Performance characterization of long-distance digital microwave radio systems

Imperial Users onl

Scientific Evolution, Creation Theologies and African Cosmogonies in Dialogue: Toward a Christian Theology of Evolution

This is a dissertation in which the question of cosmic origins is examined from three perspectives, namely, Scientific Theories of Evolution, Christian Theologies of Creation, and African Cosmogonies, respectively. Through the use of comparative-dialogic and dialectic methods, and the application of the models of contact/dialogue and confirmation/integration in ways of relating science with religion, the insights of these three perspectives are examined and analyzed in the formulation of a Theology of Evolution that conceives of evolution as a medium of divine creativity. The themes of evolutionary process, interconnection, interrelation and interdependence in nature, the mystery and sacredness of nature and the teleology and destiny of creation examined in this study form the basis for a Theology of Evolution. It is an interconnection and interrelatedness that is grounded in the Trinity itself. Together we form an ongoing community of beings where all creatures have a kinship relationship with each other, past, present and future. The cosmos in a unity, it is all one piece, although of different layers. Humanity is the highest level of this ongoing process, nonetheless, part of a wider evolutionary process in a universe where God made things make themselves. Just as no creation theology today can ignore the insights of scientific evolution, so too, no other branch of theology can ignore Theology of Evolution. The implications for all theology, including African Christian theology, are crucial. This is equally evident in ecological issues where theology of Evolution has a direct ethical implication

TOWARDS A RE-ORIENTATION OF VALUES: AN EXAMINATION OF THE ROLE OF SEXUALITY EDUCATION IN NIGERIAN TERTIARY INSTITUTIONS

Sexual misbehaviours or inappropriate sexual behaviours have been found to constitute serious threats to the educational as well as the spiritual, social and psychological stability of adolescents in our contemporary society. In our tertiary institutions, we are confronted daily with series of problems which hinge on inappropriate sexual behaviours. It is for this very reason that all most if not all tertiary institutions in Nigeria have adopted as a precautionary measure a dress code to curb this virus that is gradually and consistently eating deep into the fabrics of academic excellence in our tertiary institutions. Although the adoption of dress code helps, yet it has not actually addressed the root of the problem. This is because the problem of sexual misbehaviours in our tertiary institutions requires more proactive measures than just a mere proscription of dress codes. For this reason, the paper using historical and expository methods, examines the basic concept of sex or sexuality education and all it holds for a viral education in Nigeria. The paper therefore, calls for a re-orientation of values as well as introduction of a realistic and comprehensive sex education programme for our youths in all tertiary institutions in Nigeria in order to restore our cherished moral values

Purification and Identification of the Active Principles in Ethanol Extract Fractions of Phyllanthus Amarus Leaves

All organisms have their own antioxidant defense system that protects them against free radical damage by enzymes such as superoxide dismutase and catalase or compounds such as ascorbic acid, tocopherol and glutathione. However, our body system sometimes cannot work efficiently to mop up these free radicals thus, leading to unavoidable damages caused by oxidation. As a result, consumption of additional antioxidants through herbs such as Phyllanthus amarus, foods or supplements (phytochemicals) are beneficial to the body system, defending it against these harmful ROS. This research is aimed at ascertaining the presence of various antioxidants in ethanolic extract fractions of Phyllanthus amarus leaves. Phyllanthus amarus leaves were collected from Federal University Wukari premise, Taraba State, Nigeria and dried. The dried leaves were crushed into a fine powder manually using mortar and pestle. The ethanolic extract of Phyllanthus amarus leaves was placed under fan to evaporate the ethanol before subjecting it to further assays. The results obtained from this study revealed that for beta carotene inhibition assay, fraction 4b (445.9459%) with the solvent combination Chloroform:ethyl acetate (50:50) has the highest bleaching inhibition capacity while  fraction 4a (81.08109%) has the lowest bleaching inhibition capacity. Fraction 2a (56.9565 mg/mL) has the highest phenolic content while fraction 6b (7.608669 mg/mL) has the lowest phenolic content. The assay for total flavonoid content showed that fraction 3a (145.71428 mg/mL) has the highest flavonoid content while fraction 8a (121.42857 mg/mL) has the lowest flavonoid content. The results for anti-lipid peroxidation increased with increasing extract concentration. Fraction 3b (55.732 mg/mL) with the solvent combination (chloroform 100:00) has the highest antioxidant capacity while fraction 6a (2.775 mg/mL) with the solvent combination of ethyl acetate: ethanol (50:50) has the lowest antioxidant activity. The correlation between total antioxidants capacity and total Phenolic content and that of antioxidant and flavonoid was found to be weak negative (r2 =-2.058, r2=-0.024 respectively), while the correlation between phenolics and Betacarotene and that of the total antioxidant capacity and total flavonoid content was found to be weak positive (r2=0.245 and r2=0.313 respectively). The results of the analysis revealed that Phyllanthus amarus leaves contain significant nutritional components that are good for human health, such as flavonoids which is a subclass of the phytochemical, polyphenols. It is reasonable to conclude that fractions 2a and 2b has the highest antioxidant activities which have good potentials for drug development, especially against diseases of oxidative stress origin. Keywords: Antioxidant, Flavonoids, Phyllanthus amarus, Ethanol extract DOI: 10.7176/ALST/94-01 Publication date:August 31st 202

