Thesis (MSc)--Stellenbosch University, 2009. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The Division of Aquaculture, Stellenbosch University (SU) was commissioned jointly by Namdeb Diamond Corporation (Pty) Ltd (Namdeb) and the Oranjemund Town Management Company Limited (OTMCo) to assess the aquaculture potential of the mining area at Oranjemund in Namibia. This document provides a proposal for the establishment of a marine finfish (yellowtail, Seriola lalandi) farm at Oranjemund. There appears to be considerable potential and as such this document provides a proposal for the establishment of a marine finfish (yellowtail, Seriola lalandi) farm at Oranjemund. A 5 000 metric ton (mt) yellowtail farm would have a turnover of about N$ 115 million per year and provides direct employment for about 200 people. Oranjemund is located immediately north of the Orange River at the most south-western corner of Namibia, approximately 1000 kilometers southwest of the capital, Windhoek. Namdeb currently operates an alluvial diamond mining operation along a 160 kilometer (km) stretch of the southern Namibia coastline, but is expected to downscale their activities significantly over the next 5 to 10 years. Aquaculture, the cultivation of fish, shellfish and aquatic plants, is the fastest growing food producing industry in the world and has considerable potential to contribute to the establishment of a vibrant post-mining economy in Oranjemund. The marine finfish industry is the most important and valuable aquaculture sector in many countries and is expected to grow significantly over the medium term, thereby also offering exciting opportunities for investment and business participation. The yellowtail farm venture is part of a greater plan to develop a vertically integrated aquaculture cluster at Oranjemund. The yellowtail development will be conducted in two phases, with Phase 1 the establishment of a pilot project to assess and confirm technical and financial feasibility. Phase 2 is the development of a 1 000 mt commercial farm. Other species being considered for development at Oranjemund include abalone (Haliotis midae), turbot (Psetta Maxima), rock lobster (Jasus lalandi) and oysters (Crassostria gigas). Several companies in South Africa are currently actively pursuing aquaculture expansion opportunities along both the west and east coasts of South Africa. Key amongst these is the development of abalone farms at Hondeklip Bay and Port Nolloth in the Northern Cape Province of South Africa by HIK Abalone Farm (Pty) Ltd (HIK) and NewFarmers Development Company Limited (NewF). The development of abalone and yellowtail farming at Oranjemund has been positioned as a further extension of the abovementioned initiative with HIK, NewF and a finfish fingerling supplier as potential operating, investment and development partners. The proposed business structure of the project provides investment opportunities for both institutional and Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) investors as well as employee equity instruments. Namibia’s economic prospects for the future are bright given its stable economic performance, good regulatory framework, and robust private sector. The country has experienced steady growth, moderate inflation, strong external surpluses and low indebtedness over the past several years as a result of generally prudent fiscal policies, a stable political environment, a fairly developed infrastructure, and a strong legal and regulatory environment. Economic growth since independence (1991) has averaged 4.3% per annum, and the World Bank’s Investment Climate Assessment Report currently notes that Namibia has a relatively attractive investment climate. The Government of Namibia has identified aquaculture as a prime priority development area. Both Vision 2030 and the NDP2 documents summon the country’s urgency to develop aquaculture and as such the Namibian Government has created an enabling environment for investment in aquaculture. / Namdeb Diamond Corporation (Pty) Ltd (Namdeb) and the Oranjemund Town Management Company Limited (OTMCo)

Background: Malaria continues to pose a complex public health problem amongst pregnant women in Africa (Schantz-Dunn & Nour 2009; Antwi 2010), accounting for over 90% of the global malaria burden (WHO 2002; Morel et al. 2005; Schantz-Dunn & Nour 2009). However, little is known about the impact of information, education and communication (IEC) strategies in malaria prevention and control among pregnant women in Africa. Aims and Objectives: The study sought to identify: evidence of impact of IEC strategies; feasibility, appropriateness, meaningfulness and effectiveness of the IEC strategies; challenges; best practices and key lessons to inform governments, policymakers, health partners, the academic community, directors, managers of health, frontline health professionals and health educators at institutional and community levels. Moreover, the study aimed to