Educational building conditions and the health of users

In order to maintain a healthy learning environment, diagnosis and management of defects in the educational facility are paramount. The preliminary results of the ongoing research reported here seek to identify defects associated with educational buildings and their effects on the health of polytechnic students and staff in Nigeria. A questionnaire survey, including 34 defects based on a post-occupancy evaluation (POE) was used to establish relationships with the health of polytechnic students and staff. Two hundred (200) respondents were randomly selected based on their schools (faculty) within Lagos State Polytechnic. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used for analysis of the collected data. The results of the study indicate that defects such as plumbing and dampness problems, cobwebs and dust, are prominent in the institution. Also the relationship between building conditions (defects) and health problems was established, with the predictors of the health problems. Based on the findings, it is important for designers and managers of facilities within tertiary institutions to develop and implement design and maintenance policies targeted at minimizing the likelihood of plumbing, dampness, electrical, cobweb and dust problems in educational buildings due to the health risks induced by the defects. It is evident that effective maintenance schedules and policies should be put in place to ensure that facilities are not left to decay before replacement

Equal Channel Angular Extrusion Characteristics on Mechanical Behavior of Aluminum Alloy

Materials strengthened by conventional methods such as strain hardening, solute additions, precipitation and grain size refinement are often adopted in industrial processes. But there is limitation to the amount of deformation that these conventional methods can impact to a material. This study focused on the review of major mechanical properties of aluminum alloys in the presence of an ultrafine grain size into polycrystalline materials by subjecting the metal to an intense plastic straining through simple shear without any corresponding change in the cross-sectional dimensions of the sample. The effect of the heavy strain rate on the microstructure of aluminum alloys was in refinement of the coarse grains into ultrafine grain size by introducing a high density of dislocations and subsequently re-arranging the dislocations to form an array of grain boundaries. Hence, this investigation is aimed at gathering contributions on the influence of equal channel angular extrusion toward improving the mechanical properties of the aluminum alloys through intense plastic strain

ALCOHOL AND PSYCHOACTIVE SUBSTANCE USE AMONG MEDICAL STUDENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF ILORIN, NIGERIA

The study was aimed at determining the prevalence and predictive factors associated with alcohol and other psychoactive substance use among medical students of the University of Ilorin. A self administered interview schedule consisting of WHO Students Drug Use Survey Questionnaire, and the General Health Questionnaire-12 were administered to a weighted proportionate sample of the respondents. The most currently used substances were mild stimulants (19.4%), alcohol (12.5%), hypnosedatives (3.4%), tobacco (1.7%), cannabis (1.7%), opioids (0.9%) and organic solvents (0.4%). Parents’ alcohol use, respondents perceived harm of alcohol use, level of religiosity, peers’ influence were found to have significant association with current alcohol use. There was no significant association between respondent’s perceived harm of substance use and current use of tobacco, hypnosedatives, mild stimulants and cannabis. Eighty five percent of respondents had a GHQ score of 0-2 (negative) while 14.7% had a score of 3-12 (positive). There was no significant association between psychiatric morbidity on one hand and current or lifetime substance use on the other. We concluded that while the prevalence of current use of some psychoactive substances has reduced over the past 6 years, others have increased. It was suggested that planners of medical education should continue to lay emphasis on the risks of psychoactive substance use as part of the medical school curriculum. Other governmental and non-governmental bodies should also continue to plan and implement campaigns against substance use, not only among medical students, but the society in general

Comparing the effectiveness of two different dosage regimes of oral nifedipine in the treatment of preterm labour

Objective: To compare the effectiveness and side effect of two different dosage regimes of oral Nifedipine in the treatment of preterm labourMethods: A double blinded randomized controlled trial in which 86 pregnant women with preterm labour were randomized to receive either the low or high dose regimen of Nifedipine for tocolysis. Low dose of 10 mg of oral Nifedipine then 5mg every 15min for 1hr 10mg 6hly for 48hrs, while the high dose was 20 mg of oral Nifedipine followed by 10 mg every 15 minutes for 1hr then 20mg 6hourly for 48 hours. The primary outcome was defined by mean uterine quiescence time and fetomaternal side effect were compared between the groups.Results: The mean uterine quiescence time for the low dose and high dose regime were comparable 13.60±11.69 hours versus 12.16±8.90 hours (P = 0.747) respectively, there was no statistical significance difference. None of the patients in both groups needed rescue treatment. Forty patients (93%) versus 41 patients (95%) (P = 0.506) of low and high dose respectively where able to achieve uterine quiescence within 48hours, there was no statistical significant difference. Maternal headache was higher in the high dose compared to the low dose but not statistically significant {19% vs 5% (p = 0.08)} None of the women in both groups had fetal heart rate abnormality.Discussion: The high dose regimen of oral Nifedipine for tocolysis does not have any advantage over the low dose regime in terms of effectiveness for tocolysis and infact low dose had a lower maternal side effect. Key words: Nifedipine; preterm labour; treatment

