This thesis explores the idea of a liminal space, as being dreamlike, suspended in time and physically unlocatable. It questions and exploits the boundary between abstraction and figuration in painting. This investigation has been considered from a subjective viewpoint allowing a distancing of space to illuminate new perceptions and experiences through the language of painting. The project has sought to explore the relationship between the natural world and seeing, to deepen and emphasize the other worldliness of an in-between space. This third space has been evoked by a process of abstracting pictorial content, juxtaposition of elements, colour and composition. The thesis is constituted of practice-based 80%, accompanied by an exegesis 20%.

PhD (African Studies) / Department of African Studies / Inwi nwana, ni tou vha khundavhalai! (you child, you defeated your guide!). When a child behaved disrespectful to society, and is ill mannered, in Tshivenda, he/she would be referred to as Khundavhalai. Khundavhalai is made out of two Tshivenda words (Khunda + Vhalai which could be equalled to defeating + guides), meaning the one who defeated those who should guide him/her. The system and process of guiding could be equaled to u laya. Nwana is a child. The purpose of this study was to reflect on the Afro-centric practices of u laya nwana- guiding a child with particular reference to the Vhavenḓa culture. The decision to conduct this study was influenced by concerning incidences of behavior that could be associated with khundavhalai. The question was how did vhalai convey ndayo (The content and processes of u laya)? Bearing in mind a lack of documentation on these practices, I envisaged that the reflections would provide insights about how Vhavenda people guided children, with the hope that what was good could be blended with contemporary practices. The study employed a qualitative reflective paradigm. In-depth interviews were conducted with six elderly people who were key informants, to establish how u laya ṅwana was practised in the olden days. Olden days referred to a period before the 1980s. Key informants were asked to reflect on the processes and content of u laya ṅwana, and to identify positive practices that could be applied in the revival process of u laya vhana. Findings showed that u laya nwana was done throughout a child’s development, using different forms, such as songs, folklore, games, proverbs within a family context and communally through initiation schools(ngoma). There was a strong collaborative system between the families, traditional leadership, and key community figures who had the trust of the families and the royal household to run initiation schools. Participants were concerned that these practices have since vanished. A few that still exist are not without challenges. I got an opportunity to visit and observe at least two of those schools. The programme to revive ndayo was suggested, which encourages adaptive processes and collaborative effort between traditional initiation schools, families, communities, schools, churches, and relevant government departments. / NRF

In the Basin and Range Province, the geologic regime of the Pilot Valley, linear trending block faults have isolated many valleys both topographically and hydrologically. Discharge from these arid, closed basins occurs only as evaporation. Minerals dissolved in discharging fluid are precipitated at the valley floor as the liquid evaporates. The resulting salt flats and high density brines are known as playas. The Pilot Valley Playa surface was sampled concurrently with the recording of a Thematic Mapper remotely sensed image to define the surface conditions that correspond to image data. An association was found between the band 7 (infrared wavelength radiation) image data and the measured depth to water; and between the visible wavelength data and the evaporite mineral deposits on the playa. The specific gravity of the shallow subsurface brine was found to increase as the liquid brine surface approached the elevation of the valley floor. By using the observed relationships, three remotely sensed images were interpreted with respect to temporal changes in the areal extent of playa evaporite deposits and water depth between 1984 and 1988. The visible wavelength data indicated that the areal extent of the evaporite deposits diminished during the study period. The water level at the playa margins was interpreted to have dropped, and at the playa center to have remained stable. These interpretations suggest that a decrease in the extent of evaporite deposition is related to a drop in the water level around the playa margins. The interpreted changes of the playa surface are used to draw the following conclusions about the hydrology of the Pilot Valley. The distinct variation in depth to water around the playa margin suggests that these areas are influenced by the discharge from the surrounding ranges. The relatively stable water depth in the central playa and the associated thicker evaporite deposits suggest that the subsurface brine acts here as a buffer to discharge variations. If the temporal changes of the playa margins do result from discharge variation, the discharge zone at the base of the Silver Island Range is wider than that of the adjacent, higher elevation Pilot Range.

