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Hasegawa, Wataru. "Relationships among Cave Micrometeorology, Speleothem Growth and Surface Environment Revealed by Cave Monitoring Studies." 京都大学 (Kyoto University), 2015. http://hdl.handle.net/2433/199113.
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Rector, Meghan Anne. "Foraging in the Cave Environment: The Ecology of the Cave Spider Meta ovalis (Araneae: Tetragnathidae)." The Ohio State University, 2009. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1259688464.
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Sauro, Francesco <1984>. "Speleogenesis and secondary cave minerals in quartz-sandstone and quartzite environment." Doctoral thesis, Alma Mater Studiorum - Università di Bologna, 2014. http://amsdottorato.unibo.it/6248/2/Sauro_Francesco_tesi_finale_fs_corretto.pdf.
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The main objective of this research is to improve the comprehension of the processes controlling the formation of caves and karst-like morphologies in quartz-rich lithologies (more than 90% quartz), like quartz-sandstones and metamorphic quartzites. In the scientific community the processes actually most retained to be responsible of these formations are explained in the “Arenisation Theory”. This implies a slow but pervasive dissolution of the quartz grain/mineral boundaries increasing the general porosity until the rock becomes incohesive and can be easily eroded by running waters. The loose sands produced by the weathering processes are then evacuated to the surface through processes of piping due to the infiltration of waters from the fracture network or the bedding planes.
To deal with these problems we adopted a multidisciplinary approach through the exploration and the study of several cave systems in different tepuis. The first step was to build a theoretical model of the arenisation process, considering the most recent knowledge about the dissolution kinetics of quartz, the intergranular/grain boundaries diffusion processes, the primary diffusion porosity, in the simplified conditions of an open fracture crossed by a continuous flow of undersatured water. The results of the model were then compared with the world’s widest dataset (more than 150 analyses) of water geochemistry collected till now on the tepui, in superficial and cave settings.
All these studies allowed verifying the importance and the effectiveness of the arenisation process that is confirmed to be the main process responsible of the primary formation of these caves and of the karst-like superficial morphologies. The numerical modelling and the field observations allowed evaluating a possible age of the cave systems around 20-30 million of years.
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Sauro, Francesco <1984>. "Speleogenesis and secondary cave minerals in quartz-sandstone and quartzite environment." Doctoral thesis, Alma Mater Studiorum - Università di Bologna, 2014. http://amsdottorato.unibo.it/6248/.
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The main objective of this research is to improve the comprehension of the processes controlling the formation of caves and karst-like morphologies in quartz-rich lithologies (more than 90% quartz), like quartz-sandstones and metamorphic quartzites. In the scientific community the processes actually most retained to be responsible of these formations are explained in the “Arenisation Theory”. This implies a slow but pervasive dissolution of the quartz grain/mineral boundaries increasing the general porosity until the rock becomes incohesive and can be easily eroded by running waters. The loose sands produced by the weathering processes are then evacuated to the surface through processes of piping due to the infiltration of waters from the fracture network or the bedding planes.
To deal with these problems we adopted a multidisciplinary approach through the exploration and the study of several cave systems in different tepuis. The first step was to build a theoretical model of the arenisation process, considering the most recent knowledge about the dissolution kinetics of quartz, the intergranular/grain boundaries diffusion processes, the primary diffusion porosity, in the simplified conditions of an open fracture crossed by a continuous flow of undersatured water. The results of the model were then compared with the world’s widest dataset (more than 150 analyses) of water geochemistry collected till now on the tepui, in superficial and cave settings.
All these studies allowed verifying the importance and the effectiveness of the arenisation process that is confirmed to be the main process responsible of the primary formation of these caves and of the karst-like superficial morphologies. The numerical modelling and the field observations allowed evaluating a possible age of the cave systems around 20-30 million of years.
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Waly, Ahmed Fathi. "A Virtual Construction Environment (VCE) for Macro Planning." Diss., Virginia Tech, 2001. http://hdl.handle.net/10919/28068.
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Macro Planning of construction projects is among the most challenging tasks faced by the project team. Decisions made during this process have a tremendous impact on the successful execution of the project from its early conceptual phases, through the project construction and completion. For a large majority of construction projects, the current planning practices remain manually based. General and project specific data are communicated among project participants through design drawings in a 2D paper-based format. Due to the interdependence between the different elements and the large amount of information that needs to be manually processed, the current manual implementation approach is very difficult to undertake, and imposes a heavy burden on the project team to carry out the planning process.
Various research efforts have been undertaken in an attempt to capture current planning techniques and allow for the development of new innovative and automated ways in planning. The developed planning systems are characterized as responsive decision systems, relying mainly on programmed knowledge and heuristics for decision making, hence reducing or eliminating the role of the human planner.
This research presents the framework for a new interactive planning environment called the Virtual Construction Environment (VCE) that supports the thinking process of the project team during the macro planning phase of design-build projects. Unlike previous responsive-type systems developed, the approach utilized in the VCE is supportive to the project team enabling them to be an active participant in the decision making process.
The main purpose of the VCE is to assist the project team during decision making, by providing pertinent information necessary for making appropriate decisions in a structured format. This information may be organized, stored, and retrieved by the project team whenever needed during the virtual sessions. The VCE also provides the project team with appropriate tools to test different work execution and site layout planning scenarios early during project development. During the virtual sessions, the project team reconstructs the facility by bringing graphical elements together. The project teamâ s movements and interactions are recorded to capture their thinking process on how to construct the facility (i.e. sequence of major assemblies). Other project participants can retrieve recorded decisions for further review or modification. The project team is also able to specify construction methods, and allocate resources required for the implementation of major assemblies. The VCE guides the project team to perform these interdependent planning functions interactively and concurrently. Using system graphical libraries, major equipment and temporary facilities can be superimposed and displayed as graphical objects for site layout planning. This enables the project team to visually check for space and accessibility conflicts during different virtual construction time intervals.
In order to define required information in the VCE, the author has developed a MAcro Planning Information Classification (MAPIC) model under which information required for macro planning decision making could be classified and organized in a structured standardized format. The project team may then retrieve and utilize this information whenever needed during the virtual sessions.
A prototype computer tool is developed to illustrate the framework of the VCE. The computer prototype is implemented using available commercial software tools.<br>Ph. D.
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Kolčárek, Michal. "Augmented Reality in CAVE." Master's thesis, Vysoké učení technické v Brně. Fakulta informačních technologií, 2013. http://www.nusl.cz/ntk/nusl-236405.
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Tato práce se zaměřuje na technologii Cave Automatic Virtual Environment a konkrétně pak na využití principů rozšířené reality v tomto prostředí. Dává si za cíl odpovědět na otázku, zdali je možné použít v prostředí CAVE existující frameworky pro rozšířenou realitu, konkrétně ty, pracující na platformě iOS. Hlavní důraz je kladen na rozpoznávání markerů v tomto prostředí a na zvýšení přesnosti jejich rozpoznání. Práce odpovídá na množství otázek z této oblasti, jako jaké markery je vhodné použít, jaké jsou omezení a největší obtíže. Výstupem je demonstrační aplikace, pracující na platformě iOS, která v je prostředí CAVE otestovaná a plně použitelná. Tato aplikace by měla vylepšit uživatelský vjem z prostředí CAVE tím, že mu poskytne dodatečné informace a také základní možnosti interakce se zobrazenými objekty.
