List of Titles

Antiviral drug discovery: preparing for the next pandemic

- Adamson, Catherine S, Chibale, Kelly, Goss, Rebecca J M, Jaspars, Marcel, Newman, David J, Dorrington, Rosemary A

Authors: Adamson, Catherine S , Chibale, Kelly , Goss, Rebecca J M , Jaspars, Marcel , Newman, David J , Dorrington, Rosemary A
Date: 2021
Language: English
Type: text , article
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/177499 , vital:42827 , DOI: 10.1039/d0cs01118e
Description: Clinically approved antiviral drugs are currently available for only 10 of the more than 220 viruses known to infect humans. The SARS-CoV-2 outbreak has exposed the critical need for compounds that can be rapidly mobilised for the treatment of re-emerging or emerging viral diseases, while vaccine development is underway. We review the current status of antiviral therapies focusing on RNA viruses, highlighting strategies for antiviral drug discovery and discuss the challenges, solutions and options to accelerate drug discovery efforts.
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Date Issued: 2021

Prevalence and factors associated with suicidal ideation amongst college students in the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality, South Africa

- Adeyinka A. Alabi, ROlawumi K. Oladimeji, Oladele V. Adeniyi

Authors: Adeyinka A. Alabi , ROlawumi K. Oladimeji , Oladele V. Adeniyi
Date: 2021
Language: English
Type: text , article
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/11260/3337 , vital:43315 , https://doi.org/10.4102/safp.v63i1.5195
Description: Background: Suicidal behaviour amongst college students constitutes a significant social and public health problem globally. This study determined the prevalence and associated factors of suicidal ideation amongst students of higher education in the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality (NMBM), South Africa. Methods: In this institution-based cross-sectional study, a multistage cluster sampling of 826 participants, drawn from a college in NMBM, was conducted from January to March 2020. Data were collected with a standardised self-administered questionnaire. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was used to identify the factors associated with suicidal ideation. Results: Participants’ ages ranged from 18 to 24 years, with a mean age of 20.49 years (standard deviation, 1.88 years). The lifetime prevalence of suicidal ideation and plans in the preceding 12 months were 24.5% and 9.6%, respectively. The odds of suicidal ideation were higher in students who experienced bullying (adjusted odds ratio [AOR], 1.89; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.35–2.65), mental illness (AOR, 1.89; 95% CI, 1.35–2.65), a history of sexual assault (AOR, 2.50; 95% CI, 1.20–5.21) and experience of sexual assault by or to a close family member (AOR, 1.69; 95% CI, 1.01–2.82). Underlying chronic illness was associated with a twofold risk for suicidal ideation in both sexes. Conclusion: About a quarter of the students sampled at the college had experienced suicidal ideation and some had had suicidal plans in the preceding 12 months. Screening for the identified risk factors amongst the student population coupled with prompt interventions would mitigate the risk of suicide in the study population. Keywords: suicidal behaviour; suicidal plans; higher education; students; South Africa.
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Date Issued: 2021

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Patient acceptance of HIV testing services in rural emergency departments in South Africa

- Aditi Rao, Caitlin Kennedy, Pamela Mda, Thomas C. Quinn, David Stead, Bhakti Hansoti

Authors: Aditi Rao , Caitlin Kennedy , Pamela Mda , Thomas C. Quinn , David Stead , Bhakti Hansoti
Date: 2020
Language: English
Type: text , article
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/11260/3270 , vital:43287 , https://doi.org/10.4102/sajhivmed.v21i1.1105
Description: Background: South Africa faces the highest burden of HIV infection globally. The National Strategic Plan on HIV recommends provider-initiated HIV counselling and testing (HCT) in all healthcare facilities. However, HIV continues to overwhelm the healthcare system. Emergency department (ED)-based HCT could address unmet testing needs. Objectives: This study examines the reasons for accepting or declining HCT in South African EDs to inform the development of HCT implementation strategies. Method: We conducted a prospective observational study in two rural EDs, from June to September 2017. Patients presenting to the ED were systematically approached and offered a point-of-care test in accordance with national guidelines. Patients demographics, presenting compaint, medical history and reasons for accepting/declining testing, were recorded. A pooled analysis is presented. Results: Across sites, 2074 adult, non-critical patients in the ED were approached; 1880 were enrolled in the study. Of those enrolled, 19.7% had a previously known positive diagnosis, and 80.3% were unaware of their HIV status. Of those unaware, 90% patients accepted and 10% declined testing. The primary reasons for declining testing were ‘does not want to know status’ (37.6%), ‘in too much pain’ (34%) and ‘does not believe they are at risk’ (19.9%). Conclusions: Despite national guidelines, a high proportion of individuals remain undiagnosed, of which a majority are young men. Our study demonstrated high patient acceptance of ED-based HCT. There is a need for investment and innovation regarding effective pain management and confidential service delivery to address patient barriers. Findings support a routine, non-targeted HCT strategy in EDs. Keywords: HIV counselling and testing; South Africa; emergency department; patient acceptance; implementation research; linkage to care.
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Date Issued: 2020

