A BIOMETRIC AUTHENTICATION SYSTEM FOR ELECTRONIC EXAMINATION

Electronic examination system was introduced into the examination system to overcome the stress and the time consumption factors commonly experienced in the traditional paper-based examination system. In both the traditional and the e-examination system, eligible students are allowed to write examination only after they have been manually authenticated by invigilators. However, impersonation problem persist owing to human or examiner error which occur when examiners cannot distinctively distinguish each student (e.g. in the case of twins). This paper attempts to address the problem by proposing fingerprint biometric authentication technologies to curb unethical conduct during electronic examination. The fingerprint biometric device has the ability of identifying unique biological characteristics of student. The e-examination system is made up of four phases; Registration, Verification, Examination and Submission phases. Two categories of software were used: the system software and the application software. The system software consists of the operating system which is Windows XP professional Service Pack 2 and the application software architecture is C# programming language. C# is a multi-paradigm programming language encompassing strong typing, imperative, declarative, functional, procedural, generic, object-oriented (class-based) and component-oriented programming disciplines. C# was used to implement the design because of its interactiveness and good functionalities in graphical outputs. Testing the new design with data, the result shows a system that can administer examination effectively.   Keywords: ,, , &nbsp

EVALUATION OF STUDENT ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE USING ADAPTIVE NEURO-FUZZY APPROACH

The Fusion of Artificial Neural Networks (ANN) and Fuzzy Inference System (FIS) has attracted a growing interest of researchers in various scientific and engineering areas. Due to the growing need for adaptive intelligent systems to solve real world problems. ANN learns by adjusting the interconnections between layers. FIS is a popular computing framework based on the concept of fuzzy set theory and fuzzy if-then rules. The advantages of the combination of ANN and FIS are apparent. The developed method uses a fuzzy system to support neural networks to enhance some of its characteristics like flexibility, speed and adaptability which is called the Adaptive Neuro-fuzzy inference system (ANFIS). Evaluating and assessing the student academic performance is not an easy task, especially when it involves many attributes or factors. Moreover, the knowledge of the human experts is acquired to determine the criteria of students’ academic performance and the decisions about their level of assimilation but most of the information is incomplete and vague. To overcome the problem, this work evaluates the student’s academic performance based on ANFIS tools which was implemented on MATLAB 7.6.0 (R2008a). The method produces crisp numerical outcomes that evaluate the student’s academic performance. The student performance after the training of the two inputs was at the average for semester1 and semester 2.Â

ANALYSIS OF THE DETERMINANTS OF PROFIT FROM COCOA BEANS MARKETING IN OGUN STATE, NIGERIA

This paper examined the factors that influenced profit from cocoa beans marketing in Ogun State, Nigeria. Fifty (50) cocoa beans marketers were selected using a multi-stage sampling technique. Data were collected with the aid of a structured questionnaire designed to solicit information on the socio-economic characteristics of the cocoa beans marketers, their operating costs and return and problems associated with cocoa beans marketing in the study area. Descriptive statistics, marketing margin analysis, gross margin analysis and the Ordinary Least Square (OLS) regression technique were em-ployed in the analysis of the study data. The study revealed that men (84%) are more involved in co-coa beans marketing than women. Further, the study finds cocoa beans marketing to be a profitable venture in the study area having a gross margin of ₦137,719.27 (US $885.51) per month and a mar-keting margin of N40,600 (US$ 261.94). The percentage marketing margin was 34.73% which implies that the cocoa beans marketers realize a margin of 34.76% of the farm price. The result of the OLS regression analysis revealed that cost of transportation, communication cost, volume of cocoa traded and membership of market union are the significant determinants of the profit margin that accrue to the cocoa beans marketer. The identified constraints to cocoa beans marketing in the study area in-clude low quality of cocoa beans, poor transportation facilities and inadequate capital. The study con-cluded that cocoa beans marketing is economically rewarding in the study area. It recommends that the government should help to provide good transportation facilities. Also, agricultural and commercial banks as well as other micro credit financial institutions should assist in providing credit facility to the marketers as this will enable them expand their scope of marketing and consequently improve their profit margin

Fisherfolks’ Perception of the Agricultural Radio Programme Filin Mainoma in Kainji Area of Niger State

The study examined fisherfolks’ perception of the agricultural radio programme FILIN MAINOMA in Kainji Area of Niger State. Multi-stage sampling technique was used to select 252 respondents from the study area. Primary data were collected using structured interview guide. Data collected wereanalysed using descriptive and inferential statistics such as, Pearson Product Moment Correlation Coefficient (PPMC) and Chi-Square analysis (c2).  Results showed that the mean age of the respondents was 25.50 years while majority (96.60%) was male. Also 63.10% had no formal education while 22.70% had primary school education. Also, Majority (99.20%) of the respondents was aware of and listened to the radio programme FILIN MAINOMA. All (100.00%) of the respondents had access to radio. Majority (98.80%) of the respondents opined that the message was interesting, 67.10% spent one hour listening to the radio programme in the morning every day. In addition, 38.90% of the respondents viewed fishing information on the radio programme as relevant, while 26.90% indicated that the format of presentation of the programme aroused their interest. Chi-Square analysis revealed that sex (c2 = 78.70, (p<0.05), df = 1), educational status (c2 = 2.41, df = 4), had significant association with the respondents perception of the programme. Also, correlation analysis results revealed a significant and positive relationship between the household size (r = 0.21, p<0.05), and year of membership association (r = 0.24, p<0.05), and respondents’ perception of the radio programme. The study concluded that FILIN MAINOMA had impact on fisherfolks cash per unit effort. The study recommended that the programme should be strengthened and sustained while other similar programmes can be initiated in other radio stations in the area

