Current views and models about attention regard man as a 'transmitter channel' and try to characterise the properties of that 'odd channel'. Another characteristic of the current views is that attention is regarded as a specific mental operation in a person which can be described, irrespective of the purposes of the subject. By contrast we examine attention as an activity at the service of the purposes of the person. Attention is examined as an activity by means of which the field of consciousness is structured around the 'object of attention'. This object of attention is not a specific 'stimulus' but a system in the sense of General System Theory. Hence, the approach is mainly holistic in character. Activity is looked upon as an INTERTRAFFIC between the person and his relation with the world. And where there is relatedness, information theory, in a cybernetic sense, can be used. The approach developed benefits of the advantages from previous models allowing also for a better explanation of the limitation present in the cognitive realm without appeal to some 'filter mechanism' in the physiological structure of a person.

In recent years the concept of dematerialization has had an effect on design professions that rely on materiality for its manifestation. This process has diminished the unique characteristics of design, but through the investigation of making as integral part of the design process, the creative identity and status of design can be strengthened again. This dissertation proposes a parallel process which integrates the act of making into the conventional design process, to address both the material and immaterial qualities of a space. The focus of the study is to investigate and determine a new spatial language as the digital and physical realms are merging together to create the concept of a cybrid space. The Boukunde archive holds opportunity for this investigation to express the new character of a cybrid space. Characteristics of both the paper archive and a digital archive are extracted to inform and define the re-representation of the archive in its contemporary context. Paper at present does not yet have a clearly defined spatial language in the built environment therefore through the exploration of this unconventional material in an innovative way, creates the opportunity for a new interaction and experience. Paper becomes a symbol of the old paper archive that has been re-interpreted in the cybrid archive where this new space embodies qualities of both the physical realm and the digital realm that are experienced in novel ways. The paper installation becomes the visual link in the space which captures the essence of the architectural drawing archive. / In onlangse jare het die konsep van dematerialisering 'n invloed op die ontwerp beroepe gehad. Hierdie proses het die unieke eienskappe van ontwerp onderdruk, maar deur die ondersoek van die Research Through Making metodiek as integrale deel van die ontwerpproses, kan die kreatiewe identiteit en status van ontwerp weer versterk word. Die doel van die verhandeling is om weg te beweeg van konvensionele ontwerp prosesse, deur die proses van maak te versterk sodat die materi?le en nie-materi?le eienskappe meer geintegreer kan word in die ruimtelike uitkoms. Die fokus van die studie is om ondersoek in te stel en te bepaal wat die nuwe ruimtelike taal is wanneer die digitale en fisiese ruimtes geintegreer word in een nuwe ruimte, as deel van die cybrid konsep. Die Boukunde argief hou geleentheid vir hierdie ondersoek om die nuwe karakter van 'n cybrid ruimte te ondersoek en uit te beeld. Papier tans het nie 'n duidelike ruimtelike taal in die bou omgewing nie en dus deur die verkenning van hierdie onkonvensionele materiaal op 'n innoverende manier, skep dit geleentheid vir 'n nuwe ruimtelike toepassing en ervarring. Papier word 'n simbool van die ou papier argief asook die estetiese en funksionele voorstelling van die cybrid argief. Die nuwe ruimte vergestalt eienskappe van beide die fisiese and digitale ryke en die papier installasie word die visuele verbinding in die ruimte wat die essensie vna die argitektoniese tekening argief vas vang. / Mini Dissertation (MInt (Prof))--University of Pretoria, 2016. / Architecture / MInt (Prof) / Unrestricted

