No description available.

This study examines the relationship between baseflow and urbanization over time with the help of spatial analysis using Geographic Information Systems. The urbanization parameters used were population and urban land use. Five urban and three non-urban streams were chosen for analysis in the state of Georgia. Four percentile baseflows for each stream were identified and analyzed for trends over time. A correlation analysis was also run to determine how baseflow varies as a function of urbanization. According to the trend analysis, the baseflows over time were considered stable or had no statistically significant trend. The correlation analysis between baseflow and urbanization revealed some scattered relationships though a general conclusion cannot be drawn. The simplicity of the study may have contributed to not capturing all of the baseflow changes with the urbanization parameters.

The thesis "Czech football clubs income analysis" is devoted to the detailed analysis of an unflattering financial situation of Czech first league clubs. The goal is identification the causes of football companies losses and introduction of the possible solutions of this problem. The application part of thesis is divided into two main parts. A quantitative part is devoted to the financial analysis of clubs and to the detailed analysis of their incomes in a long term horizon, starting since the season of 2003/04. A qualitative part is looking for a solution of a negative club management, using an already-proven models in other European countries.

The focus of this dissertation is on the exploration of interior environments subjected to constant change. This study will investigate the ability of interior design to relate and respond to internal and external influences in a way which represents the interior environment as one of spatial performance and experience. Responsive interior design is investigated in terms of change over time relative to temporal conditions through the adaptive re-use of the temporary structure Les Grandes Tables de l’île Seguin by 1024 Architecture as a travelling crafts exhibit and design development centre for Design Network Africa, a craft development initiative. The host building Les Grandes Tables de l’île Seguin will be altered from a single use, static interior environment to an active interior which is able to accommodate craft exhibitions, workshops and design studios as functions in sequential phases. The intention is to explore ‘timeliness’ in interior design and establish an enduring identity for the altered host building, which incorporates constantly changing, temporary identities influenced by varied locations, occupants and programmes. The host building, consisting of a structural framework and interior infill, provides the opportunity for exploration of an adaptable interior through conceptualising the environment as one of a permanent, enduring framework and specific, temporary infill. For the purpose of the study the project is investigated in one location, Sunnyside, Pretoria, with two different occupants from the Design Network Africa client body, and multiple phases portraying the different functions. / Dissertation (MInt(Prof))--University of Pretoria, 2014. / Architecture / MInt(Prof) / Unrestricted

Thesis advisor: Ina V.S. Mullis / This dissertation describes the foundation for maintaining TIMSS’ 20 year trend measurements with the introduction of a new computer- and tablet-based mode of assessment delivery—eTIMSS. Because of the potential for mode effects on the psychometric behavior of the trend items that TIMSS relies on to maintain comparable scores between subsequent assessment cycles, development efforts for TIMSS 2019 began over three years in advance. This dissertation documents the development of eTIMSS over this period and features the methodology and results of the eTIMSS Pilot / Item Equivalence Study. The study was conducted in 25 countries and employed a within-subjects, counterbalanced design to determine the effect of the mode of administration on the trend items. Further analysis examined score-level mode effects in relation to students’ socioeconomic status, gender, and self-efficacy for using digital devices. Strategies are discussed for mitigating threats of construct irrelevant variance on students’ eTIMSS performance. The analysis by student subgroups, similar item discriminations, high cross-mode correlations, and equivalent rankings of country means provide support for the equivalence of the mathematics and science constructs between paperTIMSS and eTIMSS. However, the results revealed an overall mode effect on the TIMSS trend items, where items were more difficult for students in digital formats compared to paper. The effect was larger in mathematics than science. An approach is needed to account for the mode effects in maintaining trend measurements from previous cycles to TIMSS 2019. Each eTIMSS 2019 trend country will administer the paper trend booklets to an additional nationally representative bridge sample of students, and a common population equating approach will ensure the link between paperTIMSS and eTIMSS scores. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2018. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Educational Research, Measurement and Evaluation.