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Junior, Roberto Cabado Modia. "Experimentações artísticas no ambiente imersivo da Cave." Universidade de São Paulo, 2006. http://www.teses.usp.br/teses/disponiveis/27/27131/tde-14082009-172103/.
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Os paradigmas da criação artística para a CAVE (CAVE Automatic Virtual Environment) ainda estão sendo elaborados pois, no âmbito da Realidade Virtual, é uma tecnologia recente e ainda bastante onerosa, fatores que dificultam sua disseminação. Ainda assim, algumas instituições possuem CAVEs para pesquisas artístico-culturais. Dentre elas, figura o centro de pesquisas Ars Electronica que, em parceria com o artista transmídia Maurice Benayoun, produziu em sua CAVE, cuja visitação é aberta ao público, a premiada obra World Skin. Com o intuito de situar o atual estado da arte das experimentações artísticas em CAVEs, esta obra mereceu análise detalhada de seus processos criativos e metodológicos. Nela, o autor investiga as reações cognitivas dos visitantes e propõe uma nova relação espaçocorporal dentro de um mundo virtual. A potencialidade artística da CAVE é grande e existe interesse dos artistas em explorá-la. As novas pesquisas e avanços tecnológicos apontam perspectivas de um maior acesso a este tipo de ambiente imersivo, consolidando-o como um prolífero suporte artístico.<br>The paradigms behind artistic creation for CAVE (CAVE Automatic Virtual Environment) are yet to be elaborate, since in the realm of Virtual Reality, this is a recent and expensive technology, which poses barriers to its own spreading. Even so, some institutions do have CAVEs for culture and artistic research. Among them, there\'s the research center Ars Electronica, which, in partnership with transmedia artist Maurice Benayoun, has produced in its CAVE (which is open for public visits), the award-winning work World Skin. With the objective of placing experimental artistic manifestations in CAVEs, this work has been deeply analyzed, concerning its creative processes and methods. The author evaluates the cognitive reactions of the visitors and proposes a new corporal-space relationship in a virtual world. The artistic potential behind a CAVE seems to be huge, and artists are willing to explore it. According to new researches and recent developed technologies, there will be a broader access to this kind of immersive environment, which might become a highly productive platform for artists.
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Masotti, Nicola. "Progettazione e sviluppo di un RVE (Reconfigurable Virtual Environment) per applicazioni nei settori dell’ingegneria industriale." Master's thesis, Alma Mater Studiorum - Università di Bologna, 2013. http://amslaurea.unibo.it/5225/.
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Il presente elaborato descrive la realizzazione, presso il Laboratorio di Realtà Virtuale e Simulazione della Seconda Facoltà di Ingegneria, di un RVE (Reconfigurable Virtual Environment), per applicazioni nei settori dell’ingegneria industriale. La tesi ripercorre la fase di progettazione del sistema basato sull'integrazione di componenti COTS. E' definito, inoltre, un insieme di applicazioni target nei settori dell'ingegneria industriale di cui si valuta la compatibilità con il Virtual Environment. L'elaborato si conclude con la presentazione dei risultati e dei possibili sviluppi futuri.
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Barnes, Robin Benson. "Prehistoric caches in an intermittent wetlands environment : an analysis of the Nicolarsen Cave collection, Washoe County, Nevada /." Digital version accessible at:, 2000. http://wwwlib.umi.com/cr/utexas/main.
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Choa, Omar. "A geochemical history of Tabon Cave (Palawan, Philippines) : environment, climate, and early modern humans in the Philippine archipelago." Thesis, Paris, Muséum national d'histoire naturelle, 2018. http://www.theses.fr/2018MNHN0002/document.
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La grotte de Tabon (Palawan, Philippines) est un site préhistorique majeur en Asie du Sud-Est. Elle a livré des fossiles d’Homo sapiens datant du Pléistocène supérieur, rares dans la région. Pourtant, son histoire demeure mal connue : d’importantes altérations physiques et chimiques compliquent la lecture de sa stratigraphie, tandis que des objets archéologiques sans contexte clair entravent l’élaboration d’une chronologie fiable. Cette étude jette un nouveau regard sur la grotte de Tabon à travers une approche pluridisciplinaire des sciences de la Terre. Elle explore notamment l’environnement et le climat des premiers hommes anatomiquement modernes dans la région. Les résultats mettent en lumière une période clef entre 40 et 33 ka BP, caractérisée par des climats plus secs, des paysages plus ouverts et une empreinte humaine marquée dans la grotte. Cette période a également été ponctuée par un court épisode d’humidité qui a laissé un spéléothème gypsifère étendu en guise de témoin. Dans l’avenir, de nouvelles approches, prenant en compte les contraintes particulières du site, pourraient permettre de souligner davantage la valeur scientifique et patrimoniale unique de la grotte de Tabon, une fenêtre sur les premiers périples de notre espèce à travers les archipels d’Asie du Sud-Est<br>Tabon Cave (Palawan, Philippines) is a key prehistoric site in Southeast Asia, one of the few to have yielded Homo sapiens fossils from the Late Pleistocene. Its history remains poorly understood: heavy physical and chemical alterations have greatly complicated its stratigraphy, and contextually isolated archaeological finds hamper the construction of a clear chronology. This study reexamines Tabon Cave using a multi-pronged geosciences approach to explore environment, climate, and early modern human presence in the region. The results reveal a major period in the cave’s history between 40 and 33 ka BP, when drier climates, more open landscapes, and active human use of the cave were briefly spaced by a wet episode that left an extensive, gypsiferous speleothem. Future innovative research approaches spurred by the unique constraints of the site will undoubtedly further highlight the unique scientific and heritage value of Tabon Cave, a window into the earliest odysseys of our species across the archipelagos of Southeast Asia
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Brunt, Matthew. "Analysis of Mammoth Cave Pre-Park Communities." TopSCHOLAR®, 2009. http://digitalcommons.wku.edu/theses/132.
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Before the creation of Mammoth Cave National Park, this area was home to numerous communities, each with a sense of identity. To prepare for the creation of the National Park, all residents living within these communities were relocated, and many of these communities were lost to the passage of time. Today, public memory of these lost communities is being fostered by the descendents of the pre-park area.
Through the use of a Historical Geographic Information System, 1920 Edmonson County manuscript census data, and statistical analysis, the demographic composition of these lost communities was explored. This project not only brought to light a past that is not well known, but also built interest in sustaining public memory of the Mammoth Cave pre-park area through the use of historical GIS and public participation.
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Pizzonia, Gianluca. "Simulazioni HIL (Human In the Loop) per la valutazione di fattori umani in ambiente di realtà virtuale." Master's thesis, Alma Mater Studiorum - Università di Bologna, 2021. http://amslaurea.unibo.it/22980/.
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Nel mio progetto di tesi sono state effettuate prove sperimentali presso il Laboratorio di Realtà Virtuale di Forlì volte a valutare il livello di comfort percepito all’interno della cabina di un velivolo regionale riprodotto in Realtà Virtuale. Queste prove hanno coinvolto 31 di partecipanti per la raccolta di dati oggettivi e soggettivi durante o al termine della simulazione. I dati soggettivi vengono raccolti tramite un questionario, progettato in collaborazione con il dipartimento di Psicologia, mentre in simulazione vengono raccolti i dati elettroencefalografici in collaborazione con il dipartimento di Informatica di Cesena.
