This study has been undertaken to explore and investigate the genre-theoretic properties of social commentary texts in isiXhosa' -- P. ii. / Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2005. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This study has been undertaken to explore and investigate the genre-theoretic properties of social commentary texts in isiXhosa. Five social commentary texts are chosen from the Bona magazine dealing with social problems, which the writers want the readers to focus on. The genre-based approach to the isiXhosa texts is employed as framework to analyse social commentary texts. The genre based approach involves the view of being explicit about the way language works to make meaning in social commentary texts. This means in this study that the engagement of students and language educators is important. The genre based approach represents a fundamentally new educational paradigm of language teaching in Curriculum 2005. The implications for teaching isiXhosa will be given consideration given that texts belong to different genres. Some of these implications of Freedom and Medway (1992) are discussed. The genre-theoretic approach is utilized in such a way to form a framework -__ for analysing discourse properties of the isiXhosa texts. The theory of text construction of Grabe and Kaplan (1996) deals with textlinguistic analysis and the ethnography of writing. The following questions are examined: who writes, what, where, why, to whom, how and for what purpose? These parameters of writing give an explicit framework for the analysis. Textlinguistic properties are explored and the isiXhosa texts will be analysed according to these properties. The five learning outcomes which include: listening, speaking, reading and viewing, writing and thinking and reasoning together with their assessment standards are into considered when dealing with Outcome Based language Education in relation to the genre approach to language teaching. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die studie is onderneem om 'n ondersoek te doen na die genre-teoretiese eienskappe van sosiale kommentaartekste in isiXhosa. Vyf sosiale kommentaartekste is gekies vanuit die BONA tydskrif wat handeloor sosiale probleme waarop die skrywers die lesers se aandag wil fokus. Die genre-gebaseerde benadering tot die isiXhosa tekste word gebruik as raamwerk om die sosiale kommentaar tekste te ontleed. Die genre-gebaseerde benadering behels die siening in hierdie studie dat daar eksplisiet gewees moet word oor die wyse waarop taal werk om betekenis te skep in sosiale kommentaar tekste. Die genre-gebaseerde benadering verteenwoordig 'n fundamenteelnuwe paradigma vir taalonderrig in Curriculum 2005. Die implikasies vir die onderrig van isiXhosa salondersoek word met inagneming dat tekste tot verskillende genres behoort. Van hierdie implikasies, soos ondersoek deur Freedom en Medway (1992) word bespreek. Die genre-teoretiese benadering word aangewend as 'n raamwerk vir die analise van die diskoerseienskappe van isiXhosa tekste. Die teorie van Grabe en Kaplan (1996) hou verband met tekslinguistiese analise en die etnografie van skryf. Dit ondersoek die volgende vrae: Wie skryf wat vir wie, waar, hoe en vir watter doel? Hierdie parameters van skryf gee 'n eksplisiete raamwerk vir die analise van die Xhosa tekste. Tekslinguistiese eienskappe van isiXhoda word ondersoek en die tekste word ontleed n.a.v. hierdie eienskappe. Die vyf leeruitkomste, luister, lees, skryf, praat en denkvaardighede en argumentasie, saam met hulle assesseringsstandaarde, van Kurrikulum 2005, word beskou in die lig van Uitkomsgebaseerde taalonderrig en die verband daarvan tot die genre-gebaseerde benadering.

Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2014. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Kaaps is one of the oldest dialects of Afrikaans that originated in the Cape Colony during the seventeenth century and is still used today by the working class Coloured community of the Cape Peninsula. Although it is mainly used as a spoken dialect, it is also applied in the literature. It is especially the use of Kaaps in the literature by Adam Small that helped to establish Kaaps in the Afrikaans literature and to bring about a newfound interest in this dialect. Kaaps has been undervalued for a long time due to the fact that it is associated with people of colour. For this reason Kaaps has been one of the most stigmatised dialects of Afrikaans. Today academics approach language variation differently by viewing all dialects of a language as equal. For this reason Kaaps is no longer seen as inferior to the standardized form of Afrikaans. Kaaps is also no longer restricted to a spoken dialect, but is also reflected in literature, theatre, music, television, radio and the printed media. The focus of this study is to investigate the use of Kaaps in the Afrikaans tabloid, Son. Son is the first Afrikaans tabloid that appeared in South Africa and is the first Afrikaans newspaper to make use of a dialect of Afrikaans that is not the standardized form, but an informal dialect that some refer to as Kaaps. The aim of the study is to investigate whether the language used in Son is representative of Kaaps and to what extent the written language correlates with the spoken Kaaps, as it is used by its speakers. This is done by a text analysis of Son-articles as well as a questionnaire that was filled in by Kaaps speaking teenagers. Furthermore the study investigated the correlation between language and identity and to what extent the respondents could identify with Kaaps as well as the language that is used in Son. The conclusion of this study is that the language used in Son cannot be viewed as a true representation of Kaaps, but rather as an informal Afrikaans that use elements of Kaaps. Although the language in Son cannot be seen as a true reflection of Kaaps, the study concludes that the teenage speakers of Kaaps can identify with the language that is used in Son. The study also found that the negative perception of Kaaps still exists among the users of Kaaps. Regardless of this negative perception, this research showed that Kaaps can be used effectively in the media and that the success of Son can be attributed to the language used in its newspaper. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Kaaps is een van die oudste variëteite van Afrikaans wat sedert die sewentiende eeu aan die Kaap gepraat is en vandag steeds die taal van die bruin werkersklas in die Kaapse Skiereiland is. Alhoewel dit hoofsaaklik as ʼn gesproke variëteit gebruik word, het dit ook in die letterkunde neerslag gevind. Dit is veral die gebruik daarvan in die werke van Adam Small wat Kaaps as ʼn literêre skryftaal gevestig het en ʼn nuwe belangstelling in dié variëteit van Afrikaans laat ontstaan het. As gevolg van die sterk assosiasie wat Kaaps met bruin mense het, is dit in die verlede geminag as ʼn minderwaardige taalvorm en kan Kaaps ook beskou word as een van die mees gestigmatiseerde variëteite van Afrikaans. Vandag word taalvariasie egter op ʼn gelykevlakbenadering deur akademici ondersoek en moet Kaaps beskou word as deel van Afrikaans en nie as ondergeskik aan die standaardvariëteit nie. Kaaps is ook nie meer beperk tot ʼn gesproke variëteit nie, maar vind neerslag in die letterkunde, teater, musiek, televisie, radio en die gedrukte media. Dit is dan juis die gebruik van Kaaps in die Afrikaanse poniekoerant, Son, wat in hierdie studie ondersoek word. Son is die eerste Afrikaanse poniekoerant wat in Suid-Afrika verskyn het en die eerste Afrikaanse koerant wat nie Standaardafrikaans gebruik nie, maar ʼn informele Afrikaans wat deur baie beskou word as Kaaps. Die doel van die studie is om die taalgebruik in Son te ondersoek as verteenwoordigend van Kaapse Afrikaans in ʼn poging om te bepaal tot watter mate die taalgebruik in Son ooreenstem met Kaaps, soos gebruik deur die sprekers van Kaaps. Dit word gedoen deur ʼn teksanalise van verskeie Son-artikels sowel as ʼn vraelys wat onder ʼn groep Kaapssprekende tieners afgeneem is. Die studie ondersoek ook die verband tussen taal en identiteit deur ʼn ondersoek na die mate waartoe die Kaapssprekende tienerleser identifiseer met Kaaps sowel as die taalgebruik in Son. Die bevindinge van hierdie studie is dat die taalgebruik in Son nie uitsluitlik Kaaps is nie, maar eerder ʼn informele Afrikaans met Kaapse elemente wat voorkom. Alhoewel die taalgebruik nie uitsluitlik Kaaps is nie, identifiseer die Kaapssprekende tienerleser wel met die taal wat in Son gebruik word. Ongeag die negatiewe persepsie wat die sprekers van Kaaps steeds van Kaaps het, toon die navorsing dat Kaaps wel effektief in die media gebruik kan word en dat die sukses van Son ook toegeskryf kan word aan die taal wat dit gebruik.

