SOME CLASSES OF CONVEX FUNCTIONS ON TIME SCALES

We have introduced diamond $\phi_{h-s, \mathbb{T}}$ derivative and diamond $\phi_{h-s,\mathbb{T}}$ integral on an arbitrary time scale. Moreover, various interconnections with the notion of classes of convex functions about these new concepts are also discussed

Optimizing Gastrointestinal Integrity in Poultry: The Role of Nutrients and Feed Additives

Immunomodulation of the immune system by stimulating or suppressing one or both arms, is an emerging concept driven by the understanding of the host defense system. In particular, the gastrointestinal tract (GIT) functions not only as a site for digestion and absorption of nutrients but also acts as a metabolic and immunological organ. This serves as a barrier against abnormal presentation of luminal constituents, caused by dysfunctional intestinal epithelial barrier, to the mucosal immune system. Invasion by pathogens in the case of disease or stress or a massive influx of commensal bacteria overcomes the defensive mechanisms, resulting in the full activation of local dendritic cells and the expression of co-stimulatory molecules and pro-inflammatory cytokines. A growing body of literature demonstrates the immune benefits of increasing the intake of specific nutrients. This strategy involves formulating diets that encompass the bioavailability and utilization of nutrients from various food sources and understanding the dynamics of the macro and micronutrients to support all physiological functions as well as maintaining the function of the immune cells. The nature and type of feed ingredients may also play some roles on the integrity of the GIT of birds. Because dietary intake or nutritional status as well as nutrient requirements may be altered as a result of disease or stress, this may eventually alter the gut microflora and intestinal mucosal integrity, resulting in a compromised barrier of the intestinal epithelium. The weakening of the intestinal integrity could result in an increase in bacterial adherence to the mucosa, bacterial translocation, susceptibility to opportunistic bacterial infection, and mis-appropriation of nutrients. In this chapter, we will discuss the role of dietary energy and nutrients as substrates that have the potential to influence GIT\u27s health and integrity and their roles, directly or indirectly, in modulating bird\u27s ability to be resilient or resist infection

Economic Analysis and Modelling of Effects of NPK Fertilizer Levels on Yield of Yam

This paper presents statistical analyses of effects and efficacies of NPK fertilizer levels on yield of four differentspecies of yam in three different locations of kwara state Nigeria. Four quantitative and equally spaced levels0kg/ha, 22.5kg/ha, 45kg/ha and 76kg/ha respectively, of the fertilizer type were considered in the experiment.Factorial design model was used in collecting data sets on yield variables of the plant, using fixed effects, in anexperiment conducted by the Kwara Agricultural Development Project (KWADP) Ilorin, in the year 2012. Thefour varieties of yam examined included white yam, water yam, aerial yam and bitter yam respectively.Observations were taken from Ekan-Meje, Omu-Aran and Omupo locations of the state on a number of responsevariables namely, number of yam plants, number of yam tubers and weight (kg) of yam tubers. Beforeconducting ANOVA, the data sets were inspected for homogeneity of error variances using Fligner-Killeen testin the R statistical package. The test revealed that homoscedasticity assumption was not violated and Shapiro-Wilk test of normality was further used to check normality of the residuals arising from the ANOVA model. Theresponse variables were modelled with orthogonal polynomials so as be able to predict response yield atintermediate factor levels. Fertilizer level of 22.5kg/ha was found to be the most effective and economical forgrowing yam with the corresponding optimum yield.Keywords: ANOVA, NPK, Factorial design, KWADP, Fligner-Killeen test, Shapiro-Wilk test and orthogonalpolynomia

Electricity Consumption and Economic Development in Nigeria

The study examines the relationship between electricity consumption and economic development using an extended neoclassical model for the period 1970-2013. The study incorporates the uniqueness of the Nigerian economy by controlling for the role of institutions, technology, emissions, and economic structure in the electricity consumption-development argument. The study adopted a cointegration analysis based on the Johansen and Juselius (1981) maximum Likelihood approach and a vector error correction model. In order to ensure robustness, the study adopted the wald block endogeneity causality test to ascertain the direction of causal relationship between electricity consumption and economic development. The study found an existence of long-run cointegration equation with electricity consumption inversely related to economic development. Likewise, the vector error correction model failed to reject the null hypothesis of non-convergence in the long-run. Finally, the study found evidence supporting unidirectional causal relationship running from economic development to electricity consumptio

Cost Entropy and Expert System Approach to Modeling Cost Smoothing System in Reinforced Concrete Office Building Projects Procurement

The main aim of this research work is to develop an expert system approach to cost smoothing model in reinforced concrete office building project procurement. An econometric model which incorporates exigency escalator and inflation buffer, with entropy threshold for a typical reinforced concrete office building, useful at tendering and construction stages of building projects was developed in this study. As built and bill of quantity value of twenty (20) building projects initiated and completed within 2008 and 2009 were used at random. Elemental dichotomies within the context of early and late constructible elements with speculated prediction period was used, taken into consideration the present value of cost. This attributes would enable a builder or contactor load cost implication of an unseen circumstance even on occasion of deferred cost reimbursement with the aid of average entropy index developed for each project elements. The model was further validated with new samples and discovered to be of high Eigen and contingency coefficient values. The model could help in cost smoothing at different stages of reinforced concrete office building which could further aid cost overrun prevention

