Suicide cases investigated at the state mortuary in Bloemfontein, 2003–2007

Background: Up to 8 000 South Africans commit suicide annually. This study aimed to investigate the profile of suicide cases in Bloemfontein and the southern Free State province.Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study was performed. Suicides in the Bloemfontein and southern Free State areas (Xhariep and Motheo districts) investigated at the state mortuary in Bloemfontein in 2003 to 2007 were included. Data were collected retrospectively by using a specially designed data-capturing form.Results: A total of 469 suicide cases were included in the study. The estimated suicide rate for this part of the Free State province was 10.9/100 000 of the population per year. The majority (82.1%) of the victims were men. In total, 338 (72.1%) of the victims were black, 122 (26.0%) were white, five (1.1%) were coloured and three (0.6%) were Indian. The most common methods were hanging (262; 55.9%), shooting (99; 21.1%) and overdosing on pills (43; 9.2%). Most cases (57.8%) occurred in victims 21 to 40 years of age. Five (1.1%) victims were children younger than 11 years of age, while 12 (2.6%) were older than 65 years. More than half (267 cases; 56.9%) of the suicide victims were unemployed. The majority(43.1%) of suicides occurred in January to April of each year, with the highest incidence (67 cases; 14.3%) in January. Conclusion: The rate of suicide and the profile of victims with regard to the variables investigated corresponded to findings reported from other studies. The information obtained could make a meaningful contribution to suicide-preventionprogrammes.Keywords: suicide; profile; rate; prevention; Free State Provinc

Shell Structures and Chaos in Deformed Nuclei and Large Metallic Clusters

A reflection-asymmetric deformed oscillator potential is analysed from the classical and quantum mechanical point of view. The connection between occurrence of shell structures and classical periodic orbits is studied using the ''removal of resonances method'' in a classical analysis. In this approximation, the effective single particle potential becomes separable and the frequencies of the classical trajectories are easily determined. It turns out that the winding numbers calculated in this way are in good agreement with the ones found from the corresponding quantum mechanical spectrum using the particle number dependence of the fluctuating part of the total energy. When the octupole term is switched on it is found that prolate shapes are stable against chaos whereas spherical and oblate cases become chaotic. An attempt is made to explain this difference in the quantum mechanical context by looking at the distribution of exceptional points which results from the matrix structure of the respective Hamiltonians. In a similar way we analyse the modified Nilsson model and discuss its consequences for nuclei and metallic clusters.Comment: to appear in Physica Scripta., CNLS-94-02, a talk given at the Nobel sponsored conference SELMA 94 "New Nuclear Phenomena in the Vicinity of Closed Shell" (Stockholm and Uppsala, 29 Aug.- 3 Sept. 1994

From "Infant Hercules" to "Ghost Town":Industrial collapse and social harm on Teesside

This article explicates the harms associated with deindustrialization in Teesside in the North East of England in the context of neoliberalism. Drawing on in-depth qualitative interviews (n = 25), the article explores how ongoing industrial collapse, typified by Sahaviriya Steel Industries’ (SSI) closure in 2015, has generated various harms. First, the article examines industrialism’s socioeconomic security and stability. It then explores the negative impact of SSI’s closure in 2015, including a sense of loss and unemployment. Next, it demonstrates how the absence of economic stability produces harmful outcomes, namely insecurity, mental health problems and bleak visions of the future. The article concludes by casting industrial ruination as an impediment to human flourishing; the normal functioning of capitalism represents a “negative motivation to harm” that prevents the stability and security necessary for individual and collective flourishin

Improving the Performance in Occupational Health and Safety Management in the Electric Sector: An Integrated Methodology Using Fuzzy Multicriteria Approach

The electric sector is fundamental for the economic and social development of society, impacting on essential aspects such as health, education, employment generation, industrial production, and the provision of various services. In addition to the above, the growing trend in energy consumption worldwide could increase, according to expert estimates, up to 40% by 2030, which in turn increases the efforts of the public and private sector to meet increasing demands and increase access to energy services under requirements of reliability and quality. However, the electricity sector presents challenges and complexities, one of which is the reduction of health and safety risks for workers, service users, and other stakeholders. In many countries, this sector is classified as high risk in occupational safety and health, due to its complexity and the impact of accidents and occupational diseases on the health of workers, in infrastructure, in operating costs and competitiveness of the energy sector. Worldwide, there are rigorous regulations for the electricity sector, from local and national government regulations to international standards to guarantee health and safety conditions. However, it is necessary to develop objective and comprehensive methodologies for evaluating occupational safety and health performance that provides solutions for the electricity sector, not only to comply with standards and regulations also as a continuous improvement tool that supports the decision-making processes given the complexity of the industry and the multiple criteria that are taken into account when evaluating and establishing improvement strategies. In scientific literature, different studies focus on the analysis of accident statistics, the factors that affect accidents and occupational diseases, and the risk assessment of the sector. Despite these considerations, studies that focus directly on the development of hybrid methodologies for the evaluation and improvement of performance in occupational safety and health in the electrical sector, under multiple criteria and uncertainty are mostly limited. Therefore, this document presents an integrated methodology for improving the performance in occupational health and safety in the electric sector through the application of two techniques of Multi-criteria Decision Methods (MCDM) uses in environments under uncertainly. First, the fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process (FAHP) is applied to estimate the initial relative weights of criteria and sub-criteria. The fuzzy set theory is incorporated to represent the uncertainty of decision-makers’ preferences. Then, the Decision-making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory (DEMATEL) used for evaluating the interrelations and feedback among criteria and sub-criteria. FAHP and DEMATEL are later combined for calculating the final criteria and sub-criteria weights under vagueness and interdependence. Subsequently, we applied the proposed methodology in a company of the energy sector for diagnosis of performance in OHS to establish improvement proposals, the work path, and implementation costs. Finally, we evaluate the impact of the strategies applied in the improvement of the performance of the company

Chitosan encapsulation modulates the effect of capsaicin on the tight junctions of MDCK cells

Capsaicin has known pharmacological effects including the ability to reversibly open cellular tight junctions, among others. The aim of this study was to develop a strategy to enhance the paracellular transport of a substance with low permeability (FITC-dextran) across an epithelial cell monolayer via reversible opening of cellular tight junctions using a nanosystem comprised by capsaicin and of chitosan. We compared the biophysical properties of free capsaicin and capsaicin-loaded chitosan nanocapsules, including their cytotoxicity towards epithelial MDCK-C7 cells and their effect on the integrity of tight junctions, membrane permeability and cellular uptake. The cytotoxic response of MDCK-C7 cells to capsaicin at a concentration of 500 μM, which was evident for the free compound, is not observable following its encapsulation. The interaction between nanocapsules and the tight junctions of MDCK-C7 cells was investigated by impedance spectroscopy, digital holographic microscopy and structured illumination fluorescence microscopy. The nanocapsules modulated the interaction between capsaicin and tight junctions as shown by the different time profile of trans-epithelial electrical resistance and the enhanced permeability of monolayers incubated with FITC-dextran. Structured illumination fluorescence microscopy showed that the nanocapsules were internalized by MDCK-C7 cells. The capsaicin-loaded nanocapsules could be further developed as drug nanocarriers with enhanced epithelial permeability

Afrikaans as Standaard Gemiddelde Europees:Wanneer ‘n lid uit sy taalarea beweeg

A recent trend in the study of Standard Average European is the extraterritorial perspective of examining the extent to which non-European languages have converged with this Sprachbund as a result of contact with one or more of its members. The present article complements this line of research in that it investigates the extent to which a European language has diverged from Standard Average European after leaving the linguistic area. The focus is on Dutch, a nuclear member of the Sprachbund, and Afrikaans, its colonial offshoot. The two languages are compared with respect to twelve of the most distinctive linguistic features of Standard Average European. Afrikaans is found to share ten of them with Dutch, including anticausative prominence and formally distinguished intensifiers and reflexives, and could therefore still be considered a core member of the Sprachbund, despite deviations in the expression of negative pronouns and the grammaticality of external possessor constructions. This relatively low degree of divergence may be attributed to the continuity from Settler Dutch to at least the variety of Afrikaans on which the standard language is based and to the important role that Dutch continued to play in the history of Afrikaans

Nanoencapsulated capsaicin changes migration behavior and morphology of madin darby canine kidney cell monolayers

We have developed a drug delivery nanosystem based on chitosan and capsaicin. Both substances have a wide range of biological activities. We investigated the nanosystem’s influence on migration and morphology of Madin Darby canine kidney (MDCK-C7) epithelial cells in comparison to the capsaicin-free nanoformulation, free capsaicin, and control cells. For minimally-invasive quantification of cell migration, we applied label-free digital holographic microscopy (DHM) and single-cell tracking. Moreover, quantitative DHM phase images were used as novel stain-free assay to quantify the temporal course of global cellular morphology changes in confluent cell layers. Cytoskeleton alterations and tight junction protein redistributions were complementary analyzed by fluorescence microscopy. Calcium influx measurements were conducted to characterize the influence of the nanoformulations and capsaicin on ion channel activities. We found that both, capsaicin-loaded and unloaded chitosan nanocapsules, and also free capsaicin, have a significant impact on directed cell migration and cellular motility. Increase of velocity and directionality of cell migration correlates with changes in the cell layer surface roughness, tight junction integrity and cytoskeleton alterations. Calcium influx into cells occurred only after nanoformulation treatment but not upon addition of free capsaicin. Our results pave the way for further studies on the biological significance of these findings and potential biomedical applications, e.g. as drug and gene carriers

The biogeography of South African terrestrial plant invasions

Thousands of plant species have been introduced, intentionally and accidentally, to South Africa from many parts of the world. Alien plants are now conspicuous features of many South African landscapes and hundreds of species have naturalised (i.e. reproduce regularly without human intervention), many of which are also invasive (i.e. have spread over long distances). There is no comprehensive inventory of alien, naturalised, and invasive plants for South Africa, but 327 plant taxa, most of which are invasive, are listed in national legislation. We collated records of 759 plant taxa in 126 families and 418 genera that have naturalised in natural and semi-natural ecosystems. Over half of these naturalised taxa are trees or shrubs, just under a tenth are in the families Fabaceae (73 taxa) and Asteraceae (64); genera with the most species are Eucalyptus,Acacia, and Opuntia. The southern African Plant Invaders Atlas (SAPIA) provides the best data for assessing the extent of invasions at the national scale. SAPIA data show that naturalised plants occur in 83% of quarter-degree grid cells in the country. While SAPIA data highlight general distribution patterns (high alien plant species richness in areas with high native plant species richness and around the main human settlements), an accurate, repeatable method for estimating the area invaded by plants is lacking. Introductions and dissemination of alien plants over more than three centuries, and invasions over at least 120 years (and especially in the last 50 years) have shaped the distribution of alien plants in South Africa. Distribution patterns of naturalised and invasive plants define four ecologically-meaningful clusters or “alien plant species assemblage zones”, each with signature alien plant taxa for which trait-environment interactions can be postulated as strong determinants of success. Some widespread invasive taxa occur in high frequencies across multiple zones; these taxa occur mainly in riparian zones and other azonal habitats,or depend on human-mediated disturbance, which weakens or overcomes the factors that determine specificity to any biogeographical region