There has been a marked rise of very good secondary schools all over the African continent. Whilst government schools within African countries started off the best, following independence, much has changed. For the most part, private schools (they consider missionary schools as private school as well) outperform government schools. In addition, international schools have taken Africa by storm. Below is the list of 100 best secondary schools.

Fourteen of our very own Zimbabwean schools made it onto the list, which is a great achievement, South Africa has 30 schools.

The survey was carried by a South African publication, Buzzsouthafrica. The survey focused on schools that have historical prominence at national and regional level.

My Zimbabwe News has reproduced the full list below:

1. Grey College South Africa
2. Rift Valley Academy Kenya
3. King Edward VII School South Africa
4. Hilton College South Africa
5. St. George's College Zimbabwe
6. Prince Edward School Zimbabwe
7. International School of Kenya Kenya
8. Accra Academy Ghana
9. Lycée Lamine Guèye Senegal
10. Adisadel College Ghana
11. St John's College Houghton South Africa
12. Maritzburg College South Africa
13. Lycée Guebre Mariam Ethiopia
14. Selborne College South Africa
15. St Alban's College South Africa
16. Lycée Lyautey Morocco
17. Durban High School South Africa
18. Grey High School South Africa
19. St Andrew`s College South Africa
20. Gateway High School Zimbabwe
21. Glenwood High School South Africa
22. Rainbow International School Uganda
23. Lycée Moulay Youssef Morocco
24. Kearsney College South Africa
25. St. James High School Zimbabwe
26. Wynberg Boys High School South Africa
27. Pretoria Boys High School South Africa
28. Lycée Français de Tananarive Madagascar
29. Mauritius College of the Air Mauritius
30. International School Moshi Tanzania
31. Le Collège Mermoz Ivory Coast
32. Strathmore School Kenya
33. Parktown Boys' High School South Africa
34. International School of Tanganyika Tanzania
35. Holy Child School Ghana
36. Christ The King College Onitsha Nigeria
37. Graeme College South Africa
38. Jeppe High School for Boys South Africa
39. Alliance High School Kenya
40. Hillcrest School Jos Nigeria
41. Kingswood College South Africa
42. Hamilton High School Zimbabwe
43. Lincoln International School Uganda
44. Lycée Victor Hugo Morocco
45. Alexandra High School South Africa
46. École Normale Supérieure Guinea
47. Ghana International School Ghana
48. Arundel School Zimbabwe
49. Rondebosch Boys' High School South Africa
50. Starehe Boys' Centre Kenya
51. American International School of Johannesburg South Africa
52. Victoria Park High School South Africa
53. Methodist Boys High School Sierra Leone
54. Harare International School Zimbabwe
55. Methodist Girls High School Sierra Leone
56. Lenana School Kenya
57. St. Andrew's High School Malawi
58. Benoni High School South Africa
59. Waddilove High School Zimbabwe
60. Roedean School South Africa
61. Wykeham Collegiate Independent School for Girls South Africa
62. Lycee Francais du Caire Egypt
63. Christian Brothers' College Bulawayo Zimbabwe
64. Kamuzu Academy Malawi
65. Mount Pleasant High School Zimbabwe
66. Mfantsipim School Ghana
67. Chisipite Senior School Zimbabwe
68. Gayaza High School Uganda
69. Kutama College Zimbabwe
70. Wheelus High School Libya
71. Michaelhouse School South Africa
72. Westville Boys' High School South Africa
73. Namilyango College Uganda
74. Government College Umuahia Nigeria
75. Muir College South Africa
76. Wesley Girls High School Ghana
77. Alexander Sinton High School South Africa
78. Lycée Faidherbe Senegal
79. Royal College Port Louis Mauritius
80. Lycée La Fontaine Niger
81. Lycée Lyautey de Casablanca Morocco
82. Settlers High School South Africa
83. Nyeri High School Kenya
84. Pinetown Boys' High School South Africa
85. Kings' College Lagos Nigeria
86. Lycée Français Liberté Mali
87. Paarl Boys' High School South Africa
88. St. Paul's College Namibia
89. Tafari Makonnen School Ethiopia
90. Wynberg Girls' High School South Africa
91. Bingham Academy Ethiopia
92. Port Shepstone High School South Africa
93. Clapham High School South Africa
94. Hillcrest Secondary School Kenya
95. South African College School South Africa
96. Lycée Blaise Diagne Senegal
97. St Mary's Diocesan School for Girls South Africa
98. Townsend High School Zimbabwe
99. St.Gregory's College Nigeria
100. St. Patrick School Zimbabwe

The Raking Methodology:

Expectedly the rankings of the '100 Best Secondary Schools in Africa' were met with displeasure from most of the people who left their comments on the article. Most people emailed the editor regarding the methodology that was used in compiling the list.

It should be states here that ranking high schools from different countries across the continent is always going to be difficult as different countries follow different curriculums and take part in completely different regional assessments.

NB: The author selected the list of schools that have historical prominence at a national and regional level. That is the reason most schools that featured on the list are also quite old, some started well before their corresponding countries became independent. This is especially the case for most public secondary/high schools. Here it is important to note that not all schools take part in regional assessments. Yet, not a single school was eliminated for lack of regional accomplishments. Schools that were very good at a national level, yet lacked regional presence were also considered given that they did not have any regional assessments to partake.

The author then went over the list of a few hundred schools selecting the schools that continued to lead at a national and regional level especially in the past few years when there has been national and regional rankings for secondary/high schools. It is also important to state that countries have different rakings and they rank different criteria which made it difficult to harmonize the list.

NB: to see the full list scroll to the bottom of this article.
The top 100 Advanced Level learning institutions in Zimbabwe have scored between 93 and 100 percent pass rates in the 2014 examinations, signalling a 3 percent increase compared to 2013. According to statistics released by the Zimbabwe School Examinations Council, the number of schools that attained a 100 percent pass rate remained at 20 with Manicaland province's Saint Faith's dislodging Nyanga High School at the top, while the latter landed on second position.

