by applying them to blueprints.

Some programmers argue that the analogy between specs and blueprints is flawed because programs aren’t like buildings. They think tearing down walls is hard but changing code is easy, so blueprints of programs aren’t necessary.

Fig. 11: A software design.

Wrong! Changing code is hard — especially if we don’t want to introduce bugs. I recently modified some code I hadn’t written to add one tiny feature to a program. Doing that required understanding an interface. It took me over a day with a debugger to find out what I needed to know about the interface — something that would have taken five minutes with a spec. To avoid introducing bugs, I had to understand the consequences of every change I made. The absence of specs made that extremely difficult. Not wanting to find and read thousands of lines of code that might be affected, I spent days figuring out how to change as little of the existing code as possible. In the end, it took me over a week to add or modify 180 lines of code. And this was for a very minor change to the program. Writing code without thinking is a recipe for bad code. Modifying that program was a small part of a larger task, most of which involved changing code that I had written over 10 years ago. Even though I had little memory of what my code did, modifying it was much easier. The specs I had written made it easy to figure out what I needed

to change. Although the changes to my code were an order of magnitude more extensive than the ones to the other code, they took me only twice as long to make. What do I mean by a specification? It is often thought to be something written in a formal specification language. But formal specification is just one end of a spectrum. We wouldn’t draw the kind of blueprints needed for a skyscraper when building a toolshed, nor should we write formal specs for most software. However, it’s as silly to write small programs without writing specs as it would be to build a toolshed without first drawing some kind of plan. These days, the few programs I write are more like bungalows than skyscrapers. I usually specify each method, and most methods are so simple that they can be specified in a sentence or two. Sometimes figuring out exactly what a method should do requires thought, and its spec may be a paragraph or even a couple of pages. I use a simple rule: The spec should say everything one needs to know in order to use the method. After the code has been written and debugged, no one should ever have to read it. Once I’ve figured out what a piece of code is supposed to do, the coding is usually straightforward. Sometimes it’s not, and it requires a non-trivial algorithm. Getting an algorithm right takes thought, which means writing a spec. To designers of complex systems, the need for formal specs should be as obvious as the need for blueprints of a skyscraper. While the specs I write are almost all informal, occasionally a piece of code is sufficiently subtle, or sufficiently critical, that it should be specified formally — Source: For more information on this article, please click here

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Did you ever know that spending too much time watching television lowers sperm count? Did you know that spending more hours exercising increases sperm concentrations? If you never knew, Marina Kamenev gives you the details. Please read on. Researchers surveyed 189 American men aged 18–22 about the amount of time they spent watching television and how often they exercised during the three months prior to the survey. The researchers measured participants’ sperm concentration, motility, morphology and total sperm count. They found television watching was inversely associated with sperm concentration. Men who watched more than 20 hours of television a week had a 44% lower sperm concentration than men who did not watch television. The men who spent more than 15 hours a week exercising had sperm concentrations 73% higher than those who exercised less than five hours a week – but exercise did not have an impact on sperm motility, shape or sample volume.

“The modifying effect of TV watching on the association between physical activity and sperm counts was unexpected as this has not been documented in previous literature,” the authors wrote.

Fig. 12: WATCHING too much television can almost halve a man’s sperm count, according to a new study.

The authors classified television watching as sedentary behavior, which previous studies have linked with a lower sperm concentration. However the literature also shows long-distance runners and cyclists had reduced semen quality. The authors believe the highly active men in their study were more likely to play football, baseball, track sports, soccer or basketball, which are not linked to lower sperm quality. “These associations with sperm counts suggest that lifestyle

changes such as increases in physical activity may positively influence sperm count and concentration in reproductive-aged men,” the authors wrote. A UK andrologist not connected with the study, Dr. Allan Pacey from the University of Sheffield, urged caution in interpreting the paper. “It remains to be seen if coaxing a TV-watching couch potato into doing some regular exercise could actually improve his sperm count or whether there exists an unknown fundamental difference between men who like exercise and those who do not which might account for the findings,” he said in a media release. “Before all worried men hunt for their sports bag it’s important to note that other research suggests that doing too much exercise can be harmful to sperm production and this study did not examine the type and intensity of exercise their participants were undertaking.” Br J Sports Med 2013; online 4 February Source: http://www.medicalobserver.com.au/news/tv-watching-lowers-sperm-count

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After being granted the permit by the COSTECH, to conduct his or her research, a researcher is supposed to provide reports on progress made after three months; submit three copies of the final report dissertation/theses derived from the research undertaken in Tanzania, and any other papers or publications based on the research done in the country. The researcher is also supposed to send a copy of publication to the local advisors appointed to assist him or her. Below is a summary of progress, annual report, or publication received from one of the researchers who have conducted research in Tanzania. Research title: Maji Maji: Lifting the Fog of War – edited by James Giblin and Jamie Monson Research Abstract: This is a chapter from a book meant for African Social Studies Series. The title of the chapter is “Deadly Silence Predominates in This District- MajiMaji War and Its Aftermath in Ungoni.”, from chapter five, which was authored by Heike Shmidt. During the Maji Maji war, the German colonial government concentrated its military efforts in the southwest region known as Ungoni or Songea District. The author quote from Governo Gustav Adolf von Gotzen who offered four reasons: it appears that the people of Ungoni has risen in unity; Songea was

