Made available in DSpace on 2014-06-12T18:06:32Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 2 arquivo6781_1.pdf: 1186776 bytes, checksum: b2126f68b9f9e3b23ca8a2080c76734e (MD5) license.txt: 1748 bytes, checksum: 8a4605be74aa9ea9d79846c1fba20a33 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2002 / O presente trabalho teve como objetivo compreender a dinâmica espacial do comércio no bairro de Manaíra, na cidade de João Pessoa, Estado da Paraíba, tendo como parâmetro principal, os pequenos centros comerciais. Procurou-se analisar a interferência desses equipamentos comerciais na (re)organização espacial do referido bairro, especialmente, no que se refere à simultaneidade de mudanças, tais como: melhorias permanentes na infraestrutura, processo de verticalização e a expansão de um comércio moderno. Tomou-se como base a utilização de dados quantitativos qualitativos, uma vez que foi realizada pesquisa de campo (com questionários diferentes e mapeamento de atividades econômicas), pesquisa documental (em órgãos governamentais locais) e bibliográfica. Os pequenos centros comerciais, que diferem entre si quanto à estrutura e atividades oferecidas, têm crescido consideravelmente nas cidades brasileiras, principalmente, nas de médio e grande porte. Observou-se através deste estudo, que na cidade de João Pessoa eles têm se expandido nos bairros de maior poder aquisitivo, a exemplo do bairro Manaíra, conferindo ao mesmo uma característica peculiar de comércio moderno. Esse tipo de centro comercial influencia na (re)organização espacial à medida que atraem outros investimentos do setor terciário e, ainda, constituem-se em equipamentos que viabilizam a valorização do espaço urbano. Esses empreendimentos contribuem para a redefinição de hábitos culturais e de consumo, de grande parcela da população, pois compreendem produtos de consumo do alto estrato da sociedade, sendo, considerados, portanto, ponto de referência de mercadorias e serviços que, por meio da ação capitalista, satisfazem as necessidades desse estrato da sociedade

Chronic Open Angle Glaucoma (COAG) refers to a chronic progressive condition that is characterised by damage to the optic nerve, resulting in peripheral visual loss that can progress to involve the fovea and central vision; subsequently causing blindness. COAG is reported to have a poor level of adherence to treatment due to its asymptomatic nature. In this study, a Glaucoma Expert Patient Programme (GEPP) demonstrated new ways of improving patients' experience and adherence to COAG treatment. The research has employed an Information-Motivation-8ehavioural Skills Model to understand the association between knowledge, motivation and behavioural skills in an attempt to improve adherence amongst recently diagnosed patients. Patient participation was at the heart of every component of the study. In this research, four Expert Patients were trained and supported to deliver an educational programme (termed the GEPP) to 25 recently diagnosed patients with COAG (Intervention Group) and then a comparison was made to 25 participants (Control Group) that were also recently diagnosed with COAG but did not receive the educational programme. Three pre and post educational programme validated questionnaires were used to measure patients' knowledge, satisfaction and adherence at baseline and then discern changes at 1 month and 6 months follow up to the GEPP intervention. Staff (N = 10), Expert Patient (N = 4), Intervention Group (N=10) and Control Group (N=10) semi-structured interviews were also conducted to obtain deeper insight into their experiences of engaging in the programme. Data analysis indicated IMPROVING AWARENESS was the main theme that emerged supported by three subthemes: knowledge, satisfaction and adherence. This research has taken the Patient-Patient relationship to a higher level. It is viewed that the Expert Patients' experience is crucial and valuable to improving the experience, knowledge and adherence of newly diagnosed patients with COAG. The GEPP delineated in this study provided insight regarding individuals' life experiences of living with and managing chronic complex glaucoma. Implications for practice relate to the development of tailored educational programmes. This research contributed new knowledge to improving the adherence practices of glaucoma patients. It also demonstrated the value of Expert Patients' experience and their contribution to assisting newly diagnosed patients in self-managing their COAG.