MASVINGO province was the best with 7 schools that attained 100% pass rates at A-Level (St Anthony's, Hebron, Zaka High, Chinorumba Secondary, Chatikobo High,Tungwane Secondary and Mutimwi secondary. All the 10 best schools in the Masvingo province were amongst Zimbabwe's top 100 schools.

Second best province was MANICALAND whose best school, St Faith was also Zimbabwe's best school while Manicaland's second best school, Nyanga High also became Zimbabwe's second best. Number three in Manicaland which also attained 100% pass rate was St David Bonda and the fourth school to get 100 % pass rate in Manicaland was Mutare Girls High. Manicaland's 10th's best school, St Joseph was far much better than Matabeleland North's number 1 school, Mpopoma High.

Third best Province was MASHONALAND EAST whose two schools St Ignatius College and Mhari High School both attained a 100 % pass rate. What is also of interest to note is that all the 10 best schools in Mashonaland East Province were part of Zimbabwe's 100 best schools.

Fourth best province was MIDLANDS Province which also had two schools Shungu High School and Anderson Adventist High School that had 100% pass rates each. Out of the 10 best schools in Midlands, the first nine schools managed to make it into Zimbabwe's 100 best schools, while its 10th best, Methodist-run Pakame Secondary school in Shurungi was ranked Zimbabwe's 115th best.

Fifth best province in Zimbabwe was MATABELELAND SOUTH after Tongwe Gvt Rural school and Zezani Secondary schools achieved a 100% pass rate each. However only four of its schools managed to make it into the top 100.

Sixth best province was MASHONALAND CENTRAL province. Although it had only one school that attained a 100% pass rate, however all its 10 best schools were part of Zimbabwe's 100 best schools. Had another school from this province attained a 100% pass rate, it would have been ranked thirst best province in the country.

Seventh best province was MASHONALAND WEST which was led by another Methodist-run school, Sandringham High which got a 100% pass rate. Of the 10 best schools in Mashonaland West, only 2 , Ngezi Barracks and another Methodist-run Moleli High School failed to make it into Zimbabwe's top 100.

Eight best province was Zimbabwe's own Capital City, a stand-alone province, HARARE Province. The best school in Harare turned out to be Roosevelt Girls High which was the only school that got a shocking 100% pass rate. 5 of Harare's best schools however managed to make it into Zimbabwe's top 100 schools.

Ninth best province, or rather Zimbabwe's worst province was MATABELELAND NORTH province whose best school was Zimbabwe's number 63, Mpopoma High School which is Bulawayo. Zimsec, for some reason combined Matabeleland North and Bulawayo provinces into one province, but still the greater Matabeleland North province is the only province in Zimbabwe which failed to attain even a single 100% pass rate. Only two of its schools, Mpopoma High and Tshabanda Secondary school  managed to make it into Zimbabwe's top 100.

See full list of the best 100 schools below, courtesy of My Zimbabwe News:

Source - My Zimbabwe News

Researchers may have finally cracked the code that governs a major group of viruses that includes the common cold and HIV.

According to a paper published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences by a team from the University of Leeds and University of York, this code can be jammed, stopping a virus from assembling itself and thus preventing the disease it causes.

Single strand RNA viruses are both the simplest and the earliest viruses to have evolved, and yet they are still some of the most dangerous.

They include Rhinovirus, or the common cold, which afflicts more people every year than all other infectious agents put together.

HIV, polio, hepatitis C and chikungunya also fall into this category.

Dr Roman Tuma, Reader in Biophysics at the University of Leeds, said in a media statement: "We have understood for decades that the RNA carries the genetic messages that create viral proteins, but we didn't know that, hidden within the stream of letters we use to denote the genetic information, is a second code governing virus assembly. It is like finding a secret message within an ordinary news report and then being able to crack the whole coding system behind it.

"This paper goes further: it also demonstrates that we could design molecules to interfere with the code, making it uninterpretable and effectively stopping the virus in its tracks."

"These experiments confirm that the selective advantages for viral yield and encapsidation specificity, predicted from previous modeling of packaging signal-mediated assembly, are found in Nature. Regions of the genome that act as packaging signals also function in translational and transcriptional enhancement, as well as directly coding for the coat protein, highlighting the density of encoded functions within the viral RNA.

"Assembly and gene expression are therefore direct molecular competitors for different functional folds of the same RNA sequence. The strongest packaging signal in the test fragment, encodes a region of the coat protein that undergoes a conformational change upon contact with packaging signals. A similar phenomenon occurs in other RNA viruses for which packaging signals are known. These contacts hint at an even deeper density of encoded functions in viral RNA, which if confirmed, would have profound consequences for the evolution of this class of pathogens."

Sex often leads to deadly diseases and subsequent death if done wrongly, however, when a faithful couple engages in sex at the right time, in the right way, it is said to be a remedy for curing lot’s of diseases and medical conditions.

Below are 25 known medical conditions researchers, doctors and scientists have discovered that sex can easily get rid of:

1. Depression:
Without the help of researchers, just about anyone can agree that sex will make you feel good about yourself and just a bit more confident. But one researcher has said there’s a scientific explanation that goes a bit farther. Professor Gordon Gallop says that there’s an unknown chemical in semen that has an antidepressant effect on women.

2. Pregnancy:
Sex is both the cause and the cure for pregnancy. Women who are ready to induce labor often have sex to speed up the process, and research backs up this method. Semen contains prostaglandins, which help the cervix prepare to open, and orgasms produce
oxytocin, which will help cause contractions.

3. Headaches:
Although sex can sometimes bring on a headache, it can cure them too. The tension release your body experiences during and after sex can ease restricted blood vessels in the brain.

4. Menstrual cramps:
Sex acts as an analgetic to relieve menstrual pain, primarily because of the relaxation and endorphins sex brings.

5. Arthritis:
In his book, "How to Treat Arthritis with Sex and Alcohol," rheumatologist Carter V. Multz asserts that sex, as well as alcohol and other complementary treatments, can reduce pain, swelling, and inflammation associated with arthritis.

