Detta är en studie av tvärvetenskaplig och transdisciplinär karaktär som är riktad mot barns naturvetenskapliga och estetiska lärprocesser. Genom att undersöka den intra-aktivitet som pågår mellan barnen, estetiskt materialitet och ett naturvetenskapligt ämnesinnehåll, syftar studien till att undersöka hur estetiska element kan rymma potentialiteter till naturvetenskapligt lärande. Detta har genomförts genom att analysera empiriskt material som samlats in på två Reggio Emilia-inspirerade förskolor. Studien har en kvalitativ, etnografisk ansats med deltagande observationer, samtal och fotografering som insamlingsmetoder. Det insamlade materialet har analyserats med hjälp av ett agentiskt realistiskt perspektiv. I denna studie uppmärksammas materialitet och diskursers ömsesidiga påverkan i skapandet av olika fenomen, i detta fall hur naturvetenskap blir till. Jag har observerat hur estetiskt materialitet och naturvetenskapligt lärande sammanflätas med barnen och hur dessa leder till effekter av kunskapsskapande. Mina resultat tyder också på att estetiska material synliggör barnens naturvetenskapliga erfarenheter. Dessutom triggar de igång nya kunskapsskapande processer. Med utgångspunkt i materialitets handlingskraft är min slutsats att pedagogiska miljöer måste iscensättas på ett medvetet sätt, där etik och estetiska dimensioner får stort utrymme och där lärmiljöer performativt arrangeras som en aktiv och agentisk del i skapandet av kunskap.

