A knowledge-oriented, context-sensitive architectural framework for service deployment in marginalized rural communities
- Authors: Thinyane, Mamello P
- Date: 2009
- Subjects: Information technology Expert systems (Computer science) Software architecture User interfaces (Computer systems) Ethnoscience Social networks Rural development Technical assistance -- Developing countries Information networks -- Developing countries
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: vital:4599 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1004843
- Description: The notion of a global knowledge society is somewhat of a misnomer due to the fact that large portions of the global community are not participants in this global knowledge society which is driven, shaped by and socio-technically biased towards a small fraction of the global population. Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is culture-sensitive and this is a dynamic that is largely ignored in the majority of ICT for Development (ICT4D) interventions, leading to the technological determinism flaw and ultimately a failure of the undertaken projects. The deployment of ICT solutions, in particular in the context of ICT4D, must be informed by the cultural and socio-technical profile of the deployment environments and solutions themselves must be developed with a focus towards context-sensitivity and ethnocentricity. In this thesis, we investigate the viability of a software architectural framework for the development of ICT solutions that are context-sensitive and ethnocentric1, and so aligned with the cultural and social dynamics within the environment of deployment. The conceptual framework, named PIASK, defines five tiers (presentation, interaction, access, social networking, and knowledge base) which allow for: behavioural completeness of the layer components; a modular and functionally decoupled architecture; and the flexibility to situate and contextualize the developed applications along the dimensions of the User Interface (UI), interaction modalities, usage metaphors, underlying Indigenous Knowledge (IK), and access protocols. We have developed a proof-of-concept service platform, called KnowNet, based on the PIASK architecture. KnowNet is built around the knowledge base layer, which consists of domain ontologies that encapsulate the knowledge in the platform, with an intrinsic flexibility to access secondary knowledge repositories. The domain ontologies constructed (as examples) are for the provisioning of eServices to support societal activities (e.g. commerce, health, agriculture, medicine) within a rural and marginalized area of Dwesa, in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. The social networking layer allows for situating the platform within the local social systems. Heterogeneity of user profiles and multiplicity of end-user devices are handled through the access and the presentation components, and the service logic is implemented by the interaction components. This services platform validates the PIASK architecture for end-to-end provisioning of multi-modal, heterogeneous, ontology-based services. The development of KnowNet was informed on one hand by the latest trends within service architectures, semantic web technologies and social applications, and on the other hand by the context consideration based on the profile (IK systems dynamics, infrastructure, usability requirements) of the Dwesa community. The realization of the service platform is based on the JADE Multi-Agent System (MAS), and this shows the applicability and adequacy of MAS’s for service deployment in a rural context, at the same time providing key advantages such as platform fault-tolerance, robustness and flexibility. While the context of conceptualization of PIASK and the implementation of KnowNet is that of rurality and of ICT4D, the applicability of the architecture extends to other similarly heterogeneous and context-sensitive domains. KnowNet has been validated for functional and technical adequacy, and we have also undertaken an initial prevalidation for social context sensitivity. We observe that the five tier PIASK architecture provides an adequate framework for developing context-sensitive and ethnocentric software: by functionally separating and making explicit the social networking and access tier components, while still maintaining the traditional separation of presentation, business logic and data components.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Thinyane, Mamello P
- Date: 2009
- Subjects: Information technology Expert systems (Computer science) Software architecture User interfaces (Computer systems) Ethnoscience Social networks Rural development Technical assistance -- Developing countries Information networks -- Developing countries
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: vital:4599 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1004843
- Description: The notion of a global knowledge society is somewhat of a misnomer due to the fact that large portions of the global community are not participants in this global knowledge society which is driven, shaped by and socio-technically biased towards a small fraction of the global population. Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is culture-sensitive and this is a dynamic that is largely ignored in the majority of ICT for Development (ICT4D) interventions, leading to the technological determinism flaw and ultimately a failure of the undertaken projects. The deployment of ICT solutions, in particular in the context of ICT4D, must be informed by the cultural and socio-technical profile of the deployment environments and solutions themselves must be developed with a focus towards context-sensitivity and ethnocentricity. In this thesis, we investigate the viability of a software architectural framework for the development of ICT solutions that are context-sensitive and ethnocentric1, and so aligned with the cultural and social dynamics within the environment of deployment. The conceptual framework, named PIASK, defines five tiers (presentation, interaction, access, social networking, and knowledge base) which allow for: behavioural completeness of the layer components; a modular and functionally decoupled architecture; and the flexibility to situate and contextualize the developed applications along the dimensions of the User Interface (UI), interaction modalities, usage metaphors, underlying Indigenous Knowledge (IK), and access protocols. We have developed a proof-of-concept service platform, called KnowNet, based on the PIASK architecture. KnowNet is built around the knowledge base layer, which consists of domain ontologies that encapsulate the knowledge in the platform, with an intrinsic flexibility to access secondary knowledge repositories. The domain ontologies constructed (as examples) are for the provisioning of eServices to support societal activities (e.g. commerce, health, agriculture, medicine) within a rural and marginalized area of Dwesa, in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. The social networking layer allows for situating the platform within the local social systems. Heterogeneity of user profiles and multiplicity of end-user devices are handled through the access and the presentation components, and the service logic is implemented by the interaction components. This services platform validates the PIASK architecture for end-to-end provisioning of multi-modal, heterogeneous, ontology-based services. The development of KnowNet was informed on one hand by the latest trends within service architectures, semantic web technologies and social applications, and on the other hand by the context consideration based on the profile (IK systems dynamics, infrastructure, usability requirements) of the Dwesa community. The realization of the service platform is based on the JADE Multi-Agent System (MAS), and this shows the applicability and adequacy of MAS’s for service deployment in a rural context, at the same time providing key advantages such as platform fault-tolerance, robustness and flexibility. While the context of conceptualization of PIASK and the implementation of KnowNet is that of rurality and of ICT4D, the applicability of the architecture extends to other similarly heterogeneous and context-sensitive domains. KnowNet has been validated for functional and technical adequacy, and we have also undertaken an initial prevalidation for social context sensitivity. We observe that the five tier PIASK architecture provides an adequate framework for developing context-sensitive and ethnocentric software: by functionally separating and making explicit the social networking and access tier components, while still maintaining the traditional separation of presentation, business logic and data components.
- Full Text:
A method for automatically creating 3d animated scenes from annotated fiction text
- Glass, Kevin R, Bangay, Shaun D
- Authors: Glass, Kevin R , Bangay, Shaun D
- Date: 2009
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/432699 , vital:72893 , https://www.iadisportal.org/ijcsis/papers/2009110208.pdf
- Description: This paper describes a strategy for automatically converting fiction text into 3D animations. It assumes the existence of fiction text annotated with avatar, object, setting, transition and relation annotations, and presents a transformation process that converts annotated text into quantified constraint systems, the solutions to which are used in the population of 3D environments. Constraint solutions are valid over temporal intervals, ensuring that consistent dynamic behaviour is produced. A substantial level of automation is achieved, while providing opportunities for creative manual intervention in animation process. The process is demonstrated using annotated examples drawn from popular fiction text that are converted into animation sequences, confirming that the desired results can be achieved with only high-level human direction.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Glass, Kevin R , Bangay, Shaun D
- Date: 2009
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/432699 , vital:72893 , https://www.iadisportal.org/ijcsis/papers/2009110208.pdf
- Description: This paper describes a strategy for automatically converting fiction text into 3D animations. It assumes the existence of fiction text annotated with avatar, object, setting, transition and relation annotations, and presents a transformation process that converts annotated text into quantified constraint systems, the solutions to which are used in the population of 3D environments. Constraint solutions are valid over temporal intervals, ensuring that consistent dynamic behaviour is produced. A substantial level of automation is achieved, while providing opportunities for creative manual intervention in animation process. The process is demonstrated using annotated examples drawn from popular fiction text that are converted into animation sequences, confirming that the desired results can be achieved with only high-level human direction.