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An Exploratory Study of the Relationship between Learners’ Attitudes Towards Learning Science and Characteristics of an Afterschool Science Club

- Agunbiade, Esther, Ngcoza, Kenneth M, Jawahar, Kavish, Sewry, Joyce

Authors: Agunbiade, Esther , Ngcoza, Kenneth M , Jawahar, Kavish , Sewry, Joyce
Date: 2017
Subjects: To be catalogued
Language: English
Type: text , article
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/483279 , vital:78739 , https://doi.org/10.1080/18117295.2017.1369274
Description: The Khanya Maths and Science Club (KMSC) is an afterschool science/maths enrichment programme for learners in Grades 7–12 supported by postgraduate students and academic staff volunteers. This research seeks to explore the relationship between participating learners’ attitude toward learning science and the characteristics of this afterschool science club. The study draws from Wenger’s community of practice model to explore the features. Six learners participating in the KMSC were interviewed and their journal entries were analysed inductively, resulting in three themes. The study revealed that learners’ attitudes towards learning science were associated with the club’s instructional characteristics, facilitators/environmental characteristics and the level to which science was connected with everyday life. These characteristics are also related to the community of practice elements. It was concluded that incorporating the community of practice model in structuring afterschool science activities could have a positive influence on learners’ attitude towards learning science.
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Date Issued: 2017

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Extended use of grey water for irrigating home gardens in an arid environment

- Al-Ismaili, Abdulrahim M, Ahmed, Mushtaque, Al-Busaidi, Ahmed, Al-Adawi, Seif, Tandlich, Roman, Al-Amri, Mohammed

Authors: Al-Ismaili, Abdulrahim M , Ahmed, Mushtaque , Al-Busaidi, Ahmed , Al-Adawi, Seif , Tandlich, Roman , Al-Amri, Mohammed
Date: 2017
Language: English
Type: text , article
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/76048 , vital:30497 , https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-017-8963-z
Description: The use of treated grey water (GW) for home gardens, peri-urban agriculture and landscaping is becoming popular in many water stressed countries such as Oman. This study aims to investigate the treatment efficacy, health and chemical concerns, cost-benefits and maintenance protocol of a GW treatment system as well as the effect of irrigation with GW on crop yield. Therefore, a decentralized homemade GW treatment system was installed in a newly constructed house in Muscat, Oman and studied over a 2-year period. The treated GW was found to be suitable for irrigation as per Omani standards. GW when mixed with kitchen effluent substituted the use of nutrient supplements for plants and did not show any harmful chemical or biological contamination. The capital cost of the system was around US $980, and the annual operating cost was US $78 with annual income and savings from the system being around US $572 indicating a payback period of nearly 2 years. It was found that the system required simple but regular maintenance particularly cleaning of the top layer of the filter. It can be concluded from this study that such a GW system should be technically, economically and environmentally feasible in Oman. Also, wider acceptance by the general public to the idea of GW reuse will help in mitigating the water shortage problem of the country to some extent.
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Date Issued: 2017

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Effects of temperature and salinity on the standard metabolic rate (SMR) of the caridean shrimp Palaemon peringueyi

