Moenie oplaai nie - ons speel hiermeeThis study focuses on using sand play as play medium within the framework of gestalt therapy. The researcher explored the effectiveness of this medium with the aim to assist children in their toddler phase, to vent their experiences of family violence and to furthermore teach them coping skills. During the research process, the researcher involved three toddlers who are victims of family violence, in therapeutic sessions. Sand play was utilized as play medium during these sessions. As theoretical basis for the research, aspects of the phenomenon of family violence, the emotional impact of family violence on the child (specifically the toddler), the impact of family violence on the behavioural characteristics and developmental skills of the toddler, the theoretical principles and process of gestalt therapy, the therapeutic process with the toddler as victim of family violence as well as the use of sand play as play medium, were investigated. The researcher used applied research for this study and trusts that the findings regarding the use of sand play, will improve service delivery in the field of social work, with toddler victims of family violence. / Dissertation (MSD (Play Therapy))--University of Pretoria, 2005. / Social Work and Criminology / Unrestricted

This research focuses on the degree of implementation of modularity and module supply by the automobile manufacturers in South Africa and the benefits they experience. Special attention was paid to the effect the modularity has on the local supplier base and the ability of small South African companies to support this supply concept. Lastly the factors influencing the car manufacturers’ outsourcing decision process was uncovered. The semi-structured face to face interviews with representatives of all light vehicle manufacturing companies operating in South Africa provided rich data for setting the background for further quantitative researches. Copyright / Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2010. / Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) / unrestricted

Les mousses liquides sont dans un état métastable. Un moyen de les stabiliser est d’y incorporer des particules solides. Lorsqu’elles sont hydrophobes, ces particules s’attachent aux interfaces liquide-air de la mousse et changent radicalement la rhéologie des films séparant les bulles. L’objectif de cette thèse est d’étudier expérimentalement deux composants élémentaires des mousses chargées en particules, à savoir les films et les bulles. La rhéologie des films particulaires est sondée grâce à des expériences d’éclatement et de compression alors que la résistance des bulles armurées est étudiée en faisant varier leur pression interne. En utilisant l’imagerie rapide, nous montrons d’abord que les particules qui pontent les deux interfaces du film peuvent inhiber l’ouverture d’un trou et que pour les autres configurations, la dynamique de rétraction peut être décrite par un équilibre inertio-capillaire pour des fractions surfaciques en particules <0.6 environ. L’étude de la dynamique de rétraction des films particulaires par Particle Image Velocimetry a permis de les caractériser par une viscosité effective qui diverge à la transition de jamming. De plus, les films particulaires flambent à fraction surfacique en particules élevée indiquant une transition d’un comportement liquide vers un comportement solide. En ce qui concerne les bulles particulaires, nous avons montré l’existence de pressions critiques 10 fois plus grandes que la pression de Laplace avant que les bulles ne se déforment aussi bien en dépression qu’en surpression ; la tension effective dans le plan de la coque granulaire est donc 10 fois plus importante que la tension dans un film liquide. Une fracture, correspondant à l’étirement du film liquide, est par ailleurs observée sur les bulles particulaires en surpression. En adoptant une approche élastique, le critère de Griffith permet de retrouver le bon ordre de grandeur de la pression de fracture / Liquid foams are in a metastable state. One way to stabilize them is incorporating solid particles. When hydrophobic, these particles attach to liquid-air interfaces of the particle-laden foam inducing a drastic change in the rheology of the films between bubbles. The aim of this thesis is to study experimentally two elementary components of particle-laden foams, namely soap films and bubbles. The rheology of particulate films is probed through bursting and compression experiments while the resistance of armored bubbles is studied by inner pressure variations. Using high speed photography, we first show that particles bridging both liquid-air interfaces of a liquid film can resist hole opening and that the retraction dynamics for the other configurations can be described by a balance between inertia and capillarity for surface fractions of particles <0.6 approximately. Then studying the retraction dynamics of particulate soap films by Particle Image Velocimetry, we characterized these systems by an effective viscosity that diverges at the jamming transition. Moreover, buckling is observed at high surface fraction of particles indicating a transition from liquid-like to solid-like behavior. Concerning particulate bubbles, we showed the existence of pressure thresholds 10 times greater than Laplace pressure that need to be exceeded in order to observe a deformation in depression and overpressure experiments; the effective tension in the granular shell is thus 10 times greater that the tension in a liquid film. When inflated, a fracture corresponding to the stretching of the liquid film appears on particulate bubbles. Through an elastic approach, Griffith’s criterion gives the right order of magnitude of fracture pressures