Abstract Idiopathic usual interstitial pneumonia (UIP) and bronchiolitis obliterans organizing pneumonia (BOOP) are fibrous pulmonary disorders in both of which there is newly formed connective tissue in distal air spaces. UIP is a progressive and usually fatal lung disease without any efficient treatment, while the prognosis of BOOP is good. In both diseases, an injury of the alveolar epithelium and its basement membrane (BM) leads to migration of fibroblasts and myofibroblasts into air spaces and production of extracellular matrix by these cells. In UIP, the newly formed intraluminal connective tissue lesions cause fusion of alveolar structures and interstitial remodeling, while in BOOP the newly formed connective tissue may resolve completely. One of the major aims of the research on pulmonary fibrosis is to define the mechanisms that lead to persistence of the newly formed connective tissue and thus to irreversible fibrosis in UIP. The aim of the present study was to compare the extent of capillarization, apoptotic activity and re-epithelialization of the newly formed connective tissue in BOOP and UIP. The number of capillaries per tissue surface area was measured. Furthermore, the expression of angiogenic growth factors vascular endothelial growth factor-A (VEGF-A) and basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) was evaluated in the same areas, in addition to the expression of Flt-1 and Flk-1, which serve as receptors for VEGF. Apoptotic activity was analyzed using TUNEL-method, and the immunohistochemical expression of apoptosis regulating proteins bcl-2, mcl-1, and bax was studied. Finally, the extent of re-epithelialization was studied with the immunohistochemical and ultrastructural localization of laminin-5 γ2 chain, and the sites of synthesis of laminin-5 γ2 chain mRNA. In BOOP, an efficient repair process with good capillarization along with high expression of VEGF and bFGF, and orderly re-epithelialization of the newly formed connective tissue takes place after lung injury. The apoptotic activity of the newly formed connective tissue is also high, presumably leading to resolution of the intraluminal connective tissue in BOOP. In UIP, the newly formed connective tissue showed poor capillarization, inadequate re-epithelialization and low apoptotic activity. The results suggest disturbed or delayed repair process in UIP, contributing to irreversible interstitial fibrosis and remodeling.

Age-Related Macular Degeneration (ARMD) is the most common cause of legal blindness in the elderly in the western world. One of the earliest signs of aging is the accumulation of lipid rich debris within and underneath the Retinal Pigmented Epithelium (RPE) cells, known as “drusen”. The disease is poorly understood - mainly because it occurs late in life as well as the lack of appropriate cell and animal models. RPE lipo-toxicity (the increased content of lipids within the RPE cell) is suggested to be a major factor affecting both the molecular mechanisms and the metabolic responses of the RPE cells leading to changes associated with drusen formation and ARMD pathology. To investigate this phenomenon, aged ARPE-19 cultures were induced to long term lipid loading with a free fatty acids (FFAs) mixture to ensures the increase of the intra-cellular lipid level within the cells. The accumulation of lipids was found to correlate with a destruction of the ARPE-19 monolayer integrity, an increase in VEGF-A secretion in media and most importantly the production of sub-RPE deposits positive for apolipoprotein E, vitronectin and Amyloid beta 1-42, all of which are prominent constituents of drusen, supporting the hypothesis of lipo-toxicity. To further investigate the effect of inflammation in ARMD, we introduced the aged ARPE-19 cell cultures to long term complement activation in the presence and absence of lipid loading. Complement activation showed protective response suggesting that the complement system plays a secondary modulating response role to a primary destructive initiator “lipid loading”. These findings suggest the use of aged ARPE-19 cell culture as a promising model for ocular aged related diseases study including drusen deposition mechanisms, while the use of ARPE-19 lipo-toxicity model will facilitate the analysis of molecular and cellular characteristics of ARMD pathogenesis, augmenting the therapeutic strategies for dry ARMD.

