Mercantile Law / LL. D.

The objective of this research was to examine how SADC states can attain goal 8 of the Millennium Development Goals set up by the international community through the United Nations in the year 2000, using trade under the mechanism envisaged by the World Trade Organization by the target date of 2015.

D.Comm. / The objective of this dissertation is to examine the Southern African Development Community (SADC) as the logical outflow of market forces compelling regions or groups of states to increase the dynamics of their economies by removing all barriers and obstacles to the free flow of goods and services between them in accordance with what has been happening elsewhere in the world. The concept of regional economic integration has come strongly forward since the early fifties in many areas of the world. Regional economic integration can be described as a process by which countries work together for the mutual benefit of all. The exchange of information and ideas may lead to better institutional liaison and capacities, more coordinated policy formulation and more rapid economic growth. Regional economic integration can take many forms. Regional economic blocs may be classified into five categories, namely: preferential trading arrangements, in which regional partners enjoy more favourable trading conditions, including lower tariffs, than other countries; free trade areas, entailing the abolition of tariffs and other barriers to trade in goods and services between participating countries; customs unions, which entail establishing free trade areas, common external tariffs and the formation of commercial policies towards third countries; common markets or economic communities, which permit the free movement not only of goods and services but also of capital and labour between participating countries; and economic unions, entailing full coordination of regulatory, fiscal, monetary and exchange rate policies within the confines of a common market. Economic integration may ultimately, as in the European Union, culminate in a monetary union, providing for a common currency.

M.Comm. / Since the late 1980's / early 1990's Southern Africa has undergone radical political change. Political democratisation and liberalisation impacted on the economies of individual states as well as on economic relations between states in the region. The democratisation process in South Africa in particular, changed the economic power configurations of the region. South Africa opted to become a member of the SADC in 1994 after its first "representative" elections. The country was initially confronted by unrealistic expectations among the other members in the region regarding the contribution that they expected to emanate from this move. South Africa on the other hand was confronted with the realities of its own reconstruction and development needs. The question that had to be answered however, is how economic integration could contribute to the growth and development of the Southern African region. Of particular interest is the role that external forces could/would have on the integration process. This is the central theme of this document.

Collm (52°N, 15°E) midlatitude mesosphere/lower thermosphere (MLT) zonal winds are investigated with respect to a possible influence of the Southern Oscillation (SO). It is found that in winter the prevailing wind is positively correlated with the Southern Oscillation index (SOI), which qualitatively fits to the response of the low-latitude stratosphere on the SO. In summer, however, there is a negative correlation between MLT zonal winds and SOI. A possible mechanism, which includes slightly enhanced planetary wave propagation to the MLT in summers of low SOI is discussed. / Windmessungen aus Collm (52°N, 15°E) wurden hinsichtlich eines möglichen Einflusses der Southern Oscillation (SO) in ihnen untersucht. Es zeigt sich, dass im Winter der mittlere Zonalwind positiv mit dem \"Southern Oscillation Index\" SOI korreliert ist, was qualitativ mit der Reaktion der Stratosphäre auf ENSO übereinstimmt. Im Sommer findet sich jedoch ein negativer Zusammenhang zwischen hochatmosphärischem Zonalwind und SOI. Ein möglicher Mechanismus, der die Ausbreitung planetarer Wellen beinhaltet, wird diskutiert.

The purpose of this paper is to give a historical account of the railroad systems in the southern states prior to 1860.

M.Comm. / This paper empirically examines the effect of financial development on growth in the SADC during the period 1993-2003. To perform this analysis, the study employed a single indicator of financial development, i.e. financial deepening and applied balanced panel model data using a suite of panel models: Ordinary Least Square (OLS), Least Square Dummy Variable (LSDV) and Random Effect Model (REM) econometric methodologies. The results of the study support the view that financial development positively affects economic growth both including and excluding South Africa. This finding suggests that the financial reforms launched in the 1990s can to a certain extent explain the rebound in the economic performance since then. However, further deepening of the financial sector through more financial liberalization in the SADC region will be an important instrument in stimulating investment through more savings and therefore more long-run economic growth.