RACISM IN KANT’S ANTHROPOLOGY

Immanuel Kant has been credited with much of the foundational thoughts in the evolution of deontology and deontological outlooks. The basic principle of his moral philosophy is that reason is the basis of our status as moral agents. By this, Kant means that to be moral is to be perfectly rational. But in his rather neglected or forgotten works – anthropology and physical geography, Kant had alluded that Africans lack rationality because of their skin colour. This paper therefore argues to the contrary that Africans are rational beings and that race or colour has nothing to do with rationality. Therefore, this paper is an attempt to show that Kant’s Anthropology is racist and so should be reconstructed. It is on this note that the paper concludes that although Kant’s bad claims reflect poorly on his general philosophical aptitude, they do not necessarily mean that all of his claims are wrong or cannot be salvaged

Optimisation-based approaches for multi-floor process plant layout

The layout configuration of a chemical process plant has an immense impact on its efficiency of operation, energy consumption, environmental impact and safety levels. This design decision usually lasts throughout the life span of a plant but with the advent of smart manufacturing systems, changes can be made as often as required. At present, there is also a growing need for new chemical plants to meet the increasing demand for chemical products. Hence, automating the layout design process using highly efficient and realistic mathematical models is vital. To aid this, mixed integer linear programming (MILP) models are proposed in this thesis for the efficient determination of multi-floor chemical process plant layout designs. These MILP models proposed obtain the layout configurations factoring in equipment inter-connectivity by pipes, pumping, construction, land purchase and a more realistic description for tall equipment that span through floors, with/without the availability of pre-defined production sections. Using novel integer cuts, each model obtains globally optimal solutions for larger problem instances in short computational times. Safety factors are also introduced with risk being quantified using the Dow's fire and explosion index and the Domino Hazard Index. Hazardous events including jet fires, pool fires, fireballs, flash fires, explosions and/or the resulting blast wave effects are quantified as a function of inter-equipment distances. The associated financial risks in the event of an accident are also determined using a more accurate evaluation of the separation distance between equipment. The resulting MILP model estimates the optimal layout configuration and protection device choices for a chemical process plant. In each of these cases, the unique characteristics and limitations of the proposed models are shown using industry-relevant case studies having a varying number of equipment and requirements, with the models handling all features described with improved computational performance

A PHILOSOPHICAL EXAMINATION OF THE CONCEPT AND NATURE OF INFIDELITY IN MARRIAGE AS A SOCIO-ETHICAL ISSUE IN CONTEMPORARY SOCIETY

Marriage is a product of both tradition and culture. In the African tradition, marriage is considered a sacred union due to its contributions and role in the society. For this reason, marital vows which include faithfulness or fidelity to one’s spouse are inviolable because infidelity undermines the very foundation of marriage and family in many ways.  Unfortunately, the very bond (fidelity/faithfulness) that unites and strengthens marriage and family has been undermined. Today, almost every family in our contemporary society suffers from the consequences of the breach of marital vows otherwise known as infidelity. Against this background therefore, this paper attempts a critical examination of infidelity in marriage as a socio-ethical issue in our contemporary society. By engaging the analytic and historical methods of analysis, the paper discovers that infidelity is present in nearly all marriages in our contemporary society and that the concept is not limited to just men, as women both young and old are closing in on their male counterparts in its frequency. The paper then argues that infidelity is indeed a moral as well as a social problem that has devastating long-term consequences on both the spouse and the society at large. Hence, the paper advocates for proactive measures or mechanisms that should be instituted by the government to check-mate the incidents of infidelity in marriage