develop a theoretical framework to enhance the understanding of issues related to implementation of IEC strategies. Methods: A mixed method approach was adopted. This consisted of a systematic review of evidence within the African context and an evaluation methodology involving a contextually based survey of Ethiopia, Ghana, Nigeria and Tanzania. The systematic review involved a structured search of relevant databases and websites, and hand search strategies. Three sets of evidence were identified and aggregated using a narrative synthesis approach. A survey questionnaire reflecting the outcomes of the review was sent to health professionals and lay persons in the countries under study. Primary data were analysed using SPSS Version 15.0. Non-parametric tests and sensitivity analyses were conducted to assess the nature of opinions among respondents within and across countries. Findings: 3,440 studies were identified during the systematic review. Out of this number, 57 met the inclusion criteria. Following critical appraisal, 50 studies met the criteria for methodological quality. Ten IEC strategies were identified. These were: Staff training and orientation Advocacy Community mass education campaigns House-to-house sensitisation Health education in health units Visiting places of worship Women’s group meetings Integrated health education campaigns Symbolism versus message delivery Audience segmentation versus information delivery. The survey reveals a high level of awareness of IEC strategies among respondents in the African countries studied. The evidence of impact reported by respondents supported the findings of the systematic review. However, there were some differences, and some concerns still remain regarding the extent of impact. The study suggests that using an IEC strategy implementation equation could enhance the understanding of issues related to implementation of IEC strategies. Implications of the findings are outlined, including implications for professional practice in relation to IEC programme implementation, most especially among nurses and midwives. IEC roles and responsibilities of key actors are also proposed. Conclusions: Despite the challenges of adopting a mixed method approach, the study highlights an important relationship between evidence and practice. This approach also helped to ensure that a comprehensive multiperspective view of IEC strategies was achieved. In designing and implementing IEC programmes, clients must be involved in order to encourage community ownership and programme sustainability. Attitudinal change and commitment is required by all stakeholders in order to achieve and maintain impact on malaria in pregnancy. Finally, while recognising the essence of feasibility, appropriateness and meaningfulness of a given strategy, it is worth noting that the key message from this study is that no one single strategy on its own appears ideal. Therefore, there is the need to pay equal attention to both institutional and community-based strategies. Doing one thing alone will not work; more evidence of impact is required to know what works and in what context.

<p>There is no standard format for posting blog entries, which results in many different web feed formats and APIs being used. This thesis work addresses the problem by determining the feasibility of the development of a plug-in based architecture, used in a mobile blogging application compatible with multiple service providers.</p><p>During the study, a definition of what a feasible architecture would be was made based on requirements set by the stakeholders. Six models that complied with this definition were designed and compared. One of them was selected for prototyping. The prototyping phase was intended to test if the architecture could be implemented in a mobile environment. The study revealed that it is feasible to develop a plug-in based architecture to solve the problem, although with some limitations due to the dependency of libraries for streaming XML transformations not yet implemented in J2ME.</p> / <p>Det finns inget standardformat för att posta ett blogginlägg, vilket resulterar i att många olika web feed-format och APIer används. Det här examensarbetet angriper problemet genom att undersöka om det är genomförbart att utveckla</p><p>en plug-inbaserad arkitektur för en applikation till mobiltelefoner, som är kompatibel med flera olika bloggtjänster.</p><p>Under studiens gång definierade vi vad termen genomförbart skulle innebära, baserat på krav från olika intressenter. Sex modeller som uppfyllde definitionen utvecklades och jämfördes. En av dessa valdes ut för att användas som grund</p><p>för en prototyp. Prototypfasen avsåg att bevisa om arkitekturen kunde implementeras i en mobil miljö. Studien visade att det är genomförbart att utveckla en plug-inbaserad arkitektur för att lösa problemet, dock med några begränsningar på grund av beroende av bibliotek för strömmande XMLtransformationer som ännu inte implementerats i J2ME.</p>

