Internet as an effective tool for modern educational and business administration

This paper presents the effectiveness of Internet in the promotion of academic institutions and local business in Enugu through website development and its services. The three organizations chosen for the study were Doma internet services Ltd. Abakpa, Annunciation Specialist Hospital, Emene, Enugu and Information and Communication Technology unit of the department of Urban and Regional Planning, Enugu State university of Science and Technology, Agbani, Enugu.  In the qualitative study carried out in these three organizations, data collections were made by direct observations, filling of structured questionnaires and interviews. 20 chosen respondents were interviewed in each of the organizations to examine the objectives that organisations achieve with websites, what drives the development of websites of organizations and the effectiveness of the website development. 3 respondents out of the 20 chosen respondents were the members of the management of the selected unit and the research questions in Table 5.7, Table 5.8 and Table 5.9 were directed strictly to the members of the management. The work revealed the effectiveness of web site in advertisement, effective communication, administration, business transaction and the creation of awareness on the existence of an organization locally and internationally. Keywords: Administration, Communication, Internet, marketing, Website

Childhood and Adult Asthma: Phenotype- and Endotype-Based Biomarkers

The concept of asthma has changed from that of a single disease entity to that of a heterogeneous disease comprising several phenotypes linked to specific endotypes. Recently, significant progress has been made in disease classification into phenotypes and biologically distinct variants (endotypes). Classification of patients into endotypes has led to precision medicine in which specific biomarkers and appropriate individualized treatments have now been identified. Despite the ongoing classification of disease endotypes, the presence or absence of a T-helper 2 (Th2) molecular signature has resulted in the association of asthma endotypes with phenotypes so as to establish responders and non-responders to inhaled corticosteroid therapy. More importantly, biologic therapies predicated on disease endotypes may in future constitute a paradigm shift from the traditional pharmacologic treatments and lead to better prognosis in moderate-to-severe forms of the disease (in which they are presently used). This book chapter aims to discuss the current concepts on asthma classification and biomarker-based diagnosis

Paradoxes of a Conventional Society: A Study of Ben Jonson’s The Alchemist and Benard Shaw’s Heartbreak House

Drama is a cognitive process and means of concretely translating abstract ideas into reality. It provides a vent for dramatists to vividly capture the rhythms of life in their societies. From the eons of time, the modus operandi of drama has placed it on a pedestal of a gadfly that prods, points and comments on the realities of its time. It is, therefore, pertinent to say that the mind of the dramatist is fertilized by the various social, economic cum political realities that are operational within the domain of his/her existence. This study focuses on two English plays; namely Ben Jonson’s Elizabethan play, The Alchemist, and George Benard Shaw’s modern drama- Heartbreak House. The selection of these models is anchored on the staggering power of their authors to detect the symptoms of social diseases that are present in their societies at their moments of writing and which by their being exacerbated in our own time, appear transhistorical in nature. The objectives of this study are to highlight the contradictory qualities and properties (paradoxes) of a modern society; one that seeks growth in all ramifications (education, politics, science, among others) and yet finds solace in mundaneness as exemplified by the two plays. The second objective is to comparatively look at the realities in the world of the two plays and what is obtainable now in our own age. Therefore, the interpretation of the past and the new meanings of the present will be juxtaposed and evaluated. Albert Bandura’s Social Learning Theory will provide frame of reference for the study while interpretive approach shall be content analysis

Public Enlightenment Education on the acceptance of Fingerprint Biometric Technology for administration in academic institutions and other organizations

