Renewal of Small Town Economies: The Case of Alice, Eastern Cape Province, South Africa

Student Number : 0204446N - MA dissertation - School of Geography, Archaeology and Environment Studies - Faculty of HumanitiesThis research investigates the role of small towns in local development, using the example of Alice in South Africa. Emphasis is placed upon the relationship between a small town and its rural hinterland with specific reference to agricultural and nonagricultural activities. The perceived conditions and the role of the town itself as observed by both rural and urban residents are highlighted by survey findings. The surveys involved eighty interviews with urban dwellers, eighty with rural dwellers and thirsty with local businesses. It is shown that there are unfulfilled community needs in terms of local business development and municipal efforts aimed at ensuring that the small town offers the economic services required to grow community incomes and the local economy

On Vít Gvoždiak's “John Searle's Theory of Sign”

Vít Gvoždiak published a reconciliatory analysis of Searle’s social ontology with semiotics in Gvoždiak (2012). Without prior knowledge of his paper, an analysis of the same subject appeared in Msimang (2014). Even though Searle’s social ontology is a common point of reference in the formulation of semiotics in these papers, it also serves as a point of departure in their understanding of semiotics and its development. The semiotic theory expressed in Gvoždiak (2012) is an inherently linguistic (speech act centred) theory, whereas the semiotic theory presented in Msimang (2014) tends more towards a general theory of communicative systems in which social ontology, which follows from speech act theory, is an interesting part. It is my purpose in this note to contrast the two positions of semiotic theory as they appear in the aforementioned papers in reference to their appropriation of Searle’s social ontology

American Philosophical Society Finding Aid for JAX Oral History

In 1929, the geneticist C. C. Little founded the Roscoe B. Jackson Memorial Laboratory in Bar Harbor, Maine, a major center for the study of mammalian genetics, cancer, and related areas in basic biomedical research. An independent institution, the Lab has maintained a consistent scientific reputation both as a supplier of inbred strains of mice for genetic and biomedical research and for the scientific achievements of its researchers. Conducted by Susan Mehrtens in 1986, the Oral History Collection includes transcripts of extensive interviews with fifty scientists, administrators, and staff members of the Jackson Laboratory. At greater or lesser length depending on the subject, the interviews provide a detailed picture of the operations and administration at the laboratory, the culture of research, the sometimes contentious staff relations, and the research itself

Factors That Drive the Selection of Business Intelligence Tools in South African Financial Services Providers

Innovation and technology advancements in information systems (IS) result in multiple product offerings and business intelligence (BI) software tools in the market to implement business intelligence systems (BIS). As a result, a high proportion of organisations fail to employ appropriate and suitable software tools meeting organisational needs, resulting in a prime number of BI solution failures and abandoned projects are therefore recorded. Due to such project failures, benefits associated with BI are not realised hence organisations loose enormous investments on BI solutions and competitive advantage. The study aims at discovering and exploring critical factors influencing the selection of BI tools when embarking on the selection process. This is a quantitative research study and questionnaire surveyed data was collected from 92 participants working in South African financial services providers listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) appearing in the top 100 based on market capitalization. The data was analysed quantitative by employing the use of SPSS and SmartPLS-3 software's to test the significance of influential factors using the proposed conceptual model that emerged from the literature. The findings showed that a combination of domain technical and non-technical factors is critical. Therefore, software tool technical factors (functionality, ease of use, compatibility, availability of an integrated hardware/software package, and availability of source code), vendor technical factors (availability of technical support, technical skills, quality of product, availability of user manual for important information, tutorial for learning and troubleshooting guide, and experience in using product developed by the same vendor), and opinion non-technical factors (end-users, subordinates, outside personnel acquaintances, and improvement in customer service) emerged as significant combination of influential factors to be considered. The study contributes to both academia and industry by providing influential determinants for software tool selection. It is hoped that the findings presented will contribute to a greater understanding of factors influencing the selection of BI tools to researchers and practitioners alike. Furthermore, organisations seeking to select and deliver appropriate BI tools will be better equipped to drive such endeavours

Pengaruh Pemberian Kompensasi, Motivasi, dan Kinerja Karyawan Terhadap Kepuasan Kerja di PT. Lintas Sapta Elemen

Penelitian ini ditugaskan oleh PT. Cross Seven Elements untuk menyelidiki bagaimana gaji, motivasi intrinsik, dan kepuasan kerja berhubungan. Sebanyak 92 orang dilibatkan dalam studi statistik ini. Pendekatan ini menggunakan penggunaan kuesioner dengan serangkaian pertanyaan yang telah disiapkan. Dengan menggunakan temuan dari beberapa analisis regresi linier, diperoleh persamaan regresi Y = 8,472 + 0,232 -0,030. Koefisien determinasi menunjukkan bahwa variabel di luar kompensasi, motivasi, dan kinerja menyumbang 48,6% varian kepuasan kerja. Temuan berikut ditemukan ketika hipotesis t diuji: variabel, oleh karena itu Ha diperbolehkan tetapi Ho tidak; dan variabel, jadi jawaban keduanya adalah ya. Kepuasan Kerja (Y) dipengaruhi oleh tiga variabel independen (X1 = Kompensasi, X2 = Motivasi, dan X3 = Kinerja Karyawan; nilai f = 33,052 > f = 2,707, sig = 0,000 > probabilitas = 0,05

Exploring livelihood strategies of rural households: the meanings and experiences of isidima se khaya at Gwiligwili Village, Eastern Cape

This research study explores how rural households under harsh socio-economic rural life in the Eastern Cape, South Africa define the different meanings of Isidima se khaya, which translates in English as household dignity. The research uses isintu (IsiXhosa-Nguni) languages with African proverbs and idioms to understand the complexity of the African household in rural areas and to show how rural households’ livelihood strategies influence Isidima se khaya beyond work. The study objectives include assessing the different meanings of Isidima se khaya among the rural population in Eastern Cape. To assess the position of women in definitions of Isidima – Gendered connotations of Isidima se Khaya; establish from the community members where Isidima se khaya is found in the household; establish the links between livelihood strategies of the home and Isidima se khaya. The study focused mainly on the evolution of the rural economy as it relates to the quality of life and dignity in rural areas. Conducted through an ethnographic study at Gwiligwili village, Keiskammahoek, the data was collected using both participant observations and life history with semi-structured questionnaire interview methods. The data collection and analysis processes were grounded in principles of Constructivist Grounded Theory, which seeks to centre data in building concepts. Findings show legacies of apartheid persist in former South African homelands with many rural households relying on government safety nets as stable and reliable livelihood strategies. It argues that these safety nets, such as public work and social protection, serve as the tools only to conceal the economy of shame and restore Isidima se khaya in precarious rural poor communities and broader South Africa. The study concludes with an interrogation of the concept of personhood attached to Isidima beyond the legalistic and human rights definitions of dignity.Thesis (MA) -- Faculty of Humanities, 202

Lessons in our faults: fault lines on race and research ethics

CITATION: Msimang, P. 2020. Lessons in our faults : fault lines on race and research ethics. South African Journal of Science, 116(9/10):8449, doi:10.17159/sajs.2020/8449.The original publication is available at https://sajs.co.zaENGLISH ABSTRACT: Since the publication of the now infamous paper ‘Age- and education-related effects on cognitive functioning in Colored South African women’ by Nieuwoudt and colleagues where they claim the cognitive functioning of coloured women is defective in some ways,1 there has been renewed doubts about the legitimacy of race in research at Stellenbosch University and the controversy has become a matter of concern for universities and research ethics boards across the country. Because of the harms the Nieuwoudt paper has caused, the question of the use of race in research has re-emerged as a central concern. What researchers want to know is how to assess whether race is relevant to some question(s), how to use racial classifications if race is relevant, and when to leave race out.https://sajs.co.za/article/view/8449Publisher's versio