The core function of optometrists is the prescribing of spectacles in order to alleviate symptoms and improve visual function. Most commonly, the spectacles are used to correct refractive errors and, less frequently, they are also used to correct a decompensated heterophoria. Whilst identifying and diagnosing a marked refractive error or decompensated heterophoria is relatively straightforward, the management of marginal or borderline cases is much more difficult, for there is no clear cut-off point between normality and abnormality. The literature search in this thesis reveals a lack of evidence-based research on the criteria for determining when a refractive or prismatic correction is required. The aim of the present research was to investigate at what point optometrists currently decide to prescribe spectacles in borderline cases, and to see if current prescribing habits relate to the advice given in the literature. Further aims were to investigate whether the correction of borderline refractive errors and decompensated heterophoria improves reading performance, and to investigate any association between an improvement in reading performance and symptoms. A practitioner survey was given to practitioners attending CET events during 2001 and to the UK Optometry E-mail discussion list. A wide variety of prescribing criteria were reported from the 37 respondents, and the presence of symptoms greatly influenced the decision to prescribe. Practitioners reported that their likelihood of prescribing when symptoms are present exceeded 50% for: horizontal aligning prism of ≥ 1.5Δ, vertical aligning prism ≥ 1.0Δ, hypermetropia of ≥ +0.75, reading additions of ≥ +0.75DS and astigmatism of ≥ -0.75DC. For asymptomatic patients, practitioners’ likelihood of prescribing exceeded 50% for: reading additions of ≥+1.50DS and astigmatic corrections of ≥-1.50DC. In the absence of symptoms, optometrists would not regularly correct any degree of hypermetropia or aligning prism up to the limits of the survey. In a prospective clinical trial, 58 subjects with decompensated heterophoria and 208 subjects with borderline refractive errors had their reading performance assessed with the Wilkins Rate of Reading Test both with the refractive or prismatic lens in place and with a placebo control lens using a double-masked randomised design. Analysis of the data indicated that prescribing prism for decompensated exophoria of 2Δ, a reading addition of +1.00DS and correcting oblique cylindrical errors is likely to result in an improvement in reading performance. Correlations between symptoms and the change in reading performance with small refractive or prismatic corrections were very weak. It is concluded that the correction of borderline decompensated heterophoria and refractive errors can improve rate of reading. Guidelines are suggested for the correction of these anomalies that are based on the present data on visual performance, as well as the literature on the effect of these anomalies on symptoms.

This dissertation is an examination of the Business Process Re-engineering (BPR) philosophy. The dissertation approach is to analyse the BPR philosophy through segmenting it into seven critical elements. These are elements that needs to be in place to ensure BPR success. Some of the critical elements are sub-components of BPR, while some others, such as the Balanced Scorecard and Project Management, are similar management philosophies that compliment the BPR approach. The seven elements examined are: 1. The identification of Economic Value Adding opportunities of Business Process Re¬engineering. 2. Aligning Business Process Re-engineering initiatives with organisational strategy by means of the Balanced Scorecard. 3. The utilisation of Best Practices and Benchmarks during the Business Process Re-engineering effort. 4. The utilization of Best Practices and Benchmarks during the Business Process Re-engineering effort. 5. Project Management techniques applicable to Business Process Re-engineering projects. 6. Implementation Drivers that helps ensure the success of Business Process Re-engineering. 7. Capturing of Business Process Re-engineering designs in Business Architectures. By no means are these the only elements involved in BPR, but it does form an essential structure for it. None of these elements are ground breaking new research subjects, although most of them are very topical in the business world at the turn of the millennium, and some are still going through growth pains in terms of practical validation. The scope of explanation for these BPR elements is kept at a practical and understandable level, with some deep drills into detail. The main objective of this dissertation is to offer a group of elements that can be used as a whole, or as selective tools during any type of Business Process Re-engineering effort. All these elements will be referenced against experiences from the industry in the form of an actual Business Process Re-engineering project that incorporated all these elements and results from their use. The dissertation deliverable is a usable composition of elements, or a BPR toolbox that can be used by Business Process Re-engineering practitioners as an aid in their efforts. / Dissertation (M Eng (Industrial Engineering))--University of Pretoria, 2007. / Industrial and Systems Engineering / unrestricted

No description available.

