REASSESSING LATIN PEDAGOGY: A PROPOSED MODEL FOR SOUTH AFRICAN LEARNERS

At present two models of instruction predominate the scene ofmainstream 21st century Latin pedagogy. The first, commonly knownas the ‘philological model’ or ‘grammar-and-translation’ method, hasbeen prevalent since the early days of classical scholarship and stillforms the basis of methodology at most South African universities.During the past two decades the second, the so-called ‘livinglanguage’ method, has become popular in schools and universitiesacross the United States. Both methodologies are examined andevaluated in this article. Based on this short overview of Latinpedagogy, a model is then proposed to accommodate generation Ystudents of Latin at South African universities utilising both the‘living language’ method and the ‘flipped class-room’ approach.Since the student profile of the North West University has changeddramatically over the past few years to include an ever increasingnumber of distance students, the challenge has been to accommodatethe needs of these students without sacrificing the preferred approachor method. Excerpts taken from a learning management system,1developed for the Oxford Latin Course and aimed at distancestudents, will finally illustrate how the learning of these students isfacilitated. The LMS in question is also aimed at secondary schoollearners who are keen to follow an online Latin course

ANALOGOUS CHARACTERS: TACITUS’ LIVIA AUGUSTA AND AGRIPPINA MINOR

Scholarship has recognised Tacitus’ preoccupation with characterand his use of rhetorical stereotypes even at a time when historiography was examined with the overriding aim of discovering the historical ‘truth’. The search for empirical validity revealed Tacitus’ historical unreliability and his manipulation of material.  Historical theory has since evolved toward an acknowledgement of ancient historiography as a form of literary art and belonging to the domain of narratology. This article is based on the premise that the Annals of Tacitus closely corresponds to a modern literary text and that the ‘manipulated material’ requires of the reader to fulfil an active role in the interpretation process. A narratological analysis of Tacitus’ characterisation of Livia Augusta and Agrippina Minor reveals a sophisticated use of the narratological device of ‘analogy between characters’. The analysis is limited to identical nouns and adjectives used in the direct description of both these women and the reinforcement of these characteristics by indirect presentation.  Tacitus’ mastery of subtle narratological devices becomes evident and his portrayal of Livia as analogous to Agrippina reiterates his deeply seated hatred of the Julio-Claudian regime

Functional morphology of the primary olfactory centers in the brain of the hermit crab Coenobita clypeatus (Anomala, Coenobitidae)

Terrestrial hermit crabs of the genus Coenobita display strong behavioral responses to volatile odors and are attracted by chemical cues of various potential food sources. Several aspects of their sense of aerial olfaction have been explored in recent years including behavioral aspects and structure of their peripheral and central olfactory pathway. Here, we use classical histological methods and immunohistochemistry against the neuropeptides orcokinin and allatostatin as well as synaptic proteins and serotonin to provide insights into the functional organization of their primary olfactory centers in the brain, the paired olfactory lobes. Our results show that orcokinin is present in the axons of olfactory sensory neurons, which target the olfactory lobe. Orcokinin is also present in a population of local olfactory interneurons, which may relay lateral inhibition across the array of olfactory glomeruli within the lobes. Extensive lateral connections of the glomeruli were also visualized using the histological silver impregnation method according to Holmes-Blest. This technique also revealed the structural organization of the output pathway of the olfactory system, the olfactory projection neurons, the axons of which target the lateral protocerebrum. Within the lobes, the course of their axons seems to be reorganized in an axon-sorting zone before they exit the system. Together with previous results, we combine our findings into a model on the functional organization of the olfactory system in these animals

VERGIL, PROPERTIUS, AND THE EUPHRATES

It is now well known that Vergil exploited this twofold nature of the symbol of the Euphrates masterfully. On the one hand he uses it to refer back to Callimachus and in doing so to state his own views on poetry; on the other hand he invokes the famous river of the East to explain how events there impacts on Rome, her new princeps and ultimately his own capacity to write poetry. Propertius, too, was not insensitive to the possibilities afforded by the symbol of the Euphrates and, having Vergil as an example, could exploit the symbol in much the same way as the illustrious poet. This paper is primarily concerned with how Propertius uses the symbol of the Euphrates to speak about his own poetry and the socio-political circumstances in which he wrote

THE ANCIENT DRUG OPIUM

The use of papaver somniferum (from the Latin fero ferre = ‘tobear/bring’ and somnium = ‘sleep’) as a narcotic, goes backto the 13th century BC. The works of ancient authors such asDioscorides, Celsus, Galen, Theophrastus and Pliny the Elderprovide us with detailed information about the morphology of theplant, its processing and the administration of the drug.1 Theseauthors make it clear that opium was mainly employed as anodyneand narcotic but they also documented its use as a drug inthe treatment of a variety of ailments, either as one of manyingredients in a medicinal recipe or as the main ingredient.Modern botanical and pharmaceutical analysis of the plant and itsactive ingredients provide us with some surprising conclusionsregarding its effectiveness in the treatment of the medical conditionsfor which it was prescribed in the 1st and 2nd century

Editorial: Crustacean reproductive physiology and its applications

[Extract] Crustacea constitute an important taxonomic group in aquatic ecosystems and form an important sector of aquaculture industry. Novelties in studies on crustacean reproductive physiology help shedding new lights on deeper understanding of the mechanisms of sex determination and differentiation of crustaceans. The application of established and innovative techniques based on such knowledge will contribute significantly to progress in the crustacean aquaculture industry. The objective of this Special Issue was to provide a forum for researchers to report upon their cutting-edge research in Crustacean Reproductive Physiology and its Applications. This Research Topic comprises ten original research articles

Estabilização de encosta localizada no morro do Iririú, em Joinville, por meio de solo grampeado com faceamento com telas metálicas de alta resistência

