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Thesis (MBA)--Stellenbosch University, 2000. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: A study was conducted within the Argicultural Research Council Infruitec-Nietvoorbij, by means of a questionnaire, regarding the application of project management. The study was done to investigate and bring forth opinions and reasons why project management is deemed to be unsuccessful within the ARC Infruitec-Nietvoorbij. A comprehensive study of literature regarding the successful application of project management within an organisation, was done. This was used to develop a questionnaire applicable to the ARC Infruitec-Nietvoorbij, to test the above mentioned perceptions. With the analysis of the quantitative and qualitative outcomes of the questionnaire, opinions and perceptions of the respondents were identified, which should be of interest to the ARC Infruitec-Nietvoorbij. These opinions and perceptions undoubtedly influence the dynamics of the working environment and will in future influence the successful application of project management within the ARC Infruitec-Nietvoorbij. Therefore some areas of concern were identified which need attention before the ARC Infruitec- Nietvoorbij can be truly successful in the implementation of project management. With the analysis of the quantitative and qualitative outcomes of the questionnaire, the results also indicated that "conventional" project management, as applied to the engineering, architectural and construction fields, can not without further ado, merely be applied in a research environment and specifically the ARC Infruitec-Nietvoorbij. The ARC Infruitec-Nietvoorbij needs to give specific attention to the development of an own methodology to apply project management in the ARC Infruitec-Nietvoorbij. This methodology needs to be relayed by means of a specific strategy and policy inherent to the ARC Infruitec-Nietvoorbij. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: 'n Studie is gedoen by die Landbou Navorsingsraad Infruitec-Nietvoorbij aangaande die aanwending van projekbestuur, deur middel van 'n vraelys. Die studie is gedoen om opinies en redes uit te bring waarom projekbestuur onsuksesvol is by die LNR Infruitec- Nietvoorbij. 'n Omvattende literatuurstudie aangaande die suksesvolle aanwending van projekbestuur in 'n organisasie is gedoen. Die bevindinge uit die literatuurstudie is aangewend om 'n vraelys te ontwikkel wat van toepassing is op die Landbou Navorsingsraad Infruitec-Nietvoorbij, om sodoende die bogenoemde persepsies te toets. Met die analise van die kwantitatiewe en kwalitatiewe gedeeltes van die vraelys, is opinies en persepsies van die deelnemers geïdentifiseer wat betekenisvol vir die LNR Infruitec-Nietvoorbij behoort te wees. Die opinies en persepsies beïnvloed beslis die funksionaliteit van die werkomgewing en sal ook in die toekoms die suksesvolle aanwending van projekbestuur in die LNR Infruitec-Nietvoorbij beïnvloed. Daar is 'n aantal areas geïdentifiseer, waaraan aandag geskenk sal moet word, voordat die LNR Infruitec-Nietvoorbij werklik suksesvol met projekbestuur sal wees. Met die analise van die kwantitatiewe en kwalitatiewe gedeeltes van die vraelys het die resultate ook aangedui dat "konvensionele" projekbestuur soos toegepas in die ingenieurs-, argitektoniese-, en konstruksievelde, nie summier by die LNR Infruitec- Nietvoorbij en spesifiek in 'n navorsingsomgewing toegepas kan word nie. Die LNR Infruitec-Nietvoorbij moet spesifiek aandag skenk aan die ontwikkeling van 'n eie metodologie. Dié metodologie moet deur middel van 'n spesifieke strategie en beleid in the LNR Infruitec-Nietvoorbij gepromulgeer word.

D. Litt. et Phil. / Today, more and more organisations are adopting the use of the Internet and webbased technologies in the management of and provision of access to information and knowledge resources and services in digital formats. However, it appears that innovative use of the web is more pronounced in corporate organisations. For example, corporate organisations are using portals or sophisticated websites to conduct electronic commerce via the web and provide access to both internal and external information resources and services, accessed via the Internet, intranets, and extranets. The view of the researcher is that innovative use of the Internet and web-based technologies, such as portals, should not be the domain of the corporate world alone. The focus of this thesis is, therefore, to establish the potential application possibilities of portals in other types of organisations, especially agricultural research organisations in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region. The main research problem addressed in this thesis was What is the nature and application possibility of agricultural information portals in the provision of webbased, value-added information services for researchers? To address the above research problem, literature relating to the historical development of the Internet and the World Wide Web, intranet and extranet applications in organisations, as well as portals and their applications, was reviewed. In addition, a study was made of international trends regarding the provision of access to digital agricultural information resources and services via the web, and a questionnaire survey was conducted to establish whether it was necessary to use portals to provide access to digital-based agricultural information resources and services in agricultural research organisations in the SADC region. ii Resulting from the literature reviews, the study of websites of international agricultural organisations, and the survey on the need for portals in agricultural research organisations in the SADC region, the study established that: · There are several potential applications of portals in agricultural research organisations. This led to the definition of the nature and major components of the type of portal that could serve the needs of researchers in agricultural research organisations. · There is a need for portals in agricultural research organisations in the SADC region. The current use of the web in these organisations in the region is largely limited to the development of brochureware types of websites, providing access to information contained in the organisations’ brochures. Therefore, there is need to upgrade from basic Web sites to advanced sites or portals, and the study concluded that in this regard there is a need for clear guidelines to assist agricultural research organisations to plan the deployment of their information portals. Currently, most organisations are using ad hoc approaches when developing their Web sites. The dissertation, furthermore, develops the definition of an agricultural information portal as a web-based application that is accessed via the intranet or extranet and provides a personalised and adaptive interface that enables agricultural researchers to discover, track, and interact with colleagues and other people, software applications, information resources, services and tools relevant to their research interests and work. Taking into account the major components and definition of an agricultural information portal, the study proposes guidelines for use in planning the deployment of portals in agricultural research organisations. The proposed guidelines are independent of specific portal design or development methodology, application domains, and techniques.

