The Impact of Micro-Teaching on the Teaching Practice Performance of Undergraduate Agricultural Education Students in College of Education, Azare

Micro-teaching and teaching practices are two integral parts of teacher education programme. Therefore, this study investigated the impact of micro-teaching on the teaching practice of the undergraduate Agricultural Education Students admitted in 2012/2013 Academic session in College of Education, Azare, Bauchi State, Nigeria. The 400 level students who had their 200 and 300 levels teaching practice exercises as well the micro-teaching were purposely selected. The microteaching and teaching practices results were analyzed using t-test for unrelated samples while data gathered via questionnaire were analyzed using simple percentage. The findings of the study led to the conclusions that microteaching is useful in improving the teaching skills, classroom management, confidence etc of teacher trainees. It was also found out that there was no significant difference between the micro-teaching and teaching practice performance of students, that is to say there was significant relationship between the two scores of the said courses. Finally, the study found out that there was significant difference between 200 and 300 levels teaching practice performances and this was attributed to the impact of microteaching. The study therefore, recommended that micro-teaching should be maintained by undergraduate teacher training programmes, it should be made a pre-requisite to teaching practice, there should be need for lecturers and students as well as teacher education degree awarding institutions to take the issue of micro-teaching seriously, etc. Keywords: Micro-teaching, Teaching Practice, Undergraduate Agricultural Education Student

The efficacy of peanut oil and palm oil in preserving chicken eggs in a tropical environment

The study was undertaken to compare the effect of different  storage methods on external and internal quality of Isa Brown eggs obtained from Rufai Poultry Farms Bakura, Zamfara State. Ninety (90) eggs were collected from the Rufai farms sales office at Talata Mafara, Zamfara State. The eggs were divided into three groups (A, B and C) of 30 eggs each. The mean weight of the eggs in each of the groups was determined. Group A was left uncoated in a crate, while groups B and C were coated with peanut oil and palm oil respectively, and stored for four (4) weeks at room temperature. The egg shell, mean egg weight, egg yolk, egg white (albumen) and volume of each individual eggs were evaluated. The average percentage whole egg weight loss for all the groups showed significant difference (p<0.05) after preservation, with group A having the highest average percentage egg weight loss of 64.16±5.00%, although, group B had heavier weight compared to group A before preservation. Eggs coated with palm oil had better internal quality compared to peanut oil coated eggs and non-oil coated eggs, as it was seen to have intact internal content. A significant difference (P< 0.05) was also seen in the volume of group B and C with group C having the highest volume of 67.67±10.79ml. In conclusion this study showed that all palm oil coated eggs had good external and internal quality and longer shelf-life than non-oil coated and peanut coated eggs. It was therefore recommended that eggs should be preserved by coating with palm oil, so as to extend their shell-life.Keywords: Chicken egg, Egg Albumen, Egg Yolk, Palm oil, Peanut oil, Preservatio

An Investigative Study on Impact of Frequency Dynamics in Load Modeling

Load modeling plays a significant impact in assessing power system stability margin, control, and protection. Frequency in the power system is desired to be kept constant, but in a real sense, it is not constant as loads continually change with time. In much literature, frequency dynamics are ignored in the formulation of load models for the basic assumption that it does not affect the models.  In this paper, the composite load model was formulated with Voltage-Frequency Dependency (V-FD) on real and reactive powers and applied to estimate the load model. 2- Area network 4- machines Kundur test network was used for testing the developed model.  The model was trained with measurements from a low voltage distribution network supplying the Electrical Engineering department at Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria. Both training and testing data were captured under normal system operation (dynamics). To evaluate the V-FD model performance, Voltage-Dependent (VD) model was examined on the same measured data. The work makes use of the Feed Forward Neural Network (FFNN) as a nonlinear estimator. Results obtained indicate that including frequency dynamics in modeling active power reduces the accuracy of the model. While in modeling reactive power the model performance improves. Hence, it can be said that including frequency dynamics in load modeling depends on the intended application of the model

PRENATAL AND POSTNATAL DEVELOPMENT AND COMPARATIVE ANATOMY OF THE MANDIBLE OF THREE BREEDS OF SHEEP: A GROSS STUDY

This study aims to evaluate and compare the development of the mandible and gross anatomy in three breeds of sheep. A total of 180 and 720 prenatal and postnatal samples were used respectively, their skulls were macerated and mandibles detached. In prenatal life, the mental and mandibular foramina were rudimentary in the late 1st trimester and 2nd trimester and developed in the 3rd trimester. The alveolus and mandibular canal differentiated in the 3rd trimesters respectively. In the postnatal life, the ventral border was convexed in Uda but flat in Balami and Yankasa breeds. The angular part of the ramus was thin in Uda and thick in Balami and Yankasa. The mandibular tuberosity was absent in Balami and Yankasa but present in Uda. There was a small accessory foramen caudal to the mental foramen just below the first premolar teeth in the Uda and Yankasa. The labial surface was wide and rough in Balami and Uda but smooth in Yankasa. The medial surface was flat in the young postnatal and convexed in the adult postnatal. It was brought to a conclusion that the mandible in the Nigerian breeds undergoes various morphological changes from prenatal and postnatal ages with peculiar differentiating features