- Full Text:
A needs analysis for the implementation of a complementary course in mathematics education for teachers of mathematics in Namibia: a case study
- Authors: Ilukena, Alex Mbonabi
- Date: 2009
- Subjects: Education -- Namibia -- Case studies Mathematics -- Study and teaching -- Namibia -- Case studies Mathematics teachers -- Training of -- Namibia -- Case studies Teacher educators -- Training of -- Case studies Teachers -- Training of -- Namibia -- Case studies
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1677 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003560
- Description: After the introduction of the Basic Education Teacher Diploma (BETD) in Namibia, a number of studies were conducted on how teachers, lecturers, stakeholders and the Namibian public perceived the BETD program and its implementation. However, very few studies focussed specifically on mathematics subject content knowledge and pedagogical content knowledge in the BETD. The purpose of this study was to investigate the need for a complementary course in mathematics education to address the lack of mathematical content and pedagogical knowledge in the Namibian BETD. The study involved five mathematics school teachers, two mathematics college lecturers in the Kavango educational region and a professor of mathematics education at the University of Namibia. These participants were purposefully selected because of their knowledge and experiences with various aspects of the BETD program. The motivation for conducting this study was to gain a better understanding of some of the issues that have been raised about the BETD program, particularly the perceived inadequacy of mathematical subject content and methodology since the inception of the program. The study adopts a qualitative approach in reporting participants’ reflections. The views of the focal educators and documents such as syllabi and course outlines were the main source of data. The findings indicate that despite the training that the three BETD mathematics graduates in this study received, the level of mathematics taught in a complementary course, such as an ACE, would clearly better equip mathematics teachers to teach proficiently and facilitate access to institutions of higher learning such as universities. The results of the study revealed that there was a need for the implementation of a complementary course to the BETD in mathematics education for teachers of mathematics in Namibia. This study also provided valuable insights into what such a course could look like.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Ilukena, Alex Mbonabi
- Date: 2009
- Subjects: Education -- Namibia -- Case studies Mathematics -- Study and teaching -- Namibia -- Case studies Mathematics teachers -- Training of -- Namibia -- Case studies Teacher educators -- Training of -- Case studies Teachers -- Training of -- Namibia -- Case studies
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1677 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003560
- Description: After the introduction of the Basic Education Teacher Diploma (BETD) in Namibia, a number of studies were conducted on how teachers, lecturers, stakeholders and the Namibian public perceived the BETD program and its implementation. However, very few studies focussed specifically on mathematics subject content knowledge and pedagogical content knowledge in the BETD. The purpose of this study was to investigate the need for a complementary course in mathematics education to address the lack of mathematical content and pedagogical knowledge in the Namibian BETD. The study involved five mathematics school teachers, two mathematics college lecturers in the Kavango educational region and a professor of mathematics education at the University of Namibia. These participants were purposefully selected because of their knowledge and experiences with various aspects of the BETD program. The motivation for conducting this study was to gain a better understanding of some of the issues that have been raised about the BETD program, particularly the perceived inadequacy of mathematical subject content and methodology since the inception of the program. The study adopts a qualitative approach in reporting participants’ reflections. The views of the focal educators and documents such as syllabi and course outlines were the main source of data. The findings indicate that despite the training that the three BETD mathematics graduates in this study received, the level of mathematics taught in a complementary course, such as an ACE, would clearly better equip mathematics teachers to teach proficiently and facilitate access to institutions of higher learning such as universities. The results of the study revealed that there was a need for the implementation of a complementary course to the BETD in mathematics education for teachers of mathematics in Namibia. This study also provided valuable insights into what such a course could look like.
- Full Text:
A new species of Diplacanthus from the Late Devonian (Famennian) of South Africa
- Authors: Gess, Robert W
- Date: 2009
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/73873 , vital:30237 , https://doi.org/10.1016/S0753-3969(01)88002-2
- Description: An advanced diplacanthid (Climatiiformes) is described from a Famennian estuarine environment of South Africa. It is characterized by having exceptionally long thin fin spines and a deep body form. Unusual details of the fins and fin spine insertions are preserved. This is the first record of a diplacanthid from the Southern Hemisphere.
- Full Text: false
- Authors: Gess, Robert W
- Date: 2009
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/73873 , vital:30237 , https://doi.org/10.1016/S0753-3969(01)88002-2
- Description: An advanced diplacanthid (Climatiiformes) is described from a Famennian estuarine environment of South Africa. It is characterized by having exceptionally long thin fin spines and a deep body form. Unusual details of the fins and fin spine insertions are preserved. This is the first record of a diplacanthid from the Southern Hemisphere.
- Full Text: false
A picture's worth a thousand words: a case study of grade 10 English language educators teaching visual literacy
- Authors: Leask-Smith, Lyn Ann
- Date: 2009
- Subjects: Visual literacy -- Study and teaching (Secondary) -- Case studies English language -- Study and teaching (Secondary) -- Case studies Teacher educators -- Training of -- Case studies English teachers -- Training of -- Case studies Teachers -- In-service training
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1702 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003585
- Description: The aim of this research was to better understand teacher's beliefs about visual literacy and to explore how their beliefs influence their teaching practice. In order to investigate this, a case study was conducted that comprised of lesson observations and semi-structured interviews with two secondary school English home language educators. The backdrop to the research was the implementation of the new national curriculum for grade 10. The participants, though well educated and experienced teachers, felt their training had been inadequate in the area of teaching visual literacy and although they acknowledged the importance of visual literacy, it seemed to have a fairly low priority in their actual teaching practice. In particular, very little attention was given to the production of multimodal texts by learners. The reason for this low priority may be related to the requirements of the formal assessment programme as well as limited lesson time in which to cover an extensive curriculum. The research findings would seem to suggest a need for in-service training in this area as well as access to suitable learning support materials and teacher resources.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Leask-Smith, Lyn Ann
- Date: 2009
- Subjects: Visual literacy -- Study and teaching (Secondary) -- Case studies English language -- Study and teaching (Secondary) -- Case studies Teacher educators -- Training of -- Case studies English teachers -- Training of -- Case studies Teachers -- In-service training
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1702 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003585
- Description: The aim of this research was to better understand teacher's beliefs about visual literacy and to explore how their beliefs influence their teaching practice. In order to investigate this, a case study was conducted that comprised of lesson observations and semi-structured interviews with two secondary school English home language educators. The backdrop to the research was the implementation of the new national curriculum for grade 10. The participants, though well educated and experienced teachers, felt their training had been inadequate in the area of teaching visual literacy and although they acknowledged the importance of visual literacy, it seemed to have a fairly low priority in their actual teaching practice. In particular, very little attention was given to the production of multimodal texts by learners. The reason for this low priority may be related to the requirements of the formal assessment programme as well as limited lesson time in which to cover an extensive curriculum. The research findings would seem to suggest a need for in-service training in this area as well as access to suitable learning support materials and teacher resources.
- Full Text:
A preliminary survey of the estuaries on the south coast of South Africa, Robberg Peninsula - Cape St Francis, with particular reference to the fish fauna : ecological overview article
- James, Nicola C, Harrison, T D
- Authors: James, Nicola C , Harrison, T D
- Date: 2009
- Language: English
- Type: text , Article
- Identifier: vital:7144 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1011842
- Description: A basic ichthyofaunal and physico-chemical survey of the coastal outlets on the south coast of South Africa (Robberg Peninsula to Cape St Francis) was undertaken during November 1994 and September 1995. Some 27 systems were identified along this stretch of coast and of these, 48% (Brak, Helpmekaars, Klip, Witels, Geelhoutbos, Kleinbos, Bruglaagte, Langbos, Sanddrif, Eerste, Boskloof, Kaapsedrif and Klipdrif [Wes]) comprised the inlets of coastal streams that offer little habitat for fishes, 26% (Sout, Bloukrans, Lottering, Elandsbos, Storms, Elands and Groot [Oos]) are located within deeply incised valleys within the Tsitsikamma region and provide limited littoral habitat for estuary-associated fishes; 26% of the systems (Piesang, Keurbooms, Matjies, Groot [Wes], Tsitsikamma, Klipdrif [Oos], Slang) appear to serve some estuarine function for both marine migrant and resident species although some of these may also be limited due to their small size and infrequent connection with the sea. This study serves to emphasize the ecological importance of these latter estuaries within this coastal sector.
- Full Text:
- Authors: James, Nicola C , Harrison, T D
- Date: 2009
- Language: English
- Type: text , Article
- Identifier: vital:7144 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1011842
- Description: A basic ichthyofaunal and physico-chemical survey of the coastal outlets on the south coast of South Africa (Robberg Peninsula to Cape St Francis) was undertaken during November 1994 and September 1995. Some 27 systems were identified along this stretch of coast and of these, 48% (Brak, Helpmekaars, Klip, Witels, Geelhoutbos, Kleinbos, Bruglaagte, Langbos, Sanddrif, Eerste, Boskloof, Kaapsedrif and Klipdrif [Wes]) comprised the inlets of coastal streams that offer little habitat for fishes, 26% (Sout, Bloukrans, Lottering, Elandsbos, Storms, Elands and Groot [Oos]) are located within deeply incised valleys within the Tsitsikamma region and provide limited littoral habitat for estuary-associated fishes; 26% of the systems (Piesang, Keurbooms, Matjies, Groot [Wes], Tsitsikamma, Klipdrif [Oos], Slang) appear to serve some estuarine function for both marine migrant and resident species although some of these may also be limited due to their small size and infrequent connection with the sea. This study serves to emphasize the ecological importance of these latter estuaries within this coastal sector.
