Cinema semiotics: An application of Hodge and Tripp’s Paradigm/Syntagm approach

Abstract. Various scholars have defined the term semiotics according to their understanding but with a unifying central meaning which is the study of signs. Two important aspects of semiotics are syntagm and paradigm. The organization of signs by chain is referred to as syntagm, while by choice it is referred to as paradigm. According to Hodge & Tripp (1986), as far as syntagmatic structures are concerned, texts are examined from three different angles or variables: space, time, and continuity. Moreover, in film the interpretations of individual, shots depend on both paradigmatic analysis (comparing it, not necessarily, with the use of alternative kinds of shots) and syntagmatic analysis (comparing it with preceding and following shots). This paper, applies the concept of Syntagm and Paradigm given by Hodge and Tripp to analyse the structure of two films from Nigeria’s film industries i.e. Kanywood and Nollywood industries.Keywords. Cinema, Semiotics, Syntagm, Paradigm, Film, Kanywood, Nollywood.JEL. Z00, Y90, H80

Kemandirian Pangan: Cadangan Publik, Stabilisasi Harga, Dan Diversifikasi

Cadangan pangan menghadapi permasalahan dengan adanya kenaikan harga BBM dan pada saat yang bersamaan stok pangan semakin rendah. Suplai pangan terus menurun dan tingginya ketidakpastian akibat rendahnya investasi dan pengaruh pemanasan global. Makalah ini bermaksud untuk mendiskusikan kaitan kemandirian pangan dengan cadangan pangan, stabilisasi harga pangan khususnya gabah/beras. Kemandirian pangan juga terkait dengan diversifikasi produksi dan konsumsi pangan, serta peran pemerintah lokal dalam cadangan pangan publik. Beberapa masalah yang dibahas adalah respon negara berkembang terhadap krisis pangan dan bagaimana respon Indonesia secara khusus. Khusus respon Indonesia, makalah mencoba mengungkapkan kemampuan Indonesia dalam meredam kenaikan harga pangan dalam negeri, intervensi pasar dan stabilisasi harga, pengadaan publik, stok dan cadangan pangan pemerintah. Makalah ini juga membahas kemandirian pangan yang dirancang dalam jangka pendek dan umumnya untuk merespon krisis pangan. Sementara kemandirian pangan untuk jangka panjang dan berkelanjutan melalui strategi diversifikasi, baik produksi maupun konsumsi pangan

Modern Trends in Commercial Dispute Resolution through Arbitration in Nigeria: Prospects and Constraints

Given the nature and complexity of commercial activities, it is inevitable that disputes arise especially where transactions involve large amounts of money. Disputes use up valuable resources in terms of money, management time and loss of trade. They may also damage trading reputations and relationships. It is therefore essential, in the interests of justice and the efficient use of economic resources, that machinery be provided for their speedy resolution.[1] Business will normally seek to minimize the potential for conflict by taking steps to prevent disputes arising and establishing procedures for speedily resolving any which do arise. No matter how much care is taken in the drafting of contracts, however, disputes will still inevitably arise, as is shown by the volume of litigation generated by the commodity trades, shipping industry, and the rest of the commercial transactions, despite the widespread use of carefully drafted and well-known standard form contracts. In general, it may be said that disputes are likely to arise where one party seeks to act opportunistically, by taking advantage of a change in circumstances or uncertainty in the agreement or in the law. Even the best drafted contract cannot provide with absolute certainty for every eventuality. There must therefore be mechanisms for resolving those disputes. The simplest, and most beneficial, is for the parties to seek themselves to resolve the dispute by negotiation, and most disputes are infact settled by negotiation, generally without the intervention of lawyers[2]. Failing settlement, however, they may resort to litigation, to formal arbitration or to one of the many developing alternative dispute resolution (ADR) mechanisms. [1] Robert Bradgate,. Commercial Law London,. Butterworths, Publishers, 2000 P.867. [2] See Beale and Dugdale, “Contracts Between Businessmen” (1975) 2 BJLS 45.cf Deakin, Lane and Wilkinson, “Contract Law, Trust Relations and incentives for co-operation: A Comparative Study” in Deakin and Michie (eds) Contracts, Co-operation and Competition: Studies in Economics and Management (1997), who found a relatively high likelihood that small English firms in their survey would resort to litigation, especially to recover unpaid debts