6. Common cold:
Manfred Schedlovski, a Swiss researcher from Zurich, asserts that sex has a positive effect on phagocytes, which are a part of the immune system that goes after alien bodies, like cold germs, and kills them. Phagocytes are increased signficantly during sex, and will often double after orgasm.

7. Stress:
Orgasms offer a great way to relax, and even nonorgasmic sex offers some relief. Dr. Joshua Golden asserts sex’s relaxation properties, as well as emotional benefits.

8. Tooth decay:
Kissing, as well as oral sex, encourages saliva production. This increase in saliva helps to wash food particles from your teeth, prevents plaque build-up, and helps lower decay-causing acid. Additionaly,
seminal plasma has been shown to help prevent tooth decay.

9. Erectile dysfunction:
By exercising your Kegel muscles with frequent sex and delaying ejaculation, men can help strengthen muscles enough to help with minor erection problems.

10. High blood pressure:
Semen has been found to lower blood pressure in women. Specifically, swallowing semen can help ward off preeclampsia, which is a dangerously high blood pressure that sometimes occurs during pregnancy.

11. Insomnia:
Many people find that the relaxation they experience after sex helps them go to sleep.

12. Prostate cancer:
Men who ejaculate more frequently have been found to be at a lower risk of developing prostate cancer.

13. Hangovers:
Sex may not save your liver, but it will help you shake off a funk. Having sex will help boost your endorphins and oxytocins, which stimulate muscle contraction and help you avoid aggressiveness.

14. Toxic system:
Sex gets your blood pumping faster, which helps to rid the body of waste.

15. Heart disease:
Studies have shown that if men have sex twice a week or more, they tend to have a lower risk of heart attack. For women, increased levels of estrogen
caused by sex help to protect against heart disease.

16. Stubborn wounds:
Studies have found that oxytocin, which is released during sex, can help wounds heal faster.

17. Low energy:
Sex increases energy through exercise and emotional well-being.

18. Minor cognitive problems:
Whenever you become sexually excited or have an orgasm, the hormone DHEA is released. DHEA has been found to improve cognition.

19. Skin irritations:
The sweat released during sex will cleanse your pores, helping to relieve rashes, blemishes, and other skin problems.

20. Pain:
Orgasm releases endorphins, which will alleviate pain for just about everything.

21. Obesity:
Although few doctors are likely to prescribe a sex diet, the fact is that sex is a form of exercise. Performing the act of sex requires physical activity that will burn calories and strengthen your heart. It’s an especially great exercise for those who have little motivation to get to the gym.

22. Incontinence:
Every time you have sex, you’re exercising your Kegel muscles, which are the same ones you use to stem the flow of urine.

23. Weak bones and muscles:
Sex brings on a boost of testosterone, which helps to make your bones and muscles strong.

24. Semen allergy:
Unfortunately, some women are allergic to their partner's semen. However, along with other treatments, frequent sex has been found to work as an effective desensitization therapy for this allergy.

25. Death:
That's right, sex can help ward off death for men. Professor Stuart Brody reports that men who orgasm twice a week are half as likely to die as those who only orgasm once a month.

Now go and have lots of sex to stay healthy!

Researchers have developed a potent drug which protects against the transmission of HIV even under exposure to extremely high levels of the virus.

Scientists from the Scripps Research Institute in Florida, Harvard Medical School and more than a dozen other institutions developed the novel drug candidate and tested it in rhesus macaques, monkeys which can carry simian HIV, a virus similar to the one that infects humans.
 
They found that macaques inoculated with the drug compound known as eCD4-lg did not catch the virus, even when they were repeatedly exposed to high levels of it over an 8-month period.

Results of the study were published today in the journal Nature.

In addition to protecting monkeys, the researchers say lab tests indicate the drug candidate blocks every known strain of HIV-1 and HIV-2, the two main types of the virus that infect humans.

"Our compound is the broadest and most potent entry inhibitor described so far," lead researcher Michael Farzan, an immunologist at the Scripps Research Institute, said in a press statement. "Unlike antibodies, which fail to neutralize a large fraction of HIV-1 strains, our protein has been effective against all strains tested, raising the possibility it could offer an effective HIV vaccine alternative."

It was built on previous research by Farzan's lab into a receptor called CCR5, which plays a key role in enabling HIV to latch onto the surface of a cell and begin replicating. The new drug compound binds to two sites on the surface of the virus simultaneously, preventing it from infecting a cell.

"This is the culmination of more than a decade's worth of work on the biochemistry of how HIV enters cells," Farzan said. "When we did our original work on CCR5, people thought it was interesting, but no one saw the therapeutic potential. That potential is starting to be realized."

To work like a vaccine, the researchers attached eCD4-lg to an adeno-associated virus (AAV), a virus harmless to humans that can be used as a vehicle.

Noted AIDS researcher David Baltimore, a Nobel laureate whose firm, Calimmune, is working on a separate gene therapy approach to HIV, told Science he considers these latest findings "impressive." But he sounded a note of caution since it's only been tested in a laboratory and in animals.

"It's perhaps a better construct than the antibodies we've been using, but it's a matter of how it plays out in human trials," Baltimore said. "I don't think it's easy to tell how that will happen."

The Liberian government recommended on Saturday that survivors of Ebola practice safe sex indefinitely, until more information can be collected on the length of time the virus might remain present in body fluids, including semen.

Previously, male survivors were advised to abstain from sexual intercourse or to use condoms for three months, reflecting that the active virus had been detected for up to 82 days in semen.

Acting on new developments, all countries affected by the Ebola outbreak need to consider applying similar recommendations, said Dr. David Nabarro, the U.N. secretary-general's special envoy for Ebola.

Agencies involved in the response were urgently reviewing the issue. "Yet again the Ebola-affected communities are asked to deal carefully with an unknown," Nabarro wrote in an email, adding that survivors "should not be stigmatized as they take actions for the public good. They are the heroes."

