Radio Frequency Toolbox for Drone Detection and Classification

The continuous development of inexpensive embedded sensors has led to the rapid proliferation of new civilian use of unmanned aerial vehicle (UAVs) or drones. It is now easier for civilians to own drones as the cost falls. As we all know drones have a variety of important applications and can also be used for negative effects too. These drones can pose a threat to the security of the population either civilian, organization or industry. There is a need for Radio Frequency Signal Classification (RF-Class) toolbox which can monitor, detect, and classify RF signals from drone communication system. The ability to accurately classify over-the-air radio signals will provide insights into spectrum utilization, device fingerprinting and protocol identification. These insights can help the Warfighter to constantly be informed about adversaries transmitters capabilities without their knowledge. The advantage of the drone detection and classification toolbox is extracting information about transmitters and providing receivers information about transmitted signals. The classification of RF signals will be done based on the modulation scheme, in this case, orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM). The signal energy and features from the signals leveraging its orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) parameter information will be used to classify the signal. This classification will be done using the capabilities of machine learning to train and test the information collected. The content of this thesis discusses how drone detection and classification can be achieved using software defined radio. GNU radio and other hardware components will be used to implement a simulation of the module

Characterization of Lower Rio Grande Valley Watershed

The Lower Laguna Madre (LLM) is considered impaired because of the high concentration of bacteria and low level of dissolved oxygen (DO). LLM receives freshwater from the Lower Rio Grande Valley (LRGV) watershed. In other to understand the impairment, LRGV watershed is being studied by relying on water quality data of the contributing drainages and State resource geographic data to identify watershed boundary and pollutant sources. The study on the North and Central LRGV watershed shows some correlation between the concentration of E. coli/Bacteria, Ammonia, Total Kjeldahl Nitrogen, Total Phosphorus, Nitrate and Nitrite, Chlorophyll-a and the sources of pollutant in the watershed. The ongoing research into the LRGV watershed shows that the leading cause of impairment in LLM estuary is the agricultural activities, followed by industrial waste management, and the influence of urbanized area in the LRGV watershed

The Impulsive Upsurge of Yahoo-Yahoo in The 21st Century in Nigeria: Islamic Perspective

The bizarre upsurge of yahoo-yahoo in this 21st century in Nigeria is alarming and calls for academic attention, as such more than 40% undergraduates and up to 60% graduates without dependable job ware recruited into kleptomania and fraudster industry. The most abnormal phase of it is the initiation of secondary school students of between 15-22 years into this criminal guile. This study discovered that, both male and female, preschooler and graduate, adolescent and aged, educated and even uneducated people have inducted to the game as far as they can browse internet through phone or Laptop. The objectives of this study are to make Islāmic point of view with Qur’ānic justification towards fraud and theft that predominant in Nigeria as known to the people especially the mislead youth and also to encourage federal government to take quick step in finding solution to the problem of unemployment in Nigeria. In order to achieve this aim, thematic and analytical method employed. This paper finds that 419 and larceny of the olden days has reshuffled their name as yahoo-yahoo in the form of a game for educated elite played through the aid of internet accessibility. The paper concluded on the fact that two major reasons bring about the issue of yahoo-yahoo includes; the irate belief that colonial master had brutally enslaved their great grandfather in return they wanted to collect their entitlement, while others have erroneous confidence that they wanted to retrieve the money which European people borrow from their great grandfather

Investigation of Phenolic Contents and TLC-Direct Bioautography Screening of Four Nigeria Plant Extracts for Antioxidant Activities

