A Survey on Tax Evasion Using Randomized Response Technique

Taxation is a tool used by government to raise revenue. It is also used as an instrument of economic and social policy. This paper adopted Randomized Response Technique to estimate proportions of non-compliance of taxpayers in Akure metropolis as well as analysing socio-demographic variables which may affect those proportions. Survey questionnaires were administered on taxpayers in Akure with a view to collecting data from them. The data collected were analysed using z-test. The findings of this study revealed that among the respondents completing the Randomized Response survey instrument, 47.7% admitted tax evasion by trading goods and not reporting it in tax form, 48.7% admitted evasion by excluding some outside income, 49.8% admitted tax evasion by being paid in cash and not reporting it, 43.7% admitted evasion by hiding investment to avoid payment of tax while 43% admitted evasion by cheating on tax whenever the chances arises respectively

Hegel’s Idealism and Environmental Holism

This paper seeks to extend the frontier of Hegel’s idealism to confronting environmental problems. While our focus is on the theoretical issues bedeviling recent measures to addressing environmental problems, yet we also discuss the practical challenges facing environmentalists in getting to the root of the issues that bother them. The paper suggests that contemporary environmentalists can borrow much from Hegel’s idealism, especially his notion of harmony which his thesis of the absolute depicts. The paper argues, through an appeal to the method of dialectical ecologism, that Aldo Leopold and J. Baird Callicott’s land ethic and ecological communitarianism respectively could develop strong theoretical base if structured on Hegel’s non-exclusive thesis. Without relying on Hegel’s idea of harmony, consciousness and interconnectiveness of beings, we argue that environmentalists’ theses cannot be holistic as claimed. Keywords: Dialectical Ecologism, Consciousness, Harmony, Environmental problem

A Review of William Alston’s A Realist Conception of Truth

A Realist Conception of Truth has been generally praised as a serious and insightful work on epistemology. This William P. Alston’s text is directed at those who are concerned with epistemological studies, those interested in how to contemplate on truth, and those epistemologists seeking for justification of beliefs, statements, sentences and propositions. In this text, the problem of truth receives a critical exploration in Alston’s polemic of realism. Alston’s goal is to defend a version of realism. Ultimately, he argues that the most defensible version of realist theories is alethic realism, which suggests simply that, “A statement is true if and only if what the statement is about is as the statement says it is. Alternatively in terms of propositions, the conception is such that the schema ‘it is true that p if and only if p yields a (necessary, conceptually, analytically) true statement for any substitution instance” (Alston, 1997: 1). As a matter of fact, the author’s view is a cross reference to the issue of truth discussed from the days of Socrates to Edmund Gettier; then to our time

Combating Cybercrime Perpetrated Via Social Media Channels Using Individual Resilience Techniques

Cybercrime is a social vice associated with modern society due to the rapid development of technology. Various studies over the years have shown that there is no society without an element of cybercrime. Cybercrime also has negative economic implications for nations and businesses globally. Over the years, several approaches have been employed to reduce the rate of cybercrime by employing various combating techniques. Hence, this study explores individual resilience techniques used in combating cybercrime perpetrated via social media channels in Abuja. Three goals and research agendas were developed to guide the research toward achieving the stated goal: a review of relevant literature, a qualitative and quantitative survey design involving about seven million, one hundred and ten thousand internet subscribers that use social media in Abuja, and a sample size of four hundred respondents from the study area were selected using the Taro Yamane purposive sampling technique. The respondents’ data were collected using a twelve-item structured questionnaire. Completed instruments of the sample size were analysed using mean values and standard deviations designed using Google Forms. The results showed that identity theft, cyberstalking, malware attacks, and cyber-casing are major cybercrimes perpetrated online by cyber attackers, and these attacks have led to harassment, child exploitation, digital piracy, and intentional damage to individuals’ online reputations. However, anti-malware, outlier detection, password managers, and multi-factor authentication (MFA) are various individual resilience techniques social media users can employ to combat cybercrime on social media. Creating more awareness of cybercrime and the various individual resilience techniques required in protecting social media accounts on web-enabled devices and setting up a special task force void of bias to help cybercrime victims regain their assets were recommended