- Full Text:
A re-evaluation of morphological differences in the Karoo Thrush Turdus smithi–Olive Thrush Turdus olivaceus species complex
- Wilson, J W, Symes, C T, Brown, M, Bonnevie, Bo T, de Swardt, D H, Hanmer, D
- Authors: Wilson, J W , Symes, C T , Brown, M , Bonnevie, Bo T , de Swardt, D H , Hanmer, D
- Date: 2009
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/447680 , vital:74666 , https://doi.org/10.2989/OSTRICH.2009.80.3.7.970
- Description: There is confusion in the literature concerning the taxonomic status of the Turdus smithi—T. olivaceus species complex. Here we attempt to clarify morphological differences within this complex. In addition, we attempt to clarify identification of the respective taxa. Although mean measurements of morphometric features differed significantly between species and subspecies, these features are not useful in separating species or subspecies due to considerable overlap in measurements. Furthermore, there were often larger differences between subspecies of T. olivaceus (particularly the geographically isolated T. o. swynnertoni) than between T. olivaceus and T. smithi. We therefore suggest that further work investigates the elevation of T. o. swynnertoni to full species status. Plumage characteristics proved more useful in separating T. olivaceus and T. smithi in the field, except in regions where the distributions overlap (potential hybridisation zones). We highlight the importance of clarifying the delineation of separate species particularly with respect to bird census data (e.g. Southern African Bird Atlas Project 2) and studies related to these species.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Wilson, J W , Symes, C T , Brown, M , Bonnevie, Bo T , de Swardt, D H , Hanmer, D
- Date: 2009
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/447680 , vital:74666 , https://doi.org/10.2989/OSTRICH.2009.80.3.7.970
- Description: There is confusion in the literature concerning the taxonomic status of the Turdus smithi—T. olivaceus species complex. Here we attempt to clarify morphological differences within this complex. In addition, we attempt to clarify identification of the respective taxa. Although mean measurements of morphometric features differed significantly between species and subspecies, these features are not useful in separating species or subspecies due to considerable overlap in measurements. Furthermore, there were often larger differences between subspecies of T. olivaceus (particularly the geographically isolated T. o. swynnertoni) than between T. olivaceus and T. smithi. We therefore suggest that further work investigates the elevation of T. o. swynnertoni to full species status. Plumage characteristics proved more useful in separating T. olivaceus and T. smithi in the field, except in regions where the distributions overlap (potential hybridisation zones). We highlight the importance of clarifying the delineation of separate species particularly with respect to bird census data (e.g. Southern African Bird Atlas Project 2) and studies related to these species.
- Full Text:
A real time HF beacon monitoring station for South Africa
- Authors: Mudzingwa, Courage
- Date: 2009
- Subjects: Radio , Shortwave radio , Radio and television towers
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:5486 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1005272 , Radio , Shortwave radio , Radio and television towers
- Description: High frequency, HF (3 - 30 MHz), radio communications are greatly affected by ionospheric conditions. Both civilian and military users need reliable, real time propagation information to show at any time the feasibility of communicating to any part of the world on a particular frequency band. For this thesis, an automated receiving/monitoring station for the Northern California DX Foundation (NCDXF)/ International Amateur Radio Union (IARU) International Beacon Project was setup at the Hermanus Magnetic Observatory, HMO (34.42oS, 19.22oE) to monitor international beacons on 20 m, 17 m, 15 m, 12 m and 10 m bands. The beacons form a world wide multiband network. The task of monitoring the beacons was broken down into two steps. Initially the single band station, at 14.10 MHz, was installed and later it was upgraded to a multiband station capable of automatically monitoring all the five HF bands. The single band station setup involved the construction and installation of the half-wave dipole antenna, construction and installation of an HF choke balun; and the choice of Faros 1.3 as the appropriate monitoring software. The multiband monitoring station set-up involved the installation of an MFJ-1778 G5RV multiband antenna, construction and installation of a Communication Interface - V (CI-V) level converter and configuring the Faros 1.3 software to monitor the beacons on all five HF bands. Then a web page was created on the HMO space weather website (http://spaceweather.hmo.ac.za). Here, the real-time signal to noise ratio (SNR) and short path (SP)/long path (LP) plots are uploaded every 3 minutes, showing real time HF propagation conditions on the five HF bands. Historical propagation data are archived for later analysis. A preliminary data analysis was done to confirm the peration of the monitoring station. The archived data were analysed and compared to ICEPAC (Ionospheric Communications Enhanced Profile Analysis and Circuit) predictions. Results show that the real-time signal plots as well as the archive of historical signal plots, convey information on ropagation conditions to users in terms that are easy to interpret and understand.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Mudzingwa, Courage
- Date: 2009
- Subjects: Radio , Shortwave radio , Radio and television towers
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:5486 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1005272 , Radio , Shortwave radio , Radio and television towers
- Description: High frequency, HF (3 - 30 MHz), radio communications are greatly affected by ionospheric conditions. Both civilian and military users need reliable, real time propagation information to show at any time the feasibility of communicating to any part of the world on a particular frequency band. For this thesis, an automated receiving/monitoring station for the Northern California DX Foundation (NCDXF)/ International Amateur Radio Union (IARU) International Beacon Project was setup at the Hermanus Magnetic Observatory, HMO (34.42oS, 19.22oE) to monitor international beacons on 20 m, 17 m, 15 m, 12 m and 10 m bands. The beacons form a world wide multiband network. The task of monitoring the beacons was broken down into two steps. Initially the single band station, at 14.10 MHz, was installed and later it was upgraded to a multiband station capable of automatically monitoring all the five HF bands. The single band station setup involved the construction and installation of the half-wave dipole antenna, construction and installation of an HF choke balun; and the choice of Faros 1.3 as the appropriate monitoring software. The multiband monitoring station set-up involved the installation of an MFJ-1778 G5RV multiband antenna, construction and installation of a Communication Interface - V (CI-V) level converter and configuring the Faros 1.3 software to monitor the beacons on all five HF bands. Then a web page was created on the HMO space weather website (http://spaceweather.hmo.ac.za). Here, the real-time signal to noise ratio (SNR) and short path (SP)/long path (LP) plots are uploaded every 3 minutes, showing real time HF propagation conditions on the five HF bands. Historical propagation data are archived for later analysis. A preliminary data analysis was done to confirm the peration of the monitoring station. The archived data were analysed and compared to ICEPAC (Ionospheric Communications Enhanced Profile Analysis and Circuit) predictions. Results show that the real-time signal plots as well as the archive of historical signal plots, convey information on ropagation conditions to users in terms that are easy to interpret and understand.
- Full Text:
A recurrent neural network approach to quantitatively studying solar wind effects on TEC derived from GPS; preliminary results
- Habarulema, John B, McKinnell, Lee-Anne, Opperman, Ben D L
- Authors: Habarulema, John B , McKinnell, Lee-Anne , Opperman, Ben D L
- Date: 2009
- Language: English
- Type: text , Article
- Identifier: vital:6813 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1004323
- Description: This paper attempts to describe the search for the parameter(s) to represent solar wind effects in Global Positioning System total electron content (GPS TEC) modelling using the technique of neural networks (NNs). A study is carried out by including solar wind velocity (Vsw), proton number density (Np) and the Bz component of the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF Bz) obtained from the Advanced Composition Explorer (ACE) satellite as separate inputs to the NN each along with day number of the year (DN), hour (HR), a 4-month running mean of the daily sunspot number (R4) and the running mean of the previous eight 3-hourly magnetic A index values (A8). Hourly GPS TEC values derived from a dual frequency receiver located at Sutherland (32.38° S, 20.81° E), South Africa for 8 years (2000–2007) have been used to train the Elman neural network (ENN) and the result has been used to predict TEC variations for a GPS station located at Cape Town (33.95° S, 18.47° E). Quantitative results indicate that each of the parameters considered may have some degree of influence on GPS TEC at certain periods although a decrease in prediction accuracy is also observed for some parameters for different days and seasons. It is also evident that there is still a difficulty in predicting TEC values during disturbed conditions. The improvements and degradation in prediction accuracies are both close to the benchmark values which lends weight to the belief that diurnal, seasonal, solar and magnetic variabilities may be the major determinants of TEC variability.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Habarulema, John B , McKinnell, Lee-Anne , Opperman, Ben D L
- Date: 2009
- Language: English
- Type: text , Article
- Identifier: vital:6813 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1004323
- Description: This paper attempts to describe the search for the parameter(s) to represent solar wind effects in Global Positioning System total electron content (GPS TEC) modelling using the technique of neural networks (NNs). A study is carried out by including solar wind velocity (Vsw), proton number density (Np) and the Bz component of the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF Bz) obtained from the Advanced Composition Explorer (ACE) satellite as separate inputs to the NN each along with day number of the year (DN), hour (HR), a 4-month running mean of the daily sunspot number (R4) and the running mean of the previous eight 3-hourly magnetic A index values (A8). Hourly GPS TEC values derived from a dual frequency receiver located at Sutherland (32.38° S, 20.81° E), South Africa for 8 years (2000–2007) have been used to train the Elman neural network (ENN) and the result has been used to predict TEC variations for a GPS station located at Cape Town (33.95° S, 18.47° E). Quantitative results indicate that each of the parameters considered may have some degree of influence on GPS TEC at certain periods although a decrease in prediction accuracy is also observed for some parameters for different days and seasons. It is also evident that there is still a difficulty in predicting TEC values during disturbed conditions. The improvements and degradation in prediction accuracies are both close to the benchmark values which lends weight to the belief that diurnal, seasonal, solar and magnetic variabilities may be the major determinants of TEC variability.