The new guidelines came one day after the death in Liberia of Ruth Tugbah from Ebola. Before her illness, the country had gone three weeks without a new Ebola diagnosis, and hopes had risen that Liberia was nearing the end of a yearlong epidemic that killed more than 4,000 people there. Tugbah's only known risk factor was having a boyfriend who was an Ebola survivor.

Scientists detected the genetic material of Ebola from a semen sample the boyfriend provided to infectious disease investigators, officials from two Ebola response agencies said, speaking on background because they were not authorized to speak publicly.

In a potentially worrying development, officials learned that the man, whose name is not being released, was treated for Ebola in September.

A blood sample from his girlfriend, who tested positive for Ebola, was collected March 19. Given a maximum incubation period of 21 days for the virus, the earliest she could have been infected was Feb. 26, well over three months after the man was cured of Ebola.

Even though traces of the virus were detected in the man's semen, that does not prove that the fluid contained active virus particles or that Tugbah was infected from it, the officials said.

To help determine that, the sample will be sent to scientists outside Liberia who have the facilities to try to grow the virus in a culture.

Scientists in Monrovia, Liberia's capital, were working to determine whether the virus carried by Tugbah matched the sequence of that from her boyfriend. The national laboratory gained the capacity to sequence the Ebola virus just last month with support from the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute for Infectious Diseases.

Officials from Liberia, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization scrambled on Friday to come up with the new recommendations given the developments and their sensitivity.

"For now we are encouraging survivors to have safe sex," said Tolbert Nyenswah, Liberia's top Ebola official. He said the country planned to enroll survivors in a study to determine the maximum length of time the virus remains detectable.

Condoms have not been tested with Ebola, but are thought to be effective because they block transmission of much smaller viruses, bacteriophages, which are 27 nanomillimeters compared with Ebola's 80 nanomillimeters, said Nathalie Jeanne Nicole Broutet, a medical officer with the WHO's Department of Reproductive Health and Research in Geneva. "In theory the Ebola virus wouldn't pass the condom," she said, while noting that condoms "are not perfect for sexually transmitted illnesses. They have a 95 percent efficacy if you use them constantly and correctly."

This means that even used correctly, 5 people in every 100 who use condoms effectively and in the correct way might still get pregnant or contract sexually transmitted infections such as HIV.

South African women are in dilemma over leaving the country with their foreign husbands who have been displaced by xenophobic violence in Durban, reports said on Thursday.

Over 10 South African women who strongly believe foreign men are way better than local guys want to travel to Zimbabwe with their husbands but don't have the right documents, said Isaac Moyo, Zimbabwe's ambassador to South Africa.

"The embassy was encountering challenges in cases where undocumented South African women were insisting on travelling to Zimbabwe with their husbands," the official Herald newspaper reported Moyo as saying.

"About 10 undocumented South African women were insisting on travelling with their husbands," the paper added.

Moyo said that embassy officials were working with the South African authorities to document Zimbabweans who have taken refuge at the Chatsworth Displacement Camp in Durban.

Foreign men are all different, but some of their characteristics stand out for all to see. And in an interview once conducted by Sowetan, local women sent a clear message that foreign men are way more responsible than local men. Last year, President Jacob Zuma openly said South African men are too lazy and that is why foreigners do well when they come to South Africa. This is also the reason why xenophobic attacks are taking centre stage in Durban and other parts of South Africa.

Though most foreign men are branded drug dealers and con artists, some local women are falling over themselves to get at these blokes.

What makes them irresistible and better than South African men?

According to Mpho Ngwekazi, a relationship and marriage counsellor in Johannesburg, most foreign men are brought up to be responsible.

"Most of them grew up under the watchful eye of their fathers, unlike most South African men whose fathers were absent due to migrant work, exile or adultery," Ngwekazi says.

She says foreign boys are taught to take charge and take risks, get into fights, know their territory and to protect it and everyone in it.

"The average African boy is taught to be responsible, be a leader and be the head of the household. Most South African men struggle to define what a real man is. Often the yardstick is many children, many women, a sports car, the loudest sound system and so on," she says.

Some local women would not dream of dating a foreigner, but increasingly, and in greater numbers, locals are marrying or dating foreigners.

Contrary to popular belief that they are marrying local women to acquire citizenship, these foreigners are getting married for noble reasons, says Grace Malinga, a church marriage counsellor from Word of Faith, a charismatic church in Roodepoort, Gauteng.

"More and more local ladies are showing up with their foreign men for pre-marriage counselling. This is a sign of commitment. They are determined to make a success of marriage and are bonded by love, faith and a commitment and want to live in happy matrimony," Malinga says.

She believes some foreign men have brought stability to local women.

"Some ladies come from broken relationships, some have children whose fathers deserted them, some are divorcées and others have never been in stable relationships."

She says some local men who are insecure can't stand foreign men.

"Foreigners have shaken locals out of their comfort zones. They have shown them how to be real men and now local girls have a reference to compare with."

What do local South African women say? Most women said they date foreign men because locals don't have what they have.

Tabita Mbuyazwe, 28, who has been dating a Nigerian for three years, says her boyfriend has restored her dignity.

"Before I met Chinedu I dated South Africans, but they treated me like trash. I hopped from bed to bed looking for love. They didn't want to commit and they all had stable relationships.

"Some had children from different mothers. Some local guys have the libido and energy to father an entire village, but they do not know how to raise those children.

"Chinedu did not only bring stability to my life, he brought dignity too."

She adds that foreign men are happy, hardworking and provide for their women.

Tebogo Malatjie, 34, who is married to a Zambian and has a child from a previous relationship, says her husband treats her better than all the men she had had before.

"He appreciates my affection and acknowledges my efforts. At the end of the day, that's all a girl wants. Most of the men I dated before only wanted me for sex and for show. Very few South African men have genuine respect for women."

She adds that her husband not only takes care of her child, but of her whole family too.

Zintle Zulu, 28, who is married to a Zimbabwean doctor, says dating a foreigner gave her security.

