Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2008. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Griffith University, 1998. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 116-134).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2005. / The entire dissertation/thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file (which also appears in the research.pdf); a non-technical general description, or public abstract, appears in the public.pdf file. Title from title screen of research.pdf file viewed on (July 18, 2006) Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

Since the onset of postcolonialism in South Africa, cultural diversity was brought on by the political decline of cultural borders, mass-media infiltration, technological advancement and the disposition of postmodernism’s assemblage of eclectic characteristics. Within postmodern postcolonialism, cultural conditions such as diaspora, nomadism and cosmopolitanism contributed to a sense of global citizenship. As such, postcolonialism and its cultural fusion promoted a new multi-cultural, hybrid culture. In this mini-dissertation it is argued that identity is a reflection or a simulation of the social surroundings in which one exists. Just as the individual’s identity becomes a product of his/her surroundings, elements of the individual’s identity manifest within cultural spaces. Within this simulation in a hybrid and multi-cultural space, personal identity becomes a fragmented and splintered concept, which is a subconscious reaction to the diversities in the individual’s cultural surroundings; moreover, the diversity in culture also contributes to constructing a more adaptable identity from these fragments. A growing feeling of Ubuntu or tolerance for differences and oppositions that develops in multi-cultural space contributes to the argument that cultural spaces become diverse and hybrid in a postmodern eclectic era. To overcome the fragmentation in identity, the postcolonial individual unintentionally formulates a hybrid, or fusion in identity by relating to different aspects that one finds in one’s surroundings. Identity becomes a fluid concept and is ever-changing to adapt to the multiplicities of contemporary postcolonial culture. This fluidity in identity is sub-consciously achieved by adopting psychological thought processes like Nomadism and Proteanism. The process of formulation of a new eclectic and fluid identity becomes more important than the identity in itself. Therefore, the ability to have a fluid and adaptable identity becomes more important than exclusivity in one’s identity. The establishment of this fluidity in identity is not a conscious decision, but merely an autonomic process of metamorphosis that enables the postcolonial individual to maintain identity, even though his/her identity cannot be fixed. / Dissertation (MA)--University of Pretoria, 2010. / Visual Arts / unrestricted

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2003. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references. Also available on the Internet.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2003. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references. Also available on the Internet.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2003. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references. Also available on the Internet.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2003. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references. Also available on the Internet.

This dissertation was motivated by the problem of pattern and scale in ecology. All chapters present models that aim at predicting species’ responses to habitat fragmentation. Chapters differ mainly in the nature of the responses being investigated: spatial variation in abundance, or dispersal. In each chapter, I illustrate how current models can be modified to incorporate species’ perception of the landscape. Three sources of bias have been examined here: interspecific variation in (i) ecological neighborhood, (ii) ecological generalization, and (iii) in the response to regional processes. I have deliberately moved away from traditional single-scale, patch-based measures of landscape connectivity. Great emphasis has been placed on the anthropogenic aspect of the landscape, and on the role of the landscape matrix. Habitat fragmentation is a common feature of most (if not all) biodiversity hotspots. I hope the tools shown here can serve as general approaches to study how species are differentially affected by habitat fragmentation, and to ultimately understand how disturbed landscapes can “filter” natural communities. / text

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 1996. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references. Also available on the Internet.