Relationship between magnesium and lipids in patients with diabetes mellitus

Introduction: Non-communicable diseases, especially cardiovascular diseases (CVD), have become more prevalent across the world, more so in developing countries. Novel methods in the management of CVD risks in patients with diabetes mellitus, type 2 (DM2) requires constant attention and an ever-evolving approach. The role of magnesium supplementation in the management of CVD has been described, but the relationship between serum magnesium (Mg) and the lipid subsets have had conflicting results in different population groups.Methods: A cross-sectional study was performed by collecting data on patients with DM2 from a specialised diabetes clinic at Edendale Hospital, Pietermaritzburg, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, between July 1, 2015 and June 30, 2016. Lipid subsets (total cholesterol [TC], high-density lipoprotein cholesterol [HDL], low-density lipoprotein cholesterol [LDL] and triglycerides [TG]), age, sex and Mg were recorded for analysis.Results: A total of 495 clinical data sheets were analysed. The majority of participants were female (73.45%) with a mean age of 56.97 years. A statistically significant, positive, linear relationship was found between Mg and TC (R = 0.11; p = 0.01) as well as Mg and LDL R = 0.14; p = 0.001), but not between Mg and HDL (R = 0.02; p = 0.66) and Mg and TG (R = 0.01; p = 0.82).Discussion: The results of this study are similar to findings by a group of researchers in China and differ when compared with studies observing Caucasian patients. It is plausible that intrinsic ethnic differences in lipid metabolism and the various ways in which magnesium requiring enzymatic processes are utilised may be responsible for the results found in the present study population versus those found in Caucasian study participants in other countries. More research is required to determine the effect of magnesium supplementation and CVD outcomes in the present study population

Edge fast-ion transport study using passive FIDA spectroscopy at the ASDEX Upgrade tokamak