The skeletal muscle is a dynamic tissue that has the ability to change and modify itself to fit the level of required activity; a phenomenon called muscle plasticity. Most studies of muscle plasticity are carried out in situ, a condition for which it is difficult to study and discern between the intrinsic properties of skeletal muscle, the myokines released by muscle fibers and the neurotrophic factors released by neurons innervating skeletal muscles that play various roles in the mechanisms of muscle plasticity. Another approach is to study the morphological and contractile properties of single adult muscle fibers under culture conditions for which one can fully control the level of activity and exogenous factors affecting muscle plasticity. However, the survival of single muscle fiber in culture is very low as most fibers degenerated or supercontracted within 5-7 days. The first objective of this study was to optimize fiber survival in culture. The application of chronic stimulation and beta-adrenergic agonists are two major factors that prevent muscle atrophy and loss of force in denervated muscles in situ. So, objective two was to determine if chronically stimulated single fibers in culture also improve fiber survival and contractile characteristic under culture conditions. The third objective was the same for salbutamol, a beta 2-adrenergic agonist. In regard to the optimization of fiber survival, the Minimum Essential Medium (MEM) was a better medium than Dulbecco’s Modified Eagle Medium (DMEM), changing 50% of the culture medium every two days also improved fiber survival compared to changing the medium every day. Interestingly, inhibiting the proliferation of satellite cells with AraC largely improved fiber survival when fibers were kept under resting conditions, but not when they were chronically stimulated. Finally, under conditions in which proliferation of satellite cells was inhibited, the use of a collagen/laminin mixture as adhering substrate to improve fiber adhesion to glass coverslip gave rise to a better fiber survival than Matrigel that contains not only collagen and laminin but several growth factors. The results suggest i) that when satellite cells (or fibroblasts) are allowed to proliferate they appear to contribute to the degeneration of fibers under resting conditions and ii) that the release of myokines by skeletal muscle fibers (or cytokines by other cells) likely play a role in fiber survival. Contrary to the situation in situ, neither the chronic stimulation nor salbutamol improved fiber survival and contractile characteristics of muscle fibers in culture suggesting that some important factors in culture are missing to allow chronic stimulation and salbutamol to reduce muscle atrophy and loss of force.

This study investigates the magnitude of credit contraction encountered by Canadian Small-and-Medium-Sized-Enterprises (SMEs) during the recent financial crisis of 2007-2008. These firms account for an important source of job creation and economic welfare (Haltiwanger et al., 2010); therefore, to ensure the creation and growth of SMEs through a smooth flow of capital is crucial for a healthy economic recovery from the crisis. The empirical observation obtained in this study is contrary to what the theory suggests, as well as what many of the existing studies witnessed (i.e., a financial crisis has a negative impact on SME loan circulations). Using binary probit regression and structural break testing, this work finds that Canadian SME loan approval and application rates were higher during the crisis period. This somewhat counterintuitive result prompts the researcher to search for the possible factors enabling SME credit lending in Canada to retain its health during the time of financial distress, which include: (1) the stability of Canadian banks evidenced by the relatively constant Capital Tier I ratio during the crisis; (2) initiatives the Canadian government implemented as a response to the crisis. This result also raises a question whether the five billion dollars the federal government injected in the SME lending market under the Business Capital Availability Program (BCAP), a measure designed to insulate Canadian SMEs from the liquidity shock, could be justified. This research question will be investigated as a future area of research.