With the continuous development in computer and communications technology the use of computer aided design in design processes is becoming more commonplace. A wide range of virtual prototyping technologies are currently in development, some of which are commercially viable for use within a product design process. These virtual prototyping technologies range from graphics tablets to haptic devices. With the compression of design cycles the feasibility of using these technologies for product evaluation is becoming an ever more important consideration. This thesis begins by presenting the findings of a comprehensive literature review defining product design with a focus on product evaluation and a discussion of current virtual prototyping technologies. From the literature review it was clear that user involvement in the product evaluation process is critical. The literature review was followed by a series of interconnected studies starting with an investigation into design consultancies' access and use of prototyping technologies and their evaluation methods. Although design consultancies are already using photo-realistic renderings, animations and sometimes 3600 view CAD models for their virtual product evaluations, current virtual prototyping hardware and software is often unsatisfactory for their needs. Some emergent technologies such as haptic interfaces are currently not commonly used in industry. This study was followed by an investigation into users' psychological acceptance and physiological discomfort when using a variety of virtual prototyping tools for product evaluation compared with using physical prototypes, ranging from on-screen photo-realistic renderings to 3D 3600 view models developed using a range of design software. The third study then went on to explore the feasibility of using these virtual prototyping tools and the effect on product preference when compared to using physical prototypes. The forth study looked at the designer's requirements for current and future virtual prototyping tools, design tools and evaluation methods. In the final chapters of the thesis the relative strengths and weaknesses of these technologies were re-evaluated and a definitive set of user requirements based on the documentary evidence of the previous studies was produced. This was followed by the development of a speculative series of scenarios for the next generation of virtual prototyping technologies ranging from improvements to existing technologies through to blue sky concepts. These scenarios were then evaluated by designers and consumers to produce documentary evidence and recommendations for preferred and suitable combinations of virtual prototyping technologies. Such hardware and software will require a user interface that is intuitive, simple, easy to use and suitable for both the designers who create the virtual prototypes and the consumers who evaluate them.

Theories of global justice are often criticised for being ineffective or unrealisable. The aim of this interdisciplinary thesis is to examine whether this motivational criticism holds regarding Singer’s Principle and Pogge’s theory of global egalitarian justice. First, I will show that the effectiveness argument is unconvincing: the underlying effectiveness criterion is either incoherent or not defined, and existing effectiveness predictions are empirically unsatisfactory. Second, I will analyse whether Singer’s interactional Principle satisfies the ‘ought implies can’ (OIC) criterion, which holds that obligations must be within the capacities of individuals. Having discussed the rationale and standard of the OIC criterion, I will show that the philosophical literature does not offer a convincing empirical justification of possibility evaluations. Drawing on psychological explanations of moral heroism, I will conclude that compliance with Singer’s Principle is possible for ordinary persons, i.e. that ‘every person is a hero in waiting’. Third, turning to the feasibility of Pogge’s theory of global egalitarian justice, I will discuss how the standard, time-frame, weight and rationale of the feasibility criterion should be defined. Based on psychological and sociological explanations about moral behaviour, social norms and identity, I will evaluate the empirical arguments advanced in the philosophical literature. In addition, I will consider how the long-term trends of globalisation are likely to influence the role of nationality, identity and global institutions. I will conclude that Pogge’s theory of egalitarian global justice is conditionally feasible, i.e. if we assume that domestic egalitarian justice is feasible. This implies that nationalism will not necessarily play a dominant role during the centuries to come. Overall, possibility and feasibility evaluations remain uncertain and partly subjective. I will thus argue that a burden of proof should be established to limit the negative effects of false evaluations.

