UWCScholar

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Geometrical representation and Hirota direct approach for multiple soliton solutions of nonlinear M-coupled fractional equations
(Taylor and Francis Ltd., 2025) Farah, Gassan A.M.O.; Abakar Abdalla Hassaballa; Abdel-Salam, Emad A.B.
This paper introduces a novel analytical framework for deriving multiple soliton and singular soliton solutions to M-coupled fractional evolution equations. By integrating conformable fractional derivatives with an extended Hirota direct method, we systematically solve fractional versions of the KdV, mKdV, KP, and modified KP equations. The conformable derivative permits effective bilinearization, facilitating the construction of explicit solutions. We further provide a geometric interpretation through curvature analysis of soliton surfaces in fractional space. Theoretical results are validated against classical cases (α = 1), demonstrating consistency and enhancing the analytical toolkit for modeling wave propagation in nonlinear optics, plasma physics, and anomalous diffusion.
“What remains? the language [culture] remains”
(Sun Media, 2025) van Marle, Karin; Danie Brand
As scholars who have struggled with the question of the relationship between transformation and law for most of our work lives, we remain interested in and often perplexed by the ways in which legal scholars, the media and members of the public at large continue to talk about and comment on matters concerning law, constitution and change as if they are isolated or demarcated from each other. In this vein we were intrigued by the specific way in which the title of and the call for papers of a recent conference, held at the University of the Free State, was formulated: ‘Transformative constitutionalism and private law’. In our paper delivered at this conference, we spoke about what this specific formulation elicited in our minds. This article is a reworked and expanded version of that paper.
Vulnerability of marine megafauna to global at-sea anthropogenic threats
(John Wiley and Sons Inc, 2026) Waller, Lauren; VanCompernolle, Michelle; Morris, Juliet
Marine megafauna species are affected by a wide range of anthropogenic threats. To evaluate the risk of such threats, species’ vulnerability to each threat must first be determined. We build on the existing threats classification scheme and ranking system of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species by assessing the vulnerability of 256 marine megafauna species to 23 at-sea threats. The threats we considered included individual fishing gear types, climate-change-related subthreats not previously assessed, and threats associated with coastal impacts and maritime disturbances. Our ratings resulted in 70 species having high vulnerability (v > 0.778 out of 1) to at least 1 threat, primarily drifting longlines, temperature extremes, or fixed gear. These 3 threats were also considered to have the most severe effects (i.e., steepest population declines). Overall, temperature extremes and plastics and other solid waste were rated as affecting the largest proportion of populations. Penguins, pinnipeds, and polar bears had the highest vulnerability to temperature extremes. Bony fishes had the highest vulnerability to drifting longlines and plastics and other solid waste; pelagic cetaceans to 4 maritime disturbance threats; elasmobranchs to 5 fishing threats; and flying birds to drifting longlines and 2 maritime disturbance threats. Sirenians and turtles had the highest vulnerability to at least one threat from all 4 categories. Despite not necessarily having severe effects for most taxonomic groups, temperature extremes were rated among the top threats for all taxa except bony fishes. The vulnerability scores we provide are an important first step in estimating the risk of threats to marine megafauna. Importantly, they help differentiate scope from severity, which is key to identifying threats that should be prioritized for mitigation.
Mangaliso sobukwe’s linkages to pan-Africanist struggles for a decolonized and afrocentric “African university”
(SAGE Publications Inc., 2025) Sesanti, Simphiwe
The year 2025 holds great significance in the calendar of Pan-Africanism. It marks the 80th anniversary of the fifth Pan African Congress (PAC) held in Manchester, London, following four Pan African Congresses held under the leadership of the Pan-Africanist philosopher, W. E. B. Du Bois. The five PACs, themselves, followed the Pan African Conference convened by the Pan-Africanist lawyer, Henry Sylvester Williams, in 1900. In this study, I examine how Mangaliso Sobukwe’s ideas, as a Pan-Africanist philosopher, located in South Africa, contributed to calls for a decolonized and Afrocentric “African University.” In SA, the calls took dramatic turns in 1995, at Wits University, coinciding with the 50th anniversary of the Manchester PAC, and, in 2015, at the University of Cape Town (UCT), coinciding with the Manchester PAC’s 70th anniversary. In examining Sobukwe’s Pan-Africanist philosophical thinking on decolonized and Afrocentric education, I simultaneously, examine how Sobukwe’s ideas resonated with Pan-Africanist philosophers, continentally, on decolonized and Afrocentric higher education.
Township economics: how the market structure of the informal economy impacts the recirculation of secondhand tires in South Africa
(SAGE Publications Ltd, 2026) Schenck, Catherina Johanna Rinie; Theodore, Nik; Blaauw, Phillip Frederick
In the context of South Africa’s extraordinarily high unemployment rates, urban residents are increasingly fashioning livelihoods from the reclamation and recirculation of waste. Drawing on a survey of 458 unregistered tire dealerships operating in South African townships, this article examines the structure and operations of this segment of the informal economy. Our analysis addresses several underexplored aspects of informality, with a focus on market dynamics and interfirm competition within township economies. The article contributes to the literature on informal economies and recycling value chains by providing firm-level insights into the competitive pressures faced by unregistered tire dealerships, highlighting how market structures influence business outcomes. The study seeks to make three contributions to the literature on economic informality: it centers the microeconomics of the firm; adds to the understanding of evolving township economies; and examines the basis of interfirm competition and the geographies of informality. The research also highlights the dual nature of these microenterprises, which generate jobs and incomes but remain small-scale and survivalist, limiting their potential for growth and their broader economic impacts.