La tesi in oggetto ha come obiettivo l’organizzazione e l’implementazione di una parte della campagna sperimentale del progetto CASTLE e lo studio di interrelazione tra dati soggettivi, raccolti durante questa specifica fase, resa particolarmente complessa dalla contemporanea raccolta dei dati EEG, successivamente non elaborati in questa tesi ma in altra sede. La durata di ogni prova in laboratorio, consisteva in circa 40 minuti. Per l’analisi di uno studio oggettivo e soggettivo, si è montato sul soggetto una cuffia EEG per analizzare lo stato di confort nei vari casi dell’esperimento, notando se il soggetto una volta terminato l’intero ciclo di esercizi, ed una volta terminati i questionari relativi alle varie prove possa essere comparabile, e quindi paradossalmente osservare la veridicità tra ciò che si dice e ciò che si prova.
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Mvimi, Malebogo. "Reconstruction of environments and plant use in Holocene Southern Africa : study of macrobotanical remains from Late Stone Age sites of Toteng (Botswana), Leopard Cave and Geduld (Namibia)." Thesis, Paris, Muséum national d'histoire naturelle, 2019. http://www.theses.fr/2019MNHN0005.
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A travers l'analyse de matériel macrobotanique (charbon et graines / fruits) issus de trois sites majeurs du Later Stone Age (LSA) d'Afrique australe, cette étude s'intéresse à reconstituer les conditions environnementales durant l'Holocène dans la région, en particulier au cours des deux à trois derniers millénaires. L'étude de ce matériel, accompagné de la constitution d'une collection moderne de références de la végétation du bassin Kgalagadi, vise à mieux cerner l'impact quel'environnement a pu avoir sur les sociétés humaines (subsistance, peuplements, etc.) à une période-clé du (LSA), qui marque l'émergence des pratiques pastorales dans la région. L'étude des environnements est ici primordiale pour interpréter les conditions qui ont pu favoriser l'arrivée de ces premiers éleveurs et leurs lieux d'installation. En complément, une approche ethnographique a été menée, en travaillant avec les communautés locales dans la région de l'Erongo en Namibie, qui peuvent aider à comprendre et reconstituer les pratiques passées d'utilisation de la végétation<br>Through macrobotanical (wood charcoal and seeds / fruit) analysis from three major Later Stone Age (LSA) sites located in the Kgalagadi Basin in southern Africa, this study is interested in reconstructing the environmental conditions during the Holocene in the region, in particular in the last two to three millennia. Initially this work couples archaeological macrobotanical analysis with the construction of modern reference material in an effort to trace the environmental / vegetal evolution as well as to comprehend socio-ecological and socio-environmental dynamics in Southern Africa during the late Holocene. The scope of this study covers the period spanning the last 3000-2000 years, with the main objective of understanding what relationships humans had with their environment at a time linked with the arrival or the appearance of the first herding practices in that part of Africa. These herding practices are believed to be accompanied by significant human movement from eastern or central Africa southwards. Favourable environmental conditions may have influenced their routes as well as settlement choices, and these are aspects that this archaeobotanical study aims to address. This study also employed an ethnographic approach, working with local communities in the Erongo region of Namibia, so as to make inferences to past vegetation utilisation practices while at the same time discerning and reconstituting past human activities
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Zainy, Zainy M. Ali. "Primary care health centres : exploring the interface between patients' overall satisfaction with the primary health care environment, environmental factors, and non-environmental factors: case study Arriyadah City, Saudi Arabia." Thesis, University of Strathclyde, 1993. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.287913.
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Ecker, Michaela Sarah. "Two million years of environmental change : a case study from Wonderwerk Cave, Northern Cape, South Africa." Thesis, University of Oxford, 2015. https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:f458923a-5b59-4d0a-91f4-83111b4e28dc.
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The arid interior of South Africa lacks long, continuous and well-dated climate and environmental proxy records that can be compared with cultural sequences and with broader global climate records. This thesis develops the first substantial terrestrial environmental sequence for the interior of southern Africa at the site of Wonderwerk Cave, spanning two million years of prehistory. Changes in vegetation and humidity over time were investigated by means of carbon and oxygen stable isotope analysis on fossil herbivore enamel and ostrich eggshell, creating two independent proxy datasets. The Holocene record was used as a baseline for comparing the Pleistocene sequence, but required chronological tightening. Therefore, nine new radiocarbon dates were obtained, and calibrated and modelled with existing dates to provide a firmer chronology. The ostrich eggshell isotope record suggests arid but variable conditions, with distinct phases of increased humidity in the Early Pleistocene and mid-Holocene. Enamel stable isotope results show clear differences in local resource availability between the Early and Mid-Pleistocene, and then between the Pleistocene and Holocene, with an overall trend of increasing aridity. In particular, the onset of dietary specialisation in grazers at 0.8Ma is linked to expanding C4 grasslands. Aridity was not the driver behind the increase in C4 grasses, but changing pCO2 levels at the Mid Pleistocene transition were identified as a possible key factor. The presence of C3 and C4 grasses in the Early Pleistocene, when compared to the domination of C4 grasses today, was fostered by reduced rainfall seasonality. Regional independent developments have to be considered, as other regions in South and East Africa show C4 dominated diets in herbivores at earlier times than at Wonderwerk Cave. In the Holocene, higher temporal resolution indicates phases of environmental change coinciding with changes in the cultural record.
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Shearer, Megan Marie. "Tibetan Buddhism and the environment: A case study of environmental sensitivity among Tibetan environmental professionals in Dharamsala, India." CSUSB ScholarWorks, 2005. https://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/etd-project/2904.
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The purpose of this study was to investigate environmental sensitivity among environmental professionals in a culture that is assumed to hold an ecocentric perspective. Nine Tibetan Buddhist environmental professionals were surveyed in this study. Based on an Environmental Sensitivity Profile Insytrument, an environmental sensitivity profile for a Tibetan Buddhist environmental professional was created from the participants demographic and interview data. The most frequently defined vaqriables were environmental destruction/development, education and role models.
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Shapiro, Ellen Sara. "The role of family environment in an ecological study of preschool children attending family day care." Thesis, University of British Columbia, 1988. http://hdl.handle.net/2429/28281.