Simultaneous Distribution Network Reconfiguration and Optimal Placement of Distributed Generation

A reliable, eco- and nature-friendly operation has been the major concern of modern power system (PS). To improve the PS reliability and reduce the adverse environmental effect of conventional thermal generation facilities, renewable energy based distributed generation (RDG) are being enormously integrated to low and medium voltage distribution networks (DN). However, if these systems are not properly deployed, the reliability and stability of the PS will be endangered and its quality can be dreadfully jeopardized. Among the measures taken to avoid such is optimizing the location and size of each RDG unit in the DNs. These networks are generally operated in a radial configuration, though they can be reconfigured to other topologies to achieve certain objectives. Both RDG placement/sizing and DN reconfiguration are highly non-linear, multi-objective, constrained and combinatorial optimization problems. In this study, a hybrid of Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) and real-coded Genetic Algorithm (GA) techniques is employed for DN reconfiguration and optimal allocation (size and location) of multiple RDG units in primary DNs simultaneously. The objectives of the proposed technique are active power loss reduction, voltage profile (VP) and feeder load balancing (LB) improvement. It is carried out subject to some technical constraints, with the search space being the set of DN branches, DG sizes and potential locations.  To ascertain the effectiveness of the technique, it is implemented on standard IEEE 16-bus, 33-bus and 69-bus test DNs. The proposed algorithm is implemented in MATLAB and MATPOWER environments. It is observed the power loss, voltage deviation and LB are found to be reduced by 32.84%, 12.33% and 24.03% of their respective inherent values in the biggest system when the system is reconfigured only. With the optimized RDGs placed in the reconfigured systems, a further reductions of 46.27%, 25.92% and 36.65% are observed respectively. &nbsp

Chemical composition and phyto-chemical factors of sorrel seeds (Hibiscus sabdariffa L.) boiled at varying durations

This study was carried out to determine the chemical composition of sorrel seeds boiled at varying durations. Cleaned sorrel seeds were poured into three (3) litres of boiled water (at 100 C) per batch of 1kg (i.e. in ratio of 3:1) at different boiling durations of 0, 15, 30 and 45 minutes, respectively. The boiled sorrel seeds were sun dried by spreading on trays until well dried. Samples of the boiled sorrel seeds were analysed for chemical composition and phyto-chemical factors. The results showed that the duration of boiling significantly (p< 0.05) affected the crude protein, crude fibre and ether extract contents. Crude protein and ether extract values increased as the duration of boiling increased from 0 to 45 minutes. The lowest crude protein (28.00%) and crude fibre (12.80%) was obtained at 30 minutes duration of boiling while their respective values 29.22% and 14.50% were obtained from 45 minutes duration. Ether extract decreased with increased boiling duration. The values of anti – nutritional factor declined with increase in the duration boiling. There was also significant differences (p<0.05) in phytic acid and tannin levels. The 45 minutes duration of boiling had the lowest value for phytic acid (0.19%), tannin (1.1%) and saponin (7.65%). It is concluded that processing of sorrel seed by boiling enhanced nutrient availability of crude protein, crude fibre and ether extract, and reduced anti-nutrients (phytic acid, tannin and saponin) to a tolerable level. Keywords: Phyto-chemical factors; Boiling durations; Chemical composition; Sorrel seed

Embryonic Development and Comparative Anatomy of the Mandible

Objective: This study was designed to determine the ossification time and pattern of the mandible. Methodology: Three hundred and fifty (350) wasted fetuses consisting of 70 Balami, 140 each of Uda and Yankasa breeds whose crown vertebral rump length ranged from 3.0-15 cm were used. The fetuses were processed using the Alizarin technique and the mandible was dissected from the head for stereography. Result: The result revealed that the first part of the mandible to develop was the body and mental foramina at the 42nd–44th days of gestation while the coronoid process, rami, and condyloid process develop later at different time points. In addition, the mandibular foramina remained undeveloped in all age groups. Interestingly, the mandibular canal began ossification earlier in the Yankasa breed compared to other breeds. It was shown to arise from a cartilaginous tissue at the medial and lateral surfaces of the body and dorsally remained opened and undifferentiated from the teeth alveoli of the lower jaws in the 7 age groups. Conclusion: It was therefore concluded that the mandible arises from three ossification centres at the body, rami, and coronoid process. These segments develop at different time intervals in the three breeds of sheep with Yankasa mandible ossifying and progressing faster than in Balami and Uda.   Doi: 10.28991/SciMedJ-2021-0301-3 Full Text: PD