The dissertation proposes a Community Creativity Facility in the Cultural Precinct in the lower Central Business District (CBD) of Pretoria. The client, Tshwane Leadership Foundation (TLF) and its affiliate, the School of Creative Arts (SCA), require a facility that caters for the visual arts within Pretoria’s city centre that uplifts its users on a socio-economic level. Furthermore, an arts facility in the lower CBD is absent and can contribute to inner-city activation. The dissertation investigates how a relationship can be established between the visual arts and Pretoria’s inner city community and city users. The building intends on fostering an arts appreciation and relationship through exposure, education and skills development. It seeks to educate people on the relevance and contribution of art. This will be investigated by analysing the role that art museums and galleries currently hold - the perceptions attached to them. The theory and the concept, which encourage active participation and interactivity, will inform the design of the building. The urban framework, the site analysis and the precedent studies also inform the dissertation. The design is primarily form-driven, as it was realised that the ground floor – the public realm – is the most important drawcard in exposing people to art. Thus, the spatial manipulation of the ground floor resulted in a public square that encourages exposure to art, accidental/impromptu encounters and informal activities to occur. The treatment of surface planes was also approached to allow for visual and physical connections. Commercial, educational and leisure programs were combined into a single building as a mixed-use building can further encourage exposure to art. As the building intends on facilitating creativity and creating spaces that are inclusive for its users, the design development explored this extensively through hand drawings, 3D modeling, concept models and computer generated drawings. Copyright 2011, University of Pretoria. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work vests in the University of Pretoria. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the University of Pretoria. Please cite as follows: Philippou, A 2011, A community creativity facility : encouraging a public interface with art, MArch(Prof) dissertation, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, viewed yymmdd < http://upetd.up.ac.za/thesis/available/etd-12012011-112138 / > C12/4/27/gm / Dissertation (MArch(Prof))--University of Pretoria, 2011. / Architecture / unrestricted

Informal settlements are a natural and necessary part of urbanization. Occupied by victims of unsuccessful migration and viewed by the city dweller as a dystopia, these are incredibly self-sustaining parts of the city. Inhabited by the socially marginalised, informal settlements have been neglected in terms of infrastructure and public processes by the formal sectors. Recent efforts to deal with these settlements, like forced evictions, show evidence of social and spatial injustices inflicted on the inhabitants. By 2050, more than two-thirds of the global population will live in cities. Of those, one-third will live in sub-par informal settlements without their own right to the city. With this reality, is it time to reassess how we talk about informal forms of urbanization?

This research studies two memorials to the Holocaust victims in Minsk, Belarus with the aim to identify how these spaces of commemoration were formed. The study builds upon the analysis of three spheres: the physical space of the chosen memorials, decision-making process regarding their installation, and social practices that have happened around. Additionally, this thesis analyses the correlations of these areas. The methods for the research are qualitative and explorative case study analysis. An extensive review of documents and media is done. Additionally, direct observations of the urban memorials were conducted.

<p> An unlocalised collection of ammonites from West New Guinea is described and identified. These identifications afford the basis for determining the stratigraphic position of the fauna, which ext ends from the Sowerbyi Zone of the Middle Jurassic to the Upper Valanginian. The relations of the fauna to other ammonite faunas are described and indicate the ammonites in the present collection to be most closely related to the faunas of the Pacific Realm and Ethiopian province of the Tethyan Realm. A new genus, Sulaites is described and possible sexual dimorphism is detected therein. </p> / Thesis / Master of Science (MSc)

The aim of this study is to present an examination of the philosophies of Aristotle, Karl Marx and Herbert Marcuse concerning labor and leisure in the context of freedom. These philosophers have paid attention to the concepts labor and leisure / their view of freedom is dependent on the relationship they have established between labor and leisure. To this end, I firstly give a general overview of the concepts labor, leisure and freedom / afterwards, I try to show how these concepts have been considered in the history of thought. I examine the concepts labor and leisure in Aristotle&rsquo / s political and ethical thought. I discuss the connection between Aristotle&rsquo / s perfect state and his view of ethics in the context of labor and leisure, and the relation between best way of life and freedom in Aristotle is presented. Next, I analyze Karl Marx&rsquo / s view of human nature and his theory of estrangement. I investigate the condition of labor and leisure in the capitalist society from Marx&rsquo / s point of view / and consider Marxian conceptions &ldquo / the realm of freedom&rdquo / and &ldquo / the realm of necessity&rdquo / is considered in context of labor and leisure. Lastly, I analyze Herbert Marcuse&rsquo / s critique of the advanced industrial society and the thoughts on &ldquo / one dimensional man&rdquo / it creates. I dwelled on the possibilities of technological developments, and the changes they bring about concerning labor and leisure, both as means of servitude and freedom. In the conclusion, I give a brief summary, and consider the similarities and differences among the views of Aristotle, Karl Marx and Herbert Marcuse concerning labor, leisure and freedom.

