Civil Engineering September 2021 | Vol 29 No 8

Civil Engineering September 2021 47 Politicians should show that they are not permanent residents of ‘Mount Stupid’ by accepting that the remedy lies in longer-term learning and not quick-fix actions. Recognition of the problem does not justify knee-jerk reactions such as attempting to bring engineers in from Cuba as a quick fix. That creates a whole new set of problems for which we need another forum to discuss the many ways it is wrong. Gaining wisdom and knowledge is a slow and time-consuming process of which good, committed education is a fundamental requirement. Personal ex- perience in education has shown that the small school pool 12 of science and maths learners/students 13 & 14 needs to be en- larged and quality needs to be improved. Various efforts in this regard have shown the problem is more complex than merely throwing money at it. Typically, English language 15 profi- ciency was identified rather early on as an even more fundamental prerequisite for good maths and science education. Globally it is acknowledged that English is the international language of science and mathematics. If not addressed at such a fundamental level it will continue to have longer term impacts further up the education delivery chain. The consistent low point “anchoring” of South African learners in the periodic International Maths and Science Proficiency Comparison continues to be distressing to observe. The lack of upward movement of South African learners makes it tempting to retort, “the more things change the more they stay the same.” There are no quick fixes, and the fundamentals need to be addressed. IGNORANCE IN RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT Personal experience in the field of re- search, technology transfer/development and innovation in the transport, roads and materials field has demonstrated that ignorance has a major impact here as well. In the field of research, development and technology transfer, ignorance is often seen as the opposite of knowledge. Figure 2 illustrates the opposing views. Figure 2 shows that most research tends to focus on existing knowledge. It has the probability of being exposed to hindsight and confirmation biases. Even the literal meaning of the word research implies searching for something that already exists or is already known. In epistemology (the study of knowledge) it is often equated with the codification of knowledge. This typically implies that research culminates in guidelines, best practice and method statements. Joanne Roberts 4 warns, “Such knowledge codifi- cation practices, by their very nature, lead to ignorance since they involve the reduc- tion of often complex rich knowledge to those components that are central for the task at hand.” Personal experience in research at the CSIR and strategic changes in the research and development field in roads and transportation in the 1980s and early 1990s has shown how such traditional knowledge rehashing has largely lived off innovative technology and blue skies research originating from the 1950s up to the 1980s. This has led to research ‘scav- enging’ versus active research ‘hunting behaviour’ in the field of research, devel- opment, and technology transfer. This focus on ‘repackaging and unpacking’ the breakthrough innovations of the past in the CSIR has certainly con- tributed to a gradual demise in research and a reduction in world-class researchers to the extent that certain facilities at the CSIR are now either closed or a mere shadow of the past glory days. The lesson learnt is that there must be a balance with new blue skies research. The latter is ad- mittedly high risk in terms of producing actual immediate usable outcomes. The reality is there may be many misfires and isolated outcomes that cannot immedi- ately be coupled with usable outcomes, but without that there is not even oppor- tunity for future technology coupling. Current personal experience in the research field with the latest SANRAL Research Sponsorship is that research projects are increasingly focussed on existing knowledge and codification. It is red tape driven with procurement rules, supply chain requirements and tender procedures, as if researchers are just an- other off-the-shelf commodity. All of this smothers innovation and creativity. On top of that, the researcher qualifi- cation procedure appears to be favouring established researchers. The average age of A-rated researchers is approximately 60 years. Less accommodation of persons with little or no research experience is observed, implying that limited capacity building will take place. In addition, the rigidity with which foreign postgraduate students are not allowed to participate in research projects misses a great influencer opportunity. Working in the rest of Africa shows that other countries take the lead from South Africa regarding technical guidelines, specifications and technology transfer. Blue sky research links up with the study of ignorance, as described in Figure 2, as the study of the absence of something. This is not research in the project manageable and sure-fire outcome case described above, but more closely linked with new knowledge or recognition of acknowledgement of limited knowledge as described by Socrates: “The truly wise are those who realise how little they know: knowledge of one’s ignorance is a precondition for enlightenment!” Agnotology in science is rife and often goes under the guise of secrecy or sup- pression of knowledge 6 . A classic example is the delayed release of the observation of plate tectonics which remained clas- sified US military information linked to their undersea warfare efforts. Therefore, ignorance is often created by how and why diverse forms of knowledge are ignored or delayed. Another example of ignorance due to suppression is the original suppres- sion of Global Positioning System (GPS) technology made famous by its use in the 1991 Desert Storm (or Gulf War) in Iran. The study of Ignorance is seldom discussed, because studying the absence of something is incredibly difficult. Epistemology , or the study of knowledge. This field helps define what we know and why we know it. (Confirmation and hindsight biases) Search Research Figure 2 Ignorance in opposition to knowledge in the broader field of research and innovation