Data mining and wireless sensor network for agriculture pest/disease predictions

Data driven precision agriculture aspects, particularly the pest/disease management, require a dynamic crop-weather data. An experiment was conducted in a semi-arid region to understand the crop-weather-pest/disease relations using wireless sensory and field-level surveillance data on closely related and interdependent pest (Thrips) - disease (Bud Necrosis) dynamics of groundnut crop. Data mining techniques were used to turn the data into useful information/knowledge/relations/trends and correlation of crop-weather-pest/ disease continuum. These dynamics obtained from the data mining techniques and trained through mathematical models were validated with corresponding surveillance data. Results obtained from 2009 & 2010 kharif seasons (monsoon) and 2009-10 & 2010-11 rabi seasons (post monsoon) data could be used to develop a real to near real-time decision support system for pest/disease predictions

DEVELOPMENT OF MICROCONTROLLER BASED AUTOMATIC POWER SWITCH WITH GENERATOR START AND STOP CONTROLS

The erratic nature of power supply and use of generators as alternative source of electricity in the developing countries like Nigeria has necessitated the need for a mechanism that switches power to a given load between two sources of supply.. This study was therefore initiated to focus on the design and implementation of an automated system that executes switching functions usually from public supply to generator and vice versa when mains supply is unavailable and when it is restored. The device consists of power supply unit for converting from alternating current (A.C.) to direct current (D.C.), logic circuit for detecting when mains power is restored, relay unit for performing power switch as well as control unit for starting and stopping a generator. It was observed that the device eliminates the stress and possible downtime associated with manual operation of a change over switch. The study recommends the device to be essential in hospitals, banks, government and private agencies where critical operations requiring constant availability of power are carried out.&nbsp

Concurrent use of prescription drugs and herbal medicinal products in older adults: A systematic review

This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made.The use of herbal medicinal products (HMPs) is common among older adults. However, little is known about concurrent use with prescription drugs as well as the potential interactions associated with such combinations. Objective Identify and evaluate the literature on concurrent prescription and HMPs use among older adults to assess prevalence, patterns, potential interactions and factors associated with this use. Methods Systematic searches in MEDLINE, PsycINFO, EMBASE, CINAHL, AMED, Web of Science and Cochrane from inception to May 2017 for studies reporting concurrent use of prescription medicines with HMPs in adults (≥65 years). Quality was assessed using the Joanna Briggs Institute checklists. The Evidence for Policy and Practice Information and Co-ordinating Centre (EPPI-Centre) three stage approach to mixed method research was used to synthesise data. Results Twenty-two studies were included. A definition of HMPs or what was considered HMP was frequently missing. Prevalence of concurrent use by older adults varied widely between 5.3% and 88.3%. Prescription medicines most combined with HMPs were antihypertensive drugs, beta blockers, diuretics, antihyperlipidemic agents, anticoagulants, analgesics, antihistamines, antidiabetics, antidepressants and statins. The HMPs most frequently used were: ginkgo, garlic, ginseng, St John’s wort, Echinacea, saw palmetto, evening primrose oil and ginger. Potential risks of bleeding due to use of ginkgo, garlic or ginseng with aspirin or warfarin was the most reported herb-drug interaction. Some data suggests being female, a lower household income and less than high school education were associated with concurrent use. Conclusion Prevalence of concurrent prescription drugs and HMPs use among older adults is substantial and potential interactions have been reported. Knowledge of the extent and manner in which older adults combine prescription drugs will aid healthcare professionals can appropriately identify and manage patients at risk.Peer reviewedFinal Published versio

Using mathematical model to design and sizing of pumping water system

The role of the pump in any pumping system is to provide sufficient pressure to overcome the operating pressure of the system in order to move fluid (water) at a required flow rate to the user. In this study, a mathematics model was used for design in order to provide adequate water supply to every quarter in Federal Polytechnic Mubi, Adamawa state Nigeria. According to the research, the proposed water supply requires a 1360W power pump, a 1500W inverter, and a 1500W solar panel. Because the suggested water supply is based on renewable energy, the study found that it can be used at Federal Polytechnic Mubi to increase their supply for human use. As a result, the FPM management has reduced greenhouse gas emissions

THE GEOLOGY AND GEOPHYSICAL STUDIES OF A GRAVEL DEPOSIT IN UNIVERSITY OF ILORIN, SOUTHWESTERN NIGERIA

Vertical electrical drilling and horizontal profiling methods of electrical resistivity have been employed to study the occurrence of gravel deposit in an area of 3.36sqkm within the University of Ilorin permanent site, Southwestern Nigeria. The petrological characteristics of the deposit were also investigated for assessing it suitability as construction aggregate materials. The gravel deposit varies from conglomeratic sandstone to sand- supported conglomerates. They are unsorted to poorly sorted and dominated by angular to sub-angular pebble clast. Results from the analysis of the geophysical data showed that the study area is underlined by three to four geoelectric layers. These layers are the top soil, the gravel layer, the weathered rock and the fresh basement rock. The top soil is 0.3m-0.9m thick but absent in elevated places due to erosion. The gravel layer is 1.8 – 7.2m with 110-490 Wm resistivity values. The weathered basement is often undifferentiated from the gravel layer, but where established, it has a thickness of 2.3-8.3m and characterized by 530-5099Wm resistivity values. The gravel layer has an average thickness of 3.1m and amounts to an estimated reserve of 20.13x102 tonnes. Depth to the fresh basement rocks is generally shallow, often less than 15m. High proportion of rough edges (angular/subangular) particles in the gravel aggregates and the abundance of quartz, feldspar and mica minerals which are not chemically reactive with Portland cement recommend the gravel as suitable for construction purposes. Also, the 1:8 ratio of the thickness of the overburden to that of the gravel qualifies the deposit to be an economically exploitable deposit