Energy efficiency in the building sector is crucial for many countries in succeeding with the completion of goals regarding energy efficiency. This study has investigated if there are any possible and reasonable solutions for Attefallshus in Sweden to meet the demands of the National Board of Housing regarding energy performance in houses. By building a model and calculating the annual energy usage for a specific Attefallshus, through simulations with the software IDA ICE and general input, an energy audit has been obtained. By comparing the specific energy usage for the studied case with the requirement the conclusion that it is possible for this small building to achieve a low enough energy usage to meet the demand. Solar cells are the key to accomplish the target of a low specific energy usage and by combining this with an effective system for heating it possible to get under the limit. The usage of domestic hot water is a very large part of the building specific energy usage and alone almost reaches the set bounds which is why it is of great importance to carefully design systems and to regain heat with effective ventilation. A large part of the energy usage in Attefallshus is related to the user why awareness and careful usage of energy is a significant factor in reaching a low specific energy usage.

Digitalisation is one of the greatest transformations in modern times and has impacted organisations, industry structures and the society as a whole. It provides new opportunities for fashion firms to interact with different stakeholders and has altered the way firms operate in foreign markets. Based on in-depth interviews with managers of Swedish high-end fashion firms, the aim of the study was to explore what impact digitalisation has on managers’ perceived psychic distance in their international operations. In particular, how managers use digital technologies to obtain and interpret information about supply and demand conditions in foreign markets was examined. The empirical findings indicate that digital technologies are essential for firms today, as they have increased information availability, enhanced information usage and improved interactive communication. This, in turn, leads to a reduction of managers’ perceived psychic distance.

Ο παγκόσμιος ιστός αποτελεί μία τεράστια αποθήκη πληροφοριών και αναπτύσσεται με τάχιστους ρυθμούς, ενώ η ανθρώπινη ικανότητα να εντοπίζει, να επεξεργάζεται και να αντιλαμβάνεται τις παρεχόμενες πληροφορίες παραμένει πεπερασμένη. Οι μηχανές αναζήτησης διευκολύνουν την αναζήτηση στον παγκόσμιο ιστό και έχουν γίνει αναπόσπαστο κομμάτι της καθημερινής ζωής των χρηστών του διαδικτύου. Οι χρήστες όμως χαρακτηρίζονται από διαφορετικές ανάγκες, προτιμήσεις, ιδιαιτερότητες και κατά την πλοήγησή τους μπορεί να χάσουν τον στόχο της αναζήτησής τους. Η προσωποποίηση στον παγκόσμιο ιστό, δηλαδή η εξατομίκευση των παρεχόμενων αποτελεσμάτων, αποτελεί μία πολλά υποσχόμενη προσέγγιση για την λύση του πληροφοριακού υπερφόρτου, παρέχοντας κατάλληλα προσαρμοσμένες εμπειρίες πλοήγησης. Στα πλαίσια αυτής της διπλωματικής εργασίας αναπτύχθηκε μία μεθοδολογία για την προσωποποίηση των αποτελεσμάτων μίας μηχανής αναζήτησης ώστε αυτά να ανταποκρίνονται στις προτιμήσεις των χρηστών και στα διαιτολογικά τους χαρακτηριστικά. Η μεθοδολογία αναπτύχθηκε σε δύο μέρη: στο εκτός σύνδεσης τμήμα και στο συνδεδεμένο. Στο πρώτο με την χρησιμοποίηση των αρχείων πρόσβασης μίας μηχανής αναζήτησης και των διαιτολογικών χαρακτηριστικών των χρηστών, έγινε εξαγωγή πληροφορίας για τις προτιμήσεις των τελευταίων. Στην συνέχεια με την χρήση μίας οντολογίας που κατασκευάστηκε για τα πλαίσια της διπλωματικής αυτής εργασίας, έγινε σημασιολογική κατηγοριοποίηση των επιλογών των χρηστών και κατασκευάστηκαν τα προφίλ που τους χαρακτηρίζουν. Έπειτα με την χρήση ενός αλγορίθμου ομαδοποίησης οι χρήστες κατηγοριοποιήθηκαν με βάση τα διαιτολογικά τους χαρακτηριστικά και τις επιλογές τους στην μηχανή αναζήτησης. Στο συνδεδεμένο τμήμα ο αλγόριθμος προσωποποίησης εκμεταλλευόμενος την σημασιολογική αντιστοίχιση των αποτελεσμάτων της μηχανής αναζήτησης και τις ομάδες των χρηστών που δημιουργήθηκαν στο εκτός σύνδεσης τμήμα αναδιοργανώνει τα παρεχόμενα από την μηχανή αναζήτησης αποτελέσματα. Η αναδιοργάνωση γίνεται προωθώντας στις υψηλότερες θέσεις των αποτελεσμάτων της μηχανής αναζήτησης τα αποτελέσματα που ταιριάζουν καλύτερα με τις προτιμήσεις και τα χαρακτηριστικά της ομάδας στην οποία εντάσσεται ο χρήστης. Στο τέλος έγιναν πειράματα και εξακριβώθηκαν τα επιθυμητά αποτελέσματα για την προσωποποίηση σύμφωνα με τις σημασιολογικές ομάδες των χρηστών. / The World Wide Web has become a huge data repository and it keeps growing exponentially, whereas the human capability to find, process and understand the provided content remains constant. Search engines facilitate the search process in the World Wide Web and they have become an integral part of the web users' daily lives. However users who are characterized by different needs, preferences and special characteristics, navigate through large Web structures and may lost their goal of inquiry. Web personalization, i.e. the customization of the search engines’ returned results, is one of the most promising approaches for alleviating information overload providing tailored navigation experiences to Web users. The present dissertation presents the methodology which was implemented in order to personalize a search engine’s results for corresponding users’ preferences and dietary characteristics. This methodology was implemented in two parts: the offline and the online part. The first one uses a search engines’ log files and the dietary characteristics of the users in order to extract information for the latter preferences. Afterwards, with the use of an ontology which was created explicitly for this work, semantic profiling of users’ interests was achieved and their corresponding profiles were formed. Then with the use of a clustering algorithm, users’ categorization was made based on their dietary profiles and their preferences in the search engine. In the online part the methodology re-ranks the search engines’ results, based on the semantic characterization of those results and the users’ clusters which were created at the offline part. Re-ranking is achieved by placing those results which match better the interests and the characteristics of the user’s cluster at the top of the list of the search engines’ returned results. Experimental evaluation of the presented methodology shows that the expected objectives from the semantic users’ clustering in search engines are achievable.