- Allan, E Louise, Froneman, P William, Hodgson, Alan N

Authors: Allan, E Louise , Froneman, P William , Hodgson, Alan N
Date: 2006
Language: English
Type: Article
Identifier: vital:6831 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1007567
Description: The standard metabolic rate (SMR) of the caridean shrimp Palaemon peringueyi to changes in temperature (15–30 °C), salinity (0–45‰) and a combination thereof was investigated. The rate of oxygen consumption of the shrimp was determined using a YSI oxygen meter. At a constant salinity of 35‰ the respiration rate of P. peringueyi increased with an increase in temperature and ranged between 0.260 and 0.982 μl O[subscript 2] mg wwt[superscript −1] h[superscript −1]. The Q[subscript 10] value over the temperature range 15–25 °C was estimated at 3.13. At a constant temperature of 15 °C the respiration rate of P. peringueyi also increased with an increase in salinity and ranged between 0.231 and 0.860 μl O[subscript 2] mg wwt[superscript −1] h[superscript −1]. For combination experiments the absence of any significant difference in the respiration rate of P. peringueyi at the four temperatures over the salinity range 15–35‰ suggests that the shrimp is well adapted to inhabiting environments characterised by variations in salinity and temperature such as those encountered within the middle and lower reaches of permanently open estuaries with substantial freshwater inflow. On the other hand, the total mortality of the shrimp recorded at salinities < 5‰ at all four temperatures suggests that the upper distribution of the shrimp may reflect physiological constraints. Similarly, the increase in the respiration rate of the shrimp at the four temperatures at salinities > 35‰ suggests that the shrimp may experience osmotic stress in freshwater deprived permanently open and intermittently open estuaries where hypersaline conditions may develop.
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Date Issued: 2006

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Quantifying the economic water savings benefit of water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes) control in the Vaalharts Irrigation Scheme

- Arp, Reinhardt S, Fraser, Gavin C G, Hill, Martin P

Authors: Arp, Reinhardt S , Fraser, Gavin C G , Hill, Martin P
Date: 2017
Subjects: To be catalogued
Language: English
Type: text , article
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/472762 , vital:77570 , https://www.ajol.info/index.php/wsa/article/view/150822
Description: Global freshwater resources are threatened by an ever-growing population and continued economic development, highlighting the need for sustainable water management. Sustainable management must include the control of any additional factors that may aggravate water scarcity, such as invasive alien plants. Water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes), one of the world’s most destructive invasive plants, presents a direct threat to economically productive water resources. Through high levels of evapotranspiration, water hyacinth leads to substantial water losses that could otherwise be used more productively, thereby creating an externality on water-dependent industries, such as irrigation-fed agriculture. This study provides an economic valuation of the water-saving benefit of water hyacinth control, using Warrenton Weir on the Vaalharts Irrigation Scheme as a case study. A Residual Value Method was employed to estimate the average production value of irrigation water, based on water’s relative proportion of total costs (TC), to serve as a proxy for the value of water lost via evapotranspiration by water hyacinth. Three evapotranspiration to evaporation ratios, derived from the literature, at three levels of invasion (100; 50 and 25% cover), were used to estimate the annual water loss at Warrenton Weir. The average production value of irrigation water was estimated to be R38.71/m3, which translated into an annual benefit of between R54 million and R1.18 billion. These results highlight the need for invasive plant control, particularly in economically productive water resources. An alien plant control policy should prioritise invasions of this nature, as they present significant costs to the economy and threaten the sustainability of freshwater resources.
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Date Issued: 2017

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Dataset of experimental and adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system (ANFIS) model prediction of R600a/MWCNT nanolubricant in a vapour compression system