Approved for public release, distribution is unlimited / Optical fiber has been the preferred cabling technology for certain building and campus network LAN backbones. Until recently, however, the use of fiber as a cabling medium to the desktop has been confined to special environments that require the unique properties of optical fiber such as noise immunity, security, distance, high bandwidth demands (CAD/CAM, video conferencing), and immunity to electrical interference. However, choosing to use optical fiber in a network over other cabling options may present significant advantages in its inherent ability to handle data at higher speeds. Decreasing costs of optical fiber components compared to the increasing electronic costs of carrying Gigabit Ethernet over Cat 5 or Cat 5E UTP copper cabling has also accelerated the migration to optical fiber LAN. The thesis conducts a feasibility study of implementing a Fiber Optic Local Area Network in Software Metrics Laboratory in Ingersoll 158. / Major, Republic of Singapore Air Force

Zur Kontrolle und Steigerung der Fruchtbarkeitsleistung von hochleistenden Milchkühen muss eine frühzeitige, sichere Methode zur Feststellung einer Trächtigkeit erfolgen. Neben der transrektalen Ultraschalldiagnostik als direkte Methode gibt es hierzu über den Nachweis boviner trächtigkeitsassoziierter Glykoproteine (bovine Pregnancy Associated Glycoproteins = bPAGs) eine indirekte, genauso früh einsetzbare Methode. Über einen Hauptversuch sollten die Praktikabilität sowie die Sensitivität und Spezifität eines laborungebundenen blutbasierten bPAG-Trächtigkeitstests unter Feldbedingungen ermittelt werden. In Teilversuchen sollten die Haltbarkeit des bPAG in kühl- und gefriergelagerten Proben beurteilt werden. Zudem sollten die Testergebnisse von unbesamten Kühen post partum (p.p.) und früh wiederbesamten Kühen unter 60 Tagen p.p. vor dem Hintergrund vorliegender Rest-bPAG-Mengen der zurückliegenden Trächtigkeit analysiert werden. Im Hauptversuch befanden sich von Juli bis Dezember 2014 109 Kühe zweier Betriebe in Mecklenburg Vorpommern. Voraussetzung war, dass sich die Tiere mindestens 60 Tage p.p. befanden, um falsch positive Ergebnisse durch noch im Blut zirkulierende bPAGs der zurückliegenden Trächtigkeit auszuschließen. Bei dem zu validierenden „IDEXX Visual Pregnancy Test“ handelt es sich um einen indirekten Antigen-Capture ELISA, welcher bPAGs im Blutserum oder im EDTA-Plasma tragender Rinder nachweist. Verlässliche Ergebnisse sind laut Herstellerangabe erstmalig ab 28 Tagen post inseminationem (p.i.) möglich. Die Testergebnisse werden visuell im Vergleich mit parallel angesetzten Positiv- und Negativkontrollen zugeordnet. Als Goldstandard wurde in der Feldstudie bei jedem Tier eine erste Trächtigkeitsuntersuchung 28 Tage p.i., eine zweite 35 Tage und eine dritte nach dem 45. Tag p.i. mit transrektaler Sonografie vorgenommen. Während der ersten beiden Befundungen erfolgte eine Blutprobenentnahme aus der V. caudalis mediana und eine Untersuchung mit dem „IDEXX Visual Pregnancy Test“. Eine dritte Blutprobenentnahme (>45 Tage p.i.) wurde veranlasst, sofern das Testergebnis am Tag 35 nicht mit dem Ergebnis der transrektalen Sonografie übereinstimmte bzw. die visuelle Zuordenbarkeit des Testergebnisses nicht eindeutig möglich war. Im Hauptversuch lag die Trächtigkeitsrate bei 51,4% (56 von 109) und 48,6% (53 von 109) nicht tragenden Tieren. Alle 56 mittels transrektaler Sonografie als tragend diagnostizierten Kühe wurden ohne Ausnahme korrekt vom Trächtigkeitstest ebenfalls als positiv getestet. Folglich betrug die Sensitivität des Tests 100%. Bei 48 von 53 sonografisch nicht für tragend befundenen Tieren stimmte dies mit dem bPAG-Bluttest überein. Fünf Probandinnen wiesen 28 Tage p.i. ein falsch positives Testergebnis auf, welches bei zwei Kühen auch bei der dritten Testdurchführung am 47. bzw. am 49. Tag p.i. unverändert eine Trächtigkeit falsch anzeigte. Somit betrug die Spezifität 90,6%. Des Weiteren wurden Gütekriterien-Validationen mittels positivem und negativem prädiktivem Wert sowie über das positive und negative Wahrscheinlichkeitsverhältnis und die Genauigkeit durchgeführt. Es resultierten jeweils sehr gute Werte hieraus. Die Teilversuche ergaben eine gute Haltbarkeit des bPAG auch bei vorheriger Kühl- oder Gefrierlagerung der Blutproben. Die bPAG aus der zurückliegenden Trächtigkeit blieben teils bis einschließlich Tag 55 p.p. nachweisbar. Der Zeitaufwand für den Bluttest betrug mindestens 175 Minuten pro Testdurchlauf; davon fielen 105 Minuten auf die eigentliche Testdurchführung. Je kleiner die Probenanzahl pro Testserie, desto teurer wird jeder einzelne Trächtigkeitstest pro Tier aufgrund der jeweils doppelt mit anzusetzenden Positiv- und Negativkontrollen. Der Trächtigkeitstest ist somit nur für größere Tierarztpraxen geeignet, die die nötige personelle Ausstattung und eine genügend große Anzahl an Trächtigkeitsuntersuchungen pro Testdurchlauf garantieren können. Aufgrund in Frage kommender falsch positiver Ergebnisse, aller Voraussicht nach dem späten embryonalen Fruchttod zuzuschreiben, wird eine direkte manuelle und/oder transrektal sonografische Nachuntersuchung zumindest aller am 28. Tag p.i. positiv getesteten Kühe nach dem 45. Tag p.i. für zwingend notwendig erachtet.

