Genetically modified maize expressing the Bt-protein Cry1Ab (Bt maize) is planted widely in South Africa. Crop residues of Bt maize often end up in aquatic ecosystems where aquatic organisms are exposed to Cry1Ab protein. The effect of this protein on non-target aquatic organisms has not yet been studied in South Africa. The aim of this study was to evaluate the possible effect of exposure to Bt maize on morphological development of Xenopus laevis and Amietophrynus gutturalis tadpoles. Three experiments were conducted with each of X. laevis and A. gutturalis. Five of these were conducted in the bio-secure Amphibian Biology laboratory and one with A. gutturalis in a shade-house facility where microcosms were exposed to natural conditions. In the first experiment of X. laevis and A. gutturalis, which was replicated three times, large portions of maize leaves were placed in the bottoms of microcosms. X. laevis received supplementary pulverised leaves in suspension while A. gutturalis tadpoles fed on provided leaves. For both control and experimental groups microcosms were divided in three groups receiving respectively 15, 30 and 45 g of maize leaves. In the second and third experiment tadpoles only received pulverised Bt maize leaves in suspension. Each replicate (microcosm) contained 50 one-day old tadpoles. Experiment two was conducted to determine whether the Bt-protein has adverse effects on A. gutturalis tadpoles when tadpoles are exposed to the protein in the water but not feeding on the plant material. A total of 100 tadpoles were used during the experiment and tadpoles were placed individually in 250 ml plastic cups that were filled with 100 ml water witch contained an extract of either Bt and non-Bt maize leaves. Tadpoles were fed twice a week with TetraTabimin bottom-feeding fish pellets in suspension. Experiment three was conducted to determine whether the Bt-protein will have adverse effects on A. gutturalis tadpoles when tadpoles feed on Bt maize leaves. Tadpoles were divided into a treatment in which 50 tadpoles were fed Bt maize leaves and a control treatment in which 50 tadpoles were fed non-Bt maize leaves. Tadpoles were placed individually in 250 ml plastic cups that were each filled with 100 ml borehole water. On a weekly basis 10 randomly selected tadpoles were collected, measured and staged for morphological development, using the Nieuwkoop and Faber Normal Table for X. laevis and Gosner stages for A. gutturalis tadpoles. The significant effects observed in some life history parameters of tadpoles exposed to Cry1Ab protein cannot be ascribed to the effect of the protein. Poor husbandry turned out to be the single most important confounding factor. Before follow-up studies are conducted husbandry practices should be optimized. / Thesis (MSc (Environmental Sciences))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2013.

Genetically modified maize expressing the Bt-protein Cry1Ab (Bt maize) is planted widely in South Africa. Crop residues of Bt maize often end up in aquatic ecosystems where aquatic organisms are exposed to Cry1Ab protein. The effect of this protein on non-target aquatic organisms has not yet been studied in South Africa. The aim of this study was to evaluate the possible effect of exposure to Bt maize on morphological development of Xenopus laevis and Amietophrynus gutturalis tadpoles. Three experiments were conducted with each of X. laevis and A. gutturalis. Five of these were conducted in the bio-secure Amphibian Biology laboratory and one with A. gutturalis in a shade-house facility where microcosms were exposed to natural conditions. In the first experiment of X. laevis and A. gutturalis, which was replicated three times, large portions of maize leaves were placed in the bottoms of microcosms. X. laevis received supplementary pulverised leaves in suspension while A. gutturalis tadpoles fed on provided leaves. For both control and experimental groups microcosms were divided in three groups receiving respectively 15, 30 and 45 g of maize leaves. In the second and third experiment tadpoles only received pulverised Bt maize leaves in suspension. Each replicate (microcosm) contained 50 one-day old tadpoles. Experiment two was conducted to determine whether the Bt-protein has adverse effects on A. gutturalis tadpoles when tadpoles are exposed to the protein in the water but not feeding on the plant material. A total of 100 tadpoles were used during the experiment and tadpoles were placed individually in 250 ml plastic cups that were filled with 100 ml water witch contained an extract of either Bt and non-Bt maize leaves. Tadpoles were fed twice a week with TetraTabimin bottom-feeding fish pellets in suspension. Experiment three was conducted to determine whether the Bt-protein will have adverse effects on A. gutturalis tadpoles when tadpoles feed on Bt maize leaves. Tadpoles were divided into a treatment in which 50 tadpoles were fed Bt maize leaves and a control treatment in which 50 tadpoles were fed non-Bt maize leaves. Tadpoles were placed individually in 250 ml plastic cups that were each filled with 100 ml borehole water. On a weekly basis 10 randomly selected tadpoles were collected, measured and staged for morphological development, using the Nieuwkoop and Faber Normal Table for X. laevis and Gosner stages for A. gutturalis tadpoles. The significant effects observed in some life history parameters of tadpoles exposed to Cry1Ab protein cannot be ascribed to the effect of the protein. Poor husbandry turned out to be the single most important confounding factor. Before follow-up studies are conducted husbandry practices should be optimized. / Thesis (MSc (Environmental Sciences))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2013.

