COMMERCIAL JEWELLERY TECHNIQUES: INNOVATING SELECTED CONTEMPORARY MANUFACTURING TECHNIQUES

Published ThesisThis study is an investigation into specialised techniques which can aid the establishment of a unique South African jewellery design style in order to enhance commercial and contemporary jewellery. The initial impetus for this investigation was informed by conclusions drawn and recommendations proffered by various previous studies which indicated that the lack of uniqueness of South African jewellery concepts as well as the replication of Western or Eurocentric trends in local jewellery have resulted in South African jewellery being an unmarketable brand abroad. The study showcases the development of diverse techniques which has increasingly become obsolete in the modern South African epoch of commercial jewellery. This study argues that the primary inclination of jewellery designers and especially from European immigrant origin to simply employ traditional African crafts, patterns and artefacts as inspiration for formulating a South African style of jewellery, has in the past traversed the portrayal of African culture as primitive. As a remedial approach this study delineates on the possibilities of designers employing and developing an auto-ethnographic design style whilst also incorporating specialist techniques in the pursuit of self-expression in jewellery design. This study argues that such an approach will lead to a more unique and representative jewellery design style and which will be a more appropriate or authentic representation of South Africa’s diversity. Considering that South Africa is a major producer of precious metals and precious stones whilst only producing roughly 2% of the world’s jewellery, the South African government has in recent years invested heavily in the jewellery industry with a view on its advancement and growth. Subsequently, this investigation additionally delineates on views of jewellery specialists on the state of jewellery design and manufacture in South Africa in order to formulate recommendations for the South African jewellery industry to propagate a progressively more mature industry

A Handbook of Strategic Parental Involvement Practices for Dual Language Teachers and Administrators

A handbook of strategic parental involvement practices has been developed to aid dual language teachers and administrators in developing a plan to incorporate parents into the school setting. The handbook is based on Lindholm-Leary\u27s Guiding Principles for Dual Language Education (2005), and consists of three main strategies in the areas of establishing and maintaining positive relations with families and the community, parent education and support services for parents, and involving parents and the community as strategic partners. Among the three main strategies there are subsequent strategic practices in the areas of communication, parent education and relationships with the community. Each strategic practice is accompanied with research that supports the strategic practices as well as a plan for action or ideas on implementing the strategic practice in a school setting. Current literature and research regarding the topics of parental involvement and dual language education were explored prior to the creation of the handbook

Role of Abiotic Factors on the Development and Life History of the Black Soldier Fly, Hermetia illucens (L.) (Diptera: Stratiomyidae)

Hermetia illucens (L.) (Diptera: Stratiomyidae) has been found to successfully reduce manure in confined animal feeding operations of poultry, swine and bovine. In equatorial climates, H. illucens is active year round, however, in more temperate climates they are only active during the warmer months of the year. Since insect development is greatly influenced by the ambient environment including pupation substrate, relative humidity, daylength and temperature, it is necessary to explore the effects these abiotic factors have on black soldier fly development when proposing to utilize a species that is not active throughout the year in temperate climates for a year-round waste management process. The objectives for this study include determining the abiotic factors limiting H. illucens egg eclosion and adult emergence. The results of this study indicate pupation substrate facilitated or impeded development depending on substrate type as well development improved with increasing temperature, relative humidity and hours of daylight

Comparison of bioelectrical impedance analysis with DXA in adolescents with cystic fibrosis before and after a resistance training intervention

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this pilot study was to compare body composition metrics obtained by two portable bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) devices with dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) among adolescents with cystic fibrosis (CF) before and after a resistance exercise training program. METHODS: Participants with CF were assessed using DXA, single-frequency BIA (SFBIA), and multiple-frequency BIA (MFBIA) to quantify percent body fat (%Fat), fat mass (FM), and fat-free mass (FFM) at baseline and after a home-based resistance training intervention comprised of 36, 1 h sessions completed in 12-14 weeks. Repeated measures analysis of variance, paired samples RESULTS: Ten participants (15.8 ± 2.2 yr, 60.1 ± 15.1 kg) completed the assessments. At baseline, both SFBIA and MFBIA scales significantly underestimated %Fat and FM and overestimated FFM, with small to moderate effect sizes. Post-intervention, small, non-significant differences were found between DXA and both BIA scales for all body composition metrics. Significant changes in %Fat and FFM were observed with DXA. MFBIA displayed less constant error than SFBIA when compared to DXA for pre- and post-intervention assessments for %Fat (MFBIA: pre and post -2.8 and -0.8 vs. SFBIA: -4.6 and -2.0), FM (-0.4 and -0.4 vs. -3.0 and -1.1), and FFM (+0.8 and +0.6 vs. +3.1 and +1.3). Near-perfect correlations were observed at both time points between DXA and each BIA scale

Engineering assessment of building design option at sketch design stage 'Energysave'.

