UCT Open Access Journals (Univ. of Cape Town)
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ADHD Screening Tool: Investigating the effectiveness of a tablet-based game with machine learning
Get PDFThis study investigated the ability of a low-cost, mobile device-based game incorporating machine learning to screen participants between ages six and twelve years for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder inattentive subtype (ADHDI). Relevant information from literature was incorporated into the game in light of the DSM-V diagnostic criteria. The game has seven back-to-back segments with unique layouts and a visual theme.The ADHD Screening Tool presents a novel patient-testing interface with a cloud-based machine learning classifier (MLC) integrated with a consensus algorithm. The game was tested with 39 clinically diagnosed participants (ADHDIand non-ADHD). Out of nine classifiers tested, the locally-deep support vector machine gave the best results: using leave-one-out cross-validation, this MLC classified data from five game segments for 38 participants with sensitivity of 92.9% and specificity of 82.9%. By making use of the consensus algorithm, the 39th participant was correctly classified according to the clinical diagnosis. The MLC and consensus algorithm were able to classify 39 participants with a sensitivity of 100% and specificity of 87.5%. To overcome participant class imbalance, the synthetic minority oversampling technique (SMOTE) was implemented on game segment data. The SMOTE two-class LDSVM yielded sensitivity of 90.7% and specificity of 94.4%. The study used an internet-connected, commercially available tablet
Editorial
Get PDFWelcome to the fifth issue of the Journal of Construction Business and Management. The experience of construction industry stakeholders and businesses in the dynamic global economic environment needs investigation towards equipping companies and stakeholders with strategies for navigating the challenges encountered. The topics covered in this issue are related to construction business management, organisational commitment, cost planning, sustainability and practices used in the procurement of construction projects. The issue contains six articles that were written by thirteen scholars based in Nigeria, South Africa and Zambia. The articles provide robust narratives relating to recent advances in construction business and management research. The conclusions reached in the paper are stimulating.
The first paper by Oluwatayo, Amole and Alagbe identified attributes in the profile, structure and strategies of architectural firms, which are associated with the success of these firms. They found that factors which were related to the success of these firms. They found that factors which were related to the success of the Architectural firms include the availability of information technology and the levels of specialisation of duties. They posit that architectural firms use IT facilities strategically in enhancing business performance. Paper two by Aghimien, Awodele and Maipompo noted the shortage of skilled construction workers in the industry and how ensuring the commitment of the few available workers to their organisation objectives is essential. Using a survey design of construction company workers to assess their level of organisation commitment, the study found that the typical type of commitment exhibited by skilled construction workers is the continuance commitment. Aghimien et al. advance that construction companies need to continually improve in the aspects of human resource management to attain better commitment of their workers and at the same time improve their productivity. The paper by Ogunbayo investigated risk factors in timing development, minimisation of cost and expected a return as they influence the successful delivery of residential property development. Ogunbayo established that real estate developers were more concerned with the influence of economic and technological risks than other sources of risk. Paper four by Mwanaumo and Mambwe examined management strategies that impact organisational safety culture in the electricity industry in Zambia. The rationale for their investigation was based on their assumption that entrenching safety cultural aspects is one of the functional areas within management systems that underlie various strategies. They reviewed various literature on management strategies and employed a structured questionnaire in obtaining the required information. The study by Mwanaumo and Mambwe concluded that management commitment and their involvement in the safety aspects of the electricity industry is not just a benevolent obligation, but it compels and motivates workers they protect to achieve organisational objectives and goals. The article by Aiyetan identifies the influencing factors of management practices and quality of management during construction that impact on project delivery time. The study employed a quantitative research approach in obtaining the necessary information that answers the research objectives. The study found that the management style and the quality of management used on construction projects are poor and suggested ways through which this reduced level of performance can be improved. Lastly, the paper by Oladiran, Ogunsanmi and Dada suggested a novel approach to solving the incidence of building material waste on sites through developing a framework of the issues and processes that are involved in its minimisation. Oladiran et al. conducted a survey to validate the proposed framework for material waste minimisation. They recommended that the proposed framework that was developed should be adopted by construction stakeholders to prevent and minimise material waste at all stages of development of building projects.
Finally, I wish to acknowledge all authors who submitted papers for consideration, members of the JCBM Editorial Board and panel of reviewers for their support, timeous review and comments that have helped in defining and improving the quality of manuscripts published by the journal. We welcome feedback and suggestions from readers towards improving the quality of the journal and in maintaining the integrity of the findings published.
Abimbola Windapo PhD
Editor-in-chie
Mad buffalo?
Get PDFThe article describes an unusual behaviour by three Cape Buffalo regarding a pride of Lions on a Greater Kudu kill at the Shingwedzi River in the Kruger National Park, South Africa
Respondents’ perception of Risk Factors on Residential Property Development in Abuja, Nigeria
Get PDFSignificant risk factors such as social, technological, economic, environmental and political in the timing development, minimization of cost and expected return as they influence the successful delivery process of residential property development were investigated in this study towards enhancing real estate development decisions. This is expedient because it has been argued that the link between project success criterions determines a successful project delivery. Data were obtained from members of Real Estate Developers Association (REDAN) in Abuja through the use of a self-administered questionnaire. The respondents were asked to rate the influence of risk factors on residential property development parameters, and the data were computed using logistic regression analysis. The study revealed that real estate developers were more concerned with the influence of economic and technological risk than other sources of risk. Also, the statistical effects were computed through logistic regression analysis. It was explained by significant value (p<0.05) which depicts the likelihood of the risk factor which could either be positive or negative, as explained by beta (β). The findings revealed the effect of economic risk factors in timing development to be (β=1.833, p<0.05). Also, the effect of technological risk factors to influence development cost were found to be (β=--.187, p<0.05) while the effect of economic risk factors on return was found to be (β=1.026, p<0.05). The main contribution of the study to the body of knowledge is developing a risk factors assessment technique for practitioners and academia to assess the residential property development performance as related to timely completion, cost and returns to enhance the need to develop competence in managing and minimizing the effect of risk factors on the residential investment appraisal.
Keywords: Development appraisal, Expected return, Profit maximization, Residential property, Risk analysis, Time
Leopard Tortoise (Stigmochelys pardalis) Road Mortality and Extralimital Occurence in Western Cape, South Africa.
Get PDFDuring field surveys in the Spring of 2018 we made two observations of Leopard Tortoises (Stigmochelys pardalis) on roadsides near Lambert's Bay, WC, South Africa. One was a deceased adult female, killed as a result of a tortoise-vehicle collision. The other was a live adult females, which was move off the road in the direction she was headed. These observations illustrate that even the largest tortoise species in the region can be suseptable to road mortlaity, a known threat of turtle and torioses populations globally. Furthermore, these observations occured well outside the species presumed native range and listed introduced range.