- Full Text:
A situational analysis on the public participation processes in integrated water resources management in the Kat River Valley, Eastern Cape, South Africa
- Authors: Naidoo, Merle
- Date: 2009
- Subjects: South Africa. Dept. of Water Affairs and Forestry , Water-supply -- South Africa -- Kat River Valley , Water quality management -- South Africa -- Kat River Valley , Water-supply -- Government policy -- South Africa -- Kat River Valley , Water resources development -- South Africa -- Kat River Valley , Integrated water development -- South Africa -- Kat River Valley , Rural development -- South Africa -- Kat River Valley
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:4854 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1005530 , South Africa. Dept. of Water Affairs and Forestry , Water-supply -- South Africa -- Kat River Valley , Water quality management -- South Africa -- Kat River Valley , Water-supply -- Government policy -- South Africa -- Kat River Valley , Water resources development -- South Africa -- Kat River Valley , Integrated water development -- South Africa -- Kat River Valley , Rural development -- South Africa -- Kat River Valley
- Description: Public participation in water management processes is one of the internationally recognised and adopted principles of Integrated Water Resource Management. The South African Department of Water Affairs and Forestry aims to facilitate the decentralisation of water management powers to the local community level via the establishment of regional and local water management institutions, namely Catchment Management Agencies, Water User Associations and Catchment Forums. The National Water Act (No. 36 of 1998) acknowledges that the discriminatory laws and practices of the past have prevented equal access to water and the use of water resources. The contribution of water management institutions to social and economic development, in particular poverty eradication and food security, is mentioned in the water act. The participation of poor rural communities living in the Kat valley, an area where an elite minority reap the benefits of water use for agriculture, is the focus of this research. Their participation, perceptions and experiences are documented and explored to determine how the promulgation of post-apartheid water policy and legislation has affected their access to water. The results of this research are based on data collected from several methods including surveys, workshops and observation. Analysis of these data revealed the complicated and stagnant nature of participation from Kat valley rural communities in local water management initiatives and organisations. Existing water management organisations were not successful in stimulating poor people’s participation as they were unable to address their primary concerns, namely a secure source of potable water, employment and access to water for agricultural purposes. This thesis asserts that the Department of Water Affairs and Forestry, as the custodian of South Africa’s water resources, has not taken on a supportive, accountable role in assisting marginalised communities with improving their access to water for domestic purposes and securing access to water rights for productive use. This, in turn, has led to dissatisfaction among these communities and a wariness of participatory activities that focus mainly on raising environmental awareness. The establishment of effective accountability relationships among all stakeholders, pro-poor water management structures and initiatives, as well as integrated and co-operative management of natural resources, are needed to revitalise the present participation of poor communities living in rural areas.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Naidoo, Merle
- Date: 2009
- Subjects: South Africa. Dept. of Water Affairs and Forestry , Water-supply -- South Africa -- Kat River Valley , Water quality management -- South Africa -- Kat River Valley , Water-supply -- Government policy -- South Africa -- Kat River Valley , Water resources development -- South Africa -- Kat River Valley , Integrated water development -- South Africa -- Kat River Valley , Rural development -- South Africa -- Kat River Valley
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:4854 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1005530 , South Africa. Dept. of Water Affairs and Forestry , Water-supply -- South Africa -- Kat River Valley , Water quality management -- South Africa -- Kat River Valley , Water-supply -- Government policy -- South Africa -- Kat River Valley , Water resources development -- South Africa -- Kat River Valley , Integrated water development -- South Africa -- Kat River Valley , Rural development -- South Africa -- Kat River Valley
- Description: Public participation in water management processes is one of the internationally recognised and adopted principles of Integrated Water Resource Management. The South African Department of Water Affairs and Forestry aims to facilitate the decentralisation of water management powers to the local community level via the establishment of regional and local water management institutions, namely Catchment Management Agencies, Water User Associations and Catchment Forums. The National Water Act (No. 36 of 1998) acknowledges that the discriminatory laws and practices of the past have prevented equal access to water and the use of water resources. The contribution of water management institutions to social and economic development, in particular poverty eradication and food security, is mentioned in the water act. The participation of poor rural communities living in the Kat valley, an area where an elite minority reap the benefits of water use for agriculture, is the focus of this research. Their participation, perceptions and experiences are documented and explored to determine how the promulgation of post-apartheid water policy and legislation has affected their access to water. The results of this research are based on data collected from several methods including surveys, workshops and observation. Analysis of these data revealed the complicated and stagnant nature of participation from Kat valley rural communities in local water management initiatives and organisations. Existing water management organisations were not successful in stimulating poor people’s participation as they were unable to address their primary concerns, namely a secure source of potable water, employment and access to water for agricultural purposes. This thesis asserts that the Department of Water Affairs and Forestry, as the custodian of South Africa’s water resources, has not taken on a supportive, accountable role in assisting marginalised communities with improving their access to water for domestic purposes and securing access to water rights for productive use. This, in turn, has led to dissatisfaction among these communities and a wariness of participatory activities that focus mainly on raising environmental awareness. The establishment of effective accountability relationships among all stakeholders, pro-poor water management structures and initiatives, as well as integrated and co-operative management of natural resources, are needed to revitalise the present participation of poor communities living in rural areas.
- Full Text:
A social and cultural history of Grahamstown, 1812 to c1845
- Authors: Marshall, Richard Graham
- Date: 2009
- Subjects: Cities and towns -- Growth -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Community development, Urban -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Eastern Cape (South Africa) -- History -- 19th Century Grahamstown (South Africa) -- History -- 19th Century Grahamstown (South Africa) -- History -- Social aspects -- 19th Century Grahamstown (South Africa) -- Social conditions -- 19th Century Grahamstown (South Africa) -- Economic conditions -- 19th Century
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2549 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002401
- Description: This thesis examines the development of Grahamstown from its inception in 1812 to the mid-1840s, paying particular attention to the social and cultural life of the town. It traces the economic development of the town from a military outpost to a thriving commercial settlement, noting the essential factor of the town's proximity to the Cape frontier in this process. The economic interaction between diverse groups in the town mirrors the social and cultural interaction which occurred between British settlers, Khoekhoe and Africans. The result of these interactions was the creation of a new, distinctively South African urban society and culture, despite the desire of the white settlers to reproduce a “typical” English environment in their new home. The conflict between attempts to anglicise the urban environment and the realities of Grahamstown's situation on a colonial frontier was reflected in the architecture and layout of the town. Attempts to recreate an English social environment also failed. New classes arose in the town in response to the economic opportunities available on the frontier. Although some settlers prospered, many did not, and the presence of an impoverished white working class undermines settler historians' picture of settler success and affluence. The poorest people in the town, though, were the increasing numbers of Khoekhoe and Africans who migrated from the surrounding countryside, and who were unequally incorporated into the urban community as a colonial labouring class. In response to these unique circumstances, white settlers in Grahamstown developed a powerful political and propaganda machine, which helped lay the foundations of a distinct settler identity in the eastern Cape.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Marshall, Richard Graham
- Date: 2009
- Subjects: Cities and towns -- Growth -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Community development, Urban -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Eastern Cape (South Africa) -- History -- 19th Century Grahamstown (South Africa) -- History -- 19th Century Grahamstown (South Africa) -- History -- Social aspects -- 19th Century Grahamstown (South Africa) -- Social conditions -- 19th Century Grahamstown (South Africa) -- Economic conditions -- 19th Century
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2549 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002401
- Description: This thesis examines the development of Grahamstown from its inception in 1812 to the mid-1840s, paying particular attention to the social and cultural life of the town. It traces the economic development of the town from a military outpost to a thriving commercial settlement, noting the essential factor of the town's proximity to the Cape frontier in this process. The economic interaction between diverse groups in the town mirrors the social and cultural interaction which occurred between British settlers, Khoekhoe and Africans. The result of these interactions was the creation of a new, distinctively South African urban society and culture, despite the desire of the white settlers to reproduce a “typical” English environment in their new home. The conflict between attempts to anglicise the urban environment and the realities of Grahamstown's situation on a colonial frontier was reflected in the architecture and layout of the town. Attempts to recreate an English social environment also failed. New classes arose in the town in response to the economic opportunities available on the frontier. Although some settlers prospered, many did not, and the presence of an impoverished white working class undermines settler historians' picture of settler success and affluence. The poorest people in the town, though, were the increasing numbers of Khoekhoe and Africans who migrated from the surrounding countryside, and who were unequally incorporated into the urban community as a colonial labouring class. In response to these unique circumstances, white settlers in Grahamstown developed a powerful political and propaganda machine, which helped lay the foundations of a distinct settler identity in the eastern Cape.
