The overarching question imparting urgency to this exploration is: Can U.S.-Russian contention in cyberspace cause the two nuclear superpowers to stumble into war? In considering this question we were constantly reminded of recent comments by a prominent U.S. arms control expert: At least as dangerous as the risk of an actual cyberattack, he observed, is cyber operations’ “blurring of the line between peace and war.” Or, as Nye wrote, “in the cyber realm, the difference between a weapon and a non-weapon may come down to a single line of code, or simply the intent of a computer program’s user.”
A Storify overview of this interview is now available: https://storify.com/Zetsaid/engineering-in-africa-a-conversation-with-cjuma
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Join Professor @calestous for a Twitter interview with Julie Gichuru@juliegichuru on the role of engineering in Africa’s development. The interview will be held at 11 GMT (07 EDT and 14 East African time) on April 24, 2014. The hashtag for this event is #cjuma.
The UK Royal Academy of Engineering has launched the £25,000 Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation to reward innovation and entrepreneurship in Africa. The is “the biggest prize devoted to engineering innovation, covering all disciplines from mechanical, civil and computing to biomedical, oil and gas, mining and electronic engineering,” according to the Academy.
The announcement of the prize coincides with a period of economic optimism in Africa. The continent’s economy is projected to grow at 6% per year in the coming years. Sustaining this growth and spreading its benefits will require considerable investment in infrastructure, higher technical training, and entrepreneurship.
The interview explores the importance of engineering and entrepreneurship in Africa’s long-term economic development as reflected in the draft Agenda 2063 of the African Union.
Please forward your advance questions and comments to Julie Gichuru @juliegichuru. A background interview is available here.