Oxbridge clerics and early ringing in South Africa
- Authors: Lewis, Colin A
- Date: 2008
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6186 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1012384
- Description: During the early Twentieth Century, many gifted British clergy came to South Africa. They must have felt optimistic that many rings of bells would soon be installed in their adopted country. South Africa had survived the Boer Wars, the economy was reasonably healthy, new churches were being built and many others were being planned. The Union of South Africa was only a few years old and the political stability of this great part of the British Empire seemed assured. Sadly, their optimism was misplaced and in 2008 only eight rings exist in South Africa. Had it not been for the efforts of the Oxbridge trio: J.R. Vincent, G.H. Ridout and C.E.E. Bulwer, and other British immigrants, however, these rings would not exist. , Colin Lewis was Professor of Geography at Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa from 1989 until his retirement at the end of 2007. In 1990, with the strong support of the incumbent Vice-Chancellor, Dr Derek Henderson, he instigated the Certificate in Change Ringing (Church Bell Ringing) in the Rhodes University Department of Music and Musicology - the first such course to be offered in Africa. Since that date he has lectured in the basic theory, and taught the practice of change ringing. He is the Ringing Master of the Cathedral of St Michael and St George, Grahamstown, South Africa.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
- Authors: Lewis, Colin A
- Date: 2008
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6186 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1012384
- Description: During the early Twentieth Century, many gifted British clergy came to South Africa. They must have felt optimistic that many rings of bells would soon be installed in their adopted country. South Africa had survived the Boer Wars, the economy was reasonably healthy, new churches were being built and many others were being planned. The Union of South Africa was only a few years old and the political stability of this great part of the British Empire seemed assured. Sadly, their optimism was misplaced and in 2008 only eight rings exist in South Africa. Had it not been for the efforts of the Oxbridge trio: J.R. Vincent, G.H. Ridout and C.E.E. Bulwer, and other British immigrants, however, these rings would not exist. , Colin Lewis was Professor of Geography at Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa from 1989 until his retirement at the end of 2007. In 1990, with the strong support of the incumbent Vice-Chancellor, Dr Derek Henderson, he instigated the Certificate in Change Ringing (Church Bell Ringing) in the Rhodes University Department of Music and Musicology - the first such course to be offered in Africa. Since that date he has lectured in the basic theory, and taught the practice of change ringing. He is the Ringing Master of the Cathedral of St Michael and St George, Grahamstown, South Africa.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
Photophysicochemical and fFluorescence quenching studies of benzyloxyphenoxy substituted zinc phthalocyanines
- Authors: Durmuş, M , Nyokong, Tebello
- Date: 2008
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6570 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1004133
- Description: Photochemical and photophysical measurements were conducted on peripheral and non-peripheral tetrakis- and octakis(4-benzyloxyphenoxy)-substituted zinc phthalocyanines (1, 2 and 3). General trends are described for photodegradation, and fluorescence quantum yields, triplet lifetimes and triplet quantum yields as well as singlet oxygen quantum yields of these compounds in dimethylsulphoxide (DMSO) and toluene. The fluorescence of the complexes is quenched by benzoquinone (BQ), and fluorescence quenching properties are investigated in DMSO and toluene. The effects of the solvents on the photophysical and photochemical parameters of the zinc(II) phthalocyanines (1, 2 and 3) are also reported. Photophysical and photochemical properties of phthalocyanine complexes are very useful for PDT applications.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
- Authors: Durmuş, M , Nyokong, Tebello
- Date: 2008
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6570 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1004133
- Description: Photochemical and photophysical measurements were conducted on peripheral and non-peripheral tetrakis- and octakis(4-benzyloxyphenoxy)-substituted zinc phthalocyanines (1, 2 and 3). General trends are described for photodegradation, and fluorescence quantum yields, triplet lifetimes and triplet quantum yields as well as singlet oxygen quantum yields of these compounds in dimethylsulphoxide (DMSO) and toluene. The fluorescence of the complexes is quenched by benzoquinone (BQ), and fluorescence quenching properties are investigated in DMSO and toluene. The effects of the solvents on the photophysical and photochemical parameters of the zinc(II) phthalocyanines (1, 2 and 3) are also reported. Photophysical and photochemical properties of phthalocyanine complexes are very useful for PDT applications.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
Relationship between energy intake and expenditure during harvesting tasks
- Authors: Christie, Candice J
- Date: 2008
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6758 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1009461
- Description: The objective of this study was to compare the energy demands of manual harvesting tasks with the associated energy intake of the workers’. Fifty eight workers (29 Chainsaw Operators and 29 Stackers) were assessed in South Africa prior to, and during a ‘normal’ working shift. Habitual dietary analyses showed that the workers were eating less than 56% of the recommended daily allowance and were thus arriving at work with reduced energy stores. Heart rate responses were measured continuously during work and energy expenditure was predicted from the heart rate/oxygen uptake relationship obtained at a post-work progressive step up test completed by each worker. The data indicated that the tasks placed ‘moderate-to-heavy’ demands on the workers resulting in a significant imbalance between the energy demands of the tasks and the associated energy intake of the workers. Energy deficits were in excess of 8 000 kJ and workers lost, on average, 2.8% body mass during work while felling and cross-cutting, and 3.6% during stacking.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
- Authors: Christie, Candice J
- Date: 2008
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6758 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1009461
- Description: The objective of this study was to compare the energy demands of manual harvesting tasks with the associated energy intake of the workers’. Fifty eight workers (29 Chainsaw Operators and 29 Stackers) were assessed in South Africa prior to, and during a ‘normal’ working shift. Habitual dietary analyses showed that the workers were eating less than 56% of the recommended daily allowance and were thus arriving at work with reduced energy stores. Heart rate responses were measured continuously during work and energy expenditure was predicted from the heart rate/oxygen uptake relationship obtained at a post-work progressive step up test completed by each worker. The data indicated that the tasks placed ‘moderate-to-heavy’ demands on the workers resulting in a significant imbalance between the energy demands of the tasks and the associated energy intake of the workers. Energy deficits were in excess of 8 000 kJ and workers lost, on average, 2.8% body mass during work while felling and cross-cutting, and 3.6% during stacking.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
Rhodes professor among best women scientists
- Authors: Ndabeni, Khanyi
- Date: 2008
- Subjects: Nyokong, Tebello
- Language: English
- Type: Article , text
- Identifier: vital:7186 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1006278 , Nyokong, Tebello
- Description: A RHODES University scientist's ground breaking work in harnessing light for cancer therapy has won her a United Nations award worth almost R1- million. Named on Monday by the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) as one of the world's top five "Exceptional Women Scientists", Professor Tebello Nyokong said winning the award was "just like getting a Nobel Prize". She was also recognised for her work regarding environmental cleanups. Nyokong, 57, grew up herding sheep in Lesotho and was unable to afford shoes. She now works in Rhodes University's chemistry department. She won the award for the Africa and Arab states category on World Science Day, which took place on Monday.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
- Authors: Ndabeni, Khanyi
- Date: 2008
- Subjects: Nyokong, Tebello
- Language: English
- Type: Article , text
- Identifier: vital:7186 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1006278 , Nyokong, Tebello
- Description: A RHODES University scientist's ground breaking work in harnessing light for cancer therapy has won her a United Nations award worth almost R1- million. Named on Monday by the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) as one of the world's top five "Exceptional Women Scientists", Professor Tebello Nyokong said winning the award was "just like getting a Nobel Prize". She was also recognised for her work regarding environmental cleanups. Nyokong, 57, grew up herding sheep in Lesotho and was unable to afford shoes. She now works in Rhodes University's chemistry department. She won the award for the Africa and Arab states category on World Science Day, which took place on Monday.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
SA scientist one of the top five female physical scientists
- Authors: Limson, Janice L
- Date: 2008
- Subjects: Nyokong, Tebello
- Language: English
- Type: Article , text
- Identifier: vital:7189 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1006283 , http://www.scienceinafrica.co.za/2008/october/nyokong.htm
- Description: South African scientist Professor Tebello Nyokong scoops 2009 L’ORÉAL-UNESCO For Women in Science Award. Announced on November 10, South African scientist Professor Tebello Nyokong has become the first South African scientist to win the L’ORÉALUNESCO award for women in science for research in physical sciences.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
- Authors: Limson, Janice L
- Date: 2008
- Subjects: Nyokong, Tebello
- Language: English
- Type: Article , text
- Identifier: vital:7189 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1006283 , http://www.scienceinafrica.co.za/2008/october/nyokong.htm
- Description: South African scientist Professor Tebello Nyokong scoops 2009 L’ORÉAL-UNESCO For Women in Science Award. Announced on November 10, South African scientist Professor Tebello Nyokong has become the first South African scientist to win the L’ORÉALUNESCO award for women in science for research in physical sciences.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
School principals' perceptions of team management : a multiple case-study of secondary schools
- Van der Mescht, Hennie, Tyala, Zakunzima
- Authors: Van der Mescht, Hennie , Tyala, Zakunzima
- Date: 2008
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6105 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1009732
- Description: The notion of school management through teams (team management), though not a new phenomenon in South Africa, was formalized after the advent of democracy in 1994 and the subsequent reorganization of the education system. The concept was subsequently fleshed out in official documentation where the composition and roles of school management teams (SMTs) were elaborated upon. The notion of team management is rooted in theories that stress participation, notably site-based (school-based) management, teamwork, and distributed leadership. We report on a study in which the perceptions of secondary school principals, in Grahamstown, South Africa, of team management were explored. The study was interpretive in orientation, and utilized qualitative data gathering techniques in all (ten) of the state-aided secondary schools in Grahamstown in the Eastern Cape province. We found that, while team management was generally welcomed and even celebrated by principals, there were fundamental tensions surrounding principals' understanding of their leadership roles in a team context. We consider the implications of these findings for leadership development in the context of team management.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
- Authors: Van der Mescht, Hennie , Tyala, Zakunzima
- Date: 2008
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6105 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1009732
- Description: The notion of school management through teams (team management), though not a new phenomenon in South Africa, was formalized after the advent of democracy in 1994 and the subsequent reorganization of the education system. The concept was subsequently fleshed out in official documentation where the composition and roles of school management teams (SMTs) were elaborated upon. The notion of team management is rooted in theories that stress participation, notably site-based (school-based) management, teamwork, and distributed leadership. We report on a study in which the perceptions of secondary school principals, in Grahamstown, South Africa, of team management were explored. The study was interpretive in orientation, and utilized qualitative data gathering techniques in all (ten) of the state-aided secondary schools in Grahamstown in the Eastern Cape province. We found that, while team management was generally welcomed and even celebrated by principals, there were fundamental tensions surrounding principals' understanding of their leadership roles in a team context. We consider the implications of these findings for leadership development in the context of team management.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
Shoppers Drug Mart or poachers Drug Mart?
- Attaran, Amir, Walker, Roderick B
- Authors: Attaran, Amir , Walker, Roderick B
- Date: 2008
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6346 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1006018
- Description: [From the text]: Shoppers Drug Mart (Pharmaprix in Quebec) is a familiar Canadian institution. Its 1000 stores dot the landscape; no pharmacy chain is larger. In many Canadian communities, the corporation's well-staffed local franchises give patients quality care. However, in South Africa, the same corporation is potentially contributing to a public health disaster. In 2005, 2006 and twice in 2007, it has dispatched recruiters to that country, with the mission of plucking pharmacists from a continent that has far too few for its needs. Shoppers Drug Mart promises 6-figure salaries and help to establish a brilliant career in Canada. The carrot, and the helping hand holding it, are huge.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
- Authors: Attaran, Amir , Walker, Roderick B
- Date: 2008
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6346 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1006018
- Description: [From the text]: Shoppers Drug Mart (Pharmaprix in Quebec) is a familiar Canadian institution. Its 1000 stores dot the landscape; no pharmacy chain is larger. In many Canadian communities, the corporation's well-staffed local franchises give patients quality care. However, in South Africa, the same corporation is potentially contributing to a public health disaster. In 2005, 2006 and twice in 2007, it has dispatched recruiters to that country, with the mission of plucking pharmacists from a continent that has far too few for its needs. Shoppers Drug Mart promises 6-figure salaries and help to establish a brilliant career in Canada. The carrot, and the helping hand holding it, are huge.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
Should active recruitment of health workers from sub-Saharan Africa be viewed as a crime?
- Mills, E J, Schabas, W A, Volmink, J, Walker, Roderick B, Ford, N, Katabira, E, Anema, A, Joffres, M, Cahn, P, Montaner, J
- Authors: Mills, E J , Schabas, W A , Volmink, J , Walker, Roderick B , Ford, N , Katabira, E , Anema, A , Joffres, M , Cahn, P , Montaner, J
- Date: 2008
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6392 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1006314
- Description: (Conclusion) When the international community permits for-profit companies to actively entice overworked and often underpaid workers away from the most vulnerable populations, it is contributing to the deterioration of essential health-care delivery. Improvement of the health of the world’s poor is a challenge that the international community is failing to adequately address. Current international treaties and commitments are severely compromised if we are unwilling to adhere to their principles and prevent obvious harms to poor people. Clear, enforced regulation is needed to prevent recruitment companies from enticing health workers away from their local work, and developed countries should adequately compensate less-developed countries for the human resources they have lost and continue to lose.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
- Authors: Mills, E J , Schabas, W A , Volmink, J , Walker, Roderick B , Ford, N , Katabira, E , Anema, A , Joffres, M , Cahn, P , Montaner, J
- Date: 2008
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6392 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1006314
- Description: (Conclusion) When the international community permits for-profit companies to actively entice overworked and often underpaid workers away from the most vulnerable populations, it is contributing to the deterioration of essential health-care delivery. Improvement of the health of the world’s poor is a challenge that the international community is failing to adequately address. Current international treaties and commitments are severely compromised if we are unwilling to adhere to their principles and prevent obvious harms to poor people. Clear, enforced regulation is needed to prevent recruitment companies from enticing health workers away from their local work, and developed countries should adequately compensate less-developed countries for the human resources they have lost and continue to lose.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
Social Services and Benefits
- Authors: Kruuse, Helen
- Date: 2008
- Language: English
- Type: Article , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/54211 , vital:26405 , https://store.lexisnexis.co.za/products/family-law-service-skuZASKUPG642
- Description: Family Law Service is a subscription based product including both the printed loose-leaf and LexisMobile publications. Updates for 12 months (print and mobile) are included in the price. Family Law Service covers aspects of law pertaining to the family, including domestic violence, the Law of Islam, same- sex life partnerships, the effects of the Children's Act, 2008 and anti-trafficking law in South Africa. Family Law Service is maintained in three volumes with commentary and legislation, and with two service issues published a year.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2008
- Authors: Kruuse, Helen
- Date: 2008
- Language: English
- Type: Article , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/54211 , vital:26405 , https://store.lexisnexis.co.za/products/family-law-service-skuZASKUPG642
- Description: Family Law Service is a subscription based product including both the printed loose-leaf and LexisMobile publications. Updates for 12 months (print and mobile) are included in the price. Family Law Service covers aspects of law pertaining to the family, including domestic violence, the Law of Islam, same- sex life partnerships, the effects of the Children's Act, 2008 and anti-trafficking law in South Africa. Family Law Service is maintained in three volumes with commentary and legislation, and with two service issues published a year.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2008
Sterols and sterolins in Hypoxis hemerocallidea (African potato)
- Nair, V D P, Kanfer, Isadore
- Authors: Nair, V D P , Kanfer, Isadore
- Date: 2008
- Language: English
- Type: text , Article
- Identifier: vital:6417 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1006535
- Description: Commercially available health supplements and herbal remedies containing sterols and sterolins, either from African potato (Hypoxis hemerocallidea) alone, or whether enriched with sterols and sterolins, are claimed to be efficacious in the treatment of a variety of ailments. Sterols and sterolins in African potato are purported to be the relevant constituents that are required for the therapeutic claims of such products. A patent describing the extraction of sterolins from African potato plant material has claimed that approximately 9 mg sterolins can be isolated from 100 g of an enriched aqueous African potato extract. Our analysis of African potato plant material and its sterol and sterolin content, when similarly prepared, shows that the measureable content of sterols and sterolins in African potato is far less than the amounts of these compounds that have been claimed to be necessary for therapeutic benefit. We conclude that therapeutic claims relating to sterol and sterolin content in African potato are unsubstantiated, in view of the extremely low content of such compounds that we have isolated from our plant material, and in products containing African potato, or extracts thereof.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
- Authors: Nair, V D P , Kanfer, Isadore
- Date: 2008
- Language: English
- Type: text , Article
- Identifier: vital:6417 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1006535
- Description: Commercially available health supplements and herbal remedies containing sterols and sterolins, either from African potato (Hypoxis hemerocallidea) alone, or whether enriched with sterols and sterolins, are claimed to be efficacious in the treatment of a variety of ailments. Sterols and sterolins in African potato are purported to be the relevant constituents that are required for the therapeutic claims of such products. A patent describing the extraction of sterolins from African potato plant material has claimed that approximately 9 mg sterolins can be isolated from 100 g of an enriched aqueous African potato extract. Our analysis of African potato plant material and its sterol and sterolin content, when similarly prepared, shows that the measureable content of sterols and sterolins in African potato is far less than the amounts of these compounds that have been claimed to be necessary for therapeutic benefit. We conclude that therapeutic claims relating to sterol and sterolin content in African potato are unsubstantiated, in view of the extremely low content of such compounds that we have isolated from our plant material, and in products containing African potato, or extracts thereof.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
Study of the formation of artifacts following Dichloromethane reaction with some nitrogenous drugs
- Mohammadi, Ali, Amini, Mohsen, Hamedani, Moteza P, Torkabadi, Hossein H, Walker, Roderick B
- Authors: Mohammadi, Ali , Amini, Mohsen , Hamedani, Moteza P , Torkabadi, Hossein H , Walker, Roderick B
- Date: 2008
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6409 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1006495
- Description: In this work, the quaternization reaction of some nitrogenous drugs in dichloromethane under stress condition and room temperature at different times are studied. Under these conditions, drug-chloromethochloride adducts or artifacts were found to be formed for clozapine, ofloxacin and olanzapine. The structures of the resultant adducts were elucidated using 1H NMR spectroscopy. In addition, the amount of intact drug was determined using in-house validated HPLC methods with UV detection.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
- Authors: Mohammadi, Ali , Amini, Mohsen , Hamedani, Moteza P , Torkabadi, Hossein H , Walker, Roderick B
- Date: 2008
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6409 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1006495
- Description: In this work, the quaternization reaction of some nitrogenous drugs in dichloromethane under stress condition and room temperature at different times are studied. Under these conditions, drug-chloromethochloride adducts or artifacts were found to be formed for clozapine, ofloxacin and olanzapine. The structures of the resultant adducts were elucidated using 1H NMR spectroscopy. In addition, the amount of intact drug was determined using in-house validated HPLC methods with UV detection.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
Temporal and spatial variability in stable isotope ratios of SPM link to local hydrography and longer term SPM averages suggest heavy dependence of mussels on nearshore production
- Hill, Jaclyn M, McQuaid, Christopher D, Kaehler, Sven
- Authors: Hill, Jaclyn M , McQuaid, Christopher D , Kaehler, Sven
- Date: 2008
- Language: English
- Type: text , Article
- Identifier: vital:6969 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1012034
- Description: Temporal changes in hydrography affect suspended particulate matter (SPM) composition and distribution in coastal systems, potentially influencing the diets of suspension feeders. Temporal variation in SPM and in the diet of the mussel Perna perna, were investigated using stable isotope analysis. The δ13C and δ15 N ratios of SPM, mussels and macroalgae were determined monthly, with SPM samples collected along a 10 km onshore–offshore transect, over 14 months at Kenton-on-Sea, on the south coast of South Africa. Clear nearshore (0 km) to offshore (10 km) carbon depletion gradients were seen in SPM during all months and extended for 50 km offshore on one occasion. Carbon enrichment of coastal SPM in winter (June–August 2004 and May 2005) indicated temporal changes in the nearshore detrital pool, presumably reflecting changes in macroalgal detritus, linked to local changes in coastal hydrography and algal seasonality. Nitrogen patterns were less clear, with SPM enrichment seen between July and October 2004 from 0 to 10 km. Nearshore SPM demonstrated cyclical patterns in carbon over 24-h periods that correlated closely with tidal cycles and mussel carbon signatures, sampled monthly, demonstrated fluctuations that could not be correlated to seasonal or monthly changes in SPM. Macroalgae showed extreme variability in isotopic signatures, with no discernable patterns. IsoSource mixing models indicated over 50% reliance of mussel tissue on nearshore carbon, highlighting the importance of nearshore SPM in mussel diet. Overall, carbon variation in SPM at both large and small temporal scales can be related to hydrographic processes, but is masked in mussels by long-term isotope integration.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
- Authors: Hill, Jaclyn M , McQuaid, Christopher D , Kaehler, Sven
- Date: 2008
- Language: English
- Type: text , Article
- Identifier: vital:6969 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1012034
- Description: Temporal changes in hydrography affect suspended particulate matter (SPM) composition and distribution in coastal systems, potentially influencing the diets of suspension feeders. Temporal variation in SPM and in the diet of the mussel Perna perna, were investigated using stable isotope analysis. The δ13C and δ15 N ratios of SPM, mussels and macroalgae were determined monthly, with SPM samples collected along a 10 km onshore–offshore transect, over 14 months at Kenton-on-Sea, on the south coast of South Africa. Clear nearshore (0 km) to offshore (10 km) carbon depletion gradients were seen in SPM during all months and extended for 50 km offshore on one occasion. Carbon enrichment of coastal SPM in winter (June–August 2004 and May 2005) indicated temporal changes in the nearshore detrital pool, presumably reflecting changes in macroalgal detritus, linked to local changes in coastal hydrography and algal seasonality. Nitrogen patterns were less clear, with SPM enrichment seen between July and October 2004 from 0 to 10 km. Nearshore SPM demonstrated cyclical patterns in carbon over 24-h periods that correlated closely with tidal cycles and mussel carbon signatures, sampled monthly, demonstrated fluctuations that could not be correlated to seasonal or monthly changes in SPM. Macroalgae showed extreme variability in isotopic signatures, with no discernable patterns. IsoSource mixing models indicated over 50% reliance of mussel tissue on nearshore carbon, highlighting the importance of nearshore SPM in mussel diet. Overall, carbon variation in SPM at both large and small temporal scales can be related to hydrographic processes, but is masked in mussels by long-term isotope integration.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
Texts, practices and student learning: a view from the South
- Authors: Boughey, Chrissie
- Date: 2008
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6085 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1008482
- Description: This article uses ‘close-up’ ethnographic research to provide an account of students’ engagement with learning in a South African university. Broadly based on Halliday’s (1973, 1978, 1994) understanding of texts resulting from contexts, the account challenges dominant constructions of the problems students encounter as stemming from the use of inappropriate ‘approaches’ to learning, the lack of ‘study’ and other skills or problems with proficiency in areas such as writing or language and shows how students’ unfamiliarity with the context of the university leads them to draw on ‘other’ contexts in order to engage with the texts they must read, write and listen to in the course of their studies. This drawing on ‘other’ contexts then results in the texts produced by students, and the practices which give rise to those texts, being inappropriate to the context of the university. Although the research on which the article is based took place in South Africa, it is argued that the theoretical perspective it provides has relevance across other contexts given the increasingly diverse student bodies which characterize higher education across the globe.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
- Authors: Boughey, Chrissie
- Date: 2008
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6085 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1008482
- Description: This article uses ‘close-up’ ethnographic research to provide an account of students’ engagement with learning in a South African university. Broadly based on Halliday’s (1973, 1978, 1994) understanding of texts resulting from contexts, the account challenges dominant constructions of the problems students encounter as stemming from the use of inappropriate ‘approaches’ to learning, the lack of ‘study’ and other skills or problems with proficiency in areas such as writing or language and shows how students’ unfamiliarity with the context of the university leads them to draw on ‘other’ contexts in order to engage with the texts they must read, write and listen to in the course of their studies. This drawing on ‘other’ contexts then results in the texts produced by students, and the practices which give rise to those texts, being inappropriate to the context of the university. Although the research on which the article is based took place in South Africa, it is argued that the theoretical perspective it provides has relevance across other contexts given the increasingly diverse student bodies which characterize higher education across the globe.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
The aporia of collective violence
- Authors: Praeg, Leonhard
- Date: 2008
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6196 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1008560
- Description: From the theoretical perspective of René Girard, Walter Benjamin and Jacques Derrida the Rwanda genocide of 1994 may be interpreted as an instance of foundational violence. Given the constant reference in the Rwanda genocide discourse to the failed revolution of 1959, it is perhaps rather a case of deferred foundational violence. Useful as this notion of “foundational violence” may be, as theoretical category it is also hugely challenging because the implicit claim is not just historical (“states are routinely founded on violence”) but analytical (“founding moments are per definition violent”). The result is a profound tension between, on the one hand, the need to understand the event as somehow unexceptional or typical of the founding of new socio-political orders and, on the other hand, the need to judge it as exceptional, an “outrage,” a crime against humanity. This paper treats the tension between the unexceptional and exceptional as aporetic, that is, as a profound puzzle consisting of two equally valid imperatives which are nonetheless mutually exclusive. It is also an attempt to find a way beyond the impasse.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
- Authors: Praeg, Leonhard
- Date: 2008
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6196 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1008560
- Description: From the theoretical perspective of René Girard, Walter Benjamin and Jacques Derrida the Rwanda genocide of 1994 may be interpreted as an instance of foundational violence. Given the constant reference in the Rwanda genocide discourse to the failed revolution of 1959, it is perhaps rather a case of deferred foundational violence. Useful as this notion of “foundational violence” may be, as theoretical category it is also hugely challenging because the implicit claim is not just historical (“states are routinely founded on violence”) but analytical (“founding moments are per definition violent”). The result is a profound tension between, on the one hand, the need to understand the event as somehow unexceptional or typical of the founding of new socio-political orders and, on the other hand, the need to judge it as exceptional, an “outrage,” a crime against humanity. This paper treats the tension between the unexceptional and exceptional as aporetic, that is, as a profound puzzle consisting of two equally valid imperatives which are nonetheless mutually exclusive. It is also an attempt to find a way beyond the impasse.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
The assessment and treatment of post-abortion syndrome : a systematic case study from Southern Africa
- Boulind, Melissa, Edwards, David J A
- Authors: Boulind, Melissa , Edwards, David J A
- Date: 2008
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6270 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1008270
- Description: This article reports a clinical case study of "Grace", a black Zimbabwean woman with post-abortion syndrome (PAS), a form of post-traumatic stress disorder precipitated by aborting an unwanted pregnancy. She was treated by a middle class white South African trainee Clinical Psychologist. The case narrative documents the assessment and the course of treatment which was guided by ongoing case formulation based on current evidence-based models. Factors that made her vulnerable to developing PTSD included active suppression of the memory of the event and lack of social support. An understanding of these factors was used to guide an effective intervention. In spite of the differences in culture and background between client and therapist, there was considerable commonality in their experience as young women and students who each had to balance personal and occupational priorities. The narrative also highlights the commonalities of Grace's experiences with those reported in the literature on post-abortion syndrome, which is mostly from the U. S. A. and Europe.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
- Authors: Boulind, Melissa , Edwards, David J A
- Date: 2008
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6270 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1008270
- Description: This article reports a clinical case study of "Grace", a black Zimbabwean woman with post-abortion syndrome (PAS), a form of post-traumatic stress disorder precipitated by aborting an unwanted pregnancy. She was treated by a middle class white South African trainee Clinical Psychologist. The case narrative documents the assessment and the course of treatment which was guided by ongoing case formulation based on current evidence-based models. Factors that made her vulnerable to developing PTSD included active suppression of the memory of the event and lack of social support. An understanding of these factors was used to guide an effective intervention. In spite of the differences in culture and background between client and therapist, there was considerable commonality in their experience as young women and students who each had to balance personal and occupational priorities. The narrative also highlights the commonalities of Grace's experiences with those reported in the literature on post-abortion syndrome, which is mostly from the U. S. A. and Europe.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
The effects of increased freshwater inflow on metal enrichment in selected Eastern Cape estuaries, South Africa
- Orr, Kyla K, Burgess, Jo E, Froneman, P William
- Authors: Orr, Kyla K , Burgess, Jo E , Froneman, P William
- Date: 2008
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6967 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1012032
- Description: The concentrations of select metals (Cd, Co, Cu, Fe, Pb, Ni and Zn) within the water column and sediment of the permanently open Kariega Estuary and temporary open / closed Riet and East Kleinemonde Estuaries were investigated during a dry and a wet season. Enrichment factors (EFs), using Fe as a reference element, and baseline linear regression models for metals vs Fe were used to assess the extent of metal enrichment in the sediments. The results of the study indicate that Cd, Co Ni and Pb were enriched above baseline concentrations (1.0 < EF < 4.1) in the sediments of all three estuaries. Co, Pb and Ni enrichment in the Kariega Estuary sediments was significantly higher during the dry season, and the mean concentrations of Pb and Cd in the water column were 19-fold and 66-fold higher in the dry season. The elevated concentration of metals during the dry season could be related to accumulation of diffuse pollution from human activities within the catchment area. Conversely, inflow of freshwater into the estuary had the net effect of reducing the concentration and enrichment of these metals within the Kariega Estuary due to scouring and outflow of estuarine water and sediment into the marine environment. The temporal variations in metal concentrations and enrichment factors were less pronounced in the temporary open / closed estuaries than the Kariega Estuary. The observed trend can probably be related to the low anthropogenic impact within the catchment areas of these systems, and the relatively smaller size of the catchments. Significant spatial variations existed in metal enrichment in the sediment of both the East Kleinemonde and Riet Estuaries, with the highest degrees of enrichment occurring in the sediments from the marine environment and lower reaches.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
- Authors: Orr, Kyla K , Burgess, Jo E , Froneman, P William
- Date: 2008
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6967 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1012032
- Description: The concentrations of select metals (Cd, Co, Cu, Fe, Pb, Ni and Zn) within the water column and sediment of the permanently open Kariega Estuary and temporary open / closed Riet and East Kleinemonde Estuaries were investigated during a dry and a wet season. Enrichment factors (EFs), using Fe as a reference element, and baseline linear regression models for metals vs Fe were used to assess the extent of metal enrichment in the sediments. The results of the study indicate that Cd, Co Ni and Pb were enriched above baseline concentrations (1.0 < EF < 4.1) in the sediments of all three estuaries. Co, Pb and Ni enrichment in the Kariega Estuary sediments was significantly higher during the dry season, and the mean concentrations of Pb and Cd in the water column were 19-fold and 66-fold higher in the dry season. The elevated concentration of metals during the dry season could be related to accumulation of diffuse pollution from human activities within the catchment area. Conversely, inflow of freshwater into the estuary had the net effect of reducing the concentration and enrichment of these metals within the Kariega Estuary due to scouring and outflow of estuarine water and sediment into the marine environment. The temporal variations in metal concentrations and enrichment factors were less pronounced in the temporary open / closed estuaries than the Kariega Estuary. The observed trend can probably be related to the low anthropogenic impact within the catchment areas of these systems, and the relatively smaller size of the catchments. Significant spatial variations existed in metal enrichment in the sediment of both the East Kleinemonde and Riet Estuaries, with the highest degrees of enrichment occurring in the sediments from the marine environment and lower reaches.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
The effects of load and gradient on hand force responses during dynamic pushing and pulling tasks
- Bennett, Anthea I, Desai, Sheena D, Todd, Andrew I, Freeland, H
- Authors: Bennett, Anthea I , Desai, Sheena D , Todd, Andrew I , Freeland, H
- Date: 2008
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6757 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1009459
- Description: The limited attention afforded to push/pull activities and the motion phases (initial, sustained and ending) characteristic of these tasks has prompted a research focus in this area. The present study examined biomechanical responses in the form of hand forces during dynamic submaximal trolley pushing and pulling. Participants pushed/pulled loads of 100, 200 and 300 kg on the level (determining impact of load) or pushed 100 kg along a 12° ramp (uphill and downhill- determining impact of gradient). During level exertions significant differences (p<0.05) in hand forces occurred between loads of 100 and 200 kg, and 100 and 300 kg for initial and sustained forces but not ending forces. Values were similar for pushing and pulling at respective loads and motion phases. Strong correlations indicate that initial forces can be used to accurately estimate sustained and ending forces. Importantly, correct technique is essential in force reduction. Forces were highest during uphill initial and sustained phases and the downhill sustained phase. For the initial phase, the forces were highest during uphill pushing (86.5 ± 25.73 N); for the sustained phase, there was no difference between uphill and downhill forces but level forces were significantly lower (18.19 ± 8.09 N) than either of the other two conditions; for the ending phase, the highest forces were produced during downhill pushing (-53.34 ± 13.65N). As sustained forces equaled or exceeded initial forces for uphill and downhill efforts, consideration of sustained forces may be appropriate in determining the inherent potential risk of graded pushing.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
- Authors: Bennett, Anthea I , Desai, Sheena D , Todd, Andrew I , Freeland, H
- Date: 2008
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6757 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1009459
- Description: The limited attention afforded to push/pull activities and the motion phases (initial, sustained and ending) characteristic of these tasks has prompted a research focus in this area. The present study examined biomechanical responses in the form of hand forces during dynamic submaximal trolley pushing and pulling. Participants pushed/pulled loads of 100, 200 and 300 kg on the level (determining impact of load) or pushed 100 kg along a 12° ramp (uphill and downhill- determining impact of gradient). During level exertions significant differences (p<0.05) in hand forces occurred between loads of 100 and 200 kg, and 100 and 300 kg for initial and sustained forces but not ending forces. Values were similar for pushing and pulling at respective loads and motion phases. Strong correlations indicate that initial forces can be used to accurately estimate sustained and ending forces. Importantly, correct technique is essential in force reduction. Forces were highest during uphill initial and sustained phases and the downhill sustained phase. For the initial phase, the forces were highest during uphill pushing (86.5 ± 25.73 N); for the sustained phase, there was no difference between uphill and downhill forces but level forces were significantly lower (18.19 ± 8.09 N) than either of the other two conditions; for the ending phase, the highest forces were produced during downhill pushing (-53.34 ± 13.65N). As sustained forces equaled or exceeded initial forces for uphill and downhill efforts, consideration of sustained forces may be appropriate in determining the inherent potential risk of graded pushing.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
The extent of public green space and alien plant species in 10 small towns of the sub-tropical Thicket Biome, South Africa
- McConnachie, Matthew M, Shackleton, Charlie M, McGregor, Gillian K
- Authors: McConnachie, Matthew M , Shackleton, Charlie M , McGregor, Gillian K
- Date: 2008
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6713 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1006755
- Description: Urban areas in developing countries will accommodate nearly 90% of the projected world population increase between 1995 and 2030. Despite this, few studies, especially in smaller towns, have been carried out on urban green space areas in the developing world. This paper makes a first step in this regard, reporting on the extent and state of urban green spaces within 10 small towns in the Eastern Cape (South Africa). After measuring the size and state (in terms of woody plant cover) of public green space, we then sought patterns across the 10 towns between green space attributes, such as area, density, mean size and proportion of alien or indigenous, with socio-economic attributes of the towns. The area and state of current public green space varied markedly between the towns, with the poorer towns faring the worst. Lower income levels were significantly negatively correlated with the area and quality of public green space. Despite this, human population density and per capita green space were the best predictors of the proportion and mean area of public green space present in the towns. The proportion of town green space and the per capita green space were the best predictors of changes in woody plant composition and density.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
- Authors: McConnachie, Matthew M , Shackleton, Charlie M , McGregor, Gillian K
- Date: 2008
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6713 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1006755
- Description: Urban areas in developing countries will accommodate nearly 90% of the projected world population increase between 1995 and 2030. Despite this, few studies, especially in smaller towns, have been carried out on urban green space areas in the developing world. This paper makes a first step in this regard, reporting on the extent and state of urban green spaces within 10 small towns in the Eastern Cape (South Africa). After measuring the size and state (in terms of woody plant cover) of public green space, we then sought patterns across the 10 towns between green space attributes, such as area, density, mean size and proportion of alien or indigenous, with socio-economic attributes of the towns. The area and state of current public green space varied markedly between the towns, with the poorer towns faring the worst. Lower income levels were significantly negatively correlated with the area and quality of public green space. Despite this, human population density and per capita green space were the best predictors of the proportion and mean area of public green space present in the towns. The proportion of town green space and the per capita green space were the best predictors of changes in woody plant composition and density.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
The Guild comes of age! Peals and quarters at South African Guild meetings, 1988-2008. Part 1
- Authors: Lewis, Colin A
- Date: 2008
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6187 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1012386
- Description: The founding meeting of the South African Guild was held in Grahamstown during the first weekend of July 1988. Dedication of the bells and new frame at Grahamstown cathedral marked the completion of the first Guild project to ensure that all rings of bells in South Africa were in good condition. This first part of the article takes us up to the completion of the Grahamstown restoration. , Colin Lewis was Professor of Geography at Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa from 1989 until his retirement at the end of 2007. In 1990, with the strong support of the incumbent Vice-Chancellor, Dr Derek Henderson, he instigated the Certificate in Change Ringing (Church Bell Ringing) in the Rhodes University Department of Music and Musicology - the first such course to be offered in Africa. Since that date he has lectured in the basic theory, and taught the practice of change ringing. He is the Ringing Master of the Cathedral of St Michael and St George, Grahamstown, South Africa.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
- Authors: Lewis, Colin A
- Date: 2008
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6187 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1012386
- Description: The founding meeting of the South African Guild was held in Grahamstown during the first weekend of July 1988. Dedication of the bells and new frame at Grahamstown cathedral marked the completion of the first Guild project to ensure that all rings of bells in South Africa were in good condition. This first part of the article takes us up to the completion of the Grahamstown restoration. , Colin Lewis was Professor of Geography at Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa from 1989 until his retirement at the end of 2007. In 1990, with the strong support of the incumbent Vice-Chancellor, Dr Derek Henderson, he instigated the Certificate in Change Ringing (Church Bell Ringing) in the Rhodes University Department of Music and Musicology - the first such course to be offered in Africa. Since that date he has lectured in the basic theory, and taught the practice of change ringing. He is the Ringing Master of the Cathedral of St Michael and St George, Grahamstown, South Africa.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
The Late Glacial and Holocene avifauna of the island of St Helena, South Atlantic Ocean
- Authors: Lewis, Colin A
- Date: 2008
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6702 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1006738
- Description: Bird bones from unconsolidated sediments provide a record of the changing avifauna of St Helena from the Late Glacial, at ~ 14000BP, until the present. Changes in avifauna apparently reflect climatic and associated ecological conditions, as well as the effects of human occupation since the island was discovered in 1502. Introduced mammals decimated birds in the seventeenth century and seven endemic species are now extinct, while seven other species are locally extinct. At least nine species that now breed on St Helena have been introduced anthropogenically to the island since it was discovered. The failure to find evidence of native songbirds in the former woodlands of the interior of the island deserves explanation.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
- Authors: Lewis, Colin A
- Date: 2008
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6702 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1006738
- Description: Bird bones from unconsolidated sediments provide a record of the changing avifauna of St Helena from the Late Glacial, at ~ 14000BP, until the present. Changes in avifauna apparently reflect climatic and associated ecological conditions, as well as the effects of human occupation since the island was discovered in 1502. Introduced mammals decimated birds in the seventeenth century and seven endemic species are now extinct, while seven other species are locally extinct. At least nine species that now breed on St Helena have been introduced anthropogenically to the island since it was discovered. The failure to find evidence of native songbirds in the former woodlands of the interior of the island deserves explanation.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008