Subjective reasons for COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and sociodemographic predictors of vaccination in Nigeria: an online survey

The purpose of this study was to examine the subjective reasons for hesitancy to receive COVID-19 vaccination and the sociodemographic factors associated with vaccination uptake. An online social media survey was conducted among the general Nigerian population using a self-developed questionnaire. Data were analyzed using binary logistic regression with crude and adjusted odds ratios (AOR) at a 95% confidence interval (CI) and a p value of less than 0.05. A total of 576 participants with a mean age of 31.86 years participated in the study. 28% (n = 158) received one or more doses of the COVID-19 vaccine. Teachers were significantly less likely than health professionals to be vaccinated (AOR = 0.33, 95% CI 0.16–0.69). In addition, unemployed people (AOR = 0.37, 95% CI 0.15–0.89) were less likely to be vaccinated than government employees, and those of intermediate socioeconomic status (AOR = 0.47 95% CI 0.26–0.88) were less likely to be vaccinated than were those of high socioeconomic status. Five main themes emerged regarding participants’ subjective reasons for hesitating to receive the COVID-19 vaccine: fear related to vaccine content (e.g., efficacy), negative effects on the body (e.g., blood clots), distrust of the system/government (e.g., politics), psychological concerns (e.g., anxiety), and misconceptions. Sociodemographic variables and vaccine misconceptions were found to play an important role in COVID-19 vaccination coverage in Nigeria

Knowledge of health effects and determinants of psychoactive substance use among secondary school students in Sokoto Metropolis, Nigeria

Introduction: psychoactive substance use (PSU) is a patterned use of a drug in which the user consumes the substance in amounts or methods which are harmful to themselves or others. Psychoactive substance use takes a considerable toll on financial status, academic achievement and health status of addicts. In Nigeria, PSU is on the increase, one of the most disturbing health-related problems and a leading cause of premature death among school aged population worldwide. We therefore, determined the knowledge of health effects and determinants of psychoactive substance use among secondary school students in Sokoto Metropolis, Nigeria. Methods: we conducted a cross-sectional study among 430 secondary school students that were selected using multistage sampling in Sokoto, Northwestern, Nigeria from April to May 2019. We collected data using a semi-structured, interviewer-administered questionnaire. We calculated proportions and adjusted odds ratios (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) in a binary logistic regression model. Results: knowledge of health effects of PSU was good in 38.1% of the respondents with a mean score of 19.6 ± 10.0. The overall prevalence of PSU was high among current users (16.3%), male participants (78.6%) and those aged 17-years or more (68.6%). Independent predictors of current use of psychoactive substances were poor knowledge of health effects (aOR: 4.1, 95% CI: 1.7-10.0) and father´s use of psychoactive substances (aOR: 10.3, 95% CI= 1.9-57.1). Conclusion: knowledge of health effects of psychoactive substances was generally poor among the participants with an associated high prevalence among current users. Poor knowledge of its health effects determines the use of psychoactive substances. We conducted awareness campaigns and health talk on health effects of PSU to secondary school students in the state. The Federal Ministry of Education should ensure that PSU-related topics are incorporated in the secondary school curriculum

Outbreak of measles in Sokoto State North-Western Nigeria, three months after a supplementary immunization campaign

BackgroundWorldwide, measles infects about 20 million people with about 200,000 deaths annually. On February 12, 2016 an outbreak of measles was reported from Sokoto state, Nigeria.AimsA team of Nigeria Field Epidemiology and Laboratory Training Program (NFELTP) Residents was sent to confirm the existence of the outbreak, describe the socio-demographic characteristics and identify risk factors for the outbreak.MethodsWe defined cases according to the World Health Organization (WHO) criteria. We conducted an unmatched case-control study and descriptive study. We actively searched for cases across local government areas (LGAs) of the state, and administered questionnaires to parents of affected children. We analyzed the data using Epi-Info 7 and Microsoft Excel 2013.ResultsA total of 979 cases were recorded. Median age was 36 months with age range of 3–168 months. Ten deaths were recorded with a Case Fatality Rate (CFR) of 1.02 per cent. About 76.51 per cent of cases were under-five years of age. The outbreak spanned over a period of 10 weeks. Twenty-two out of 23 LGAs were affected. Eighty-nine cases (9.1 per cent) had their blood sample taken for laboratory confirmation, where 21 (23.6 per cent) tested positive for measles.A total of 238 respondents were interviewed; 128 cases and 110 controls. Mothers’ education (OR: 2.9, 95 per cent CI: 1.4–5.9), immunization status of children (OR: 2.0, 95 per cent CI: 1.1–3.4), and fathers’ occupation (OR: 0.2, 95 per cent CI: 0.1–0.5), are the factors that affect measles infection among children in the state.ConclusionOur investigation confirmed a measles outbreak in Sokoto state. Though with a low CFR, the majority of deaths occur in children are factors that adversely affect development of measles in Sokoto state