Performance of Onion (Allium Cepa L.) Enhanced By Organic Fertilizer in a Forest Agroecology, Nigeria

There is a growing interest in the use of organic fertilizers for vegetable production in Nigeria, it is important to determine the appropriate rate of application. Field trial was conducted in 2016 to evaluate the effects of cow dung application on growth and yield of onion (Allium cepa L) at the Teaching and Research Farm, Ekiti State University, Ado-Ekiti.  The treatments consisted of cow dung applied at 0, 5, 10 and 20 t ha-1 arranged in randomized complete block design with three replicates. Data were collected on plant height, length of leaf, number of leaves, bulb length, bulb diameter and number of bulb, weight of single bulb plant-1, total biological weight and bulb yield. The result indicated that cow dung rates significantly influenced growth of onion with tallest plant, highest number of leaves and leaf length of 53.87 cm, 6.33 and 58.94 cm respectively. The highest number of bulb (51.8), weight of single bulb (51.9 g), total biological weight (57.4 g) and bulb yield  (14.5 t/ha) were obtained with 20 t/ha rate of application. Addition of cow dung can improved the fertility of the soils for onion production in the forest agroecology leading to low cost input by peasant farmers. Keywords: Agroecology, bulb, cow dung, onion, organic manure, yields

Knowledge and Adherence to COVID-19 Preventive Measures: A Continental Review

Background: The burden of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has been on the rise since it was first reported in December 2019. COVID-19 has devastated global economy, public health, social interaction, and has claimed millions of lives globally within a few months. Due to the severe effect of some of the instituted guidelines on citizens and the economy, some of the policies in place to curtail the spread were receded. Hence, the present review aims to assess existing literature on the knowledge and adherence of Africans toward the COVID-19 preventive measures. Methods: Studies focused on Africans’ knowledge and adherence to COVID-19 preventive measures were selected using Google Scholar, Scopus, and PubMed databases. Preprints that have not been peer-reviewed, reviews, and non-COVID-19 studies were excluded. Results: All selected studies showed a satisfactory knowledge of respondents about COVID-19 but poor level of adherence to the preventive measures. Good knowledge and satisfactory level of adherence was common mostly among the clinical health workers, highly educated, and those with higher professional qualification, while poor knowledge and poor practice was observed mostly among rural dwellers, people of poor educational background, and those unable to read and write. Conclusion: This review identified a relatively good knowledge about COVID-19 from all the studies, however, the level of adherence to preventive measures was poor. We recommend that the populace adhere to the laid guidelines to ensure the spread of the virus is curbed while also enhancing the eradication of the pandemic. Keywords: COVID-19, adherence, knowledge, preventive measures, Afric

Histochemical assessment of Moringa – oleifera oil and walnut oil on cadmium induced lateral geniculate body damage in developing male Wistar rats (Rattus novergiccus)

The brain is vulnerable to oxidative damage due to its high oxygen consumption. This Study investigate the effects of cadmium on the lateral geniculate body of developing male wistar rats and ameliorative potential of Moringa oleifera seed oil and walnut oil extracts. Seven groups of five animals each were used in this experiment. Group A received 3ml of 0.9% normal saline; group B received 2.5mg/kg bw of 3CdSO4.8H2O, group C received 5mg/kg bw vitamin C & 6mg/kg bw vitamin E, group D received 5mg/kg bw vitamin C & 6mg/kg bw vitamin E + 2.5mg/kg bw Cd, group E received 2.5mg/kg bw Cd + 4mg/kg bw Moringa oleifera oil, group F received 2.5mg/kg bw Cd + 4mg/kg bw walnut oil, while group G received 2.5mg/kg bw Cd + 2mg/kg bw walnut + 2mg/kg bw Moringa oleifera oil concomitantly for 3weeks. Parameter tested includes LDH, G6PD in brain tissues, SOD and GPx enzymes in brain homogenates and serum and cresyl fast violet stain in the brain tissues. Cd administration significantly increased SOD, GPx, LDH and decreased G6PD level in brain tissue and decreased their activity in serum when compared with Group A control rats. There was marked reduction and lost in the distribution of nissl substances of the studied tissues of Cd administered animals. However, administration of vitamin C & E, walnut and Moringa oleifera oil restored damaged tissues. Walnut and Moringa oleifera seed oil therefore attenuated the oxidative damage and morphological changes induced by cadmium in the lateral geniculate body of the brain of the young male wistar rats.Key Words: Lateral geniculate body, Antioxidant, Histochemical, Cadmium, Oxidative Damag

Evaluation of Agronomic and Physiological Characteristics of Ten Castor Bean Plant Accessions in Ogbomoso, Nigeria

In spite of numerous industrial benefit of castor plant (Ricinus communis L.), its production is hindered due to lack of adequate agronomic practices. Field experiments were conducted at the Teaching and Research Farm, Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomoso, Nigeria during 2014 and 2015 cropping seasons to evaluate the performance of ten accessions of castor plant. The treatments consisted of nine improved accessions of castor plant and a local variety. In each year, the 10 treatments were laid out in completely randomize block design and replicated three times. Data were collected on growth, seed yield and yield attributes parameters. Data collected in 2014 and 2015 were pooled and subjected to analysis of variance while means were separated using Least Significant Difference at 5% probability level. Growth, yield and yield attributes parameters of castor plant accessions were significantly influenced (p≤0.05). NCRICAS041 produced the tallest plant (190.0 cm) at harvest which was significantly taller than others. The highest mean number of capsules per raceme (150.33) produced by NCRICAS056 was significantly higher than others. NCRICAS056 produced the highest seed yield (1,919 kg/ha) while NCRICAS057 gave the least (1,047 kg/ha). The results of accessions seed yield attributes did not followed any specific other. In conclusion, variability among the accessions in growth and seed yield were apparent. Accessions NCRICAS041 and NCRICAS056 performed better than the locally sourced CASGPMAN. They are therefore recommended for the study area. Keywords: Castor, Accessions, Growth parameter, Seed, Seed attributes, DOI: 10.7176/JNSR/9-18-03 Publication date:September 30th 201