Guter Einschluss schneller supra-thermischer Ionen ist wichtig in Fusions-Experimenten, da die schnellen Teilchen das Hintergrund-Plasma heizen und zum Stromtrieb beitragen können. Darüber hinaus würden schlecht eingeschlossene schnellen Ionen nicht nur die Leistung eines möglichen Kraftwerks beeinträchtigen, sondern möglicherweise auch Wandkomponenten beschädigen. Daher ist insbesondere im Randbereich von Fusionplasmen guter Einschluss wichtig denn hier könnten bereits schwache Störungen ausreichen um schnelle Ionen auf sog. offene Feldlinien umzuverteilen. Eine bekannte Instabilität am Rand von Fusion Plasmen sind sog. Edge Localized Modes (ELM) welche Wärme, Teilchen und Impuls periodisch umverteilen. Jedoch ist hierbei noch nicht vollkommen geklärt wie stark der Einfluss von ELMs auf die schnellen Teilchen ist. Für die Untersuchung von schnellen Ionen am Plasmarand wurden im Rahmen dieser Doktorarbeit passive Fast-Ionen-Deuterium-Alpha (FIDA) Messungen entwickelt und am ASDEX Upgrade Tokamak angewendet. Die FIDA Technik basiert auf der spektroskopischen Untersuchung der Balmer-Alpha Emissionslinie, welche von schnellen Ionen nach Ladungsaustausch-Reaktionen mit Hintergrund-Neutralen emittiert wird. Die hohe Geschwindigkeit der energetischen Teilchen führt hierbei zu einer Doppler-Verschiebung welche die FIDA-Emission von anderen Beiträgen im Spektrum trennt. Das bei ASDEX Upgrade installierte passive FIDA-System besteht aus zwei neuen Spektrometern mit sehr hohem Lichtdurchsatz und Sichtlinien, welche für den Plasmarand optimiert sind. Die Spektrometer ermöglichen FIDA-Messungen mit beispielloser zeitlicher Auflösung und ermöglichen gleichzeitig die Messung der Emission von thermischen Hintergrund-Neutralen. Diese sog. thermische Emission enthält wichtige Informationen zur Neutral-Teilchen Dichte, welche für die quantitative Interpretation passiver FIDA-Messungen entscheidend ist. Daher konnte eine neue Methode entwickelt werden, mit der theoretische Profile von Neutralen verifiziert und, falls nötig, skaliert werden können. Plasma-Entladungen wurden an ASDEX Upgrade durchgeführt in denen mittels Neutral-Teilchen Injektion (NBI) eine hohe Dichte von schnellen Ionen außerhalb des Plasma Zentrums erzeugt wurden. Hierbei konnten starke passive FIDA Signale beobachtet werden welche einen klaren Effekt der periodisch auftretenden ELMs aufzeigen. Während im äusseren Bereich des Plasmas eine klare Reduktion der FIDA Emission beobachtet wird, zeigen Messungen innerhalb der letzten geschlossenen Fluss fläche erhöhte Signale kurz nach dem Auftreten von ELMs. Dies konnte durch den verstärkten Einfluss von Hintergrund Neutralen erklärt werden und ist guter Übereinstimmung mit sog. Neutralteilchen Messungen (NPA). Der Rückgang der FIDA Emission im äusseren Bereich, aber auch im inneren Bereich nach einer erster Überhöhung, kann auf die Umverteilung der schnellen Ionen zurückgeführt werden. Detailliertes sensitivitätsstudien bezüglich der Änderungen der Plasmaposition während ELMs zeigen, dass das Ergebnis starker ELM-induzierter Verluste robust ist. Hierbei ist auch zu beachten, dass kleine ELMs beobachtet werden, welche die Dichte der Hintergrund Neutralen und die Plasmaposition nur geringfügig ändern und dennoch einen signifikanten Rückgang der FIDA Emission verursachen. Die systematische Modifikation der theoretischen Verteilungsfunktion schneller Ionen, welche zur Vorhersage synthetischer FIDA-Signale verwendet wird, zeigt die beste Übereinstimmung mit den Daten, wenn etwa 60 % der schnellen Ionen durch ELMs ausserhalb der letzten geschlossenen Flussfläche verloren gehen. Zudem kann ein Rückgang der schnellen Ionen-Dichte von etwa 20 % in einem Bereich bis zu 4 cm innerhalb der letzten geschlossenen Flussfläche ermittelt werden. Dieses Ergebnis stimmt gut mit den jüngsten Modellierungsergebnissen von ELMs mit Hilfe des nichtlineares MHD Codes JOREK überein und zeigt, dass weniger als 0.3 % aller schnellen Ionen durch ELMs verloren gehen.Good confinement of fast supra-thermal ions is important in fusion experiments because the fast particles should heat the background plasma and contribute to the current drive. In addition, badly confined fast ions would not only affect the power output of a possible power plant, but may also damage wall components. In particular, good confinement of fast-ions located in the outer region of the plasma is important, since already weak perturbations might be sufficient to redistribute the fast ions onto so-called open field lines. A known instability at the edge of magnetically confined fusion plasmas is the so-called Edge Localised Mode (ELM) which is well known to periodically redistribute heat, particles and momentum. However, it is still not completely clear how strong the influence of ELMs are on the fast particles. To study fast ions at the plasma edge passive fast-ion deuterium-alpha (FIDA) measurements were developed and applied to the ASDEX Upgrade Tokamak. The FIDA technique is based on the spectroscopic investigation of the Balmer-alpha emission line, which is emitted by fast ions after charge exchange reactions with background neutrals. The high speed of the energetic particles leads to a Doppler shift which separates the FIDA emission from other contributions to the spectrum. The passive FIDA system installed at ASDEX Upgrade consists of two new spectrometers with very high light throughput and lines of sight, which are optimised for the plasma edge. The spectrometers enable FIDA measurements with unprecedented temporal resolution and simultaneously enable the measurement of the emission of thermal background neutrals. The thermal emission contains important information about the neutral particle density, which is crucial for the quantitative interpretation of passive FIDA measurements. Therefore, a new method has been developed, with which the theoretical profiles of neutrals can be verified and, if necessary, scaled. Plasma discharges were carried out on ASDEX Upgrade in which a high density of fast ions outside the plasma centre was generated by means of off-axis neutral particle injection (NBI). Strong passive FIDA signals were observed which show a clear effect of the periodically occurring ELMs. While a clear reduction in the FIDA emission is observed in the outer area of the plasma, measurements within the last closed flux surface show increased signals shortly after the appearance of ELMs. This can be explained by the increased density of background neutrals and is in good agreement with neutral particle measurements (NPA). The decrease in FIDA emissions in the outer area, but also in the inner area after the initial increase, can be attributed to the redistribution of the fast ions. Detailed sensitivity studies regarding changes in plasma position during ELMs show that the result of strong ELM-induced losses is robust. It should also be noted here that small ELMs are observed, which only slightly change the density of the background neutrals and the plasma position and nevertheless cause a significant decrease in FIDA emission. The systematic modification of the theoretical distribution function of fast ions, which is used to predict synthetic FIDA signals, shows the best agreement with the data when about 60 % of the fast ions are lost by ELMs outside the last closed flux surface. In addition, a decrease in the fast-ion density of about 20 % in a range up to 4 cm within the last closed flux surface can be inferred. This result agrees well with the latest modelling results of ELMs using the non-linear MHD code JOREK and shows that less than 0.3 % of all fast ions are lost by ELMs

Towards a model for ERP user adoption in SMMEs an emerging economy analysis

Includes abstract.Includes bibliographical references.Small, micro and medium-sized enterprises (SMMEs) are the breeding ground for entrepreneurs, the future of emerging economies and the driving force in the global economy. A successful SMME sector holds numerous benefits for an emerging economy such as South Africa. Due to the large growth in SMMEs globally, Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) vendors are developing products to cater for the ERP SMME sector. ERP systems provide SMMEs with a strategic tool which potentially improves their business processes, increases competitiveness and provides them with the opportunity to compete globally and sell their products internationally. While ERP systems provide an organisation with various benefits, the successful implementation of ERP systems is a challenge

The implementation of the water release module of the WAS program at the Vaalharts Water Users' Association

Thesis (M. Tech) - Central University of Technology, Free State, 2008Food and water are two basic human needs. International projections indicate that water shortages will be prevalent among poorer countries where resources are limited and population growth is rapid, such as the Middle East, parts of Asia and Africa. Provisional estimates are that South Africa will run out of surplus usable water by 2025, or soon thereafter. Urban and peri-urban areas will therefore require new infrastructure and inter-basin transfers to provide safe water and adequate sanitation. Due to the high cost of these developments, such water is seen as being used for industrial and public needs only and not for irrigation. Currently, the agricultural water users consume the majority of the water used by humans. Taking cognisance of the before mentioned it is a reality that in the future the irrigation sector will have to sacrifice some of its water for public and industrial usage. This suggests growing conflict between the different water users and the agricultural water users. An attempt by the Department of Water Affairs and Forestry (DWAF) to address this conflict has been the implementation of pilot studies to determine the steps Water User Associations (WUAs) could take to ensure more effective water use in the future by the agricultural sector. These steps include an increase in irrigation efficiency according to the benchmarks of crop irrigation requirements and more efficient dam and canal management. The Water Administration System (WAS) has been developed to fulfill this exact requirement as it ensures optimal delivery of irrigation water on demand. The program is designed as a management tool for irrigation schemes, WUAs and water management offices to manage their accounts, and also to manage water supply to clients more efficiently through canal networks, pipelines and rivers. The WAS program consists of four modules that are integrated into a single program. Three modules of the WAS program have already been implemented at the Vaalharts irrigation scheme. This scheme has been transformed from a government controlled scheme to a privately owned scheme, and is now known as the Vaalharts Water User’s Association (VHWUA). The main purpose of this study was to implement the fourth module of the WAS program at the VHWUA as only full functionality of the complete program will ensure effective water use at the scheme. The fourth module calculates the volume of water to be released for all the canals (main canal and all its branches), allowing for lag times, water losses and accruals in order to minimise waste and thus save water. The methodology followed in this study was to first of all develop an understanding of the distribution cycle and the current calculation procedure of the VHWUA. The fourth module was then applied on a typical feeder canal and used to calculate the release volumes in order to compare these results with the current values. The next step was then to verify all data abstracted from the database used by the WAS program to calculate the release volumes. The database consists of information like cross-sectional properties, positioning of the sluices, canal slope, as well as canal capacities. The verification of data was done by field work, by studying existing engineering design drawings, through meetings and consultations with all parties involved in the VHWUA as well as by mathematical calculations. Cross-checking and verification, if necessary, of all above mentioned data were done. After the verification process, the database was updated and another cycle of calculations were run to do the final calibrations. Accurate calibrations were done to the seepage and the lag time coefficient. Some final adjustments were also made to the canal geometry in the database. This was an important part of the study as only a trusted and verified database will deliver correct results, irrespective of the software program used. After calibration of the database, the fourth module was again applied, but this time water losses were included in the calculations and the results revealed trustworthy and accurate real-time release volumes. The study therefore succeeded in the implementation of the fourth module on a typical feeder canal at the VHWUA. The study was concluded by the compilation of a checklist, which the VHWUA can use to implement the module on the whole scheme. This would enable the VHWUA to implement and apply the complete WAS program, which offers all the benefits and answers in every need of any water management office. Sustainable water resource utilisation can only be achieved through proper management. Applying this most effective management program will ensure a cost effective and optimised process at the VHWUA

