Browsing by Title
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Kaelo, P.; Ali, M.M. (Elsevier; www.elsevier.com/locate/ejor, NaN, 2006)[more][less]
Abstract: Modifications in mutation and localization in acceptance rule are suggested to the differential evolution algorithm for global optimization. Numerical experiments indicate that the resulting algorithms are considerably better than the original differential evolution algorithm. Therefore, they offer a reasonable alternative to many currently available stochastic algorithms, especially for problems requiring 'direct search type' methods. Numerical study is carried out using a set of 50 test problems many of which are inspired by practical applications. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10311/64 Files in this item: 2
kaelo_EJOP_2006.pdf (1.708Mb)license.txt (1.998Kb) -
O'Halloran, L.; Shugart, H.; Wang, L.; Caylor, K.; Ringrose, S.; Kgope, B. (Elsevier, February 19, 2010)[more][less]
Abstract: The Kalahari Transect (KT) is an International Geosphere–Biosphere Programme mega-transect designed to examine hydrological and ecological patterns and processes throughout the savannas of southern Africa. The KT traverses a precipitation gradient ranging from w920 mm rain/year in the north to w260 mm rain/year in the south. Previous research shows a positive correlation between canopy cover and precipitation suggesting a water limitation on productivity. However, there has been minimal research on other possible sources of limitations, such as soil Nitrogen (N) and/or Phosphorus (P). We used a factorial in-situ experimental design to test for increased aboveground grass production (measured as peak season standing stock) under elevated soil P and Pþ N levels. Four sites along the KT precipitation gradient were used in this study: Mongu (Zambia), Pandamatenga (Botswana), Ghanzi (Botswana) and Tshane (Botswana). Soils at each site were amended with N and P fertilizers during the dry season. We extracted soil samples during the following growing season to analyze for plant available soil P. Vegetation samples were harvested from which we measured foliar P and aboveground grass biomass production. We saw differences in foliar P at the treatment and site level but not for the interaction between treatment and site. There were individual effects from site on biomass but not for any interactions with nutrient treatments. Despite higher levels of foliar P, we did not detect an increase in aboveground biomass. This may be explained by luxury uptake or allocation to below ground resources. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10311/797 Files in this item: 1
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Disele, P.L.P.; Peters, S.; Masoloko, T.; Shumba, A. (Office of Research and Development, University of Botswana; http://www.ub.bw, NaN, 2001)[more][less]
Abstract: The new millennium has come but we are not healthy: the Human Immuno-deficiency VIruS (HIV) IS taking its toll. It is critical for everyone to find ways of coping with this problem, along side campaigns to eradicate the virus. There is need to explore the power of nutrition in boosting the immune system. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10311/1148 Files in this item: 1
Disele_PBJAS_2001.pdf (426.5Kb) -
Mahgoub, S.E.O. (AFAHPER-SD; see http://www.ajol.info/journal_index.php?jid=153, NaN, 1998)[more][less]
Abstract: Nutrition and health are closely related to each other. Adequate nutrition leads to good or normal health. The focus of this paper is on the interaction of, and relationships between, nutrition and infection (as a health aspect). URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10311/220 Files in this item: 2
license.txt (1.998Kb)Mahgoub_AJPHERD_1998.pdf (1.414Mb) -
Ekosse, G.; De Jager, L.; Van den Heever, D.J. (AJOL http://www.ajol.info/index.php/ajhs/article/view/30799/23130, NaN, 2005)[more][less]