TCC (graduação) - Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina. Campus Joinville. Engenharia de Infraestrutura.A ocorrência de instabilidades de encostas representa no mundo, especialmente nos países em desenvolvimento, uma das mais importantes causas de mortes e danos econômicos quando comparados a outros desastres naturais. Nesse sentido, este trabalho apresenta o dimensionamento de uma solução de contenção por meio de solo grampeado com faceamento com telas metálicas de alta resistência para uma encosta instável situada no Morro do Iririú, em Joinville. Para desenvolvimento do projeto executou-se inicialmente uma campanha de investigação geotécnica, que consistiu na realização de ensaios SPT e ensaios de cisalhamento direto em amostras indeformadas coletadas na face da encosta. Adicionalmente realizou-se o levantamento topográfico da encosta, aqui representada por meio de três seções transversais. Para concepção do projeto executou-se um conjunto de 27 análises de estabilidade, que visaram garantir a segurança da encosta frente à rupturas profundas e subsuperficiais. Estas análises basearam-se no modelo de Bishop simplificado, fazendo-se a inclusão de grampos na encosta. As análises de estabilidade objetivaram a verificação da variação do fator de segurança da encosta em relação a variação dos parâmetros inerentes ao projeto de solo grampeado, tais como o diâmetro, o ângulo de instalação, o comprimento e o espaçamento entre grampos. Ao fim das análises julgou-se como solução mais adequada o uso de grampos com 28 mm de diâmetro, com predominância de reforços com comprimentos iguais a 9 m, ângulo de instalação dentro da encosta igual a 30°, espaçados horizontalmente em 1,8 m e entre grampos da mesma linha na vertical em 3,6 m. Os demais resultados dentre as 27 análises mostraram que soluções com reforços menores do que o do projeto selecionado demandavam uma maior densidade de grampos para serem instalados na encosta, ao passo que soluções com grampos mais compridos demandavam menor quantidade de materiais para serem adquiridos, porém com maiores possibilidades de ocorrência de imprevistos na execução. De modo a complementar o dimensionamento estrutural fez-se a verificação de adequabilidade do faceamento com telas metálicas de alta resistência para evitar a ocorrência de rupturas rasas.The occurrence of slope instabilities represents in the world, especially in developing countries, as one of the major causes of deaths and economical damages when compared to other natural disasters. In this sense, this work presents the design of a retaining structure by means of soil nailing with a facing made of high-tensile steel wire mesh for an unstable slope located at Iririú’s Hill, in Joinville. For the development of the project it was initially carried out a geotechnical investigation, which consisted in the execution of SPT tests and direct shear tests in undisturbed samples collected in the face of the slope. Additionally it was carried out a topographic survey in the slope, here represented by means of three transversal sections. For the conception of the project it was carried out a set of 27 stability analyses aiming to ensure the safety of the slope against deep and subsuperficial ruptures. These analyses were based on Bishop’s simplified model considering the inclusion of nails in the slope. The stability analyses aimed the verification of the variation of the safety factor of the slope in relation to the variation of parameters inherent to the soil nailing project, such as the diameter, the angle of installation, the length and the spacing between nails. At the end of the analyses it was judged as the most suitable solution the use of nails with a diameter of 28 mm with predominance of reinforcements with lengths equal to 9 m, angle of installation inside of the slope equal to 30°, horizontally spaced in 1,8 m and between nails of the same vertical line in 3,6 m. The remaining results among the 27 analyses showed that solutions with shorter reinforcements than the ones used for the selected project would demand a higher density of nails to be placed in the slope, whereas solutions with longer nails would demand a lower quantity of materials to be acquired, but with higher chances of occurrence of unexpected problems in the execution. As a way to complement the structural design it was performed the verification of the suitability of the facing with high-tensile steel wire mesh to avoid the occurrence of shallow ruptures

O LÚDICO NO ENSINO DA LÍNGUA PORTUGUESA NAS SÉ- RIES FINAIS DO ENSINO FUNDAMENTAL

O presente trabalho faz referência à relevância da inserção do lúdico no sistema de ensino, sendo este igualmente importante nas séries finais do Ensino Fundamental, inclusive nas aulas de Língua Portuguesa. Este trabalho abordará, também, a resistência de alguns docentes quanto à inserção de métodos inovadores. Será ainda tema deste trabalho o papel do professor de Língua Portuguesa na contemporaneidade, bem como o modo com que os jogos deveriam ser incorporados à transmissão de conhecimentos. A demais, o projeto relatará a vivênciado estágio, incluindo-se as impressões, práticas desenvolvidas, regência de classe, contribuições do estágio para a formação docente, assim como avaliações e reflexões acerca dos objetivos propostos alcançados ou não durante o estágio. Por fim, far-se-á presente um posicionamento crítico e reflexivo sobre os resultados obtidos, estando estes embasados na literatura sobre o tema

MANDRAKE FROM ANTIQUITY TO HARRY POTTER

After an introductory paragraph which supplies a cursory overview of all the ancient sources on mandrake, a well known and popular drug amongst the ancients, the article provides a systemization of information obtained from the three most significant ancient accounts of the mandrake plant. Dioscorides’ Greek text contains the more precise account and is supplemented by the Latin works of Cornelius Celsus and Pliny the Elder. These authors give detailed information on the plant’s physical appearance, the methods employed to harvest it, instructions on how to administer it, the dosages prescribed, the effects of overdosing, its toxicity and its soporific, anesthetic and other (alleged or real) medicinal properties. The second part of the article highlights some literary references to mandrake in sources as diverse as the Bible, a Shakespearean play and Rowling’s recent best selling Harry Potter series. Finally a description of mandrake in modern pharmacological terms leads to some conclusions regarding its actual medicinal and homeopathic usefulness