This thesis has explored the diffusion of tile drainage in Delaware County, Indiana. The study discussed some of the deterrents that hampered agricultural development in the county. These obstacles included the presence of thick forests, vast areas of swampy lands, poor transportation facilities and the absence of local markets. Methods of overcoming some of these problems were then discussed. These included the clearing of forests to prepare land for cultivation, and the use of open ditches and clay tiles to drain the marshes.In addition, the introduction of new drainage techniques such as the laser beam, plow drain, and plastic tile were also discussed. The rate of adoption of plastic tile was then tested statistically to find out if it followed any pattern of distribution. Data obtained through interviews with selected farmers revealed that such an innovation will tend to approximate a growth or "S"-curve in about 1980. The study concluded that the majority of Delaware County farmers are still using clay or concrete tiles.

The United States has invested substantial resources in agricultural research since the Morrill and the Hatch Acts. These investments have made American agriculture one of the most productive in the world. Several studies have evaluated U.S. agricultural research. However, few of these studies have attempted to assess the decline in agricultural productivity that would have resulted in the absence of agricultural research. The purpose of this dissertation is to measure the magnitude of agricultural maintenance research currently or recently undertaken to forestall such productivity declines. A two part procedure was used to evaluate the importance of maintenance research in U.S. agriculture. First, questionnaires were mailed to agricultural scientists at the state agricultural experiment stations. The information sought from the scientists included examples of maintenance research and research depreciation, their annual research budgets, and the percentage of their research efforts devoted to maintenance research. The second part of the procedure was to estimate a profit function model to assess the importance of research depreciation in U.S. agriculture and to test the overall length and shape of the research lag. Duality theory was used to obtain the output supply (foodgrains, feedgrains, other crops, hay, livestock, and poultry), input demand (feed, fertilizer, fuel, and labor) equations. The fixed factors included were land, research, extension, education, capital, and breeding stock. Secondary data, from various sources, were used to estimate the equations. The results from the responses to the questionnaire indicate that, on average, the United States devotes roughly a third of total agricultural production research to maintenance research. In addition, there are significant differences in maintenance research among individual commodities. The results from the output supply equations indicated that the impact of agricultural research on agricultural output rises and then declines for some commodities. Also, research depreciation occurs for some agricultural commodities and maintenance research may be required to prevent productivity from declining. However, the results were for the most part, not statistically significant, reducing the strength of the conclusion that can be drawn. / Ph. D.

One method of estimating returns to agricultural research as an alternative to the commonly used aggregate output production function approach is to calculate returns based on estimates from a value-added production function. Value added is the value of consumed inputs in the production process subtracted from the value of total production. The value-added function alleviates several problems found in the aggregate production function, allowing for more reliable estimates. One objective of this study is to compare the rates of return to research based on estimates from the value added and gross production functions. The estimation of the research coefficients are conducted through the use of the Ordinary Least Squares and Ridge Regression of a Cobb-Douglas production function. Four commodity groups are examined; cash grains, livestock, poultry, and dairy using cross-sectional 1978 data for the United States. The results of the analysis show that in most cases the research variable was more significant and therefore explained the dependent variable better in the value-added functions than in the gross production functions. A larger internal rate of return to research in the value-added function for models excluding a spillover of research variable suggests an underinvestment in research dollars oriented towards improving value added. Therefore, future research should concentrate on improving the efficiency of fixed and non-consumed inputs used in the production of most commodity groups in general. Also, results from both the value added and production functions show an underinvestment of research in the cash grain commodity group relative to the other three commodity groups in this study. More research should be conducted in the area of improving the efficiency of all inputs used in the cash grain production process. / Master of Science