What Lenders Want from Mortgage Valuation Reports:A Survey of Nigeria Banks

For over a decade now, the Nigerian real estate industry has witnessed a steady but continuous growth as via the participatory activities of major private sector players both nationally and internationally. Hence, the need to urgently explore the requirements of valuation report users is eminent as the report serves as an important input to lenders' decision making. Surveying the existing twenty-two (22) Nigerian banks as prime users of valuation reports in the country, this study examines the need of these banks vis-a-vis the report content with a view to determine their needs and further improve on the quality of valuers’ reports. The needs of the banks were examined in accordance with the reporting format of Nigerian valuation reports. Using mean ranking coupled with the relative importance index (RII) methods, retrieved data were analysed and findings showed that lenders require more explicit details relating to salient aspects of the property market in valuation reports which include valuation calculations and uncertainty in valuation figures. The study concluded that the profession of estate surveyors and valuers should be mindful of the new expectation of their clients and try as much as possible to meet those expectations to retain the reliability of valuation reports in Nigeria

Built Environment Professionals' Perceptions of the Effectiveness of Building Control Measures in Lagos State

Due to the alarming rate of building collapse, this study assesses building control practices in Lagos state. It examines the effectiveness of building control practices, and it also identifies the factors limiting the capacity of building control practices. To achieve these objectives, quantitative techniques were used in which 61 questionnaires were distributed to selected professionals from contracting firms within the built environment. The sample was selected using the purposive sampling technique. The data collected were processed using mean item score, percentage and ANOVA. The study revealed that not all building control measures were thoroughly observed. It was discovered from the findings that, aside from the measure of processing and scrutinising the building plans for approval, which was duly observed, no other measures were observed, and they are all equally significant. The study also identifies factors that impede adherence to building control practices, such as corruption and the bureaucratic process, which were ranked highest. Hypothesis testing revealed that there is no significant difference among the professionals in their perception of the effectiveness of building control practices. In conclusion, this study recommends regular auditing of the activities of building control agencies due to the prevalence of corruption cases among their members

Energy Supply and Climate Change in Nigeria

The energy industry has been identified as one of the sectors most vulnerable to the impact of climate change. In the past years, government had been making a lot of effort at reforming the energy sector and this study attempted to investigate the extent to which the energy sector will be affected in the face of the threats presented by a changing climate. The study seeks to examine the impact of climate change on energy supply in Nigeria for the period 1971-2011 using the vector error correction procedure. We adopted the Johansen and Juselius, and Engle-Granger co-integration analysis to determine the rank of the series long run co-integration. Also the error correction model was used to obtain the long-run estimates and the speed of error adjustment. We corroborate our findings by adopting the Wald exogeneity test to examine the direction of causal relationship between climate change and energy production. The study found a positive relationship between climate change and energy supply, as well as no evidence of causal relationship between climate change and energy supply. The study developed an interaction of climate change and measure of institutional quality, though less responsive to energy supply, but exhibits similar pattern with the actual climate change. Also, the indicators of power losses, technology and investment impacts a significant negative influence on energy supply, while GDP per capita and economy structure exerts though positive but the indicator of economic structure was statistically insignificant in explaining dynamism in energy supply. The findings from our empirical investigation puts caution on economic advisers and policy makers on the level of adherence to the Kyoto protocol in order not to jeopardize productivity activities and economic gains. Also,adaptation efforts should however follow careful scenario analysis with a strengthened institutional framework and injection of funds for technological improvement. This could be done in partnership with international organizations and the private secto

Effects of Climate Change on Built Environment in Lagos, Nigeria

Climate change has become one of the most exigent concerns of human race today. The effect of climate changes connected to human activities has become alarming since our ecosystem is not naturally adapting quickly to this phenomenon that depends on natural and human causes. As the key climate change indicators such as increasing temperature and intensity of rainfall are being verified in Nigeria, the consequent impacts of climate change connected to these symptoms are to be expected in Nigeria. With the increasing incidence of climate change related hazards and disasters, considerable damage to buildings and infrastructure is expected. Lagos being one of the largest/fastest growing cities in the world and the foremost manufacturing port city in West African sub region is chosen for this study. Its importance as the economic hub of Nigeria, its coastal position, the peculiarity of building development makes it an ideal State for the study of the impact of global climate change on Nigerian built environment. This research uses statistical methods to analyze rainfall, temperature and structural failure data of Lagos State and postulates their impacts on constructed facilities in Lagos Cosmopolitan urban area. The results confirm the vulnerability of Lagos environment to climate change and the trend of the impacts of flooding on Lagos built environmen

Experimental Investigation of Yield Strengths of Steel Reinforcing Bars Used in Nigerian Concrete Structures

Concrete is the most widely used construction material in the world and is best used in conjunction with reinforcing steel for optimal results. But a lot of behavioral and durability issues affect the performance of this composite material. The level of understanding of these durability issues depends on the sophistication of the environment of application of the material. In the developing nations such as Nigeria, where the incidence of building collapse is very frequent and over 95% of the cases of collapse affect reinforced concrete structures, a lot need to be done to understand effectively the true causes of the building collapses. Among these include the behavior of the reinforcing steel adopted in Nigerian construction industry. This research evaluates the behavior of reinforcing steel used in Nigerian concrete structures. The research considers the test results of 12mm and 16mm reinforcing bars adopted for structural purposes within Lagos State environment which have experienced the most cases of building collapse in Nigeria. A total of 433 samples from sites located in 10 Local Government Areas of Lagos State were analyzed with statistical tools. About 42% of the 12mm bars and 46% of 16mm bars failed to meet the BS code prescription of 460N/mm2 yield strength and about 28 % and 33% of 12mm and 16mm bars, respectively, failed to meet the Nigerian’s professional’s prescription of 410N/mm2