Thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree Master of Technology: Design in the Faculty of Informatics and Design at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology 2013 / As healthcare is such a widespread issue in South Africa, this research focuses on non-profit organisations in the health sector. Non-profit organisations take on much of the work that the government cannot deliver with respect to the overall wellbeing of patients at hospitals, in specialised care, in basic healthcare, and most significantly, in areas where private healthcare is unaffordable. This study investigates online marketing, fundraising activities and strategies of non-profit organisations in Cape Town’s health sector. It illustrates the growing popularity of these channels, and argues that many non-profit organisations are not using online marketing tools effectively to raise the funds and support they need. Two longstanding non-profit organisations based at the Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital, are the subject of the study, as this hospital is a prime example of how a government-run institution relies on the support of effective non-profit organisations. The conceptual framework required extensive reviews of the existing literature on the South African non-profit sector, the health sector and the role of non-profit organisations in these sectors. Furthermore, it reviewed successful marketing practices for non-profit organisations, including appropriate online marketing and fundraising strategies. A qualitative and quantitative research approach was employed, using semi-structured interviews and an online survey of twenty-seven health sector non-profit organisations. Key people in the non-profit health sector, the non-profit communication design sector and the corporate online marketing sector were interviewed. The online survey was conducted to gain a clear insight into the current online marketing practices and activities of Cape Town based health sector non-profit organisations. Grounded theory was used as an analytical tool in this research where themes emerge and theory is constructed based on insights and knowledge gained during the research. The results reveal that many non-profit organisations in the Cape Town health sector do not seem aware of the benefits of implementing an online marketing and fundraising strategy. This study concludes that online marketing and fundraising is vital for a non-profit organisation’s success. It is recommended that all members of non-profit organisations learn as much as they can about the importance of online marketing, as well as the importance of having a solid strategy. A unique framework for branding, strategy, online marketing and fundraising is proposed as a solution to the research problem, and further recommendations include the design of a textbook or eBook and an online platform connecting non-profit organisations in the health sector in South Africa.

Thesis submitted in fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Magister of Technology: Design in the Faculty of Informatics and Design at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology 2013 / This study investigates the perspective of Capetonian professional photographers on issues of integrity, regarding the impact of digital imaging technology. Key objectives are to establish how the concept of photographic integrity manifests itself throughout the history of the documentary genre, prior and subsequent to the introduction of digital imaging technology; to ascertain the extent to which the Capetonian professional photographer uses digital imaging technology compared to film technology; to discover how Capetonian professional photographers perceive various concepts related to integrity in a documentary photograph; to identify what Capetonian professional photographers regard as acceptable digital editing to the photojournalistic documentary photograph; to ascertain whether Capetonian professional photographers believe that digital imaging technology impacted on the integrity of the documentary photograph; and finally, to discern whether Capetonian professional photographers who have practiced professional photojournalism see the need for a national regulating body, which clearly makes known what acceptable picture taking (in terms of content, e.g. staging of a photograph) and digital editing entails, for the South African photojournalist. The rationale for this study is that we exist in an era where we are faced with a digital revolution which transforms perceptions of integrity and it is essential to ascertain how technology influences the perceptions of the very professionals who produce documentary photography images. The literature review evolves a context for this study. This empirical study’s data collection and analyses has a mixed-method design. The survey’s instrument of data collection is a questionnaire, which captured quantitative data and with half of one question captures qualitative data. I analysed quantitative data with the help of SPSS and I analysed qualitative data much akin to a case study. The statistical test used to analyse quantitative data is a chi-square test and there are 66 participants in the study. I found that a breach of integrity, for instance manipulation, was always possible in the era prior to the introduction of digital imaging technology. Now it is only done faster, more thorough and more people have access to editing technology. Many who lack moral fiber are tempted now, more than ever, to illicitly manipulate. Capetonian professional photographer’s experience in digital image creation and editing technology outweighs the equivalent in the film medium. Digital camera usage takes precedence over film cameras. An example of a perception of a concept related to integrity in documentary photography is the sub-group which has practiced professional photojournalism insisted (73.5% of them strongly agreed) that it is possible to be creative and truthful at the same time in documentary photography. With regard to what acceptable editing entails, for cropping respondents favoured slight cropping; for dodging and burning in respondents favoured very light dodging and burning in; for pasting in respondents favoured no pasting in is acceptable; and for removing of objects respondents favoured no removing of objects. The Capetonian professional photographer believes that digital imaging technology has impacted on the integrity of the documentary photograph. For instance, the study has measured and proved that a majority of Capetonian professional photographers believe that a documentary essay taken in film and processed in the traditional darkroom feels more consistently trustworthy than its digital equivalent. This study has shown that there is a need for a body that clearly makes known what acceptable picture taking and digital editing entails for the professional photojournalistic photographer in South Africa.

Thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for degree Master of Technology: Graphic Design In the Faculty of Informatics and Design At the Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2012 / The current studio based approach in design education is not enough to keep the “new age” design students’ attention and a blended learning environment is needed to facilitate student engagement. Multiple learning preferences exist within the design classroom and design educators must consider this when designing a curriculum. The research asked what the considerations were when designing the online component of a blended learning environment to enhance the learning experience of and engage design students? The areas of investigation included: • The learning preferences in a specific group of graphic design students to see if there are any predominant preferences, • Whether the web-based learning environment enriched the learning experience and whether students gained understanding of the dynamics of the intervention • Whether there were links between learning preferences, online performance and in-class performance and how we could use these links to design blended learning materials that: o Incorporate collaborative problem solving (Vygotsky, 1978) o Encourage the building of design knowledge (Schon and Wiggins 1992) o Help students move from the periphery of the community of practice to the core (Wenger 1998) o Simulate the world of work (Jonassen et. Al 1998) o Consider the individual learning preferences of students and engages them on multiple levels (Cazden et al 1996) This research concluded that a blended learning environment is necessary in order for design education to move forward and be inclusive. The new generation design curriculum needs to stimulate at many different levels using multiple ways and media. This multimodal stance in design education will afford students the opportunity to become reflective knowledge builders who are able to solve problems collaboratively and transfer existing knowledge to new contexts.

DISSERTATION Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree MAGISTER TECHNOLOGIAE in INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY in the FACULTY OF BUSINESS INFORMATICS at the CAPE PENINSULA UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY 2006 / Research has shown that most website developers first build a website and only later focus on the ‘searchability’ and ‘visibility’ of the website. Companies spend large amounts of money on the development of a website which sadly cannot be indexed by search engines, is rejected by directory editors and which is furthermore invisible to crawlers. The primary objective of this dissertation is to compare and report on the impact of text-based versus graphic-based hyperlinks on website visibility. The method employed in the research was to develop two e-Commerce based websites with the same functionality, contents and keywords, however utilising different navigation schemes. The one website had all hyperlinks coded in text-phrases, while the other embedded the hyperlinks in graphics. Both websites were submitted to the same search engines at the same time. A period of eight months was allowed to ensure that the websites drew sufficient ‘hits’ to enable a comparative analysis to be conducted. Two industry standard website ranking programs were used to monitor how the two websites feature in the search engine rankings. Graphs as well as text-based reports produced by the ranking programs and the t-test were used to compare and analyse the results. Evidence based on the reviewed literature indicated that there are conflicting reports on the impact of text as opposed to graphic hyperlinks on website visibility. However, there is unsupported evidence that text hyperlinks achieved higher rankings than graphics-based hyperlinks. Although the ‘human website browsers’ find a certain amount of graphical aids conducive to easier navigation, ‘search engine crawlers’ find many of these same graphic aids impossible to index. The study supported that the graphic-based website ranked higher than the text-based website, which calls for a balance to be found between these two extremes. This balance would satisfy both ‘human website browsers’ and ‘search engine crawlers’. It is posited by this author that this dissertation provides website designers with the abilities to achieve such a balance. KEYWORDS: search engines, hyperlinks, text, graphics, visibility, navigation, ecommerce, design.

Thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Technology - Public Relations Management in the Faculty of Informatics and Design at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology 2013 / This dissertation is a qualitative analysis of the print media in South Africa. The print media as a form of mass communication, functions in various ways. One of the main functions is to supply news, information and entertainment through magazine content on worldwide aspects. Through various attention grabbing tactics magazine content is able to alter our ideology and thinking. However, through attractive and entertaining topics the public can be affected negatively by the content utilised in magazines, which affects the ideologies and thinking of readers. This effect is mainly evident in younger women and can in turn result in readers unwarily turning to the media to shape their identities. This study examines numerous South African women’s magazines with the main objective of determining the role of magazine content in the creation of young women’s identities in South Africa. These magazines were selected on the basis of their content, structure, target markets and their editor’s willingness to participate in the study. The ten magazines researched for the study are ‘O Magazine’, ‘Marie Claire’, ‘Cosmopolitan’, ‘True Love’, ‘Move’, ‘Glamour’, ‘Grazia’, ‘Fairlady’, ‘Seventeen’ and ‘You’ magazine. The study provides a literature review on various normative theories of the press and also discusses the psychological effects of numerous persuasion theories. Some of these theories are the Feminist Media theory, Identity theory, Agenda Setting theory and the Uses and Gratifications theory. The study also analyses selected magazine covers with the aim of determining the ways in which readers are influenced by magazine content. The methodology for the study used content analysis and surveys in the form of telephonic interviews and questionnaires which were conducted with the magazine editors. The main results of the study indicated that magazine content is primarily aimed at uplifting women and creating awareness within readers to embrace their personalities and attributes. Consequently readers are encouraged not to conform to the current trends in society thereby supporting the theoretical underpinning of the normative theories of the press.

Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Technology (M Tech) Cape Peninsula University of Technology 2014 / The increased demand for electricity has persuaded a number of countries world-wide to re-evaluate their strategies on energy production. These strategies largely focus on expanding the power generation capacity and adjustment of the amount of energy generated from various sources, in the light of global climate change, security of energy supply and fossil fuel price volatility (OECD report, 2010). In the United States of America (USA), for example, according to Ansolabehere & Konisky (2009), a projection of 40% rise in electricity demand is forecast over the next three decades presenting a need for diversifying the energy mix and expanding power generation capacity. The need for expanding energy supply is increasingly becoming more pronounced in a number of developing countries as well. The demand for energy warrants generation of energy from a variety of sources: coal-fired power plants, gas turbines, wind farms and nuclear power facilities. In order to transmit electricity efficiently these facilities need to be located near residential centres. The challenges associated with the construction of such centres are multi-fold. The option of nuclear power generation is a very divisive issue with as many opponents as supporters, and it has certainly been put back on the agenda in many countries including China, India and Russia, with over 250 nuclear projects in the pipeline globally. The construction of nuclear power plants is often masked with opposition from the public resulting in huge delays in completing the projects yet, nuclear energy is considered as one of the most comprehensive and cost-effective generating options which has the potential to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, meet the ever-increasing demand for electricity as well as making a crucial contribution to energy independence and security of supply.

Thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree Master of Technology: Public Relations Management in the Faculty of Informatics and Design at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology 2013 / This study investigated how the KickStart project, a flagship project of Kgalagadi Breweries Limited (KBL), has contributed to KBL’s reputation. The research sought to understand the aims of the project and to examine whether KickStart’s objectives are aligned to KBL goals. It also discusses stakeholder engagement and youth perceptions about the project, paying attention to the ways these factors seamlessly contribute to KBL’s reputation. The study was framed around the epistemological assumption that the corporate social responsibility (CSR) of major companies is essential for addressing social problems within local communities and for building mutual beneficial relationships. However, these companies often exclude communities in their CSR programmes, or the programmes fail to meet the needs and expectations of the communities. These factors often impact negatively on the image and reputation of the companies involved. This is a case-study of the KBL project-KickStart and uses a qualitative methodology to glean empirical data. The research methods include a questionnaire and interviews administered to 16 participants selected from KBL, Botswana National Youth Council, the Department of Youth, and youth who have received financial assistance from KickStart. A questionnaire were also administered to another youth group that received financial support under the Youth Development Fund, managed by the Department of Youth. An analysis of documents such as media reports and the Sechaba Breweries Holdings Limited past annual reports were made. Observations were also made during visits to youth businesses while the questionnaires. The literature on theories of CSR and the responsibilities of business provided the conceptual and theoretical framework for this research. This body of knowledge attempted to tease out the main responsibilities of business, namely economic, legal, ethical, and philanthropic responsibilities and bring them to bear on the main focus of the project. Stakeholder theory provided the main theoretical thrust for this study because it highlights the multiple relationships that a company has with business partners, employees, government, suppliers, consumers, and communities, and that they all have expectations in terms of how a company should behave, and dictate what acceptable behaviour is. The value of involving stakeholders in CSR programmes will enhance a company’s reputation if communities are happy with the programmes; they will buy the goods and services procured by the company and recommend the company to others, employees will be motivated, and the company’s productivity levels will increase thus increasing profit margins. Suppliers will be happy to do business with the company. Businesses, to fulfil their mandates, enter into several relationships with key stakeholders who are prioritised according to their power, legitimacy, and the urgency of the issues at hand. Key findings from the study are that the aim of the KickStart is to empower youth to manage sustainable projects and create employment to improve the well-being of communities. KickStart is a flagship CSR programme of KBL, opening opportunities for the youth through development of their entrepreneurship skills. Its objectives are to support the government to address unemployment among the youth and facilitate sustainable economic development. The youth perceive KickStart as a good project; it offers them financial support, business management training, and a year’s mentorship to sustain their businesses. They acknowledge the contribution KickStart makes to uplift their lives and identify with the KBL brand, which positively reflects KBL as a good company. Stakeholders are important; they must be involved in CSR programmes and their concerns and issues should be considered for the success of the programmes. KBL has limited its stakeholder engagement to internal stakeholders namely, the trustees and the project manager, and externally the media and judges. Collaboration with the youth organisations will give credibility to KickStart whose target audience is the youth. While acknowledging limited stakeholder engagement, the CSR implementation framework is recommended for KBL to streamline and prioritise key issues around the high unemployment among the youth, identify key players to be involved, and specify what their contributions should be in addressing the problem.

Thesis submitted in fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Master of Technology: Town and Regional Planning in the Faculty of Informatics and Design at the Cape Peninsula University Of Technology 2013 / Ghana has had a long history of mining especially with respect to gold, dating back to the Trans-Saharan Trade where gold precipitated civilisations and was a main commodity of trade among Europeans, merchants and ancient kingdoms. In the 21st century, globalisation coupled with increasing urbanisation has been driving demand for mineral resources and thus the resurging commodity booms. This increases foreign direct investment (FDI) in mining countries like Ghana resulting in not only growth in gross domestic product (GDP) but impacts that transcend macro-level and have direct and indirect impacts on communities in mining regions. The result is often that livelihoods are altered, spin-offs on the local economy emerge and the attendant settlement functions impact on the efficacy of existing mining and development planning and regulatory frameworks. Tarkwa is one of Ghana’s traditional gold mining towns and is the substantive context of the research. The main objectives of the research were:  To identify the existing key mining and development planning regulations, gaps present and how these have impacted on the efficacy of governments management practices in responding to consequences of mining-led development.  