This thesis examines the propriety of suffering as a category in political thought. This complex subject matter is approached by examining two responses, and the disagreement arising between these responses, to the perceived failure of politics, modernity and religion in Europe in the first half of the twentieth century. The first response to these failures considered is a theological response, representing a politics based on belief, in which we turn to the writings of J.B. Metz as a representative of this position. The second response considered is the philosophical civic humanism of Hannah Arendt as a seminal representative of what we term a politics based on unbelief. Our question regarding suffering as a category in political thought brings our two representative thinkers into disagreement. Metz presents a vision of political life in which belief – and specifically Christian belief – must liberate itself from privatising forces which confine belief and a response to suffering to the private sphere as a matter of individual concern and inward piety. For Metz the issue of suffering is not merely a matter of individual private concern but of political action. Central to his argument are his understanding of theodicy that forms part of his critique of modernity, the central place he gives Christ’s cry of dereliction in theology and his concept of Leiden an Gott. Arendt, representative of politics strictly separated from religion on Modernity’s grounds, robustly argues that concerns which are matters of the private sphere, that is the household, have invaded the public realm and in doing so have destroyed politics. Suffering is such a concern and it introduces to politics the ‘problem of necessity’ and impinges upon her concept of human freedom. She therefore represents the antithesis of Metz’s position. In order to answer our question regarding suffering our argument focuses by engaging with the issues of freedom and forgiveness. This move is important in establishing the basis on which suffering can appear in the political realm. This thesis argues for and concludes that theology provides the means for a reconciliation of the antinomies between the private and public spheres, between suffering and political thought. We therefore conclude that suffering is an appropriate concern of political life and compassion in the form of Christian charity can take an appropriate form in the political sphere.

According to the CDC, each year approximately 0.06 % of the world's population dies in infancy. The March of Dimes indicated that the leading causes of infant mortality include birth defects, preterm birth, low birth weight, sudden infant death syndrome, maternal complications of pregnancy, and respiratory distress syndrome, most of which are considered preventable with access to adequate prenatal care by mothers. The goal of this study was to examine the association between maternal health literacy levels and preterm birth. This research was based on the theoretical framework of the Interaction Model of Client Health Behavior. The hypothesis for this study was that reproductive-age women with low levels of maternal health literacy would be more likely to experience a preterm birth. In this case control study, cases were defined as women delivering before 37 weeks gestation. The REALM health literacy assessment tool was used in a sample of 169 women meeting the criteria; 56 fit the case criteria and 113 fit the control criteria. The data were analyzed in SPSS using logistic regression, with preterm birth as the dependent variable, and health literacy levels as the independent variable. When comparing mothers who delivered preterm to mothers that delivered term, there was no significance difference (p = 0.112) with respect to maternal health literacy. There was no association between low maternal health literacy levels, as assessed by the REALM instrument, and preterm birth for English-speaking women between the ages of 18 and 35 within the metropolitan Atlanta area. This study reinforces the need to reengage health practitioners to achieve a modest understanding of the principals of health literacy and the health literacy levels of their patients to assist in maternal health improvements. A focus on the development and implementation of educational competencies for clinicians on maternal health literacy would attribute to a positive social change.

This thesis proposes turning a Toronto subway station into a gallery that will display temporary exhibitions of contemporary art. Islington subway station, on the corner of Bloor Street West and Islington Avenue, will anchor a future civic and cultural centre and will become the social and public focal point of Etobicoke Centre. The building will turn this neighbourhood into a vibrant community, creating a self-sustaining node around which people will live, work, and play. This proposal has been inspired by urban sociologist Ray Oldenburg’s concept of the ‘third place’. In contrast to the first and second places of home and work, the third place encompasses the social realm, being a neutral space where people can gather and interact. The proposal for the Islington Gallery of Art also adapts new urbanist Peter Calthorpe’s theory of the ‘Transit Oriented Development’ where the subway station is the central node in the neighbourhood. Both of these concepts will be discussed further in the thesis. The Islington Gallery of Art will bring commuters a direct connection with culture. This gallery will transform the public space of infrastructure into a setting for informal public life. A third place will be created where one currently does not exist. The thesis combines the three narratives of public space, public transportation, and civic culture in the design of a mixed-use building. It explores how transportation infrastructure and architecture can combine with contemporary art to instigate the development for a new kind of place, one that isn’t a traditional street or square, near the periphery of the City of Toronto.