- Full Text:
A study of employee satisfaction in two manufacturing facilities of General Motors South Africa
- Authors: Matutoane, Leanetse Paul
- Date: 2009
- Subjects: General Motors Corporation -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth Job satisfaction -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth Employee motivation -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth Employee attitude surveys -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
- Identifier: vital:766 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003887
- Description: Employed individuals spend a majority of their waking time at work. Therefore, within an individual’s working lifetime, most hours will be spent at work. Subsequently, theories abound purporting that humans are hedonistic beings. Considering that on average people spend most of their working lives in a working environment, it then stands to reason that people should endeavor to be satisfied at work if humans are always in pursuit of happiness. The questions arise as thus: what makes people satisfied at work, does being satisfied with the job result in less turnover, and is that the only reason that they would endeavor to prolong their employment, are older employees more satisfied with their jobs than younger employees, is a plant with an older workforce more satisfied than a similar plant with a younger workforce? This study attempts to find an answer to these and other related questions. It was conducted on employees of two plants of an automotive manufacturer based in Port Elizabeth, a town in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. The Job Descriptive Index (JDI) was used to collect the feelings of 92 employees in different shops and analyzed to check for differences in satisfaction levels. No significant differences were found between the plants, shops and age categories surveyed.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Matutoane, Leanetse Paul
- Date: 2009
- Subjects: General Motors Corporation -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth Job satisfaction -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth Employee motivation -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth Employee attitude surveys -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
- Identifier: vital:766 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003887
- Description: Employed individuals spend a majority of their waking time at work. Therefore, within an individual’s working lifetime, most hours will be spent at work. Subsequently, theories abound purporting that humans are hedonistic beings. Considering that on average people spend most of their working lives in a working environment, it then stands to reason that people should endeavor to be satisfied at work if humans are always in pursuit of happiness. The questions arise as thus: what makes people satisfied at work, does being satisfied with the job result in less turnover, and is that the only reason that they would endeavor to prolong their employment, are older employees more satisfied with their jobs than younger employees, is a plant with an older workforce more satisfied than a similar plant with a younger workforce? This study attempts to find an answer to these and other related questions. It was conducted on employees of two plants of an automotive manufacturer based in Port Elizabeth, a town in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. The Job Descriptive Index (JDI) was used to collect the feelings of 92 employees in different shops and analyzed to check for differences in satisfaction levels. No significant differences were found between the plants, shops and age categories surveyed.
- Full Text:
A systems approach to mainstreaming environment and sustainability in universities : the case of Rhodes University, South Africa
- Authors: Togo, Muchaiteyi
- Date: 2009
- Subjects: Rhodes University Education, Higher -- South Africa Universities and colleges -- South Africa Universities and colleges -- Environmental aspects -- South Africa -- Case studies Environmental education -- South Africa -- Case studies Sustainable development -- South Africa -- Case studies
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: vital:4768 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1007175
- Description: This study is influenced by the objectives of the Mainstreaming Environment and Sustainability in African Universities Partnership which aims to enhance the quality and relevance of university education through implementation of Environmental Education and sustainability across university functions and operations. It contributes to Education for Sustainable Development through the development of tools to assess sustainability in higher education, investigating sustainability practices in universities and proposing strategies for improving mainstreaming of sustainability. It also contributes to systems approaches in mainstreaming contextual sustainability challenges in university functions and operations. The aim of the study was to investigate how universities can mainstream sustainability in their functions and operations in response to contextual sustainability challenges in a changing environment using a systems approach. The research was a case study of Rhodes University in South Africa, which is situated in the impoverished Eastern Cape Province. The study involved 12 teaching departments (representing all faculties at the university), four research units and institutes, five managements units, the Estates Division and the Student Representative Council. The theoretical framework of the study draws from a critical realist ontology and systems thinking epistemology. Systems thinking emphasises the interdependencies of phenomena, thus providing the methodology and tools for a systems view of relationships between education and the environmental context in which it is embedded. Critical realism was employed as an underlabourer to systems thinking as it provides for some of the dimensions absent in systems thinking including its depth ontology which facilitates isolating causal factors influencing empirical reality. It recognises that explanation of phenomena can be embedded in history and acknowledges the fallibility of knowledge. The data collection methods employed in the study include a sustainability assessment using a Unit-based Sustainability Assessment Tool developed as part of the study, interviews, content analyses and observations. Data analyses were performed through employing morphogenetic analysis, and inductive, abductive and retroductive modes of inference. The morphogenetic analysis of social transformation/reproduction was employed to trace the historical emergence of sustainability initiatives at Rhodes University. Induction facilitated reorganisation of the data into themes which particularly represent the main sustainability activities at Rhodes University. Abduction, through recontextualising data in a systems thinking framework, enabled further insights into the phenomena. In the study, it enabled use of systems lenses as a framework and led to identification of systemic issues affecting mainstreaming and later, the development of systems thinking approaches in mainstreaming sustainability. Retroduction enabled identification of causal mechanisms which influenced the emergence of sustainability initiatives at the university. The study established that the emergence of sustainability initiatives at Rhodes University followed the 1990 Talloires Declaration and paralleled international institutional developments in relation to environmental and sustainability challenges. Since then, sustainability initiatives have continuously been emerging in various operational dimensions of the university in line with emerging sustainability challenges which resulted in a morphogenetic cycle. The study revealed that Rhodes University has mainstreamed sustainability across the functions and operations of most of the departments/divisions/units forming part of the study, especially in functions like teaching, research, community engagement and operations. There were a few exceptions like the Human Resources Division and to an extent the Research Office/Management Division which are not yet considering sustainability in their operations. While most of the teaching departments had sustainability initiatives in teaching, research and community engagement, there was diversity in the dimension(s) of sustainable development that the departments addressed and this seemed to relate to the disciplinary content of their subjects. In the Estates Division sustainability initiatives included sustainable landscaping, campus environmental management, water and energy conservation initiatives, waste recycling, use of biodiesel, to mention a few. Students were also involved in various sustainability activities especially through voluntary community engagement initiatives. Sustainability initiatives at the university were also discovered to be embedded within and responding to sustainability challenges of the immediate university environment of Makana District. The study unearthed the causal mechanisms enabling and constraining mainstreaming activities at the university. These were found to be embedded in the history and context within which the university is operating, and other factors related to university structures and agency of lecturers, other employees and students. Examples of these factors are unsustainable patterns in society, policies and the need to redress past inequalities. The study noted the existence of systemic issues at the university which need to be addressed to enable and enhance the promotion of a systems approach to mainstreaming: notably, complexity owing to diversity of approaches employed in mainstreaming, the absence of clearly defined university sustainability goals, problems of institutional support and in some cases, disciplinary governing rules which do not leave room for mainstreaming sustainability. The study established the possibility of improving mainstreaming of sustainability through the adoption of more explicit systems approaches. It suggests use of systems models including the systems-environment model, the functions/structure model and the motion picture model in the process. It recommends making the goal of mainstreaming more upfront, developing a shared understanding of sustainability and mapping out/defining contextual sustainable development issues to grapple with. The study also recommends adopting a holistic approach in mainstreaming, making it a campus-wide initiative, involving all students and developing interdisciplinary curricula. It suggests setting up of supporting mechanisms to strengthen, extend and spearhead mainstreaming and enhancement of collaborative work in sustainable development issues.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Togo, Muchaiteyi
- Date: 2009
- Subjects: Rhodes University Education, Higher -- South Africa Universities and colleges -- South Africa Universities and colleges -- Environmental aspects -- South Africa -- Case studies Environmental education -- South Africa -- Case studies Sustainable development -- South Africa -- Case studies
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: vital:4768 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1007175
- Description: This study is influenced by the objectives of the Mainstreaming Environment and Sustainability in African Universities Partnership which aims to enhance the quality and relevance of university education through implementation of Environmental Education and sustainability across university functions and operations. It contributes to Education for Sustainable Development through the development of tools to assess sustainability in higher education, investigating sustainability practices in universities and proposing strategies for improving mainstreaming of sustainability. It also contributes to systems approaches in mainstreaming contextual sustainability challenges in university functions and operations. The aim of the study was to investigate how universities can mainstream sustainability in their functions and operations in response to contextual sustainability challenges in a changing environment using a systems approach. The research was a case study of Rhodes University in South Africa, which is situated in the impoverished Eastern Cape Province. The study involved 12 teaching departments (representing all faculties at the university), four research units and institutes, five managements units, the Estates Division and the Student Representative Council. The theoretical framework of the study draws from a critical realist ontology and systems thinking epistemology. Systems thinking emphasises the interdependencies of phenomena, thus providing the methodology and tools for a systems view of relationships between education and the environmental context in which it is embedded. Critical realism was employed as an underlabourer to systems thinking as it provides for some of the dimensions absent in systems thinking including its depth ontology which facilitates isolating causal factors influencing empirical reality. It recognises that explanation of phenomena can be embedded in history and acknowledges the fallibility of knowledge. The data collection methods employed in the study include a sustainability assessment using a Unit-based Sustainability Assessment Tool developed as part of the study, interviews, content analyses and observations. Data analyses were performed through employing morphogenetic analysis, and inductive, abductive and retroductive modes of inference. The morphogenetic analysis of social transformation/reproduction was employed to trace the historical emergence of sustainability initiatives at Rhodes University. Induction facilitated reorganisation of the data into themes which particularly represent the main sustainability activities at Rhodes University. Abduction, through recontextualising data in a systems thinking framework, enabled further insights into the phenomena. In the study, it enabled use of systems lenses as a framework and led to identification of systemic issues affecting mainstreaming and later, the development of systems thinking approaches in mainstreaming sustainability. Retroduction enabled identification of causal mechanisms which influenced the emergence of sustainability initiatives at the university. The study established that the emergence of sustainability initiatives at Rhodes University followed the 1990 Talloires Declaration and paralleled international institutional developments in relation to environmental and sustainability challenges. Since then, sustainability initiatives have continuously been emerging in various operational dimensions of the university in line with emerging sustainability challenges which resulted in a morphogenetic cycle. The study revealed that Rhodes University has mainstreamed sustainability across the functions and operations of most of the departments/divisions/units forming part of the study, especially in functions like teaching, research, community engagement and operations. There were a few exceptions like the Human Resources Division and to an extent the Research Office/Management Division which are not yet considering sustainability in their operations. While most of the teaching departments had sustainability initiatives in teaching, research and community engagement, there was diversity in the dimension(s) of sustainable development that the departments addressed and this seemed to relate to the disciplinary content of their subjects. In the Estates Division sustainability initiatives included sustainable landscaping, campus environmental management, water and energy conservation initiatives, waste recycling, use of biodiesel, to mention a few. Students were also involved in various sustainability activities especially through voluntary community engagement initiatives. Sustainability initiatives at the university were also discovered to be embedded within and responding to sustainability challenges of the immediate university environment of Makana District. The study unearthed the causal mechanisms enabling and constraining mainstreaming activities at the university. These were found to be embedded in the history and context within which the university is operating, and other factors related to university structures and agency of lecturers, other employees and students. Examples of these factors are unsustainable patterns in society, policies and the need to redress past inequalities. The study noted the existence of systemic issues at the university which need to be addressed to enable and enhance the promotion of a systems approach to mainstreaming: notably, complexity owing to diversity of approaches employed in mainstreaming, the absence of clearly defined university sustainability goals, problems of institutional support and in some cases, disciplinary governing rules which do not leave room for mainstreaming sustainability. The study established the possibility of improving mainstreaming of sustainability through the adoption of more explicit systems approaches. It suggests use of systems models including the systems-environment model, the functions/structure model and the motion picture model in the process. It recommends making the goal of mainstreaming more upfront, developing a shared understanding of sustainability and mapping out/defining contextual sustainable development issues to grapple with. The study also recommends adopting a holistic approach in mainstreaming, making it a campus-wide initiative, involving all students and developing interdisciplinary curricula. It suggests setting up of supporting mechanisms to strengthen, extend and spearhead mainstreaming and enhancement of collaborative work in sustainable development issues.
- Full Text:
A test for Allee effects in the self-incompatible wasp-pollinated milkweed Gomphocarpus physocarpus
- Coombs, Gareth, Peter, Craig I, Johnson, Steven D
- Authors: Coombs, Gareth , Peter, Craig I , Johnson, Steven D
- Date: 2009
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6511 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1005938 , http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1442-9993.2009.01976.x
- Description: It has been suggested that plants which are good colonizers will generally have either an ability to self-fertilize or a generalist pollination system. This prediction is based on the idea that these reproductive traits should confer resistance to Allee effects in founder populations and was tested using Gomphocarpus physocarpus (Asclepiadoideae; Apocynaceae), a species native to South Africa that is invasive in other parts of the world. We found no significant relationships between the size of G. physocarpus populations and various measures of pollination success (pollen deposition, pollen removal, and pollen transfer efficiency) and fruit set. A breeding system experiment showed that plants in a South African population are genetically self-incompatible and thus obligate outcrossers. Out-crossing is further enhanced by mechanical reconfiguration of removed pollinaria before the pollinia can be deposited. Selfpollination is reduced when such reconfiguration exceeds the average duration of pollinator visits to a plant. Observations suggest that a wide variety of wasp species in the genera Belonogaster and Polistes (Vespidae) are the primary pollinators. We conclude that efficient pollination of plants in small founding populations, resulting from their generalist wasp-pollination system, contributes in part to the colonizing success of G. physocarpus. The presence of similar wasps in other parts of the world has evidently facilitated the expansion of the range of this milkweed.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Coombs, Gareth , Peter, Craig I , Johnson, Steven D
- Date: 2009
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6511 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1005938 , http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1442-9993.2009.01976.x
- Description: It has been suggested that plants which are good colonizers will generally have either an ability to self-fertilize or a generalist pollination system. This prediction is based on the idea that these reproductive traits should confer resistance to Allee effects in founder populations and was tested using Gomphocarpus physocarpus (Asclepiadoideae; Apocynaceae), a species native to South Africa that is invasive in other parts of the world. We found no significant relationships between the size of G. physocarpus populations and various measures of pollination success (pollen deposition, pollen removal, and pollen transfer efficiency) and fruit set. A breeding system experiment showed that plants in a South African population are genetically self-incompatible and thus obligate outcrossers. Out-crossing is further enhanced by mechanical reconfiguration of removed pollinaria before the pollinia can be deposited. Selfpollination is reduced when such reconfiguration exceeds the average duration of pollinator visits to a plant. Observations suggest that a wide variety of wasp species in the genera Belonogaster and Polistes (Vespidae) are the primary pollinators. We conclude that efficient pollination of plants in small founding populations, resulting from their generalist wasp-pollination system, contributes in part to the colonizing success of G. physocarpus. The presence of similar wasps in other parts of the world has evidently facilitated the expansion of the range of this milkweed.
- Full Text:
A tetrapod fauna from within the Devonian Antarctic Circle
- Gess, Robert W, Ahlberg, Per Erik Ahlberg
- Authors: Gess, Robert W , Ahlberg, Per Erik Ahlberg
- Date: 2009
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/72690 , vital:30100 , https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aaq1645 , https://www.sciencemag.org/content/360/6393/1120/suppl/DC1
- Description: Until now, all known fossils of tetrapods (limbed vertebrates with digits) and near-tetrapods (such as Elpistostege, Tiktaalik, and Panderichthys) from the Devonian period have come from localities in tropical to subtropical paleolatitudes. Most are from Laurussia, a continent incorporating Europe, Greenland, and North America, with only one body fossil and one footprint locality from Australia representing the southern supercontinent Gondwana. Here we describe two previously unknown tetrapods from the Late Devonian (late Famennian) Gondwana locality of Waterloo Farm in South Africa, then located within the Antarctic Circle, which demonstrate that Devonian tetrapods were not restricted to warm environments and suggest that they may have been global in distribution.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Gess, Robert W , Ahlberg, Per Erik Ahlberg
- Date: 2009
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/72690 , vital:30100 , https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aaq1645 , https://www.sciencemag.org/content/360/6393/1120/suppl/DC1
- Description: Until now, all known fossils of tetrapods (limbed vertebrates with digits) and near-tetrapods (such as Elpistostege, Tiktaalik, and Panderichthys) from the Devonian period have come from localities in tropical to subtropical paleolatitudes. Most are from Laurussia, a continent incorporating Europe, Greenland, and North America, with only one body fossil and one footprint locality from Australia representing the southern supercontinent Gondwana. Here we describe two previously unknown tetrapods from the Late Devonian (late Famennian) Gondwana locality of Waterloo Farm in South Africa, then located within the Antarctic Circle, which demonstrate that Devonian tetrapods were not restricted to warm environments and suggest that they may have been global in distribution.