LIMA, Carlos Vinicius Gomes Costa. Sobre b-coloração de grafos com cintura pelo menos 6. 2013. 59 f. : Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Federal do Ceará, Centro de Ciências, Departamento de Computação, Fortaleza- Ceará, 2013. / Submitted by guaracy araujo (guaraa3355@gmail.com) on 2016-06-13T18:53:18Z No. of bitstreams: 1 2013_dis_cvgclima.pdf: 3781619 bytes, checksum: 164aea3629d83f1d6d8ba3efcf3ec056 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by guaracy araujo (guaraa3355@gmail.com) on 2016-06-13T19:18:47Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 2013_dis_cvgclima.pdf: 3781619 bytes, checksum: 164aea3629d83f1d6d8ba3efcf3ec056 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-06-13T19:18:47Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 2013_dis_cvgclima.pdf: 3781619 bytes, checksum: 164aea3629d83f1d6d8ba3efcf3ec056 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2013 / O problema de coloração está entre os mais estudados dentro da Teoria dos Grafos devido a sua grande importância teorica e prática. Dado que o problema de colorir os vértices de um grafo G qualquer com a menor quantidade de cores é NP-difícil, várias heurísticas de coloração são estudadas a fim de obter uma coloração própria com um número de cores razoavelmente pequeno. Dado um grafo G, a heurística b de coloração se resume a diminuir a quantidade de cores utilizadas em uma coloração própria c, de modo que, se todos os vértices de uma classe de cor deixam de ver alguma cor em sua vizinhança, então podemos modificar a cor desses vértices para qualquer cor inexistente em sua vizinhança. Dessa forma, obtemos uma coloração c′ com uma cor a menos que c. Irving e Molove definiram a b-coloração de um grafo G como uma coloração onde toda classe de cor possui um vértice que é adjacente as demais classes de cor. Esses vértices são chamados b-vértices. Irving e Molove também definiram o número b-cromático como o maior inteiro k tal que G admite uma b-coloração por k cores. Eles mostraram que determinar o número b-cromático de um grafo qualquer é um problema NP-difícil, mas polinomial para árvores. Irving e Molove também definiram o m-grau de um grafo, que é o maior inteiro m(G) tal que existem m(G) vértices com grau pelo menos m(G)−1. Irving e Molove mostraram que o m-grau é um limite superior para número b-cromático e mostraram que o mesmo é igual a m(T) ou a m(T)−1, para toda árvore T, onde o número b-cromático é igual a m(T) se, e somente se, T possui um conjunto bom. Nesta dissertação, verificamos a relação entre a cintura, que é o tamanho do menor ciclo, e o número b-cromático de um grafo G. Mais especificamente, tentamos encontrar o menor inteiro g∗ tal que, se a cintura de G é pelo menos g∗, então o número b-cromático é igual a m(G) ou m(G)−1. Mostrar que o valor de g∗ é no máximo 6 poderia ser um passo importante para demonstrar a famosa Conjectura de Erdós-Faber-Lovasz, mas o melhor limite superior conhecido para g∗ é 9. Caracterizamos os grafos cuja cintura é pelo menos 6 e não possuem um conjunto bom e mostramos como b-colori-los de forma ótima. Além disso, mostramos como bicolorir, também de forma ótima, os grafos cuja cintura é pelo menos 7 e não possuem conjunto bom. / The coloring problem is among the most studied in the Graph Theory due to its great theoretical and practical importance. Since the problem of coloring the vertices of a graph G either with the smallest amount of colors is NP-hard, various coloring heuristics are examined to obtain a proper colouring with a reasonably small number of colors. Given a graph G, the b heuristic of colouring comes down to decrease the amount of colors in a proper colouring c, so that, if all vertices of a color class fail to see any color in your neighborhood, then we can change the color to any color these vertices nonexistent in your neighborhood. Thus, we obtain a coloring c ′ with a color unless c. Irving and Molove defined the b-coloring of a graph G as a coloring where every color class has a vertex that is adjacent the other color classes. These vertices are called b-vertices. Irving and Molove also defined the b-chromatic number as the largest integer k, such that G admits a b-coloring by k colors. They showed that determine the value of the b-chromatic number of any graph is NP-hard, but polynomial for trees. Irving and Molove also defined the m-degree of a graph, which is the largest integer m(G) such that there are m(G) vertices with degree at least m(G) − 1. Irving and Molove showed that the m-degree is an upper limit to the b-chromatic number and showed that it is m(T) or m(T)−1 to every tree T, where its value is m(T) if, and only if, T has a good set. In this dissertation, we analyze the relationship between the girth, which is the size of the smallest cycle, and the b-chromatic number of a graph G. More specifically, we try to find the smallest integer g ∗ such that if the girth of G is at least g ∗ , then the b-chromatic number equals m(G) or m(G)−1. Show that the value of g ∗ is at most 6 could be an important step in demonstrating the famous conjecture of Erd˝os-Faber-Lov´asz, but the best known upper limit to g ∗ is 9. We characterize the graphs whose girth is at least 6 and not have a good set and show how b-color them optimally. Furthermore, we show how b-color, also optimally, graphs whose girth is at least 7 and not have good set.

