The Result of a Polygraph Examination as an Argument in Criminal Investigation

"The result of polygraph examination is a testimony put forth by an expert after concluding examination on a subject who agreed to undergo the procedure. Th e subject of consideration here is only the results acquired in examinations conducted as part of criminal investigations, which implies the omission of pre-employment examinations, post-conviction sexual off ender testing (PCSOT), and other uses. Moreover, the analysis focuses on only those examinations that ended in indication that the subject of examination was deceptive as a result of the expert using one of the comparison question techniques, or as a person recognising an event in the case of applying the Concealed Information Test (CIT) technique. Nor does the study account for the results of inconclusive examinations."(...

Formation of an engineering identity : industrial role models & problem based learning

In vocational disciplines such as engineering, industrialists can provide students with access to real-life projects and artefacts that expose them to practice knowledge and employability skills. Assistance from Alumni role models can help students to imagine and reflect on their future self as graduate engineers. In this paper, two initiatives that aid the students’ transition from ‘novice to becoming’ civil engineering graduates are examined. (1) Graduate mentoring of student mentees during their third-year of studies and (2) a hybrid problem/ project-based series of workshops know as Civil Engineering 4 Real (CE4R). Both initiatives fostered a collaborative academic-industry partnership whereby undergraduates were introduced to an engineering practitioner community of practice. Both initiatives have exposed students to the breadth of civil engineering practice and sub-disciplines within the profession. Whilst the feedback from the students is overwhelmingly positive, there is a need to ensure both initiatives are considered with respect to the wider course curriculum

Civil engineering 4 real (CE4R): co-curricular learning for undergraduates

Vocational disciplines such as engineering provide an ideal opportunity for contextualising the curriculum. The provision of co-curricular activities can stimulate students to assimilate their prior knowledge and skills whilst enhancing employability attributes. Team-based co-curricular activities linked to problem-based learning can offer students a quasi-authentic experience of engineering practice. In this paper, we provide a case study of a successful co-curricular initiative supported by local civil engineering employers. Civil Engineering 4 Real (CE4R) are evening workshops facilitated by practicing engineers, where student attendance is voluntary. Students use authentic documentation and collaborate in peer learning to solve industrial problems. CE4R has assisted student’s anticipatory socialisation into their disciplinary profession. However, further research is required to establish the cognitive legacy that students gain from attending CE4R. There is also a need to explore the synergy that could be prompted through understanding the boundaries between CE4R and the programme curriculum

The strategic formulation of abductive arguments in everyday reasoning

Since everyday abductive arguments convey the arguer’s individual interpretation of reality, they often exhibit a weak relationship between the premise and the conclusion. After all, what seems obvious to the arguer may appear far-fetched to an opponent. This paper examines some presentational devices that contribute to an arguer’s rhetorical goal of presenting the argument in such a way that the conclusion is suggested to be the result of a thorough investigative procedure

Proving constructive dismissal: a critical evaluation of section 186(l)(e) of the Labour Relations Act 66 of 1995 and recent judgments.

Masters Degree. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban.The focus of the research is to evaluate the interpretation of section 186 ( 1 )( e) of the Labour Relations Act of 1995 which defines a dismissal to include circumstances where an employee resigns with or without notice because the employer has made continued employment intolerable for the employee. The purpose of the research is to set out the appropriate test to be followed in dealing with a constructive dismissal claim in terms of section 186(1 )(e) and assess whether the Constitutional Court has adequately formulated a test to be applied in the case of Strategic Liquor Services v Mvumbi 2010 (2) SA 92 (CC) where it was held that the test for proving constructive dismissal is not whether the employee had alternatives short of resignation but only that the employer made continued employment intolerable. The test formulated by the Constitutional Court will be revisited and the research will further evaluate if there has been progression on the approach adopted by the CC. The focus of the research will be mainly on the evaluation of recent judgments. The significance of adopting a purposive approach when interpreting the LRA is discussed as well as the remedies which follows once an employee succeeds with a claim of a constructive dismissal

A story of trials and tribulations: The National Prosecuting Authority, 1998 – 2014

Established in 1998, the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) immediately had to deal with escalating levels of serious crime. Through a variety of innovations, including prosecution-driven investigations popularised by the ‘Scorpions’, specialised career paths for prosecutors, a focus on performance measurement, and improved conditions of service, the NPA quickly became an employer of choice for a new generation of law graduates. Over the last 16 years, the NPA’s specialised units have performed well. However, the NPA’s performance at the level of the lower courts – where the vast majority of prosecutions occur – has been mixed. With the appointment of its sixth head or acting head in late 2013, the NPA has been burdened with inconsistent – and at times, poor and unsuitable – leadership. Relatedly, political interference and the politicisation of the NPA have seriously undermined a once promising institution, negatively affecting staff morale and performance and sapping public confidence in the NPA. The future of the NPA as an institution that exercises its functions without fear, favour or prejudice, as mandated by the Constitution, hangs in the balance

Constructive dismissal arising from work-related stress: National Health Laboratory Service v Yona & Others

From text: The issue of whether an employee can claim constructive dismissal due to work-related stress in terms of the Labour Relations Act (LRA)1 is central to the discussion of this case note. The Act defines dismissal as termination of a contract of employment by an employee with or without notice, because the employer made continued employment intolerable. Consequently, in instances of conventional dismissals, as discussed above, it is up to the employer to prove that the dismissal was procedurally and substantively fair

A literature review. Introduction to the special issue

UIDB/00183/2020 UIDP/00183/2020 PTDC/FER-FIL/28278/2017 CHIST-ERA/0002/2019Argumentation schemes [35, 80, 91] are a relatively recent notion that continues an extremely ancient debate on one of the foundations of human reasoning, human comprehension, and obviously human argumentation, i.e., the topics. To understand the revolutionary nature of Walton’s work on this subject matter, it is necessary to place it in the debate that it continues and contributes to, namely a view of logic that is much broader than the formalistic perspective that has been adopted from the 20th century until nowadays. With his book Argumentation schemes for presumptive reasoning, Walton attempted to start a dialogue between three different fields or views on human reasoning – one (argumentation theory) very recent, one (dialectics) very ancient and with a very long tradition, and one (formal logic) relatively recent, but dominating in philosophy. Argumentation schemes were proposed as dialectical instruments, in the sense that they represented arguments not only as formal relations, but also as pragmatic inferences, as they at the same time depend on what the interlocutors share and accept in a given dialogical circumstance, and affect their dialogical relation. In this introduction, the notion of argumentation scheme will be analyzed in detail, showing its different dimensions and its defining features which make them an extremely useful instrument in Artificial Intelligence. This theoretical background will be followed by a literature review on the uses of the schemes in computing, aimed at identifying the most important areas and trends, the most promising proposals, and the directions of future research.publishersversionpublishe