Thesis (MMed)--Stellenbosch University, 2014. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Introduction Pregnancies in women with a previous unexplained stillbirth may be jeopardized by increased antenatal surveillance and higher rates of induction of labour and caesarean delivery without clear evidence of benefit. Despite the fact that there have been no studies that adequately tested fetal benefit in routine induction of labour for a previous stillbirth, a policy of routine induction of labour at 38 weeks, with all the associated maternal, fetal and health-care associated costs, was in practice at Tygerberg Hospital for the past 30 years. This study aimed to investigate the safety of continuation of these pregnancies until term (≥39 weeks). Aims and Objectives To assess the clinical outcome and impact on the health service in a pregnancy with a previous unexplained intra-uterine demise (IUD) by routine induction of labour at term instead of at 38 weeks. Methodology This was a prospective observational study on the safety of a new hospital protocol which was introduced in 2012. The protocol extended the gestation for induction after a previous IUD from 38 weeks to term. The study population included all pregnant patients with a current singleton pregnancy, and a previous unexplained or unexplored (no data available) singleton fetal demise ≥24 weeks/500grams. All patients with a previous stillbirth in the metropolitan drainage area of Tygerberg Hospital are referred to Tygerberg for further care; and all referrals during 2012 were recruited for the study. Patients with known or recurrent risks for intra-uterine death were managed according to the relevant clinical condition and were excluded from the study. Results During the audit period, 306 patients with a previous intra-uterine fetal death were referred for further management. Of these, 161 had a clear indication for either earlier intervention or no intervention and were excluded from the protocol. Of the remaining 145 patients, 9 met exclusion criteria and there were 2 patients who defaulted. Forty-two of the study patients (with no known previous medical problems) developed complications during their antenatal course that necessitated a change in clinical management and earlier (<39 weeks) delivery. Of the remaining 92 patients in the audit, 47 (51%) went into spontaneous labour before their induction date. There were no intra-uterine deaths prior to delivery. Conclusions Careful follow up at a high risk clinic identifies new or concealed maternal or fetal complications in 29% of patients with a previous IUD and no obvious maternal or fetal disease in the index pregnancy. When all risks are excluded and the pregnancy allowed to progress to 39 weeks before an induction is offered, 51% will go into spontaneous labour. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Inleiding Swangerskappe in vroue met vorige onverklaarbare stilgeboorte mag in gevaar gestel word deur meer intense voorgeboorte sorg en ‘n groter hoeveelheid induksies van kraam en keisersnitte sonder duidelike bewyse dat dit tot voordeel strek. Ten spyte van die feit dat daar geen studies is wat bewys het dat roetine induksie van kraam vir ‘n vorige stilgeboorte op 38 weke tot voordeel van die baba was nie, was ‘n beleid van roetine induksie van kraam op 38 weke, met al die geassosieërde moederlike en fetale risikos daaraan verbonde; asook die hoë gesondheidskostes, roetine praktyk in Tygerberg Hospitaal vir die afgelope 30 jaar. Hierdie studie het ten doel gehad om die veiligheid van voortsetting van hierdie swangerskappe tot voltyd (≥39 weke) te ondersoek. Doelwitte Om die kliniese uitkoms; asook die impak op gesondheidsdienste te evalueer in ‘n swanger vrou met n vorige onverklaarbare intra-uteriene sterfte; deur roetine induksie van kraam aan te bied op voltyd in plaas van 38 weke. Metodologie Hierdie was n prospektiewe kohort studie om die veiligheid van ‘n nuwe hospitaal protokol wat in 2012 geïmplimenteer is, te bepaal. Hierdie protokol het die gestasie tydperk van induksie van kraam van alle swanger pasiënte na ‘n vorige onverklaarbare stilgeboorte van 38 weke na voltyd verleng. Die studiepopulasie het alle swanger pasiënte met ‘n huidige enkelswangerskap en ‘n vorige onverklaarbare of onbekende (geen data beskikbaar) enkelvoudige fetale sterfte ≥24 weke/500gram, ingesluit. Alle pasiënte in die metropolitaanse dreineringsarea van Tygerberg Hospitaal met ‘n vorige stilgeboorte word na Tygerberg verwys vir verdere hantering, en alle verwysings gedurende 2012 was gewerf vir die studie. Pasiënte met bekende of herhalende risikofaktore vir ‘n intra-uteriene sterfte was hanteer volgens die relevante kliniese inligting en was uitgesluit by die studie. Resultate Drie-honderd-en-ses pasiënte met ‘n vorige intra-uteriene fetale sterfte was gedurende die oudit periode verwys vir verdere hantering. In 161 pasiënte was daar ‘n duidelike indikasie vir of vroeër intervensie of geen intervensie nie; en hulle was uitgesluit van die protokol. Van die oorblywende 145 pasiënte is 9 pasiënte uitgesluit as gevolg van die uitsluitingskriteria en daar was 2 pasiënte wat versuim het om op te volg. Twee-en-veertig pasiënte (met geen bekende vorige mediese probleme nie) het komplikasies gedurende hulle voorgeboorte verloop ontwikkel wat gelei het tot verandering in kliniese hantering en vroeëre verlossing (≤39 weke) genoodsaak het. Van die oorblywende 92 pasiënte in die oudit, het 47 (51%) in spontane kraam gegaan voor hulle induksiedatum. Daar was geen intra-uteriene sterftes voor verlossing nie. Gevolgtrekkings Noukeurige opvolg by ‘n hoërisiko kliniek identifiseer nuwe of versteekte moederlike en fetale komplikasies in 29% van pasiënte met ‘n vorige intra-uteriene sterfte sonder enige duidelike moederlike of fetale siekte in die indeks swangerskap. Wanneer alle risikos uitgesluit word en die swangerskap toegelaat word om voort te gaan tot 39 weke voor ‘n induksie aangebied word, sal 51% van pasiënte spontaan in kraam gaan.

As China emerges as a major player on the international business scene, it is becoming increasingly important for Western negotiators to understand how the Chinese negotiate business deals. Existing knowledge regarding the Chinese negotiation style is largely based on considering China as one single country and the Chinese as to negotiate in one homogeneous way. Regional differences in the Chinese negotiation style have traditionally been overlooked in the literature. Guided by a negotiation analysis approach, this thesis conducts an exploratory study of the diversity of the Chinese negotiation style from a regional sub-cultural perspective. It suggests four characteristics of the Chinese negotiation style based on the frameworks of international business negotiations and the Chinese cultural roots and values. This thesis investigates five research questions, which address the characteristics of regional negotiation styles and the consequences of these different styles in relation to Sino-Western negotiations. A case study research strategy is employed to study four regions in China, including the Northern, the Eastern, the Southern and the Central region. Each case was studied using three research methods: semi-structured interviews, secondary documents, and negotiation experiments. Interview data analysis focuses on the perceptions of the Chinese negotiators, the Chinese government official, and the foreign negotiators regarding regional negotiation styles, whereas the experiments examine the students cognitive information on regional differences. The results confirm that regional negotiation styles exist in China. The findings show that Northern and Central negotiators have the Chinese negotiation style in the literature. They place emphasis on relationship and face and show low time-sensitivity and risk-taking propensity. On the contrary, Eastern and Southern negotiators are extremely task-oriented and deal-focused, which means they place little value on relationship and face in negotiations. Differences also exist between the two groups of business-oriented negotiators as Southern negotiators have higher time-sensitivity and risk-taking propensity than Eastern negotiators. Differences in historical and geographical backgrounds are found to be the key drivers in the forming of these regional negotiation styles. Importantly, the experiment results show that, in contrast to the conventional idea, Western negotiators might find it easier to negotiate with the relationship-focused Chinese than with the deal-focused Chinese. This is because Northern and Central negotiators appear to be cooperative in Sino-Western negotiations, whereas Eastern and Southern negotiators tend to use a competitive approach. This thesis provides a number of contributions to the existing literature. First, it provides a better understanding of the overall picture of the Chinese negotiation behaviour and fine-tunes the Chinese negotiation style from a regional sub-cultural perspective. This regional approach to the study of culture is not only rare in Sino-Western negotiation studies, but also uncommon in the literature of international business negotiations. Second, this research highlights the fallacious assumption of cultural homogeneity with nations. It calls for academic attention to balance inter-cultural and intra-cultural diversity in the studies of international business. Third, a step is taken towards exploring the regional values and behavioural differences in China. The findings of this research provide directions for future regional studies on other managerial issues.