Effect of oral administration of aqueous extract of cassia occidentalis l. seeds on serum electrolytes concentration in rats

The effect of aqueous extract of C. occidentalis seeds on serum electrolytes concentration, in rats, was investigated in order to assess the acclaimed hypotensive effect of the seeds and also the seeds extract’s relation with acid – base balance of the body. Serum concentrations of sodium, potassium, chloride and bicarbonate ions were determined in 64 rats grouped into 4. Groups I, II and III rats were orally administrated with the seeds extract at a daily dose of 30 mg/kg, 60 mg/kg and 90 mg/kg respectively for 1,2,3 and 4 weeks each. Group IV served as control. Concentration of sodium, potassium, chloride and bicarbonate in the serum of control rats were found to range from 130 – 155 mEq/L, 3.4 - 8.7 mEq/L, 80 – 107 mmol/L and 20 -35 mmol/L respectively. The results of this study showed no significant difference (

ANALGESIC EFFECT AND ANTI-INFLAMMATORY ACTIVITY OF AQUEOUS EXTRACT OF BOSWELLIA DALZIELII (BURSERACEAE) STEM BARK

Objective: To evaluate the analgesic effect and anti-inflammatory properties of Boswellia dalzielii (Burseraceae), a medicinal plant commonly used in northern Nigeria as an anti-diarrhoeal, antipyretic, analgesic and anti-inflammatory agent.Methods: Three doses (25 mg/kg, 50 mg/kg and 100 mg/kg) of the crude aqueous extract of Boswellia dalzielii were evaluated for analgesic and anti-inflammatory activities using the acetic acid-induced writhing test, formalin-induced nociception and formalin-induced hind paw oedema in rats. The acute oral toxicity was carried out using the up and down procedure as described by the OECD guidelines.Results: All doses (25, 50 and 100 mg/kg) of the extract tested were effective against acetic acid induced abdominal constrictions producing a percentage inhibition of (55.43, 69.56 and 71.73%) respectively. A percentage inhibition of the formalin-induced nociception of (7.31, 31.70 and 48.78%-early phase) and (12.82, 21.79 and 48.71%-late phase) respectively was also produced. For the acetic acid writhing test, the percentage inhibition obtained at the dose of 50 and 100 mg/kg (69.56 and 71.73%) were higher than that of the standard drug (Piroxicam, 10 mg/kg) (59.78%). For formalin-induced nociception, the test extract at 100 mg/kg showed a higher percentage inhibition compared to Piroxicam, in early (48.78 and 43.90%) and late phase (48.71 and 39.74 %) respectively. The extract, however, did not show a significant activity against formalin-induced paw oedema at all the doses used.Conclusion: The present study demonstrated that Boswellia dalzielii has significant analgesic properties comparable to that of the standard drug (10% Piroxicam), thus validating the traditional claim of its antinociceptive property

Antimicrobial Activities of Acacia nilotica, Ziziphus Jujube Linn and Lawsonia Inermis