Early Childhood in the Era of Post-humanism: Lending an Ear to Nature

Parents, or pre-school educators in early childhood education, focus on assisting children to attain the highest possible pre-numeracy and pre-literacy skills in an attempt to give children a better academic foundation. Children are presented with technology, for example, in the form of a tablet, that act as baby-sitters even before they can speak properly, and this has largely deafened them to the sounds of nature. Sounds of man and machine are the only ones most children will be exposed to, due to their living in cities with few natural spaces. Children are not taken into nature to experience it and get to know the sounds of the bio-network, of which they are an integral part. Rural children may have a better chance to get to know, respect and cherish nature, due to their context, but their guides - parents and/or communities - have sunken into their own disregard for their environment. It is only when children are taught to listen to and appreciate nature that they will be enabled to begin moving back to being ‘mensch’ where the focus, ironically, moves away from the human and focuses instead on creating an equilibrium between humanity and nature, rather than stripping the planet of its natural resources through harmful practices. This empirical research explored the literature to highlight the significance of listening as a mode of developing an appreciation of and caring for nature. Attuning children of the post-humanist era to their natural environment through listening will encourage them to understand their function as part of nature, and assist in the restoration of the planet

Strumming your way into Foundation Phase Education

  AbstractMost Foundation Phase (FP) students in South Africa arrive at university without having had any formal music training. Music skills must then be acquired in a fraction of one semester as part of a general Life Skills module. Education students in the FP have traditionally been taught to play the piano and/or recorder and/or Orff instruments with a two-fold aim – to be able to teach these instruments to learners and for accompaniment during music activities. The use of a guitar to replace the traditional choices could be beneficial to pre-service educators. The research question is: How suitable is the guitar as an instrument for Foundation Phase (FP) education students? Specific aims are to investigate the suitability, benefits and impact of the guitar in Foundation Phase courses and the guitar learning process. Mixed methods research was done through a pragmatic paradigm. Literature was studied and surveys and interviews were done with FP stakeholders. FP students were monitored during guitar tuition and the outcomes were notated. This research will provide curriculum module developers with a tested musical instrument alternative and programme for generalist educator training. Results of this study show that a guitar is a rational choice for use in FP educator training.