UTILITY OF ANTIGEN DETECTION TEST AND POLYMERASE CHAIN REACTION IN THE DIFFERENTIATION OF TUBERCULOUS AND NON-TUBERCULOUS MYCOBACTERIA

Objectives: Cultivation and identification of mycobacteria to species level remains difficult and time-consuming. Hence, easy and rapid diagnostic methods are necessary for the differentiation of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) from non-tuberculous mycobacteria (NTM). The present study aims to detect and differentiate MTB from NTM isolated from clinical samples by immunochromatographic test (ICT) and polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Methods: Over a period of 1 year, clinical samples (n=496) received from suspected cases of TB, at the Department of Microbiology, Kasturba Medical College Hospital, Mangalore were cultured to isolate Mycobacterium spp. Identification of all the isolates was done by conventional biochemical technique, ICT, and PCR. Results: Among the 496 samples processed, 49 (9.87%) were acid-fast bacilli smear positive and 59 (11.89%) samples showed the growth of Mycobacterium spp. Among these, 10 were rapid growers, 49 were slow-growing mycobacteria, out of which 30 were MTB as identified by conventional biochemical reaction. Out of 59 Mycobacterial isolates subjected to ICT for the detection of MPT 64 antigen, only 28 were identified as MTB. However, all the 30 isolates were correctly identified as MTB by PCR. Conclusion: Hence, PCR is essential for rapid differentiation of non-tuberculous Mycobacterium from MTB. False negative results seen with immunochromatographic MPT 64 antigen assay could be due to mutations within the mpt64 gene. Further studies are necessary to characterize these PCR-positive and immunochromatographic assay negative MTB isolates

Effect of Monetary Penalty and Traffic Law Enforcement Agents on Drivers’ Behaviour in Ogun State, Nigeria

 Fine or penalties are parts of measures in preventing accidents fatalities on Nigeria roads due to erratic driver behavior. This study thus examined the influence of monetary penalties on driver behavior in Lagos State. The study employed survey research design by purposively distributed four hundred (400) structure questionnaires to both private and commercial drivers. The results of the study showed that 76% of the respondents attested to the effectiveness of monetary penalty in changing driver behavior despite its 28% (R2= .276) statistical contribution. However, it was concluded that changing of driver attitude is not as effective when the focus is concentrated on monetary penalty only. Therefore, it was recommended that, implementation of alternative penalty measures, including fines, community service, driver’s license revocation or the utilization of combinations of two penalty options. Keywords:  Penalty option, Fines, Traffic Law, Law enforcement agent

An overview of anti-diabetic plants used in Gabon: Pharmacology and Toxicology

© 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.Ethnopharmacological relevance: The management of diabetes mellitus management in African communities, especially in Gabon, is not well established as more than 60% of population rely on traditional treatments as primary healthcare. The aim of this review was to collect and present the scientific evidence for the use of medicinal plants that are in currect by Gabonese traditional healers to manage diabetes or hyperglycaemia based here on the pharmacological and toxicological profiles of plants with anti-diabetic activity. There are presented in order to promote their therapeutic value, ensure a safer use by population and provide some bases for further study on high potential plants reviewed. Materials and methods: Ethnobotanical studies were sourced using databases such as Online Wiley library, Pubmed, Google Scholar, PROTA, books and unpublished data including Ph.D. and Master thesis, African and Asian journals. Keywords including ‘Diabetes’ ‘Gabon’ ‘Toxicity’ ‘Constituents’ ‘hyperglycaemia’ were used. Results: A total of 69 plants currently used in Gabon with potential anti-diabetic activity have been identified in the literature, all of which have been used in in vivo or in vitro studies. Most of the plants have been studied in human or animal models for their ability to reduce blood glucose, stimulate insulin secretion or inhibit carbohydrates enzymes. Active substances have been identified in 12 out of 69 plants outlined in this review, these include Allium cepa and Tabernanthe iboga. Only eight plants have their active substances tested for anti-diabetic activity and are suitables for further investigation. Toxicological data is scarce and is dose-related to the functional parameters of major organs such as kidney and liver. Conclusion: An in-depth understanding on the pharmacology and toxicology of Gabonese anti-diabetic plants is lacking yet there is a great scope for new treatments. With further research, the use of Gabonese anti-diabetic plants is important to ensure the safety of the diabetic patients in Gabon.Peer reviewedFinal Accepted Versio

Auditors’ Independence and Audit Quality of Money Deposit Banks in Nigeria

Auditors' independence refers to the auditor's ability to be free from influence or predisposition, and consequently the unprejudiced mental demeanor in going with choices all through the review and reporting process. A lack of freedom can significantly diminish the worth of the review administration and report. The purpose of this study was to investigate the association between auditor independence and audit quality in Nigerian money deposit banks (MDBs). The study considered the of ten years (2011-2020), eight money deposit banks were chosen. Data was retrieved from audited financial statements of the selected money deposit banks and evaluated using e-views 10 to determine the outcome.  The study discovered that audit rotation and audit fee had a positive and insignificant association with audit quality, whereas audit tenure, board independence, and firm size had a negative and negligible link with audit quality of the quoted MDBs in Nigeria. This study recommends that auditors use a method that adheres to auditing rules and guidelines, or generally accepted auditing practices, in the execution of their duties. This is possible through seminars on current auditing ideas that will be effective in their evaluating practices, so improving the quality of review. Keywords: Audit quality, Auditor Independence, auditor tenure, auditor rotation DOI: 10.7176/RJFA/14-20-01 Publication date: December 31st 202