"Foreign men are very aware of a woman's needs. They are also better lovers. Most locals don't know how to romance a woman."

She adds that foreign men are very generous.

"Not all of them have money, but those who do spend it on their women. Locals are self-centred and stingy and rarely spend on their girlfriends."

But some local women say foreign men are overbearing, controlling and authoritarian.

Akhona Zitha, who rues the day she met her Nigerian ex-boyfriend, says she will never date a foreigner.

"Many are bullies who believe it is 'a man's world'. They have a tendency to relegate women to subservience. To most, a woman's place is in the kitchen."

She says her ex was macho, fiercely independent, with a burgeoning sense of entitlement and thought the world belonged to him.

"He expected me to cook and clean and provide sex on demand".

Scientists have developed a "molecular condom", which they claim is actually a vaginal gel that would help protect women from contracting the deadly HIV during sexual intercourse.

According to them, before sex, women would have to insert the vaginal gel that turns semisolid in the presence of semen, trapping AIDS virus particles in a microscopic mesh so they can't infect vaginal cells.

"The first step in the complicated process of HIV infection in a woman is the virus diffusing from semen to vaginal tissue. We want to stop that first step. We've created the first vaginal gel designed to prevent movement of the AIDS virus. This is unique. There's nothing like it.

"We did it to develop technologies that can enable women to protect themselves against HIV without approval of their partner," said lead scientist Prof Patrick Kiser of the University of Utah.

According to the scientists, due to cultural and socioeconomic factors, women often are unable to negotiate the use of protection with their partner.

"So we developed a vaginal gel that a woman could insert a few hours before sex and could detect the presence of semen and provide a protective barrier between the vaginal tissue and HIV. We wanted to build a gel to stop HIV from interacting with vaginal tissue.

"It flows at a vaginal pH, and the flow becomes slower and slower as pH increases, and it begins to act more solid at the pH of semen," co-scientist Julie Jay said.

The scientists estimate that if all goes well, human tests of the gel would start in three to five years, and the gel would reach the market in several more years.

The findings of their experiment testing the behaviour of the vaginal gel and showing how it traps AIDS-causing HIV particles are to be published in the upcoming edition of the ‘Advanced Functional Materials' journal.

Chimurenga music legend Thomas Mapfumo (70) was born Michael Munhumumwe and only started using his current name at the age of nine, a just-released biography of the iconic artiste written by Banning Eyre claims.

The chimurenga music legend was born to Janet Chinhamo and Tapfumaneyi Mupariwa on July 2 1945 but was raised by his maternal grandparents Hamundidi and Kufera Munhumumwe who lived on a white man's farm in Marondera after Mupariwa failed to pay lobola.

"…Tapfumaneyi was a Korekore Shona man from Guruve in the remote rugged valleys of Dande. An itinerant musician and "one-man band," Tapfumaneyi made a scant living driving tractors at farms in Mashonaland.

He was too poor to pay Janet's lobola so no marriage could occur," claims the biography that has just been published by Duke University Press.

Mapfumo's late mother, who is quoted in the 362-page biography, claims that Mupariwa suddenly disappeared from the scene after failing to fulfil the lobola requirements.

"When I was pregnant Thomas' father paid a little lobola but not enough. And then he went for good," said Mapfumo's mother.

Mapfumo only managed to see his father for the first time when he was 17 years old.

According to the biography, the chimurenga music star's mother was the eldest of Hamundidi and Kufera Munhumumwe's 11 children who included the late ex-Four Brothers lead vocalist and drummer Marshall Munhumumwe who was the youngest.

In the 1950s Mapfumo's mother married a car mechanic called John Kashesha Mapfumo who was based in the suburb of Mabvuku in Harare, then called Salisbury.

In 1955 Janet and her new Kashesha Mapfumo invited Thomas (then known as Michael Munhumumwe) to be part of their strict and churchgoing family in Mabvuku .

The future music star  came to the city using the identification papers of Janet's young brothers.

"The name on those papers was Thomas, and this how Michael Munhumumwe became Thomas Mapfumo," adds the voluminous biography.

Due to the kindness of his stepfather, who was a son of a Shona mother and European father, Thomas came to think of him "as my true father, the man who looked after me, sent me to school and taught me good manners, to work hard and live well with other kids."

In his new family, Thomas lived with his four half siblings who were Tabeth, Edith, William and Lancelot. The last two eventually became members of the chimurenga music star's backing group-The Blacks Unlimited.

Mapfumo went on to become one of Zimbabwe's most prominent entertainers due to his mbira-derived rhythms.

The chimurenga music legend, whose music has regularly rubbed the government the wrong way and who has been in the music business for over 40 years, has been based in Oregon in the United States of America for over a decade.

THE guy with the showroom body strutting his six pack in front of the mirrors in the gym probably doesn't have as much fun as the guy with the big belly who does the job where it matters – in the bedroom!

A study conducted at Erciyes University in Turkey revealed that overweight men have better sexual stamina.

Most women prefer big men in their bedroom rather than skinny and normal-sized men.

A total of 200 men were surveyed over a period of a year. The researchers said men with bigger bodies lasted an average of 7,3 minutes in bed while slimmer men reached their maximum excitement in two minutes, leaving women horny and frustrated in bed. The slimmer men also tended to suffer from premature ejaculation.

This could have something to do with the fact that belly fat contains more estradiol, a female sex hormone that helps to slow down orgasms. Men with a slightly higher estradiol are more likely to develop a big belly.

Pamela Matsena (32) from Germiston, Gauteng agreed and said she would never date a skinny man.

"I want to feel weight on me after I get satisfied after a long pleasure round," she said.

A 27-year-old man from Soweto didn't agree. He said being skinny is healthy.

"It depends on how happy the couple are together. That brings satisfying sexual pleasure, not the weight or size of the man," he said.

