Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf): Open Journal Systems
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A response to Thaldar et al. (2023): Data sharing governance in sub-Saharan Africa during public health emergencies
No full textDeveloping and testing a PM2.5 low-cost sensor in Ethiopia under ambient and indoor air pollution conditions
No full text PM2.5 low-cost sensors are a promising trend for low-income countries, where the PM2.5 associated burden of disease is high and few measurement instruments are available. Commercially available Sensor Systems (SSys) are relatively affordable and easy to use. They are, however, not designed for or evaluated in contexts characterized by much biomass burning, regular power interruptions and/or low internet coverage, typical for low-income countries. Alternatively, local teams can build a sensor system with PM2.5 sensors from Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM). Existing African OEM projects depend on international partners and funding. This puts the affordability for local teams without funding into question. Furthermore, field comparisons of such sensors for ambient concentrations and indoor settings are rarely conducted in low-income contexts. In Arba Minch, Ethiopia, we developed a sensor system (SPSA) with the OEM Sensirion SPS30 and other components, together with an Arduino microprocessor, with LoRaWAN data transmission. We used the hardware and software in multiple configurations. The SPSA was used in 14 contexts typical for Ethiopia. During these tests we encountered problems that were easily solved by maintenance on location. On seven locations we collocated the SPSA with itself, gravimetric instruments and/or SSys. Amongst SPSA we found coefficients of determination (R2) of at least 0.98 for three ambient and one indoor location. The accuracy in comparison with the gravimetric method was 16% under ambient and 13% under indoor circumstances. This is lower than the internationally required 25%. The R2 in comparison to two SSys was 0.91-0.98 under ambient and 0.88-1.00 under indoor circumstances. The SPSA is a versatile sensor system that can be used in both ambient and indoor air pollution circumstances. Local development without international partners and funding resulted in local experience gaining, low costs, local ownership, and the possibility of tailoring the system to local needs regarding power and connectivity
Book Review: Southern African Moths and their Caterpillars
No full textSouthern African Moths & Their Caterpillars, Hermann Staude, Mike Picker and Charles Griffiths, 2023.
Struik Nature/Penguin Random House South Africa. ISBN 978 1 77584 795 (Print), ISBN 978 177584 796 0 (ePub). Paper back R 550; Pelagic Publishing (UK) ISBN 99781784273477. Paper back ₤39.99. 464 pp
ELECTRONIC PERSONS IN CONTRACTS
No full textContemporary technological developments have already progressed far beyond the electronic and digital transactions recognised under the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act 25 of 2002 (ECTA). Internationally, there are calls for the regulation not only of robots and artificial intelligence (AI) but also of sophisticated automated electronic systems and AI that now have the capability to make self-sustainable decisions and exhibit human characteristics (conceptually referred to as electronic persons). The growing legal debate is whether such systems should be afforded equal (or similar) legal status to human beings and thereby have rights and be responsible for duties – that is, be afforded the mantle of legal personhood. Alternatively, should a different liability regime apply to these systems, their operators and creators? Europe has suggested both approaches. First, in 2016, the European Parliament’s Committee on Legal Affairs included recommendations to the Commission on Civil Law Rules on Robotics that suggested that electronic persons should in the future be recognised as entities having legal status and legal personality. Secondly, in 2020, the European Parliament made recommendations to the Commission on a Civil Liability Regime for Artificial Intelligence, which proposed liability structures for these systems, their operators and creators. If legal recognition were afforded, as initially suggested in 2016, this would constitute something fundamentally different from juristic persons and would have a direct influence on the way contracts are concluded and their consequences. This article explores the concepts of legal status and personality from the perspective of recognised contractual parties (natural and juristic persons), as well as that of a conceptual electronic person, which may manifest itself as either a passive electronic person (more akin to a useful tool and currently recognised under ECTA) or as a sophisticated electronic person (more akin to human-like technology). In doing so, the article explores possible liability structures that could apply to electronic persons in the South African legal framework and concludes that there is a need to update ECTA (and other legislative instruments) so as to recognise and regulate sophisticated automated systems and electronic persons. A failure to do so may mean South Africa is left behind in the wake of technological developments, and may hamper future contractual engagements
The Influence of Change Management Process on Cloud Transitioning
No full textTechnology is a dynamic field with constant changes, improvements, and new discoveries even before anyone is fully comfortable or used to the way it was. Cloud computing has gained momentum with the migration to the cloud growing at an incremental rate each year. However, some organisations migrate prematurely without fully understanding the impact on various factors. This research focuses on the influence of change management processes on cloud transitioning. The study included the feasibility of using COBIT to adequately manage organisational change when migrating to the cloud. The quantitative research methodology used a survey where the concept of cloud computing and applying COBIT in the context of organisational change were explored. A combination of these concepts was necessary as these had not been explored in other studies. A correlation coefficient analysis was performed to determine the relationship between COBIT’s change management processes and the success rate of cloud computing. The results of this research suggest that there is a relationship between change management processes and the success rate of cloud computing. Future research could include the creation of a cloud-readiness assessment model to assist businesses to make an informed decisions when migrating to the cloud
Enhancing academic staff retention in an open distance e-Learning higher education institution in South Africa
Get PDFThis paper reports on a Human Resource risk management conceptual framework for enhancing academic staff retention in an open-distance e-learning higher education institution in South Africa. The study utilised an interpretative phenomenological analysis research design. Data were collected from academics by means of semi-structured individual interviews and focus group interviews guided by an interview schedule. Three superordinate themes emerged from the data analysis, namely: determinants of academic staff retention; human resource risk assessment; and human resource risk management. The findings of this study resulted in the development of a conceptual framework that has practical utility for promoting academic staff retention in an open-distance e-learning higher education institution. Herzberg’s Two-Factor Theory and it's promoting and hindering factors underpin the study and enabled the development of the Human Resource risk management conceptual framework. The identified risk factors are intrinsically and extrinsically instrumental in influencing and determining academics’ decisions to leave or remain at their respective open-distance e-learning higher education institutions as their place of employment.  