An ICA-ensemble learning approaches for prediction of RNA-seq malaria vector gene expression data classification

Malaria parasites introduce outstanding life-phase variations as they grow across multiple atmospheres of the mosquito vector. There are transcriptomes of several thousand different parasites. (RNA-seq) Ribonucleic acid sequencing is a prevalent gene expression tool leading to better understanding of genetic interrogations. RNA-seq measures transcriptions of expressions of genes. Data from RNA-seq necessitate procedural enhancements in machine learning techniques. Researchers have suggested various approached learning for the study of biological data. This study works on ICA feature extraction algorithm to realize dormant components from a huge dimensional RNA-seq vector dataset, and estimates its classification performance, Ensemble classification algorithm is used in carrying out the experiment. This study is tested on RNA-Seq mosquito anopheles gambiae dataset. The results of the experiment obtained an output metrics with a 93.3% classification accuracy

Effects of Incremental Doses of Chloroquine Phosphate on the Formed Elements of Blood.

Easy access to chloroquine (CQ) in many developing countries can result to intake of inappropriate doses. This study was therefore conducted to evaluate the acute effects of high doses of CQ on hematological parameters and plasma Na+and K+ concentrations. To do this, Swiss albino rats were administered incremental doses of CQ intraperitoneally at dose rates ranging between 0.5 to 8mg/kg b.wt. Two hours later, blood samples were taken and analysed. 8mg/kg b.wt of CQ induced significant decrease in red blood cells (RBC), hemoglobin (Hb) and significant increase in mean corpuscular volume (MCV). There was a significant increase in white blood cell count at all dose levels. Packed cell volume (PCV), mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MCH) and mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration (MCHC) were not affected by all dose ranges. There was significant increase in plasma Na+ and K+ by dose rates of 4 and 8 mg/kg but not by lower doses. These data indicate that most CQ induced toxicities on the formed elements of blood occurs at doses greater than 4 times the standard therapeutic dose in rats

CORROSION PERFORMANCE OF 1014 MILD AND 304 STAINLESS STEELS IN ACIDIC MEDIA

Corrosion is a degradation of metallic materials under the action of the environment which requires oxygen and moisture to occur. This research work determined the corrosion performance of 1014 low carbon and 304 austenitic stainless steels in different concentration of acidic media. Corrosion tests were carried out using gravimetric technique. One hundred and eighty samples of the metals were prepared and immersed in containers of sulphuric acid (H2SO4), hydrochloric acid (HCl) and nitric acid (HNO3) at 1, 2 & 3 M. The samples were then removed every three days for a period of 15 days to measure the weight loss. These were used to calculate the corrosion rates. The chemical analysis was determined using an Energy Dispersive X-ray (EDX).  Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) was used to determine the texture of the samples. The results showed that the corroded samples had pitting corrosion damage and cracks propagated generally on the sample surfaces. The corrosion rates of the samples increased with increase in molarities of the reagents, Stainless steel samples had the least corroded surfaces. The study concluded that the higher the level of concentration of acidic media (1 to 3 M), the higher the corrosion rates of samples in increasing order of HNO3, HCl and H2SO4 especially for mild steel sample (4.35 to 17.90, 0.21 to 2.90 and 10.37 to 0.64 mm/y) after 360 hours of immersion respectively. &nbsp

Structural And Phytochemical Characterization of Bioactive Components of the Endophytic Fungi (Trichoderma harzianum) Extracts

This research aims to investigate the antioxidant activity of the crude extract of endophytic fungi (T. harzianum) and to test for the presence of phytochemicals. Fungi isolated from the leaf and stem of endemic medicinal plant were extracted with ethyl acetate. The fungi extract was then investigated for its phytochemicals, antioxidants and active compounds through LC-MS. Some of the phytochemicals present in abundance include saponins, alkaloids, flavonoids, phenols, and steroids, with tanins and cardiac glycosides also present in reasonable amounts. Those compounds identified by LC-MS with antioxidant properties include inosine diphosphate, vigabatrin, isoamylnitrite, proline, trihexyphenidyl-N-oxide, N-methyl gabapentin, penbutolol, dextromoramide M2, solanidine, aceclidine, desethyleneciproflaxin, sapropterin and kinetin

Safety of the surgeon: ‘Double-gloving’ during surgical procedures

Background. In the face of increasing HIV/AIDS prevalence in subSaharan Africa, we evaluate the effectiveness of ‘double-gloving’ during surgery as a means of protecting the surgeon operating on patients with a known or unknown HIV status.Methods. A prospective study was conducted to determine the rate of glove puncture and intraoperative injury in categories of patients with known positive, known negative or unknown HIV status.Results. The surgeon and the first assistant double-gloved in all the 1 050 procedures performed between 2009 and 2013, and a total of 8 400 surgical gloves were used. Sixty-nine patients (6.6%) were HIV-positive, 29 patients (2.8%) were HIV-negative, and the HIV status was unknown for the remaining 952 patients (90.7%). The overall glove puncture rate in the study was 14.5%. The glove puncture rate was 0%, 31% and 15% for HIV-positive, HIV-negative and HIV status unknown, respectively, and this difference was statistically significant. The mean operating time in the group with glove punctures was 148 min (95% confidence interval (CI) 135 - 161), while mean operating time in the group without glove puncture was 88 min (95% CI 84 - 92). Conclusion. Double-gloving offers protection against intraoperative injury. Knowing the HIV status of the patient offers additional protection to the operating surgeon. While we recommend routine double-gloving for surgeons working in HIV-prevalent patient populations, we also advocate for the routine screening for HIV in all surgical patients