In search of lead compounds with no side effect, four medicinal plants; Euadenia trifoliata, Lactuca capensis, Alstonia boonei and Ficus platyphylla were screened for antioxidant activity. Dried leaves of the four plants were extracted with EtoAc/MeOH (1:1) and the extracts obtained were screened by TLC-Direct bioautography method (TLC-DB) to identify the most promising extract from the four plants for antioxidant property. The TLC chromatogram revealed that the extract from the leaf of Euadenia trifoliata was the most promising and was thus fractionated into  dichloromethane, methanol and hexane soluble fractions. The fractions along with the crude extract were investigated for their phenolic contents and antioxidant potentials. Total phenolic content, TPCs, of the dichloromethane, methanol, crude and hexane extracts were 44.37, 28.83, 24.79 and 19.91 mg/g of gallic acid equivalents of extract, respectively. Antioxidant activities of the fractions using phosphomolybdate and free radical scavenging assays were in the order of methanol ˃ dichloromethane > crude ˃ hexane extract. The results of our finding indicated that methanol was the most suitable solvent to extract polyphenols and other antioxidant compounds from E. trifoliata leaves. In conclusion high polyphenols content of E. trifoliata leaves is an indication that the plant could potentially provide a remedy against disorders caused by oxidative stress. Keywords: Antioxidant, Euadenia trifoliata, Phenolics, Radical, TLC-Bioautograph

Adverse drug reactions reporting practice and associated factors among community health extension workers in public health facilities, Southwest, Nigeria

Introduction: timely adverse drug reactions (ADRs) reporting has contributed immensely towards public health safety. Community health extension workers (CHEWs) provides basic medical care in rural areas. This study assessed the knowledge, attitude, practice, and determinants of ADRs reporting among CHEWs in public health institutions, Southwest, Nigeria. Methods: a cross-sectional survey of 333 CHEWs randomly selected from public health facilities using self-administered questionnaires. The questionnaire sought information on the knowledge, attitude and practice of CHEWs towards ADRs reporting. The knowledge and attitude questions were scored and categorized. The association between dependent and independent variables assessed with bivariate and multivariate logistic regressions, and p < 0.05 considered statistically significant. Results: among 333 respondents, 205 (61.6%) had encountered patients with ADRs but only 26 (12.6%) had reported it with yellow forms. About half, 169 (50.8%), and 191 (57.4%) respondents had a positive attitude and inadequate knowledge of ADRs reporting respectively. Sex (aOR: 2.84, 95% CI: 2.10-7.10; p < 0.0001), working in Ogbomoso area (aOR:3.3, 95% CI: 1.34-8.21; p=0.01), and training (aOR:2.01, 95% CI: 1.20-3.42; p = 0.01) were factors associated with adequate knowledge. The determinant of ADRs reporting was training (aOR: 3.63, 95% CI: 1.13-11.63; p = 0.03). Conclusion: though CHEWs had a slightly positive attitude, they had inadequate knowledge and poor ADRs reporting. The determinant of inadequate ADRs reporting knowledge and under reporting was lack of training. There is an urgent need for educational intervention programmes towards improving knowledge and practices of ADRs reporting among CHEWs

Boosting food safety in Ghana:Exploring the future of nanotechnology

The issue of food fraud, safety and contaminants remains a topic of public concern, as it has been aligned to potential food scarcity. However, nanotechnology presents a promising opportunity for improving various industries, including food, agriculture, and health. This article aims to examine the potential of nanotechnology in enhancing food safety in Ghana, and its efficacy in addressing prevalent food safety challenges. Nano‐based approaches, such as nano‐packaging, nano‐sensing, nano‐additives, and other nano‐techniques, are discussed as effective methods for addressing major and emerging food safety issues in Ghana, such as food contaminants, antimicrobial resistance, food fraud and adulteration, and poor sanitary conditions. Additionally, the ethical and safety implications of these nano‐based approaches and particles are also deliberated

Productivity and quality analysis of selected boreholes in Osun and Kwara States, Nigeria