Determination of capture barrier energy of the e-center in palladium Schottky barrier diodes of antimony-doped germanium by varying the pulse width

Please read abstract in the article.The National Research Foundation (NRF) of South Africahttp://iopscience.iop.org/journal/2053-1591am2020Physic

Insurgency and the Invisible Displaced Population in Nigeria: A Situational Analysis

Using the vulnerability theory, this article appraises the effects of the neglect of internally displaced persons (IDPs) due to the interpretation of the concept of internal displacement among national humanitarian stakeholders in Nigeria. Interviews and focus group discussions were employed for data collection in three selected informal IDP settlements, while data were analyzed using the content analysis technique. The study found that the destinations of IDPs determined the level of vulnerability as well as the protection they experienced during displacement. IDPs in informal settlement were very vulnerable in terms of their access to quality education, shelter, food, health care, and potable water as they were often cut off from the government’s humanitarian interventions and only visible to nongovernmental organizations and individual philanthropists who have limited means. It is therefore recommended that, there should be a holistic intervention mechanism in managing the displacement crisis in Nigeria irrespective of their resettlement destinations

Meaning-making from wordless (or nearly wordless) picturebooks: what educational research expects and what readers have to say

Wordless (or nearly wordless) picturebooks are intriguing in terms of how readers make meaning from them. This article offers a conceptualization of existing studies in the field of education that use wordless picturebooks with young readers. While some of these studies contribute to understanding meaning-making, the pragmatic use of wordless picturebooks often does not take account of their particular nature and of the heightened role of the reader, leading to a mismatch between what the picturebook expects from the implied reader and the researchers’ expectations of what ‘real’ readers must do with these books. By highlighting observations from children’s literature scholarship and reader-response studies, this article aims to encourage a more interdisciplinary understanding of meaning-making. It also seeks to persuade educational researchers and mediators to consider investigative approaches that are not based on verbalization but are more in tune with the invitations that wordless picturebooks extend to young readers

Chemical and electrical characteristics of annealed Ni/Au and Ni/Ir/Au contacts on AlGaN

The evolution of Ni/Au and Ni/Ir/Au metal contacts deposited on AlGaN was investigated at different annealing temperatures. The samples were studied with electrical and chemical composition techniques. I-V characteristics of the Schottky diodes were optimum after 500 and 600 ºC annealing for Ni/Au and Ni/Ir/Au based diodes, respectively. The depth profiles of the contacts were measured by x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and time of flight secondary ion mass spectroscopy. These chemical composition techniques were used to examine the evolution of the metal contacts in order to verify the influence the metals have on the electrical properties of the diodes. The insertion of Ir as a diffusion barrier between Ni and Au effected the electrical properties, improving the stability of the contacts at high temperatures. Gold diffuses into the AlGaN film, degrading the electrical properties of the Ni/Au diode. At 500 ºC, the insertion of Ir, however, prevented the in-diffusion of Au into the AlGaN substrate.The National Research Foundation of South Africa (Grant specific unique reference number (UID) 87352).http://www.journals.elsevier.com/physica-b-condensed-matterhb2017Physic

Determination of neo- and d-chiro-Inositol Hexakisphosphate in Soils by Solution 31P NMR Spectroscopy

The inositol phosphates are an abundant but poorly understood group of organic phosphorus compounds found widely in the environment. Four stereoisomers of inositol hexakisphosphate (IP6) occur, although for three of these (scyllo, flea, and D-chiro) the origins, dynamics, and biological function remain unknown, due in large part to analytical limitations in their measurement in environmental samples. We synthesized authentic neo- and n-chiro-IP6 and used them to identify signals from these compounds in three soils from the Falkland Islands. Both compounds resisted hypobromite oxidation and gave quantifiable P-31 NMR signals at delta = 6.67 ppm (equatorial phosphate groups of the 4-equatorial/2-axial conformer of neo-IP6) and delta = 6.48 ppm (equatorial phosphate groups of the 2-equatorial/4-axial conformer of D-chiro-IP6) in soil extracts. Inositol hexakisphosphate accounted for 46-54% of the soil organic phosphorus, of which the four stereoisomers constituted, on average, 55.9% (myo), 32.8% (scyllo), 6.1% (neo), and 5.2% (n-chiro). Reappraisal of the literature based on the new signal assignments revealed that neo- and D-chiro-IP6 occur widely in both terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. These results confirm that the inositol phosphates can constitute a considerable fraction of the organic phosphorus in soils and reveal the prevalence of neo- and D-chiro-IP6 in the environment. The hypobromite oxidation and solution P-31 NMR spectroscopy procedure allows the simultaneous quantification of all four IP6 stereoisomers in environmental samples and provides a platform for research into the origins and ecological significance of these enigmatic compounds