- Babarinde, T O, Akinlabi, S A, Madyira, D M, Ekundayo, F M, Adedeji, P A

Authors: Babarinde, T O , Akinlabi, S A , Madyira, D M , Ekundayo, F M , Adedeji, P A
Date: 2020
Language: English
Type: text , article
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/11260/3248 , vital:43283 , https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dib.2020.106316
Description: This research paper assessed the performance of R600a with the base lubricant and Multi-walled Carbon Nanotube (MWCNT) nanolubricant at steady state. It describes the instruments required for measurement of the data parameter and its uncertainties, steps involved in preparing and replacing the MWCNT nanolubricant concentration with base lubricant in vapour compression refrigeration. The system’s temperature data was collected at the components inlets and outlets. Pressure data was also registered at the compressor outlet and inlet. The data was captured at 27 °C ambient temperature at an interval of 30 min for 300 min. The experiment includes the experimental data collection, Adaptive Neuro-Fuzzy Inference System (ANFIS) training and testing dataset. The use of ANFIS model is explained in predicting the efficiency of MWCNT nanolubricant in a vapour compression refrigerator system. The ANFIS model also provides statistical output measures such as Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) and Mean Absolute Deviation (MAD), Mean Absolute Percentage Error (MAPE), and determination coefficient (R2). The data is useful and important for replacing MWCNT nanolubricant with base lubricant in a vapour compression refrigeration system for researchers in the specialisation of energy-efficient materials in refrigeration. The data present can be reused for vapour compression refrigeration systems simulation and modelling.
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Date Issued: 2020

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Vice-Chancellor's welcoming address 2010

- Badat, Saleem

Authors: Badat, Saleem
Date: 2010
Language: English
Type: text
Identifier: vital:7590 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1006581
Description: From introduction: Rhodes University, which means, you and I and academics and support staff, exists to serve three purposes. The first is to produce knowledge, so that we can advance understanding of our natural and social worlds and enrich our accumulated scientific and cultural heritage. As a university our second purpose is to disseminate knowledge and to cultivate minds. Our goal is to ensure that you can think imaginatively, “effectively and critically”; that you “achieve depth in some field of knowledge”; that you can critique and construct alternatives, that you can communicate cogently, orally and in writing, and that you have a “critical appreciation of the ways in which we gain knowledge and understanding of the universe, of society, and of ourselves” Our final purpose as a university is to undertake community engagement. On the one hand this involves your voluntary participation in community projects undertaken thorough our Community Engagement office. On the other hand, it involves service-learning, in which through your academic courses you take part “in activities where both the community” and you benefit, “and where the goals are to provide a service to the community and, equally, to enhance (your) learning through rendering this service”
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Date Issued: 2010

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Wand plant architecture in the Fynbos: Testing the rodent herbivory hypothesis

- Bailey, Lauren A, Potts, A J, Cowling, R M, Whitfield, Maxine C, Smit, Ben

Authors: Bailey, Lauren A , Potts, A J , Cowling, R M , Whitfield, Maxine C , Smit, Ben
Date: 2019
Subjects: To be catalogued
Language: English
Type: text , article
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/440583 , vital:73795 , https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sajb.2019.03.035
Description: Throughout the Cape Floristic Region, in a range of local environments, can be found a distinctive growth form: “wand” plants. This curious plant architecture comprises perennial plants which have slender (wand-like) stems that extend high above the matrix vegetation. We explore whether the evolution of wand-plants may have been driven by plant–herbivore interactions with rodents, where such architecture reduces access to nutrient rich flowers and seeds. To test this idea, we determined if (i) wand-plants were more flexible than non-wand congeners, and (ii) a stabilised wand plant was favoured for climbing (by laboratory mice) over a free-standing wand plant in a laboratory setting. Under a phylogenetic independent contrast framework, wand-plants were not more flexible (across a range of diameters) than non-wand congeners.
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Date Issued: 2019

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Visiview: a system for the visualization of multidimensional data

- Bangay, Shaun D

Authors: Bangay, Shaun D
Date: 1998
Subjects: To be catalogued
Language: English
Type: text , article
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/433466 , vital:72972 , https://doi.org/10.1117/12.309530
Description: Results generated by simulation of computer systems are often presented as a multi-dimensional data set, where the number of dimensions may be greater than 4 if sufficient system parameters are modelled. This paper describes a visualization system intended to assist in understanding the relationship between, and effect upon system behavior of, the different values of the system parameters. The system is applied to data that cannot be represented using a mesh or isosurface representation, and in general can only be represented as a cloud of points. The use of stereoscopic rendering and rapid interaction with the data are compared with regard to their value in providing insight into the nature of the data. A number of techniques are implemented for displaying projections of the data set with up to 7 dimensions, and for allowing intuitive manipulation of the remaining dimensions. In this way the effect of changes in one variable in the presence of a number of others can be explored. The use of these techniques, when applied to data from computer system simulation, results in an intuitive understanding of the effects of the system parameters on system behavior.
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Date Issued: 1998