Abstract: This study aimed at establishing occurrences of chest pains and frequent coughing among different classes of residents within Selibe Phikwe, Botswana where there are on going nickel-copper mining and smelting activities. Through the administration of questionnaires and structured question to 600 individuals, 7 health service providers, 200 business enterprises, and 30 educational institutions, attempts were made to establish and verify the existing human health status at Selebi Phikwe by focusing on chest pains and frequent coughing which are considered to be some of the respiratory tract related symptoms of sicknesses and diseases. With the aid of statistical package of social sciences (SPSS), interpreted results from respondents indicated that 33% of the individuals complained of persistent chest pains, and 27% of educational institutions, 45% business enterprises, and all health service providers had learners, workers, and patients who complained of chest pains. Furthermore, 49% of the individuals complained of persistent frequent coughing; and 70% of educational institutions, 45% business interprises, and all health service providers had learners, workers, and patients who complained of frequent coughing. According to study sites, respondents living in sites closest to the mine and smelter/concentrator plant reported a higher incidence of chest pains and frequent coughing, compared to those living in other parts of the study area. Residents associated fumes and dust from mining activities to the frequent coughing and persistent chest pains, which could be symptoms of respiratory tract diseases. This baseline investigation calls for further studies to establish relations of mining activities to human health at Selebi Phikwe. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10311/379 Files in this item: 1
Ekosse_AJHS_2005.pdf (2.243Mb) -
Oladokun, O.; Aina, L. (Athabasca University Press, www.aupress.ca, NaN, 2011)[more][less]
Abstract: Open and distance learning (ODL) has created room for the emergence of virtual education. Not only are students found everywhere and anywhere undertaking their studies and earning their degrees, but geographical boundaries between nations no longer appear to have much relevance. As the new education paradigm irretrievably alters the way teaching and learning is conducted, the application of modern educational ICTs has a major role to play. With students of transnational or cross-border education dispersed into various nooks and crannies of Botswana, many others enlist for the “home-baked” distance learning programmes from their diverse locations. Like the face-to-face conventional students, distance learners also have information needs which have to be met. But blocking the distance learners’ realization of their information needs is the digital divide, which further marginalizes the underclass of “info-poor.” The survey method was used, and a questionnaire administered to 519 students of four tertiary level distance teaching institutions that met the criteria set for the study yielded a 70.1% response rate. The results showed that while the Government of Botswana has made considerable effort to ensure country-wide access to ICT, which now constitutes an effective instrument for meeting information needs, a number of problems still exist. The factors impeding easy access are unearthed. The findings of an empirical study portraying some learners as information-rich and others as information-poor, and the consequence of distance learners studying on both sides of the digital divide, are discussed. Suggestions on bridging the digital divide are offered. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10311/971 Files in this item: 1
Oladukon_IRRODL_2011.pdf (1.307Mb) -
Ndana, N. (University of Botswana, Department of English, http://www.ub.bw, NaN, 2008)[more][less]
Abstract: This paper explores the dilemma of the emergent African intellectual, activist or modern leader by focusing on Sol Plaatje's experiences. It shows that by acquiring western education and values, the African intellectual occupied a position of in-between-ness, forcing him or her to promote and oppose both western and African values, and beliefs, resulting in a split identity. Consequently, his or her relationship with both the foreign culture and what he or believed to be his or her people, was bound to be problematic, leading to frustrations and disappointment. In dealing with such frustration Plaatje employed Shakespeare's text to lash out at his fellow Africans, and Tswana speakers in particular, for their reluctance in supporting his political and cultural projects. I conclude by showing that blaming his people for what he perceived to be their lackadaisical and cavalier attitude towards projects intended to uplift their status was somewhat misguided because it failed to recognize the dynamics of adopting and imbibing western values. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10311/854 Files in this item: 1
Ndana_MJLL_2008.pdf (2.410Mb) -
Molefi, R.K.K. (University of Botswana, Research and Development Unit / http://digital.lib.msu.edu/projects/africanjournals/browse.cfm?colid=12, NaN, 2001)[more][less]