ETHICS AND EDUCATION: TOWARDS A REORIENTATION OF VALUES IN TERTIARY INSTITUTIONS IN NIGERIA

Moral maturity is a mark of human development and the moral development of the citizens of every nation must precede other aspects of development otherwise the process of development would be obstructed by immorality of the citizens. In the same vein, any education that is devoid of morality is incomplete, meaningless and harmful to both the individuals who acquire it and the society in which they live. This paper is therefore, a critical examination of the role of ethics or morality in education. Through the historical and analytical methods, the paper discovers that there is presently a dearth of moral probity in our educational system. It then advocates for a re-orientation of values in our tertiary institutions through a re-introduction of moral education in the teaching curriculum of every tertiary institutions in Nigeria.  The paper recommends that Nigeria should get her priorities right by giving primacy to morality in her educational and developmental programmes

Applying a Knowledge Evaluation Framework in the Nigerian Public Sector

Effective knowledge management requires available, complete knowledge that can be readily accessed when undertaking organisational processes and functions. In most organisations in developing countries, knowledge is frequently paper-based, however, there is increasing digital provision. The Nigerian public sector aims to use Information Technology to manage digital knowledge and, in doing so, improve organisational performance. To streamline digitalisation, existing knowledge used by staff in fulfilment of their duties could be digitised. Before digitising, we created an approach to assess existing knowledge, a five-stage Knowledge Evaluation Framework. This used task decomposition to identify and assess knowledge use in task fulfilment, with interviews, task walkthroughs and observation used to gather task data. The framework merged established approaches including Hierarchical Task Analysis, Skills-Rules-Knowledge Framework and Swimming Lane Sequence Diagrams to diagrammatically represent knowledge use in tasks. Using these diagrams, knowledge walkthroughs assessed knowledge availability, completeness and correctness in the Nigerian public sector reviewing the documents identified as the knowledge sources. The final stage, outcome assessment, focuses on the typical results of task fulfilment reviewing historical data from completed activities. The Knowledge Evaluation Framework was successfully applied in the Nigerian Public Sector, with tasks decomposed and knowledge tasks, actors and sources identified. Staff believed that knowledge was available and of high quality, however, contrary to these expectations in the knowledge walkthroughs we found that knowledge was often missing, obsolete or incorrect. Further, we found that whilst tasks may be knowledge-based, typically staff in the Nigerian public sector used their own, implicit “Guess Knowledge” rather than accessing organisational knowledge. The outcome assessment highlighted that there were significant problems with inappropriate, often guess knowledge use resulting in project delays and increased costs. Use of the Knowledge Evaluation Framework enabled us to explore existing knowledge provision and in doing so, to identify that there are significant knowledge gaps requiring knowledge creation. In addition, we identified that cultural change is needed, with knowledge valued and used rather than largely ignored. These findings have significant implications for the future design of a knowledge management system and highlight the potential of this method to explore knowledge use in an organisation

Fracture systems in the younger granite rocks around fobur, northern Nigeria: product of residual stress?

Outcrop-scale fractures and associated veins found in the Younger Granite rocks around Fobur, Northern Nigeria were studied in relation to similar structures in their host rocks (Migmatites-gneisses -quartzite complex). Fractures and veins attitude (strike and dip) data were collected across the study area and subjected to graphical and stereographic analyses. The result revealed a predominant N-S strike with variations in the NE-SW and NW-SE directions; and others trending in the E-W direction (dip joints). Field observations indicated neither deformation of joints planes nor distortion of joint directions which confirmed that the jointing occurred in an anorogenic setting. Nevertheless, the joint structural trend in the Younger Granite rocks replicated those found in the surrounding orogenic basement rock exposures. This could reflect the likely existence in the host Migmatite-gneiss-quartzite complex imposed residual stresses of the Pan African event that were not fully relieved. These ancient stress systems possibly helped to orient the fractures and other structures in a later emplaced Younger Granite complex in a fashion similar to the enclosing basement complex rocks.KEY WORDS: Residual Stress, Fractures, Younger Granites, Fobur, Nigeri