A New Town Hall for Skaneateles, New York

A town hall has to transcend being generic and take on the idiosyncrasies of its specific context. The context, in turn, needs to inform the program and make it unique to the site. The history of the typology has shown the evolution of a building type that is identifiable in its form.... A town hall is a typology, that by definition, is strongly influenced by history and part of its role is to reflect and embody the specific history of a place..

Exploring design patterns with the Java programming language

This project describes and discusses the concepts of design patterns giving a historical background as well as citing contributions to the software development field and current research efforts. In addition, the advantages and disadvantages of using design patterns and efforts to encourage design pattern usage in software organizations are discussed. Seven design patterns (Builder, Adapter, Composite, Template Method, Facade, Mediator and Strategy) were chosen as the basis for example concrete applications. The concrete applications are given in the form of design documentation, source code and executable software. The applications demonstrate the use of design patterns in developing object oriented software applications. The applications are implemented in the Java programming language. The Java programming language was used because it is a popular object oriented programming language. An aspect of its popularity comes from its ability to execute with Java enabled browsers on a variety of computing platforms. Noted researchers in the area of design patterns assert that design patterns are language independent, however, much of the implementation in the area of design patterns has been written in the C++ language. The contribution of this project lies in implementing selected design patterns in Java and noting experiences that support or refute the conjecture that design patterns are language independent

Educators on the Move: An Applied Study of Literature-based Solutions for Teacher Migration within an Exclusive Urban School District

The purpose of this applied study was to solve the problem of teacher migration to other school districts for a single urban school district located in the Southeast region of the United States. Specific interventions were recommended to address the problem through the utilization of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs as well as literature-based solutions. A multimethod approach was applied to strengthen the study by examining the problem of teacher migration from different perspectives. This approach, which involved teacher interviews, focus groups, quantitative surveys, and document trend studies, gave a multi-dimensional depiction of teacher migration in the district. Interviews with five previously employed teachers and two focus groups of seven administrators were conducted. Along with the interviews and focus groups, 18 additional teachers completed a quantitative survey. Trend studies for the district were also analyzed to discover if certain schools or school levels have a higher rate of teacher turnover. Outcomes and practical recommendations were identified

Sustainability and oxidase biocatalysis – An overview

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Inclusion of fermented foods in food guides around the world

Fermented foods have been a well-established part of the human diet for thousands of years, without much of an appreciation for, or an understanding of, their underlying microbial functionality, until recently. The use of many organisms derived from these foods, and their applications in probiotics, have further illustrated their impact on gastrointestinal wellbeing and diseases affecting other sites in the body. However, despite the many benefits of fermented foods, their recommended consumption has not been widely translated to global inclusion in food guides. Here, we present the case for such inclusion, and challenge health authorities around the world to consider advocating for the many benefits of these foods

A chemical investigation of Tulbaghia Violacea

Tulbaghia violacea, a member of the family Alliaceae is indigenous to the Eastern Cape and is widely used as a herbal remedy for various febrile and gastro-enteric ailments, particularly in young children. Adverse effects, and even fatalities, have been reported following treatment with the plant extract. The project has involved synthesis of model compounds, chromatographic analysis of flavonoid and other constituents of the plant, and examination of the volatile components. Some fifteen flavones were synthesised as chromatographic models and in the course of this work, the development of a new method for synthesis of carboxylic anhydrides was completed. Use of the flavone standards permitted identification of the flavonols kaempferol and quercetin in hydrolysed glycosidic plant extracts. In addition, several sugars were identified, viz., D-glucose, D-fructose, L-arabinose and D-galactose as free sugars, and D-glucose, D-galactose , 1-rhamnose, D- fucose, D-xylose, 1-arabinose and D-fructose as glycosidic sugars, by g.l.c. and g. c. - m. s. analysis of derivatives of isolated sugar mixtures. The presence in the plant extracts of steroidal saponins was also demonstrated. The sulphur compounds, 2,4,5,7-tetrathiaoctane-2,2-dioxide and 2,4,5,7-tetrathiaoctane were isolated from the plant and characterised spectroscopically. This result, together with analysis of volatiles from the plant, has led to a proposal concerning the nature and origin of sulphur compounds in Tulbaghia violacea, showing close correlation with the sulphur compounds in Allium species. Investigation of the biological activity of Tulbaghia violacea extracts showed bacteriostatic activity, particularly of extracts which had not been heated, and which had been prepared from mature plants. Treatment of isolated smooth muscle preparations with Tulbaghia violacea extracts indicated the presence of a β-adrenergic agonist having an inhibitory effect on normal muscle contraction. The results of the investigations indicate that while there may be some basis for use of the plant as an antibacterial, or to treat colic, the adverse effects, caused possibly by the sulphur compounds and/or steroidal saponins present, may override the beneficial effects