Hydro-Chemical Studies and Assessment of Trace Elements and Bacterial Contamination of Shallow Groundwater of Oyo Area, Southwestern Nigeria

Groundwater from shallow hand-dug wells is the only reliable source of water supply in the ancient town of Oyo in the southwestern region of Nigeria. The present work studied the water quality in twenty-five wells across this area by measuring the ancillary parameters, and analyzing the major and trace elements and taking the inventory of the wells as well as assessing the total coliform and Escherichia coliform in sampled water. The field measurement showed that the groundwater is slightly acidic with an average pH of 6.6 and fresh from the total dissolved solids values between 70 and 630 mg/L. From the average concentrations of major ions, the dominance order of the cations constituents in groundwater is in the order- Mg2+ > Ca2+ > K+ > Na+ and HCO- > CI- > NO3- > SO42- for anions. The ranges of trace elements concentrations were; Iron II- 0.01 – 0.06; Chromium VI: 0 - 0.34; manganese 0 – 1.2 in mg/L, while Copper was between 0.38 – 32.7; Cadmium 0.03 – 1.87; lead 0.02 – 3.57; Zinc 0.01 – 7.79; and Arsenic 0.05 – 7.35 in µg/L. The total coliform count ranges from 6 – 1860 cfu/100 mL while Escherichia coliform (E. coli) units was between 2  and 1640 cfu/100 mL with frequency occurrence from nil in three wells representing 12% of the wells, 1 – 50 units (28%), 51 – 100 (20%), 101 – 500 (20%) and > 500 units (20%). The groundwater is grossly contaminated with nitrate and coliform bacteria while four wells were found to be contaminated with manganese and chromium. It is mandatory that the water be treated for metal and bacterial contaminations prior to consumption and public enlightenment on drinking water guidelines be in place. Keywords: Groundwater. Major ions. Trace elements. Coliform Bacteria. DOI: 10.7176/JEES/13-3-02 Publication date: April 30th 2023

Knowledge, attitude and willingness to accept Caesarean Section among women in Ogbomoso , southwest Nigeria

Introduction: Caesarean section (CS) is a common procedure in obstetrics and has contributed immensely to improving maternal and foetal outcome; there are still concerns about the knowledge, attitude and willingness to accept the procedure among women especially those in the developing world.Objective: This study seeks to assess the level of knowledge, attitude and acceptance of women about CS in Ogbomoso. These women were more educated than most of their counterparts in South Sudan but because of the political situation we are unlikely to get similar data from South Sudan and therefore this study is of interest.Methodology: This is a descriptive study which was carried out in four health facilities. Respondents were selected using the systematic random technique with a sample interval of 2. A semi-structured questionnaire was used for data collection. Data were analysed using the statistical package for social sciences (SPSS), version 16.Results: Of the 410 respondents, 63.2% of the women have a good knowledge of CS as a method of delivery. When CS was compared to vaginal delivery, 33.5% said that CS was preferable to vaginal delivery because the pain involved was much less; this view was however disagreed upon by 54.8% of the respondents. Only 75.6% of the respondents were ready to accept CS if there was a need for it.Conclusion: Mothers should be educated on the process involved in Caesarean delivery, the indication, advantages and complications in order to help them make the right informed decision.Keywords: Women knowledge, attitude, Caesarean section, Nigeri

PERSPECTIVES OF STUDENTS OF NATIONAL OPEN UNIVERSITY OF NIGERIA (NOUN) TOWARDS CBT AND PEN ON PAPER EXAMINATION IN THREE SELECTED CENTRES IN NIGERIA.