Trade is largely considered a driving force of economic growth and development of nations. To this end, there is vast and far-reaching research on the subject, especially on matters international. However, research on intra-African trade is lacking in comparison to research on trade amongst the rest of the world, not just developed, but also developing countries alike. That aside there are numerous efforts put in place to enhance and encourage trade within and without the continent. The research presented in this thesis aims to investigate and address three key issues specific to intra-Africa trade. The questions asked are: are the measures currently in place successful in the promotion of intra-Africa trade; is the continent ready for measures about to be implemented and after all that, is trade really the key driving force for economic growth and development within Africa? To answer these questions, the research presented here in this thesis employs the gravity modelling approach, the G-PPP test and develops a macro-economic model which is applied to the Kenyan economy. The results indicate that; yes, trade is significant and important in determining economic growth, and while measures taken thus far such as the creation of Economic Integrations have not been as successful as was envisioned, trade openness continues to be among the most important ways in which trade is encouraged and enhanced, to this end, although the continent is yet to fulfil all the requirements for the formation of a full-blown Economic Union, it is ready for drastic measures such as the formation of a currency union. Literature reveals that this could form the basis of hastening complete integration and harmonization of all systems of the participating economies, thereby benefiting not just trade but also all other sectors of the economies.

This study investigates the prevalence of peri-operative anxiety and the effective management of intra-operative anxiety during awake surgery. Plastic and vascular surgical patients were selected for the study as many procedures performed within these specialities are performed under local or regional anaesthesia. The study consists of two distinct stages. The first stage was a postal survey of patients (n=213) who had undergone awake plastic, renal access or carotid surgery up to two weeks previously, in order to determine retrospectively the prevalence of peri-operative anxiety. The second stage of the study was a randomised controlled trial of interventions for the effective management of intra-operative anxiety in patients (n=128) having undergone the same surgical procedures described in stage one. The interventions tested in stage two were handholding and an anxiety management package involving a relaxation technique and a procedural information leaflet, against a 'usual care' control. The findings from stage one of the study suggest that peri-operative anxiety prevalence is low, although unacceptable levels of anxiety are seen to elevate during the intra-operative phase. The RCT in stage two demonstrated that intra-operative anxiety was no more effectively managed by the interventions tested than by usual care alone. The validity and reliability of retrospective anxiety measurement was investigated by comparing anxiety scores from stage one with contemporaneous and post-hoc anxiety scores from stage two and found to be an accurate measure of anxiety experienced at the time of the event.

