News

Wits offers R75,000 for name of fossil

13 April 2010

The University of the Witwatersrand is offering a prize of R75,000 to a South African child who can come up with a name for a 1.95 million-year-old fossil of a new hominid species unveiled in the Cradle of Humankind last week.

The university said that the pupil who submits the winning entry will receive R75,000 towards his/her education, while the school to which s/he belongs will receive a prize of R25,000, to be used for science education purposes, and a replica model of the child hominid fossil.

The fossil’s name must be no longer than 15 letters and it can be in any South African language.

Learners must submit a story or motivation or a poem (not longer than 150 words) in English on why the Sediba Child should be given the name proposed by the pupil.

The competition runs from April 11 to May 2, 2010.

It is open to South African children who must be 18 years or younger as at May 2, 2010. The pupil must be enrolled in a high school or primary school in South Africa.

Read more on Times Live.