Infectious diseases are important cause of morbidity and mortality due to continuous emergence of microbial resistance to conventional drugs. Acacia nilotica, Ziziphus jujube Linn and Lawsonia inermis are widely used for traditional medicine in Northern Nigeria. However, little is known about the biochemical and microbiological potentials of these indigenous plants. In this study, the plants leaves were screened for phytochemical and in vitro antimicrobial potentials using standard methods. Quantitative phytochemical analysis of crude methanolic leave extracts revealed high content of glycoside, tannins and phenols. High levels of saponins and flavonoids were also detected. The extracts exhibited antibacterial effects on Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas flourecense, Streptococcus and Staphylococcus aureus. At 50 mg/ml extract concentration, the zone of inhibition observed was greater than 6mm. This indicates high inhibitory potency of the plants leaves. In comparison to streptomycin sulphate, A. nilotica and L. inermis had statistically similar (P>0.05) effect on E. coli at 50 mg/ml. In general, the inhibitory effect of A. nilotica and L. inermis were higher than that of Z. jujube Linn in all concentrations, except on E. coli at 150 mg/ml. Both the extracts and control drug had minimum inhibitory concentration of 10 mg/ml for all the microbes testedexcept Streptococcus (20-25 mg/ml). Furthermore, the average Minimum Bactericidal Concentration was 15 mg/ml except for Streptococcus with 20-25 mg/ml. Methanol extracts of Acacia nilotica, Ziziphus jujube Linn, and Lawsonia inermis exhibit antibacterial effect, hence could be used as sources of potent agents against bacterial infection.Keywords: Antimicrobial, infectious disease, Methanol extract, Phytochemica

Levels of some anions in Sokoto-Rima river system in north in western Nigeria

The level of some anions in Sokoto-Rima River system at the fishing site of the Argungu International Fishing and Cultural Festival (AIFCF) were analyzed. Water samples were collected for twelve months and analyzed for anions. Data generated was analyzed using ANOVA. Statistical analysis of the data was based on the months, wet and dry seasons and five sub-seasons namely early rainy (June and July), flood season (August and September), early dry season (October-December), mid dry Season (January and February) and late dry season (March-May). Chloride, nitrate, phosphorus, sulphate and nitrite ions were within the standard for aquatic life (Vezeau, 1989). Considering the concentrations of above ions obtained in this work, the river water is safe for the aquatic life therein.Key words: Sokoto-Rima River, anions, water, pollution status, Nigeria, AIFC

Availability and Accessibility of Geographic Information Systems in Nigerian Federal Universities of Technology Libraries

This study was carried out to investigate the Availability and Accessibility of Geographic Information Systems in Nigerian Federal Universities of Technology Libraries. Three research questions were formulated. Survey research design was used for this study. The overall total number of 1422 respondent including students, faculty staff (GIS users) and librarians were drawn as population and as sample size of the study, from Federal University of Technology, Akure, Minna, Owerri and Abubakar Tafawa Belewa University, Bauchi. Two set of questionnaire were used to collect data for this study one for the GIS users and another for the Librarians. The data collected were presented and analyzed using frequency distribution table and percentages. The study found among others that there are computer hardware units for GIS operation, though some peripherals like plotters, scanner were less available among the selected Nigeria FUTs, ArcView was the type of GIS software that were available for GIS operations. This study concluded that GIS services will be better utilized if they are brought into the library which is the information hub of the university. Lastly, it was recommended that the university library should collaborate with organizations that deal with spatial information or GIS related departments in the university to facilitate GIS services integration into the array of library services

Isolation and Characterization of Steroids from Petroleum Ether Extract of Stem Bark of Parinari curatellifolia Planch ex. Benth (Chrysobalanaceae)

In our search for biologically active compounds, three steroids have been isolated from the stem bark of Parinari curatellifolia through series of column chromatography. Compound C1, C2 and C3 where characterized as ?-sitosterol (22,23-dihydrostigmasterol), stigmast-4-en-3-one and stigmasterol, respectively, on the basis of 1D-NMR (1HNMR, 13CNMR and DEPT-135), 2D-NMR (HSQC, HMBC, 1H-1H COSY,  1H-1H NOESY), mass spectroscopy (MS) and IR spectroscopy. These compounds are reported for the first time as constituents in Parinari curatellifolia. Keywords: Parinari curatellifolia, ?-sitosterol, stigmast-4-en-3-one and stigmastero