A flight of fancy in the Chorister Robin-Chat (Cossypha dichroa) : an isotopic standpoint
- Wolmarans, Milena Helena Louise
- Authors: Wolmarans, Milena Helena Louise
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: Muscicapidae -- South Africa , Muscicapidae -- Food , Muscicapidae -- Habitat , Muscicapidae -- Habitat -- Conservation , Forest birds -- South Africa , Isotopes , Stable isotope tracers
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:5920 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1017207
- Description: Forested areas have been cited for their highly diverse floral and faunal assemblages, which are currently under threat from anthropogenic activities that restrict their range and deplete the resources produced within these naturally fragmented patches. Historically, up to 67 percent of avifaunal species associated with well-treed areas have undergone localised extinctions, consequentially affecting biodiversity as a measure of species richness and ecosystem functionality. To date, more than 900 of the bird species affiliated with forests are under threat and despite the theory surrounding functional redundancy, the mass extinction that is currently underway poses considerable limitations on the ecological integrity of these biomes. In South Africa, indigenous forest (one of the rarest biomes), occurs predominantly in small isolated patches along the eastern escarpment. With mountainous terrain emphasised as ‘prominent hotspots of extinction’, the limited dispersal and habitat sensitivity of montane forest fauna renders these species more prone to localised extinctions. BirdLife International, the IUCN and SABAP2 all indicate reductions in the range and abundance of the Chorister Robin-Chat (Cossypha dichroa) - an endemic forest specialist that is reported to move seasonally between high-altitude forest patches where they breed in summer, and lowland coastal forests where they overwinter. Beyond diet, body morphology and vocalisations, much of the information available on the altitudinal movements of C. dichroa is based on secondary sources and the assumptions therein. This study aimed to investigate the potential utilisation of δ13C and δ15N stable isotopes in determining the dietary niche width and altitudinal movements of C. dichroa. Feathers obtained in forested patches of the Limpopo, KwaZulu-Natal and Eastern Cape provinces exhibited a wide trophic niche width and generalised diet. Strong regional separation is apparent in the isotopic signatures suggesting little movement between provinces. A comparison of 13C-isotopes showed minimal variation that point to a uniformity in the carbon-base utilised by C. dichroa across their range. The 15N-signatures obtained in Limpopo, however, revealed a distinct trophic segregation between the northern-most Chorister populations and their southern counterparts. No altitudinal movements were detected in the isotopic signatures of recaptured Choristers, but more research is needed to investigate the long-term accuracy of these results and the breeding potential of resident Choristers in lowland coastal forests; especially when considering the reduced range and abundance reported for this endemic species.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Wolmarans, Milena Helena Louise
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: Muscicapidae -- South Africa , Muscicapidae -- Food , Muscicapidae -- Habitat , Muscicapidae -- Habitat -- Conservation , Forest birds -- South Africa , Isotopes , Stable isotope tracers
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:5920 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1017207
- Description: Forested areas have been cited for their highly diverse floral and faunal assemblages, which are currently under threat from anthropogenic activities that restrict their range and deplete the resources produced within these naturally fragmented patches. Historically, up to 67 percent of avifaunal species associated with well-treed areas have undergone localised extinctions, consequentially affecting biodiversity as a measure of species richness and ecosystem functionality. To date, more than 900 of the bird species affiliated with forests are under threat and despite the theory surrounding functional redundancy, the mass extinction that is currently underway poses considerable limitations on the ecological integrity of these biomes. In South Africa, indigenous forest (one of the rarest biomes), occurs predominantly in small isolated patches along the eastern escarpment. With mountainous terrain emphasised as ‘prominent hotspots of extinction’, the limited dispersal and habitat sensitivity of montane forest fauna renders these species more prone to localised extinctions. BirdLife International, the IUCN and SABAP2 all indicate reductions in the range and abundance of the Chorister Robin-Chat (Cossypha dichroa) - an endemic forest specialist that is reported to move seasonally between high-altitude forest patches where they breed in summer, and lowland coastal forests where they overwinter. Beyond diet, body morphology and vocalisations, much of the information available on the altitudinal movements of C. dichroa is based on secondary sources and the assumptions therein. This study aimed to investigate the potential utilisation of δ13C and δ15N stable isotopes in determining the dietary niche width and altitudinal movements of C. dichroa. Feathers obtained in forested patches of the Limpopo, KwaZulu-Natal and Eastern Cape provinces exhibited a wide trophic niche width and generalised diet. Strong regional separation is apparent in the isotopic signatures suggesting little movement between provinces. A comparison of 13C-isotopes showed minimal variation that point to a uniformity in the carbon-base utilised by C. dichroa across their range. The 15N-signatures obtained in Limpopo, however, revealed a distinct trophic segregation between the northern-most Chorister populations and their southern counterparts. No altitudinal movements were detected in the isotopic signatures of recaptured Choristers, but more research is needed to investigate the long-term accuracy of these results and the breeding potential of resident Choristers in lowland coastal forests; especially when considering the reduced range and abundance reported for this endemic species.
- Full Text:
A Framework for using Open Source intelligence as a Digital Forensic Investigative tool
- Authors: Rule, Samantha Elizabeth
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: Open source intelligence , Criminal investigation , Electronic evidence
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:4715 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1017937
- Description: The proliferation of the Internet has amplified the use of social networking sites by creating a platform that encourages individuals to share information. As a result there is a wealth of information that is publically and easily accessible. This research explores whether open source intelligence (OSINT), which is freely available, could be used as a digital forensic investigative tool. A survey was created and sent to digital forensic investigators to establish whether they currently use OSINT when performing investigations. The survey results confirm that OSINT is being used by digital forensic investigators when performing investigations but there are currently no guidelines or frameworks available to support the use thereof. Additionally, the survey results showed a belief amongst those surveyed that evidence gleaned from OSINT sources is considered supplementary rather than evidentiary. The findings of this research led to the development of a framework that identifies and recommends key processes to follow when conducting OSINT investigations. The framework can assist digital forensic investigators to follow a structured and rigorous process, which may lead to the unanimous acceptance of information obtained via OSINT sources as evidentiary rather than supplementary in the near future.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Rule, Samantha Elizabeth
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: Open source intelligence , Criminal investigation , Electronic evidence
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:4715 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1017937
- Description: The proliferation of the Internet has amplified the use of social networking sites by creating a platform that encourages individuals to share information. As a result there is a wealth of information that is publically and easily accessible. This research explores whether open source intelligence (OSINT), which is freely available, could be used as a digital forensic investigative tool. A survey was created and sent to digital forensic investigators to establish whether they currently use OSINT when performing investigations. The survey results confirm that OSINT is being used by digital forensic investigators when performing investigations but there are currently no guidelines or frameworks available to support the use thereof. Additionally, the survey results showed a belief amongst those surveyed that evidence gleaned from OSINT sources is considered supplementary rather than evidentiary. The findings of this research led to the development of a framework that identifies and recommends key processes to follow when conducting OSINT investigations. The framework can assist digital forensic investigators to follow a structured and rigorous process, which may lead to the unanimous acceptance of information obtained via OSINT sources as evidentiary rather than supplementary in the near future.