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This thesis is an exploratory ecological study of the role of the family environment as it relates to a number of variables under investigation in the Vancouver Day Care Research Project's extensive contextual study of children enrolled in family day care settings. These variables include child language scores, indices of socio-economic status, conditions of maternal employment and attitudes related to maternal employment, other measures of the home environment, and parental attitudes to childrearing. In addition, the family environments of the family day care caregivers were examined in relation to the quality of care provided. The Moos Family Environment Scale (1986) was administered to parents and caregivers enrolled in the study. Scores from its ten subscales were correlated with measures of the variables of interest and then tested for significance. Data was then analyzed for important trends, patterns and highlights. Results showed that exposure of family members to stimulating ideas and activities is facilitative of child language skills, while an emphasis on achievement seems to have a negative effect. Families from higher socio-economic status homes seemed to be more likely to provide these opportunities for their children, particularly if they are well-educated. Findings also indicate that mothers who are satisfied with their employment tend to provide more positive family environments for their children than those who are working reluctantly. Mothers who worked part-time also appeared to provide better family environments than did those who experienced the increased stress of full-time employment. Adult-centered parenting values which stressed obedience were associated with family environments which were less facilitative of child cognitive development, whereas homes with child-centered parenting values appeared to be more positive. Family day care caregivers who provided superior childcare were found to be more organized in their own families, more supportive of one another, and more able to allow their family members to function independently than were other caregivers. There was considerable overlap in the results for each variable of interest; many similar features were found in the environments which were considered optimal in terms of language development, socio-economic factors, conditions of maternal employment, attitudes to childrearing, and high quality care for children. The study results strongly support the importance of exposure to a wide range of intellectual and cultural stimuli, participation in activities outside the home, expression of feelings amongst family members, and well-organized family functioning in the creation of optimal family environments; an emphasis on achievement, and the use of rigid rules and doctrine were found to be deleterious to the creation of positive home environments.<br>Education, Faculty of<br>Educational and Counselling Psychology, and Special Education (ECPS), Department of<br>Graduate
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Johnston, Matt Paul. "Understanding environmental injustice : the case of Imizamo Yethu and the poverty-population-environment nexus." Diss., University of Pretoria, 2018. http://hdl.handle.net/2263/65563.
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Raizada, Rachana. "Corporate responses to government and environmental group actions designed to protect the environment." Thesis, National Library of Canada = Bibliothèque nationale du Canada, 1998. http://www.collectionscanada.ca/obj/s4/f2/dsk2/ftp02/NQ27230.pdf.
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Gibbons, Darcy Ann. "An environmental assessment of Bermuda's caves." Thesis, Texas A&M University, 2003. http://hdl.handle.net/1969.1/1314.
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The current environmental status of the majority of Bermudas one hundred sixty-six known caves was investigated. This survey replicated a historical cave study performed in 1983, wherein each was analyzed for positive and negative features. Statistical analysis of the data showed a significant difference between the historical and current survey ratings, with an overall decrease in environmental status. A water quality study was performed on twenty different caves with sea level pools in various locations around the island. Nitrate, nitrite, ammonia, and phosphate levels were measured from varying depths in these caves. Fifteen of these caves were also tested for the presence of fecal bacterial contamination. High nitrate levels were discovered in some of the caves, particularly in surface samples. Additionally, bacterial contamination was detected in some caves. No obvious relationship between cave size or location and contamination existed for any of the pollutants sampled. Three separate caves from this group were dived and analyzed using a Hydrolab Sonde 3 Multiprobe Logger to acquire in situ water column data including depth, temperature, pH, salinity, and dissolved oxygen. Each cave studied had its own unique trends in hydrology at varying depths in the water column. A later water sampling study with a randomized experimental design was created and caves were divided into four classes based on size and location. Surface and subsurface samples were gathered from twelve randomly selected caves, three from each class. Each sample was analyzed for nitrate, nitrite, and ammonia concentrations. The results were analyzed using multiple analysis of variance statistics. A significant difference between the nitrate concentrations in the surface and subsurface water samples was discovered. None of the other comparisons were statistically significant. To represent the data visually, a Bermuda Cave and Karst Information System (BeCKIS) was created using the environmental survey data and water quality information. Some of the maps generated highlighted regions where negative environmental impacts on caves were concentrated geographically, thus demonstrating how this geographic information system could be used as a conservation tool.
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Ramo, Keetjie Joy. "Person-environment interface as \"image\" : a new environmental-active conceptual framework for social work practice /." The Ohio State University, 1985. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1487262513407472.
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Wong, May-tak Glady. "Environmental regulation and crime : the case of pollution in Hong Kong /." [Hong Kong] : University of Hong Kong, 1994. http://sunzi.lib.hku.hk/hkuto/record.jsp?B13781194.
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Johnson, Brian. "Can Education Improve the Environment? Applying the Pressure-State-Response Environmental Indicator Framework to Environmental Education Program Outcomes." Antioch University / OhioLINK, 2013. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=antioch1375367966.
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Fourie, Dawie. "An examination of an incentive system to maximize performance in an automobile manufacturing environment." Thesis, Rhodes University, 2009. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003866.
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This investigation was undertaken to explore an incentive system to maximize performance in an automotive manufacturing environment. The unit under study was a motor manufacturing company in the Eastern Cape in South Africa. The approach to this investigation was to start with a quantitative analysis to identify if there was a relationship between the incentive reward and employee satisfaction. This was to be done by correlation analysis between the Job Descriptive Index (JDI) and the performance related incentive reward (PBR) of the abovementioned company. The data was then used to develop an interview guide, which was used in a focus group study, to evaluate the current incentive system as a motivator of performance. The analysis of the qualitative interview data was to be done through the use of thematic analysis. Using a percentage based estimation per production line, 150 workers were selected from the 2100 shop floor workers. The Job Descriptive Index (JDI) questionnaires were used to measure the satisfaction index of the workers. The performance data was gathered from the company's incentive statistics over the past year, 2004. All other related data was obtained though thematic analysis by the researcher, who was interested to get the insiders' view. From the emic perspective, more data could be obtained by the researcher by probing with follow-up questions. After both the quantitative and qualitative procedures were completed, the results of the study were found to be much the same as those described in the reviewed literature. The quantitative analysis did not prove a significant correlation between incentive reward and satisfaction; and employees were most satisfied with work, supervision and co-workers and less satisfied with pay and promotion. The qualitative procedure (thematic analysis) highlighted that the current reward system was not motivating performance, but rather demoralised employees, as it was used as a punitive measure to encourage work attendance. The current system also confirmed the error made by many organisations, where the organization purely concentrates on motivating employees with extrinsic rewards and little thought is given to intrinsic recognition.
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Hersi, Ahmed, and Michal Aleksandrowicz. "Broadening the horizon whilst using ones environment : Case studies exploring environmental influence on SMEs international expansion." Thesis, Umeå universitet, Handelshögskolan vid Umeå universitet, 2010. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:umu:diva-37503.
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Globalization and technological progress are the two issues influencing our lives to a great extent nowadays. Indeed, national borders between countries are blurring in terms of cultural differences. The information overflow around us is evident. Progressing convergence is making the Earth a homogeneous entity. This, in turn, might be perceived as desirable or harmful, depending on one’s standpoint; however, it is having a strong impact on the world of business, among others. This research investigates internationalization of two companies embedded in the clustered Swedish music industry. At first, the process is analyzed making use of many theoretical concepts in order to get a holistic picture, which results in an eclectic approach. Later on, the environment is studied to find out how it had determined the companies’ development, international potential and therefore foreign expansion. The result indicates congruent evidence that the companies’ successful rapid internationalization is derived from their embeddedness in the Swedish music environment. A strong synergetic relationship between networking, learning and resource acquisition is identified to be strongly enhanced by environmental conditions and its legacy. Therefore, competitive advantage in international markets of the globalized world is still locally embedded. Keywords: SME’s internalization process, Toontrack AB, Propellerhead AB, Cluster, Environment, Swedish music industry, networks, born global, resources.
