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Design flood estimation (DFE) methods are used to limit the risk of failure and ensure the safe design of hydrological and related infrastructure, and to inform water resources management. In order to improve DFE methods which are based on event or continuous simulation rainfall–runoff models, it is generally necessary to use sub-daily rainfall data. However, sub-daily rainfall gauges are relatively sparse and have shorter record lengths than daily rainfall gauges in South Africa. Rainfall temporal disaggregation (RTD) techniques can be used to produce finer resolution data from coarser resolution daily rainfall data. Several RTD approaches have been developed and are used in South Africa. However, there is a need to review and assess the performance of the available RTD methods. This paper contains an overview of selected RTD approaches and the performance of the methods at selected sites in South Africa, for disaggregating daily rainfall into 15-min intervals. Temporal distributions of rainfall were represented by dimensionless Huff curves, which served as the basis for comparison of observed and disaggregated rainfall. In a pilot study it was found that the SCS-SA (Soil Conservation Service model South Africa) distributions and the Knoesen model approaches performed considerably better than the other approaches. The RTD approaches were further assessed using data from 14 additional rainfall stations. For the additional stations, the Knoesen model and SCS-SA disaggregated rainfall generally provided the most realistic temporal distributions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Literature suggests that there are high levels of commercialisation by even the poorest and smallest landholders within the horticulture subsector in most rural Africa. Thus, the notion of poor commercialisation among smallholder farmers is now being challenged. Against this background, this paper estimated factors that influence commercialisation by smallholder cabbage farmers in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. The study used a cross-sectional survey of 120 smallholder cabbage farmers obtained through a multistage sampling procedure. A Cragg double-hurdle model was applied to analyse the factors that influence the commercialisation decision and intensity of commercialisation. In the first stage, the result of the probit regression model revealed that gender, age, access to informal credit and area planted were significant factors towards influencing smallholder cabbage farmers' commercialisation decisions. In the second stage, the results of the truncated regression model revealed that family size and area planted were the key factors determining the intensity of commercialisation. Hence, the attempts to improve smallholder farmers' cabbage commercialisation should be guided by these significant explanatory variables in the study area, given the low commercialisation index revealed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Binge drinking (BD) is a significant risk factor for several acute and chronic illnesses, including injuries. This study examines the rate, frequency and intensity of BD in Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality (BCMM), South Africa.Methods: This was a cross-sectional survey of 998 adults attending the three largest outpatient clinics in BCMM. Rate, frequency and intensity of BD were assessed using the WHO STEPwise questionnaire. Descriptive and inferential statistics were carried out to determine the rate and determinants of binge drinking.Results: The overall rate of BD was 15.0%. Frequency and intensity of BD were 5.4 episodes per month and 13.4 drinks on one occasion, respectively. The study data showed that BD was commoner in males than females (24.0% vs. 10.8%). Smokers engage more in BD than non-smokers (44.0% vs. 9.9%). In the analysis of socio-demographic variables, BD was commonest among students, age group 18-25 years, those never married and those on incomes between 2001 and 5000 Rand per month. In the multivariate logistic regression, after adjusting for confounders, only age less than 25 years (p < 0.001) and male gender (p < 0.001) were significant predictors of binge drinking. Also, male gender (p = 0.002) was significantly associated with frequency of BD. There was no significant gender variation in the intensity of BD. Only age and smoking were significantly associated with the intensity of BD.Conclusion: The rate of binge drinking was high among the study participants, and those who binge drink tend to do so frequently and at a high intensity. Women who binge drink also do so at a high intensity. There is a need for sensitisation campaigns and health advocacy talks on the dangers associated with binge drinking among young adults in this setting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper estimates a Multidimensional Poverty Index for Gauteng province of South Africa. The Alkire-Forster method is applied on Quality of Life survey data for 2011 and 2013 which offer an excellent opportunity for estimating poverty at smaller geographical areas. The results suggest that the Multidimensional Poverty Index for Gauteng is low but varies markedly by municipality and by ward, as well as across income groups. Not only are low income households more likely to be multidimensionally poor, they also suffer from higher intensities of poverty. Multidimensional poverty is highest in areas of low economic activity located on the edges of the province. However, pockets of multidimensional poverty do prevail even in better performing municipalities. Government, at all spheres, needs to devise policies that channel investments into lagging areas and avoid approaches that are indifferent to the heterogeneities that exist across localised geographical extents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports on an elicited production study which investigates prosodic marking of narrow focus in modified noun phrases in varieties of South African English. The acoustic analysis of fundamental frequency, intensity, and duration in narrow focus is presented and discussed. The results suggest that these three acoustic parameters are manipulated differently in narrow focus in the varieties of English as a Second Language as compared to General South African English. The article compares the results to what is known about prosodic marking of information structure in other varieties of English as a Second Language and underlines the necessity of carefully controlled data in the investigation of phonological and phonetic variation in varieties of English. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Despite the significant biopsychosocial impact of chronic pain on the health and quality of life of an individual, as well as on healthcare utilisation, no published data are available on the prevalence of chronic pain in the South African primary healthcare context. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence and intensity of chronic pain in patients attending primary healthcare facilities in south-west Tshwane. Design and setting: A prospective, cross-sectional study was carried out in four primary healthcare clinics, situated in south-west Tshwane. Subjects: The study was conducted on 1 066 adult patients, aged 18 years or older , over a nine-week period between October and December 2010. Outcome measures: The prevalence and intensity of chronic pain was determined. Results: Chronic pain prevalence was 41%. The confidence interval (CI) was 37.2-45.6. Chronic pain was most frequently experienced as lower back pain [prevalence 30.83% (CI: 19.56-42.09)] and joint pains [prevalence 23.48% (CI: 7.58-39.38)]. Chronic pain was significantly more prevalent with advancing age (p-value = 0.0014), in women than in men (p-value = 0.019), and in widowed and divorced patients, than in married and single patients (p-value = 0.0062). Patients with chronic pain reported their pain intensity over the previous month as maximum pain intensity (mean: 7.69 ± 0.99), minimum pain intensity (mean 2.54 ± 0.89), and average pain intensity (mean 4.57 ± 0.62). Conclusion: Chronic pain was highly prevalent in patients who attended primary healthcare facilities in south-west Tshwane. The intensity of pain was high in a significant proportion of patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research investigated the role Facebook use plays in the creation or maintenance of social capital among university students in South Africa. Data were collected using questionnaires completed by over 800 students from 7 universities. The questionnaire was obtained from a study conducted in Michigan State University (Ellison N.B., Steinfield, C., and Lampe, C., 2007. The benefits of Facebook “Friends”: social capital and college students' use of online social network sites.Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 12(4), 1143–1168.). Empirical research has linked social capital to many positives in society, such as improved mental and physical health, economic well-being, etc. Thus, social capital is important for the success of civil society. This research examined the relationships between Facebook use and the formation and maintenance of social capital amongst university students. The study also examined factors specific to the South African context and drew comparisons to the results of the original study. Analysis of the results suggests a strong association between the intensity of Facebook use and perceived bridging, bonding and maintained social capital. This paper broadens the understanding of Facebook usage by introducing the dimensions of race and age. Facebook usage was found to interact with measures of psychological well-being, suggesting that it might be beneficial to students experiencing low self-esteem and low life satisfaction. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Urinary schistosomiasis is a disease caused by the worm parasite Schistosoma haematobium. Approximately 3 million people of whom the majority are children, staying in the subtropical areas of the Limpopo, Mpumalanga and Kwa-Zulu-Natal provinces, are infected with this parasite. Although the initial pathology of heavy infections is limited to blood in the urine, long term infections may lead to, amongst others, hydronephrosis and cancer of the squamous epithelial tissue of the bladder. Investigations that aim to collect information regarding the general epidemiology of schistosomiasis in a specific area, as well as the prevalence and intensity of infection, are primarily based on the presence of schistosome eggs in the urine. The results of these studies which are mainly done by making use of a single urine sample collected between 10:00 and 14:00 are often used as criteria to express the degree of morbidity, the prevalence and intensity of infection, worm load burden, as well as the presence of genital lesions and urinary tract disease in females. This is, however, only possible if the number of eggs excreted at a specific time is constant. Although there are serological techniques available to diagnose urinary schistosomiasis, parasitological methods are in spite of the above mentioned imperfections, still preferred for large scale epidemiological studies because of its cost effectiveness. It is however, of paramount importance to collect more information regarding the patterns of egg excretion as it occurs in males, as well as females in different age groups. This study was done in the Mamitwa Village in the Limpopo Province. Urine samples were collected at 8:30, 10:30, 12:30, 14:30 and 16:30 from schistosome positive males and females in the 4-9, 10-14 and 15-22 age groups. This was done for 6 consecutive days in the 4-9 and 10-14 year age groups and for four consecutive days in the 15-22 year age group. The eggs in each sample were separated from the urine by means of filtration and fixed with 4% formaldehyde after which they were counted. The number of eggs were expressed as the number per 10ml urine and categorized as not infected (no eggs per 10ml), lightly infected (1-50 eggs per 10ml), mildly infected (51-150 eggs per 10 ml) and heavily infected (>150 eggs per 10ml). The results were expressed as percentage per time of collection and statistically analysed by making use of Anova- and Tukey tests Although there was significant variation in the results when the different age groups in both the male and females were compared, a few constant tendencies were evident. In spite of the fact that only schistosome positive individuals were selected for this investigation and that a number of urine samples were collected from each individual over a number of days, false negatives were found at each collection period for all the age groups in both sexes, a phenomenon that was also true with regard to the intensity of infection. The number of false negatives was significantly lower for the females in the 4-9 