This research presents the overview of the origin of fingerprint biometric technology, the opinion of the public on the acceptance of fingerprint biometric technology and the means of instilling confidence on the public for the total acceptance of the technology.  Data was collected with the aid of a lecture and structured questionnaires distributed to 50 respondents in NewLine Computer training Center Ltd. Abakpa. There were lectures and interviews conducted by the researcher and questionnaires completion by the selected population of 50 people comprising of age between 18 and 65 years. The 50 people consist of individuals from education, technology and government organisations.   The organisation was done by the Researchers and three members of staff of NewLine Computer training Center Ltd. Abakpa Nike Enugu. The lectures enlightened the 50 participants/respondents that fingerprint is a discontinuous variation and that no two persons have exactly the same fingerprint. The study revealed that it is obvious that confidence will be instilled in the public if there is public enlightenment as the number of respondents who believe that fingerprint cannot be stolen or copied is 92% although 8% of the respondents is still biased after the lectures. The research will instil confidence in the use of fingerprint biometric technology and will break the shackles of currently being a misunderstood novelty to a widespread, mainstream personal identity authentication tool. Keywords: Authentication, Biometric Technology, Chip Implantation, Fingerprint Acquisition, Identity Management

Determinants of Sustainability of Paddy Rice Production in Niger Delta Region of Nigeria

This study examined the determinants of sustainability of paddy rice production in Niger Delta Region of Nigeria. Multistage sampling technique was used to select a sample of 300 rice farmers from three states out of the nine states in the region based on their strength in rice production Data were collected using structured and validated questionnaire. Both primary and secondary sources of data were used in the study. The field results showed that, only two variables, sex and age were inversely proportional to sustainability while others; total household size, farm size, seed input, hired labor and fertilizer application were directly proportional to sustainability which implied that the higher the values of these variables the higher the sustainability level of farmers production system in the study area, It was concluded that rice production is highly sustainable in the area and that farmers should be encouraged by extension agents to use more of internal inputs to improve their sustainability through constant visitation and evaluation of their farm activities. Keywords: Sustainability, Determinants, Paddy Rice Production, Niger Delta.

Phytochemical screening, antioxidant, antiulcer and toxicity studies on Desmodium adscendens (Sw) DC Fabaceae leaf and stem

Purpose: To assess the phytochemical profile, toxicity, as well as the antioxidant, and antiulcer activities of the methanol extracts of Desmodium adscendens stem and leaf.Methods: Maceration procedure was employed in the preparation of the methanol extracts. Phytochemical characterization of the extracts was carried out according to standard methods. In vitro antioxidant activity was evaluated using 2, 2-diphenyl-1-picryhyldrazy (DPPH l) and ferric reducing antioxidant power assay (FRAP). Antiulcer activity was investigated using ethanol-induced ulcer model, while toxicity was assessed by observing the mice for mortality.Results: Phytochemical analysis indicate the presence of glycosides, alkaloids, tannins, flavonoids, and saponins in the stem and leaf. Methanol extracts of the plant exhibited antioxidant activity, with DPPH assay results showing median inhibitory concentration (IC50) of 87.59 (leaf), 108.87 (stem), 28.52 (alpha-tocopherol), and 5.05 μg/mL (ascorbic acid). The FRAP assay results for the stem and leaf extracts were 1483 and 1953 μM Fe2+/g dry plant, respectively, while for ascorbic acid it was 3463 μMFe2+/g. The extracts showed significant antiulcer activity, with 14.27 and 15.18 % ulceration inhibition for the leaf extract, and 12.31 and 13.36 % for the stem extract at administered doses of 100 and 200 mg/kg, respectively. Cimetidine and omeprazole (standards) showed ulceration inhibition of 5.53, and 8.26 % at 5.7 and 0.57 mg/kg doses, respectively.Conclusion: The methanol extracts of Desmodium adscendens stem and leaf offer significant protective activity against ethanol-induced gastric ulceration in rats, and the activity may be related to their antioxidant effect.Keywords: Antioxidant, Antiulcer, Toxicity, Desmodium adscenden

Evaluation of a naturally derived waste brown oil extract for demulsification of crude oil emulsion

