Studies on the storage rot of sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas L. & LAM.) by Botryodiplodia theobromae Pat. and other fungi

Imperial Users onl

Understanding state’s application of International Human Rights Law

The emergence of the State is a crucial development in the evolution of human rights precisely because so many rights, if not most of them, are State-centered. The State is a bearer of duties in respect of individual persons, who depend on it for the protection of their rights and are entitled to claim against it for violations of those rights. The application of these human rights is the crux of this work.Keywords: Human Rights, State’s Application, International Law, Human Being

Is the VIX a Reliable Indicator of Stock Market Volatility?

This thesis examines the reliability of the Chicago Board Options Exchange Volatility Index (VIX) as an indicator of realized stock market volatility. The VIX is published daily by the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) and is widely referred to as the ‘fear gauge’ in the market. The VIX is computed from the relevant S&P 500 call options prices, put options prices and the forward S&P 500 index. The VIX is our measure of implied volatility in this thesis. We proxy realized market volatility using the daily range of the S&P 500 index. Using a GARCH (1,1) model, we find a positive, statistically significant, contemporaneous relationship between the daily closing values of the VIX and the range of the market index. Our results also support a stronger magnitude of relationship between increases in the value of the VIX and realized market volatility, compared to the relationship between decreases in the value of the VIX and realized market volatility. This finding confirms the VIX as a reliable measure of market volatility for market participants. Additionally, in a major contribution to existing literature, we separately model changes in the VIX that occur during non-trading hours vis-à-vis changes in the VIX that occur during trading hours. We find that changes in the VIX during non-trading hours predict realized market volatility; up to four days. Additionally, changes in the VIX during trading hours predict realized market volatility; up to five days. Notably, the magnitude of this relationship is still positive and mostly diminishes as the time lag increases. Our analyses of the separate changes in the VIX during non-trading hours and changes in the VIX during trading hours highlight the need for market participants to isolate changes in the VIX that occur during these two different times. These isolated changes in the VIX are more informative for predicting realized volatility compared to analyses that only consider changes in the closing values of the VIX. Furthermore, we find that the scale of the relationship between the VIX and realized market volatility is strongest on Fridays compared to other trading days of the week. This increase in the magnitude of the relationship between the VIX and realized volatility around the ‘weekend’ is likely due to uncertainties that are associated with news including major changes in economic or monetary policy, company earnings etc. that are typically released around the end of the week. These uncertainties are reasonably captured in the VIX. In sum, the evidence provided by our thesis supports the VIX as a reliable tool for predicting realized market volatility for up to five days ahead, with positive changes in the VIX on Fridays being very informative

Eating at the Desk: Human Encounters with Workplace Food

This manuscript is an analysis of human encounters with workplace food. The analysis draws on an ethnographic field project in a Downtown Atlanta, Georgia business office to illustrate that project participants operated food to facilitate specific social processes of agency, affect, cultural movement, participation, and exclusion. Commensality at the project site was a common thread for each social process. I demonstrate that project participants’ experiences with food intersect rapid workplace changes. In presenting workplace food in the function of a cultural lens as a focus of anthropological inquiry, the analysis argues the importance of workplace as a cultural context for understanding human engagement with food. I argue that workplace is an important cultural site because of the intense time and involvement that many have with it. Implications for workplace food include commercial and organizational management uses

Broken hearts, broken homes, and broken relationships: an exploration into the use of storytelling approach in the pastoral counselling of people in search of healing from painful memories.

Master of Theology in Religion, Philosophy and Classics. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2017.The volatile nature of the numerous life crisis experienced in South Africa has a direct (or indirect) link to the chequered socio-political history of the country. For example, the years of repressive and violent Apartheid era have led to broken families, broken relationships and broken communities. Also, other forms of life crisis and pain can arise from years of sexual, emotional, psychological and physical abuse of a person either as a child, adolescent or adult. Some of the elements of such painful abusive past experiences are still recalled with sadness and may manifest to cause some crisis, even though they may have been blocked or suppressed from one’s mind. The consequences show in the forms of bitterness, hatred, depression, anger, violence, abuses, crimes, addictions, etc. necessitating that the person seek professional help in dealing with such a crisis. Considering that these people may be in search of healing (from painful memories) in South Africa, the researcher examines the contribution of pastoral counselling and healing workshops which adopt the storytelling method towards the healing and restoration of those with painful memories. The study is grounded on Louw’s life story (narrative) model and argues that storytelling can be utilised as a powerful tool of healing as the method offers a safe space for victims of abuse to tell their stories, be listened to and through the process reclaim themselves