Flood menace in Kaduna Metropolis: impacts, remedial and management strategies

This study assesses how Kaduna Metropolis have been affected by flood menace incidences as it takes a look at the devastating impacts, remedial and management strategies at curbing flooding in Kaduna Metropolis which has almost become a yearly occurrence. Data for this study were obtained from questionnaires, interviews, personal observation, archival records of ministries and newspaper reports. A total of 196 respondents, drawn from residents in flood prone areas, were sampled for this study. Descriptive statistics and Likert Rating System were used in the analyses of the data. The results of analyses show that floods in Kaduna Metropolis occur mostly at the event of rainfall intensity, especially at the peak of rainy season (September, 2015). And it takes 3 - 5days for the flood water to recede depending on the magnitude of event and receding factors in different areas. Factors other than rainfall identified to substantially influenced flooding in the study area are: Lack of and poor drainage networks, dumping of wastes/refuse in drainage and water channels, topographic characteristics, overflowing of river banks, low infiltration due to high water table and degree of built or up areas leading to increased runoffs, and climate change. Despite the flood hazards, occupants in flood prone have remained on the basis of having no alternative, cultural ethnic affinity, family home place where parent were buried, used to flooding as the whole area suffers from flooding, nature of occupation, and cheaper houses to rent. Personal properties and public infrastructures suffer all forms of flood damages. Flood remedial and management strategies include river re-channelization, raising house foundations, land use planning and management and public enlightenment are recommended measure to checkmate activities aiding flooding in Kaduna metropolis.Keywords: Flood, Menace, Infrastructure, Impacts, Remedial and Management Strategies

Geological Effect on GPR System Due to Soil Properties in Malaysia

This paper present the measurement of dielectric properties of soil in Malaysia in three differences condition which are normal condition  (ambience), heated (up to 50 OC) and wet condition (10 % water content). Eight (8) samples of soil have been collected in the local region and was measured in the frequency range from 0.5 GHz to 3.5 GHz for Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) applications. The measurement of the dielectric properties has been conducted using Agilent high temperature probe (Model) integrated with Performance Network Analyzer (PNA E8362B). The uncertainties in measurement process, especially dealing with measurement data have been considered in order to eliminate the probability of error during the measurement. The measured result for permittivity and loss factor of the measured samples are tabulated in graphs and the analysis of the measured data are discussed in this paper

Real-Time Connected Car Services

In recent years, the patterns ofconnected car are tied in with giving driversmore answers for making the journeyconsistent. Vehicles today are outfitted withhigh innovation highlights and in-vehicleavailability. The Integrated Connected VehicleServices is produced to convey an incorporateddriving experience to all vehicle owners, tomake a communication stage for drivers toimpart and share data between vehicles. Thesystem allows to discover nearby vehicles insiderange, giving the driver early notice caution ofcrisis vehicles inside certain range. Moreover,the system likewise enables the driver to sharebasic data which later plots into the maps foralternate drivers to view and plan the journey.The information of transmission between thevehicles are incorporated through firebase cloudservices. Firebase is known as an effective clouddatabase and ready to screen the applicationdevelopment

A Comparability Study on Driver Fatigue Using C#, C++ and Python

Accidents on road are very commonthese days. Most of them are caused by driverfatigueness. Some common causes and symptomshave been identified. One of the main solutionto detect driver fatigue is by analyzing the facialfeatures of the drivers. This paper discusses aboutthe facial features that can be used to detect driverfatigue. Further examples on existing vehiclesafety technology is also discussed. Primarily, thiswork emphasizes on the study of three differentprogramming languages and its compatibilitywhich works best to be integrated with theproposed hardware. Based on the study, theresult is discussed and the suitable programminglanguage is suggested

Risk profiles and one-year outcomes of patients with newly diagnosed atrial fibrillation in India: Insights from the GARFIELD-AF Registry.

BACKGROUND: The Global Anticoagulant Registry in the FIELD-Atrial Fibrillation (GARFIELD-AF) is an ongoing prospective noninterventional registry, which is providing important information on the baseline characteristics, treatment patterns, and 1-year outcomes in patients with newly diagnosed non-valvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF). This report describes data from Indian patients recruited in this registry. METHODS AND RESULTS: A total of 52,014 patients with newly diagnosed AF were enrolled globally; of these, 1388 patients were recruited from 26 sites within India (2012-2016). In India, the mean age was 65.8 years at diagnosis of NVAF. Hypertension was the most prevalent risk factor for AF, present in 68.5% of patients from India and in 76.3% of patients globally (P < 0.001). Diabetes and coronary artery disease (CAD) were prevalent in 36.2% and 28.1% of patients as compared with global prevalence of 22.2% and 21.6%, respectively (P < 0.001 for both). Antiplatelet therapy was the most common antithrombotic treatment in India. With increasing stroke risk, however, patients were more likely to receive oral anticoagulant therapy [mainly vitamin K antagonist (VKA)], but average international normalized ratio (INR) was lower among Indian patients [median INR value 1.6 (interquartile range {IQR}: 1.3-2.3) versus 2.3 (IQR 1.8-2.8) (P < 0.001)]. Compared with other countries, patients from India had markedly higher rates of all-cause mortality [7.68 per 100 person-years (95% confidence interval 6.32-9.35) vs 4.34 (4.16-4.53), P < 0.0001], while rates of stroke/systemic embolism and major bleeding were lower after 1 year of follow-up. CONCLUSION: Compared to previously published registries from India, the GARFIELD-AF registry describes clinical profiles and outcomes in Indian patients with AF of a different etiology. The registry data show that compared to the rest of the world, Indian AF patients are younger in age and have more diabetes and CAD. Patients with a higher stroke risk are more likely to receive anticoagulation therapy with VKA but are underdosed compared with the global average in the GARFIELD-AF. CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION-URL: http://www.clinicaltrials.gov. Unique identifier: NCT01090362

