Engela Duvenage is a science journalist and mother of two teenage daughters. She obtained several degrees from Stellenbosch University, among them an Honours degree in Psychology, an Honours degree in Journalism and a Master’s degree in Journalism specialising in Science Journalism. Her books – Uitvinders,
Planmakers en Ander Slimkoppe van Suid-Afrika (Lapa, 2020) and Inventors, Bright Minds and Other Science Heroes of South Africa (Penguin, 2021) – cover 102 stories about South Africans or people with South African connections who are pioneers in the fields of science or engineering. These range from Prof Chris Barnard, who successfully carried out the first heart transplant, to the inventors of the Kreepy Krauly and those people who have identified previously unknown plants, animals, and fossils – including SU’s own Prof Savel Daniels who discovered new velvet worm species.
“I’m fortunate to work with South Africa’s brightest scientists on a regular basis. I wanted to tell their stories to my children, and this led to me compiling a thick book with more than 350 pages filled with South African science history.”
Inventors, Bright Minds and Other Science Heroes of South Africa is available in bookstores and on Amazon,
Takealot and via the publishers.