To analyse the urban household’s perceptions of mining impacts on livelihoods, business enterprises and livelihood coping strategies and mechanisms.  To assess the implications of these emerging planning and development frameworks and trends for the effective planning and development of mining towns in Ghana The highlights of the findings of the research in relation to the above objectives included:  The research revealed that urban households’ perception of mining on their livelihoods was mixed. One of the perceived negative impacts of mining that stuck out from overall responses was scarcity of land for purposes of farming and building.  With respect to coping with mining impacts, respondents largely employed a combination of assets to survive the mining environment. However, respondents’ dependence on human capital-that is, their ability to work and generate income underpinned all livelihoods capitals.  Over 96 percent of business enterprises, perceived purchasing power of people and related available or potential market as the most positive spin-off from mining yet. The informal economy was dominant in terms of business enterprise ownership with informal trading as the most principal form of business enterprise in the informal economy. The research findings have significant meaning within the broad context of mining-led urban development and with implications for theory, the development and planning for resource-driven settlements (practice) and for further research. For example, with regard to development and planning practice, some glaring challenges include the lack of a proper land management system, “superiority” of some institutions (mine houses)in dealing with the Town and Planning Department and Municipal Assembly, lack of effective collaboration between related institutions, gaps in planning legislations make planning near impossible in Tarkwa. The effect being that Tarkwa is growing (spatially to accommodate businesses and people coming in) but without an effective and responsive development planning system to effectively channel and coordinate this growth so that long term development is sustained. The study concludes and recommends that, there is need for a rethink in the way mining towns are planned for and developed in Ghana and should include: a review of the Minerals and Mining law (Act 703) to engender more rights and protection to the communities, a constant review of concession and other agreements to reflect a constantly changing world order, institutional collaboration for planning and development, and long term planning which synchronises spatial and economic planning to capture advantages of agglomeration in and around the Tarkwa mining region.

Thesis submitted in fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Master Technologiae: Biomedical Technology In the Faculty of Health and Wellness Sciences At the CAPE PENINSULA UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY 2014 / Over the past few decades, it has been shown that various critical diseases including heart disease, cancer, and diabetes associated with free radical generation and low endogenous antioxidant capacity, lead to oxidative stress and cell injury. In recent years, numerous studies have also reported that antioxidants, present in various beverages, vegetables and some foods have attracted a significant research interest due to their potential benefits to human health. However, epidemiological evidence shows a correlation between the intake of food rich in antioxidants and the reduced incidence of some mortality of chronic diseases, certain cancers and coronary heart disease. The aims of this study were to determine the effects of rooibos teas (fermented and unfermented) and green tea as a comparison on the biochemical parameters and the trace element absorption in a rat model. In this study 4 groups of experimental animals were used. All groups had ad libitum access to standard rat chow. Group A, the controls (11 animals), were fed with tap water; group B (11 animals) were fed with the liquid extract of fermented rooibos tea; group C (9 animals) were fed with the liquid extracts of unfermented rooibos and group D (9 animals) were fed with the liquid extract of green tea. All groups were fed for a period of 10 weeks. After the feeding period, the animals were sacrificed by euthanization with intraperitoneal injections of pentobarbital. Blood was sampled by cardiac puncture and centrifuged to obtain the serum. Some elemental analyses were performed with X-ray emission and backscattering. ICP-OES was used to determine the magnesium content. For X-ray emission, backscattering and ICP-OES analyses, 100 μL of each serum sample in a group were added to 2 mL freeze-drying tube. Of the combined specimen, 100 μL was used for the magnesium determination by ICP-OES. The remainder of the combined serum specimens for each group were freeze-dried at -80 ºC and then pressed into a pellet. The pellet was coated with carbon