Abstract: This paper examines the responses of colonial governments to outbreaks of bubonic plague in the interior, particularly that of the Bechuanaland Protectorate (Botswana) administration. Bubonic plague first reached Southern Africa through the seaports of Cape Town, Port Elizabeth, East London, and Durban in 1900 at the height of the Anglo-Boer war of 1899- 1902. The dread disease found Southern Africa's ports, harbours and railway stations bursting at the seams with wartime commerce, and with an influx of refugees from the interior and large numbers of migrant labourers. From the ports, the plague spread to towns close to railway stations and finally into the interior where it caused havoc for the political economy of rural Southern Africa. Bubonic plague normally spreads as a disease among rodent populations living in the vicinity of human habitation. Fleas from dead rats if unable to find another rodent host begin to infest people instead. Bubonic plague became endemic in Southern Africa, and natural reservoirs of the malady still exist in the region. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10311/736 Files in this item: 1
Molefi_PBJAS_2001.pdf (1.105Mb) -
Le Gall, B.; Tshoso, G.; Dyment, J.; Kampunzu, A.B.; Jourdan, F.; Fe´raud, G.; Bertrand, H.; Aubourg, C.; Ve´tel, W. (Elsevier www.elsevier.com/locate/jsg, NaN, 2005)[more][less]
Abstract: The structural organization of a giant mafic dyke swarm, the Okavango complex, in the northern Karoo Large Igneous Province (LIP) of NE Botswana is detailed. This N1108E-oriented dyke swarm extends for 1500 km with a maximum width of 100 km through Archaean basement terranes and Permo-Jurassic sedimentary sequences. The cornerstone of the study is the quantitative analysis of NO170 (exposed) and NO420 (detected by ground magnetics) dykes evidenced on a ca. 80-km-long section lying in crystalline host-rocks, at high-angle to the densest zone of the swarm (Shashe area). Individual dykes are generally sub-vertical and parallel to the entire swarm. Statistical analysis of width data indicates anomalous dyke frequency (few data !5.0 m) and mean dyke thickness (high value of 17 m) with respect to values classically obtained from other giant swarms. Variations of mean dyke thicknesses from 17 (N1108E swarm) to 27 m (adjoining and coeval N708E giant swarm) are assigned to the conditions hosting fracture networks dilated as either shear or pure extensional structures, respectively, in response to an inferred NNW–SSE extension. Both fracture patterns are regarded as inherited brittle basement fabrics associated with a previous (Proterozoic) dyking event. The Okavango N1108E dyke swarm is thus a polyphase intrusive system in which total dilation caused by Karoo dykes (estimated frequency of 87%) is 12.2% (6315 m of cumulative dyke width) throughout the 52-km-long projected Shashe section. Assuming that Karoo mafic dyke swarms in NE Botswana follow inherited Proterozoic fractures, as similarly applied for most of the nearly synchronous giant dyke complexes converging towards the Nuanetsi area, leads us to consider that the resulting triple junction-like dyke/fracture pattern is not a definitive proof for a deep mantle plume in the Karoo LIP. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10311/400 Files in this item: 1
Kampunzu2005Okavangogiant.pdf (3.456Mb) -
Magole, L.; Magole, L.I. (Elsevier, July 15, 2009)[more][less]
Abstract: The Okavango Delta is amongst the largest Ramsar sites (http://www.ramsar.org/sitelist.pdf) in the world and an important wetland for community livelihoods, conservation and tourism in Botswana. Over the years, the utilization of the delta has shifted from communal use to state control, with an increased use for conservation and tourism. This increased use for conservation and tourism has manifested in the physical expansion of the conservation area – Moremi Game Reserve and the formation of Wildlife Management Areas (WMAs) around the reserve, whose primary land use is wildlife utilization. The expansion of the conservation area has translated into several practical matters, including expansion of the area for non-hunting activities or photographic areas. The livelihoods of local communities of the Okavango delta who depended on fishing, hunter-gathering, livestock rearing, rain-fed agriculture and flood recession farming have been negatively affected by the expansion of conservation and tourism in the delta. The livelihoods alternatives in the form of Community Based Natural Resource Management (CBNRM) and tourism have not provided substitutes for the people as the communities are still reliant on the same old livelihood sources as in the past, albeit within smaller and