This research focuses on the development of a deterministic-probabilistic framework for agricultural land use and management, specifically for both annual crops, such as wheat, barley and maize, and permanent crops, such as vineyards. The goal is to predict crop greening and peak crop development progressively through the growing season, based on accumulating information as the crop develops and matures, and to provide an accompanying uncertainty statement (credible interval) with each prediction. The integrated area underneath the phenology curve can be associated, although not explicitly in our example, with per-area crop yield. The prediction model relies on remotely sensed data, including science data products from the Landsat and MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) spaceborne instruments, field data from agro-meteorological stations, and statistical data from prior years. The development of the deterministic-probabilistic model focuses on northeastern Italy, a region of small agricultural plots set in a diverse physical landscape, which is typical of many areas of old-world and developing-nation agriculture. The estimation process uses the phenological cycle of the MODIS Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI), extracted from the satellite imagery at 500 m spatial resolution. Landsat data, at 30-m spatial resolution, are fused with MODIS data, to provide fine-scale information better suited to small-field agriculture. By applying a piecewise logistic function to model the time trajectory of EVI values, crop development and peak greenness are estimated and characterized based on the main phenological stages determined from the remote imagery trained with ground station observations. The deterministic-probabilistic model is later validated with observations from reference testing stations and statistical crop and yield data obtained independently by administrative districts such as regional and national organizations. A temporal filter of the main phenological stages, here called a crop calendar, plays a critical role. A Bayesian approach to integrate stochastically the parameters related to a certain area provides a way to include the different datasets at the different dimensions and scales and to assess the probability to obtain a vegetation index within a given uncertainty. The model becomes, therefore, a typical generalized linear model problem, deterministically described by a piecewise logistic function, with the parameters describing the peak phenological curve estimated probabilistically, with their own uncertainty. / 2026-01-31T00:00:00Z

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Philosophiae Doctor - PhD (Biodiversity and Conservation Biology) / Seawater temperature from regional to global scale is central to many measures of biodi- versity and continues to aid our understanding of the evolution and ecology of biolog- ical assemblages. Therefore, a clear understanding of the relationship between marine biodiversity and thermal structures is critical for effective conservation planning. In the an- thropocene, an epoch characterised by anthropogenic forcing on the climate system, future patterns in biodiversity and ecological functioning may be estimated from projected climate scenarios however; absent from many of these scenarios is the inclusion of extreme thermal events, known as marine heatwaves (MHWs). There is also a conspicuous absence in knowl- edge of the drivers for all but the most notorious of these events. Before the drivers of MHWs along the coast of South Africa could be determined, it was first necessary to validate the 129 in situ coastal seawater temperature time series that could be used to this end. In doing so it was found that time series created with older (longer), lower precision (0.5 Degrees Celsius) instruments were more useful than newer (shorter) time series produced with high precision (0.001 Degrees Celsius) instruments. With the in situ data validated, a history of the occurrence of MHWs along the coastline (nearshore) was created and compared against MHWs detected by remotely sensed data (offshore). This comparison showed that the forcing of offshore temperatures onto the nearshore was much lower than anticipated, with the rates of co-occurrence for events between the datasets along the coast ranging from 0.2 to 0.5. To accommodate this lack of consistency between datasets, a much larger mesoscale area was then taken around southern Africa when attempting to determine potential mesoscale drivers of MHWs along the coast. Using a self organising-map (SOM), it was possible to organise the synoptic scale oceanographic and atmospheric states during coastal MHWs into discernible groupings. It was found that the most common synoptic oceanographic pattern during coastal MHWs was Agulhas Leakage, and the most common atmospheric pattern was anomalously warmoverland air temperatures.With these patterns known it is now necessary to calculate how often they occur when no MHW has been detected. This work may then allow for the development of predictive capabilities that could help mitigate the damage caused by MHWs.