Readers on Facebook are divided:

Rosey Magorowz: Behind a man with a big belly there hides a happy woman.
Mpho Mohlala: Big men have small dicks. Don't believe the study ladies, please.
Molelu Maponya: This is just to make them feel better – like saying women prefer a smaller Gupta.
Zandile Ncane: Skinny or mkhaba makes no difference. It depends kuth yakwaz ye kungfikisa.
Phelelisiwe Thusi: I will never date a size 32 downwards. As for sex, it just depends kumuntu nomuntu.

As their memory fades and their functionality diminishes, so do the relationships they have with family. What used to be a visit here or there, is now just a phone call to the facility asking how they are. On top of that, the staff at these facilities can become so busy with their daily duties that they really don’t get a chance to get to know the seniors and establish any sort of deep relationships with them. It’s a very sad situation.

When Mak Filiser died in the geriatric ward of a nursing home, the nurses believed that he left nothing behind of any real value.

It came time to clean out Mak’s room after he passed on. One of the nurses then noticed something. It was a poem that Mak had written. She proceeded to read it and was so floored by his words that she ended up making copies of it and sharing with every employee at the nursing home.

The poem is entitled, “Cranky Old Man” and it no doubt taught the staff some very valuable lessons and goes something like this…

Cranky Old Man by Mak Filiser

What do you see nurses? What do you see?
What are you thinking…when you’re looking at me?
A cranky old man…not very wise,
Uncertain of habit…with faraway eyes?
Who dribbles his food…and makes no reply.
When you say in a loud voice…I do wish you’d try!’
Who seems not to notice…the things that you do.

And forever is losing…A sock or shoe?
Who, resisting or not…lets you do as you will,
With bathing and feeding…The long day to fill?
Is that what you’re thinking? Is that what you see?
Then open your eyes, nurse…you’re not looking at me.
I’ll tell you who I am . . . . .. As I sit here so still,

As I do at your bidding…as I eat at your will.
I’m a small child of Ten…with a father and mother,
Brothers and sisters…who love one another
A young boy of Sixteen…with wings on his feet
Dreaming that soon now…a lover he’ll meet.
A groom soon at Twenty…my heart gives a leap.
Remembering, the vows…that I promised to keep

At Twenty-Five, now…I have young of my own.
Who need me to guide…And a secure happy home.
A man of Thirty…My young now grown fast,
Bound to each other…With ties that should last.
At Forty, my young sons…have grown and are gone,
But my woman is beside me…to see I don’t mourn.
At Fifty, once more…Babies play ’round my knee,
Again, we know children…My loved one and me.

Dark days are upon me…My wife is now dead.
I look at the future…I shudder with dread.
For my young are all rearing…young of their own.
And I think of the years…And the love that I’ve known.
I’m now an old man…and nature is cruel.
It’s jest to make old age…look like a fool.
The body, it crumbles…grace and vigor, depart.
There is now a stone…where I once had a heart.
But inside this old carcass a young man still dwells,

And now and again…my battered heart swells
I remember the joys…I remember the pain.
And I’m loving and living…life over again.
I think of the years, all too few…gone too fast.

And accept the stark fact…that nothing can last.
So open your eyes, people…open and see.
Not a cranky old man.
 

Look closer…see…ME!!

IT is so disturbing to hear some women saying they have accepted the “fact” that they are abnormal as they do not reach orgasm and are prepared to live with that. What the hell is that sisters?

If you are one of those people, better change your attitude because you are missing a lot!

I mean you are literally missing the world, you are yet to start living if you have not reached the big O!!!

I have met women who are always asking about what they should do in order to have an orgasm during intercourse, their biggest worry being that they think something might be wrong with them. No, you are normal!

You just need to know which buttons to press and the need for foreplay.

Sex in as much as it gets physical it’s more of a mind game, you have to concentrate and give it your best. After all it’s a defining moment for most women.

If you are a woman, “coming” is not easy, but men are lucky because they can climax without any difficulty.

Anyway, the issue of not “coming” should not bother you that much, since women do not need to climax in order to conceive.

Virtually any woman can climax and the fortunate ones can have multiple climaxes if the circumstances of her life are right. These circumstances usually include having a caring, understanding partner who’s knowledgeable about the woman’s body parts and uses that knowledge to help her relax and sing aloud the song, “I’m coming.”

And indeed, if your partner understands your anatomy, you will definitely sing ‘I’m coming’, I mean you and your partner you have to be in sync, work together to reach orgasm.

What’s the point of huffing and puffing all the time, if you cannot have an orgasm for a compliment?

You know orgasm is a much more automatic response for men than it is for women and most men have the ability to climax without real feelings of love and romance. Women are different as they need to feel loved and appreciated to boost their sexual confidence.

I believe as a sister reading this column you have that passionate individual who has a passion for making love to you, that’s the ideal conducive environment you need.

All sisters who have problems reaching the climax should start practising on their own and get to understand their bodies and know their sensitive parts. Hahaha I know that only a few are willing to explore their bodies to that level, masturbating can be useful as it helps you to learn exactly which pressures and rhythms you need in order to bring you to orgasm.

Once you have learned to climax easily on your own, you can then show your partner exactly what you need in order to make you come.

I have always said and I will maintain this, sisters once you are in bed don’t always allow your man to dictate the pace of the bedroom game. Be in charge as well, and hold the beast with its horns to the ground.

A South African man says he has found a way of scaring crocodiles away – he flashes his naked bum at them.

Million Gume of Limpopo calls it bum swimming.

“I’m the king of the bum swim,” he laughs and demonstrates by diving into the water and sticking his naked bum in the air.

Million told the Daily Sun that he has been swimming in the Luvuvhu River for five years. The rivers in the area are known to have many crocodiles and many locals have lost their lives in the dark water.

“The crocodiles are scared of me! When I jump into the water and realise that the crocodiles want to attack me, I just show them my bum and they move away.  I then carry on with my famous bum swim.”

He said people who come to the river enjoy watching him.

George Matiyani, headman of the Mhinga Tribal Authority, said Million must watch out.

“The crocodiles aren’t scared of his bum.  They will drag his bum into the deep waters and chew him up,” he said.