and analyzed using X-ray emission and backscattering. The elemental X-rays of P, S, Ca, Mn, Fe, Cu, Co, Zn, Mo, Ca and Se emitted were quantified to obtain the respective concentrations. Biochemical chemistry analyses were performed on each serum sample of each animal. The biochemical parameters tested for were total protein, albumin, globulin, total bilirubin, lactate dehydrogenase, blood urea nitrogen, uric acid, total cholesterol, aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, creatine phosphokinase and creatinine. The P concentration increased (p=0.028) when fed with the fermented rooibos tea liquid extract and S content increased when fed with the - the unfermented tea liquid extract (p=0.041). The concentrations of Cl and Cr were not affected (p>0.05) by any of tea liquid extracts. The unfermented rooibos tea liquid extract and the green tea indicated a decrease in the concentrations of Fe (p=0.031 and p=0.032, respectively) and Mn (p=0.041 and p=0.034, respectively). The concentrations of Fe, Zn and Cu in the serum increased when feeding with fermented rooibos tea liquid extract (p=0.024; p=0.030 and p=0.015, respectively) while Se, Mo and Mg concentrations were decreased by the liquid extracts of the fermented, unfermented and green teas (p=0.014, p=0.017 and p=0.011; p=0.024, p=0.026 and p=0.019; p=0.031, p=0.034 and p=0.025, respectively). Concerning the biochemical parameters, the total protein, globulin and the uric acid contents in the serum sample were slightly affected with the green tea extract (p=0.041, p=0.039 and p=0.047 respectively). The albumin, lactate dehydrogenase, blood urea nitrogen, the total cholesterol, the alanine aminotransferase and the aspartate aminotransferase concentrations were not affected (p>0) by any of the tea liquid extracts. However, the total bilirubin content was decreased (p=0.012) when feeding with the fermented rooibos group while the creatine phosphokinase and the creatinine contents were decreased (p=0.042 and p=0.033, respectively) when feeding with the unfermented rooibos tea liquid extract.

Thesis submitted in fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Master of Technology: Biomedical Technology In the Faculty of Health and Wellness Sciences At the Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2012 / Human and experimental animal studies have shown that biomarkers of oxidative damage are elevated in subjects with certain diseases or risk factors. Consequently, it is hypothesized that oxidative stress plays an important role in the pathogenesis of these diseases and that dietary intake of, or supplementation with antioxidants may be protective or be useful therapeutic targets. This study was designed to investigate the modulatory effect of Camellia sinensis (Chinese green tea), Aspalathus linearis (rooibos herbal tea) and the two commercial supplements on the antioxidant status of the liver and kidney of tert-butyl hydroperoxide (t-BHP)-induced oxidative stress male Wistar rats. Rooibos and green tea are beverages well-known for their antioxidant content. Based on the specific beverage consumed, sixty male Wistar rats were randomly assigned into six groups, i.e. fermented rooibos (FRT), unfermented rooibos (URT), Chinese green tea (CGT), rooibos supplement (RTS), Chinese green tea supplement (GTS) and control (CTL). The animals had free access to the respective beverages and standard diet for 10 weeks, while oxidative stress was induced during the last 2 weeks via intraperitoneal injection of 30 μM of t-BHP per 100 g body weight. Among all the beverage and/or supplement preparations, the commercial rooibos supplement had the highest total polyphenol content and antioxidant activity while fermented rooibos, as previously shown, had a lower antioxidant content and potency when compared to its unfermented counterpart. The ability of these beverages and/or supplements to modulate the antioxidant status in tissues was organ specific and varied according to the assessment method. When considering the liver, the intake of unfermented rooibos, Chinese green tea and the commercial rooibos supplement significantly (P<0.05) restored the t-BHP-induced reduction and increased the antioxidant status with regards to oxygen radical absorbance capacity and trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity (TEAC) levels. All the beverages and/or supplements also significantly (P<0.05) enhanced the renal antioxidant capacity as assessed by the TEAC assay. In what may be an indication of decreased oxidative stress, all the beverages were associated with a general decline in activities of the antioxidant enzymes which reached significant levels in renal superoxidase dismutase activity. Generally, the beverages did not impact significantly on lipid peroxidation (LPO) although there were differing trends in the two LPO markers assessed. While thiobarbituric acid reactive substances levels showed a declining trend in both tissues, the conjugated dienes were generally elevated. In conclusion, this study confirms Camellia sinensis and Aspalathus linearis as well as their two supplements as good sources of dietary antioxidants and results demonstrated that rooibos and green tea improved the liver and kidney antioxidant capacity of oxidative stress-induced rats. Their impact on antioxidant status in rats was shown to vary between organs and according to the method of assessment. Hence multi-method, multi-organ assessment may be a more informative approach in in vivo antioxidant studies.