The purpose of this study was to develop a questionnaire designed to obtain valid and reliable information which might contribute to an explanation as to why some Re-entry women make successful transitions from home to work while others do not. The questionnaire development entailed three phases, each building on the results of the previous phase. In the first phase, Re-entry project coordinators in British Columbia were surveyed to determine what variables gleaned from the literature they felt were most important to the transition process. The second phase involved generating questionnaire items for the variables resulting from the literature and validating the items by a panel of expert judges. The questionnaire was constructed of the resulting items. In the third phase empirical validation of the questionnaire was determined by the responses of 106 Re-entry women who were administered the questionnaire in the last quarter of their training program. Item and factor analyses were conducted on the responses and discriminant function analysis was employed to determine which variables distinguished between those women who made successful transitions and those who did not. Five main factors - a) attitude regarding appropriate job in the current labour market; b) marital status; c) self-esteem; d) educational attainment and e) support from mate were found to distinguish with a 7 6.4% accuracy rate, between women who made a transition within 56 days of completing their training program and those who did not. / Education, Faculty of / Educational and Counselling Psychology, and Special Education (ECPS), Department of / Graduate

“We shape our buildings: thereafter they shape us.” (Churchill 1940, cited in McLuhan 1995, p.62) In the same manner; we have shaped our cities, and accordingly they have shaped our lifestyles into bustling hubs of activity. Networks of roads and trails direct movement with dense high rise structures defining space. The Interior Architect enters this complex scene to become part of a duet rather than a solo, working within existing structural skins and initiating harmony between the desired new and the existing. The aim is to restore a “sense of place” within the existing city fabric through processes of restoration, renovation, preservation and adaptive re-use, extending a building’s lifetime, while preserving its history and character. The objective of this thesis is to propose a way of improving the experience of the public domain within the inner city of Pretoria. A series of communal spaces is proposed that will provide essential public amenities within the city. These interventions guide experience via the senses. The partially abandoned Transvaal Provincial Administration (TPA) building is selected as study area. The intervention is proposed to enable the building to realise a new era in its lifetime by acknowledging it and celebrating it as a modern icon within Pretoria’s Central Business District (CBD) while, at the same time, helping it to shed itself of its negative political association. This is proposed through the adaptive re-use of the structure to accommodate various functions including a conference facility and a new home for Pretoria’s Art Association. / Dissertation (MInt(Prof))--University of Pretoria, 2010. / Architecture / unrestricted

Intraplate volcanism that has created the Hawaiian-Emperor seamount chain is generally thought to be formed by a deep-seated mantle plume. While the idea of a Hawaiian plume has not met with substantial opposition, whether or not the Hawaiian plume shows any geochemical signal of receiving materials from the Earth’s Outer Core and how the plume may or may not be reacting with the overriding lithosphere remain debatable issues. In an effort to understand how the Hawaiian plume works I report on the first in-situ sulfides and bulk rock Platinum Group Element (PGE) concentrations, together with Os isotope ratios on well-characterized garnet pyroxenite xenoliths from the island of Oahu in Hawaii. The sulfides are Fe-Ni Monosulfide Solid Solution and show fractionated PGE patterns. Based on the major elements, Platinum Group Elements and experimental data I interpret the Hawaiian sulfides as an immiscible melt that separated from a melt similar to the Honolulu Volcanics (HV) alkali lavas at a pressure-temperature condition of 1530 ± 100OC and 3.1±0.6 GPa., i.e. near the base or slightly below the Pacific lithosphere. The 187Os/188Os ratios of the bulk rock vary from subchondritic to suprachondritic (0.123-0.164); and the 187Os/188Os ratio strongly correlates with major element, High Field Strength Element (HFSE), Rare Earth Element (REE) and PGE abundances. These correlations strongly suggest that PGE concentrations and Os isotope ratios reflect primary mantle processes. I interpret these correlations as the result of melt-mantle reaction at the base of the lithosphere: I suggest that the parental melt that crystallized the pyroxenites selectively picked up radiogenic Os from the grain boundary sulfides, while percolating through the Pacific lithosphere. Thus the sampled pyroxenites essentially represent crystallized melts from different stages of this melt-mantle reaction process at the base of the lithosphere. I further show that the relatively low Pt/Re ratios of the Hawaiian sulfides and the bulk rock pyroxenites suggest that, upon ageing, such pyroxenites plus their sulfides cannot generate the coupled 186Os-187Os isotope enrichments observed in Hawaiian lavas. Therefore, recycling of mantle sulfides of pyroxenitic parentage is unlikely to explain the enriched Pt-Re-Os isotope systematics of plume-derived lavas.