Daily Sun

The struggle is real for Ciara and Russell Wilson.

The high-profile couple has been public about their decision to abstain from sex until marriage. In a new interview with Cosmopolitan, the pop star says it's not always easy to resist the temptation. It seems the Seahawks quaterback is just too good-looking to resist.

When asked by the magazine, "How's the whole abstinence thing going?" she gave this answer:

"It's going pretty good. We're hanging in there. I'm not gonna lie. I'm human, so it is not easy, especially when I look at him and I think he is the most beautiful thing I've ever seen -- that I've ever laid my eyes on, to be honest. I'm like, 'Look the other way! Look the other way!"'

If that's how Ciara feels, we can only imagine what Wilson must be going through.

Online

SEX workers, eager to cash in on every opportunity against a grim economic background where the disposable income of most of their clients has been eroded, have resorted to drugging their toddlers with sleeping pills before sneaking out for work at night.

Many of the sex workers with minor children said they could not afford child minders and had resorted to drugging their children, whom they leave at home in drunken stupors, while they go out at night to solicit for clients.

“I do this because I do not want my child to see me having sex with different men,” a 25-year-old woman from Domboshava, who only identified herself as Tendai, said. “He will grow up without respect for women since we live in a single room.”

Another sex worker from Domboshava, who identified herself as Tatenda, said she sedated her child with antidepressants.

“The pills cause the child to sleep for hours. I simply wash him in cold water if I want to wake him up, because sometimes the child oversleeps. At times I give him cooking oil and Broncleer.”

Broncleer, commonly known as “Bronco”, is a banned intoxicating cough syrup used by substance abusers, who take more than the recommended dosage.

Another sex worker from Epworth said she put her child to sleep by blowing marijuana smoke at him.

“When my child was young I used to smoke dagga,” she said.

“He would get intoxicated from the smoke and eventually fall asleep. He used to suffer from headaches, coughs and teary eyes. I drugged him because I needed to go out and work during the night,” she said.

The sex workers are usually oblivious of the side-effects of some of the substances they administer on the children.

An educational psychologist with the Great Zimbabwe University, Herbert Zirima, said sex workers who drugged their children could be suffering from “antisocial personality disorder” characterised by “a persistent pattern of victimisation of others”.

“These substances slow down brain activity. Commonly used depressants include alcohol and cannabis,” he said.

“These drugs are preferred by the sex workers because they reduce consciousness levels and they also lead to muscle relaxation.”

Edmos Mtetwa, a lecturer at the University of Zimbabwe’s School of Social Work, said most frequently used drugs were melatonin, cough syrups, Benadryl, zopiclone and temazepam.

“Some of these drugs are usually used on animals for breeding purposes,” he explained.

“However, due to rapid globalisation coupled with economic challenges facing Zimbabwe, some people, particularly sex workers, are now resorting to giving their children non-prescribed drugs.”

Anti-depressants are used to treat several conditions including depression, mood disorders, agitation and severe behavioural disorders in adults.

Mtetwa said most of the drugs and substances were not suitable for children.

“This coping mechanism is not only illegal, but cruel,” he said.

“It does not benefit the child on whom the drug is administered, but the adult administering it. All psychotropic drugs have the effect of altering a person’s mind, emotions and behaviour.”

Health consultant and Zimbabwe Association of Doctors for Human Rights chairperson, Rutendo Bonde, said doping children affects their development.

“The major health implication is the high probability of disruption of normal mental, physical and psychological developmental processes within such children,” she said.

Sex work is a growing profession in Zimbabwe and a means of livelihood for many following a court ruling that all, but decriminalised prostitution.

An official in the Ministry of Health and Child Care, Dorcas Sithole, said the ministry was yet to conduct research on drug abuse due to lack of funds.

“The department dealing with substance abuse has been advocating for a national survey to come up with statistics on prevalence, knowledge on dangers of drug abuse and attitudes. This has not been accomplished due to limited fiscal space,” she said.

“The drug problem in Zimbabwe is a cross-cutting issue, which needs a multi-pronged approach. The Ministry of Health and Child Care works with other ministries and partners in an effort to combat drug abuse. Sex workers drugging their children to attend to night jobs is a matter which we are not aware of. But if supplied with specific information, we will come up with urgent interventions.”

Newsday

I am a lady aged 25 and eloped with my long-time boyfriend in August 2015. We had been trying to get married but my mother would not accept him because he is from Masvingo and he is not rich.

In October he went and paid my lobola but my parents refused to see us saying that he did not come with enough money. He had US$2 000 but my mother refused to accept mari iya.

To my understanding kuroora hakuperi ne one day; imwe mari inozongouya. Now they sent my aunt to come and talk to me and tell me that I should leave my husband and come back home. I do not know why.

I did not even complain nor am I having problems in my marriage or anything. They are saying mukwasha akatadza kutipa mari yakatifadza so I should come back home. Ever since then nyaya yacho iri kunetsa to the extent that my husband is now saying your parents should do what they want: if they want to get you they can come – ndaneta ne this issue. Mai Chisamba, I do not know what to do, I love my husband so much but he is giving up on us. I do not know what to do.

Response

What your parents are doing is very shameful. Are they trying to get you a mukwasha of their choice?

What is unacceptable about people from Masvingo? That is a bad attitude coming from fellow Zimbabweans.

People work first before they become successful and acquire wealth. You are a very young couple and only starting out. It is wrong for your parents to expect that you are already rich and well off.

Your parents’ actions are very wayward at best. There is an adage that says mapudzi anowira kusina hari, this is exactly what’s happening.

Some parents are longing for the day when their daughters will be asked for their hand in marriage while yours are being very picky and unhappy that it has happened.

True love knows no boundaries, moyo muti unomera paunoda. Your mother should not worry too much about mukuwasha’s poverty – havasirivo vari kuroorwa.

Despite the fact that you are both majors you still want to do it the cultural way of going through family. This is highly commendable. It shows respect and maturity.