- Full Text:
A geochemical and morphological investigation of placer gold grains from the southern Seward Peninsula, Alaska : implications for source and transport mechanisms
- Gauntlett, Ernest John Herbert
- Authors: Gauntlett, Ernest John Herbert
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: Placer deposits -- Alaska -- Seward Peninsula , Gold alloys , Gold mines and mining -- Alaska -- Seward Peninsula , Geochemical surveys -- Alaska -- Seward Peninsula , Trace elements -- Alaska -- Seward Peninsula , Drift -- Alaska -- Seward Peninsula , Gold -- Standards of fineness
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:5085 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1018202
- Description: [Partial abstract]: This study presents the first detailed geochemical and morphological characterisation of gold grains from the southern Seward Peninsula, Alaska, a region with significant historical and on-going placer gold mining. Quantitative Au, Ag, Hg, and Cu data are presented for gold grains from eleven sites. Additionally, quantitative Te, W, As, and Sb trace element data are presented for gold grains from ten of the eleven sites. Although it is acknowledged that quantitative trace element analysis of gold grains is a relatively new endeavour, the limited trace element data obtained in this study suggest that trace element analysis could be useful for characterising gold sources on the southern Seward Peninsula. Major and minor element geochemical profiling is sufficient at differentiating between sites from regional provenance systems but insufficient at differentiating between sites within a single system. Differentiating among sites within a single system will likely require microchemical analysis of mineral inclusions and analysis of trace element signatures.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Gauntlett, Ernest John Herbert
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: Placer deposits -- Alaska -- Seward Peninsula , Gold alloys , Gold mines and mining -- Alaska -- Seward Peninsula , Geochemical surveys -- Alaska -- Seward Peninsula , Trace elements -- Alaska -- Seward Peninsula , Drift -- Alaska -- Seward Peninsula , Gold -- Standards of fineness
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:5085 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1018202
- Description: [Partial abstract]: This study presents the first detailed geochemical and morphological characterisation of gold grains from the southern Seward Peninsula, Alaska, a region with significant historical and on-going placer gold mining. Quantitative Au, Ag, Hg, and Cu data are presented for gold grains from eleven sites. Additionally, quantitative Te, W, As, and Sb trace element data are presented for gold grains from ten of the eleven sites. Although it is acknowledged that quantitative trace element analysis of gold grains is a relatively new endeavour, the limited trace element data obtained in this study suggest that trace element analysis could be useful for characterising gold sources on the southern Seward Peninsula. Major and minor element geochemical profiling is sufficient at differentiating between sites from regional provenance systems but insufficient at differentiating between sites within a single system. Differentiating among sites within a single system will likely require microchemical analysis of mineral inclusions and analysis of trace element signatures.
- Full Text:
A light-emitting-diode pulsing system for measurement of time-resolved luminescence
- Authors: Uriri, Solomon Akpore
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:20976 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/5788
- Description: A new light-emitting-diode based pulsing system for measurement of time-resolved luminescence has been developed. The light-emitting-diodes are pulsed at various pulse-widths by a 555-timer operated as a monostable multivibrator. The light-emitting-diodes are arranged in a dural holder connected in parallel in sets of four, each containing four diodes in series. The output pulse from the 555-timer is fed into an 2N7000 MOSFET to produce a pulse-current of 500 mA to drive the set of 16 light-emitting-diodes. This size of current is sufficient to drive the diodes with each driven at a pulse-current of 90 mA with a possible maximum of 110 mA per diode. A multichannel scaler is used to trigger the pulsing system and to record data at selectable dwell times. The system is capable of generating pulse-widths in the range of microseconds upwards.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Uriri, Solomon Akpore
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:20976 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/5788
- Description: A new light-emitting-diode based pulsing system for measurement of time-resolved luminescence has been developed. The light-emitting-diodes are pulsed at various pulse-widths by a 555-timer operated as a monostable multivibrator. The light-emitting-diodes are arranged in a dural holder connected in parallel in sets of four, each containing four diodes in series. The output pulse from the 555-timer is fed into an 2N7000 MOSFET to produce a pulse-current of 500 mA to drive the set of 16 light-emitting-diodes. This size of current is sufficient to drive the diodes with each driven at a pulse-current of 90 mA with a possible maximum of 110 mA per diode. A multichannel scaler is used to trigger the pulsing system and to record data at selectable dwell times. The system is capable of generating pulse-widths in the range of microseconds upwards.
- Full Text:
A narrative-discursive analysis of abortion decision making in Zimbabwe:
- Chiweshe, Malvern T, Macleod, Catriona I
- Authors: Chiweshe, Malvern T , Macleod, Catriona I
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/143882 , vital:38291 , https://ischp.files.wordpress.com/2015/08/ischp_2015_abstract_booklet.pdf
- Description: The available research on abortion-decision-making tends to focus on the ‘factors’ or ‘influences’ that are seen to affect abortion decision-making. This approach is rarely able to account for the complex, multi-faceted nature of abortion decision-making, and is often not located within a framework that can unpick the complex array of power relations that underpin the ‘process’ of abortion decision-making. Data reported on in this paper were collected from three sites in Zimbabwe. Narrative interviews were conducted with 18 women who had terminated pregnancies (six at each site) and semi-structured interviews were conducted with six service providers. The women employed discursive resources around stigma, religion, health and culture in telling stories around abortion shame, abortion as justified and the fearful, secretive act of abortion. Comparisons of the way women positioned themselves and how they were positioned by health service providers point to the availability and embeddedness of social discourses and power relations that work to enable/constrain reproductive justice.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Chiweshe, Malvern T , Macleod, Catriona I
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/143882 , vital:38291 , https://ischp.files.wordpress.com/2015/08/ischp_2015_abstract_booklet.pdf
- Description: The available research on abortion-decision-making tends to focus on the ‘factors’ or ‘influences’ that are seen to affect abortion decision-making. This approach is rarely able to account for the complex, multi-faceted nature of abortion decision-making, and is often not located within a framework that can unpick the complex array of power relations that underpin the ‘process’ of abortion decision-making. Data reported on in this paper were collected from three sites in Zimbabwe. Narrative interviews were conducted with 18 women who had terminated pregnancies (six at each site) and semi-structured interviews were conducted with six service providers. The women employed discursive resources around stigma, religion, health and culture in telling stories around abortion shame, abortion as justified and the fearful, secretive act of abortion. Comparisons of the way women positioned themselves and how they were positioned by health service providers point to the availability and embeddedness of social discourses and power relations that work to enable/constrain reproductive justice.