Conventional methods of eliminating water from crude oil such as the chemical injection have both economic and environmental impacts; thus, this study proposed an economic and environmentally friendly demulsifier. The bottle test method was used to study the performance of the natural extract and commercial demulsifier on a crude oil sample. The GC-MS profile of the extract was in agreement with previous reports on composition of oil extracted from rice bran using hexane, ultrasound assisted extraction and conventional solvent extraction with ethanol. Varying degrees of saturated and unsaturated fatty acids as well as retention times as observed, was a function of total time of scanning, according to NIST08 library of mass spectra. The performance of the demulsifier was expressed in terms of percentage of water separated from 100 ml samples of the oil samples. For both the demulsifiers, the performance increased with increase in volume of the demulsifier, separation time and operating temperature. The extracted demulsifier performed better than the chemical demulsifier under all the experimental conditions adopted in this study. Based on the parametric evaluation, it was observed the results from software corroborated the results obtained from experiments in terms of the observations of the combined effect of temperature and volume which showed the most significant influence on demulsification of the emulsified crude. The highest efficiency of the bio-demulsifier was obtained with a volume of 5 mL of the extract, at a temperature of 70�C and separation time of 60 min

The prevalence and risk of urinary tract infection in malnourished children : a systematic review and meta-analysis

There are vast differences in prevalence rates of urinary tract infection (UTI) reported among malnourished children globally. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to provide estimates of pooled prevalence of UTI among these children and combined UTI risk in comparison with their well-nourished counterparts.; We systematically searched electronic databases (MEDLINE, EMBASE, ISI Web of Science and African Journals Online; date of the last search: 22 December 2018) for studies reporting either the prevalence of UTI in malnourished children or parallel healthy controls. Eligible primary studies were observational studies of children in English Language reporting UTI prevalence with background malnutrition or with enough data to compute these estimates, as well as studies which reported at the same time UTI prevalence in healthy controls. We synthesized published prevalence rates or associations (odds ratios [OR]) between malnutrition and UTI and their 95% confidence intervals (CI) using random effects meta-regression and explored potential heterogeneity determinants using meta-regression analysis. This review is registered with PROSPERO, number- CRD42018084765.; We included 26 cross-sectional and 8 case-control studies reporting on UTI prevalence in malnourished children, and in malnourished children vs. healthy controls, respectively. The pooled prevalence of UTI in 3294 malnourished children was 17% (95% CI, 13, 21%). Heterogeneity was high (I; 2; = 87.6%; Tau; 2; = 0.06) as studies varied in their sample size, degree of malnutrition, and study period. Multivariate meta-regression model, including these factors, explained 34.6% of the between-study variance. Pooled OR of UTI in association with malnutrition in 2051 children (1052 malnourished children vs. 999 controls) was 2.34 (95% CI, 1.15, 3.34), with lower between-study heterogeneity (I; 2; = 53.6%; Tau; 2; = 0.47).; UTI is more prevalent in malnourished children than in their well-nourished counterparts. Screening and treatment for UTI should be incorporated in the management protocol of malnourished children to improve disease outcomes

Improving the efficiency and stability of in-air fabricated perovskite solar cells using the mixed antisolvent of methyl acetate and chloroform

Antisolvents play a significant role in obtaining high-quality perovskite films during the fabrication process. This paper reports a novel mixture of two antisolvents (methyl acetate and chloroform) that proves effective for fabricating high-quality perovskite films in a high humidity ambient. The results show that the use of methyl acetate alone as the antisolvent enables the fabrication of dense perovskite films (MAPbI3) in a high humidity ambient, but with a rough surface, while mixing methyl acetate with an appropriate amount of chloroform produces not only dense perovskite films but also smooth surfaces. As a result, the power conversion efficiency (PCE) is increased from 17.1% of the devices treated with methyl acetate alone to 18.6% of the devices treated with the mixed antisolvent of methyl acetate (70%) and chloroform (30%). The stability of the devices was also improved significantly for the devices treated with the mixed antisolvent of methyl acetate (85%) and chloroform (15%), which exhibit a slow degradation of 7% in PCE after 552 h of storage, compared to 22% for the devices treated with methyl acetate alone