DESIGN, CONSTRUCTION AND PERFORMANCE EVALUATION OF LOW COST ELECTRIC BAKING OVEN

The paper reports on the design and construction of a domestic electric basic oven. The aim of this research work is to improve on the already existing electric baking oven through the incorporation of a blower and interlock switch. The joining techniques and handling of the equipment for optimum usage was explained in details. The AUTOCAD design shows the pictorial views, lines and dimensions for its mass production purposes. The electric baking oven was put to test in order to determine its functionability   and effectiveness through some food items. When the elecrtric baking oven was tested, higher efficiency is obtained when compared with the already existing one. Therefore, it can be deduced that the designed project is faster and thus baked effectively when compared with existing one. Keywords: Electric baking oven, blower, interlock switch, joining techniques, equipment, functionality, effectiveness

Effect of Annealing on Machinability of Grey Cast Iron

This study investigates the influence of process parameter on machined cast iron under varying material strength and cutting conditions. The three process parameters considered in this study are spindle speed, feed rate and depth of cut. The cast iron bars were annealed and machined under both wet and dry cutting conditions. The signal-to-noise (S/N) ratio was used to analyze results generated, identify optimal process parameters (factors) and analyze the effect of these parameters on tool-tip temperature. Taguchi design of Minitab 18 was employed to optimize and analyze results. Results shows that the spindle speed was the most significant factor affecting tool-tip temperature reduction, followed by feed rate, while the depth of cut has least role to play on tool-tip temperature. Depth of cut and spindle speed both significantly influenced increment in material removal rate. The annealed cast iron bar had a better surface integrity than the Unannealed sample bars. Conclusively, the preferred condition for machining grey cast iron bar was annealed and wet machining condition

BIOCHEMICAL CHANGES IN STREPTOZOTOCIN-INDUCED DIABETIC RATS AFTER TREATMENT WITH ETHANOLIC LEAF EXTRACT OF Croton Zambesicus (Müll. Arg.)

Objective: This study was designed to evaluate the effect of ethanolic leaf extract of C. zambesicus on total protein (TP), albumin (ALB), globulin (GLO), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PDH) in streptozotocin (STZ) induced diabetic rats. Methods: Seventy adult male wistar rats were divided into seven groups (n=10). Group A, control rats; Group B, untreated diabetic rats; Group C, diabetic rats in which C. zambesicus therapy started 2 weeks prior to induction of diabetes; Group D, diabetic rats administered orally with C. zambesicus leafextract for 2 weeks after the initial four weeks of diabetic induction; Group E, diabetic rats administered orally with C. zambesicus leaf extract for 4 weeks after the initial four weeks of diabetic induction; Group F, normal rats administered orally with C. zambesicus leaf extract for four weeks; Group G, diabetic rats administered with glimepiride (2 mg/kg/day) for four weeks after the initial four weeks of diabetic induction. At the end of the experimental period, the animals were weighed and sacrificed. Serum was obtained for TP, ALB, LDH and G6PDH analysis using respective diagnostic kits. Results: The results showed an improvement in protein metaboloites (TP, ALB, GLO) whiles the LDH and G6PDH in the extract and glimepiride treated groups were restored near normal level when compared with normal control (group A). Conclusion: In conclusion, this study showed that C. zambesicus leaf extract exerts positive effects on serum levels of TP, ALB, GLO, LDH and G6PDH in diabetic rats. Thus, ethanolic leaf extract of Croton zambesicus can be adopted in the management of diabetes mellitus

Abundances of Nitrates and Coliform with Regards to Water Quality. In Some Parts of lbadan, Southwest, Nigeria.

Water pollution has been reported throughout the world and Nigeria is not an exception. A very wide range of pollutants have been recognized, including Nitrogen species and bacteria. Nitrate (NO.) is the main form of Nitrogen which occurs in water and is becoming increasingly widespread because of agriculture activities, the disposal of sewage and wastes. This study thus focused on the assessment of the water samples in Ibadan, .Southwest, Nigeria based on these two pollutants (NO,) and. Colform) and possibility of natural denitrification in the study area. The surface and groundwater in Ibadan h:w e been polluted by municipal, industrial wastewater, agricultural activities among others. 1 he nitrate and coliform concentrations at thirty sampling points with in Tbadan ranged from 5.89 to 250mg/l and 74-IOOOcfu/ lOOmg/1 respectively. The concentration of nitrate and califom1 exceeded the WHO limit of I Omg/1 and Ocfu/ lOOmg!r'in 93% and 1OQ% of the sampled locations respectively. High nitrate and califom1 ·levels were observed in water from wells from the undeveloped part of the smdv area. The decrease in nitrate concentration viz a viz an increase in both HCO,- and pH along the groundwater flow direction confirmed the possibility of nitrate removal or natural denitrification in the study area

Design and Development of a Wear Testing Machine for Manufacturing Laboratories

Wear of parts during manufacturing processes is inevitable but controllable. Therefore, the critical study of wear in engineering components is vital because failure of components due to wear has resulted in loss of a great deal of fortune. This study was therefore an attempt to design and fabricate a wear testing machine, evaluate the performance of the machine and compare data obtained with existing ones. Materials for the various parts were carefully selected based on desirable properties and availability. Design calculations were made for the main shaft, compression spring, belt, pulley and electric motor. The post fabrication test was carried out on the machine to evaluate the performance of the machine and results gotten reported