- Full Text:
A needs analysis of an employee wellness programme : the case of the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) of Swaziland
- Authors: Madlopha, Sboniso Charles
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: Financial Services Regulatory Authority (Swaziland) , Employee health promotion -- Swaziland , Needs assessment -- Swaziland , Absenteeism (Labor) -- Swaziland , Employee morale -- Swaziland , Contracting out -- Swaziland
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
- Identifier: vital:857 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1018912
- Description: In 2010, the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) of Swaziland noticed a significant increase in employee absenteeism which they discovered was related mainly to: poor health (sick leave), personal and financial stress (garnishee orders were increasing), and low staff morale, the consequence of which was low productivity and missed deadlines (FSRA, 2010:7). High levels of absenteeism meant that a sizeable number of employees were unable to complete their daily tasks (FSRA, 2010:7). Consequently, in 2011, the FSRA Human Resource Department started a wellness programme for all employees in the organization in an attempt to respond to the human resource challenges reported in 2009/10 financial year. By the end of 2012, FSRA management reported that the introduction of the EWP had not yielded the expected results. This therefore prompted management to request an evaluation of the FSRA employee wellness programme. The aim of this research was to identify and prioritize the needs of employees in terms of requirements of a wellness programme and how it should be delivered. The specific objectives of the study are as follows: to identify the wellness needs of employees, to identify employee preferences in terms of the type of interventions to be included in a wellness programme, to identify the preferred mode of delivery of the wellness programme and to make recommendations to management on the design of a wellness programme. Questionnaires with closed ended questions were used to collect data for this survey. The questionnaire used is attached as Appendix A. By means of a needs analysis survey, this research was designed to assess the FSRA employees’ needs in terms of an employee wellness programme, as well as the preferred EWP delivery methods. About 70 percent of FSRA employees participated in the survey. The respondents completed the questionnaire and submitted it online over a period of 10 working days (2 weeks). This report is structured into three sections, namely; section one, which is the evaluation report that gives details of the importance of the study, highlights research methods and then present the results, discussions and recommendations. Section two deals with the literature review while section three reports on the research methodology, research design and procedures and the limitation of the study. In light of the findings on the wellness needs of employees, 72 percent of the respondents felt the current wellness programme was very inadequate and a further 10 percent added that it was inadequate in addressing their wellness needs largely because the needs were not known. The most important wellness needs identified included: exercise, nutrition, personal hygiene, disease awareness and treatment of illness, coping with stress, coping with workload, ventilation, safety, bereavement, personal debt, and retirement planning. The most preferred wellness interventions that respondents proposed include Flexible Work Schedule, Safe Workplace, Improved Ventilation, Retirement Planning Advice and Gymnasium. Further analysis done using correlation analysis indicated that there was a significant positive relationship between the wellness needs and the wellness interventions. Concerning the delivery of the wellness programme, most of the employees indicated that outsourcing certain services was better than having them in house. The highest ranking of the services for out sourcing were nutrition education and medical checkups that ranked between 82 percent and 75 percent respectively. The respondents indicated that they want almost all the chosen interventions to be outsourced. Time slots should also be taken into consideration to ensure employee participation in the wellness programme services. The respondent FSRA employees seem to prefer interventions of an educational nature to be during the lunch hour. These include Nutrition Education, Health Education, Hygiene Education and Medical Check ups and Treatment, whereas Gymnasium was preferred to be after working hours.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Madlopha, Sboniso Charles
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: Financial Services Regulatory Authority (Swaziland) , Employee health promotion -- Swaziland , Needs assessment -- Swaziland , Absenteeism (Labor) -- Swaziland , Employee morale -- Swaziland , Contracting out -- Swaziland
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
- Identifier: vital:857 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1018912
- Description: In 2010, the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) of Swaziland noticed a significant increase in employee absenteeism which they discovered was related mainly to: poor health (sick leave), personal and financial stress (garnishee orders were increasing), and low staff morale, the consequence of which was low productivity and missed deadlines (FSRA, 2010:7). High levels of absenteeism meant that a sizeable number of employees were unable to complete their daily tasks (FSRA, 2010:7). Consequently, in 2011, the FSRA Human Resource Department started a wellness programme for all employees in the organization in an attempt to respond to the human resource challenges reported in 2009/10 financial year. By the end of 2012, FSRA management reported that the introduction of the EWP had not yielded the expected results. This therefore prompted management to request an evaluation of the FSRA employee wellness programme. The aim of this research was to identify and prioritize the needs of employees in terms of requirements of a wellness programme and how it should be delivered. The specific objectives of the study are as follows: to identify the wellness needs of employees, to identify employee preferences in terms of the type of interventions to be included in a wellness programme, to identify the preferred mode of delivery of the wellness programme and to make recommendations to management on the design of a wellness programme. Questionnaires with closed ended questions were used to collect data for this survey. The questionnaire used is attached as Appendix A. By means of a needs analysis survey, this research was designed to assess the FSRA employees’ needs in terms of an employee wellness programme, as well as the preferred EWP delivery methods. About 70 percent of FSRA employees participated in the survey. The respondents completed the questionnaire and submitted it online over a period of 10 working days (2 weeks). This report is structured into three sections, namely; section one, which is the evaluation report that gives details of the importance of the study, highlights research methods and then present the results, discussions and recommendations. Section two deals with the literature review while section three reports on the research methodology, research design and procedures and the limitation of the study. In light of the findings on the wellness needs of employees, 72 percent of the respondents felt the current wellness programme was very inadequate and a further 10 percent added that it was inadequate in addressing their wellness needs largely because the needs were not known. The most important wellness needs identified included: exercise, nutrition, personal hygiene, disease awareness and treatment of illness, coping with stress, coping with workload, ventilation, safety, bereavement, personal debt, and retirement planning. The most preferred wellness interventions that respondents proposed include Flexible Work Schedule, Safe Workplace, Improved Ventilation, Retirement Planning Advice and Gymnasium. Further analysis done using correlation analysis indicated that there was a significant positive relationship between the wellness needs and the wellness interventions. Concerning the delivery of the wellness programme, most of the employees indicated that outsourcing certain services was better than having them in house. The highest ranking of the services for out sourcing were nutrition education and medical checkups that ranked between 82 percent and 75 percent respectively. The respondents indicated that they want almost all the chosen interventions to be outsourced. Time slots should also be taken into consideration to ensure employee participation in the wellness programme services. The respondent FSRA employees seem to prefer interventions of an educational nature to be during the lunch hour. These include Nutrition Education, Health Education, Hygiene Education and Medical Check ups and Treatment, whereas Gymnasium was preferred to be after working hours.
- Full Text:
A quantitative analysis of microplastic pollution along the south-eastern coastline of South Africa
- Nel, Holly A, Froneman, P William
- Authors: Nel, Holly A , Froneman, P William
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/68032 , vital:29187 , https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2015.09.043
- Description: Publisher version , The extent of microplastic pollution (< 5 mm) in the southern hemisphere, particularly southern Africa, is largely unknown. This study aimed to evaluate microplastic pollution along the south-eastern coastline of South Africa, looking at whether bays are characterised by higher microplastic densities than open stretches of coastline in both beach sediment and surf-zone water. Microplastic (mean ± standard error) densities in the beach sediment ranged between 688.9 ± 348.2 and 3308 ± 1449 particles·m− 2, while those in the water column varied between 257.9 ± 53.36 and 1215 ± 276.7 particles·m− 3. With few exceptions there were no significant spatial patterns in either the sediment or water column microplastic densities; with little differences in density between bays and the open coast (P > 0.05). These data indicate that the presence of microplastics were not associated with proximity to land-based sources or population density, but rather is governed by water circulation.
