Virtual Assistants: A Code of Ethics

An intelligent virtual assistant (IVA) like Amazon’s Alexa supports clients remotely by performing administrative, technological, or creative tasks. IVAs have become a part of our daily lives and collect large sums of data about their users, meaning we need a proper code of ethics to protect people’s rights to privacy as there are data leakage concerns. In this paper, I outline a code of ethics for IVAs based on research and a case study on Amazon Alexa to recognize the key principles that a code of ethics for IVAs requires to protect its users. This code of ethics can be used for development of new IVAs or updating of existing ones in order for them to follow improved ethics principles

Impact of socio-economic factors and Health Related Quality of Life on patients on renal dialysis in Cape Town

Background: South Africa [SA] has a growing burden of chronic kidney disease [CKD], with limited health resources. Cape Town offers a PD-First policy due to both limitations on haemodialysis slots and cost saving measures. This study aimed to compare health related quality of life [HRQOL] between haemodialysis [HD] and peritoneal dialysis [PD], given the lack of autonomy in modality choice and socioeconomic challenges our patients face. Methods: This cross-sectional study was performed at Groote Schuur Hospital between July 2015 and December 2016. Demographic, socio-economic variables and perception of safety were collected. HRQOL was assessed using the Kidney Disease Quality of Life-Short Form [KDQOL-SFTM] version 1.3. All data was compared between the two dialysis modalities. Results: 77 HD patients and 33 PD patients were included in the study (Total n=110). There were no significant differences in demographics. The median age was 42.5 years [IQR: 32.4-48.6] and 57.3% were female. HD patients had less pain [p=0.036], better emotional well-being [p=0.020] and better energy/fatigue score [p=0.015]. Both cohorts experienced impairment in physical health, with PD having significant limitation [p=0.05]. The only significant symptoms in the renal domain was that PD experienced more shortness of breath [p=0.0001]. Overall, patients in both groups had very poor socio-economic circumstances. Safety was a major concern with the majority reporting feeling unsafe in their homes. Conclusions: The patients in our dialysis service have very challenging social circumstances with high rates of poverty and profound safety concerns. Patients on PD scored worse in 4 HRQOL domains, possibly due to a lack of autonomy in dialysis modality choice and less frequent contact with dialysis staff to provide encouragement and support. Additional psychological and social support needs to be instituted to help improve our patient's wellbeing on PD

The pyrrolizidine alkaloids : studies on the pyrrolizidine base Retronecanol

Degradative and biosynthetic studies were performed on retronecanol1 obtained from monocrotaline, the alkaloid present in Crotalaria spectabilis. Previously two different theories regarding the biosynthesis of the pyrrolizidine bases had been proposed. Conflicting results in this school emphasised the need for a critical examination of the degradative procedure. Heliotridane, derived from retronecanol, was submitted to the Hofmann degradation. The product of the reaction was shown by gas-liquid chromatography to be a mixture with at least five components. Attempts to separate and purify the components were unsuccessful, although some information regarding their identity was deduced. The mass spectra of retronecanol, heliotridane and heliotridene were obtained and plausible rationalisations of these spectra are presented. In order to circumvent the difficulties previously encountered in the degradation, attempts were made to obtain retronecanone from retronecanol by oxidation on a small scale. Three different oxidants, however, failed to give the required product. Plants of Crotalaria spectabilis were fed with [5-¹⁴C]-ornithine, followed by degradation of the active monocrotaline 1 obtained to give the activities of carbon atoms 1 and 1' of the pyrrolizidine base. The results are consistent with a theory which invokes a symmetrical intermediate in the biogenesis of ring B of the pyrrolizidine unit