The main objectives of this study were to examine the nature of the basic-applied research continuum, to evaluate projected costs and benefits of the research continuum for a specific example, namely, the development of multiple disease resistant potato cultivars, and to examine the changing roles and interactions between public research institutions and private industry. Given the existing budgetary constraints and the increasing demands for accountability that research administrators and policy makers face, it seems necessary for decision makers to give adequate consideration to the existing interdependency of basic and applied research in determining the most appropriate levels of research to fund. The establishment of of an adequate balance of both basic and applied research is important in any attempts to maximize the returns from the research continuum while at the same time developing and maintaining new biotechnologies. The projected rate of return for potato disease resistant research was calculated at 34 percent which falls within the range given by similar studies. With the advent of the new biotechnologies such as genetic engineering, and the increased competition for the limited research dollars, there has been an evolving new relationship between universities and private industry in which universities are seeking more private funding and industry demanding more control of technologies developed through their funding. Separate but interdependent roles of both private companies and universities seems necessary for the achievement of desirable and a adequate maintenance of the research continuum. / M.S.

M.Sc. / Because of South Africa's high rate of population growth, it becomes more difficult to supply in the basic needs of people, of which water for personal use and food may be the most important. South Africa is a dry country with weak and marginal soils in most parts. This necessitates the effective use of these important natural resources. Recent legislation forces commercial agriculture to use care and sustainable methods in their resource use. Justification must also be made for ratio of resources used compared to the product delivered from that use. Therefore it is necessary to examine this use and the role it plays in the supply of basic human needs as well as economic growth. A study of these agricultural resources cannot be undertaken on a large scale, because every agricultural is unique. The purpose of this study is to generate an idea of the physical and agricultural environment of the Ohrigstad valley. This research is mostly based on the assimilation of previous studies and the comparing of results over time. This information is used to compare results from previous studies and to determine possible trends in factors_such as rainfall. A further study of the natural resources that attribute to effective commercial agriculture are made. From here the emphasis falls on the use and distribution of irrigation water to these activities in the valley. These natural sources of water and their means of distribution are studied and described. Rainfall as a direct source of water is determined by information regarding rainfall and microclimatic circumstances. Surface and subterraneous sources are described by information on the general hydrology and geohydrology of the study area. In such an environment there are many factors affecting the supply of water to agriculture such as: forestry, afforestation of riparian zones, as well as geological occurrences in the streambeds. Possible solutions for problems posed by these factors are discussed in relation to previous studies in similar areas, as well as the economic benefits that may be reaped because of such change. Finally the role that legislation (Water Act 36 of 1998) plays in the use of water by agriculture is discussed in terms of possible impacts that it may have on commercial agriculture in the area. In this study it has become clear that a lot more research must be done in such a project before any trends can be related and proved.

The purpose of this thesis is to design a landscape plan for Teaching Gardens at the Western Kentucky University Agriculture Research and Education Center. The landscape plans were selected based upon the available 5.3 acres surrounding the greenhouse, vineyard, and Exposition Center. Planning included goals and objectives, analysis of the available site, landscape design plans, and connecting the Teaching Gardens to the current curriculum. This thesis also includes related areas to the development of Teaching Gardens such as: summary of courses with related topics to Teaching Gardens, programs that will be used throughout the community, and a listing of current and estimated future costs/expenses plus funding avenues to support this endeavor. The implementation of the Gardens in this thesis has created an area of learning for the Agriculture Department, university, and local community. The Teaching Gardens are an extension of the classroom learning experience, which provide research opportunities, harvest/care information, and promote healthy nutrition. The Teaching Gardens provide a naturally beautiful atmosphere for the enjoyment of students, faculty and staff, and the local community.

This SSHRC and Pacific Leaders funded thesis summarizes participatory action research conducted in El Salvador between January 2008 and April 2009. This research resulted in a $355,000 proposal to the Canadian International Development Agency for a sustainable agriculture research and education centre in canton Agua Blanca, Morazán, El Salvador. The project is proposed by Canadian NGO, Rainbow of Hope for Children, in partnership with Salvadoran NGO, Fundahmer. Fundahmer owns 9.8 hectares of land in Agua Blanca. The researcher analysed practices at an existing Rainbow agriculture project in Izalco, and identified options for Agua Blanca by defining project goals and objectives, conducting a risk assessment, describing proposed centre activities, quantifying beneficiaries, assessing funding requirements, and developing performance measures. Funding was rejected, citing six sections that required additional information for second submission: sector and regional context, sustainability, gender, beneficiaries, performance measures, and environmental impacts. Seven recommendations are included to move project forward.