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Mustafa, Alrasheed. "Information practices in midwifery: a case study of an antenatal and intrapartum care environment in the Western Cape, South Africa." Thesis, Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2015. http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11838/1394.
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Thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree Master of Technology in Information Technology in the Faculty of Informatics & Design at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology<br>Research on health informatics has seen a steady increase during this decade as the role of information technology in the health sector becomes pertinent. Findings of previous research in this domain have uncovered vast information needs of health workers, particularly in developing countries. However, there is a need to continue with multidisciplinary research in priority areas such as midwifery practice and in the environment of marginalised settings. This study explores the significance of the information needs and information-seeking behaviour or practice of midwives during the antenatal and intrapartum care within the environment of a midwifery unit. Additionally, the researcher obtained permission from Faculty of Informatics and Design – CPUT and Health department authority – Western Cape Government in South Africa, to conduct research in the Elsies River Midwifery Obstetric Unit (ERMOU). The research was carried out as case study in a Midwifery Obstetric Unit in the Western Cape, South Africa. The investigator conducted semi-structured interviews and observations to collect qualitative data of the antenatal and intrapartum care environment. The data was transcribed and analysed using thematic analysis and essomenic modelling.
The findings comprehensively point to the importance of this research context. The study found that midwives acquired patients’ information from a handwritten Maternity Case Record (MCR) book and midwives’ colleagues, and often during handovers. In addition, midwives also communicate with each other during care activities in the ERMOU. It was apparent that the use of such communication practices is inadequate, and midwives did not always have sufficient information to make appropriate decisions in the ERMOU. All patient information, referral notes, and reporting is paper-based.
In addition, essomenic models were used to depict the midwives’ work activities in the antenatal and intrapartum care environment in the Unit. Furthermore, essomenic models defined all the systematic processes that occur in the ERMOU which is described by midwives’ activities and work environment. To improve communication, future research is recommended to consider the importance of the continuity of the education of midwives. Further research will be on the implementation of nursing informatics and the electronic health record system in the Elsies River Midwifery Obstetric Unit.
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Gilliland, Toshca-Lee. "Characteristics of fishers: a case study of Zeekoevlei, Cape Town." Master's thesis, University of Cape Town, 2017. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/25306.
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Fisheries are complex socio-ecological systems consisting of both human and ecological components. Managing fishery resources has almost always focused on ecological concerns without due consideration being given to the human dimensions. However, increasingly more scholars are recognising the need to integrate the human dimensions of fisheries management with the ecological concerns. Managing a fishery solely on the basis of ecological information will result in the management strategies being unsuccessful. Understanding the human dimensions is important as it provides insights into who participates in the fisheries industry, and what the behavioural patterns and motivations of the fishers are. This study focused on understanding the human dimensions of fishing at Zeekoevlei, focusing on who the fishers are and why they engage in fishing. It also addressed the source of conflicts at Zeekoevlei. The management of Zeekoevlei and fishing activities is also considered. A mixed methods approach, using a case study design, was adopted. The sample included fourteen fishers and six individuals involved on various levels of management of Zeekoevlei. Data-collection methods included the use of a structured questionnaire and semi-structured interviews. On the basis of this study, the demographics show that two types of fishers were found at Zeekoevlei – recreational and small scale. These fisher groups display contrasting socio-demographic profiles; however, a correlation between socio-demographics and motivations was observed. Recreational fishers appear to be white, educated males who are employed and engage in fishing for a sense of achievement, which is underpinned by the size of the fish. Small-scale fishers, on the other hand, are unemployed coloured males, with low levels of education and to this group of fishers the Zeekoevlei fishery system has an important function as it is used to diversify livelihoods. As with many fisheries, conflicts are prevalent at Zeekoevlei. These conflicts arise between fishers because Zeekoevlei has limited demarcated fishing spots and fishers display ownership over these spots; to exacerbate this situation, Zeekoevlei is located in an open reserve, which makes it easier for fishers to enter the reserve illegally. The management of the vlei appears to be based on recreational considerations with unclear measures to accommodate small-scale fisheries.
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Hepburn, Mary Patricia. "An exploration of environmental understanding among primary health care providers in an Eastern Cape community." Thesis, Rhodes University, 1999. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003415.
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This study explores environmental understanding among the health care practitioners serving a rural community in the Eastern Cape Province in South Africa. During the preliminary phases of the research, the decision was made to adopt a participatory approach to the inquiry as far as was possible. Semi-structured interviews, participant observation and focus group discussions were the techniques chosen to focus the participants' thinking about: the meaning of environment, environmental issues and problems which impact on health, and, environmental education in practice. Comparisons between the recently transformed health education idea proposed by the World Health Organization (WHO), known as "health promotion", and a popular environmental education model are made. It is argued that many of the obstacles to effective health education described by the participants in the study can be overcome by using environmental educationlhealth promotion approaches. The findings show that the health practitioners studied relate to a wide range of environmental issues with varying levels of engagement. They are influenced by changing values, their feelings about indigenous knowledge, and their notions about how people should respond to the environment. An urgent need for more and better communication among the different levels of health practitioners is identified. Finally, it is recommended that health care practitioners be supported with opportunities for professional development which can lead to a confident, seIfreflective approach to health education.
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McMahon, Robert Kieran. "Bureaucratic motivations : an examination of motivations in the US Environmental Protection Agency and the Environment Agency for England and Wales." Thesis, University of Oxford, 1999. http://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:49d505fd-475f-4064-8591-0052c83d902a.
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This thesis examines the motivations of bureaucrats in two government agencies: the Environmental Protection Agency in the US, and the Environment Agency for England and Wales. The model employed in this work is a Trifocal Model which utilises Rational Choice, Institutional and Cultural approaches in answering the thesis question. The aim of this work is two-fold: one aim is to explain motivations in two agencies; the second aim is to suggest why the existing literature in the field of bureaucracy often fails to capture the diversity of bureaucratic motivations. The claim is that the adherence to one particular paradigmatic approach prevents scholars from attaining a comprehensive understanding of motivations. This work focuses on two elements of the Trifocal Approach, namely institutional and cultural explanations. Rational Choice explanations are given a limited explanatory role in this work, in large part because of the restricted usefulness of an approach which takes the preferences of agents as given. This thesis uses a scientific approach to the analysis of qualitative data, allowing other researchers to make use of, and indeed to question, the findings presented below. The argument in this thesis suggests why scholars must pay more attention to what those people within bureaucracies tell us about themselves and their motivations. To take the preferences of agents as givens is to ignore much of what is most important about the study of politics that is, where preferences come from, and how they shape the political behaviour we observe in bureaucracies. This thesis will show that public sector reforms are often flawed, often failing to consider the interplay of cultural and institutional effects, and how these effects have a bearing on the motivations of staff in organisations undergoing reform. Furthermore, cultural and institutional factors must be considered whenever one considers the question what is it that motivates bureaucrats.
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Irrgang, Berendine. "Township churches as heritage: The case of Langa, Cape Town." Master's thesis, University of Cape Town, 2015. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/13799.
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This study investigates the perceived heritage significance of township churches. This is done by means of a case study which focuses on early churches in Langa, particularly the Wesleyan Methodist and the African Methodist Episcopal churches. The hypothesis is that heritage values are attached to certain churches of Langa and that these are regarded as heritage resources as a result of a particular character or built form. In support of this hypothesis, the intellectual realm of churches and heritage values was explored and the historical and spatial context which informed the development of the churches, investigated. A strong emphasis was placed on ascertaining the heritage values of the Langa community in a series of interviews. To understand the values attached to churches, views have been solicited from community members residing in the neighbourhood of the identified churches, members of the clergy and congregants and a number of 'experts’ - people who have been involved in the study of heritage in Langa, either from an academic or community perspective. Sixteen interviews, which took the form of focused, semistructured discussions, were conducted.
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Alamri, Aref. "The environmental role of yeasts : emphasis on occurrence and survival in the built environment including health-care settings." Thesis, University of Sheffield, 2016. http://etheses.whiterose.ac.uk/13927/.
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Hardbarger, Ashley N. "Viability of Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus on Artificial Turf Under Outdoor and Laboratory Environmental Conditions." Ohio University / OhioLINK, 2012. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ohiou1338581271.
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Ractliffe, Tamzin Pascoe. "Environmental concern, knowledge, and the enactment of environmental citizenship in a retail food environment: an investigation into the perceptions and behaviours of Cape Town consumers." Master's thesis, University of Cape Town, 2015. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/19993.
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Sustainable consumption has long been recognised as essential for the achievement of sustainable development. Whilst early efforts to achieve sustainable consumption focused on using technological innovation and process efficiencies to reduce the resource intensity of products, create new, less toxic, more environmentally friendly products, and/or improve the efficiency of production processes, the inadequacy of production-based approaches alone has been widely accepted. More recent efforts to achieve sustainable consumption have highlighted that a change in the behaviour of individuals is a prerequisite for its achievement. A significant body of research has focusing on trying to understand the determinants of pro-environmental behaviour and specifically the intersection of environmental concern and environmental knowledge in the manifestation in pro-environmental behaviour. The relatively recent concept of environmental citizenship, premised on the existence of concern and knowledge, and rooted in issues of environmental and social justice, has gained traction as an alternative means by which to achieve both sustainable development and sustainable consumption. This dissertation presents research findings from a mixed-method empirical study of the food consumption behaviour of a purposive sample of upper middle income South African retail food consumers. Applying the notion of environmental citizenship, it considers the influence of critical variables widely identified as key to the expression of pro-environmental behaviour, viz. desire to act, knowledge to act, and ability to act. Specifically it considers the relationship between environmental knowledge, environmental concern and pro-environmental behaviour, as well as the barriers and situational factors in the food retail environment which are reported to inhibit the practice of sustainable consumption behaviour. It then considers whether improvements in objective knowledge have an impact on the enactment of environmental citizenship through an increase in pro-environmental behaviour practices. The main conclusion drawn from the findings of this dissertation is that environmental concern and knowledge are positive predictors of pro-environmental behaviour. However, a low incidence of pro-environmental behaviour was evident in the study sample overall. This is most likely as a result of low levels of environmental concern and general lack of objective knowledge although a significant additional barrier could be the lack of a mature market for sustainable food in South Africa. In keeping with international studies, health concerns appear to be both most prevalent and most influential in determining the practice of pro-environmental behaviours. The study also suggests that efforts to increase levels of objective knowledge may have an impact on the practice of sustainable food consumption behaviours.
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Potts, Glynn Shirley. "An exploratory study of an environmental conflict : the case of Thyspunt, Oyster Bay in the Eastern Cape." Thesis, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, 2008. http://hdl.handle.net/10948/861.
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As the global energy crisis continues to have an impact on developing countries such as South Africa, stakeholders form an increasingly significant role especially around the concerns of development and the impact on the environment. Environmental conflicts have risen to the forefront in many areas in South Africa. Environmental conflicts fall under public disputes, which often occur as a result of human needs. This study is an attempt to explore the environmental conflict surrounding the proposed Nuclear Power station at Thyspunt, Oyster Bay in the Eastern Cape. Stakeholders are an integral part of environmental conflicts, and analyzing interests of stakeholders is vital in understanding environmental conflicts. This explorative study, seeks explore and to describe the interests of homeowners who are one of the key stakeholders involved the environmental conflict at Thyspunt, Oyster Bay in the Eastern Cape. The homeowners are represented by the St Francis Residents/ Ratepayers Association. The researcher conducted extensive face-face interviews with these homeowners. The organizations official documents, minutes of their meetings, letters to the media and various publications in which homeowners expressed their feelings were also made use of by the researcher in order to triangulate findings, as well as for data collection methods. The major themes were constructed from the study include: Security, Trust, Power and the various sources thereof, as well as a need for self-actualization based on values, and a final theme of the positive functions of conflict. The challenges facing the homeowners in terms of human security and environmental impact of the nuclear development are highlighted. Further recommendations for a more in-depth study are also made.
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Masunda, Collen. "Performing loans in a multicurrency environment environment: A case of Zimbabwe." Master's thesis, University of Cape Town, 2015. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/29039.
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Zimbabwe has been experiencing an unprecedented increase in Non-performing loans (NPLs), since the adoption of the multi-currency regime in 2009. The NPL ratio which stood at 15.92% as at 31 December 2013, has attracted much attention considering its impact on banking sector stability and its effect on the real sector. The banking sector has since reduced its risk appetite, adopting conservative lending strategies, in response to the scourge, in an environment where industry is in need of funding thus causing second round effects. There has been conflicting views in literature on factors influencing the rise in NPLs. Shareholders and bank management have placed the blame of the increase in NPLs on the macroeconomic environment, while regulatory authorities and policy makers have attributed the levels to corporate governance weaknesses. This study sets out to ascertain the factors that have been instrumental in driving the level of non-performing loans in Zimbabwe and the extent to which each of these factors has contributed to this trend. The population of study was the Zimbabwean banking sector which comprised 21 banking institutions as at 31 December 2013. The factors that were investigated were: lending interest rates, shareholding structure, GDP growth, inflation rate, management efficiency, capital adequacy, loan tenure, size of the institution and the lagged NPLs. The study used statistical techniques, in particular panel data analysis for bank level data collected on a quarterly basis over a 5 year period beginning March 2009 and ending December 2013. The findings indicate that all the macroeconomic factors were not statistically significantly related to the rise of the NPLs. On the other hand bank specific factors with the exception of loan tenure and lending rates, were found to be significantly related to the rise in NPLs. Lagged NPLs were found to be more influential implying that the country is blight with credit indiscipline. Findings of this study, with the exception of size were found to be generally consistent with previous literature on determinants of NPLs. An interesting observation made was that bank size was found to be positively related to NPLs, contrary to literature, indicating that larger banks are not benefiting from diversification benefits. Based on the findings, the research recommends enhanced monitoring of banking institutions by the supervisory authority coupled with a collaborative NPL resolution options. Banking institutions are encouraged to tighten their credit risk management systems and practices.
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Graves, Scott Herbert. "Public participation in bureaucratic policy-making :the case of the U.S.-Mexico Border Environment Cooperation Commission." Access restricted to users with UT Austin EID Full text (PDF) from UMI/Dissertation Abstracts International, 2001. http://wwwlib.umi.com/cr/utexas/fullcit?p3037013.