Revolt in plays by Deon Opperman : Donkerland, Kruispad, Ons vir jou en Kaburu

Die verhandeling ondersoek die wyse waarop Deon Opperman die versetmotief in sy Afrikanerdramas uitbeeld en vernuwe om die veranderende sosiale omgewing te weerspieël. Hoofstuk 1 verskaf ‘n oorsig oor verset as leefwyse en motief in die Afrikaanse drama. Hoofstuk 2 bied ‘n teoretiese ondersoek van The theatre of revolt (Brustein 1991), ’n bespreking van begrippe soos herskrywing, multikulturalisme, moderne diaspora en globalisasie sowel as ‘n kontekstuele studie van Deon Opperman se Afrikaanse oeuvre. Hoofstuk 3 (Donkerland) fokus op verset binne ‘n postkoloniale herskrywing van die Afrikanergeskiedenis. Hoofstuk 4 (Kruispad en Ons vir jou) sentreer rondom sosiale verset binne ‘n multikulturele omgewing, terwyl hoofstuk 5 Kaburu as weerkaatsende teks en die aktuele kwessie van die moderne diaspora as versetreaksie aanspreek. Die verhandeling kom tot die slotsom dat Opperman versetteater gebruik om kommentaar op aktuele probleme te lewer en om terselfdertyd‘n boodskap van transformasie oor te dra.The dissertation examines how Deon Opperman portrays and regenerates the revolt motif in his Afrikaner dramas, in order to reflect the changing social environment. Chapter 1 provides an overview of revolt as lifestyle and as motif in Afrikaans drama. Chapter 2 offers a theoretical examination of The theatre of revolt (Brustein 1991), a discussion of concepts such as rewriting, multiculturalism, modern diaspora and globalization, as well as a contextual study of Deon Opperman’s Afrikaans oeuvre. Chapter 3 (Donkerland) focuses on revolt within the postcolonial rewriting of Afrikaner history. Chapter 4 (Kruispad and Ons vir jou) deals with social revolt within a multicultural milieu, whereas chapter 5 discusses Kaburu as a reflecting text and addresses the issue of the modern diaspora as a reaction to political transition. The dissertation reaches the conclusion that Opperman is using South African theatre as a platform for revolt as well as for transformation.Afrikaans and theory of LiteratureM. A. (Afrikaans en Algemene Literatuurwetenskap

Euthanasia: a modern legal perspective

Euthanasia and assisted suicide is currently illegal in South Africa and amounts to murder. Despite the fact that South Africa has a Constitution, including a Bill of Rights, as well as strong lobbying in favour of the legalization of euthanasia, no legal changes have been effected. Other issues closely intricated with euthanasia, like the so-called “living wills” and palliative care, where an increase of medication can possibly shorten the lifespan of a patient (“double-effect”-medication), are also problematic at the moment. The South African Law Commission has made recommendations regarding the legalization of euthanasia and assisted suicide, as well as the validity of living wills and “double-effect” palliative care practices as far back as 1997, but to present none of the recommendations had been adhered to. The only indication in favour of the toleration of euthanasia and assisted suicide is that the courts have handed down lenient sentences in cases of this nature. In this treatise the legal position in South Africa is compared to that applicable in the Netherlands and in Canada in an attempt to see whether or not South Africa can learn something from these countries as far as the development of its own legal system, relating to euthanasia, is concerned. The Termination of End of Life Decisions and Assisted Suicide Act is applicable in the Netherlands and legalizes euthanasia and assisted suicide subject to strict requirements being complied with. Although euthanasia is illegal in Canada, the courts have recently shown a noteworthy human rights approach that almost resulted in the legal position in the province of British Columbia being changed. It will be submitted that South Africa must take thorough note of these two foreign legal systems, as well as of the recommendations of the South African Law Commission and the Bill of Rights, especially the rights to life, dignity, equality and freedom and security of the person

Integration of clinical legal education with procedural law modules

This research evaluates the role that Clinical Legal Education (CLE) can and should play in the teaching and learning of procedural law modules, ie Civil Procedure, Criminal Procedure and the Law of Evidence. It is argued that the doctrine of transformative constitutionalism provides a sound theoretical basis for the integration of CLE in the teaching and learning of procedural law modules in that there is a constitutional imperative on law schools to train law graduates, who are ready for entry into legal practice, as far as adequate theoretical knowledge and practical skills are concerned. This research provides an indication of how the integration of CLE with procedural law modules can improve the appreciation of the values of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa 108 of 1996 by law graduates. Graduates will learn the importance of advancing social and procedural justice when rendering legal services to members of the public. Furthermore, graduates will be equipped with valuable graduate attributes required for legal practice. The conclusion of this research is that an integrated teaching and learning methodology, in relation to procedural law modules, will result in producing better law graduates for legal practice. The result of this will be that future legal practitioners, who can serve the public in a professional, ethical and accountable manner as envisaged by the Legal Practice Act 28 of 2014, immediately after graduating from law schools, will be produced.Thesis (LLD) -- Faculty of Law, 202

De novo assembly of transcriptomes from a B73 maize line introgressed with a QTL for resistance to gray leaf spot disease reveals a candidate allele of a lectin receptor-like kinase

