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Wisteria and Other StoriesClayton, Michael 17 December 2011 (has links)
We are forever shaped by the worlds we live in. The following stories are musings on the importance of time and place and on the conflicts that arise for characters who are born into and who live with or rail against those forces. The stories are set in and around Laurel County, Georgia over a period of decades. They look at the people who are made there and the lessons they learn or fail to learn as they work to make their way there.
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Rendezvous: Stories and a NovellaFisher, Heath 15 December 2012 (has links)
People are often a product of their environment, and each of the characters in this collection is an example of that shaping effect. These stories take you to the southern plains–land of red dirt, Bluestem, and prairie wind. Themes like hope, loss, and the exploration of frontier appear throughout the collection. In each story the setting becomes a character, forcing us to recognize the importance of place in our lives.
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Water regime requirements and possible climate change effects on Fynbos Biome RestionaceaeAyuk, James January 2018 (has links)
Philosophiae Doctor - PhD / The Cape Floristic Region (CFR) of southern Africa is one of the world’s most unique
biodiversity hotspots. However, this biodiversity continues to be threatened by habitat loss
due to rapid urbanisation, agriculture and alien vegetation encroachment, and now, by future
groundwater extraction and climate change. Previous work had shown that soil moisture is
important in structuring wetland plant communities at fine-scale. What is not fully known,
however, is how the spatial distribution of species at a local scale is related to soil hydrology
and what the response in the future of species distributions will be to perturbations arising
from changes in climate or subsurface moisture in the future. The current research
investigated the water regime of the Restionaceae which is a key family in the Fynbos biome
and the implications of possible changes in soil hydrology caused by climate change in
communities within this region. The Restionaceae were particularly appropriate because
they are shallow rooted perennials with the ability to tolerate a wide range of water regimes
which allows them to successfully co-habit within mixed plant communities as segregated
clusters along fine-scale hydrologic gradients. Vegetation survey counts for the presence of
these species along with measurements of soil water table depth and moisture content data
generated from eight small-scale plots (50 x 50 m) were used to investigate the possible
hydrological niches and to envision the potential impacts of a substantial reduction in rainfall
and an increase in temperature as projected by Global Climate Models (GCMs) on the
structure of Restionaceae communities in seasonal wetlands by 2100. A comparative
analysis of the effects of two extreme Representative Concentration emission Pathways
(RCP2.6 and RCP8.5) on significant hydrological variables to plant water regimes was
carried out. The IPCC AR5 report describes the RCP8.5 emissions scenario as the likely
‘business as usual’ scenario where emissions continue to rise through the 21st century while
the RCP2.6 scenario assumes that emissions peak between 2010 and 2020 and
substantially subside thereafter.
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Southern Host Organizations: At the Forefront of Discussions on International VolunteerismFraser, Liana 31 July 2019 (has links)
Volunteers, governments, agencies and organizations from the North have too often
defined the benefits and limitations of international volunteer programs without incorporating the perspectives of the organizations they seek to help. In fact, scholars and practitioners have relied on Northern experiences to develop a critical analysis of this development practice. As the experiences of the South are often absent from the
conversations about international volunteerism, the goal of this thesis is to leverage the
voices and the stories of Southern hosts to further understand the impact of international volunteerism. The research draws on the experiences of host organizations in Uganda. The interviewed participants are Ugandans who have worked with international volunteers to address various development issues. A review of the existing literature on international volunteerism, combined with the field research, support the analysis of the benefits and limitations of international volunteerism from the perspectives of host organizations. It also enables an exploration of the agency of volunteerism and determines key principles to empower host organizations and their employees. Thus, the analysis establishes the following conclusions: international volunteers are valuable actors for Southern hosts; volunteer programs must consider the impact, the challenges and the recommendations identified by host organizations and their communities; international volunteers enable alternative voices to be heard; and volunteerism fosters cooperation and partnerships within the Global South.