- Full Text: false
- Authors: Nel, Holly A , Froneman, P William
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/68032 , vital:29187 , https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2015.09.043
- Description: Publisher version , The extent of microplastic pollution (< 5 mm) in the southern hemisphere, particularly southern Africa, is largely unknown. This study aimed to evaluate microplastic pollution along the south-eastern coastline of South Africa, looking at whether bays are characterised by higher microplastic densities than open stretches of coastline in both beach sediment and surf-zone water. Microplastic (mean ± standard error) densities in the beach sediment ranged between 688.9 ± 348.2 and 3308 ± 1449 particles·m− 2, while those in the water column varied between 257.9 ± 53.36 and 1215 ± 276.7 particles·m− 3. With few exceptions there were no significant spatial patterns in either the sediment or water column microplastic densities; with little differences in density between bays and the open coast (P > 0.05). These data indicate that the presence of microplastics were not associated with proximity to land-based sources or population density, but rather is governed by water circulation.
- Full Text: false
A question of inclusivity: how did average incomes change over the first fifteen years of democracy?
- Authors: Visagie, Justin
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: Income -- South Africa Economic development -- South Africa Income distribution -- South Africa South Africa -- Economic conditions
- Language: English
- Type: Book , Text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/3071 , vital:20366 , ISBN 9780868106052
- Description: This paper attempts to assess the extent of inclusivity in post-apartheid income growth by focusing on one intuitive part of the income distribution: the actual middle (or middle-income strata). If South African macro and social policy explicitly aims to be ‘inclusive’, it is important to know how the average [median] South African income level changed over the first fifteen years of democracy. Common summary measures of economic progress such as GDP per capita may mask the standard of living experienced by the majority of the population in any particular period. Tracking the progress in the middle strata of South Africa’s income distribution provides a fresh perspective on the nature of economic progress in the country. This is against a worrying backdrop of rising income inequality post-1994 (Van der Berg and Louw, 2004; Hoogeveen and Özler, 2006; Leibbrandt et al, 2010). The paper is structured as follows. Section 2 motivates for the importance of focussing on the actual middle of the income distribution and highlights the emphasis on reducing income inequality within South African macroeconomic and social policy. Issues of comparability in the data and the choice of definition for the middle are discussed in section 3. Section 4 presents descriptive statistics relating to changes in incomes, and ends with a brief analysis of non-income measures of progress. The final section summarises the main findings and concludes.
- Full Text:
A question of inclusivity: how did average incomes change over the first fifteen years of democracy?
- Authors: Visagie, Justin
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: Income -- South Africa Economic development -- South Africa Income distribution -- South Africa South Africa -- Economic conditions
- Language: English
- Type: Book , Text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/3071 , vital:20366 , ISBN 9780868106052
- Description: This paper attempts to assess the extent of inclusivity in post-apartheid income growth by focusing on one intuitive part of the income distribution: the actual middle (or middle-income strata). If South African macro and social policy explicitly aims to be ‘inclusive’, it is important to know how the average [median] South African income level changed over the first fifteen years of democracy. Common summary measures of economic progress such as GDP per capita may mask the standard of living experienced by the majority of the population in any particular period. Tracking the progress in the middle strata of South Africa’s income distribution provides a fresh perspective on the nature of economic progress in the country. This is against a worrying backdrop of rising income inequality post-1994 (Van der Berg and Louw, 2004; Hoogeveen and Özler, 2006; Leibbrandt et al, 2010). The paper is structured as follows. Section 2 motivates for the importance of focussing on the actual middle of the income distribution and highlights the emphasis on reducing income inequality within South African macroeconomic and social policy. Issues of comparability in the data and the choice of definition for the middle are discussed in section 3. Section 4 presents descriptive statistics relating to changes in incomes, and ends with a brief analysis of non-income measures of progress. The final section summarises the main findings and concludes.
- Full Text:
A re-examination of the type material of Entomoneis paludosa (W Smith) Reimer and its morphology and distribution in African waters
- Richoux, Nicole B, Taylor, J C, Dalu, Tatenda, Froneman, P William
- Authors: Richoux, Nicole B , Taylor, J C , Dalu, Tatenda , Froneman, P William
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/69179 , vital:29440 , https://doi.org/10.5507/fot.2015.002
- Description: The current study aims to enhance the understanding of the distribution and morphology of the diatom Entomoneis paludosa W Smith 1853 in African waters. The type material of Entomoneis paludosa (W Smith) Reimer was examined using light and scanning electron microscopy and the morphological characters were compared with new specimens sampled from a temperate river in South Africa. The wider distribution of this taxon on the African continent is discussed, and its relationship to water quality variables.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Richoux, Nicole B , Taylor, J C , Dalu, Tatenda , Froneman, P William
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/69179 , vital:29440 , https://doi.org/10.5507/fot.2015.002
- Description: The current study aims to enhance the understanding of the distribution and morphology of the diatom Entomoneis paludosa W Smith 1853 in African waters. The type material of Entomoneis paludosa (W Smith) Reimer was examined using light and scanning electron microscopy and the morphological characters were compared with new specimens sampled from a temperate river in South Africa. The wider distribution of this taxon on the African continent is discussed, and its relationship to water quality variables.
- Full Text:
A review of current DNS TTL practices
- Van Zyl, Ignus, Rudman, Lauren, Irwin, Barry V W
- Authors: Van Zyl, Ignus , Rudman, Lauren , Irwin, Barry V W
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/427813 , vital:72464 , https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Barry-Ir-win/publication/327622760_A_review_of_current_DNS_TTL_practices/links/5b9a16e292851c4ba8181b7f/A-review-of-current-DNS-TTL-practices.pdf
- Description: This paper provides insight into legitimate DNS domain Time to Live (TTL) activity captured over two live caching servers from the period January to June 2014. DNS TTL practices are identified and compared between frequently queried domains, with respect to the caching servers. A breakdown of TTL practices by Resource Record type is also given, as well as an analysis on the TTL choices of the most frequent Top Level Domains. An analysis of anomalous TTL values with respect to the gathered data is also presented.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Van Zyl, Ignus , Rudman, Lauren , Irwin, Barry V W
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/427813 , vital:72464 , https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Barry-Ir-win/publication/327622760_A_review_of_current_DNS_TTL_practices/links/5b9a16e292851c4ba8181b7f/A-review-of-current-DNS-TTL-practices.pdf
- Description: This paper provides insight into legitimate DNS domain Time to Live (TTL) activity captured over two live caching servers from the period January to June 2014. DNS TTL practices are identified and compared between frequently queried domains, with respect to the caching servers. A breakdown of TTL practices by Resource Record type is also given, as well as an analysis on the TTL choices of the most frequent Top Level Domains. An analysis of anomalous TTL values with respect to the gathered data is also presented.