Lobola should never be commercialised at all; it is supposed to be a token of appreciation and the string that joins the two families.

Parents should be appreciative of their children’s efforts. A young man in his mid-20s saves US$2 000 as part of lobola and he is bluntly turned down kuti ishoma: no, no, this is grossly unfair.

Yes, kuroora hakuperi nezuva rimwe. The most important thing in every marriage is love and that is what is between you and your spouse. Your parents want a rich suitor. Rich by whose standards?

It’s unfortunate tete vako vane hudofo. How can she bring such a message? Instead, she should be fighting on your behalf because uri kuita zvakanaka.

My advice is if the two of you have no problems then do not worry. Endai kunaana mbuya nana sekuru vevabereki vako vane maonero anovaka nepfungwa kwadzo and present your case.

Your husband should not give up on you, he must treat you as an individual. You are not your mother or father. Work as a team.

If you remain in the same camp your issue will be easy to tackle. For now, try to keep it in the family. In the meantime wedzerai rudo kudanana kunge hangaiwa dzisingasiyane. Pray about this there is power in prayer. I wish you all the best.

Ashamed of being seen with my wife

I am a happily married 32-year-old guy blessed with a baby son. I am a very smart guy, particular about what I eat, wear and where I stay.

The unfortunate thing is madam wangu is the opposite. Vanongopotsera. She is pretty but very dirty. I will be honest with you Mai Chisamba, I only travel with her when it is serious business. Ndinonyara naye. The baby smells of vomit most of the time. I buy diapers but she prefers nappies and half the time baby is soaking wet.

A few weeks ago ndakabikirwa chicken mixed with green vegetables (rugare). I have never seen anything like that. During weekends I miss the young ladies I work with, most of them are smart and some of them look like models.

When we were still courting my mother told me that I was dating chapa chaiyo but I ignored her. I love her, I love my baby but I hope you hear what I am trying to say.

I have a very good female friend at work. She is very smart so when it comes to functions or movies ndiye wandinoenda naye but there is nothing going on between us.

I don’t know how I can make my wife look like my colleague. I am very concerned about this, please help. My friend is also a good cook and when she brings food to the office zvinoita kunge five-star hotel. She is single and same age as my wife (they are both 26). Please assist ini handidi zvetsvina ini. My wife is a full-time house wife but aah hameno.

Response

It’s always refreshing to hear young people say they are happily married, makorokoto. When I started reading your letter I thought the point at issue was how to groom your wife, anyway let us take it step by step.

In my view your spouse is a gem in the mud, anyone in their senses would never turn their back on this. Instead, they pick it up and take the necessary measures to clean it because it is precious.

This can be done to your beautiful wife.

Kugeza hakusi kungopesana nemvura nekukanda mbatya pamuviri wako. It is an art. Baby care is paramount because it touches on health and many other issues. In our culture, a first-time mom goes back to her parents after giving birth (masungiro) for to be taught how to manage her baby, spouse and home.

I do not know if they had any challenges with this from her side. Let us not dwell on what should have been done. Let us try and remedy the situation.

I will give you details of where your wife can go for grooming etiquette, cooking and where she can get help on baby care.

Why do you want your wife to be like your workmate? Why the comparison?

I am against the idea of you going out with this woman because it brings a lot of temptations. Movies and functions are associated with romance. Be warned.

What your mother told you about chapa during courtship is also water under the bridge. Why bring it up now?

When one marries it means they have made their choice and the same goes for you. Ma models ayo haaneyi nehupenyu hwako.

Let us polish what you have because that is the bird in your hand. Last but not least kudemba demba your workmate wanyanya. Maybe you now even do it subconsciously. Please stop it. Try what I suggested, enjoy your marriage and baby. Please keep me posted about the progress and just talk about your wife nhaika.

***

Hubby is a spirit medium

We are married and both in our late 40s.

My husband and I go to one of the mainline churches and belong to different guilds. We are very active office-bearers. We have three teenage children.

My problem is my husband is the one anonzi ane mudzimu wemusha. He has all the things zvasekuru and the regalia and anosvikirwa. Kana kune bira we are forced to go home and my husband takes part in these rituals.

Tinosvika rinhi zvakadai?

My husband tried to talk to the elders kumusha but everyone thought I was behind it and it has made me unpopular with some of his people.

They say to him we did not appoint you, you were chosen by those who have gone before us saka usaite zvinozonetsesa dzinza rose. I am uncomfortable with this. It is a small world Mai Chisamba, what will happen if people from our church catch wind of this – tinonyarira pai? Is this a thing he can shake off on his own? If he boycotts zvimabira izvi havazomukuvadza here? I fear for him so much. The children do not like this at all. Ndashaya zvekuita ini.

Response

You have me wondering whether people go to church for the sake of others or for their own sake. You are worried about other people what about God himself?

I hear you.

This is a very sensitive issue and people will do things in their own way but to be honest I have no conclusive answer. Your husband gets possessed – maybe he is the only one who truly knows what he goes through and what takes place when he is in that state.

Zimbabwe is a country that permits freedom of religion, my choice may not be your choice. When the elders say he was chosen by those who have gone before us, how do we argue against that?

We can neither prove nor disprove.

My personal opinion is that people should make their own choice either go to church or remain kunyikadzimu. The problem with mixing the two is that in most cases the beliefs clash, which is why you do not want church people to know.

I do not think it is something he can shake off willy-nilly because he did not choose this as his elders say. I do not understand the kukuvadzwa bit, by who? You talked about the children’s and your attitude towards this, ko iye muridzi anoti kudini pamusoro pazvo? It is important to get his input. The church and nyikadzimu will open a debate that cannot be conclusively solved. Yes some things are similar but the majority is different.

In my view it is safe to choose one. In your case his elders argue that he was not appointed, he was chosen nevadzimu.

Finally, let me appeal to our readers that if there is someone out there who is well-versed in these issues to get in touch and assist. Pray about your situation, God will shed light and show you the way. I wish you all the best.