Integrated Music Education in Primary School: A Position Paper

Owing to a number of reasons, including COVID-19, the life skills subject in South African primary schools, which includes music education, has been sent backstage to make space to accommodate the ‘more important’ subjects such as literacy and numeracy. This was not advocated by the Department of Basic Education but rather a way for teachers to ensure that they cover all their important work in reduced time. An important manner to reduce time spent on teaching in silo’s, is by using arts-integrated teaching, as with integrated teaching, various topics from different subjects can be covered simultaneously, albeit in a creative manner. This position paper is important as it can provide lecturers, teachers, and curriculum planners and implementers with a framework for the planning of integrated teaching. Integrated teaching in all its variances is known, yet very few teachers implement it owing to various reasons, including insufficient training. The author provides insight into the process of designing an integrated teaching programme. This study was executed using the appreciative inquiry model as a framework and provides feasible and interesting ideas for teachers for successfully using musical arts to enhance teaching and learning

“Journalism ideology” and its influence on the producers of RSG Radio Current Affairs

Abstract: In the same way that a person can have a political or a personal ideology, professional identities and how a craft or occupation is practiced may be influenced by what can be labelled as a “professional ideology”. Through interviews with producers of the Afrikaans radio programmes Monitor, Spektrum, and Naweek-Aktueel, this research shows that there is indeed such a thing as a “journalism ideology”. The interviews focused on how “internal influences” such as a journalist’s background and training, newsroom routines and “external influences” such as the audience influenced the decisions they made in choosing news stories and producing content. This “journalism ideology” influences the producers and in turn the news content of these current affairs programmes that are listened to daily by almost two million listeners. The conclusion drawn from the study is that, although the participants’ “journalism ideology” largely determines the news stories for their programmes, structural forces, newsroom routines and organisational constraints often dictate their actions. Finally, although all the participants saw themselves as “watchdogs of democracy” internal pressures within the SABC could endanger that role

Exploring interactive narrative and ideology in war games

Abstract: Given the popularity of information and communication technologies, it is a time of radical change. People are spending more of their time in virtual worlds and a large part of this time is spent playing games. Hence within this paper, the authors explore the concept of ‘identification’ and ‘representation’ within game narrative with specific reference to ‘interactivity’ and ‘character immersion’. Within the interactive realm of video games, players play an active role in determining the flow and outcome of the story. Critics have argued that games can transmit different ideologies to players. By actively identifying with the characters on screen (and determining their ultimate path) one may argue that playing a game set against a historical backdrop may have an active influence on their ideological perception of the historical events and in turn influence their own identity and how they navigate contemporary society. By using two war game case studies, Middle‐Earth: Shadow of Mordor and Anglo‐Boer War, the authors propose that the interactive nature of video game storytelling infers that narrative can be selfconstructed, especially with the right design choices. But can games arguably be used as a tool for psychological warfare? The authors interrogate the ‘interactive meaning making process’ in the two games; and clarifies it by interviewing a developer of one of the games

The mythical Boer Hero : deconstructing ideology and identity in Anglo-Boer War films

Abstract: In this paper the author deconstructs the role of the Hero character in a sample of South African- or Anglo-Boer War1 case study films. The author argues that the Boer soldier, one of the prominent figures of White “Afrikaner” history, has been transformed into a mythical hero during the past century. The key question the author investigates is how the predominant historical myth of a community (in this case that of the White South African “Afrikaner”) influence the narratives told by its popular culture. Starting with the first South African “talkie” film, Sarie Marais, the Boer hero-archetype has been used as a vehicle for ideological messages in an attempt to construct White Afrikaner identity from an Apartheid Nationalist Party perspective. Through investigating the various archetypical guises of the Boer Hero in the films Die Kavaliers, Verraaiers, and Adventures of the Boer War the author reflects on how the various case studies’ historical contexts directly correlate with the filmmaker’s representation of the hero. Therefore, the predominant ideology or the identity that the creator subscribes to directly influences the representation of the hero figure in the story