Early pregnancy is characterized by complex interactions between blood vessels, leukocytes, and conceptus-derived trophoblasts within the gestational uterus. Uterine Natural Killer (uNK) cells become the most abundant leukocyte during decidualization and produce a wide array of angiogenic factors, yet little is known regarding their early pregnancy functions. To characterize the role(s) of uNK cells, whole mount in situ immunohistochemistry of live early implant sites was performed. A timecourse examination of murine early pregnancy (virgin, and gd4.5-9.5) implantation sites was performed. Comparison of Gd6.5, 8.5 and 9.5 implant sites from BALB/c+/+ controls (BALB/c) and BALB/c-Rag2-/-Il2rg-/- (alymphoid) identified anomalies that result from the absence of lymphocytes. In alymphoid decidua basalis, mesometrial angiogenesis was widespread but pruning of nascent vessels within alymphoid decidua basalis was deficient. As early gestation progressed, vessels of alymphoid decidua basalis showed no evidence for remodeling. Alymphoid implantation sites showed ~24h delay in uterine lumen closure and embryonic development. To determine if uNK cells would normalize the anomalies observed in alymphoid implantation sites, adoptive cell transfer of NK+ B- T- marrow to alymphoid mice was performed. All of the above anomalies were reversed by adoptive transfer of NK+B-T- marrow. My results suggest that uNK cells support vascular growth and development which ensures the decidua can support the growing conceptus early in pregnancy prior to formation and function of the placenta. Human decidual NK cells may fill similar roles and be important targets for strategies designed to correct intra-uterine growth restriction. / Thesis (Master, Anatomy & Cell Biology) -- Queen's University, 2013-08-02 08:42:06.487

Extending prior research related to attitude development and intra-attitudinal consistency, the current study aims to evaluate various factors that predict attitudes toward public education and understand how they impact the direction and consistency of participants’ attitudes. In an effort to develop our knowledge of the factors that predict these attitudes among members of differing populations, the researcher will administer surveys that assess the three components of participants’ attitudes as well as the factors that predict them to public school teachers and parents of students in the United States (US) and in France. It is predicted that considerations like social identity and the structure of the two education systems will affect participants’ attitudes differently depending on their role (teacher or student) and location (France or US), while other aspects, such as the status of the profession of the teacher and the public perceptions of public education, will impact all participants’ attitudes similarly. This research will allow for an understanding of both the direction and consistency of attitudes toward public education, hypothesizing consistent attitudes among parents and inconsistent attitudes among teachers, based on the number and types of factors each set of the population considers when formulating their attitudes.

Tensions exist in the way that the European Union is conceptualised. How do we reconcile the persistence of a Europe of fragmented nation-states and the European integration project based on the principle of free movement? This duality is indicative of different geographical visions: between space defined as places and space defined as unifying flows. While places tend to be associated with fixed territories and borders, it is argued that complex global flows and connections may disrupt such notions. Addressing these theoretical tensions, this thesis examines transnational frameworks for discussing the reconfiguration of borders and spaces within the European Union. The aim of this research is to explore the extent to which European Union citizens, with freedom of movement, experience mobility between member states in a frictionless manner. The thesis adopts a “bottom-up” approach of migrants’ experiences and perceptions of internal borders, as barriers or opportunities to their movement and settlement. This is illustrated through the case of Britons resident in France. The thesis draws on data generated through qualitative methods, including fifty-three in-depth interviews undertaken in an ethnographic setting. The case study demonstrates how a frictionless European space does not exist for ordinary European Union citizens, for a variety of political, legal, economic and socio-cultural reasons. The analysis reveals how Britons recreate (national) state borders, by adapting to French politico-legal structures, and identifying boundaries between “us” and “them”. The thesis also identifies how transnational spaces are created through immigrants’ social networks. By exploring the everyday lives of intra-EU migrants, the thesis contributes to literature on British migrants in France, and provides an original contribution to studies of EU integration, focused on ordinary citizens on the move.