- Full Text:
A review of three generations of critical theory: Towards conceptualising critical HESD research
- Authors: Lotz-Sisitka, Heila
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , book chapter
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/437136 , vital:73345 , ISBN 9781315852249 , https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/edit/10.4324/9781315852249-17/review-three-generations-critical-theory-heila-lotz-sisitka
- Description: To begin a review of the purpose(s) of ESD research, we must first ask the basic question of the purpose of research generally. Definitions of research normally centre on it comprising sys-tematic investigation which contributes to knowledge or under-standing of phenomena or a problem. A distinction is common-ly drawn between pure or basic research which focuses on understanding phenomena and issues, and applied research where the primary emphasis is on research which contributes to the solution of problems or some systemic improvement ra-ther than knowledge for its own sake. Some commentators see action research as a third category as it is predicated on the researcher being part of the research process which itself is committed to personal or social change. ESD research as an area of interest is perhaps unusual because it accommodates and crosses these categories. It also engages in philosophic research regarding cultural, worldview and ethical dimensions of sustainability education – critically important dimensions of ESD research, but not within the scope of this chapter. Re-search on – say – the relative effect of different pedagogies, or how a learning environ-ment affects learning, may be thought of as basic research, but at another level, ESD research is often purposeful beyond the accumulation of understanding about educational processes.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Lotz-Sisitka, Heila
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , book chapter
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/437136 , vital:73345 , ISBN 9781315852249 , https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/edit/10.4324/9781315852249-17/review-three-generations-critical-theory-heila-lotz-sisitka
- Description: To begin a review of the purpose(s) of ESD research, we must first ask the basic question of the purpose of research generally. Definitions of research normally centre on it comprising sys-tematic investigation which contributes to knowledge or under-standing of phenomena or a problem. A distinction is common-ly drawn between pure or basic research which focuses on understanding phenomena and issues, and applied research where the primary emphasis is on research which contributes to the solution of problems or some systemic improvement ra-ther than knowledge for its own sake. Some commentators see action research as a third category as it is predicated on the researcher being part of the research process which itself is committed to personal or social change. ESD research as an area of interest is perhaps unusual because it accommodates and crosses these categories. It also engages in philosophic research regarding cultural, worldview and ethical dimensions of sustainability education – critically important dimensions of ESD research, but not within the scope of this chapter. Re-search on – say – the relative effect of different pedagogies, or how a learning environ-ment affects learning, may be thought of as basic research, but at another level, ESD research is often purposeful beyond the accumulation of understanding about educational processes.
- Full Text:
A sandbox-based approach to the deobfuscation and dissection of php-based malware
- Wrench, Peter M, Irwin, Barry V W
- Authors: Wrench, Peter M , Irwin, Barry V W
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/429258 , vital:72571 , 10.23919/SAIEE.2015.8531886
- Description: The creation and proliferation of PHP-based Remote Access Trojans (or web shells) used in both the compromise and post exploitation of web platforms has fuelled research into automated methods of dissecting and analysing these shells. Current malware tools disguise themselves by making use of obfuscation techniques designed to frustrate any efforts to dissect or reverse engineer the code. Advanced code engineering can even cause malware to behave differently if it detects that it is not running on the system for which it was originally targeted. To combat these defensive techniques, this paper presents a sandbox-based environment that aims to accurately mimic a vulnerable host and is capable of semi-automatic semantic dissection and syntactic deobfuscation of PHP code.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Wrench, Peter M , Irwin, Barry V W
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/429258 , vital:72571 , 10.23919/SAIEE.2015.8531886
- Description: The creation and proliferation of PHP-based Remote Access Trojans (or web shells) used in both the compromise and post exploitation of web platforms has fuelled research into automated methods of dissecting and analysing these shells. Current malware tools disguise themselves by making use of obfuscation techniques designed to frustrate any efforts to dissect or reverse engineer the code. Advanced code engineering can even cause malware to behave differently if it detects that it is not running on the system for which it was originally targeted. To combat these defensive techniques, this paper presents a sandbox-based environment that aims to accurately mimic a vulnerable host and is capable of semi-automatic semantic dissection and syntactic deobfuscation of PHP code.
- Full Text:
A sociological analysis of the production, marketing and distribution of contemporary popular music by Zambian musicians
- Authors: Kazadi, Kanyabu Solomon
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: Popular music -- Zambia , Musicians -- Zambia , Sound recording industry -- Zambia , Popular music -- Production and direction -- Zambia , Popular music -- Marketing , Intellectual property -- Zambia , Copyright -- Royalties -- Zambia
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3404 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1018933
- Description: The purpose of this research was to gather information about the production, marketing and distribution of Zambian contemporary music by Zambian musicians. Very little information has been documented about the development of the Zambian music industry, particularly from the perspective of those within the industry. As a result this study attempted to add to this knowledge. To achieve this Pierre Bourdieu’s theoretical concepts of ‘fields’ and ‘habitus’ were used to gain an understanding of what affects the creation of art forms such as music as well as the structures and underlying processes within the music industry. The concept of ‘fields’ usefully framed an explanation of the struggles and connections within the various fields in the industry and a view of the Zambian music industry in relation to the international industry. To gather the data necessary for this research a qualitative approach was utilised involving semistructured in-depth questionnaires from twenty-three interviewees. These interviewees were selected from various sectors of the music industry in an attempt to gain a holistic perspective of the industry in the 21st century. There were four subgroups: the artists (singers, rappers and instrumentalists), managers, radio DJs, and a miscellaneous group made up of the remaining participants, a Sounds Arcade manager, a music journalist, the National Arts Council Chairperson, a Zambia Music Copyright Protection Society (ZAMCOPS) administrator, and the then President of the Zambia Association of Musicians (ZAM). With the limited exposure to formal musical, instrumental and production training, musicians, instrumentalists, managers and studio production personnel interviewed had had to learn their craft on-the-job. This limited knowledge appears to add to the hindrance of the development of careers and the industry, particularly in terms of how to register and distribute music correctly to earn royalties and protect their intellectual property against piracy. From an institutional level piracy is being addressed more forcefully with the introduction of holograms and the tightening of policies and structures to do with the music industry.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Kazadi, Kanyabu Solomon
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: Popular music -- Zambia , Musicians -- Zambia , Sound recording industry -- Zambia , Popular music -- Production and direction -- Zambia , Popular music -- Marketing , Intellectual property -- Zambia , Copyright -- Royalties -- Zambia
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3404 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1018933
- Description: The purpose of this research was to gather information about the production, marketing and distribution of Zambian contemporary music by Zambian musicians. Very little information has been documented about the development of the Zambian music industry, particularly from the perspective of those within the industry. As a result this study attempted to add to this knowledge. To achieve this Pierre Bourdieu’s theoretical concepts of ‘fields’ and ‘habitus’ were used to gain an understanding of what affects the creation of art forms such as music as well as the structures and underlying processes within the music industry. The concept of ‘fields’ usefully framed an explanation of the struggles and connections within the various fields in the industry and a view of the Zambian music industry in relation to the international industry. To gather the data necessary for this research a qualitative approach was utilised involving semistructured in-depth questionnaires from twenty-three interviewees. These interviewees were selected from various sectors of the music industry in an attempt to gain a holistic perspective of the industry in the 21st century. There were four subgroups: the artists (singers, rappers and instrumentalists), managers, radio DJs, and a miscellaneous group made up of the remaining participants, a Sounds Arcade manager, a music journalist, the National Arts Council Chairperson, a Zambia Music Copyright Protection Society (ZAMCOPS) administrator, and the then President of the Zambia Association of Musicians (ZAM). With the limited exposure to formal musical, instrumental and production training, musicians, instrumentalists, managers and studio production personnel interviewed had had to learn their craft on-the-job. This limited knowledge appears to add to the hindrance of the development of careers and the industry, particularly in terms of how to register and distribute music correctly to earn royalties and protect their intellectual property against piracy. From an institutional level piracy is being addressed more forcefully with the introduction of holograms and the tightening of policies and structures to do with the music industry.