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Taylor, Annie Catharine Scott. "The significance of non-governmental organisations in the development of international environmental policy : the case of trade and environment." Thesis, University of Southampton, 1998. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.264673.
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Morris, Margaret N. "Daycare environments : a prescription for change." Thesis, University of British Columbia, 1985. http://hdl.handle.net/2429/25474.
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Using methods derived from post occupancy evaluation and ethnography, the visual and physical environmental characteristics of eighteen daycare centres were studied and inventorized. The attitudes, perceptions and ideologies of the directors and staffs to these learning environments and arts activities were also ascertained. The centres were located in Edmonton, Alberta, and both private and public centres were studied. The children attending these centres came from diverse cultural and economic backgrounds.
The characteristics were recorded in an informal manner, through field notes, photographs and a pre-coded checklist which rated the quality of the items. From this, three subcategories of quality were derived; standard, below standard and above standard. The descriptive data indicated that the majority of the components of the centres constitute a standard quality, that centres have hard, institutional like qualities and that adult standards predominate.
Analysis of 38 questionnaires returned from the directors and staff of the centres and evidence from the data and descriptive material, revealed there was a significant lack of knowledge or concern for the child's intrinsic needs, and the role of the visual and physical environment in learning. Their concern within the the learning environment was primarily for the physical aspects and changes to those aspects and arts activities were made according to adult standards. Apparent in the data was an adult product oriented approach to arts activities.
What is recommended in this study is the need for early childhood educators to recognize the importance of the visual and physical environment to learning, and the role arts activities play in the total development of a pre-school child. Further recommendations include the investigation of training programmes for day care personnel, and the development of, through co-operation with arts educators, artists and architects, environmental alternatives for learning.<br>Education, Faculty of<br>Educational Studies (EDST), Department of<br>Graduate
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Xie, Hui. "The sound environment in critical care." Thesis, University of Sheffield, 2011. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.555221.
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It has been widely accepted that noise levels in hospitals are typically higher than the guidelines. This research aims to systematically investigate the sound field in critical care environment, develop the prediction models, and explore the acoustic effects on patients and staff. The Critical Care Units at two local NHS hospitals have been selected for case studies. Three core categories with plenty of interactions were identified by means of grounded theory for the acoustic environment, namely 'time-dependant sounds', 'role-dependant people' and 'departmental-dependant space', and the improvement strategies are limited but possible. Through a series of acoustic measurement, a diffuse field could be approximately assumed in the single-bed and multi-bed wards. The sound levels measured in the wards for each night are in excess of the WHO guided values by at least 20d8A. For both wards and U-shaped long corridor, if the relevant simulation parameters were set up appropriately, the agreement between measured and simulated RT as well as SPL is satisfactory, suggesting the feasibility of computer simulation for such spaces. A database comprised of quadratic equations was established with a good accuracy (±2.5d8) to predict the sound propagation along the U-shaped long space applicable to various geometric sizes. An effective observation method was designed for noise behaviour in the healthcare environment. Amongst the observed noise sources, talking was identified with the largest number of occurrences, shortest interval and the longest duration, followed by the monitor's alarm. Lognormal distribution was determined as the most appropriate statistical distribution for noise behaviours. Finally, an agent-based acoustic model was developed to integrate noise behaviours with the acoustic parameters. It is capable of replicating the complex and dynamic acoustic environment (±2dBA) as well as conducting what-if analysis. Two noise maps were produced to determine the noise sensitive areas, which would be useful to assist the decision making upon noise actions.
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Wong, May-tak Glady, and 王美德. "Environmental regulation and crime: the case of pollution in Hong Kong." Thesis, The University of Hong Kong (Pokfulam, Hong Kong), 1994. http://hub.hku.hk/bib/B31977820.
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Nortje, Griffin. "Assessing the effectiveness of Environmental Impact Assessment as a safeguard to biodiversity in the Cape Floristic Region of South Africa." Master's thesis, University of Cape Town, 2017. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/27294.
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Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is subject to challenges that undermine this process as an effective safeguard to biodiversity. Internationally, effective EIA is hindered by the following issues: a low priority assigned to the consideration of biodiversity and a limited capacity to carry out assessments; a lack of formalised procedures and inconsistent methodologies to address biodiversity within the EIA framework; and a lack of formal requirements for post-project monitoring of biodiversity aspects. Traditionally effectiveness studies in this regard have focused on evaluating the procedural aspects of EIA, and have focused less on the substantive outcomes of the post-authorisation phase of a proposed project. While South Africa has a considerable body of literature pertaining to the procedural aspects of EIA, there remain two substantial gaps in the literature. Firstly, there is an evident absence of effectiveness studies in South Africa that focus primarily on biodiversity-specific procedure. Secondly, almost no research has been conducted in South Africa which investigates the outcomes of mitigation measures, mandatory monitoring, reporting and compliance with biodiversity aspects of EIA. This research therefore aims to fill these gaps by investigating the quality of information generated in five EIAs in the Western Cape. It also examines the implementation success of mitigation measures aimed at managing unavoidable impacts in the post-authorisation phase of these projects. This research has adopted a case study methodological approach. Five EIAs were selected from a sample of 9. In no order of significance, the variables considered most important in the sampling protocol were: the presence of a biodiversity-related specialist report; availability of environmental assessment documentation; overall cases to represent at least two different local jurisdictions; and the uniqueness of adopted biodiversity-related mitigation measures. The primary method used to evaluate the quality of biodiversity-related information is a Key Performance Indicator analysis, whereby the performance of cases is measured against legal and best-practice reporting principles. The substantive outcomes of EIA have been investigated by means of site inspections and interviews with key stakeholders. This research has found that the five cases performed well with complying with best-practice EIA procedure, indicating a 53% full compliance, 29% partial compliance and 18% of best-practice principles were not complied with at all. This research has shown that direct impacts on biodiversity (such as the physical removal of indigenous vegetation) are adequately identified, and indirect impacts (typically those impacting off-site and on ecological processes) are poorly identified in EIA. Therefore, the information required to avoid impacts on biodiversity is available, but this research has found that it is underutilized in this regard. Notably, avoidance of impacts was undermined inadequate site and layout alternatives and poor decision making in terms of the regular authorisation of irreversible impacts on biodiversity. Conversely, only 18% of mitigation measures were fully complied with, 36% were partially complied with, and 45% of mitigation measures were not complied with. These results indicate a poor performance of EIA in the implementation stage of a project lifecycle. This research has concluded this is most likely due to a poor conversion of recommended mitigation measures into conditions of authorisation and a limited capacity of the competent authority to perform compliance monitoring.
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Lehman, Philip Kent. "Application of Social Influence Strategies to Convert Concern into Relevant Action: The Case of Global Warming." Diss., Virginia Tech, 2008. http://hdl.handle.net/10919/26213.
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This research studied the efficacy of enhancing information-based appeals with social influence strategies in order to encourage environmental activism and efficiency behaviors in response to global warming. A secondary goal was to study the relationship between pro-environment attitudes as measured by the New Ecological Paradigm (NEP) and the activism/efficiency behaviors. After hearing a 15-minute presentation about the threat of global warming, 270 participants were encouraged to take relevant action by (a) signing web-based petitions asking automakers to build more environmentally friendly cars, (b) sending web-based letters to their state senators asking them to pass legislation to curb global warming, and (c) replacing their own inefficient incandescent light bulbs with compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs).