1. Euphausiids are an important component of high latitude pelagic ecosystems, but there is a paucity of information on their distribution, abundance and population processes on within-year time scales. This thesis encompasses new research into the euphausiid-ocean component of two important high latitude ecosystems (South Georgia and the Irminger Sea) on sub-annual time scales. 2. A new method for measuring abundance of Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba) continuously at South Georgia (Southern Ocean) was devised using upward-looking acoustic devices deployed on moorings. These novel platforms provide a new window of observations onto marine systems not open from conventional research vessels. At South Georgia, the moorings provided data at a high temporal resolution giving completely new insight to the function of the coupled biological-physical marine ecosystem. The use of moorings may aid ecosystem-based management at South Georgia and elsewhere. 3. Analysis of mooring data collected between October 2002 and December 2005 indicated a regular annual cycle in krill density: high in summer and low in winter. Mooring estimates of krill density were not statistically different from estimates derived from standard ship-based surveys in adjacent time periods suggesting that the mooring point estimates had relevance in a wider spatial context (c. 100 x 100 km). The results indicated that because of the sharp peaks in the biomass cycle, the exact timing of repeated ship-based acoustic surveys might be critical. Surveys that differ in their timing by only a few weeks might exhibit quite different estimates of biomass because they fall at different points of the cycle. Additionally, within this intra-annual framework, annual ship-based surveys may be able to detect differences between high and low krill years only if they differ by densities of c. 35 g per square m. in summer and c. 20 g per square m. in winter. 4. The mechanisms driving intra-annual variability in Antarctic krill density at South Georgia are likely to be complex. Analysis of mooring data revealed a possible association between high krill density and low water temperatures (at 200 m) at South Georgia. There was evidence that seasonal variation in krill density off-shelf was linked to seasonal variation in current velocity: marked increases in velocity at the end of summer coincided with marked decreases in krill density and abrupt changes in water temperature characteristic of the Sub-Antarctic Current Front (SACCF). Oceanographic data indicated that the SACCF might have impinged in proximity to the moorings during the winter season. However, krill densities were low during these periods and analyses suggest that seasonal variations in krill density were not driven by seasonal oscillations in the position of the SACCF. The data are not consistent with a pattern of seasonal growth, production and mortality of a resident krill population at South Georgia, but are consistent with the notion of large influxes of krill in early summer, and of a predator-driven reduction at between mid- and late-summer. 5. The seasonal distribution, abundance and growth of key euphauiids in the Irminger Sea, North Atlantic was quantified using the first net haul data from the region since the 1930s. Results show a high degree of spatial heterogeneity in the seasonal distribution of euphausiid abundance/biomass during 2001-2002. There was evidence to suggest regional variation in growth and population processes of Meganyctiphanes norvegica and Thysanoessa longicaudata, and this corresponded broadly to distinct physical zones in the Irminger Sea. There were, however, no significant links between growth and temperature and chlorophyll a concentration. This was attributed to high spatial and temporal variability in biological and physical sampling. These data are a prerequisite for understanding ecosystems dynamics in the North Atlantic, and are important for robust ecosystem-based management strategies. 6. Controls on euphausiid spatial heterogeneity at high latitudes are likely to be complex. Important factors include horizontal advection, temperature, resource availability and behavioural mechanisms. Short-term (intra-annual), small-scale (basin-scale) data are fundamental to understanding variability in euphausiid abundance and distribution on broader spatial and temporal scales in these ecosystems.

Critically examining the Lacanian and Althusserian theories of the subject, this thesis explored the theoretical problems and methodological premises of a converged version of both theories. The central argument the present thesis seeks to demonstrate is that the Lacanian-Althusserian dialectic provides a more comprehensive and effective account of the process of the subject formation than a purely psychoanalytical or structuralist Marxist analysis of the term. After a critical study of the way the subject is positioned between language and ideology in contemporary critical theory the thesis proceeds to investigate the subject-object relation in the Cartesian and Hegelian subjects. Conceived of as the convergence of lack and material, the Lacanian-Althusserian dialectic focuses on the close affinity between the Lacanian notion of linguistic alienation and the Althusserian concept of ideological interpellation. The subject’s alienation with what is called in the thesis ‘ideological signifier’ is considered as the result of direct and dramatic modes of interpellation in both language acquisition process and the mature phase. The major theoretical premises of this model include the following: first, identity functions through, and because of, the ‘inter-subjective dialectic’ and an ‘intra-subjective lack.’ Identity is never fully constituted because of this antagonism, and thus remains ‘incomplete.’ Secondly, the subject is ideologically constituted through language. The mechanism through which both language and ideology construct a subject never permits the subject enjoying a state of full identity with ideological signifiers. Thirdly, the subject’s identity is represented in the language exposed to and, later, reproduced by him/her. In order to demonstrate a practical reading of subjectivity formation in terms of this critical approach the present research applies it to James Joyce’s A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man (1916). The process of the subject formation has been analysed through the subject’s alienation/interpellation by the ISAs. Also, the inter-subjective dialectic between different subjectivities of the subject’s identity has been investigated. The thesis demonstrates that identity reconstruction represented in the novel is a complicated and ongoing process, which begins with disillusionment, goes through materialization of epiphany, and ends with inventiveness in language. This process has been represented as a move from ideological to non-ideological subjectivity through artistic creativity. The exploration of the aesthetics of language is crucial to the analysis of the reconstruction of Stephen Dedalus’ identity in that it happens in and through language.