 
Urban Expansion and Loss of Agricultural Land in Osogbo, Osun State Nigeria, using Multi-Temporal Imageries
Get PDFOsogbo, the state capital of Osun State is one of the rapidly urbanizing cities in Nigeria. This article examined urban expansion and the transition of agricultural land in Osogbo with the use of multi-temporal imageries between 1986 and 2018. Large amounts of cultivated land has been transformed into other land uses in the past 31 years. This paper presents the process of the loss of agricultural land and urban growth in Osogbo with the use of remote sensing and GIS. Landsat imageries for 1986, 2002 and 2018 were used to analyse land use and land cover change. Supervised image classification was applied to classify the images into different land use categories. Six land use classes were identified: built-up area, water body, cultivated area, gallery zone, dense vegetation and rocky outcrops. Built-up areas (residential, educational and industrial areas) have greatly increased while agricultural lands (i.e. farmland and wetland) have considerably decreased during the study period. Built-up area covered 7.06% in 1986 but increased to 53.61% in 2018 while agricultural land decreased from 86.28% to 41.53% in the same period. The study therefore recommends that government should integrate agricultural lands into urban land use, planning for efficient management and protection of the dwindling agricultural space
FIRST BREEDING RECORD OF PINTADO PETREL DAPTION CAPENSIS AT MARION ISLAND
Get PDFPintado or Cape Petrels Daption capense have a circumpolar distribution and have been recorded breeding at 23 localities in the Southern Ocean. They have been recorded as vagrants to Marion Island since 1951. Oosthuizen et al. (2009) regarded them as occurring too frequently for the species to be regarded as a vagrant, but was never thought to be breeding there. This is the first record of the species breeding at the PEIs and brings the number of seabird species, including the Lesser Sheathbill, reported breeding there to 31
Causal Relationship between N-REIT's Dividend Yield and Money Market Indicators
Get PDFThis paper examined the relationship between the Nigerian Real Estate Investment Trusts (N-REITs) and Money Market Indicators (MMIs) which comprise of: Currency in Circulation (CIC), Broad Money Supply (BMS), Corporate-private Sector (CPS), Prime Lending Rate (PLR) and Treasury Bill Rate (TBR). Data for the N-REITs were sourced from the annual published report of SkyeREIT (an indirect real estate investment vehicle of Skye Shelter Fund Plc), while that of the MMI were sourced from the quarterly published bulletins of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) for the period 2008-2017. The study adopted the Co-integration test, Vector Autoregressive (VAR) and Vector Error Correction Model (VECM). The data collected passed the stationary test at p-value of p<0.05 which implies that the data is fit for Granger Causality Model (GSM) in a VAR environment. The co-integration test at 5% confidence level shows the existence of a partial long-run relationship at p-values of 0.0003, 0.0292 and 0.0297 respectively at the first three orders, while the Max-Eigen rank test was significant at the first order (none) with a p-value of 0.005. The results of the VAR and VEC models showed that CPS, PLR and TBR, with chi-square values of 11.748; 16.589; and 34.778 respectively, significantly affected the performance of N-REITs, while the PLR (4.5798) had a long-run significant effect. The findings provide decision caution for investors, analysts and capital market players when considering investment on securitised real estate assets
Maintenance Performance of Prison Facilities in Southwestern Nigeria
Get PDFMaintenance performance measurement aims to assess and improve the value created after maintenance efforts, as it determines the impact of maintenance on the performance of a system or facility and its business process. As objects of maintenance, prison facilities ought to provide a safe and decent environment for prison staff and prisoners to work and live in, as well as for all others who interact with the facilities. This study evaluates the satisfaction ratings of maintenance performance on prison facilities in Southwestern, Nigeria. A survey approach was adopted to collect data from the relevant Nigerian prison staff population of 2,187 prison workers, excluding staff in the maintenance unit within a specific period. Stratified sampling technique was used to generate a sample of 1,094, which is representative of the entire population across the prisons. Three hundred and eighty (35%) out of the one thousand and ninety-four copies of the questionnaire were completed and returned. Data collected were analysed using the SPSS package. The study found that prison staff showed satisfaction with the level of cleanliness in the prison environment, quality of water and control of ventilation employing a window, as well as partial satisfaction with the twenty-nine other criterion assessed. Overall, the study indicated partial satisfaction for performance on prison facilities and established a significant agreement among prison staff regarding the perception of the performance of prison facilities. The research, therefore, suggests continuous evaluation of maintained prison facilities to ascertain their condition and performance levels.
Keywords: Maintenance Performance Criteria; Prison Facilities; Prison Staff; Satisfaction Rating
Predation of porcupine Hystrix africaeaustralis in the den by honey badger Mellivora capensis
Get PDFA porcupine (Hystrix africaeaustralis) den was placed under observation by camera trap, and subsequently a honey badger (Mellivora capensis) was recorded raiding the den to prey on the young porcupines inside