Theoretical part explains the position of internationalization among other developing processes of the World Economy. It also defines the category of Small and Medium Enterprises (SME), describes the position of this segment in the Czech Republic and includes patterns of internationalization. Analytical part decomposes the decision-making process of suitable form of SME internationalization and analyses particular impacts of internationalization on firms. Practical part verifies and completes the analytical part by committing a structured interview with the CEO of W.A.G. mineral fuels, Inc.

Nowdays the exhibition business and whole economics are attacked by the impacts of world-wide crisis. The organizers of exhibitions and trade fairs are afraid of massive decrease in exhibitors interest info taking part at these shows. Is it really important to realize that these shows offer a quality presentation of wide assortment and companies from current branch at one place and at the same time. This fact cause that exhibitions or trade fairs are often more effective than any grandiose marketing campaign.

The thesis focuses on the barriers to the internationalization of SMEs. The theoretical part consists of four chapters outlining the basic theoretical resources necessary for the practical part. The first part explains the nature of internationalization and globalization, the second defines SMEs in the Czech Republic and the European Union, the third section presents the most important and most common barriers to the internationalization of SMEs, the last fourth part provides an overview of the institutions involved in export promotion in the Czech Republic. The practical part of the thesis consists of an analysis sample of four companies that led to the determination of the largest and most common barriers to the internationalization of Czech SMEs.

We present a comparison between several observational tests of the post-reionization intergalactic medium and the numerical simulations of reionization completed under the Cosmic Reionization On Computers (CROC) project. The CROC simulations match the gap distribution reasonably well, and also provide a good match for the distribution of peak heights, but there is a notable lack of wide peaks in the simulated spectra and the flux-probability distribution functions are poorly matched in the narrow redshift interval 5.5 < z < 5.7, with the match at other redshifts being significantly better, albeit not exact. Both discrepancies are related: simulations show more opacity than the data.

The main goal of the thesis is to assess factoring as a tool for small and medium size enterprises financing. Factoring offers receivables management, securing of debtors risk and support of national and international trade. The target is to sum up theoretical approaches in Czech as well as international literature and connect them with practice knowledge and experience that the author have learned during expert experience. Factoring was successfully offered in course of bad economic times during worldwide recession mainly to due easy availability in the markets. Financing via factoring expresses lower risk for financing party, due to transaction risk spread being on the more debtors. In contrast, there is higher demand on administration of every single invoice of company to its debtors. This logically brings higher cost of manpower on the financing party site that has to deal with high proportion of invoices. The thesis is divided into five parts. First parts is taking care about state and private trade supporting tools including Czech Export Bank and its role in creating space for national exporters. Second part deals with forms, in which small and medium size enterprise can find the suitable financial tools and products. Receivables and its main features, receivables live cycle and tools for effective use of receivable in asset based financing, that is all proceeded in part with number three. Whereas chapter four analyze current latest experience with factoring, its forms and way of use including legal and accountancy view. Fifth chapter summarizes theoretical background and uses the application of theory in practice and presents examples, how factoring can help. The thesis found out, that factoring is a suitable financing tool in times of economic crisis and general downturn. The number of factoring transaction grew, as well as the total turnover, but average transaction price went down due to lower cost of traded goods, that was financed via factoring. Thesis also proved that factoring financing is easy to get in the market, as there is large scale of big and small factoring financing providers. Factoring did not improve all significant financial ratios, but increased turnover of assets, mainly receivables, decreased the ratio of indebtedness. Thesis introduced the factoring financing, its use, forms and pros as well as cons. Factoring provided to be sufficient substitute for conventional credit, but bears differences, that have to be taken into account, when deciding on suitable form of receivable financing.