- Full Text:
A tropical/subtropical biogeographic disjunction in southeastern Africa separates two evolutionarily significant units of an estuarine prawn
- Teske, Peter R, Winker, A Henning, McQuaid, Christopher D, Barker, Nigel P
- Authors: Teske, Peter R , Winker, A Henning , McQuaid, Christopher D , Barker, Nigel P
- Date: 2009
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/445407 , vital:74383 , https://doi.org/10.1007/s00227-009-1168-3
- Description: Recent phylogeographic research has indicated that biodiversity in the sea may be considerably greater than previously thought. However, the majority of phylogeographic studies on marine invertebrates have exclusively used a single locus (mitochondrial DNA), and it is questionable whether the phylogroups identified can be considered distinct species. We tested whether the mtDNA phylogroups of the southern African sandprawn Callianassa kraussi Stebbing (Decapoda: Thalassinidea) are also recovered using nuclear sequence data. Four mtDNA phylogroups were recovered that were each associated with one of South Africa’s four major biogeographic provinces. Three of these were poorly differentiated, but the fourth (tropical) group was highly distinct. The nuclear phylogeny recovered two major clades, one present in the tropical region and the other in the remainder of South Africa. Congruence between mitochondrial and nuclear DNA indicates that the species comprises two Evolutionarily Significant Units sensu Moritz (1994). In conjunction with physiological data from C. kraussi and morphological, ecological and physiological data from other species, this result supports the notion that at least some of the mtDNA phylogroups of coastal invertebrates whose distributions are limited.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Teske, Peter R , Winker, A Henning , McQuaid, Christopher D , Barker, Nigel P
- Date: 2009
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/445407 , vital:74383 , https://doi.org/10.1007/s00227-009-1168-3
- Description: Recent phylogeographic research has indicated that biodiversity in the sea may be considerably greater than previously thought. However, the majority of phylogeographic studies on marine invertebrates have exclusively used a single locus (mitochondrial DNA), and it is questionable whether the phylogroups identified can be considered distinct species. We tested whether the mtDNA phylogroups of the southern African sandprawn Callianassa kraussi Stebbing (Decapoda: Thalassinidea) are also recovered using nuclear sequence data. Four mtDNA phylogroups were recovered that were each associated with one of South Africa’s four major biogeographic provinces. Three of these were poorly differentiated, but the fourth (tropical) group was highly distinct. The nuclear phylogeny recovered two major clades, one present in the tropical region and the other in the remainder of South Africa. Congruence between mitochondrial and nuclear DNA indicates that the species comprises two Evolutionarily Significant Units sensu Moritz (1994). In conjunction with physiological data from C. kraussi and morphological, ecological and physiological data from other species, this result supports the notion that at least some of the mtDNA phylogroups of coastal invertebrates whose distributions are limited.
- Full Text:
Abahlali baseMjondolo and struggle for the city in Durban, South Africa
- Authors: Pithouse, Richard, 1970-
- Date: 2009
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6208 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1008578
- Description: The racialised regulation of space under apartheid was increasingly undone by insurgent popular action from the late 1970s. After apartheid a technocratic agenda that reduced the urban crisis to a housing crisis successfully depoliticised the urban question. At the same time the state made often violent attempts to reinscribe certain aspects of apartheid spatial logic by forcibly removing shack dwellers living in well located suburbs to tiny houses, and then later ‘transit camps’, in peripheral ghettoes. However from 2004 there was a remarkable sequence of popular protest against local governments across the country. An autonomous shack dweller’s movement, Abahlali baseMjondolo, emerged from this grassroots ferment and has since issued a compelling demand for organisational autonomy, grassroots urban planning and the right to the city.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Pithouse, Richard, 1970-
- Date: 2009
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6208 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1008578
- Description: The racialised regulation of space under apartheid was increasingly undone by insurgent popular action from the late 1970s. After apartheid a technocratic agenda that reduced the urban crisis to a housing crisis successfully depoliticised the urban question. At the same time the state made often violent attempts to reinscribe certain aspects of apartheid spatial logic by forcibly removing shack dwellers living in well located suburbs to tiny houses, and then later ‘transit camps’, in peripheral ghettoes. However from 2004 there was a remarkable sequence of popular protest against local governments across the country. An autonomous shack dweller’s movement, Abahlali baseMjondolo, emerged from this grassroots ferment and has since issued a compelling demand for organisational autonomy, grassroots urban planning and the right to the city.
- Full Text:
Abstract: redressing the apartheid legacy of social exclusion : social equity, redress and admission to higher education in democratic South Africa
- Authors: Badat, Saleem
- Date: 2009
- Language: English
- Type: Text
- Identifier: vital:7734 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1015881
- Full Text:
- Authors: Badat, Saleem
- Date: 2009
- Language: English
- Type: Text
- Identifier: vital:7734 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1015881
- Full Text:
Aes white paper: Best practices in network audio
- Bouillot, Nicolas, Cohen, Elizabeth, Cooperstock, Jeremy R, Floros, Andreas, Fonseca, Nuno, Foss, Richard, Goodman, Michael, Grant, John, Gross, Kevin, Harris, Steven, Harshbarger, Brent, Heyraud, Joffrey, Jonsson, Lars, Narus, John, Page, Michael, Snook, Tom, Tanaka, Atau, Trieger, Justin, Zanghieri, Umberto
- Authors: Bouillot, Nicolas , Cohen, Elizabeth , Cooperstock, Jeremy R , Floros, Andreas , Fonseca, Nuno , Foss, Richard , Goodman, Michael , Grant, John , Gross, Kevin , Harris, Steven , Harshbarger, Brent , Heyraud, Joffrey , Jonsson, Lars , Narus, John , Page, Michael , Snook, Tom , Tanaka, Atau , Trieger, Justin , Zanghieri, Umberto
- Date: 2009
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/427181 , vital:72420 , https://www.aes.org/e-lib/browse.cfm?elib=14839
- Description: Analog audio needs a separate physical circuit for each channel. Each microphone in a studio or on a stage, for example, must have its own circuit back to the mixer. Routing of the signals is inflexible. Digital audio is frequently wired in a similar way to analog. Although several channels can share a single physical circuit ( e. g., up to 64 with AES10 ), thus reducing the number of cores needed in a cable. Routing of signals is still inflexible and any change to the equipment in a location is liable to require new cabling. Networks allow much more flexibility. Any piece of equipment plugged into the network is able to communicate with any other. However, installers of audio networks need to be aware of a number of issues that affect audio signals but are not important for data networks and are not addressed by current IT networking technologies such as IP. This white paper examines these issues and provides guidance to installers and users that can help them build successful networked systems.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Bouillot, Nicolas , Cohen, Elizabeth , Cooperstock, Jeremy R , Floros, Andreas , Fonseca, Nuno , Foss, Richard , Goodman, Michael , Grant, John , Gross, Kevin , Harris, Steven , Harshbarger, Brent , Heyraud, Joffrey , Jonsson, Lars , Narus, John , Page, Michael , Snook, Tom , Tanaka, Atau , Trieger, Justin , Zanghieri, Umberto
- Date: 2009
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/427181 , vital:72420 , https://www.aes.org/e-lib/browse.cfm?elib=14839
- Description: Analog audio needs a separate physical circuit for each channel. Each microphone in a studio or on a stage, for example, must have its own circuit back to the mixer. Routing of the signals is inflexible. Digital audio is frequently wired in a similar way to analog. Although several channels can share a single physical circuit ( e. g., up to 64 with AES10 ), thus reducing the number of cores needed in a cable. Routing of signals is still inflexible and any change to the equipment in a location is liable to require new cabling. Networks allow much more flexibility. Any piece of equipment plugged into the network is able to communicate with any other. However, installers of audio networks need to be aware of a number of issues that affect audio signals but are not important for data networks and are not addressed by current IT networking technologies such as IP. This white paper examines these issues and provides guidance to installers and users that can help them build successful networked systems.