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-29T13:31:31Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Rose L C R Pizzolante.pdf: 1342359 bytes, checksum: 9d8b1b72469c34a1051a6db75cc0aa6a (MD5) Previous issue date: 2007-05-11 / This essay has the purpose to place psychotherapy in the context of social inequalities, defending its importance when facing psychic questions derived from such differences and the necessity to offer it to every citizen. Its specific purpose is the analysis of a psychotherapy proposition built up in the course of 8 years of work with low-income people. Subjects are part of a psychotherapy group this researcher works with at a medical health insurance center for lowincome people. While attending them we have observed that many of their complaints result from a life marked with inequalities and social injustices that affect their psychic configuration in the sense called by Sawaia as an ethicalpolitical suffering. Espinosa s and Vygotsky s theories and the way Sawaia understands the dialog between the philosopher and the Russian author give the basis for the reflection in this work as well Freud s reflections on the necessity to give to the poor the benefits of a psychotherapeutic treatment. The methodological support was based on research-action principles and its procedures such as: elaboration of a field log by the researcher, another one by a group of patients and the use of semi-structure, open-ended questionnaire for all. Analysis of the reported and obtained information mediated by theoretical reflections shows that it is possible to empower patients to change the way they think and behave, in a short time, if compared to patients from private clinics. It gave us material for a critical psychotherapy analysis and for the formulation of a psychotherapy directed toward the suffering caused by social inequalities. In this direction, they point to the necessity of a social commitment of the psychotherapist and the inclusion of this group psychotherapy in questions of public health / Este trabalho tem como objetivo situar a psicoterapia no contexto da desigualdade social, defendendo a sua importância no enfrentamento das questões psíquicas daí derivadas, e a necessidade de oferecê-las a todos os cidadãos. Tem como objetivo específico a análise de uma proposta de psicoterapia construída ao longo de oito anos de trabalho com pessoas de baixa renda. Esta pesquisa teve como pesquisados pessoas que se tratam conosco, num convênio médico voltado para classes pobres. No atendimento a pessoas pobres, observamos que, muito dos seus sofrimentos psíquicos, procedem de seu contexto social, onde as desigualdades e injustiças sociais constituem o seu cotidiano e sua configuração psíquica. Além dos sofrimentos inerentes ao homem, tem o acréscimo daqueles provindos de sua situação social, ao qual, segundo Sawaia, denomina-se de sofrimento ético-político, criando, assim, uma categoria psicossocial para trabalhar os afetos. As teorias de Espinosa, Vygotsky e a forma como Sawaia compreende o diálogo entre o filósofo e o autor russo, serviram de referência teórica para desenvolver as questões acima referidas. Baseada nos conceitos de Thiollent, pesquisa-ação deu-nos suporte metodológico e, como procedimento de avaliação desta psicoterapia, foram escolhidas técnicas próprias da pesquisa-ação, como: a construção de um diário, por grupos de pacientes, a aplicação de um questionário semi-aberto1, para todos os integrantes dos grupos atendidos por nós, e a elaboração de um diário de campo, pela pesquisadora, que continha todas as sessões realizadas de abril de 2002 a dezembro de 2005

Landslides cause significant damage to property and human lives throughout the world. Rainfall is the most common triggering factor for the occurrence of landslides. This dissertation presents two novel methodologies for assessment of rainfall-triggered shallow landslide hazard. The first method focuses on using remotely sensed soil moisture and soil surface properties in developing a framework for real-time regional scale landslide hazard assessment while the second method is a deterministic approach to landslide hazard assessment of the specific sites identified during first assessment. In the latter approach, landslide inducing transient seepage in soil during rainfall and its effect on slope stability are modeled using numerical analysis. Traditionally, the prediction of rainfall-triggered landslides has been performed using pre-determined rainfall intensity-duration thresholds. However, it is the infiltration of rainwater into soil slopes which leads to an increase of porewater pressure and destruction of matric suction that causes a reduction in soil shear strength and slope instability. Hence, soil moisture, pore pressure and infiltration properties of soil must be direct inputs to reliable landslide hazard assessment methods. In-situ measurement of pore pressure for real-time landslide hazard assessment is an expensive endeavor and thus, the use of more practical remote sensing of soil moisture is constantly sought. In past studies, a statistical framework for regional scale landslide hazard assessment using remotely sensed soil moisture has not been developed. Thus, the first major objective of this study is to develop a framework for using downscaled remotely sensed soil moisture available on a daily basis to monitor