During the early design stages of a building, different options are assessed using simple tools, that contain a large number of assumptions the very nature of which can bias choice or possibly lead to an inappropriate solution. Many designers are of the opinion that, because not all details are known, such tools are not suitable for application at early stages in the design. This paper describes the on-going development of a software tool. The prototype of the EnergySave software will be ready by the end of 2002, in which a general, text based description of the building can be used to generate sufficient data to drive a valid analysis using a detailed thermal model

Ethics review of machine learning in children’s social care

This report: – Reviews the ethical criteria that would make the use of machine learning (ML) in children’s social care (CSC) justifiable and examines the problematic contexts in which such criteria may not be met; – Identifies requirements and best practice for the responsible use of ML in CSC; – Presents recommendations for a way forward

CamDec: Advancing axis P1435-LE video camera security using honeypot-based deception

The explosion of online video streaming in recent years resulted in advanced services both in terms of efficiency and convenience. However, Internet-connected video cameras are prone to exploitation, leading to information security issues and data privacy concerns. The proliferation of video-capable Internet of Things devices and cloud-managed surveillance systems further extend these security issues and concerns. In this paper, a novel approach is proposed for video camera deception via honeypots, offering increased security measures compared to what is available on conventional Internet-enabled video cameras

The combination of Paclitaxel and Gefitinib inhibits endometrial cancer cells by inducing mitotic catastrophe: proof of principle for dual therapy in endometrial cancer

Serous uterine endometrial cancer is a lethal disease for which new therapeutic regimens are urgently needed. Combinations of chemotherapeutic agents and small molecule growth factor inhibitors have demonstrated activity in cancers from other sites. Our objective was to determine whether such a combination using Paclitaxel and Gefitinib could be active in serous endometrial cancer cells

Potent and Broad Inhibition of HIV-1 by a Peptide from the gp41 Heptad Repeat-2 Domain Conjugated to the CXCR4 Amino Terminus.

HIV-1 entry can be inhibited by soluble peptides from the gp41 heptad repeat-2 (HR2) domain that interfere with formation of the 6-helix bundle during fusion. Inhibition has also been seen when these peptides are conjugated to anchoring molecules and over-expressed on the cell surface. We hypothesized that potent anti-HIV activity could be achieved if a 34 amino acid peptide from HR2 (C34) were brought to the site of virus-cell interactions by conjugation to the amino termini of HIV-1 coreceptors CCR5 or CXCR4. C34-conjugated coreceptors were expressed on the surface of T cell lines and primary CD4 T cells, retained the ability to mediate chemotaxis in response to cognate chemokines, and were highly resistant to HIV-1 utilization for entry. Notably, C34-conjugated CCR5 and CXCR4 each exhibited potent and broad inhibition of HIV-1 isolates from diverse clades irrespective of tropism (i.e., each could inhibit R5, X4 and dual-tropic isolates). This inhibition was highly specific and dependent on positioning of the peptide, as HIV-1 infection was poorly inhibited when C34 was conjugated to the amino terminus of CD4. C34-conjugated coreceptors could also inhibit HIV-1 isolates that were resistant to the soluble HR2 peptide inhibitor, enfuvirtide. When introduced into primary cells, CD4 T cells expressing C34-conjugated coreceptors exhibited physiologic responses to T cell activation while inhibiting diverse HIV-1 isolates, and cells containing C34-conjugated CXCR4 expanded during HIV-1 infection in vitro and in a humanized mouse model. Notably, the C34-conjugated peptide exerted greater HIV-1 inhibition when conjugated to CXCR4 than to CCR5. Thus, antiviral effects of HR2 peptides can be specifically directed to the site of viral entry where they provide potent and broad inhibition of HIV-1. This approach to engineer HIV-1 resistance in functional CD4 T cells may provide a novel cell-based therapeutic for controlling HIV infection in humans