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Kaleidoscope configurations for reflectance measurement

- Bangay, Shaun D, Radloff, Judith D

Authors: Bangay, Shaun D , Radloff, Judith D
Date: 2004
Subjects: To be catalogued
Language: English
Type: text , article
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/432891 , vital:72910 , https://doi.org/10.1145/1029949.1029979
Description: Simulations of different configurations of the symmetrical tapered kaleidoscope are performed to assess their merits for measurement of BRDFs and BTFs. The relationship between optimal kaleidoscope layout, and factors such as hardware restrictions and the resolution of the required reflectance function, is derived. The effect on the measurement of the reflectance function of changing these independent variables is examined through the simulation. These experiments highlight issues affecting the measurement of BTFs using kaleidoscopes, and suggest configurations that allow sampling at regular parameter intervals. A number of other kaleidoscope architectures are explored, which offer the benefits of potentially doubling the range of directions that can be sampled, and allowing adaptive control of sample intervals.
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Date Issued: 2004

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Minimum spanning trees for valley and ridge characterization in digital elevation maps

- Bangay, Shaun D, de Bruyn, David, Glass, Kevin R

Authors: Bangay, Shaun D , de Bruyn, David , Glass, Kevin R
Date: 2010
Subjects: To be catalogued
Language: English
Type: text , article
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/433247 , vital:72955 , https://doi.org/10.1145/1811158.1811171
Description: Texture synthesis employs neighbourhood matching to generate appropriate new content. Terrain synthesis has the added constraint that new content must be geographically plausible. The profile recognition and polygon breaking algorithm (PPA) [Chang et al. 1998] provides a robust mechanism for characterizing terrain as systems of valley and ridge lines in digital elevation maps. We exploit this to create a terrain characterization metric that is robust, efficient to compute and is sensitive to terrain properties.
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Date Issued: 2010

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Graph matching with subdivision surfaces for texture synthesis on surfaces

- Bangay, Shaun D, Morkel, Chantelle

Authors: Bangay, Shaun D , Morkel, Chantelle
Date: 2006
Subjects: To be catalogued
Language: English
Type: text , article
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/433351 , vital:72964 , https://doi.org/10.1145/1108590.1108601
Description: Existing texture synthesis-from example strategies for polygon meshes typically make use of three components: a multi-resolution mesh hierarchy that allows the overall nature of the pattern to be reproduced before filling in detail; a matching strategy that extends the synthesized texture using the best fit from a texture sample; and a transfer mechanism that copies the selected portion of the texture sample to the target surface. We introduce novel alternatives for each of these components. Use of √2-subdivision surfaces provides the mesh hierarchy and allows fine control over the surface complexity. Adaptive subdivision is used to create an even vertex distribution over the surface. Use of the graph defined by a surface region for matching, rather than a regular texture neighbourhood, provides for flexible control over the scale of the texture and allows simultaneous matching against multiple levels of an image pyramid created from the texture sample. We use graph cuts for texture transfer, adapting this scheme to the context of surface synthesis. The resulting surface textures are realistic, tolerant of local mesh detail and are comparable to results produced by texture neighbourhood sampling approaches.
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Date Issued: 2006

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A Framework for the Rapid Development of Anomaly Detection Algorithms in Network Intrusion Detection Systems

- Barnett, Richard J, Irwin, Barry V W

Authors: Barnett, Richard J , Irwin, Barry V W
Date: 2009
Language: English
Type: text , article
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/428644 , vital:72526 , https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Johan-Van-Niekerk-2/publication/220803295_E-mail_Security_awareness_at_Nelson_Mandela_Metropolitan_University_Registrar's_Division/links/0deec51909304b0ed8000000/E-mail-Security-awareness-at-Nelson-Mandela-Metropolitan-University-Registrars-Division.pdf#page=289
Description: Most current Network Intrusion Detection Systems (NIDS) perform de-tection by matching traffic to a set of known signatures. These systems have well defined mechanisms for the rapid creation and deployment of new signatures. However, despite their support for anomaly detection, this is usually limited and often requires a full recompilation of the sys-tem to deploy new algorithms.
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Date Issued: 2009

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