Biocatalytic and biomimetic studies of polyphenol oxidase

Mushroom polyphenol oxidase (EC 1.14.18.1) was investigated to determine its potential for application as a biocatalyst in the synthesis of o-quinones, in organic medium. In order to determine the kinetic properties of the biocatalyst, a system was devised which comprised an immobilised polyphenol oxidase extract, functioning in chloroform. The system was hydrated by the addition of buffer. A simple method for the consistent measurement of reaction rates in this heterogenous system was designed and used to obtain detailed enzyme kinetic data relating to optimisation of reaction conditions and substrate specificity. The aqueous content of the system was optimised using p-cresol as a substrate. A crude, immobilised extract of Agaricus bisporus was used to hydroxylate and oxidise a range of selected p-substituted phenolic substrates, yielding, as the sale products, o-quinones. These products were efficiently reduced to catechols by extracting the reaction mixtures with aqueous ascorbic acid solution. The biocatalytic system was also successfully utilised to produce L-DOPA, the drug used to treat Parkinson's disease, from L-acetyl tyrosine ethyl ester (ATEE). Michaelis-Menten kinetics were used to obtain apparent Km and V values with respect to the selected phenolic substrates, and the kinetic parameters obtained were found to correlate well with the steric requirements of the substrates and with their hydrophobicity. In the course of the investigation, a novel ¹H NMR method was used to facilitate measurement of the UV molar absorption coefficients of the o-quinones in reaction mixtures, thus avoiding the necessity to isolate these unstable, water-sensitive products. The biocatalytic system was extended to a continuous process, in which the immobilised enzyme was shown to function successfully in the chloroform medium for several hours, with high conversion rates. Modifications, involving partial purification and the addition of a surfactant, were investigated to determine their effect on the kinetic parameters. The results obtained using partially purified enzyme indicated that the removal of extraneous protein and/or melanoid material lead to a reduced capacity for conversion of sterically demanding substrates. The addition of the anionic detergent, sodium dodecyl sulphate (SOS), enhanced the ability of the biocatalyst to bind and oxidise sterically demanding substrates. These effects are attributed to changes in the polar state of groups within the protein binding pocket, which result in altered flexibility and hydrophobicity. Computer modelling of several biomimetic dinuclear copper complexes also indicated the importance of flexibility for effective biocatalysis. Novel binuclear copper (II complexes, containing a flexible biphenyl spacer and imidazole or benzimidazole donors, were prepared and analysed using NMR, UV, AA and cyclic voltammetric techniques. The complexes were also shown, in a detailed kinetic study, to mimic the catecholase activity of polyphenol oxidase by oxidising 3,5-di-tertbutylcatechol, and to catalyse the coupling of the phenolic substrate 2,4-di-tert-butylphenol. However, the complexes were apparently too flexible to react with smaller substrates. These biomimetic complexes provided valuable insights into the nature of the dinuclear copper binding site

Managing measurement: planning and steering research productivity

The paper focuses on the iterative relationship between planning and review, and the use of performance indicators in annual cycles of research review and realignment. In a large, complex institution such as the University of Pretoria, a further strategy central to research productivity is the internal differentiation of academic activity. Not only is this a necessary condition in shaping the research profile of the University, but also in harnessing the diversity of research activity and, critically, ensuring sufficient high-end research capacity to comp\ete in the global world of research and innovation. The paper includes a discussion of the value and shortcomings of external indices including world rankings of universities, in benchmarking the performance of individual institutions.Paper presented at REPM 2014: Research evaluation and performance measurement conference 2014, Cape Town, 5-7 May 2014.http://www.repm2014.co.za

Are South African doctoral qualifications educating the thinkers we need?

Significance: The recently completed national review of the doctoral qualifications offered by South African higher education institutions has provided important insights into the national landscape of doctoral education, and raised many questions. One key question is whether our doctoral qualifications educate our students to be the broad and critical thinkers needed to address current and future scientific and societal challenges. In the South African higher education context, we must ask ourselves whether we are providing the academic and intellectual depth required to enable our doctoral graduates to achieve the graduate attributes that we express as our national aspirations, and we need to consider new approaches to doctoral education