Sustainable Development in the Study Curriculum and The Impacts to Society. The Case of University of Stavanger

Also known as the “PetroCapital” of Norway, Stavanger is famous for having a buoyant and well established ecosystem in the oil and gas industry. The University of Stavanger is regarded as a key player in the innovation ecosystem and contributes immensely to supplying skilled human resources to the innovation ecosystem. In recent years, the calls for green transition has resulted in a change in the dynamics of the “traditional” oil and gas ecosystem. The University of Stavanger responds to these calls by integrating Sustainable Development into the study curriculum. Through Discourse Tracing, this study examines whether the decision to integrate Sustainable Development in the study curriculum came from Macro, Meso or Micro levels of society. The Multi Level Perspective combined with the Pragmatist Didactic approach provides theoretical underpinnings to this study. Findings show that there is a strong level of influence on the University at all the levels (Macro,Meso,Micro) , establishing that all units in the innovation ecosystem work together to influence Sustainable development in the current study curriculum at the University of Stavanger

Spatiotemporal Analysis of Potential Impact of Soil Erosion on Maize and Groundnuts Yield in Northern Ghana

Abstract Soil erosion is a threat to the viability of arable land, which has a relationship with crop productivity. This study was carried out in the Northern, North-East and Savannah Regions of Ghana, which have a high agricultural potential. The study examined erosion-yield relationship by comparing estimated erosion rates with maize and groundnut yields in a GIS environment. The study also projected soil erosion and determined its potential effect on the yield of maize and groundnuts. The soil erosion rates were found to be 4.2 t ha-1y-1, 5.1 t ha-1y-1 and 7.1 t ha-1y-1 for the Northern, North-East and Savannah Regions respectively. Projections for the next 10 years showed that, soil erosion will averagely increase by about 12 %, which could reduce the yield of maize and groundnut by 21 % and 16 % respectively by the year 2031, should the current trend continue. The study also found out that crop (maize and groundnut) yield per land area is relatively lower in areas severely affected by soil erosion. Farmers in the study area and areas of similar ecology must be encouraged to adopt Soil and Water Conservation (SWC) strategies to enhance and sustain productivity

Selection of an ideal mesh size for the cracking unit of a palm kernel processing plant

One of the main problems associated with cracking of palm nut is the mixture of small Tenera and the big Dura variety nuts. In general, low yield of about 40% is obtained from cracking the mixture of Dura-Tenera nuts. In cracking the mixture, most of the Tenera nuts are not cracked when a large sieve size is used. When the sieve size is small, the Dura kernels get broken, thereby affecting the quality of the processed kernel oil. Hence the objective of this work was to develop a model for selecting a suitable sieve size that can be used to crack the nut in order to increase productivity and also improve the quality of the palm kernel oil. Series of experiments carried out confirmed the need for separation of nuts before cracking and also the need to select an ideal sieve size for each type of nut. In conclusion, it was established that separating the two nut varieties before cracking led to a significant (p< 0.01) increase in cracking efficiency of up to about 90% thereby increasing the productivity by 40% and making an economic gain of GH¢ 1.07 (US$0.98, October, 2008) per every 50 kg nut processed

Paradox of Informal Luxury Housing Boom in a Post-Mining Town in Ghana

This paper examines spontaneous construction of new housing in Obuasi, the largest gold mining town in Ghana after its closure in 2014. Obuasi has become spatially different as more new luxury houses have been developed by the former miners over a relatively short period without coordination. The paper explores the role of lump sum severance packages received from industrial collapse on housing. Using in-depth interviews with former miners who have built their houses after the mine closure, the reasons for the use of the severance packages to build and thoughts behind the choices of housing typologies have been discussed. This paper established that the former workers built their new houses with their take-home money to overcome the bottlenecks in the formal housing finance market and to fulfil continuity of “good-living” privileges previously enjoyed for working and living in the gold mines. The paper concludes that industrial workers should be provided livelihood options training before they are laid off from their respective employments. Keywords: Post-mining towns, Obuasi, informal housing, housing finance, Ghana DOI: 10.7176/JRDM/73-04 Publication date: February 28th 202

Biomarkers of Wound Healing

The prevalence of conditions that eventually result in poor wound healing abounds as humans advance in age. With the increased possibility of wounds not healing comes a leap in morbidity and mortality with its accompanying socioeconomic impact. It is therefore relevant to understand what accounts for aberrant wound healing and more importantly the molecular markers involved in this pathological state. There are known events associated with the wound healing process, spanning from cellular involvement to the role of specific proteins such as cytokines and growth factors that are significant biomarkers in the wound healing process. This chapter discusses biomarkers relevant to the wound healing process, and these biomarkers go a long way to help identify and stratify nonhealing patients for whom biomarker-guided approaches may be of importance clinically in their management

Exploring the Teaching and Learning of Euclidean Geometry in Senior Secondary Schools: The Case of O R Tambo Coastal Schools

This study was aimed at exploring the teaching and learning of Euclidean Geometry in five selected senior secondary schools in the O R Tambo Coastal District of the Eastern Cape, South Africa. The literature review was based on existing knowledge in the teaching and learning of Euclidean geometry. The study was built on analyzing the effective teaching strategies based on the teacher’s Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK) in Euclidean Geometry (EG). Shulman and Ma’s perspective on teachers’ competencies and knowledge of Mathematics was used as the theoretical framework of the study. A mixed-methods sequential explanatory design was adopted for the study. A purposive convenience sampling technique was used to select research sites and participants. The main instruments used were questionnaires, semi-structured interviews, classroom observation schedules, and document analysis. Quantitative data was analyzed descriptively utilizing tables and graphs. Qualitative data were analyzed using thematic data analysis. The various findings were interpreted through the literature and the theoretical framework. It was found that learners have a poor foundation in geometry and the methods teachers employed to teach Euclidean Geometry were inappropriate. Recommendations and suggestions were made. It is hoped that these recommendations would be noted by the appropriate stakeholders to ensure that improvement in the teaching and learning of Euclidean Geometry is achieved in our secondary schools to help matriculates’ obtain good marks in the final certification examination. Keywords: Euclidean Geometry, geometry teaching and learning; learners’ attitude; Teachers Pedagogical Content KnowledgeThesis (M.Ed) -- Faculty of Education Sciences, 202