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Tertiary education and capacity development in biotechnology in the Southern African Development Community (SADC)Mollett, Jean-Margaret 02 August 2013 (has links)
A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Science, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. Johannesburg, 2013 / Biotechnology as a science has become increasingly more important because of what it has to offer in various fields. These include the development of medicines for human and animal health; improved crop agriculture for enhancing food security; and environmental sustainability, all of which are of the utmost importance, not only globally, but also in southern Africa. Through a participatory and collaborative process of biotechnology capacity development at the Universities of Namibia (UNAM) and the Witwatersrand (WITS) in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region, it was identified that science curricula need to take cognizance of ‘worldview’ and the impact this may have in the context of teaching and learning. The purpose of this study was to investigate the potential barriers, or factors contributing, to learning in the two southern African universities in the context of the biotechnology curriculum. The study focused on how African epistemologies should be taken into consideration to facilitate capacity development in biotechnology at the tertiary education level, and in so doing, facilitate the development of a culturally sensitive, generic biotechnology curriculum which reaches across both literal and cultural borders and is relevant to these countries. The methodology of phenomenography was used in this case study and it resulted in two categories of description that formed the outcome space of the experience of biotechnology. These categories of description included a theoretical and practical perspective and a worldview perspective. This study has confirmed that worldview differences can lead to barriers to learning in biotechnology. Furthermore, theoretical and practical concepts included in the curriculum need to be carefully considered to make the curriculum responsive to African needs in order to provide for epistemological access, and so that the inherent cross-cultural experience between the learners’ life-world and biotechnology is recognized. The value of this study is affirmation that formulation, development, teaching and learning of a biotechnology curriculum should be regarded as an ‘African product’, where worldview and the theoretical and practical perspectives are carefully considered to provide a qualification to make a difference for capacity development in southern Africa. (339 words)
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Spatial and temporal variation in domestic biofuel consumption rates in southern AfricaTshikalanke, Rabelani Phillip 04 December 2008 (has links)
Biomass burning is an important source of trace gases such as CO2, CO and NO,
which influence regional and global atmospheric chemistry. Biomass is burnt in bush
fires as well as in households as an energy source. Even though there have been
numerous studies on domestic biofuel use in Africa over the last two decades there is
still a lack of consumption data on the continent. Biofuel is used in rural and urban
areas in Africa, but this project focuses on rural consumption. This project aims to
quantify biofuel use at representative rural sites around southern Africa and to
investigate the spatial and temporal variation. Three sites, one in the south, central and
northern parts were selected in each of seven countries (Botswana, Namibia, South
Africa, Mozambique, Zambia, Zimbabwe and Malawi). Consumption rates for all fuel
types were determined by weighing the fuel used throughout the day. The survey was
conducted during the months of May 2003 to February 2004. The forms of biofuel
used over southern Africa were found to be wood, charcoal and to a lesser extent
maize residue. To obtain a consumption estimate for the whole of rural southern
Africa consumption values for Swaziland and Lesotho from previously studies were
included. The total annual rural fuelwood consumption in southern Africa is estimated
to be 54.7 ± 3.5 Tg with an average daily consumption of 2.55 kg person-1 day-1
.
South Africa has the highest consumption of wood and Swaziland the least. While
fuelwood was used in all countries charcoal was only consumed in the rural areas of
South Africa, Zambia and Mozambique. Rural southern Africa is estimated to
consume 8.1 ± 0.8 Tg of charcoal per year. Malawi was the only country to consume
maize residue at an average rate of 0.51 ± 0.16 kg person-1 day-1, leading to a
consumption of 1.8 ± 0.1 Tg yr-1 over the whole region. The total rural biofuel
consumption over southern Africa was estimated to be 64.6 ± 3.6 Tg yr-1. Namibia
and South Africa had increased consumption rates between August and October, and
Zambia shows slightly higher consumptions between May and July. The other
countries show little monthly variation with no specific seasonal trends. There was a
slight positive relationship (r2 = 0.168; p = 0.065) between consumption rate and
altitude, but the data is very scattered due to monthly variation. Slopes are only shown
to be significant between January and March. Altitude is therefore not shown to be a
significant controlling factor of biofuel consumption in this study.
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Interactions between sexually transmitted infections and human immunodeficiency virus in Southern AfricaHtun, Ye 26 February 2007 (has links)
Student Number : 9813645X -
PhD thesis -
Faculty of Health Sciences / Epidemiological information on sexually transmitted infections (STIs) is necessary to assess the magnitude of the burden of infections, to identify vulnerable population groups, to mobilise resources for intervention activities and to monitor the impact of these activities. In addition, specific STI surveillance systems, such as studies on the relative prevalence of aetiological agents of STI syndromes and their antimicrobial susceptibility patterns, are aimed at improving patient care.
The studies included in this thesis were designed and implemented to improve our understanding of the epidemiology of STIs and HIV infection in southern Africa. In all the study populations, we observed that high level STI epidemics preceded the explosive spread of HIV infection among high-risk individuals. The studies reported here also demonstrate the importance of triangulating data collected from different recommended STI surveillance components, using a tiered surveillance approach.
The studies reported here also explored the bidirectional interactions of HIV and STIs. We observed that different STIs have shown different magnitudes of interaction with HIV infection. We found particularly strong interactions between genital herpes and HIV. At the individual level, HIV-seropositive patients with genital herpes were more frequently found to have atypical clinical presentations, delays in spontaneous healing, longer duration of HSV shedding and increased association with HIV shedding from ulcer and genital exudates. Mixed infections involving chancroid and genital herpes were found to be common, particularly in HIV-seropositive patients. The effectiveness of syndromic treatment targeting only bacterial causes of genital ulceration was significantly reduced due to persistent ulcerations as a result of co-infection with genital herpes. The successful treatment of herpes in men and women was found to be associated with a decline or cessation in HIV shedding into ulcer exudates or genital fluid. The studies have also shown that HIV plasma viral load is the main determinant for HIV shedding in both men and women presenting with STIs.
