Home    Search    Sitemap Home About us Contact details Core business units Education Science Awareness Science Communication Competitions Young Science Communicators SA Science Lens Magazine EasyScience News & events Thematic Months Media Zone News in Brief Events calendar Projects National Science Olympiad National Science Week Primary Science Day Public Understanding of Biotechnology Women in Physics SASCON network Resources Downloads Logo library Useful links SA Science Lens Explore this section SA Science Lens home About SA Science Lens Categories Rules How to enter Prizes Judges Winners - 2009 winners - 2007 winners - 2005/6 winners - 2004 winners - 2003 winners - 2002 winners Inspiration Contact us Our sponsor Contact SA Science Lens Tel: 012 392-9320 2007 Winners Category 2: Science Close-Up Winner Enlarged view Photographer: Simon van Noort Title: Splendid cuckoo wasp Description: A close-up shot of the thorax of a splendid cuckoo wasp. Runner Up Enlarged view Photographer: Paul Herman Title: Prehistoric Fish? Description: The fruit (cypsela) of one of the outer florets of the daisy Dimorphotheca polyptera. With its projections, it looks almost like a prehistoric fish. The fruit was obtained from a specimen collected by W Giess and M Wolf in May 1970 in Namibia. The dried, preserved specimen is housed in the National Herbarium, Pretoria. Runner Up Enlarged view Photographer: Claire Hoving Title: Swan Description: The female nematode worm (Nippostrongylus Brasiliensis) with eggs strategically placed allowing its metamorphosis into a swan! It was taken at the University of Cape Town’s Division of Immunology laboratories at the Institute of Infectious Diseases and Molecular Medicine. Runner Up Enlarged view Photographer: Tony Bruton and Vijay Bandu Title: Gecko Foot Description: The very fine setae under the foot of a Moreau's Tropical House Gecko Hemidactylus mabouia. There are millions of such setae under each foot of the gecko. The image shows how each seta is further divided into fine spatulae at its distal end. The spatulae allow a very close registration allowing the gecko’s static-based adhesion to any substrate. The setae are said to be 'self-cleaning'. In this image it can be seen how a single particle of dust is in the process of being removed from the footpad. Top   The South African Agency for Science and Technology Advancement (SAASTA) is an agency of the National Research Foundation (NRF) Promotion of Access to Information | Terms & Conditions | Contact the Webmaster | Tel: +27 12 392-9300, Fax: +27 12 320-7803 | 211 Skinner St, Box 1758, Pretoria, 0001, South Africa Documents on this site are made available in Adobe PDF format and are viewed in Adobe Acrobat Reader.