UNAM Open Access Journal University of Namibia
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Rhetoric as epistemology of resistance
Get PDFThere is deep, cultural divide between rhetoric studies in Continental Europe and in the United States, and this divide offers an opportunity to reflect on rhetoric as an epistemology of power politics. When I delivered the 12th Kenneth Burke Lecture in Rhetoric at Penn State, in 2010, I found myself standing on the great divide between North American rhetoric culture and my own¹. I had to make a confession to the audience: I had hardly read anything by Kenneth Burke, possibly the most important scholar in rhetoric as a political espistmology on the other side of the Acheron – except his essay on Hitler’s rhetoric (1939), which I had found, at the time, politically naïve and, in any event, far less prescient than Curzio Malparte’s genial Technique ducoup d’état (1931). But naivety is a matter of context, and I may have been the naive one
Drinking and its effects on risk behaviour amongst secondary school going youth in Windhoek
Get PDFAlcohol consumption is said to constitute an emerging social problem among adolescents and youth in Namibia with one study estimating that 53.5% of youths aged 13-30 use alcohol (Barth and Hubbard, 2009). It is also said to relate to many social problems including HIV risk taking, fighting, trouble with the police and violence among school going youth. It is in this context that the aim of this study was to provide empirical evidence on alcohol use and abuse in relation to risky behaviour amongst school going youths in Windhoek. A survey targeting several schools was conducted in Windhoek. Alcohol consumption and risk taking behaviour were assessed using a self-administered questionnaire. Chi-square test and logistic regressions were used to examine relationships involving alcohol use and risk taking behaviour. One of the main findings is that gender is a significant predictor of engagement in risk behaviour, such as sexual intercourse without a condom, fighting, trouble with the police and violence among those that engage in drinking. We conclude that there is the need to discourage alcohol use among school going youth as a way of fighting HIV/AIDS and other risk taking behaviour
A Classification of Fuzzy Subgroups of Finite Abelian Groups
Get PDFThe knowledge of fuzzy sets and systems has become a considerable aspect to apply in various mathematical systems. In this paper, we apply a knowledge of fuzzy sets to group structures. We consider a fuzzy subgroups of finite abelian groups, denoted by G = Zpn +Zqm , where Z is an integer, p and q are distinct primes and m;n are natural numbers. The fuzzy subgroups are classified using the notion of equivalence classes. In essence the equivalence relations of fuzzy subsets X is extended to equivalence relations of fuzzy subgroups of a group G. We then use the notion of flags and keychains as tools to enumerate fuzzy subgroups of G. In this way, we characterized the properties of the fuzzy subgroups of G. Finally, we use maximal chains to construct a fuzzy subgroups-lattice diagram for these groups of G
Science: An All Encompassing Field
Get PDFWhat unites science, as Sir David Cox mentioned, is not the subject matter we all work in, but the methodology and the thought process that help solve the problems that arise [1]. Put differently, it is the replicability of its methods, the validity of its findings and reliability of its instruments and techniques. The diversity in science now emphasizes that not a single subject matter will work alone in isolation - especially if you are working in applied sciences, but has to learn from others. Even so, contemporary applied sciences have extended this collaboration to the social sciences [2]. For instance, in implementation science they have learnt to involve social sciences to inform human behaviour if scaling-up of interventions is to be a success
Corrosion of selected hard facing materials exposed to mine water.
Get PDFCorrosion damage can cause major failure of mining pumps which could lead to degradation of other mining equipment, as a result of leakage, thus leading to a high rate of replacement and maintenance of pumps and surrounding equipment. Hard facing materials are used to protect moving parts against mechanical and corrosion damage. The corrosion behavior of a corrosion resistant Hastelloy G30 and a hard facing material, a nickel-chromium-iron (Ni-Cr-Fe) alloy (both high chromium nickel-based alloys) exposed to synthetic and acidified mine water were studied using potentiodynamic polarisation. The results showed lower corrosion rates for Hastelloy G30 than for Ni-Cr-Fe. The corrosion rates at pH 6.8, at ambient temperature and 35 C were 0.00011 mm.y−1 and 0.00035 mm.y−1 for Hastelloy G30; 0.0016 mm.y−1 and 0.0017 mm.y−1 for INCONEL Alloy 600, and at pH 3, at ambient temperature and 35 C corrosion rates were 0.0003 mm.y−1 and 0.00083 mm.y−1 for Hastelloy G30; 0.1 mm.y−1 and 3.2 mm.y−1 for INCONEL Alloy 600. The microstructures of the alloys before and after corrosion tests were characterised using optical microscopy; X-ray diffraction (XRD), and microhardness measurements were also performed
The developement of tourism entrepreneurial activities in Namibia
No full textFor decades entrepreneurship has been recognised as an important contributor to economic growth and development. The purpose of this paper is to examine the tourism entrepreneurial activities in Namibia and assess their potential to contribute to the economy. The main objective is to analyse the development process of tourism entrepreneurial activities in general and their current weaknesses, opportunities and threats as experienced by entrepreneurs in Windhoek and Okahandja. With the high unemployment rate being experienced in Namibia, a solution to this social problem is needed to help alleviate the plight of the unemployed and underemployed. The results of the survey provide insight into the entrepreneurial operations, and the challenges thereof. The results show that tourism entrepreneurs are potential employers in Namibia. The majority of products and services offered are not locally produced, opening an opportunity for entrepreneurs to diversify the offering and increase their market share by offering services and products such as traditional meals, clothing and jewellery. The study concludes that there are benefits for potential entrepreneurs to operate their own businesses. However, some shortcomings were noted that include lack of training and lack of awareness of available and affordable training programmes as well as other common and unique problems faced by these entrepreneurs. The study concludes that measures should be taken to ensure that entrepreneurs are nurtured and mentored in order to realise their business success. Furthermore, the study recommends a number of measures to improve the status quo of entrepreneurs and facilitate growth within the tourism entrepreneurial activities
Today, tomorrow, forever
Get PDFEarly diagnosis and prompt treatment of febrile conditions is a key strategy towards control of the disease from progressing to severe or fatal stages. In this paper, we studied the timing of treatment among children with a history of diarrhoea and fever in Namibia, while simultaneously investigated socio-economic and spatial factors that influence the treatment seeking behaviour. A multinomial probit model with ordered categories was estimated, and results confirmed that there was significant spatial variation at regional level. Socio-economic factors also explain treatment seeking having controlled for spatial dependence. The spatial variation can be interpreted as representing unobserved heterogeneity not captured by the data or possible clustering inherent in nested survey data
Distribution of Gamma-Emitting Radionuclides in the Soils of the Neudamm Campus of the University of Namibia, Windhoek, Namibia
Get PDFThe concentrations of naturally occurring radionuclides40K,232Th and238U in soil samplestaken from the Neudamm campus of the University of Namibia, Windhoek, Namibia have beendetermined and used to calculate a mean annual effective dose for the campus. The concen-trations were measured using a sensitive gamma-ray spectroscopic system consisting of a highpurity germanium detector and associated equipment.40K was found to have the highest specificconcentration varying between 229.1±13.5 Bq kg−1and 499.0±16.5 Bq kg−1with a meanvalue of 364.5±79.3 Bq kg−1while the concentration of232T hvaries between 10.4±2.8 Bqkg−1and 38.5±3.8 Bq kg−1with a mean value of 28.0±9.2 Bq kg−1and the concentration of238U varies between 11.7±1.3 Bq kg−1and 24.7±2.1 Bq kg−1with a mean value of 18.5±4.8Bq kg−1. The value of 0.05±0.01 mSv y−1obtained for the mean annual effective dose is wellbelow the limit of 1 mSv y−1recommended for the public by the International Commission onRadiological Protection. This result indicates that radiation hazard is negligible on the campu
Analytical evaluation of eight-cell cow embryos structure, outwards water and inwards cryo-protectants to ensure successful cryopreservation
Get PDFModern reproductive techniques use cow embryos at different stages of development. Eight-cell embryos feature a layer comprising seven cells (blastomeres), surrounding the inner cell, making a total of eight. This article analyses outwards water paths and inwards cryo-protectants, within the eight-cell cow embryos and effectiveness of their cryopreservation. Reproductive cycles and superovulation in cows were triggered through reproductive hormones injection. After slaughter, oocytes were harvested and eight-cell embryos were produced in vitro fertilization and through embryo culture. The study included morphological observations to visualize embryo structure, distribution of blastomeres, cell-layers and analytical evaluation as well, to assess distribution of penetrating cryoprotectants within the inner-cell mass. Findings based on the eight-cell embryo structure suggest that the quantity of outwards water and inwards cryo-protectants is symmetrically distributed. Although, the characteristic of water and cryo-protectants movement is expected to be much better in eight-cell embryos, cryo-protectants properties and the modality of cryo-protectants should differ from procedures applied in other class of embryos. Survival rate of cryopreserved eight cell embryos was lower (6.3%) as compared to the results for 7–8 days embryos. Obviously, a successful cryopreservation of eight-cell cow embryos can only be achieved through a combination of both technical and biological parameters
Phytochemical analysis and in vitro anti-plasmodial activity of selected ethnomedicinal plants used to treat malaria associated symptoms in northern Namibia
Get PDFThe search for biologically active compounds from plants is of importance for discovery of novel medicine against infectious diseases such as malaria. The aims of this study were to identify ethno-medicinal plants that are used to treat malaria-associated symptoms in traditional settings in northern Namibia; to detect and quantify the presence of major anti-plasmodial phytochemicals to evaluate the anti-plasmodial activity against Plasmodium falciparum 3D7A strain of the extracts of lead plants. Ten plants were identified through a survey conducted by the Multidisciplinary Research Centre at the University of Namibia. Nineteen methanolic extracts from 10 selected ethnomedicinal plants were prepared and analyzed using Thin Layer Chromatography (TLC) to detect classes of anti-plasmodial phytochemical compounds. Furthermore, total phenolic and alkaloids were also quantified. Furthermore, in vitro anti-plasmodial activity of crude methanol and aqueous extracts at 5, 10 and 50 mg/ml was evaluated against P. falciparum 3D7A strain at 1% parasitaemia and 2% hematocrit after 48 hours. The study revealed the presence of at least one of the major anti-plasmodial classes of compounds such as terpenoids, alkaloids, anthraquinones, flavonoids and coumarins in all the plant extracts analyzed. Out of 10 plant species, Mundulea sericea’s shoots indicated the presence of all five major anti-plasmodial phytochemical. The plants species studied show a high estimate of total alkaloids (0.37- 21.21 mg/1g of extracts) and phenolics (99. 58 - 444.07 GA/E mg/ml). Methanol extracts of M. sericea, D. mespiliformis and Cyphostemma spp showed the best anti-plasmodial activity with range of IC50 values from 3.179 to 3.523 mg/ml. The presence of anti-plasmodial phytochemical classes of compounds and high in vitro anti-plasmodial activity of selected plants extracts support the further investigation of these plants, as potential sources of novel anti-plasmodial compounds for malaria drug discovery