The rapid growth of the World Wide Web in the last decade makes it the largest publicly accessible data source in the world, which has become one of the most significant and influential information revolution of modern times. The influence of the Web has impacted almost every aspect of humans' life, activities and fields, causing paradigm shifts and transformational changes in business, governance, and education. Moreover, the rapid evolution of Web 2.0 and the Social Web in the past few years, such as social blogs and friendship networking sites, has dramatically transformed the Web from a raw environment for information consumption to a dynamic and rich platform for information production and sharing worldwide. However, this growth and transformation of the Web has resulted in an uncontrollable explosion and abundance of the textual contents, creating a serious challenge for any user to find and retrieve the relevant information that he truly seeks to find on the Web. The process of finding a relevant Web page in a website easily and efficiently has become very difficult to achieve. This has created many challenges for researchers to develop new mining techniques in order to improve the user experience on the Web, as well as for organizations to understand the true informational interests and needs of their customers in order to improve their targeted services accordingly by providing the products, services and information that truly match the requirements of every online customer. With these challenges in mind, Web mining aims to extract hidden patterns and discover useful knowledge from Web page contents, Web hyperlinks, and Web usage logs. Based on the primary kinds of Web data used in the mining process, Web mining tasks can be categorized into three main types: Web content mining, which extracts knowledge from Web page contents using text mining techniques, Web structure mining, which extracts patterns from the hyperlinks that represent the structure of the website, and Web usage mining, which mines user's Web navigational patterns from Web server logs that record the Web page access made by every user, representing the interactional activities between the users and the Web pages in a website. The main goal of this thesis is to contribute toward addressing the challenges that have been resulted from the information explosion and overload on the Web, by proposing and developing novel Web mining-based approaches. Toward achieving this goal, the thesis presents, analyzes, and evaluates three major contributions. First, the development of an integrated Web structure and usage mining approach that recommends a collection of hyperlinks for the surfers of a website to be placed at the homepage of that website. Second, the development of an integrated Web content and usage mining approach to improve the understanding of the user's Web behavior and discover the user group interests in a website. Third, the development of a supervised classification model based on recent Social Web concepts, such as Tag Clouds, in order to improve the retrieval of relevant articles and posts from Web social blogs.

published_or_final_version / abstract / Linguistics / Master / Master of Arts

published_or_final_version / English Studies / Master / Master of Arts

published_or_final_version / English Studies / Master / Master of Arts

published_or_final_version / Education / Master / Master of Education