restricted areas. This paper explores the ownership of the natural resources within the Okavango Delta. It asks and attempts to answer the following questions: Who owns and controls the use of the land? Who has access to other resources there in? Who makes the decisions on how the delta resources should be managed and used? Who benefits from the delta resources? We argue firstly that ownership of the delta as defined by legal parameters and demonstrated in natural resource management practice is vested on government. Secondly, government, after assuming ownership of the delta continues to sell its stake to the international community, at the expense of local ownership and access to resources. We conclude that in the process the ability of local communities to source a livelihood out of the delta as they previously used to, is compromised. This we argue works against the goal of sustainable development for improved livelihoods as proclaimed in government policy documents. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10311/754 Files in this item: 1
The Okavango whose delta is it.pdf (853.1Kb) -
Magole, L.; Magole, L.I. (Elsevier www.elsevier.com/locate/pce, NaN, 2009)[more][less]
Abstract: The Okavango Delta is amongst the largest Ramsar sites (http://www.ramsar.org/sitelist.pdf) in the world and an important wetland for community livelihoods, conservation and tourism in Botswana. Over the years, the utilization of the delta has shifted from communal use to state control, with an increased use for conservation and tourism. This increased use for conservation and tourism has manifested in the physical expansion of the conservation area – Moremi Game Reserve and the formation of Wildlife Management Areas (WMAs) around the reserve, whose primary land use is wildlife utilization. The expansion of the conservation area has translated into several practical matters, including expansion of the area for non-hunting activities or photographic areas. The livelihoods of local communities of the Okavango delta who depended on fishing, hunter-gathering, livestock rearing, rain-fed agriculture and flood recession farming have been negatively affected by the expansion of conservation and tourism in the delta. The livelihoods alternatives in the form of Community Based Natural Resource Management (CBNRM) and tourism have not provided substitutes for the people as the communities are still reliant on the same old livelihood sources as in the past, albeit within smaller and restricted areas. This paper explores the ownership of the natural resources within the Okavango Delta. It asks and attempts to answer the following questions: Who owns and controls the use of the land? Who has access to other resources there in? Who makes the decisions on how the delta resources should be managed and used? Who benefits from the delta resources? We argue firstly that ownership of the delta as defined by legal parameters and demonstrated in natural resource management practice is vested on government. Secondly, government, after assuming ownership of the delta continues to sell its stake to the international community, at the expense of local ownership and access to resources. We conclude that in the process the ability of local communities to source a livelihood out of the delta as they previously used to, is compromised. This we argue works against the goal of sustainable development for improved livelihoods as proclaimed in government policy documents. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10311/746 Files in this item: 1
Magole_L_PCOE_2009.pdf (1.650Mb) -
Kgathi, D.L.; Kniveton, D.; Ringrose, S.; Turton, A.R.; Vanderpost, C.; Lundqvist, J.; Seely, M. (Elsevier; www.elsevier.com/locate/jhydrol, NaN, 2006)[more][less]
Abstract: The Okavango basin comprises the Cuito and Cubango active catchment areas in Angola, in addition to the Kavango's Okavango non-active catchment in northern Namibia and Botswana. The Okavango River water and its ecosystem resources are critically important sources of livelihoods for people in the basin. Pressures from livelihoods and development are already impacting on the environment. These pressures may increase in the future due to the rapid increase in population, the peace process and associated resettlement activities in Angola, and major development initiatives in Botswana and Namibia. For instance, possible future increase in water abstraction from the Okavango River may affect the long-term environmental sustainability of the Okavango Delta by minimizing channel shifting and thereby reducing spatial biodiversity. The paper argues that while conservation of the natural environment is critical, the pressing development needs must be recognized. The reduction of poverty within the basin should be addressed in order to alleviate adverse effects on the environment. The paper recommends that the development of sustainable tourism and community-based natural resource management initiatives may be appropriate strategies for reaching the Millennium Development Goals of poverty alleviation and achievement of environmental sustainability in the Okavango Basin. These initiatives have a comparative advantage in this area as demonstrated by the performance of the existing projects. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10311/154 Files in this item: 2
kgathi_j_hydrology_2006.pdf (6.004Mb)license.txt (1.998Kb) -
Mapeo, R.B.M.; Ramokate, L.V.; Corfu, F.; Davis, D.W.; Kampunzu, A.B. (Elsevier Ltd. www.elsevier.com/locate/jafrearsci, NaN, 2006)[more][less]
Abstract: The Okwa Basement Complex crops out at the northwestern edge of the Kaapvaal craton within the Okwa Inlier, an isolated exposure of Precambrian basement in the Kalahari Desert. New U–Pb zircon dating was performed on all the major Palaeoproterozoic lithologies of the complex. Results are 2055.3 ± 1.3 Ma for augen gneiss, 2056.3 ± 1.3 Ma for foliated monzogranite and 2057 ± 2 Ma for microgranite. A meta-rhyolite gives an age of 2055 ± 4 Ma, based on one concordant zircon, and contains an inherited zircon with an age of 2101 ± 4 Ma. All precisely dated rocks are indistinguishable in age at 2056 ± 2 Ma. This age can be broadly correlated with Palaeoproterozoic geologic events in the Magondi belt at the northwest margin of the Zimbabwe craton and the Triangle Shear Zone in the Limpopo belt. However, the most precise correlation is with the Bushveld Complex, whose age is indistinguishable from that of the Okwa Basement Complex. This suggests a link between marginal and intra-cratonic Bushveld-age magmatism on the Kaapvaal craton. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10311/272 Files in this item: 1
The Okwa basement complex.pdf (5.655Mb) -
Lucas, P.M. (November 11, 2011)[more][less]
Abstract: The status of the older population has been an on-going social policy concern in both developed and developing countries for several decades now. This is reflected in research, policies and legislative provisions for the older people in the countries such as the USA, Canada and others. In developing countries, this concern is a recent phenomenon. It is only in the last three decades that scholars and policy makers have begun to pay some attention to the plight and situation of older people in developing countries. This paper uses secondary data sources to appraise Botswana’s Old Age Pension Scheme. The scheme is non-contributory and covers all older persons aged 65 years and above. The paper acknowledges that the pension scheme has significantly contributed to the enhancement of the socio-economic profile of the older people in Botswana. It however, contends that the provisions of the pension scheme do not adequately meet the financial requirements of the older people. This is exacerbated by the fact that some older persons support unemployed and dependent members of their families from the same pension money especially grandchildren orphaned by AIDS. The paper also reveals that the pension scheme is wrought with administrative and implementation bottlenecks. Among the major problems affecting the pension scheme for the elderly are, congestion at paying points; traveling of long distances to the paying points; delays in processing life declaration certificates; exposure to criminal activities; failure by paying officers to honor paying schedules and problems associated with computer systems failure. It is the contention of this paper that there is an urgent need to develop a comprehensive policy for the protection and care of older people in Botswana. Such a policy should address the various needs of the older people and in particular set a clearer criterion for adequate financial provision for the older population. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10311/915 Files in this item: 1
LucasPM_June2009_Thesis.pdf (937.5Kb) -
Vasudeva, R.; Divanji, G. (Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics, http://epubs.siam.org, NaN, 2006)[more][less]
Abstract: Let (X(t), t ≥ (0) with X(0) = 0 be a stable subordinator with index 0 < α < 1 and let (tk) be an increasing sequence such that tk+1/tk → ∞ as k → ∞. Let (at) be a positive nondecreasing function of t such that a(t)/t 1. Define Y (t) = X(t + a(t)) − X(t) and Z(t) = X(t) − X(t − a(t)), t > 0. We obtain law-of-the-iterated-logarithm results for (X(tk)), (Y (tk)) and Z(tk), properly normalized. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10311/1135 Files in this item: 1