Gray leaf spot (GLS) disease in maize, caused by the fungus Cercospora zeina, is a threat to maize production globally. Understanding the molecular basis for quantitative resistance to GLS is therefore important for food security. We developed a de novo assembly pipeline to identify candidate maize resistance genes. Near-isogenic maize lines with and without a QTL for GLS resistance on chromosome 10 from inbred CML444 were produced in the inbred B73 background. The B73-QTL line showed a 20% reduction in GLS disease symptoms compared to B73 in the field (p = 0.01). B73-QTL leaf samples from this field experiment conducted under GLS disease pressure were RNA sequenced. The reads that did not map to the B73 or C. zeina genomes were expected to contain novel defense genes and were de novo assembled. A total of 141 protein-coding sequences with B73-like or plant annotations were identified from the B73-QTL plants exposed to C. zeina. To determine whether candidate gene expression was induced by C. zeina, the RNAseq reads from C. zeina-challenged and control leaves were mapped to a master assembly of all of the B73-QTL reads, and differential gene expression analysis was conducted. Combining results from both bioinformatics approaches led to the identification of a likely candidate gene, which was a novel allele of a lectin receptor-like kinase named L-RLK-CML that (i) was induced by C. zeina, (ii) was positioned in the QTL region, and (iii) had functional domains for pathogen perception and defense signal transduction. The 817AA L-RLK-CML protein had 53 amino acid differences from its 818AA counterpart in B73. A second "B73-like" allele of L-RLK was expressed at a low level in B73-QTL. Gene copy-specific RT-qPCR confirmed that the l-rlk-cml transcript was the major product induced four-fold by C. zeina. Several other expressed defense-related candidates were identified, including a wall-associated kinase, two glutathione s-transferases, a chitinase, a glucan beta-glucosidase, a plasmodesmata callose-binding protein, several other receptor-like kinases, and components of calcium signaling, vesicular trafficking, and ethylene biosynthesis. This work presents a bioinformatics protocol for gene discovery from de novo assembled transcriptomes and identifies candidate quantitative resistance genes

Does religious identification of South African psychiatrists matter in their approach to religious matters in clinical practice?

BACKGROUND. It is not known whether psychiatrists’ approach to religious matters in clinical practice reflects their own identification or non-identification with religion or their being active in religious activities. OBJECTIVE. This question was investigated among South African (SA) psychiatrists and psychiatry registrars, including the importance they attach to the religious beliefs of patients for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes. METHODS. Respondents from the SA Society of Psychiatrists (SASOP) completed a purpose-designed questionnaire anonymously online. Respondents were compared statistically with regard to whether they identified with a religion, and the regularity of their participation in religious activities. Further comparisons were made based on gender and years of clinical experience. RESULTS. Participants who identified with a religion showed no statistical differences in comparison with those who did not, regarding: how they viewed the importance of a patient’s religious beliefs for purposes of diagnosis, general management, psychotherapy, pharmacotherapy, recovery from an acute episode, maintenance of recovery or remission, time to be spent on religious education, referral for religious/ spiritual counselling according to patient’s own beliefs; referral when patient and participant are of different religions; and whether referral is considered harmful when a patient’s religious beliefs are similar to or different from the participant’s. Statistically significant differences were found where participants who did not identify with a religion were more likely to indicate religion had ‘little importance’ for the purpose of understanding the patient and to indicate ‘no’ when asked if they would refer a patient for religious/spiritual counselling. When comparing regularity of participation in religious gatherings, participants who indicated their participation as ‘no/never’ were more likely to answer ‘no’ when asked if they would refer a patient for religious/spiritual counselling, even when of a similar religion to that of their patient. In comparing genders, males were more likely to answer ‘yes’ than females when asked if they considered religious/spiritual counselling (in accordance with the patient’s own religious beliefs) potentially harmful when the patient’s religion was different from the participant’s. CONCLUSION. It appears that SA psychiatrists’ identification with religion and regularity of participation in religious gatherings do not influence their approach to religious matters of their patients in most respects. The exception seems to be for those psychiatrists who do not identify with a religion (~16%), who tend to respond that they do not refer for religious counselling and that they consider the patient’s religious identification to be of little importance in understanding the patient.http://www.sajp.org.zahb201

Are employees suffering from depression in the South African workplace protected by the existing disability provisions within employment law?

Magister Legum - LLM (Mercantile and Labour Law)Depression is a mood disorder that negatively affects the way in which a person feels about himself or herself. This can ultimately affect an employee's ability to work, through reducing his or her capabilities to perform within the workplace. Individuals who suffer from depression are often discriminated against due to the societal prejudice that continues to exist about depression. In the workplace such discrimination often prevents employees from qualifying for promotions, or prospective employees from being offered employment. The fear of being subjected to unfair discrimination because of depression frequently results in employees not disclosing their mental health status to their employers, which often then causes the depression to become worse. In order to effectively address this issue, the legislative framework in South Africa dealing with employment rights can be broadened to include depression as a disability, thereby also further protecting depressed employees from discrimination in the workplace