The primary independent variable was the intervention technique used to encourage the three behaviors. The Information Only condition received a standard informational presentation, and a Social Influence condition received a presentation enhanced by the social psychological principles of authority, social validation, and consistency. A third group—Social Influence and Commitment—received the social influence manipulations and also signed a commitment statement.
Overall compliance was relatively low, with 30.7% of participants across all conditions completing one or more activism/efficiency behavior. Statistical comparisons of the compliance rates of the three groups were insignificant, and thus failed to support the efficacy of the social influence approach. Participants who held stronger pro-environment attitudes were more likely to complete the tasks. Those who completed at least one of the environmental actions scored significantly higher on a pre-presentation NEP (m = 54.9) than those who completed none (m = 50.3). In addition, political conservatism was negatively related to the NEP and task compliance. Finally, individuals who completed at least one of the requested behaviors showed a significant increase in pro-environment attitude on a second (post intervention) NEP, while the NEP scores of non-compliers remained unchanged.<br>Ph. D.
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Myllynpää, Ninja, and Linda Oskarsson. "Towards a Sustainable Built Environment : Case Silverdal." Thesis, Uppsala University, Department of Business Studies, 2009. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-111666.
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<p>This paper intends to give the reader a wider knowledge about sustainable construction by taking a closer look at what drivers and goals have been of most importance in Silverdal - a construction project with environmental commitment and focus on energy efficiency. The research is formed by using a compilation of variables, such as regulation, brand building and risk management, which serve as a base for the qualitative research of the case study. The empirical findings have been gathered by interviewing people responsible for the Silverdal project. These findings imply that compliance with regulations has become more important with time and that brand building can still have greater relevance than long-term commitment to environmental related risk management. Also, economic benefits seem to be the most desired ones at the expense of making a contribution to real sustainability.</p>
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Mickan, Sharon. "Understanding effective teams in healthcare environments /." St. Lucia, Qld, 2002. http://www.library.uq.edu.au/pdfserve.php?image=thesisabs/absthe16088.pdf.
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Barnes, Deborah M. (Deborah Manning). "Information Use Environment of Self-managed Teams : A Case Study." Thesis, University of North Texas, 1996. https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc277880/.
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This research investigated how self-managed teams get the information they need to perform their job tasks. Two important factors prompted this study: the growing importance of self-managed teams in the workplace and the impact of the information system on team performance.
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Kelly-Shelby, Angela Mastracchio. "The collaboration of nurse practitioners and physicians in long-term care using a case-management model in a managed-care environment." [Pensacola, Fla.] : University of West Florida, 2005. http://purl.fcla.edu/fcla/etd/WFE0000038.
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Wilks, Melissa Kimberly. "Predation Mediated Carbon Turnover in Nutrient-Limited Cave Environments." University of Akron / OhioLINK, 2013. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=akron1384803278.
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Snow, Janet P. "Information and communication technology driven teaching and learning opportunities in support of environmental education processes : a case of the eno-environment online programme at Treverton Preparatory School, South Africa /." Thesis, Rhodes University, 2008. http://eprints.ru.ac.za/1623/.
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Jenkins, Msawenkosi Wiseman. "Curriculum recontextualising using gardens for the health promotion in the life orientation learning area of the senior phase." Thesis, Rhodes University, 2008. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003368.
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With a view to understanding how curriculum is interpreted at classroom practice level, the study examined three stories of how the environmental discourse of the National Curriculum Statements (R-9) was recontextualised using school gardens in the Life Orientation Learning Area for the Senior Phase. To understand how the curriculum is recontextualised, I used Bernstein's theory of recontexutalisation where he explained how official pedagogic discourse (OPD) (in this case the environmental discourse is first delocated once it is transferred from the field of production (FOP) and relocated in the recontextualising field (where teacher educators and departmental officials mediate the discourse) and in the field of reproduction (FOR) which is the classroom and school. Bernstein explained that as the discourse is delocated and relocated it undergoes transformation. This transformation is influenced by practitioners' prior-knowledge, experience, culture and beliefs and other factors. To understand how transformation of the environmental discourse takes place, Bernstein's conceptual constructs of selective appropriation and ideological transformation were applied to an interpretation of three lesson processes, to explain how the discourse was changed. Each lesson was reviewed in terms of the selective appropriations and ideological transformations which took place. All three of the lessons observed took place in one school, and as such the study is designed as an interpretive case study where I have tried to make meaning from a rich, thick description of a specific case context. The school is located in Bizana, one of the villages in the O.R. Tambo District Municipality in the Eastern Cape Province,, and is currently in the process of implementing South Africa’s new National Curriculum Statement (NCS) like all other schools in South Africa. In conducting the research I observed lessons, interviewed the learners and teachers, and a community member and the manager of the SANBI greening project, and I also analysed documents which included the NCS for Life Orientation, and teachers planning documents and learners work produced in the lessons. I started the study by conducting a document analysis of the NCS, through which I identified dimensions of the Official Pedagogic Discourse. This was used as a framework to review the lessons to understand how the OPD was being recontextualised. The study concludes by discussing the key findings of the study in the form of a set of analytical statements. Some of the findings indicate that teachers have not been given adequate training for understanding and implementing the NCS which affects the recontextualisation process. The study shows that there is a dire need for professional development if the OPD is to be interpreted adequately by teachers so that its implementation at the meso and micro- levels becomes clear and effective.
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Hoffmann, Patricia Anne. "Reviewing the use of environmental audits for environmental learning in school contexts: a case study of environmental auditing processes within a professional development course." Thesis, Rhodes University, 2007. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003630.
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This case study focuses on the use of environmental audits for learning, by teachers participating in the Schools and Sustainability professional development course in Durban, South Africa. It reviews ways in which audits were choreographed and used for lessons within school contexts. It explores ways in which audits shaped meaning-making interactions and environmental learning processes. This is an interpretive case study, characterized by a moderate realist perspective. Data were generated through interviews with teachers, field observations, photographs, document analysis, and group interviews with learners. Data were analyzed using the general comparative method. The research takes place in the context of educational transformation in South Africa. Some of the challenges accompanying the shift to Outcomes Based Education seem to be associated with naïve interpretations of constructivism and a view of reality as socially constructed and relative. This seems to have influenced ways in which audits are being undertaken in school contexts. This study argues that a realist orientation to auditing may be a more useful process for engaging with the world and enhancing the way learners perceive and respond to environmental risk. Ideas about reality-congruence and the interacting processes of involvement and detachment are of central importance in understanding processes of knowledge construction and meaning making in this study. The study draws on the work of Elias (1987) and Latour (1999) to shed light on the significance of auditing processes in which a close engagement with reality, coupled with a measure of detachment, can lead to the construction of a more reality-congruent account and a more realistic assessment of the environmental issue in focus. Key findings of the study suggest that the effectiveness of environmental auditing as a pedagogical process was influenced by the teachers’ intentions, knowledge and skills, choreography of the audit, nature of the teaching and learning interactions, and ways in which teachers and learners engaged with the findings. The study recommends that auditing activities should be carefully structured and mediated by teachers to be meaningful and to enable learners to identify environmental issues, gather data, engage in critical reflection and deliberate appropriate responses for social and environmental transformation.