- Full Text:
A study of barred preferential arrangements with applications to numerical approximation in electric circuits
- Authors: Nkonkobe, Sithembele
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: Electric circuits , Numerical calculations , Sequences (Mathematics)
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:5433 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1020394
- Description: In 1854 Cayley proposed an interesting sequence 1,1,3,13,75,541,... in connection with analytical forms called trees. Since then there has been various combinatorial interpretations of the sequence. The sequence has been interpreted as the number of preferential arrangements of members of a set with n elements. Alternatively the sequence has been interpreted as the number of ordered partitions; the outcomes in races in which ties are allowed or geometrically the number of vertices, edges and faces of simplicial objects. An interesting application of the sequence is found in combination locks. The idea of a preferential arrangement has been extended to a wider combinatorial object called barred preferential arrangement with multiple bars. In this thesis we study barred preferential arrangements combinatorially with application to resistance of certain electrical circuits. In the process we derive some results on cyclic properties of the last digit of the number of barred preferential arrangements. An algorithm in python has been developed to find the number of barred preferential arrangements.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Nkonkobe, Sithembele
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: Electric circuits , Numerical calculations , Sequences (Mathematics)
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:5433 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1020394
- Description: In 1854 Cayley proposed an interesting sequence 1,1,3,13,75,541,... in connection with analytical forms called trees. Since then there has been various combinatorial interpretations of the sequence. The sequence has been interpreted as the number of preferential arrangements of members of a set with n elements. Alternatively the sequence has been interpreted as the number of ordered partitions; the outcomes in races in which ties are allowed or geometrically the number of vertices, edges and faces of simplicial objects. An interesting application of the sequence is found in combination locks. The idea of a preferential arrangement has been extended to a wider combinatorial object called barred preferential arrangement with multiple bars. In this thesis we study barred preferential arrangements combinatorially with application to resistance of certain electrical circuits. In the process we derive some results on cyclic properties of the last digit of the number of barred preferential arrangements. An algorithm in python has been developed to find the number of barred preferential arrangements.
- Full Text:
A water footprint assessment of primary citrus production in the Lower Sundays River Valley Citrus Farms, Eastern Cape, South Africa
- Authors: Munro, Samantha Alanna
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: Water efficiency -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape -- Evaluation , Water consumption -- Environmental aspects -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Citrus -- Water requirements -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:1120 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1017558
- Description: With the current implementation of the South African National Water Act (NWA) underway, comprehensive tools to assist in the efficient, fair and sustainable management of water resources are needed. Water footprints (WFs) are increasingly being recognised as a meaningful way to represent human appropriation of water resources and provide a framework for assessing the sustainability of water use. The study calculated blue, green and grey WFs for the lower Sundays River Valley (LSRV) citrus sector across dry, humid and long-term average climates for a number of cultivars. The sustainability of both the LSRV and the production process of citrus were examined through the adoption of a number of environmental, social and economic indicators. The study revealed that there was no water scarcity in the area because of an inter-basin transfer and that water pollution levels attributed to citrus production required a more comprehensive indicator than the grey WF. Results showed that navels, despite being the dominant cultivar, had the highest WF and the lowest water productivity and technical efficiency. It also provided lower benefits of income and employment in terms of water use in comparison to other cultivars. Conversely, cultivars such as lemons, which required a greater amount of water and fertiliser, were the most productive cultivar with the lowest blue, green and grey WF. The study demonstrated the complexity of decisions regarding water management and the need to assess accurately the environmental, social and economic implications of strategies to increase efficiency of water. The importance of incorporating local data and verifying WFs was also illustrated. The analysis highlighted that WF assessments could be useful for the South African government and agricultural sectors to assist in future water management decisions and promote increased collaboration between stakeholders. The study found that the adoption of local benchmarks could be useful in aiding the promotion of more efficient water use and could factor in sensitive economic and social attributes. WFs in conjunction with other economic and social indicators could also be used to evaluate the sustainability of current and future allocations pertaining to the implementation of the NWA. It was however noted that this requires vast amounts of accurate data.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Munro, Samantha Alanna
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: Water efficiency -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape -- Evaluation , Water consumption -- Environmental aspects -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Citrus -- Water requirements -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:1120 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1017558
- Description: With the current implementation of the South African National Water Act (NWA) underway, comprehensive tools to assist in the efficient, fair and sustainable management of water resources are needed. Water footprints (WFs) are increasingly being recognised as a meaningful way to represent human appropriation of water resources and provide a framework for assessing the sustainability of water use. The study calculated blue, green and grey WFs for the lower Sundays River Valley (LSRV) citrus sector across dry, humid and long-term average climates for a number of cultivars. The sustainability of both the LSRV and the production process of citrus were examined through the adoption of a number of environmental, social and economic indicators. The study revealed that there was no water scarcity in the area because of an inter-basin transfer and that water pollution levels attributed to citrus production required a more comprehensive indicator than the grey WF. Results showed that navels, despite being the dominant cultivar, had the highest WF and the lowest water productivity and technical efficiency. It also provided lower benefits of income and employment in terms of water use in comparison to other cultivars. Conversely, cultivars such as lemons, which required a greater amount of water and fertiliser, were the most productive cultivar with the lowest blue, green and grey WF. The study demonstrated the complexity of decisions regarding water management and the need to assess accurately the environmental, social and economic implications of strategies to increase efficiency of water. The importance of incorporating local data and verifying WFs was also illustrated. The analysis highlighted that WF assessments could be useful for the South African government and agricultural sectors to assist in future water management decisions and promote increased collaboration between stakeholders. The study found that the adoption of local benchmarks could be useful in aiding the promotion of more efficient water use and could factor in sensitive economic and social attributes. WFs in conjunction with other economic and social indicators could also be used to evaluate the sustainability of current and future allocations pertaining to the implementation of the NWA. It was however noted that this requires vast amounts of accurate data.