remote and by late August 1905 cut off from direct communication with the coast; the white settler population in the neighbouring district of Neulangenburg was endangered by Wangoni raids, and the Wangoni, the ruling ethnicity, had a fierce warrior reputation... The author positions the chapter within the existing historiography, and then follows a chronological approach by providing a brief introduction to the history of Ungoni leading up to the Maji Maji war with an emphasis on the imposition of colonial rule. This is followed by the reconstruction of the course of the war with the arrival of maji and as examination of insurgency and counter-insurgency tactics. Finally, the chapter revisits critically the major questions in Ungoni’s historiography: the causes of the war and the allegedly early end of the fighting. Research objectives/goals: The chapter’s main objective is to demonstrate the official explanation that explains the causes and course of the war in Ungoni. This is accompanied by examining the cause and mobilization both from a radically local perspective which allows a specific understanding of young men’s gender, age, and social status they played during the war. Research results: The author opposes the case whereby it was first announced that the cause of the war was the delayed resistance, stemming from the missed opportunity in 1897-8 to oppose the imposition of

German rule as John Iliffe argued. He is also dissatisfied with Patrick Redmond’s explanation that the cause of war in Ungoni was the ambition of the Wangoni to return to their glorious warrior past. The researcher maintains that the cause of war was due to different interests. Rather than blurred by age and gender and the opportunities which the conflict afforded, especially to men, one chose one side over the other because they could renegotiate their marginal position in society, either by joining the rebels or by being loyal supporters of the colonial administration. Thus the cause, according to the author, is both specifically rooted in local power relations, and at the same time expresses in a more general sense young men seeking opportunities by distinguishing themselves in combat. Research conclusion/output: According to author, Maji Maji war lasted in Ungoni from September 1905 into the year 1908, and recovery only really began in 1910. The result was great suffering throughout the region. Death, starvation, displacement, enslavement, forced labor, and humiliation dominated life into the years following the fighting. This reflected in the social memory today, as most elders claim not to have any knowledge of the Maji Maji war, only njaa, the time of hunger, or vita vya Mjerumani, the German war.

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Fig. 13: COSTECH Director General Dr. Hassan Mshinda speaks to the cluster initiative members (not pictured) during the disbursement of seed funds that took place on February 5th, 2013. On his right is the Guest of Honor Dr. Anaclet Kashuliza.

Fig. 14: The Guest of Honor for the event Dr. Anaclet Kashuliza (left) speaks to the the cluster initiative members (not pictured) during the disbursement of seed funds that took place on February 5th, 2013. On his left is the COSTECH Director General Dr. Hassan Mshinda.

Fig. 15: The Guest of Honor during the disbursement of seed funds to cluster initiatives Dr. Anaclet Kashuliza, hands over a cheque to the ICT cluster inititive facilitator Dr. Jim Yonaz.

Fig. 16: Some of COSTECH staffs participate in the exercise of testing the COSTECH Research Website (CRWeb) at the Directorate of Life Sciences on 27th February, 2013.

Fig. 17: The Tanzania Academy of Sciences’ President, Professor Esther Mwaikambo welcomes the newly inducted TAAS members (not pictured) during the induction event that took place on 2nd February, 2013.

Fig. 18: The Mikocheni Agricultural Research Institute, Executive Director and Molecular Plant Virologist, Dr. Joseph Ndunguru delivers a keynote presentation on Agricultural Biotechnology for Africa’s Development. The event took place at the COSTECH Conference Hall on 28th February, 2013.

Fig. 19: The UK’s Royal Society Foreign Secretary Prof. Poliakoff Martyn presents a certificate of appreciation to the TAAS’ President, Prof. Esther Mwaikambo during the TAAS induction event that took place on 2nd February, 2013.

Fig. 20: The Chairman of the Tanzania Woodworking Federation (TAWOFE) Mr. Fredrick W. Maringo (standing) speaks with the Dar es Salaam furniture cluster initiative members (not pictured) at COSTECH Conference Hall on January 9th, 2013. Looking on is Mr. Omar Bakary, the Cluster Program Manager at COSTECH.

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Upcoming Event

WORKSHOP ON THE STATUS OF THE RENEWABLE

ENERGY IN TANZANIA

COSTECH Meeting Hall - 26th March, 2013

Ali Hassan Mwinyi Road, Sayansi Area

In Tanzania, there are a lot of initiatives promoting the access and use of

sustainable renewable energy. Unfortunately, there is no framework in

place to collect data showing the status of the development of the renewable

energy technologies like it is being done in the health sector.

The Tanzania Commission for Science and Technology (COSTECH) and

the Tanzania Renewable Energy Agency (TAREA) will support the

workshop in which renewable energy actors will share the knowledge they

have in the status of the renewable energy technologies in Tanzania by

December, 2012.

At the end of the workshop participants will propose the framework and

strategies of sustaining the information collection on the progress of the

development of the renewable energy technologies.

The workshop will be held at the COSTECH Conference Hall, COSTECH

Building.

You are all warmly welcome!!!

So, what do you think of this e-Newsletter?

If you have any comments or suggestions on how we can improve this newsletter, or have any feature story to share, please email

the editor at mrutechura@costech.or.tz