This research paper investigates the perspectives of students’ of National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) towards computer and pen-on-paper examination. Questionnaires were used to generate data. The data collected targeted students of three selected Study Centre .300 questionnaires which consist of 200-400 level of students of the three selected study Centre were administered .Response rate of 240 out of 300 representing 80% of the total questionnaires obtained for data analysis. The result showed that a significant percentage of the respondents were either doing good or fairly good academically. The students’ performances measured in each question type. When comparing students’ familiarity with the use of CBT versus pen-on-paper examination among three selected Centre, the end result showed that 80.5% of students from Osogbo Study Centre agreed on the familiarity with the CBT examination while 16.5% disagreed. From Ibadan Study Centre, 83.5% agreed with the familiarity with CBT examination, while 16.5% disagreed.From Abeokuta Study Centre. 76.7% agreed with the familiarity on CBT examination while 23.3% disagreed. On comparative survey statistic of respondents, it shows clearly that 73.2% of respondent from Osogbo Study Centre strongly agreed on the use of CBT examination while 26.8% strongly disagreed. From Ibadan Study Centre 76.5% strongly agreed on CBT examination while 23.5% strongly disagreed. From Abeokuta Study Centre, 86.3% performed very well on CBT examination while 43.8% performed well on CBT examination. Recommendation is hereby directed to the management and examination board to improve the condition of conducting CBT and pen-on-paper examination in academic context and universities as a whole

DEVELOPMENT OF AN ARDUINO-BASED OBSTACLE AVOIDANCE ROBOTIC SYSTEM FOR AN UNMANNED VEHICLE

The use of autonomous systems in the world to perform relevant and delicate task is fast growing. However, its application in various fields cannot be over emphasized. This paper presents an obstacle detection and avoidance system for an unmanned Lawnmower. The system consists of two (Infrared and Ultrasonic) sensors, an Arduino microcontroller and a gear DC motor. The ultrasonic and infrared sensors are implemented to detect obstacles on the robot’s path by sending signals to an interfaced microcontroller. The micro-controller redirects the robot to move in an alternate direction by actuating the motorsin order to avoid the detected obstacle. The performance evaluation of the system indicates an accuracy of 85% and 0.15 probability of failure respectively. In conclusion, an obstacle detection circuit was successfully implemented using infrared and ultrasonic sensors modules which were placed at the front of the robot to throw both light and sound waves at any obstacle and when a reflection is received, a low output is sent to the Arduino microcontroller which interprets the output and makes the robot to stop

Exhaust Hydrocarbon Emission Concentration Level in Abeokuta Metropolis, Ogun State, Nigeria: A Case Study of Commercial Motorcycles (Okada)

Transportation, especially the use of 2-stroke motorcycles has been a key contributor to air pollutants, hydrocarbons and carbon monoxide alike, mostly in the developing countries. High rate of unemployment amongst the teeming youth population in Nigeria have led to the use of differen

Reporting rates of opioid-related adverse events since 1965 in Canada : a descriptive retrospective study

Background : Patients with chronic or acute/postoperative pain frequently use opioids. However, opioids may cause considerable adverse reactions (ARs), such as respiratory depression, which could be lethal. Unfortunately, only 5% of drug-related ARs (including those to opioids) are reported to health authorities. Therefore, little is known regarding the occurrence of opioid-related ARs at the population level. Objective : The aim of this study was to investigate how the rates of reported opioid-related ARs have changed in Canada since 1965. Methods : Our retrospective study examined trends of reported opioid-related ARs occurring in hospitalized and outpatients. Data on opioid-related ARs and mortality between 1965 and 2019 were obtained from the Canada Vigilance and Statistics Canada databases. Descriptive and Joinpoint regression analyses were performed. Results : Oxycodone and normethadone were the most and least involved opioid agents, respectively, among the 18,407 reported ARs. The highest rate of reported opioid ARs (3.8 per 100,000 person-years) was recorded in 2012, whereas the lowest was recorded in 1965 (0.1 per 100,000 person-years). Between 1965 and 2019, annual rates climbed by 4.2% (95% confidence interval [CI] 3.1–5.2), and many fluctuations were observed: 1965–1974: +22.3% (95% CI 12.0–33.6); 1974–2000: − 4.1% (95% CI − 5.3 to − 2.9); 2000–2008: +30.3% (95% CI 22.6–38.4); 2008–2014: +4.1% (95% CI − 1.5 to 10.1); 2014–2017: −26.0% (95% CI − 44.7 to − 0.9); and, finally, 2017–2019: +35.4% (95% CI 3.8–76.7). Conclusion : Reported opioid-related ARs have increased since 1965, although fluctuations were observed in recent decades. The absolute number of opioid-related ARs might be seriously underestimated. Future studies should look into how to close this gap