This thesis "Anything is thing enough to party" seeks to explore the knowledge base of Jane Bennett's vital materialism and analyzes the connections between advanced capitalism, mobility and unpredictable movement of goods and things from the perspective of object oriented ontology. The thesis also focuses on the new perspective of ready-made object and perspective of installation. In order to research the topic and implement the practical part of the project, this study took place in Mexico as a self-initiated art residency in order to explore flows of found objects under the gaze of a foreigner.

This thesis considers two isoperimetric inequalities for the eigenvalues of the Laplacian on a family of spherically symmetric Riemannian manifolds. The Payne-Pólya-Weinberger Conjecture (PPW) states that for a bounded domain Ω in Euclidean space Rn, the ratio λ1(Ω)/λ0(Ω) of the first two eigenvalues of the Dirichlet Laplacian is bounded by the corresponding eigenvalue ratio for the Dirichlet Laplacian on the ball BΩof equal volume. The Szegö-Weinberger inequality states that for a bounded domain Ω in Euclidean space Rn, the first nonzero eigenvalue of the Neumann Laplacian μ1(Ω) is maximized on the ball BΩ of the same volume. In the first three chapters we will look at the known work for the manifolds Rn and Hn. Then we will take a family a spherically symmetric manifolds given by Rn with a spherically symmetric metric determined by a radially symmetric function f. We will then give a PPW-type upper bound for the eigenvalue gap, λ1(Ω) − λ0(Ω), and the ratio λ1(Ω)/λ0(Ω) on a family of symmetric bounded domains in this space. Finally, we prove the Szegö-Weinberger inequality for this same class of domains.

No description available.

The thesis analyzes ethical aspects of intercultural dialogue in the context of postsecular society and Western philosophy, as depicted in the novels and short stories of Dutch author Michel Faber. Analysis focuses on the theory of dialogue as presented in the works of Charles Taylor, Terry Eagleton, Olivier Roy and Ulrich Beck. The literary works of Michel Faber can be seen as examples of applying ethics in the context of personal and social narratives in contemporary culture. Faber does not proclaim his belief in Christianity; however, he works with religious motifs in the context of the postsecular situation of the globalized world, in which religion returns to take part in the public debate and affirmation of its legitimacy. Faber respects the legitimacy of religion the ethics of otherness, typical of the characters in Faber's works, is therefore the ethics of relationship quality, basic value orientation, and the search for the horizon of the meaning, which corresponds with the ethics of dialogue within the Christian tradition.

In 1991, A. Máté precisely calculated the first-order asymptotic behavior of the sequence of Christoffel functions associated with Szego measures on the unit circle. Our principal goal is the abstraction of his result in two directions: We compute the translated asymptotics, limn λn(µ, x + a/n), and obtain, as a corollary, a universality limit for the fairly broad class of Szego weights. Finally, we prove Máté’s result for measures supported on smooth curves in the plane. Our proof of the latter derives, in part, from a precise estimate of certain weighted means of the Faber polynomials associated with the support of the measure. Finally, we investigate a variety of applications, including two novel applications to ill-posed problems in Hilbert space and the mean ergodic theorem.

This thesis explores the connection between Crouzeix's conjecture and the convergence of the GMRES algorithm. GMRES is a popular iterative method for solving linear systems and is one of the many Krylov methods. Despite its popularity, the convergence of GMRES is not completely understood. While the spectrum can in some cases be a good indicator of convergence, it has been shown that in general, the spectrum does not provide sufficient information to fully explain the behavior of GMRES iterations. Other sets associated with a matrix that can also help predict convergence are the pseudospectrum and the numerical range. This work focuses on convergence bounds obtained by considering the latter. In particular, it focuses on the application of Crouzeix's conjecture, which relates the norm of a matrix polynomial to the size of that polynomial over the numerical range, to describing GMRES convergence.

The Faber-Krahn theorem states that among all bounded domains with the same volume in Rn (with the standard Euclidean metric), a ball that has lowest first Dirichlet eigenvalue. Recently it has been shown that a similar result holds for (semi-)regular trees. In this article we show that such a theorem also hold for other classes of (not necessarily non-regular) trees. However, for these new results no couterparts in the world of the Laplace-Beltrami-operator on manifolds are known. / Series: Preprint Series / Department of Applied Statistics and Data Processing