year age group at the 12:30 collection period. This was also true for the females in the 10-14 year age group between 10:30 and 12:30 but no significant results could be found at the remaining groups. When comparing the percentages of infection in all the intensity categories for every collection period, urine collected from 10:30 onwards revealed the most true positive cases, while this was the case from 8:30 at the 15-22 year age groups. The fact that the 15-22 age group had the most false positives was expected because it corresponds with the decrease in intensity, as well as the prevalence of infection with an increase in age. The peak in the intensity of infection found in the 10-14 year age groups is probably due to numerous contacts with schistosomiasis infested water at this stage. The most mildly infected females in the 4-9 year age group were found between 10:30 and 14:30 while the most heavily infected individuals in this group were found between 12:30 and 14:30. No peaks were recorded for the males in this age group. With regard to the 10-14 year age group, a peak in the mildly infected females was evident between 10:30 and 14:30 and between 12:30 and 16:30 for the heavily infected category. A peak in infection for the heavily infected category for males in this age group was found between 10:30 and 16:30. No such peak was found in the females in the 15-22 year age group while there was only a peak in the heavily infected category in the males of this age group. From this study it can be concluded that in spite of numerous urine collections from infected individuals 100% prevalence could not be found in any of the groups during any of the collection periods. It was further evident that the general accepted time of a peak in excretion between 12:00 and 14:00 is not necessarily the best to establish the prevalence of infection in a community, especially when such an investigation also takes the intensity of infection into account. It is further evident that more urine samples at different times should be collected in order to increase the accuracy of the results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Coprological examination was used to determine the prevalence and intensity of gastro-intestinal parasites of stray dogs impounded by the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA), Durban and Coast, South Africa. Helminth and protozoan parasites were found in faeces of 240 dogs with an overall prevalence of 82.5 % (helminth parasites 93.1 % and protozoan parasites 6.9 %). The following parasites and their prevalences were detected; Ancylostonia sp. (53.8 %), Trichuris vulpis (7.9 %), Spirocerca lupi (5.4 %), Toxocarn canis (7.9%), Toxascaris leonina (0.4%) Giardin intestinalis (5.6%) and Isospora sp. (1.3 %). Dogs harbouring a single parasite species were more common (41.7 %) than those harbouring 2 (15%) or multiple (2.1 %) species. Ancylostoma sp., Toxocarn canis and Giardia intestinalis have zoonotic potential and were detected in 66.7 % of the samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Agriculture, Forestry and Other Land Use (AFOLU) sector produces approximately 10% of the global anthropogenic greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and growing demands for food to meet the needs of an increasing population make it difficult to mitigate these emissions. This study investigated historical (1911–2018) nitrous oxide (N 2 O) emissions from applications of synthetic nitrogen (N) fertiliser for agricultural purposes and crop residues retained in the fields post-harvest in South Africa. The aim was to develop trends of different sources of these emissions to guide national mitigation plans. Disaggregation of the emissions from key crops were developed using area planted, N application rates and residues retained in the fields. N 2 O intensities were calculated to establish a relationship between agricultural emissions and socio-economic conditions. Total emissions from N and crop residues were 7.3 million tonnes (Mt) of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO 2 e) emissions in 2018 and N 2 O from N fertiliser was approximately 3.0 Mt. Arrival of subsidised synthetic N in the 1950s grew the emissions significantly until they peaked in the 1980s when the support was terminated. N 2 O emissions per capita are gradually decreasing with time which indicates an unsustainable situation of population growing faster than its ability to produce food for itself. Less emissions per kilocalorie further indicate that crop emissions are not carbon intensive. • Policies and climate variability can influence emissions. • Crop residues retained in the fields are main sources of crop emissions. • Increased yields enhance emissions from crop residues. • Population growth is faster than rate of food production in South Africa. • Mitigating agricultural emissions needs strong policy on population growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Contemporary theories on players' intensity distribution in team sports suggest that they regulate their outputs using pacing strategies. There is currently limited information on how movement patterns and pacing strategies of rugby union players in different position groups (forwards and backs) vary when exposed to different bout types (whole game, starter or finisher). Global positioning system (GPS) and accelerometer data were collected from 100 professional match participations to determine temporal effects on movement patterns. For forwards, finishers (players who entered the game as substitutes) demonstrated significantly greater high-speed running distance (% difference, ± 90%CI; magnitude-based inference and effect size) (↑ 55, ±17%; very likely large) and acceleration frequency (↑ 78, ±59%; very likely large) than whole game players. For backs, starters (players who started the game and were later substituted) displayed greater high-speed running distance than whole game players (↑ 27, ±21%; ES =  likely medium) but this difference did not achieve statistical significance ( p  = .07). Forwards displayed "slow-positive" pacing strategies regardless of bout type, while backs displayed "flat" pacing strategies. Forwards and backs adopt different pacing strategies regardless of bout type, with forwards demonstrating progressively greater performance decrements over the course of the match. These findings reflect differing physical demands, notably contact and running loads, of players in different positions.