- Full Text:
Absenting absence: Expanding zones of proximal development in environmental learning processes
- Authors: Lotz-Sisitka, Heila
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , book chapter
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/436939 , vital:73318 , ISBN 9781315660899 , https://www.routledge.com/Critical-Realism-Environmental-Learning-and-Social-Ecological-Change/Price-Lotz-Sistka/p/book/9780367597689
- Description: In this chapter I demonstrate that indigenous knowledge practice is com mensurate with critical realist scientific practice. Critical realism under labours for Western scien-tific knowledge, helping to bring its practice in line with its theory. In this paper I similarly underlabour for indigenous knowledge. I use examples from the Eastern Coast of Tan-zania to suggest that the kind of knowledge that is gener-ated through indigenous pro cesses is based on retroduc-tive and retrodictive reasoning (as well as induc tive and deductive reasoning) and is thus grounded in the theory development principles of DREI(C)/RRREI(C) which, ac-cording to Bhaskar (1993), is the basis for all scientific knowledge. The chapter therefore creates a basis for indi-viduals, groups, organiza tions, and institutions that are involved in the field of environment and sustainability edu-cation and have an indigenous knowledge component, to use the DREI(C)/RRREI(C) for learning and research pur-poses. In this way, they can assume the commensurablity of both Western scientific knowledge and indigenous knowledge. This work substantiates the signifi cance of indigenous knowledge as science in its own right, which pursues specified scientific principles and procedures to inform practice or praxis in the coastal learning environ-ment in a manner that may enhance social learning. There already exists a body of literature that regards indigenous knowledge as ‘local science’ (Sillitoe, 2007). However, I hope to expand this view by more closely aligning this ‘lo-cal science’ with the same prac tices used by science in general, where this science is defined according to critical realist principles.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Lotz-Sisitka, Heila
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , book chapter
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/436939 , vital:73318 , ISBN 9781315660899 , https://www.routledge.com/Critical-Realism-Environmental-Learning-and-Social-Ecological-Change/Price-Lotz-Sistka/p/book/9780367597689
- Description: In this chapter I demonstrate that indigenous knowledge practice is com mensurate with critical realist scientific practice. Critical realism under labours for Western scien-tific knowledge, helping to bring its practice in line with its theory. In this paper I similarly underlabour for indigenous knowledge. I use examples from the Eastern Coast of Tan-zania to suggest that the kind of knowledge that is gener-ated through indigenous pro cesses is based on retroduc-tive and retrodictive reasoning (as well as induc tive and deductive reasoning) and is thus grounded in the theory development principles of DREI(C)/RRREI(C) which, ac-cording to Bhaskar (1993), is the basis for all scientific knowledge. The chapter therefore creates a basis for indi-viduals, groups, organiza tions, and institutions that are involved in the field of environment and sustainability edu-cation and have an indigenous knowledge component, to use the DREI(C)/RRREI(C) for learning and research pur-poses. In this way, they can assume the commensurablity of both Western scientific knowledge and indigenous knowledge. This work substantiates the signifi cance of indigenous knowledge as science in its own right, which pursues specified scientific principles and procedures to inform practice or praxis in the coastal learning environ-ment in a manner that may enhance social learning. There already exists a body of literature that regards indigenous knowledge as ‘local science’ (Sillitoe, 2007). However, I hope to expand this view by more closely aligning this ‘lo-cal science’ with the same prac tices used by science in general, where this science is defined according to critical realist principles.
- Full Text:
Absenting the absence of parallel learning pathways for intermediate skills: The ‘missing middle' in the environmental sector in South Africa
- Authors: Ramsarup, Presha
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , book chapter
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/436964 , vital:73320 , ISBN 9781315660899 , https://www.routledge.com/Critical-Realism-Environmental-Learning-and-Social-Ecological-Change/Price-Lotz-Sistka/p/book/9780367597689
- Description: Environment and sustainable development are recognized for: their significance for the future of South Africa’s well-being; their complex, transversal nature; and their associated ‘new-ness’ within South African education and training systems. In a sector with relatively new occupations without clear learning pathways into jobs and where occupational contexts are rapid-ly changing with evolving skill needs, the chapter explores a critical realist dialectical view of learning pathways across sys-tems of work and learning. It highlights the need to develop more sophisticated understandings of learning pathways, and the way in which work, education and training systems inter-face to support the transitions needed for particular forms of work and learning. The chapter also explores how critical real-ist dialectics can help to explain more fully the absence of in-termediate pathways in the environment and sustainable de-velopment ‘sector’ in South Africa. It highlights the absences within the post-school provisioning system and through this analysis raises the patterns of emergence that characterize environmental learning pathways. This then advances an edu-cational critique that assists in the development of deeper knowledge of the object of the study (elements constituting learning pathways) in order to understand possibilities for change and to present opportunities for creating more seam-less environmental learning pathways into green jobs, enhanc-ing social justice potential and public good concerns.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Ramsarup, Presha
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , book chapter
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/436964 , vital:73320 , ISBN 9781315660899 , https://www.routledge.com/Critical-Realism-Environmental-Learning-and-Social-Ecological-Change/Price-Lotz-Sistka/p/book/9780367597689
- Description: Environment and sustainable development are recognized for: their significance for the future of South Africa’s well-being; their complex, transversal nature; and their associated ‘new-ness’ within South African education and training systems. In a sector with relatively new occupations without clear learning pathways into jobs and where occupational contexts are rapid-ly changing with evolving skill needs, the chapter explores a critical realist dialectical view of learning pathways across sys-tems of work and learning. It highlights the need to develop more sophisticated understandings of learning pathways, and the way in which work, education and training systems inter-face to support the transitions needed for particular forms of work and learning. The chapter also explores how critical real-ist dialectics can help to explain more fully the absence of in-termediate pathways in the environment and sustainable de-velopment ‘sector’ in South Africa. It highlights the absences within the post-school provisioning system and through this analysis raises the patterns of emergence that characterize environmental learning pathways. This then advances an edu-cational critique that assists in the development of deeper knowledge of the object of the study (elements constituting learning pathways) in order to understand possibilities for change and to present opportunities for creating more seam-less environmental learning pathways into green jobs, enhanc-ing social justice potential and public good concerns.
- Full Text:
Accommodation and job assignment for impaired workers:
- Authors: Pearson, Jessie
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/143661 , vital:38271 , https://ischp.files.wordpress.com/2015/08/ischp_2015_abstract_booklet.pdf
- Description: Some compensation systems do not encourage permanently restricted workers disabled due to work-related injuries, to return to work. However, appropriate job placement of impaired workers has been shown to result in feelings of independence, usefulness and responsibility, as well as financial security. Physically impaired employees in many workplaces have experienced job discrimination because colleagues and supervisors assume that their work performance will be affected by physical limitations resulting from their disability. This theoretical paper discusses the possibilities of assigning workers to appropriate jobs based on their specific capabilities and limitations. The option of providing certain job accommodations in the form of workplace restructuring is also discussed.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Pearson, Jessie
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/143661 , vital:38271 , https://ischp.files.wordpress.com/2015/08/ischp_2015_abstract_booklet.pdf
- Description: Some compensation systems do not encourage permanently restricted workers disabled due to work-related injuries, to return to work. However, appropriate job placement of impaired workers has been shown to result in feelings of independence, usefulness and responsibility, as well as financial security. Physically impaired employees in many workplaces have experienced job discrimination because colleagues and supervisors assume that their work performance will be affected by physical limitations resulting from their disability. This theoretical paper discusses the possibilities of assigning workers to appropriate jobs based on their specific capabilities and limitations. The option of providing certain job accommodations in the form of workplace restructuring is also discussed.