- Full Text:
African traditional medicines-antiretroviral drug interactions: the effect of African potato (Hypoxis hemerocallidea) on the pharmacokinetics of efavirenz in humans
- Authors: Mogatle, Seloi
- Date: 2009
- Subjects: Potatoes -- Africa Potatoes -- Therapeutic use Medicinal plants Traditional medicine AIDS (Disease) -- Treatment HIV infections -- Drug therapy Drug interactions Antiretroviral agents Pharmacokinetics Hypoxidaceae -- Therapeutic use High performance liquid chromatography
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:3773 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003251
- Description: African Potato (Hypoxis hemerocallidea), (AP) is an African traditional medicine (TM) that is commonly used for various nutritional/medicinal purposes and also by people infected with the human immuno deficiency virus HIV and AIDS patients as an immune booster. The use of AP has also been recommended by the former Minister of Health of South Africa for use by HIV positive people. The main phytochemical component of AP is a norlignan glucoside, hypoxoside, and other relatively minor components have also been reported. A recent in vitro study reported the effects of AP extracts, hypoxoside and rooperol (the metabolite of hypoxoside) on human metabolic enzymes such as the cytochrome P450 (CYP450) group of enzymes and also on the transporter protein, p-glycoprotein (P-gp). This research focussed on investigating the clinical significance of those in vitro effects on the pharmacokinetics of efavirenz (EFV) in humans. EFV was chosen as the substrate drug because it is in first-line regimen of treatment of HIV/AIDS in South Africa, and also has been reported to be a substrate for the specific CYP isozymes, 3A4 and 2B6, in common with APs metabolic involvement with 3A4. A high performance liquid chromatography method with ultra-violet detection (HPLC-UV) for the quantitative determination of EFV in plasma was developed and successfully validated according to international standards with good reproducibility, accuracy, recovery, linear response and requisite sensitivity. The preparation of the plasma samples for analysis was effected by using a simple and rapid precipitation method, and the mobile phase consisted of readily available solvents. EFV in plasma samples was found to be stable under the relevant storage conditions studied. The oral dose of AP, administered as a freshly prepared traditional decoction, was standardised based on the hypoxoside content, and the quality of all the AP decoctions was analysed immediately prior to administration, using a validated HPLC-UV method. A single dose, two-phase sequential study was conducted over a period of 31 days in 10 healthy volunteers. The clinical study was approved by the Rhodes University Ethical Standards Committee, and all the participants agreed to the conditions of the study by giving their informed consent. On day 1 of the study, human subjects were administered a 600 mg EFV tablet and blood samples were collected before dosing and at various intervals over a period of 48 hr post dosing. From day 16, a traditionally prepared AP decoction was administered daily at a standardized dose of 15 mg/kg/day per subject until day 30. On day 29, volunteers were administered a single 600 mg dose of EFV as was done on day 1. Plasma samples were harvested immediately after blood sample collection and frozen at -80 ºC until assayed. Geometric mean ratios of relevant pharmacokinetic parameters, Cmax (maximum plasma concentration achieved following dosing) and AUC0-48 (area under the curve of a plot of drug plasma concentrations versus time representing the extent of absorption) of EFV before and after co-administration of 14 successive daily doses of AP were compared and evaluated to determine whether an interaction had occurred. All subjects completed the study and the geometric mean ratios of Cmax and AUC0-48 were 97.30 and 102.82 with corresponding 90% confidence intervals (CIs) of 78.81-120.14% and 89.04-118.80%, respectively. Whereas the acceptance criteria for the ratios of the AUCs fell within the preset 90% CIs indicating no interaction, the Cmax ratios fell outside the limits. Although the protocol was developed in accordance with the United States of America Food & Drug Administration’s Guidance for Drug Interactions, a priori stating that both criteria need to fall within the acceptance limits to indicate no interaction, an argument is presented to waive the Cmax requirement for the declaration of an interaction. As a result, the pharmacokinetic data generated during this study indicated that the effect of AP on the pharmacokinetics of EFV is not clinically significant. Hence, co-administration of AP is unlikely to affect the clinical use of EFV. In summary the objectives of this project were: 1. To develop and validate a suitable HPLC-UV method for the quantitative determination of EFV in plasma. 2. To perform a mini-validation of the determination of hypoxoside for use as a marker in the quality control and standardisation of AP decoctions. 3. To conduct a clinical interaction study in order to determine whether AP affects the pharmacokinetics of EFV following concurrent administration. 4. To apply the validated HPLC-UV method to determine plasma concentrations of EFV in plasma of human subjects. 5. To use appropriate statistical methods and treatments such as a non-compartmental pharmacokinetic analysis to determine the occurrence of an interaction.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Mogatle, Seloi
- Date: 2009
- Subjects: Potatoes -- Africa Potatoes -- Therapeutic use Medicinal plants Traditional medicine AIDS (Disease) -- Treatment HIV infections -- Drug therapy Drug interactions Antiretroviral agents Pharmacokinetics Hypoxidaceae -- Therapeutic use High performance liquid chromatography
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:3773 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003251
- Description: African Potato (Hypoxis hemerocallidea), (AP) is an African traditional medicine (TM) that is commonly used for various nutritional/medicinal purposes and also by people infected with the human immuno deficiency virus HIV and AIDS patients as an immune booster. The use of AP has also been recommended by the former Minister of Health of South Africa for use by HIV positive people. The main phytochemical component of AP is a norlignan glucoside, hypoxoside, and other relatively minor components have also been reported. A recent in vitro study reported the effects of AP extracts, hypoxoside and rooperol (the metabolite of hypoxoside) on human metabolic enzymes such as the cytochrome P450 (CYP450) group of enzymes and also on the transporter protein, p-glycoprotein (P-gp). This research focussed on investigating the clinical significance of those in vitro effects on the pharmacokinetics of efavirenz (EFV) in humans. EFV was chosen as the substrate drug because it is in first-line regimen of treatment of HIV/AIDS in South Africa, and also has been reported to be a substrate for the specific CYP isozymes, 3A4 and 2B6, in common with APs metabolic involvement with 3A4. A high performance liquid chromatography method with ultra-violet detection (HPLC-UV) for the quantitative determination of EFV in plasma was developed and successfully validated according to international standards with good reproducibility, accuracy, recovery, linear response and requisite sensitivity. The preparation of the plasma samples for analysis was effected by using a simple and rapid precipitation method, and the mobile phase consisted of readily available solvents. EFV in plasma samples was found to be stable under the relevant storage conditions studied. The oral dose of AP, administered as a freshly prepared traditional decoction, was standardised based on the hypoxoside content, and the quality of all the AP decoctions was analysed immediately prior to administration, using a validated HPLC-UV method. A single dose, two-phase sequential study was conducted over a period of 31 days in 10 healthy volunteers. The clinical study was approved by the Rhodes University Ethical Standards Committee, and all the participants agreed to the conditions of the study by giving their informed consent. On day 1 of the study, human subjects were administered a 600 mg EFV tablet and blood samples were collected before dosing and at various intervals over a period of 48 hr post dosing. From day 16, a traditionally prepared AP decoction was administered daily at a standardized dose of 15 mg/kg/day per subject until day 30. On day 29, volunteers were administered a single 600 mg dose of EFV as was done on day 1. Plasma samples were harvested immediately after blood sample collection and frozen at -80 ºC until assayed. Geometric mean ratios of relevant pharmacokinetic parameters, Cmax (maximum plasma concentration achieved following dosing) and AUC0-48 (area under the curve of a plot of drug plasma concentrations versus time representing the extent of absorption) of EFV before and after co-administration of 14 successive daily doses of AP were compared and evaluated to determine whether an interaction had occurred. All subjects completed the study and the geometric mean ratios of Cmax and AUC0-48 were 97.30 and 102.82 with corresponding 90% confidence intervals (CIs) of 78.81-120.14% and 89.04-118.80%, respectively. Whereas the acceptance criteria for the ratios of the AUCs fell within the preset 90% CIs indicating no interaction, the Cmax ratios fell outside the limits. Although the protocol was developed in accordance with the United States of America Food & Drug Administration’s Guidance for Drug Interactions, a priori stating that both criteria need to fall within the acceptance limits to indicate no interaction, an argument is presented to waive the Cmax requirement for the declaration of an interaction. As a result, the pharmacokinetic data generated during this study indicated that the effect of AP on the pharmacokinetics of EFV is not clinically significant. Hence, co-administration of AP is unlikely to affect the clinical use of EFV. In summary the objectives of this project were: 1. To develop and validate a suitable HPLC-UV method for the quantitative determination of EFV in plasma. 2. To perform a mini-validation of the determination of hypoxoside for use as a marker in the quality control and standardisation of AP decoctions. 3. To conduct a clinical interaction study in order to determine whether AP affects the pharmacokinetics of EFV following concurrent administration. 4. To apply the validated HPLC-UV method to determine plasma concentrations of EFV in plasma of human subjects. 5. To use appropriate statistical methods and treatments such as a non-compartmental pharmacokinetic analysis to determine the occurrence of an interaction.
- Full Text: