Why be moral? One possible, and compelling answer is that to act morally is in an agent's self-interest. Such an answer can be either elevationist (broadly speaking the Aristotelian/Platonic approach) where self-interest is elevated to coincide with living the good life, or reductionist where morality is defined as acting in an agent's self-interest. Elevationist moral theories appear flawed. If you are in possession of information that, if divulged, will bring about the deaths of others then it may be virtuous to stay silent. However, if staying silent results in you being slowly tortured to death in an effort to extract the information then it seems bizarre to suggest that in doing so you are flourishing, happy, or acting out of self-interest. Reductionist moral theories, acting for the 'good of self' rather than the 'good of others', are widely considered to be the antithesis of morality. Moral philosophers tend to attack such positions claiming that the doctrine of egoism is unworkable. It is commonly claimed that any theory which recommends 'an agent do x if x is in the agent's best interest' is inconsistent, incoherent, or contradictory and fails to meet the basic requirements of a moral theory (notably the requirement of universalisability). I begin this thesis with an examination of ethical egoism in its most widely known consequentialist form; i.e. an agent ought to act so as to bring about the best consequences for that agent. I examine the major criticisms of this theory and demonstrate that the axioms of egoism can be developed so as to overcome these criticisms. I argue that consequentialist based ethical egoism is coherent, consistent and noncontradictory. However, I go on to argue that while egoism can be formulated in a manner that overcomes all the aforementioned analytic criticisms it is a flawed moral theory in that within certain contexts the action deemed morally correct by egoism is, as a matter of fact, morally pernicious. That a theory contains a flaw is not reason enough to discard the entire theory and I go on to contend that the problem with egoism is the consequentialist approach, not the fact that it is based on self-interest. In Part 2 of the thesis I abandon the consequentialist approach and examine the possibility of a flourishing-based form of ethical egoism. I further develop the axioms of egoism established in Part 1 through an examination of the concept of flourishing (as commonly associated with virtue ethics). Ultimately I tread a path between the consequentialist and elevationist positions. While I do not elevate self-interest to acting virtuously I do contend that an egoist must adopt certain virtues if that egoist is to have the best possibility to flourish. However, I further contend that an egoist ought to act so as to promote that which the egoist values and that this agent-relative hierarchy of values, which necessarily contains certain virtues, determines the manner in which an egoist ought to act.

In 2003, Johannes Kellendonk and Ian Putnam introduced pattern equivariant cohomology for tilings. In 2006, Betseygail Rand defined a type of pattern equivariant cohomology that incorporates rotational symmetry, using representation of the rotation group. In this doctoral thesis we study the relationship between these two types of pattern equivariant cohomology, showing exactly how to calculate one from the other in the case in which the rotation group is a finitely generated abelian group of free rank 1. We apply our result by calculating the cohomology of the pinwheel tiling.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--RAND Graduate School, 1996. / "RGSD-129." "Dissertation." Includes bibliographical references (p. 107-112).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--RAND Graduate School, 1996. / "RGSD-129." "Dissertation." Includes bibliographical references (p. 107-112).

Universiẗat, Diss., 2003--München.

The aim of this thesis is to map the impact of strategic thinking and logical empiricism on the metodology of sciences in the USA after the Second World War

M.Cur. / The birth of a baby is a life-changing event in a person's life. During this time there are expectations of positive feelings. The new mother experience ambivalent feelings about the new phase in her life. These feelings can range from a feeling of excitement, postpartum-tears, anxiety about the baby's care, depression and psychosis with an onset in the postpartum period. The goal of this research was to identify indicators for postpartum depression, that are present during pregnancy, during the delivery and in the postpartum period, in order to identify and treat a high risk client for postpartum depression in time. In this way mental health will be promoted. In the first part of the research, an exploratory, descriptive design was used within the context of a private and provincial baby clinic on the Westrand. The research firstly consisted of a literature study about the indicators for postpartum depression. A questionnaire was compiled from this literature study and it was used to collect data in a private and provincial clinic. A descriptive and explanatory design was used in the second part of the research study, to determine a connection between the indicators of postpartum depression and a diagnosis of postpartum depression. The test sample comprised of all the women who visited a postpartum baby clinic (private as well as provincial) in the postpartum period, who's baby was six months or younger. The questionnaire was completed with their visit to the baby clinic and then returned to the respective fieldworkers.

M.Cur. / The Rights of the Child are summarised in the Convention of the Rights of the Child. The Convention sets the basic rights of children for their survival, development and protection. The purpose of this research is to investigate the view of the Nursing staff working in Paediatric Intensive Care Unit in a Private Clinic on the West Rand, regarding the rights of the child, and to describe the view of the Nursing staff regarding the rights of the child as applicable within the context of a Paediatric Intensive Care Unit in a Private Clinic on the West Rand.

M. Ed. (Educational and Learning Support) / Society has never before experienced a human tragedy of the magnitude caused by the orphan crisis. Life for the estimated 4 million orphans in sub-Saharan Africa is often desperate where children attempt to care for themselves and each other without adequate adult· support. Orphaned children are not only traumatized by the loss of their parents, they then also lack adult guidance during crucial developmental stages of their lives, and educational concerns are usually neglected. The social costs that emerge are juvenile crime, reduced educational levels, unskilled workers and a general burden on the state. With the introduction of the School Based Support Teams (SBST) in an attempt to further the implementation of inclusive education, schools have become aware of the need to support all learners in their community, including orphans. This study investigated the nature of the role played by the SBST of a primary school in their endeavours to support orphaned learners. During their work with the orphans, the SBST encountered many challenges that emerged as diverse needs of the children were revealed.Initially, the focus was on meeting lower order needs such as food, clothing, shelter and school equipment. In meeting these needsthe SBST embraced a position of collaboration with local businesses and child welfare organisations in providing the necessary resources. Help was also given in the planting of a vegetable garden, with an irrigation system which was tilled by volunteers from the parent community. School uniforms were provided by the Department of Social Development and the Rotary club. With time however, the SBST, started taking an additional responsibility, such as obtaining identity documents, applying for child grants and arranging for social worker involvement in the management of foster parents and custody. Caregivers and foster parents were approached and aided in their applications for exemption from paying school fees and close collaboration with custody courts was maintained. Working more deeply with the orphans, higher order needs emerged regarding grieVing for lost parents, the need to re-establish social groups and family ties, and the need for spiritual guidance and a sense of hope for the future. Responding to this additional challenge the SBST established a link with the local church to provide counselling support for the orphans. The schools guidance department conducted a workshop for the teachers on basic counselling and bereavement counselling which serve to empower the staff to deal with the orphans' emotional trauma on a daily basis. Since the orphaned learners were now being physically and emotionally supported, learning problems emerged due to their previous interruptions in schooling. The SBST called on the expertise of remedially trained teachers to provide extra classes and supervise homework for these learners in an attempt to address their scholastic backlog. Selected orphans were loaned solar powered reading lamps for use at home where there is no electricity. Orphaned learners were also encouraged to participate in the school's sporting and extra-mural programme and the necessary sport gear and arrangements were facilitated by the SBST. As the nature of the SBST's involvement deepened, a sub-committee was established, the welfare portfolio, whose sole responsibility was the well-being of the school's orphans. In managing the growing orphan population in the school, they compiled a database of the orphans in the school detailing their specific problems, needs, home circumstances and the actions required by the school in supporting each child's individual needs. A workshop was conducted for the foster parents and caregivers on budgeting and using the child care grants wisely for the orphans. Since it was revealed that some caregivers were abusing the funds on alcohol and neglecting the orphans in their care. The welfare committee also negotiated half price transport fees with the local taxi service in the transportation of orphaned learners to and from school. Apartnership was established with the local police station to gain their support. Should any orphaned learners report physical abuse, they would be respectfully treated. The systemic and collaborative nature of the role of the SBST in this primary school is highlighted in this case study. Without the visionary focus and strategic planning of the SBST in supporting the orphaned learners, they would probably have dropped out of school. Thus the transformation of the SBST into a broad-based structure which networks with a myriad of sources is crucial in fostering inclusive educational practices in South African schools.

M.A. / Please refer to full text to view abstract