School of Animal, Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, 2017 / Snakes have often been proposed as ideal model organisms for studying digestive physiology. This is due to their easily–measureable and extreme changes in their digestive tracts in response to feeding, when compared to other vertebrates. Some species display extreme physiology regulation in response to feeding, a system known as digestive down-regulation. This regulation allows them to down-regulate their digestive tracts during their long fasting periods, which allows them to save energy. In response to feeding, they up-regulate their digestive tracts to a functional level, resulting in a significant increase in the size of the digestive organs during digestion. These changes have been found to be most noticeable in certain ambush foraging snakes. In contrast, actively foraging snakes appear to not display as extreme changes in response to feeding and keep their digestive tracts in a constant state of readiness. However it is not known if this pattern exists in all species and previous methods of classifying the digestive physiology have proven to be expensive, difficult and time consuming. My study aimed to investigate if museum specimens could be used as a cheap and quick method of classifying the characteristics of the digestive physiology within a species. I measured the dimensions of several organs from museum specimens from 13 species of southern African snakes, as well as recorded the relative size of the meal and month of capture. I compared measurements between postprandial and fasting individuals from each species as well as between individuals from each species with the same feeding state to assess whether they were able to down-regulate their digestive systems when not digesting. While the different foraging strategies appeared to be linked to differences in organ morphology, the presence of down-regulation was not clear-cut. No significant differences in organ size between feeding states were found within each species, and very few significant differences were found between species. Few correlations with organ size to meal size or seasonality were found. This suggests that the museum specimens are not suitable for determining digestive physiology in snakes, probably due to the poor quality of the specimens. I therefore recommend the use of freshly obtained samples as a suitable comparison rather than the use of museum specimens. / MT2017

Thesis submitted to the Faculty of Science at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg in fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / The taxonomy of modern and fossil Hystricidae and the evolutionary history of the family has been reviewed, with particular reference to 203 undescribed South African specimens from the Transvaal australopithecine deposits and Cave of Hearths. After comparison with all contemporaneous fossil forms (only 10 of the 28 described fossil species seem valid) it was concluded that Xenohystrix crassidens Greenwood 1955, Hystrix makapanensis (Greenwood 1958) and H. africaeaustralis Peters 1852 are present at Hakapansgat Limeworks, whereas only the latter species is present at the remaining australopithecine sites, with the possible exception of a few tentatively referred specimens of H. makapanensis. There are insufficient grounds for erecting a distinct species for the fossil form of H. africaeaustralis present in the australopithecine deposits and the Cave of Hearths material is likewise referred to the modern species. The distribution and minimum numbers of individuals of porcupine species present in the different breccias of the five sites is detailed and a reconstruction of the skull and mandible of X. crassidens attempted. The environment, stratigraphy and potential ages of the source deposits is discussed; it is concluded that with the exception of Taung, the dates suggested by Partridge and Vrba agree with the limited evidence provided by the fossil Hystricidae. Numerous skull characters used in the diagnoses of new Hystrix were examined for variability within a single modern species (only 3 of the 77 extant species proved to be valid) and then tested for diagnostic significance by comparison with the remaining valid species. Special attention was paid to mandibular and dental characters, particularly the crown enamel pattern, but the only reliable diagnostic characters were found to be associated with the anterior part of the cranium, which is seldom preserved in fossil form. The sequence of tooth replacement, a method for identifying isolated teeth, methods for segregating specimens into growth stages, and a standard terminology have been outlined. A taphonomic study, attempting to determine the extent to which fossil porcupines may have been responsible for the accumulation of the Makapansgat Limeworks bone assemblage and for the manufacture of the bone tools described by Dart, was undertaken. Unlike the fossil assemblage porcupine bone accumulations are characterized by a high percentage of much-gnawed bones, a large average fragment size, a high proportion of intact shafts with the concomitant near-absence of bone flakes anci a low survival potential for the articular ends of all limb bones. Comparison showed that the damage done by porcupines differs from that evident on the corresponding skeletal elements from Makapansgat. It is concluded that fossil porcupines had very little to do with either the accumulation or fracture of the Makapansgat Limeworks bones. / Andrew Chakane 2018

All the Place You’ve Got is a collection of short stories inspired by and set in the author’s hometown of Warner Robins; Georgia. This is a work of fiction. Names, places, occurrences, and characters are either a product of the authors imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. The title is a partial quote of dialogue stated by Hazel Motes, the protagonist of Flannery O’Connor’s first novel Wise Blood. The full quote reads, “In yourself right now is all the place you’ve got.” This collection of stories was built as a direct antithetical response to O’Connor’s representation of dialogic salvation and visions of the divine, a central concern, stemming from dedicated Catholic belief, of her body of work. / Includes bibliography. / Thesis (M.F.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2014.. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection