Contextual Complexities and Nelson Mandela's Braided Rhetoric

This dissertation revolves around the complex political circumstances in apartheid South Africa that produced Nelson Mandela the rhetorician, human rights activist, and the longest political prisoner in human history. The manner in which Nelson Mandela deploys a braided rhetoric that is a combination of the African and Western rhetorical traditions for spearheading the anti-apartheid struggle in South Africa is investigated. Mandela draws upon the African rhetorical tradition through which his identity, selfhood, and ethos were forged, while appropriating the Western rhetorical tradition through which he attained his education and training as a lawyer. Also examined is the complexity of inter-ethnic strife among Black South Africans; a situation that was exploited by the apartheid regime and which made the western rhetorical tradition inadequate for addressing apartheid domination. The dissertation also studies Mandela’s dynamism as he navigates the murky waters of apartheid policies, which were not only smoke screens for veiling their racist intent but were enactments that kept morphing for the purpose of crushing any form of dissent. The complex situation produced an audience that was very diverse; and to appeal to these local and international audiences, Mandela required a rhetoric that was nuanced and effective enough to dismantle the apartheid racist order. Mandela employs narratives, which are performed in keeping with the African oral tradition - to unify, organize, and inspire his people; to call on the world beyond the borders of South Africa to account for their support of Apartheid; and to call out whites South Africans for their implicit and explicit consent to the evils of a racist social, political, and economic order. Mandela’s rhetoric is strengthened particularly because, even as he speaks and writes in service of a struggle against systemic racism, he rises above the reification of essentialism and thus resists complicity

State of Accelerated Bridge Construction (ABC) in the United States

The purpose of this project is to develop a toolkit for the design and construction of bridges using prefabricated materials primarily to reduce the closure time and on-site construction time of newly constructed bridges or bridges undergoing renovation. The research focuses specifically on short span bridges in Georgia (40,60,80, and 120ft spans). Areas of primary concern for this project were design, constructability, structural analysis, the use of concrete and steel girders, cost efficiency, and industry surveys. In this particular portion of the study, the surveys proved to be most effective when combined with information obtained existing research as well as published project reports by contractors and DOTs. The surveys were created by the research team and included questions regarding the engineering entity’s experience with ABC, the level of acceptance of ABC techniques in their state, the number of completed projects in recent years, impediments to the use of ABC techniques, and the ongoing research on ABC topics in the entity’s state. Constructability issues were given special attention, as they proved to be a major impediment to the use of ABC by other entity’s which remain reluctant. Lack of general experience also played a major role. The Georgia DOT seeks to employ ABC techniques in the future, so this project will help identify what is needed to begin designing projects that utilize ABC, what further research needs to be conducted, and which design details need more attention

Do Multicultural Experiences and Biculturalism Promote Creativity in International Students?

The 2009–2010 academic school year in the United States boasted a record number of enrolled international students. An estimated 690,923 students attended universities and colleges across the country (Open Doors, 2011). World markets and educational systems have become more connected and internationally focused. As a result, academic settings around the globe now encourage students to step beyond what is culturally familiar in order to become creative, knowledgeable, and competitive graduates. An empirical study by Maddux and Galinsky (2009) provides pioneering data that supports the connection of increased creativity through extended multicultural experiences. Individuals who are able to effectively incorporate customs from their home culture with that of the host culture are known as bicultural. The present study used an exploratory approach to provide additional information concerning the relationship between creativity and the variables that contribute to biculturalism (i.e. multilingualism, country of origin\u27s cultural orientation, time lived in the U.S). The link between creativity achievements as a result of proper adjustment (i.e. acculturative stress, GPA, social support, multicultural campus involvement) was also investigated. Information was obtained from 122 international student participants. Sample ages ranged from 17 to 40 and represented 39 countries of origin. Information was collected through the completion of survey packets that contained the Creative Achievement Questionnaire (CAQ; Carson, Peterson, & Higgins, 2005), the Duncker Candle insight problem (1945, Karl Duncker), the Vancouver Index of Acculturation (VIA; Ryder, Alden, & Paulhus, 2000), the Acculturative Stress Scale for International Students (ASSIS; Sandhu & Asrabadi, 1994), and a modified version of Social Support (Koeske & Koeske, 1989, 1993). Results from the study did not support the majority of initial assumptions. Key predictor variables such as multilingualism and acculturation strategy were not influential on creativity success. More specifically, the acculturation strategy did not account for variances beyond other factors as predicted. Significant findings concerned the length of time lived abroad and insight problem solving. Participants who lived in the United States for longer periods had greater success solving the Duncker Candle insight problem. Results indicated that students from collectivistic cultural backgrounds (loose and tight) had lower self-reports of creativity on the CAQ and were not successful in solving the Duncker Candle insight problem. In terms of gender, female participants were least associated with correct responses to the Duncker Candle insight problem. Indicators of student success were negatively correlated with acculturative stress. Students who generally indicated higher levels of stress were least successful on the Duncker Candle measure of insight creativity. Overall, the study provided support for the relationship between insight problem solving and time lived abroad. The present study paves the way for future research that compares creativity measures and factors of biculturalism

THE USE AND CHALLENGES OF CLOUD COMPUTING SERVICES ADOPTION AMONG SMES IN NIGERIA

This paper considers the factors militating against the ready adoption of cloud services by Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Nigeria. The paper recognizes that the major challenges affecting the adoption of cloud services in Nigeria include infrastructural issues such as lack of adequate and affordable Internet network facilities and unstable power supply. Other factors include lack of proper awareness of the benefits of cloud services, high cost of bandwidth, and high cost of supporting cloud services among others. To mitigate these problems it is suggested that private organizations should make more investment in Information and Communications Technology (ICT) infrastructure in Nigeria and government on its part should create the enabling environment for this to be achieved. Private and public institutions alike should increase effort to encourage SMEs to understand the benefits of adopting cloud services to their bottom-line. Other ways the adoption of cloud services can be improved include the establishment of more focused research in the area of cloud computing; private organizations and possibly government can sponsor such researches. Furthermore, regulation including enforcement of data protection laws and all other intellectual property rights protection regime should be adequately enforced. If all these challenges are resolved cloud computing has the potential to be the next big thing in Nigeria and revolutionize the profitability of SMEs

Spatial and spatio-temporal variability in social, emotional and behavioural development of children

Neighbourhood differences in early development can be explored by incorporating spatial and spatio-temporal information with population data. Spatial refers to the relationship between neighbouring areas, while spatio-temporal refers to the relationship between neighbouring areas over time. At the time of writing, most population studies have focused on spatial variation in early development over a single year or short time period. This project identifies spatial and spatio-temporal referenced data that can be linked with population data on child social, emotional and behavioural difficulties in Glasgow, United Kingdom (UK). The Child Mental Health in Education (ChiME) study is a unique resource that can be used to model long term trends in a preschool population. In the ChiME study, Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) forms were analysed for 35,171 children aged 4–5 years old across 180 preschools in Glasgow, UK, between 2010 and 2017 as part of routine monitoring. Using ChiME data, this work examined how early development varies over space and time, how the neighbourhood is defined, how important the neighbourhood is and what neighbourhood characteristics are related to early development. A literature review of 71 studies (from 2012-2022) in Chapter 2 discusses the neighbourhood constructs that are associated with variation in early development for children in Scotland. These constructs included the physical environment (e.g. greenspace) and social environment (e.g. social networks). The availability of data and the strength of evidence to support each construct varied. For many constructs, there was limited understanding of their relevance to younger children as opposed to adolescent or adult populations. There are gaps in the literature in the extent that neighbourhood constructs relate to developmental outcomes at an individual level or how this may change over time. To address these gaps, much more multilevel research, using population data is required. Chapter 3 provides a methodological review of the multilevel spatio-temporal approaches used to date. There is limited methodological guidance on how to model spatio-temporal variation for multilevel data. There is a risk of over complicating the model when attempting to account for spatial, temporal and/or spatio-temporal effects. Choosing the appropriate spatio-temporal multilevel model depends on the structure of the data, the degree of correlation, the goal of the analysis and overall model fit. Using a Bayesian workflow, each component of the model is reviewed in an iterative process to provide the best model for the data in Chapter 4. This includes evaluation of the outcome (total difficulties scores vs high scores) and comparing discrete distributions (Poisson, Negative Binomial and Zero-Inflated Negative Binomial models). Workflow analysis supported the use of Zero Inflated Negative Binomial distribution for total difficulties scores and the use of approximation methods for estimation. The total difficulties score for an individual child nested in their preschool, electoral ward and ward:year was modelled using a multilevel model with the components selected in Chapter 4. In Chapter 5, models were built incrementally, considering the value of each context. Boys, those of increasing deprivation and children outside the average age, had more difficulties on average. Preschool and ward variation, although minimal, highlight potential priority areas for local service provision. After consideration of demographics (sex, age, and deprivation), the overall spatial effect found the electoral wards of Anderston, Craigton, North East and Pollokshields were worse than expected (Relative Risk > 1) from 2010 to 2017. There were 72 preschools that were worse than expected based on their demographics. Approximately half of the children who lived in a ward that was worse than expected also attended a preschool that was worse than expected. There were independent spatio-temporal patterns in total difficulties, that exist in addition to the overall spatial effect. Spatial effects were not solely due to consistently poor performing areas. Instead, there is evidence of yearly variations in performance. Spatial analysis using only a single or few years may lead to misleading conclusions about area level variability. For example, once considering the spatio-temporal effect, Pollokshields was no longer considered worse than expected. There were differences in spatial and spatio-temporal variation depending on the neighbourhood definition (electoral ward, locality, Intermediate Zone (2001 and 2011) and Consistent Areas Through Time (CATTs)) found in Chapter 6. Looking at the different spatial scales together, can help support diffuse or more concentrated intervention delivery. Localities and 2011 Intermediate Zones had a similar spatial distribution to the ward. The relative importance of the neighbourhood compared to other contexts can be quantified through the Variance Partition Coefficient (VPC). Estimated VPC of the neighbourhood on early development was expected to be between 0 and 9% according to recent literature. Though the typical VPC equation does not apply to discrete distributions, recent approximations have been developed. Using these approximations, it was found that proportionally, the neighbourhood context alone does not make a considerable contribution to variation in difficulties scores. VPC values ranged from 0.39-1.1% depending on the neighbourhood definition. From the perspective of decision-making, the partitioned variance suggests that considering the neighbourhood along with other contexts would be more meaningful than the neighbourhood alone. Preschool and neighbourhood characteristics are thought to provide a more feasible target for intervention compared to individual level characteristics. Cross-level effects (which describe the association between a higher level covariate and a lower level outcome) are investigated in Chapter 7. Preschool and neighbourhood indicators were derived from openly available administrative data. The quality of these indicators and their relevance to this project varied. Preschools were classified as small/medium/large local authority, private business or voluntary. Most children were in local authority preschools. Total difficulties scores were lower in private business compared to small local authority preschools. Spatial variation was in part explained by a child’s prosocial behaviour and its interaction with their preschool provider. The mechanisms underlying these differences are at present unknown. There were ecological correlations between total difficulties and the neighbourhood indicators (participation, child poverty, domestic abuse, free time places, vandalism and proximity to greenspace (at 400 m and 800m)). These correlations did not translate to a cross-level association with individual level total difficulties. In conclusion, there are multiple contexts that account for variation in total difficulties. The preschool and spatio-temporal context and their composition could provide additional information about how the neighbourhood relates to early development. There is a need for more spatio-temporal data, that can be linked to population data, to understand how the neighbourhood is associated with development at an individual level, beyond deprivation. Multi-level spatio-temporal models can be used to understand early development and support the selection of delivery areas for place-based interventions.Neighbourhood differences in early development can be explored by incorporating spatial and spatio-temporal information with population data. Spatial refers to the relationship between neighbouring areas, while spatio-temporal refers to the relationship between neighbouring areas over time. At the time of writing, most population studies have focused on spatial variation in early development over a single year or short time period. This project identifies spatial and spatio-temporal referenced data that can be linked with population data on child social, emotional and behavioural difficulties in Glasgow, United Kingdom (UK). The Child Mental Health in Education (ChiME) study is a unique resource that can be used to model long term trends in a preschool population. In the ChiME study, Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) forms were analysed for 35,171 children aged 4–5 years old across 180 preschools in Glasgow, UK, between 2010 and 2017 as part of routine monitoring. Using ChiME data, this work examined how early development varies over space and time, how the neighbourhood is defined, how important the neighbourhood is and what neighbourhood characteristics are related to early development. A literature review of 71 studies (from 2012-2022) in Chapter 2 discusses the neighbourhood constructs that are associated with variation in early development for children in Scotland. These constructs included the physical environment (e.g. greenspace) and social environment (e.g. social networks). The availability of data and the strength of evidence to support each construct varied. For many constructs, there was limited understanding of their relevance to younger children as opposed to adolescent or adult populations. There are gaps in the literature in the extent that neighbourhood constructs relate to developmental outcomes at an individual level or how this may change over time. To address these gaps, much more multilevel research, using population data is required. Chapter 3 provides a methodological review of the multilevel spatio-temporal approaches used to date. There is limited methodological guidance on how to model spatio-temporal variation for multilevel data. There is a risk of over complicating the model when attempting to account for spatial, temporal and/or spatio-temporal effects. Choosing the appropriate spatio-temporal multilevel model depends on the structure of the data, the degree of correlation, the goal of the analysis and overall model fit. Using a Bayesian workflow, each component of the model is reviewed in an iterative process to provide the best model for the data in Chapter 4. This includes evaluation of the outcome (total difficulties scores vs high scores) and comparing discrete distributions (Poisson, Negative Binomial and Zero-Inflated Negative Binomial models). Workflow analysis supported the use of Zero Inflated Negative Binomial distribution for total difficulties scores and the use of approximation methods for estimation. The total difficulties score for an individual child nested in their preschool, electoral ward and ward:year was modelled using a multilevel model with the components selected in Chapter 4. In Chapter 5, models were built incrementally, considering the value of each context. Boys, those of increasing deprivation and children outside the average age, had more difficulties on average. Preschool and ward variation, although minimal, highlight potential priority areas for local service provision. After consideration of demographics (sex, age, and deprivation), the overall spatial effect found the electoral wards of Anderston, Craigton, North East and Pollokshields were worse than expected (Relative Risk > 1) from 2010 to 2017. There were 72 preschools that were worse than expected based on their demographics. Approximately half of the children who lived in a ward that was worse than expected also attended a preschool that was worse than expected. There were independent spatio-temporal patterns in total difficulties, that exist in addition to the overall spatial effect. Spatial effects were not solely due to consistently poor performing areas. Instead, there is evidence of yearly variations in performance. Spatial analysis using only a single or few years may lead to misleading conclusions about area level variability. For example, once considering the spatio-temporal effect, Pollokshields was no longer considered worse than expected. There were differences in spatial and spatio-temporal variation depending on the neighbourhood definition (electoral ward, locality, Intermediate Zone (2001 and 2011) and Consistent Areas Through Time (CATTs)) found in Chapter 6. Looking at the different spatial scales together, can help support diffuse or more concentrated intervention delivery. Localities and 2011 Intermediate Zones had a similar spatial distribution to the ward. The relative importance of the neighbourhood compared to other contexts can be quantified through the Variance Partition Coefficient (VPC). Estimated VPC of the neighbourhood on early development was expected to be between 0 and 9% according to recent literature. Though the typical VPC equation does not apply to discrete distributions, recent approximations have been developed. Using these approximations, it was found that proportionally, the neighbourhood context alone does not make a considerable contribution to variation in difficulties scores. VPC values ranged from 0.39-1.1% depending on the neighbourhood definition. From the perspective of decision-making, the partitioned variance suggests that considering the neighbourhood along with other contexts would be more meaningful than the neighbourhood alone. Preschool and neighbourhood characteristics are thought to provide a more feasible target for intervention compared to individual level characteristics. Cross-level effects (which describe the association between a higher level covariate and a lower level outcome) are investigated in Chapter 7. Preschool and neighbourhood indicators were derived from openly available administrative data. The quality of these indicators and their relevance to this project varied. Preschools were classified as small/medium/large local authority, private business or voluntary. Most children were in local authority preschools. Total difficulties scores were lower in private business compared to small local authority preschools. Spatial variation was in part explained by a child’s prosocial behaviour and its interaction with their preschool provider. The mechanisms underlying these differences are at present unknown. There were ecological correlations between total difficulties and the neighbourhood indicators (participation, child poverty, domestic abuse, free time places, vandalism and proximity to greenspace (at 400 m and 800m)). These correlations did not translate to a cross-level association with individual level total difficulties. In conclusion, there are multiple contexts that account for variation in total difficulties. The preschool and spatio-temporal context and their composition could provide additional information about how the neighbourhood relates to early development. There is a need for more spatio-temporal data, that can be linked to population data, to understand how the neighbourhood is associated with development at an individual level, beyond deprivation. Multi-level spatio-temporal models can be used to understand early development and support the selection of delivery areas for place-based interventions

Minority administrators’ perspectives on leadership in predominantly white schools

During a period of high expectations and accountability for public schools, some minority administrators have chosen to work in predominantly White schools. The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine the professional and personal experiences of minority administrators located in predominantly White suburban school districts in one affluent county located in southeastern Michigan. Through in-depth interviews, a focus group, and surveys, participants shared their experiences and perspectives on leadership as minority administrators in predominantly White schools. Using a phenomenological approach, the researcher analyzed the participants’ responses through the lens of the critical race theory. Four themes emerged from the analysis of the minority administrators’ responses. First, participants embraced the opportunity to change negative perceptions people may have about members of their race through positive daily interactions with faculty, parents, and students within their school communities. Second, participants felt they were closely watched by all members of their school community—unlike their White colleagues—which impacted their behavior as school leaders. Third, participants valued the relationships they established along their journeys with mentors and attributed much of their professional development to the support they received from supportive colleagues. Fourth, the participants all experienced difficult times as school leaders; to overcome their challenges, they relied on their faiths, families, or friends as their sources of strength. The minority administrators’ experiences were challenging and rewarding as they led schools with faculties and students different from their own race. From their experiences, the researcher created a counter-story highlighting their perspectives on leadership

Internationalization: Choosing The Right Entry Mode: Lessons From Ebay’s Strategy In China

This paper considers the motivations for businesses to expand to other countries using the entry of eBay into China as a case study. It observed that eBay adopted the wrong entry mode by acquiring 100 percent of EachNet. The company would have performed better if it had adopted the joint venture approach with minority stake as it later did with Tom Online or if it had only retained minority stake, as was the case when it acquired 33 percent of EachNet. It was discovered that the various entry modes have their pros and cons depending on the peculiarity of the host market. This paper therefore, recommends that in entering a new market, companies should ensure to have a proper understanding of the local business dynamics before settling for any entry strategy

Bicuspid aortic valve regurgitation: Quantification of anatomic regurgitant orifice area by 3D transesophageal echocardiography reconstruction

Bicuspid aortic valve regurgitation: quantification of anatomic regurgitant orifice area by 3D transesophageal echocardiography reconstruction

THE USE AND CHALLENGES OF CLOUD COMPUTING SERVICES ADOPTION AMONG SMES IN NIGERIA

This paper considers the factors militating against the ready adoption of cloud services by Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Nigeria. The paper recognizes that the major challenges affecting the adoption of cloud services in Nigeria include infrastructural issues such as lack of adequate and affordable Internet network facilities and unstable power supply. Other factors include lack of proper awareness of the benefits of cloud services, high cost of bandwidth, and high cost of supporting cloud services among others. To mitigate these problems it is suggested that private organizations should make more investment in Information and Communications Technology (ICT) infrastructure in Nigeria and government on its part should create the enabling environment for this to be achieved. Private and public institutions alike should increase effort to encourage SMEs to understand the benefits of adopting cloud services to their bottom-line. Other ways the adoption of cloud services can be improved include the establishment of more focused research in the area of cloud computing; private organizations and possibly government can sponsor such researches. Furthermore, regulation including enforcement of data protection laws and all other intellectual property rights protection regime should be adequately enforced. If all these challenges are resolved cloud computing has the potential to be the next big thing in Nigeria and revolutionize the profitability of SMEs