Rational perspective on Covid-19: So far so good SA, says its only living Nobel science laureate, Prof Michael Levitt

Although he left the country as a 16 year old, Pretoria-born Nobel laureate, Stanford professor Michael Levitt, still describes himself as proudly South African. And as you'll hear from this podcast, the brilliant academic has some insightful perspectives on how his former homeland is handling the Covid-19 crisis. Mostly positive: He praises the early lockdown and reckons gloomy forecasts of infections only peaking in September could be way off beam. The Medical Faculty and Computer Science professor reckons SA's peak may be as early as two weeks away – and while no fan of lockdowns, says the country is one of the few to have applied this blunt tool for the right reason at the right time. But SA's only living Nobel Prize science laureate (chemistry: 2013) also supports a sensible re-opening of the economy to ensure lockdown pain is not sacrificed by an economic disaster. A rational perspective on a very noisy subject – much required at a time when common sense is too often overwhelmed by blowhard punditry. – Alec Hogg

It's a real pleasure to be talking with Professor Michael Levitt not just because of his connection to South Africa. We'll get into that in more detail but because of the way he's shaking up thoughts about Covid-19 around the world. Professor Levitt, let's start with the South African connection. So you were born in Pretoria, you went to Pretoria Boys High, left South Africa at the age of 16. We think fully formed and fully developed because you then went on to achieve great things in the world including, being the only living scientist from South Africa who won the Nobel Prize. We're very proud of you from that perspective. But there are people in South Africa who are not so proud of what you believe the world should be doing right now i.e. that the lockdown is a huge mistake. In the interview that we published on Biznews that you had with Unherd.com you never referenced South Africa at all. Clearly it would be lovely if you could give us your thoughts about this country, if you've had the chance to have a look at your old homeland.

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