- Full Text:
Adaptive realities : effects of merging physical and virtual entities
- Authors: Fletcher, Lauren Jean
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: Virtual reality in art , Reality in art , Art, Modern -- 21st century , Art, Modern -- 21st century -- Themes, motives , Perception
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MFA
- Identifier: vital:2509 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1018557
- Description: In the worlds of virtual reality, whole objects and bodies are created in an immaterial manner from lines, ratios and light pixels. When objects are created in this form they can easily be manipulated, edited, multiplied and deleted. In addition, technological advances in virtual reality development result in an increased merging of physical and virtual elements, creating spaces of mixed reality. This leads to interesting consequences where the physical environment and body, in a similar vein to the virtual, also becomes increasingly easier to manipulate, distort and change. Mixed realities thus enhance possibilities of a world of constantly changing landscapes and adjustable, interchangeable bodies. The notions of virtual and real coincide within this thesis, reflecting on a new version of reality that is overlapped and ever-present in its mixing of virtual and physical. These concepts are explored within my exhibition Immaterial - a creation of simulated nature encompassing a mix of natural and artificial, tangible and intangible. Within the exhibition space, I have created a scene of mixed reality, by merging elements of both a virtual and physical forest. This generates a magical space of new experiences that comes to life through the manipulated, edited, morphed and re-awakened bodies of trees.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Fletcher, Lauren Jean
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: Virtual reality in art , Reality in art , Art, Modern -- 21st century , Art, Modern -- 21st century -- Themes, motives , Perception
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MFA
- Identifier: vital:2509 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1018557
- Description: In the worlds of virtual reality, whole objects and bodies are created in an immaterial manner from lines, ratios and light pixels. When objects are created in this form they can easily be manipulated, edited, multiplied and deleted. In addition, technological advances in virtual reality development result in an increased merging of physical and virtual elements, creating spaces of mixed reality. This leads to interesting consequences where the physical environment and body, in a similar vein to the virtual, also becomes increasingly easier to manipulate, distort and change. Mixed realities thus enhance possibilities of a world of constantly changing landscapes and adjustable, interchangeable bodies. The notions of virtual and real coincide within this thesis, reflecting on a new version of reality that is overlapped and ever-present in its mixing of virtual and physical. These concepts are explored within my exhibition Immaterial - a creation of simulated nature encompassing a mix of natural and artificial, tangible and intangible. Within the exhibition space, I have created a scene of mixed reality, by merging elements of both a virtual and physical forest. This generates a magical space of new experiences that comes to life through the manipulated, edited, morphed and re-awakened bodies of trees.
- Full Text:
Addressing local level food insecurity amongst small-holder communities in transition
- Shackleton, Charlie M, Hamer, Nicholas G, Swallow, Brent M, Ncube, K
- Authors: Shackleton, Charlie M , Hamer, Nicholas G , Swallow, Brent M , Ncube, K
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: Food security -- South Africa Economic development -- South Africa Rural development -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/50090 , vital:25958
- Description: Food insecurity affects as significant proportion of the world's population and hence it typically receives priority attention in global policies associated with poverty, equity and sustainable development. For example, it is the first of the Millennium Development Goals and the second of their successor, the Sustainable Development Goals. Access to sufficient and nutritious food is deemed a basic human right. The latest FAO analysis of the “State of Food Insecurity in the World 2014” reports that 805 million people (approximately 11-12% of the world's population) are chronically undernourished (i.e. do not have sufficient energy intake over a period of at least one year). In sub-Saharan Africa the prevalence remains stubbornly high at 24%, the highest in the world. Whilst most interpret food insecurity to mean an insufficient quantity of food (as measured by the number of calories consumed), the widely accepted FAO definition considers four dimensions of food security, namely quantity, quality or diversity, access and use. Provision of enough calories on a daily basis is not sufficient if the diet lacks diversity and appropriate balance to provide the full range of minerals and vitamins necessary for proper health, or if the food available is culturally unacceptable. Thus, there is a pressing need for more nuanced analyses of food security against all four of the dimensions embedded in the concept. Additionally, it is important that these be measured at more local or regional levels because national statistics can mask alarming regional discrepancies in food security, or amongst particular sectors of society, such as recent migrants, refugees, female- or child-headed households, those vulnerable to HIV/AIDS or the landless, to mention just a few. For example, at a national level South Africa is considered a food secure nation with respect to staple requirements, and access to sufficient food is enshrined in the Constitution (Section 27, subsection 1b), but nationally one in twenty (i.e. approx. 2.5 million people) go to bed hungry most nights, and 23% of children below the age of 15 are physically stunted, severely stunted or wasted, due to the long-term ill effects of insufficient food or of inadequate diversity and quality. At a subnational level, there are marked differences between rural and urban populations and even between geographic areas (for example, the prevalence of stunting amongst boys less than 15 years old is 23% in the Eastern Cape, compared to 12% in Gauteng). Once again, despite being a food secure nation, nationally 40% of the population have a dietary diversity score of four or less, which is a cut-off point signifying poor dietary diversity which makes people more vulnerable to malnutrition and ill health, and in Limpopo and Northwest provinces it is as high as 66% and 61%, respectively.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Shackleton, Charlie M , Hamer, Nicholas G , Swallow, Brent M , Ncube, K
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: Food security -- South Africa Economic development -- South Africa Rural development -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/50090 , vital:25958
- Description: Food insecurity affects as significant proportion of the world's population and hence it typically receives priority attention in global policies associated with poverty, equity and sustainable development. For example, it is the first of the Millennium Development Goals and the second of their successor, the Sustainable Development Goals. Access to sufficient and nutritious food is deemed a basic human right. The latest FAO analysis of the “State of Food Insecurity in the World 2014” reports that 805 million people (approximately 11-12% of the world's population) are chronically undernourished (i.e. do not have sufficient energy intake over a period of at least one year). In sub-Saharan Africa the prevalence remains stubbornly high at 24%, the highest in the world. Whilst most interpret food insecurity to mean an insufficient quantity of food (as measured by the number of calories consumed), the widely accepted FAO definition considers four dimensions of food security, namely quantity, quality or diversity, access and use. Provision of enough calories on a daily basis is not sufficient if the diet lacks diversity and appropriate balance to provide the full range of minerals and vitamins necessary for proper health, or if the food available is culturally unacceptable. Thus, there is a pressing need for more nuanced analyses of food security against all four of the dimensions embedded in the concept. Additionally, it is important that these be measured at more local or regional levels because national statistics can mask alarming regional discrepancies in food security, or amongst particular sectors of society, such as recent migrants, refugees, female- or child-headed households, those vulnerable to HIV/AIDS or the landless, to mention just a few. For example, at a national level South Africa is considered a food secure nation with respect to staple requirements, and access to sufficient food is enshrined in the Constitution (Section 27, subsection 1b), but nationally one in twenty (i.e. approx. 2.5 million people) go to bed hungry most nights, and 23% of children below the age of 15 are physically stunted, severely stunted or wasted, due to the long-term ill effects of insufficient food or of inadequate diversity and quality. At a subnational level, there are marked differences between rural and urban populations and even between geographic areas (for example, the prevalence of stunting amongst boys less than 15 years old is 23% in the Eastern Cape, compared to 12% in Gauteng). Once again, despite being a food secure nation, nationally 40% of the population have a dietary diversity score of four or less, which is a cut-off point signifying poor dietary diversity which makes people more vulnerable to malnutrition and ill health, and in Limpopo and Northwest provinces it is as high as 66% and 61%, respectively.
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