Doctor of Philosophy / Department of History / Donald J. Mrozek / This dissertation examines the influence of the treaty system inaugurated at the Washington Naval Conference of 1921-22 upon innovation in the design of the interwar U.S. fleet. The way in which sea power was viewed by the U.S. Navy of the period combined with the Navy’s unique organizational structure to shape the Navy’s efforts in building a “treaty fleet.” In particular, the General Board of the Navy, a formal body established by the Secretary of the Navy to advise him on both strategic and other matters with respect to fleet, served as the organizational nexus for the interaction between fleet design and treaty implementation. The General Board members orchestrated the efforts by the principal Naval Bureaus, the Naval War College, and the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations in ensuring that the designs adopted for the warships built and modified during the period of the Washington (Five Power) and London Naval Treaties both met treaty requirements while meeting strategic needs. The leadership of the Navy at large, and the General Board in particular, felt themselves especially constrained by Article XIX (the fortification clause) of the Five Power Treaty that implemented a status quo on naval fortification in the Western Pacific. The treaty system led the Navy to design a measurably different fleet than it might otherwise have done in the absence of naval limitations.

Doctor Legum - LLD / Within the context of South Africa‘s diverging religious, cultural and social backgrounds, new questions on the nature of a multicultural society are raised from the perspective of human rights. The universality and indivisibility of human rights are challenged by this diversity and consequently implies that standards, concepts and structures for implementation have to be reconsidered. International and national standards are being (re)interpreted and attention is not only focused on the contents of the norms but on the limitations imposed thereupon. The debate on whether limits should be set in permitting or accommodating cultural or religious pluralism is becoming extremely relevant. The manner in which these questions are responded to is even more prominent in the light of our history of apartheid which has disregarded respect for religious and cultural diversity. In the scope of this research emphasis will be placed on the right to freedom of religion and in particular the limitation of the right to religion in an attempt to balance conflicting rights and accommodates religious diversity. The right to freedom of religion albeit constitutionally entrenched is subject to reasonable and justifiable limitations. However, no clear guidelines have been formulated on the criteria for limiting the right to freedom of religion. The main aim of this research is to find guiding criteria to facilitate the imposition of limitations on the right to freedom of religion. The limitations of the right to freedom of religion are interrelated with the following research questions: Firstly, the definition afforded to the right to freedom of religion in accordance with national and international standards; secondly, the relationship between culture and religion and any interconnection that exists between these rights. This is followed by the influence of the particular value framework or normative commitments f the judiciary on the interpretation of the right to religion, as well as the relationship between the state and religion. The above issues will be researched both on a national and an international level. The aim is to conduct research that will build on an appreciation of the guidelines that should be employed in ensuring the protection of the right to freedom of religion. To this end comparisons will be drawn with other legal systems, which on the one hand acknowledge the protection of the right to freedom of religion and on the other hand have to find ways in which the right can be balanced in the event of conflict. It is envisaged that the research of the criteria imposed on the limitation of the right to religion both on a national and an international level will assist in suggesting criteria that will influence scholarly debate on the topic. In addition that this debate will allow for the formulation of a transformative approach within the South African context that sanctions the celebration of diversity in all its aspects and in particular the right to freedom of religion. / South Africa

No abstract available / Dissertation (LLM)--University of Pretoria, 2013. / Mercantile Law / unrestricted

The problem that Groenewald (1995: 4) mentions in connection with the Sepedi drama is that, it is not performable and that it is actually not a drama in the true sense of the word. In the African languages there is actually no theatre tradition and the written dramas are, with the exception of a few, plays that should be read. The few exceptions are small works that were written for schoolchildren and that were performed once or twice by them. Groenewald emphasises the fact that school and university syllabi demand that there be dramas in the these languages, but that they are never performed. This dissertation wants to scrutinise the main shortcomings related to performance so that the findings can serve as an incentive to prospective playwrights to improve on what already exists. In order to limit the magnitude of such an investigation, a specific drama, namely Nkadimeng's Ntšhutelele (1985) is concentrated on. This work is choosen because almost all shortcomings with regard to performance appear in it. Two authors have already discussed this drama and have pointed out a few problems. The first investigator is Mohlala who comments mainly on the dialogue and monologue. The second person is Mokwebu, and in his report he obliquely touches on the aspects of time and place in the course of events. Although they do bring up certain problems related to performability, their discussions deal mainly with the drama as a literary work. This dissertation, however, does not only want to discuss the problem related to the performability of the Sepedi drama, but also wants to explain why each specific problem hampers the performability of the work. In this discussion, the drama is discussed as a work that has two modes of existence, i.e. that it is a literary work as well as a stage play. As a drama it thus exists thanks to (a) the author and (b) a producer who is responsible only for the performance. The latter, amongst other things, must make sure that the performance does not take too long and that the stage that he uses has enough space to accommodate the reality that is being presented. The problems related to performance that will be discussed are classified under the following: time and place of the events that are presented, the dialogue and the monologue, and the role played by the author's directions. Structural errors that have implications for the performance are also pointed out in the work. The concepts that are used in the analysis of Ntšhutelele are defined comprehensively in advance. It stands to reason that literary concepts that are relevantto the discussion like content, structure and the author's vision are amongst these concepts. However, the concept of performance is explained in the greatest detail so that the requirements in such a case can be sketched clearly and that they can be used as evaluation criteria in the discussion of the drama Ntšhutelele. In the following analysis, the shortcomings with regard to performance as listed above are discussed comprehensively and critically. In a few cases, one or more merits are indicated in addition to the pointing out of the shortcomings. The concept of time is examined in the widest sense of the word, as is the duration of the performance as such. / Dissertation (MA (African Languages))--University of Pretoria, 2007. / African Languages / MA / unrestricted

Aim: The aim of this study was to explore the concurrent validity between Pain Limitation List (PLL) and Functional Disability Inventory (FDI), the association between PLL and age and FDI and age, the difference between gender in PLL and FDI and possible floor or roof effects in the two tests. Method: The study was a cross-sectional study and had a descriptive correlational and comparative design. 86 children with chronic pain participated in the study. Result: The study showed that PLL had a concurrent validity with FDI (r=-0,740), p<0,001). There was a weak correlation between FDI and age (r=0,249, p<0,021) but PLL did not have a correlation with age and there was no difference between gender in PLL or in FDI. Also, there was no floor or roof effect for the two tests but it seems that PLL is slightly more sensitive for children and adolescents with less pain-related disability. Conclusion: according to this study, PLL has a concurrent validity. But to be able to use PLL as a reliable instrument, more studies who explore reliability and other types of validity is needed. / Syfte: Syftet för denna studie var att undersöka samstämmig validitet mellan the Pain Limitation List (PLL) och the Functional Disability Inventory (FD), samvariationen mellan ålder och PLL och ålder och FDI, skillnad mellan kön för PLL och FDI samt eventuella takeller golveffekter för de två testen. Metod: Studien var en tvärsnittsstudie och hade en beskrivande korrelerande och jämförande design. 86 barn med långvarig smärta deltog i studien. Resultat: Studien visade att PLL har en samstämmig validitet med FDI (r= -0,740, p<0,001), att det var en svag samvariation mellan FDI och ålder (r=0,249, p<0,021), ingen samvariation mellan PLL och ålder samt att det inte förelåg någon skillnad mellan könen i FDI och i PLL. Det fanns heller ingen tak- eller golveffekt för de två testen men det verkar som att PLL är något mer känslig för barn och ungdomar med mindre smärtrelaterad aktivitetsbegränsning. Konklusion: Enligt denna studie har PLL samstämmig validitet. Men för att kunna använda PLL som ett pålitligt instrument behöver fler studier undersöka instrumentets reliabilitet och andra typer av validitet.

The purpose of this study was to determine the general patterns of response by tree species common to Everglades Tree Islands (TI) when conditions limiting optimal growth are improved by fertilization on LILA tree islands. Experiments were conducted on constructed TI in the Loxahatchee Impoundment Landscape Assessment (LILA). Thirty-six trees of two species, Annona glabra and Chrysobalanus icaco, were randomly selected on each of four tree islands. Two tree islands have peat overlying limestone cores and two are composed solely of peat. Each tree was treated with one of three nutrient regimes: +N, +P, or Control (no addition of nutrients). A highly significant P-treatment effect on growth rate, leaf TP and leaf N:P ratio were observed in both species in comparison to Control trees. In contrast, neither of the species responded to N-fertilization. The mass N:P ratios and δ13C in P-treated trees exhibited a positive correlation with Relative Elevation (RE) for both species. These findings suggested that the tree growth at LILA tree islands was P-limited on both substrates (limestone and peat).