Mathematics conceptual errors in the learning of a linear function- a case of a Technical and Vocational Education and Training college in South Africa
Get PDFIn this case study, we explored the conceptual errors that National Certificate (Vocational) Level 2 mathematics students at a Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) College in South Africa experience in learning functions. Qualitative data were sourced from a sample of Level 2 (L2) mathematics students (n=17) from a TVET college through test responses and interviews. The findings revealed that the students find it difficult to: recognise a linear function, translate between different representations of a linear function, and identify particular components of a linear function. The findings generally indicated that the students lack conceptual understanding of the linear function. From the interviews, the students pointed to the teachers’ instructional practices as a major contributory factor to the identified difficulties they experienced. Specifically, a lack of exposure to instruction and assessment tasks that involved all representations of functions hindered a deep conceptual understanding of functions. 
Challenges faced by intermediate phase English First Additional Language teachers in establishing classroom libraries in Limpopo Province
Get PDFClassroom libraries have an important function in the development of reading abilities for English First Additional Language (EFAL) learners in the Intermediate Phase (grades 4 to 6). This research aimed at exploring the challenges faced by the Intermediate Phase EFAL teachers in establishing classroom libraries in a rural circuit of the Limpopo Province to promote learners’ reading ability. A qualitative grounded theory approach was employed using observations and an interview schedule with semi structured open-ended questions. Nine participants were purposefully selected. The study found that there was limited relevant reading material, a lack of space for setting up a classroom library in overcrowded classrooms, teachers’ lack of knowledge on organising the classroom library books and a lack of strategies on how to control the checking in and out of books. It is recommended that schools should first allocate funds for buying books and seek donations for reading material from public libraries as well as non-governmental organisations. Inservice training should be conducted to equip teachers with the basic skills of organising and facilitating the checking out and returning of classroom library books
Integrating education for sustainable development into a sustainable-smart transdisciplinary learning framework
Get PDFEducation for Sustainable Development (ESD) has been gaining traction as a promising approach for addressing social challenges and driving positive change within society. The purpose of this article is to explore how ESD can be foregrounded to reframe and enrich an existing learning framework called the Interdisciplinary Collaborative Online Learning Framework (ICoL). The ICoL framework has been developed since 2020 using a Design-based Research methodology. Literature on ESD lacks exploration of practical implementation for interdisciplinary collaborative projects within communities. This article interrogates the question of how to integrate ESD within the ICoL learning framework. This study is explorative, and data are drawn from a review of the literature and student reflections. A qualitative, themed analysis of the data revealed a fifth learning design principle and a fourth structuring element towards a new learning framework, called the Sustainable-Smart Transdisciplinary Learning Framework
Decolonial turn of collective occupations in post-apartheid South Africa: Young people's voices of occupational legacy
Get PDFBACKGROUND: Collective occupations are a vital part of the post-apartheid South African context because they enable parents and grandparents to pass on their legacies to the young people in families and communities. However, there are social inter-generational problems such as corruption, unemployment, family conflicts and poverty that disrupt the actions of inculcating occupational legacy AIM: This study explored young people's voices of occupational legacy in a post-apartheid South African context METHOD: A socio-narratology qualitative inquiry was employed to gain insight from eight participants who were recruited using purposive sampling. Semi-structured interviews were conducted to collect data, which were analysed thematically in a credible process RESULTS: Five themes that amalgamated collective occupations with occupational legacy were identified: decoloniality of 'knowledge generation and transfer', decoloniality of 'doing', decoloniality of 'being', decoloniality of 'becoming' and decoloniality of 'belonging' CONCLUSION: The findings add to our understanding of the power of occupational legacy in ameliorating the problematic situations that enabled the young people's continuity, social change and transformation through collective occupations. It is evident in the findings that the young people exerted maximal efforts to engage in occupational decision-making activities that were guided by the available opportunities so they may transition to the different contexts