Sure, it's undoubtedly true that in certain industrial and technological spheres South Africa produced far more impressive and interesting projects during Apart

Sure, it's undoubtedly true that in certain industrial and technological spheres South Africa produced far more impressive and interesting projects during Apartheid. Even though there was some outside assistance, the developments produced in the country during this period were extraordinarily innovative and advanced in relative terms. Acknowledging that interesting developments came about in that period does necessarily justify Apartheid or lessen its immoral nature. Just as (not to invoke Godwin, the systems were totally different) we can acknowledge the amazing technology that German engineers and scientists invented during the Second World War without endorsing Nazi ideology. With regards to the question of whether RSA is a less interesting science and engineering power, it's complex. Certainly, when it comes to state-funded R&D, especially in defence and space, then yes it's true. The defence industry, while still innovative and very advanced in certain niche areas, has shrunk significantly since Apartheid, shedding many skills and leaving many defence industry companies in precarious financial positions. This is a result of the huge cuts in defence spending since 1990, which gutted the industry. That level of funding would never have been sustainable in a democracy with a universal franchise and serious socio-economic problems though. To some extent the non-defence private sector suffered too as state R&D dried up almost entirely. It's important to understand that with the trade sanctions of the late 1980s it was state funding and the mining industry which drove most R&D and many companies weren't able to transition to a market-based approach when that stopped. Imagine the impact on the US high-technology scene were US government research funding to be yanked almost overnight from universities and private companies. Yet there are some encouraging developments, with private companies continuing to try to innovate using private capital. The satellite design and construction industry has re-established itself and is growing fairly well, as are other space-based industries especially astronomy where South Africa is one of the world leaders. Similarly there is small but rapidly-growing tech scene that's creating some interesting things, with two prominent examples being the development of Amazon's EC2 system and Mark Shuttleworth's Thawte Consulting. Mobile telecoms are another interesting area, while there are some aerospace firms doing well, such as Aerosud which is a single-source supplier for both Airbus and Boeing on safety-critical parts. R&D spending still remains low compared to other countries at South Africa's level but there are signs that that, too is changing. So we'll have to see what the future brings.