Denitrification removes large amounts of reactive nitrogen (N) from ecosystems via reduction of nitrate to dinitrogen gas. In aquatic ecosystems, the influences of terrestrial and aquatic sources of organic matter (OM) on denitrification are potentially complex. Terrestrially-derived OM is often less labile than autochthonous OM; it may inhibit denitrification directly via biochemical mechanisms; and it may indirectly inhibit denitrification by reducing light availability to—and thus OM exudation by—aquatic primary producers. Using a natural dissolved OM gradient among rivers of northern Florida, I investigated these mechanisms using laboratory denitrification assays subjected to factorial amendments of NO3- and dextrose, humic acid dosing, and cross-incubations of sediments and water. Results indicated that C-limitation increased with DOC concentrations, consistent with the indirect inhibition hypothesis. Blackwater neither depressed nor stimulated denitrification rates, indicating that this DOC neither directly inhibits nor acts as a usable OM source for denitrifiers.

Les coccolithophoridés sont des microalgues unicellulaires calcifiantes qui jouent un rôle important dans le cycle du carbone océanique via leurs processus cellulaires de photosynthèse (puits de CO2) et de calcification (source de CO2). L'espèce la plus abondante dans l'océan moderne est l'espèce cosmopolite Emiliania huxleyi, qui est caractérisée par une forte tolérance à de larges gammes de température, d'irradiance et de concentrations en nutriments. La distribution d'E. huxleyi qui s'étend des régions subarctiques aux régions subéquatoriales et des eaux eutrophes aux eaux oligotrophes en fait l'espèce de coccolithophoridés la plus étudiée jusqu'à présent. Cependant, sa réponse physiologique à des conditions environnementales clés comme la co-limitation en lumière et en nutriments reste peu étudiée, que ce soit in situ, où ces conditions sont rencontrées dans les niches profondes de coccolithophoridés des gyres oligotrophes, ou en laboratoire. J'ai ainsi réalisé des expériences de culture et une approche de modélisation numérique afin d'étudier la réponse physiologique d'E. huxleyi en conditions de limitation en nutriments et en lumière, avec pour objectif d'améliorer notre compréhension du contrôle environnemental des niches profondes de coccolithophoridés. / Coccolithophores are unicellular calcifying marine algae that play an important role in the oceanic carbon cycle via their cellular processes of photosynthesis (a CO2 sink) and calcification (a CO2 source). The most abundant coccolithophore species in the modern ocean is the cosmopolitan species Emiliania huxleyi that is characterized by a strong tolerance to a wide range of light, nutrient and temperature conditions. The distribution of Emiliania huxleyi from subarctic to subequatorial regions and from eutrophic to oligotrophic waters makes it the most widely studied coccolithophore species. However, its physiologic response under key environmental conditions such as the co-limitation of light and nutrients remains poorly investigated, both in the laboratory and in the field, such as in deep niches of coccolithophores in oceanic gyres. I conducted laboratory culture and numerical modeling experiments to understand the controls on the physiology of Emiliania huxleyi in low-nutrient and low-light conditions, with the aim of better understanding environmental controls on deep ecological niches of coccolithophores.

Studies assessing the evolution of plant traits frequently focus on pollinators as the primary drivers of floral trait evolution. However, herbivores can also play a role, and, under some circumstances, may even impose stronger selection on floral display than pollinators. This is especially true when the traits under selection are linked to anti-herbivore defense. Here I describe a study in which I quantified the relative role of herbivores and pollinators in selection for floral traits in the North American invasive plant, purple loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria). Because L. salicaria responds to leaf-chewing herbivores by producing compensatory tissue growth, and this in turn alters the architecture of the floral display, I further tested whether herbivores can indirectly modify pollinator-mediated selection through this pathway. Using a split-plot design, I measured pollen limitation and reproductive output in experimentally manipulated plants in the presence and absence of simulated herbivore damage in order to quantify the effects of damage and pollination on natural selection for floral display. My results showed that damage significantly increased direct selection (beta-i) for earlier flowering time and decreased selection on the number of inflorescences, even more than pollinators did. Because damage did not modify pollinator-mediated selection for floral display traits, the selection imposed by herbivores is likely only having direct effects. My findings demonstrate the importance of considering multiple agents of selection and their potential interactions when quantifying natural selection in a study system. In particular, it is important to consider that the agent most frequently studied may not be imposing the brunt of selection.

This diploma thesis provides an analysis of the Anti-Tax Avoidance Package (ATAP) proposed by European Union. This package was adopted in relation to OECD's Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) project. It consists of measures that aim to reduce the level of tax avoidance caused mainly by base erosion and profit shifting within multinational corporations. The theoretical part of the thesis consists of brief introduction of the BEPS project, followed by detailed analysis of the EU package. The practical part tends to analyse the possible impact of the package implementation in Czech Republic on selected measure, tax limitation of paid interests deductibility. Real data of three Czech companies were used for the analysis. The author used the method of a case study to compare tax impacts of current thin capitalisation rule application against the proposed rule limiting the interest deductibility up to 30 % of EBITDA.