University of Pretoria

Air Pollution and Heat Impacts on Respiratory Morbidity and Mortality Outcomes in Africa: A Systematic Review Towards a Meta-analysis

Abstract Purpose of the review This review synthesised evidence on associations between air pollution and respiratory morbidity in Africa. Following PRISMA guidelines, we systematically searched PubMed, ScienceDirect and Elicit for case-control studies published between 2015 and...

Activity shapes large herbivores’ ecological influences

The ecological effects of large herbivores are shaped by their spatial and temporal patterns of activity (i.e. where, when and how intensely they use specific locations). When large herbivores' ecological influences are perceived to be undesirable, the traditional approach has be...

Coupling intensified push–pull technology with insect frass biofertilization improves land productivity, protein yield and carbon stocks

Abstract We evaluated agricultural innovations such as push-pull (PP), vegetable-integrated push-pull (VIPP), and black soldier fly frass fertilizer (BSFFF) for their transformative potential in rural smallholder agriculture. Using 12 cropping systems comprising two crops (maize...

Talking climate, growing change: communication pathways and farmer adoption of resilient practices in Techiman, Ghana

Abstract Climate change poses significant challenges to smallholder agriculture in Ghana, threatening food security and rural livelihoods. Effective communication of climate-resilient agricultural practices is therefore critical to enhance farmers’ adaptive capacity. Using a desc...

Mean regression for (0, 1) responses via beta scale mixtures

Abstract To achieve greater flexibility for modelling heavy-tailed responses on the unit interval, a beta scale mixture (BSM) regression model is proposed. The conditional response is assigned a mean-parameterised beta distribution whose variability parameter is scaled by a mixin...

From policy debate to empirical evidence: a proof-of-concept bibliometric and LLM-assisted abstract-level content analysis of OTC hearing aid research before and after FDA regulation

Objective To characterise temporal patterns in over-the-counter (OTC) hearing-aid research before and after U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) implementation of the OTC category (effective October 2022), using bibliometrics and large language model (LLM)–assisted abstract-le...

Investigating Triggers of Undrained Slope Instability Using Centrifuge Modeling

Abstract This study investigated mechanisms by which undrained slope instability in contractive sand slopes can be triggered. Using centrifuge modeling, eight experiments were conducted on fine sand slopes, with the first prepared in a dilative state and the remainder in a contra...

Square closed pointed vector lattices

Abstract Given an Archimedean vector lattice E , we present one elementary property of E which is equivalent to the entire traditional list of axioms which makes E a $$\Phi $$ Φ -algebra. We call a vector lattice with this property “square closed”. More generally, we then introdu...

Monodromy, logarithmic sectors, and two-point functions in critical topologically massive gravity

A bstract We investigate the structure of logarithmic modes in critical topologically massive gravity (CTMG) at the chiral point μℓ = 1 from the perspective of analytic continuation and monodromy. Starting from the degeneration of massive and left-moving graviton modes, we constr...

Sexual Union Status and HIV Viral Load Suppression Among Older Adults in Rural South Africa: A Population-Based Study

The success of HIV treatment is primarily measured through viral load suppression. However, little is known regarding the association between sexual union status and viral suppression among older adults. This study aimed to assess the association between sexual union status and H...

Rooted in Resilience: Climate Change and Mental Health Narratives of Makgobistad’s Emerging Adults

The psychological consequences of climate change remain understudied, particularly among emerging adults in marginalised rural settings. This study explored the impact of climate change on the mental health of emerging adults in Makgobistad, a semi-arid village in the North West...

Viral dissemination and diagnostic insights from experimental infection of sheep with Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus

Abstract Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus (CCHFV) is a tick-borne orthonairovirus widely distributed across Asia, Africa, the Middle East, and Southern Europe, causing severe illness and hemorrhagic fever in humans. While sheep usually show no clinical symptoms, they develop...

Ocular vestibular evoked myogenic potentials: a comparison of 500 Hz toneburst and narrowband CE-Chirp stimuli in older children

OBJECTIVE: To compare ocular vestibular evoked myogenic potential (oVEMP) response parameters in children using a 500 Hz narrowband CE-Chirp stimulus versus a 500 Hz toneburst stimulus. DESIGN: A within-subject cross-sectional design was employed. Response rate, N1 latency, P1 la...

Nonparametric multivariate analysis of phenotypic traits of sorghum genotypes evaluated under non-irrigated and irrigated conditions

Abstract Sorghum (Sorghum bicolor) is a major cereal crop cultivated primarily in arid and semi-arid regions because of its drought tolerance and adaptability to low-moisture environments. It serves multiple roles, including food, fodder, bioenergy, and industrial uses. This stud...

The Question of “Home Wisdom”: A Contextual Study of Luke 15:11–32

It has become taboo for a parent today to say “no” to a child. Children grow in this “supposed” freedom and child rights, and then some assume an attitude of always having their own way, a character devoid of “home wisdom”, also called “common sense”. It is only their way that ma...

Nigeria’s Counter-Terrorism Strategy: Constructions of Threat, Response, and Identity

Despite the numerous studies on Nigeria’s role in the global war on terror, especially regarding the Islamist terrorist group Boko Haram, there has been limited research on how the Nigerian governm...

Prevalence of Biofilm-Forming Pseudomonas aeruginosa from Clinical Samples in Africa: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Background: Biofilms help Pseudomonas aeruginosa adhere to surfaces and form an extracellular polymeric matrix. P. aeruginosa infections are increasingly difficult to treat due to biofilm formation. This study seeks to ascertain the overall prevalence of biofilm-forming P. aerugi...

Prospecting MeerKAT Continuum Data for Enigmatic Radio Sources with Unsupervised Vector-Quantised Variational Autoencoders

Abstract We present a novel application of Vector quantised variational autoencoders (VQ-VAEs) as an unsupervised tool to probe deep 1.28 GHz radio continuum images taken from the MeerKAT Galaxy Cluster Legacy Survey (MGCLS) and compare their performance to other machine learning...

Correcting Turnbull’s (1983) characterization of Nash equilibria in affine supply function competition

Abstract Turnbull (Econ Lett 13: 253–258, 1983) describes unique symmetric Nash equilibria for supply function competition under demand uncertainty which consist of affine strategies that are nonlinear. For the same economy Klemperer and Meyer (Econometrica 79: 1919–1966, 1989) d...

Operationalizing a library makerspace in Nigeria: lessons from the University of Lagos library

Purpose This study aims to investigate the transition of makerspaces from concept to practice within Nigerian academic libraries, using the University of Lagos (UNILAG) Library Makerspace as a case study. It examines the emergence and operationalization of the makerspace, the fac...