The Life Cycle Management System (LMS) aims at supporting decision-makers and engineers in their efforts to achieve a more optimised proactive life cycle design and maintenance management strategy. LMS is an open and integrative system, which has to be adapted and developed in order to meet the needs and requirements of users. This process should be geared to and governed by the clients. The Architecture, Engineering, Construction and Facility Management (AEC/FM) sector includes all varieties of clients and stakeholders, all of them having different qualifications, possibilities and requirements for implementing, or increasing the feature of predictive maintenance management and optimised proactive strategies. The possibilities of adopting predictive maintenance management are dependent on the availability of performance-over-time and service life forecasting models and methods. The relevance of these models and methods depends on the required level of detailing. Furthermore, the use of the models and methods depends on the availability of reliable input data, such as material data and environmental exposure/in-use condition data. The thesis aims at analysing the possibilities of implementing predictivity in different fields of applications and at evaluating relevant tools facilitating management of information associated with predictive maintenance management systems. The thesis includes studies of three different clients and fields of application; Swedish Road Administration – management of bridges, Locum AB – management of hospital buildings, and Gävle Energi AB – management of district heating distribution systems. While the Swedish Road Administration is responsible to ensure an economically efficient, sustainable transport system for the society throughout the country, Locum AB and Gävle Energi AB compete on an "open" market. The Swedish Road Administration have gathered information about their bridges since 1944, for what reason their bridge management system includes a large amount of valuable data for performance-over- time analyses and service life forecasting. Locum AB has recently begun to systematically gather condition data, why the amount of data is limited. However, since the performance of buildings generally is well known, it is assumed that possibilities of implementing predictive maintenance management tools are rather good. Since district heating pipes are buried into the ground, it is difficult to assess the condition. Therefore, data for service life estimation rely mainly on damage reports. Environmental exposure data on macro or meso level can be obtained from meteorological and environmental institutes, thus making it possible to apply available dose-response and damage functions. Environmental exposure data on a micro level are lacking. Guidelines, methods and tools for environmental measuring and modelling on a micro level are therefore strongly needed. Efficient management of information plays an important role in predictive life cycle management systems. The ongoing development and implementation of open Building Information Model (BIM) tools in the AEC/FM sector is a promising progress of making the information management more cost effective and valuable, especially when open BIM solutions being fully integrated into the AEC/FM business. Geographical Information Systems (GIS) are tools for efficient handling of spatial positioned information. GIS provide possibilities of processing and presenting, e.g., environmental exposure data and environmental risk factors. / QC 20100716

This study forms part of a larger SANPAD project focusing on a comprehensive community-based HIV stigma reduction and wellness enhancement intervention, responding to the continuous burden of HIV stigma on both national and international levels and the paucity of research in sustainable HIV stigma reduction interventions. HIV stigma is considered all over the world as a complex, far-reaching and powerful phenomenon that continues to affect people living with HIV (PLWH) and also people living close to them (PLC). The impact of stigma has far reaching effects on aspects like the wellness of PLWH and PLC, but also on the health behaviour of PLWH. There is paucity in research on the lasting effect of HIV stigma reduction interventions, intervention within a community context, as well as in urban and rural settings. The research objectives of this study were to test the change-over-time in HIV stigma experiences of PLWH and stigmatization by PLC with regard to the psychosocial well-being of PLWH and PLC, and with regard to health behaviour of PLWH in both urban and rural settings, following a comprehensive community-based HIV stigma reduction intervention. A quantitative experimental single system research design with a pre-test and repetitive post-tests were conducted by means of purposive voluntary sampling for PLWH and snowball sampling for PLC. The intervention was based on three tenets, namely a) the sharing of information on HIV stigma and coping with it, b) the equalisation of relationships between PLWH and PLC through increased interaction and contact, and c) empowerment of both PLWH and PLC towards leadership in HIV stigma reduction through practical knowledge and experiences of planning and implementing HIV stigma reduction projects in their own communities. Several valid and reliable scales and instruments were used to measure effect. The initial analysis indicated no statistically significant difference between stigma experiences of PLWH and stigmatisation by PLC from urban and rural settings, or between psychosocial well-being of PLWH and PLC or health behaviour of PLWH from the two different settings. The urban-rural data was therefore pooled for the further analysis. The similarity of data could possibly be ascribed to the fact that most of the participants were Setswana-speaking and living in the North West Province. Stigma experiences as well as stigmatisation could be decreased and the decrease could be sustained over a year through the comprehensive community-based HIV stigma reduction intervention. The findings also showed that changes-over-time in psychosocial well-being following the intervention were better sustained by the PLC than the PLWH. Results furthermore indicated that HIV stigma reduction positively influenced the health behaviour of the PLWH. Recommendations for further HIV stigma reduction and wellness enhancement include the continued application of this comprehensive community-based HIV stigma reduction and wellness enhancement intervention, with its supporting tenets, content and methodology. This intervention should, however, be expanded into urban and rural communities, and to different cultures as well. It would be meaningful to build HIV stigma reduction community-based networks. More effort could be made to specifically include a workshop for PLWH on psychosocial well-being as well. HIV stigma interventions should be an indisputable part of health behaviour change workshops for PLWH. / PhD (Nursing), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014