Master of Science / Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering / Anil Pahwa / Energy costs are rising, supplies of fossil fuels are diminishing, and environmental concerns surrounding power generation in the United States are at an all-time high. The United States is continuing to push all states for energy reform and where better for Kansas to look than wind energy? Kansas is second among all states in wind generation potential; however, the best wind generation sites are located predominantly in sparsely populated areas, creating energy transportation problems. Due to these issues interest in community wind projects has been increasing. To determine the economic potential of community wind generation a distribution system in rural western Kansas where interest in community wind exists was examined and a feasibility study based on historical data, economic factors, and current grid constraints was performed. Since the majority of the load in this area is from pivot-point irrigation systems, load distributions were created based on temperature ranges instead of a linear progression of concurrent days. To test the economic viability three rate structures were examined: flat energy rate, demand rate, and critical peak pricing. A Monte Carlo simulation was designed and run to simulate twenty-year periods based on the available historical data; twenty-year net present worth calculations were performed to ensure economic viability. A sensitivity analysis was then performed to examine the effects of change in turbine size and energy rate scale. Finally, an energy storage analysis was performed to examine the economic viability of various sizes of battery storage systems.

[pt] A degradação do meio ambiente está no topo da agenda de países e empresas. O foco principal é a redução das emissões de gases causadores do efeito estufa, sendo CO2 o maior contribuinte. O consumo elevado de combustíveis fósseis está criando um efeito irreversível no planeta. De forma a contrabalancear seus impactos ambientais, surge o segmento de projetos de captura e sequestro de carbono. O maior entrave seu para crescimento é econômico, daí o uso de CO2 para recuperação avançada de óleo, alavancando sua implementação. Esta dissertação avalia duas estratégias distintas de desenvolvimento de um campo de petróleo offshore, uma através da injeção de água e outra por recuperação avançada com injeção de CO2 (EOR CO2 – enhanced oil recovery) a partir de fonte antropogência. Os maiores desafios técnicos para aplicação de EOR CO2 em ambiente offshore são examinados, mostrando o arcabouço teórico, melhores práticas e soluções ainda não desenvolvidas, em áreas como: gerenciamento de reservatórios, engenharia de poços e plantas de processo, além de captura e transporte de CO2. Em seguida, a viabilidade econômica de ambos os métodos de recuperação são comparados, com pequena vantagem o caso EOR. Entretanto, devido às incertezas de sucesso do método e sua sensibilidade ao preço de importação de CO2, a gama de resultados pode alterar o processo decisório. Um balanço de carbono também é realizado, mostrando a redução esperada de sua concentração na atmosfera ao se selecionar o método de EOR CO2. Ainda, a aplicabilidade de créditos de carbono é discutida, e seu impacto econômico quantificado. Finalmente, há um longo caminho a se percorrer para ampla utilização de projetos EOR com CO2 antropogênico em ambiente offshore. Ao apontar os maiores desafios e entraves a serem superados, incluindo técnicos, comerciais e regulatórios, ao apresentar modelo econômico, e acima de tudo, ao mostrar sua atratividade, esta dissertação tem por objetivo reduzir esta distância. / [en] Environmental issues are on top of governments and companies’ agendas. The main focus is on global warming and means to reduce greenhouse gases, being carbon dioxide the main contributor. The consumption of fossil fuels is creating an irreversible effect on the planet, and it is expected to continue for years to come. In order to offset its usage are the emerging carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects. Their main obstacle is economical, and that’s where enhanced oil recovery through CO2 can help. This dissertation assesses the development options of an offshore Brazilian discovery, by comparing water injection method with carbon dioxide enhanced oil