locations that are highly susceptible to rainfall- triggered shallow landslides, using a well-structured assessment procedure. Downscaled soil moisture, the relevant geotechnical properties of saturated hydraulic conductivity and soil type, and the conditioning factors of elevation, slope, and distance to roads are used to develop an improved logistic regression model to predict the soil slide hazard of soil slopes using data from two geographically different regions. A soil moisture downscaling model with a proven superior prediction accuracy than the downscaling models that have been used in previous landslide studies is employed in this study. Furthermore, this model provides satisfactory classification accuracy and performs better than the alternative water drainage-based indices that are conventionally used to quantify the effect that elevated soil moisture has upon the soil sliding. Furthermore, the downscaling of soil moisture content is shown to improve the prediction accuracy. Finally, a technique that can determine the threshold probability for identifying locations with a high soil slide hazard is proposed. On the other hand, many deterministic methods based on analytical and numerical methodologies have been developed in the past to model the effects of infiltration and subsequent transient seepage during rainfall on the stability of natural and manmade slopes. However, the effects of continuous interplay between surface and subsurface water flows on slope stability is seldom considered in the above-mentioned numerical and analytical models. Furthermore, the existing seepage models are based on the Richards equation, which is derived using Darcy’s law, under a pseudo-steady state assumption. Thus, the inertial components of flow have not been incorporated typically in modeling the flow of water through the subsurface. Hence, the second objective of this study is to develop a numerical model which has the capability to model surface, subsurface and infiltration water flows based on a unified approach, employing fundamental fluid dynamics, to assess slope stability during rainfall-induced transient seepage conditions. The developed model is based on the Navier-Stokes equations, which possess the capability to model surface, subsurface and infiltration water flows in a unified manner. The extended Mohr-Coulomb criterion is used in evaluating the shear strength reduction due to infiltration. Finally, the effect of soil hydraulic conductivity on slope stability is examined. The interplay between surface and subsurface water flows is observed to have a significant impact on slope stability, especially at low hydraulic conductivity values. The developed numerical model facilitates site-specific calibration with respect to saturated hydraulic conductivity, remotely sensed soil moisture content and rainfall intensity to predict landslide inducing subsurface pore pressure variations in real time.

Human intervention and natural phenomenon cause change in land use day by day. Availability of accurate land use information is essential for many applications like natural resource management, planning and monitoring programs. Landuse Change has become a central component in current strategies for managing natural resources and monitoring environmental change. Because of the rapid development in the field of land use mapping, there is an increase in studies of land use change worldwide. Providing an accurate assessment of the extent and health of the world’s forest, grassland and agricultural resources has become an important priority. By printed maps without any statistics or only statistics without any map can not solve this visualization problem. Because printed maps have not attracted as much attention as statistics among the people because of it is limited applications (Himiyama, 2002). Remotely sensed data like aerial photographs and satellite imageries are undoubtedly the most ideal data for extracting land use change information. Satellite images are the most economical way of getting data for different times. The multitude of existing software helps getting information from satellite image also in manipulating the information. The approach used in this study to classify satellite images and change detection based on Satellite images Landsat MSS (1972), Landsat TM (1989) and Landsat ETM (1999) for using supervised classification methods like maximum likelihood (MAXLIKE), MAHALCLASS and time series analysis of CROSSTAB. After performed these hard and soft classifiers the research showed the significant Landuse change in the study area of Chakoria Sundarban mangrove forest. Remote sensing is the modern tools for detecting change pattern and behaviours of coastal environment (Saifuzzaman, 2000). So, those tools are used in the research work for better change analysis of the study area. For analyzing, evaluation and mapping environmental change detection of different years remotely sensed data have been undertaken. The present research provides some suggestions and recommendations as per research findings in order to optimize the utility of coastal resources and to maintain the sustainability of the resources, coastal land use control and there by stabilizing the coastal vulnerable area of chakoria Sundarban.