This study forms part of a larger SANPAD project focusing on a comprehensive community-based HIV stigma reduction and wellness enhancement intervention, responding to the continuous burden of HIV stigma on both national and international levels and the paucity of research in sustainable HIV stigma reduction interventions. HIV stigma is considered all over the world as a complex, far-reaching and powerful phenomenon that continues to affect people living with HIV (PLWH) and also people living close to them (PLC). The impact of stigma has far reaching effects on aspects like the wellness of PLWH and PLC, but also on the health behaviour of PLWH. There is paucity in research on the lasting effect of HIV stigma reduction interventions, intervention within a community context, as well as in urban and rural settings. The research objectives of this study were to test the change-over-time in HIV stigma experiences of PLWH and stigmatization by PLC with regard to the psychosocial well-being of PLWH and PLC, and with regard to health behaviour of PLWH in both urban and rural settings, following a comprehensive community-based HIV stigma reduction intervention. A quantitative experimental single system research design with a pre-test and repetitive post-tests were conducted by means of purposive voluntary sampling for PLWH and snowball sampling for PLC. The intervention was based on three tenets, namely a) the sharing of information on HIV stigma and coping with it, b) the equalisation of relationships between PLWH and PLC through increased interaction and contact, and c) empowerment of both PLWH and PLC towards leadership in HIV stigma reduction through practical knowledge and experiences of planning and implementing HIV stigma reduction projects in their own communities. Several valid and reliable scales and instruments were used to measure effect. The initial analysis indicated no statistically significant difference between stigma experiences of PLWH and stigmatisation by PLC from urban and rural settings, or between psychosocial well-being of PLWH and PLC or health behaviour of PLWH from the two different settings. The urban-rural data was therefore pooled for the further analysis. The similarity of data could possibly be ascribed to the fact that most of the participants were Setswana-speaking and living in the North West Province. Stigma experiences as well as stigmatisation could be decreased and the decrease could be sustained over a year through the comprehensive community-based HIV stigma reduction intervention. The findings also showed that changes-over-time in psychosocial well-being following the intervention were better sustained by the PLC than the PLWH. Results furthermore indicated that HIV stigma reduction positively influenced the health behaviour of the PLWH. Recommendations for further HIV stigma reduction and wellness enhancement include the continued application of this comprehensive community-based HIV stigma reduction and wellness enhancement intervention, with its supporting tenets, content and methodology. This intervention should, however, be expanded into urban and rural communities, and to different cultures as well. It would be meaningful to build HIV stigma reduction community-based networks. More effort could be made to specifically include a workshop for PLWH on psychosocial well-being as well. HIV stigma interventions should be an indisputable part of health behaviour change workshops for PLWH. / PhD (Nursing), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014

Eliminative materialism is a view that has been sparsely acknowledged and often overlooked when it comes to providing us with a criterion of what it takes for you and me to persist over time. This owes much to its counterintuitive belief in the non-existence of folk-psychological notions, such as persons. Against a backdrop of philosophical and scientific inquiry, this paper amounts to providing such a criterion in the form of f-organisms, taking a different route based on emergent descriptions, instead of conventional reductive explanations. The temporal plasticity (change over time) of such f-organisms display stable persistence conditions despite their constant state of reconstruction. What informs the question of identity in such a paradigm is dealt with accordingly, and the notion of the self is put in a context in which it can no longer be said to be the self we are familiar with – a context in which the center fails to hold. The imperative question for any of such criteria will be to accommodate the concept of identity as unconstrained and far away from uncertainty as possible. The main theme will thus be to reassess the general notion of diachronic identity to include our identity over time, and make explicit the various implications for such a view.

No description available.