recovery (EOR CO2) imported from an anthropogenic onshore source. The main EOR CO2 technical challenges for offshore application are examined, detailing field proven and yet to be developed solutions, from reservoir management, wells engineering to the production unit, passing through CO2 acquisition and transportation. Next, economical feasibility of both methods are compared, with a slight advantage for EOR on the base case. Nevertheless, due to high uncertainties in method success prior to development and commitment, and also to carbon dioxide import prices, the range of results can shift the decision making, and such sensitivity analysis is also presented. A carbon inventory is also made, showing the net positive balance of selecting EOR CO2, which reduces the component’s concentration in the atmosphere. Finally, the applicability of carbon credits is discussed and its economical impact quantified. There is still a long way to go for the widespread utilization of anthropogenic EOR CO2 in offshore projects. By pointing out the main challenges to be addressed, including technical, commercial and regulatory, by presenting an economical model comprising environmental aspects, and most of all, showing its attractiveness, this dissertation aims to reduce this gap.

The pursuit towards an alternative solution to fossil fuel has facilitated science investigation initiatives that compare various options leading to biodiesel production. Besides conventional feedstock derived from vegetable oils, alternative sources that could be produced in large scale at competitive costs are the main scope of research in this field. This dissertation investigates the financial feasibility using organic solid waste as a feedstock, which results in the production of biodiesel through the conversion of volatile fatty acids (VFA) into lipids. As a result, based on existing references of: (i) capital and operating costs; (ii) internal rate of return; (iii) production and extraction yields for volatile fatty acids and lipids, we concluded that biodiesel production is competitive compared to subsidized biodiesel traded in regions of Europe and the United States. The sensitivity analysis took into consideration independent variables associated with: (i) investments in the plant; (ii) selling price of the biodiesel; (iii) costs of feedstock; and (iv) production yield. The results of such analysis showed the feasibility of using organic solid waste as a feedstock in 86.4% of the total 10,000 simulations, at the required internal rate of return. These results encourage research aims to examine this technology at a larger scale. The adoption of public policies for the urban wastes disposal and collection is also important for the implementation of such technologies. / A busca por soluções alternativas aos combustíveis fósseis tem impulsionado as iniciativas de pesquisa científica que comparam várias opções para a produção de biodiesel. Além das tradicionais fontes de matéria-prima provenientes de óleos vegetais, fontes alternativas, que possam ser produzidas em grande escala a custo competitivo, figuram como o principal escopo nesse campo de pesquisa. Essa dissertação investiga a viabilidade financeira da utilização de resíduo sólido orgânico como matéria-prima para a produção de biodiesel, através da conversão de ácidos graxos voláteis em lipídios. Como resultado, baseando-se em dados sobre: (i) investimentos e custos de operação; (ii) taxa interna de retorno requerida; (iii) taxas de extração e produção de ácidos graxos voláteis e de lipídios, conclui-se que a produção de biodiesel é competitiva quando comparada ao biodiesel subsidiado, que é negociado em regiões dos Estados Unidos e da Europa. A análise de sensibilidade realizada levou em consideração variáveis independentes tais como: (i) investimentos na planta; (ii) preço de venda do biodiesel, (iii) custos da matéria-prima e (iv) produtividade. O resultado de tal análise mostrou a viabilidade da utilização de ácidos graxos voláteis para a produção de biodiesel em 86,4% das 10.000 simulações, assumindo a taxa interna de retorno requerida. Esses resultados encorajam pesquisas adicionais para teste da tecnologia em maior escala. A adoção de políticas públicas para o descarte e coleta adequados dos resíduos sólidos urbanos também é importante para o desenvolvimento dessa tecnologia.