A study was conducted on the productivity and quality analysis of borehole water in Offa and Erin-Ile in Kwara State, and in Ilesa and Osogbo in Osun State, Nigeria.  Productivity of the borehole was carried out by pumping test to determine the discharge from the boreholes sampled.  Data about the boreholes were obtained from Hydrology Department of the Lower Niger River Basin Development Authority Ilorin, Kwara State (LNRBDA) and Rural Water and Environmental Sanitation Agency in Osun State (RUWESA).  Ten boreholes were sampled in Offa out of which seven were working.  Five boreholes in Erin – Ile were sampled out of which four were functional.  21 boreholes were sampled in Ilesa but only thirteen were working and three boreholes in Osogbo but only one was working.  All the boreholes sampled were free from E – Coli bacteria. Most chemicals analyzed were within the permissible limits of the Standard Organisation of Nigeria (SON) Act 2007 but magnesium contents were above the permissible limits (0.20) by a range of 0.09 mg/L, iron (II) above the limits (0.30) by a range of 0.50 mg/L.  Water from the boreholes of both states was suitable for human consumption. Keywords: borehole, water quality, productivity of borehole, aquifers, transmissibility

Assessing the underlying factors affecting trust and transparency in the construction industry: A mixed method approach

Trust and transparency are pivotal factors for the successful functioning of the construction industry, and their absence can lead to many challenges. This study delves into the context of the Nigerian construction industry to explore the impediments to trust and transparency and develop strategies for improvements. The study adopts a mixed-methods research to comprehensively examine the factors affecting trust and transparency using semi-structured interviews and structured questionnaires. These factors were categorised into four clusters: "Communication and Information Sharing", "Ethical and Integrity Issues", "Technological and Operational Challenges", and "Project-specific and Security Concerns" and validated by experts before administration of the surveys. The interview data was thematically analysed, while the questionnaire was analysed using partial least square structural equation modelling. The findings underscore the detrimental effects of inadequate communication protocols, ethical lapses, technological advancement resistance, and project data security vulnerabilities. Consequently, the study proposes comprehensive strategies, including establishing clear communication protocols, reinforcing ethical frameworks, embracing technological innovations, and implementing robust security measures. These strategies aim to enhance information sharing, foster ethical compliance, improve operational efficiency, and safeguard critical project data, fostering a culture of trust and transparency within the Nigerian construction industry

New Method of LMS Variable Step-Size Formulation for Adaptive Noise Cancellation

Least mean square (LMS) is a widely used steepest descent algorithm known with efficient tracking ability of small mean square error (MSE) but with low convergence speed. In contract to the fixed step size, variable step size was introduced to improve the convergence speed while maintaining the minimal MSE. In this work, a new method was formulated to determine the variable step size of the LMS algorithm. Simulation results are presented to support the experimental analysis for the performance evaluation and comparison. Result reveals that the performance the of new formulated variable step size algorithm is better compare to the conventional LMS algorithm

Development Of A Cloud-Based Condition Monitoring Scheme For Distribution Transformer Protection

Distribution transformers are a necessity to ensure a reliable power supply to consumers and their inability to function properly or even breakdown should be avoided due to the high cost of replacing them. Distribution transformers are large in numbers and randomly distributed in cities and there is a need to accurately monitor their daily/hourly performance. To achieve this, real-time monitoring of the transformer’s health status is proposed rather than the use of the traditional approach involving physical inspection and testing which is slow, tedious and time-consuming. This paper presents a cloud-based monitoring scheme applied to a prototype distribution transformer. A 10kVA, 0.415 kV prototype distribution transformer has been acquired and connected to three residences for data acquisition. A data acquisition system has been developed to monitor and record the parameters of the prototype transformer for 14 days.  The parameters, monitored in real-time include load current, phase voltage, transformer oil level, ambient temperature and oil temperature. The acquired real-time data of the transformer is validated with the standard measuring instrument. An algorithm was developed to transmit and log the data to ThinkSpeak cloud server via node MCU (ESP 8266). Results obtained in this study, which can be visualized via the graphical user interface of ThinkSpeak, indicate that the proposed scheme can acquire vital data from the distribution transformers and transmit the information to the monitoring centre