Divanji_TPA_2006.pdf (120.0Kb) -
Massamba, F. (Birkhäuser Basel. http://www.springerlink.com/content/107580/?p=1930c3cc1de944feae211b785b3b42a4&pi=0, NaN, 2009)[more][less]
Abstract: We study semi-parallel lightlike hypersurfaces of an indefinite Kenmotsu manifold, tangent to the structure vector field. Some Theorems on parallel and semi-parallel vector field, geodesibility of lightlike hypersurfaces are obtained. The geometrical configuration of such lightlike hypersurfaces is established. We prove that, in totally contact umbilical lightlike hypersurfaces of an indefinite Kenmotsu manifold which has constant φ-holomorphic sectional curvature c, tangent to the structure vector field and such that its distribution is parallel, the parallelism and semi-parallelism notions are equivalent. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10311/539 Files in this item: 1
On semi-parallel.pdf (1.027Mb) -
Raju, V.C.C. (University of Botswana, NaN, 1998)[more][less]
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Parsons, N. (University of Botswana, Research and Development Unit/http://digital.lib.msu.edu/projects/africanjournals/browse.cfm?colid=12, NaN, 2002)[more][less]
Abstract: This article talks about how the body of El Negro was stolen from southern Africa and how it was kept as an exhibit in a museum in Spain. Two French taxidermists stole the body later known as El Negro from a grave beyond the Cape Colony frontier in 1830-31. It was stuffed and displayed as 'Le Betjouana' (i.e. the Bechuana or Motswana) in France and as '1/ Betjouana' in Spain. From 1916 until 1998 it was the prime exhibit in a museum at Banyoles, north of Barcelona, where it became known as El Negro. Controversy over its display began in 1991, and was complicated by the assertion that a 'Betjouana' was a type of 'Bosquimano' (Bushman). URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10311/507 Files in this item: 1
Parsons_PBJAS_2002.pdf (824.7Kb) -
Molefe, W.B.; Mguni, B.S. (Pula: Botswana Journal of African Studies, NaN, 2000)[more][less]
Abstract: Opinion polls are a relatively new phenomenon in Botswana but nonetheless a welcome development as they inform both the candidates and the campaigners on pertinent issues facing the electorate. Opinion polls becomes more visible and more discussed during every general election in Botswana. Unlike developed countries where poll taking begins more than a year before an election and continues until the last few hours of the election night, polls here have been conducted at one time only during election years. Due to financial and logistical constraints they are not conducted at times when there are issues of public and national concern. Most of the polls so far polls have been conducted by the Democracy Research Project of the University of Botswana. However, as Bogart puts it 'the fundamental prmclple of statistical sampling, the basis for polling, seems hard for many people to understand'. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10311/903 Files in this item: 1
Molefe_PBJAS_2000.pdf (525.0Kb) -
Kumar, P.; Sathiaraj, T.S.; Thangaraj, R. (Taylor & Francis, NaN, 2010)[more][less]
Abstract: The measurements and analysis of optical transmission and far-infrared (IR) reflectivity spectra of thermally evaporated Sb2Se3:Sn films are reported. The refractive index and film thickness have been determined from the upper and lower envelopes of the transmission spectra (Swanepoel’s standard envelope method), measured at normal incidence, in the spectral range from 800 to 2500 nm. Values of the refractive index fit well to Cauchy’s dispersion relation. The optical gap decreases with an increase in the Sn content, while a maximum in the tailing parameter and Urbach’s energy occurs with only a small amount ( 1 at %) of this additive. Characteristic vibrational bands for SbSe3 structural units are revealed in the far-IR spectrum with no additional ones arising from the Sn additive. The Kramers–Kronig analysis has been used to calculate the dielectric constants and hence the longitudinal optic and transverse optic splitting for various compositions. The inclusion of Sn as a charged entity along with the Coulomb interactions which serve to polarize the glass medium is found to be responsible for these results. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10311/547 Files in this item: 1
Optical properties.pdf (1.116Mb)