As was the case with HSV infection, there was a strong association between HIV and HPV infection in both men and women. A higher prevalence of HPV infection was found among HIV-seropositive patients in our study population and this may reflect the higher frequency of recurrences and/or longer duration of infection (i.e. persistency).
The studies also found that the biological false positive reactions in syphilis serology (i.e. RPR) are not a common occurrence in our HIV-seropositive study population. On the other hand, syphilis serology could be falsely negative in patients with PCR-confirmed primary syphilis who are co-infected with HIV and other aetiological agents causing GUD.
In conclusion, the findings of our studies have supported the bidirectional nature of interactions between conventional STIs and HIV infection in southern Africa.
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African equity markets integration: a case study of COMESAMundonde, Justice January 2017 (has links)
This thesis is submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Management in Finance and Investment.
Faculty of Commerce, Law and Management
2017 / The vicious quest for higher risk-adjusted returns through diversification of portfolios has seen an enormous amount of foreign capital flows into new emerging markets. However, the success of any strategy profoundly depends on the degrees of comovements among markets - higher comovements limit the possible gains from diversification. It has been argued that the very act of chasing after these diversification benefits, which mainly includes financial globalisation, has actually resulted in the erosion of the benefits themselves. In addition, aspects such as international trade, the establishment of trade blocs and liberalisation of market controls has further reduced these diversification benefits. In this study, the long-run cointegration, short-run causality and volatility linkages were examined using six COMESA markets indices. The goal of the study was to ascertain whether the establishment of this bloc has resulted in increased association among the member markets.
The astonishing rate at which globalisation has been growing at has drawn with it both opportunities and risks for investors. The Engle-Granger, the Johansen cointegration technique and the ARDL test methods revealed that the markets integrated in the long run, a result indicative of low diversification benefits across COMESA markets. However, the weak short-run causality from the causality tests revealed that despite the strong long-run relationship, an active investment strategy that seeks to diversify portfolios in the short-run could still yield enormous diversification benefits. A subsequent examination of the volatility linkages using generalised autoregressive conditional heteroscedasticity models revealed that uniformity of volatility structures in terms volatility persistence, leverage effects and risk premium across the markets, indicative of the high likelihood of volatility spill-overs across the markets. This implies that, despite the weak short-run causality, the benefits from short-run diversification can still be quite low due to the high likelihood of volatility spillovers across these markets. In light of these results, investors within the COMESA markets should rather focus on other markets outside the COMESA as diversification destinations. / MT2017
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Characterisation of hepatitis B virus DNA integrants in liver of southern African blacks with hepatocellular carcinomaMartins-Furness, Carla Suzana Pinto 15 February 2010 (has links)
Ph.D. thesis, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, 2009
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General circulation model simulations of Southern African regional climate.Joubert, Alec Michael. January 1994 (has links)
Dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Science,
University of the Witwatersraild, Johannesburg
for the Degree of Master of Science. / Six general circulation model simulations of present-day southern African
climate are assessed, Each of these models are early-generation equilibrium
climate models linked to simple mixed-slab oceans. Simulations of surface
air temperature over the subcontinent are sensitive to the grid-scale
parameterisation of convection in summer. At high latitudes, large simulation
errors are caused by errors in the specification of sea-ice albedo feedbacks.
Increased spatial resolution and the inclusion of a gravity wave drag term in
the momentum equations results in a markedly-improved simulated mean sea
level pressure distribution. Tho models successfully simulate the pattern of
rainfall seasonality over the Subcontinent, although grid-point simulation of
precipitation is unreliable. Treatment of convection, cloud radiative feedbacks
and the oceans by this generation of models is simplistic, and consequently
there is a large degree of uncertainty associated with predictions of future
climate under doubled-carbon dioxide conditions. For this reason, more
reliable estimates of future conditions will be achieved using only those
models which reproduce present climate most accurately. Early-generation
general circulation models suggest a warming of 4°C to 5°C for the southern
African region as a whole throughout the year. Over the subcontinent,
warming is expected to be least in the tropics, and greatest in the dry
subtropical regions in winter. Estimated changes in mean sea level pressure
indicate a southward shlft of all pressure systems, with a weakening of the
subtropical high pressure belt and mid-latitude westerlies. Little agreement
exists between the models concerning predictions of regional precipitation
change. However, broad scale changes in precipitation patterns are in
accordance with predicted circulation changes over the subcontinent.
Generally wetter conditions may be expected in the tropics throughout the
year and over the summer rainfall region during summer. Decreased winter
rainfall may be expected over the winter rainfall region of the south-western
Cape. However, estimated precipitation changes are grid-point specific and
therefore must riot be over-interpreted. The present climate validation has
resulted in more reliable estimates of future conditions for the southern
African region. This approach should be extended to recent slrnulations which
include more comprehensive treatment of important physical processes. / Andrew Chakane 2018
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