The fairness of affi rmative action: In the eye of the beholder

The purpose of this study was to identify the major components ofaffi rmative action (AA) fairness from an organisational justice pointof view and to measure the perceptions of employees on AA fairness.9A literature study and an empirical study were conducted. A questionnaire was developed to collect information on respondents’ biographical details and their perceptions of the fairness of AA. 10Using SPSS, principal axis factor analysis was performed on the data, with a Varimax rotation, in order to uncover the diff erent factors related to affi rmative action fairness. Four factors with latent roots greater than unity (Kaiser’s criteria) were extracted from the factor matrix of affi rmative action. The factors postulating affi rmative action fairness included interactional justice, procedural justice (input), procedural justice (criteria) and distributive justice. 11The infl uence and eff ect of the biographical variables on fairness perceptions were determined by comparing the responses of various employee subsets with one another by means of univariate andmultivariate analysis of variance. The results of the t-tests revealedthat staff category and ethnicity have a statistically signifi canteff ect on employees’ perceptions of the distributive justice of AA.Decisions such as granting AA employees token positions, payingunrealistically high salaries to AA managers and appointing lessqualified AA employees play a key role when employees form perceptions of the fairness of AA. This study contributes to a better understanding of the dimensionality of employee perceptions of AA fairness. It should assist organisations with the knowledge required for more eff ective management of AA in the workplace

Filament identification and dominance of Eikelboom Type 0092 in activated sludge from wastewater treatment facilities in Cape Town, South Africa

Routine characterisation of activated sludge and identification of the filamentous population by microscopic and/or other non-culture dependent techniques can assist in diagnosing the aetiology of poor performance of wastewater treatment works (WWTWs). In South Africa, most facilities rely solely on physicochemical indicators, treating reactors as ‘black-boxes’, with the result that process adjustments are often delayed, to the detriment of the environment. This study was performed in order to gain insight into the filamentous population found in activated sludge in Cape Town WWTWs, to compare these with other global and local literature findings, and to build capacity in this science. Physicochemical and plant performance parameters, in terms of nutrient removal and settling, were obtained from routine operational data and assessed in conjunction with the microscopic analyses of activated sludge samples taken over a 6-month period. Hypotheses on the links between filament types and/or plant  configurations and/or operational parameters were formulated using  existing literature. In order of prevalence, the five most common dominant filament species in 96 activated sludge samples were: Eikelboom Type  0092, Eikelboom Type 1851, nocardioforms, Microthrix parvicella and  Eikelboom Type 021N. In order to compile a statistically significant  database, it is recommended that an extensive nationwide study is  conducted to link filament types with plant configurations, operational parameters and geographical locations.Keywords: activated sludge, bulking, identification, filament, Type 009

A Comparative Analysis of Human Trafficking: The United States of America (USA) and the Republic of South Africa (RSA)

Human trafficking is a serious global problem that transcends international borders and disciplinary boundaries. It presents a conglomeration of problems generally dealt with by public health, criminal justice, social service and immigration agencies. Victim advocates state that millions are victimized each year. The data suggest that law enforcement agencies perceive human trafficking to be of greater, or equal, concern for the myriad of social institutions and participants affected by human trafficking than for law enforcement, itself. Policy recommendations are to refocus the law enforcement response - which may include various approaches that can simultaneously benefit public health - by incorporating an Epidemiological Criminology framework to help to guide the development of more systematic and integrative insight into the world of human trafficking

Validation of equations to estimate glomerular filtration rate in South Africans of mixed ancestry

Background. The Modification of Diet in Renal Disease (MDRD) and Chronic Kidney Disease Epidemiology Collaboration (CKD-EPI) equations are two commonly used formulae to estimate glomerular filtration rate (GFR) in adults. The CKD-EPI equation is recommended in current international and local guidelines for the diagnosis and management of chronic kidney disease (CKD), unless an alternative equation has been shown to have superior accuracy. Validation and comparison of the equations in local populations are therefore required. Previous studies have reported on the accuracy of these prediction equations in black South Africans and those of Indian ancestry.Objectives. To evaluate the MDRD and CKD-EPI equations in South African (SA) adults of mixed ancestry.Methods. In all participants, GFR was measured (mGFR) from plasma clearance of 99mTc-diethylenetetraaminepenta-acetic acid (99mTc-DTPA), using a standardised technique. Serum creatinine assays were isotope dilution mass spectrometry traceable. GFR was estimated (eGFR) using the MDRD and CKD-EPI equations, with and without the black ethnicity factor. The agreement, bias, precision and accuracy of each equation was determined.Results. Eighty adults were included (30 male, median age 39 years, median GFR 59 mL/min/1.73 m2). Sixty-eight had a diagnosis of CKD, 10 were potential kidney donors, and 2 were healthy volunteers. Both equations, without the black ethnicity factor, had good agreement with measured GFR. The equations tended to overestimate GFR, with bias of 1.6 and 7.9 mL/min/1.73 m2 for the MDRD and CKD-EPI equations, respectively. The interquartile ranges of the differences were 15.9 and 20.2 mL/min/1.73 m2, and as a measure of accuracy, the percentages of estimates that fell within 30% of the mGFR (P30) were 80% and 72.5% (p=0.18). For identification of individuals with a GFR <60 mL/min/1.73 m2, the sensitivity of MDRD eGFR was 97.3% and that of CKD-EPI eGFR was 97.1%.Conclusions. The MDRD and CKD-EPI equations have shown satisfactory and comparable performance in this SA mixed-ancestry adult population, with the MDRD equation marginally less biased than the CKD-EPI.

An in vivo comparison of the efficacy of the heartwater blood and ground-up tick suspension vaccines in calves

Two groups of calves were respectively immunized with heartwater blood (BV) and ground-up tick suspension (GUTS) vaccine. A third group was left unimmunized as controls. No difference in the immune status conferred could be demonstrated between the 2 vaccines at 6 months and 12 months challenge after vaccination. An index, based on the rectal temperature before and during the reaction, was calculated as an aid in evaluating the data. In practice, the evaluation of heartwater vaccination by challenge is more effective at 12 months than at 6 months after vaccination. No effective difference was demonstrated between the 2 vaccines in their immunizing efficacy.The articles have been scanned in colour with a HP Scanjet 5590; 600dpi. Adobe Acrobat XI Pro was used to OCR the text and also for the merging and conversion to the final presentation PDF-format

FRB 20121102A: images of the bursts and the varying radio counterpart

As more Fast Radio Bursts (FRBs) are being localised, we are learning that some fraction have persistent radio sources (PRSs). Such a discovery motivates an improvement in our understanding of the nature of those counterparts, the relation to the bursts themselves and why only some FRBs have PRSs. We report on observations made of FRB 20121102A with the MeerKAT radio telescope. Across five epochs, we detect the PRS associated with FRB 20121102A. Our observations are split into a cluster of four epochs (MJD 58732 - 58764) and a separate single epoch about 1000days later. The measured flux density is constant across the first four observations but then decays by more than one-third in the final observation. Our observations on MJD 58736 coincided with the detections of 11 bursts from FRB 20121102A by the MeerTRAP backend, seven of which we detected in the image plane. We discuss the importance of image plane detections when considering the commensal transient searches being performed with MeerKAT and other radio facilities. We find that MeerKAT is so sensitive that within a two-second image, we can detect any FRB with a flux density above 2.4mJy at 1.3GHz and so could localise every FRB that has been detected by CHIME to date.Comment: Accepted in MNRA