Flexion relaxation phenomenon of back muscles in discriminating between healthy and chronic low back pain women

This paper describes the investigation of Surface Electromyography (sEMG) signals of back muscles during forward flexion and extension in healthy and low back pain (LBP) women. Flexion Relaxation Phenomenon (FRP) of EMG was observed and quantitatively analyzed. There were three groups of Malaysian women aged between 20 to 50 years old volunteers participated in this study. The groups were group 1, 2, and 3 which consist of 5 healthy women, 5 LBP patients with FRP and 5 LBP patients without FRP with respectively. Every participant was trained to perform two types of forward flexion; maximum forward flexion and 90° forward flexion with hands on the knees. The sEMG and the motion signals were recorded during forward flexion of the trunk at the back muscles. Four parameters were found to be statistically significant differences (p<0.001) amongst groups. These parameters are average RMS during full flexion, ratio between average RMS during full flexion and average RMS during standing, flexion relaxation ratio (FRR) and extension relaxation ratio (ERR). © 2008 Springer-Verlag

<span style="font-size:15.0pt;font-family: "Times New Roman";mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";mso-bidi-font-family: Mangal;color:black;mso-ansi-language:EN-GB;mso-fareast-language:EN-US; mso-bidi-language:AR-EG" lang="EN-GB">Aspects on the reproductive cycle of <i>Donax semistriatus </i>and<i> Donax trunculus</i> (Mollusca: Bivalvia) in Idku, Egypt</span>

287-296<span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family: " times="" new="" roman";mso-fareast-font-family:"times="" roman";mso-bidi-font-family:="" "times="" roman";mso-ansi-language:en-gb;mso-fareast-language:en-us;="" mso-bidi-language:hi"="" lang="EN-GB">Present study deals with the reproductive cycle of the two clams Donax semistriatus and Donax trunculus (Bivalvia: Mollusca) and it is the first in this region. Specimens of these animals were collected monthly from two sites, one of them located at waterway that discharges waste water from irrigation canal. The reproductive stages of D. semistriatus and D. trunculus were classified into: inactive, early active, late active, ripe, partially spent and spent stages. Males of D. semistriatus were higher than females at both sites<span style="font-size: 9.0pt;font-family:" times="" new="" roman";mso-fareast-font-family:"times="" roman";="" mso-bidi-font-family:"times="" roman";mso-ansi-language:en-gb;mso-fareast-language:="" en-us;mso-bidi-language:ar-eg"="" lang="EN-GB"> (male: female ratio was 1.47:1 in site 1 and 1.54:1 in site 2). Meanwhile, m<span style="font-size:9.0pt; font-family:" times="" new="" roman";mso-fareast-font-family:"times="" roman";="" mso-bidi-font-family:"times="" roman";mso-ansi-language:en-gb;mso-fareast-language:="" en-us;mso-bidi-language:ar-eg"="" lang="EN-GB">ale<span style="font-size: 9.0pt;font-family:" times="" new="" roman";mso-fareast-font-family:"times="" roman";="" mso-bidi-font-family:"times="" roman";color:black;mso-ansi-language:en-gb;="" mso-fareast-language:en-us;mso-bidi-language:hi"="" lang="EN-GB">  D. trunculus outnumbered females in site 1 (1.38:1), and females made up a slightly higher proportion<span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family: " times="" new="" roman";mso-fareast-font-family:"times="" roman";mso-bidi-font-family:="" "times="" roman";mso-ansi-language:en-gb;mso-fareast-language:en-us;="" mso-bidi-language:hi"="" lang="EN-GB"> than males (1:1.13) in site 2. <span style="font-size:9.0pt; font-family:" times="" new="" roman";mso-fareast-font-family:"times="" roman";="" mso-bidi-font-family:"times="" roman";mso-ansi-language:en-gb;mso-fareast-language:="" en-us;mso-bidi-language:ar-eg"="" lang="EN-GB">The sexual cycle of both species showed inactive gonad in the winter while the sexual activity was mainly detectable during spring and summer.<span style="font-size:9.0pt; font-family:" times="" new="" roman";mso-fareast-font-family:"times="" roman";="" mso-bidi-font-family:"times="" roman";mso-ansi-language:en-gb;mso-fareast-language:="" en-us;mso-bidi-language:hi"="" lang="EN-GB"> <span style="font-size:9.0pt; font-family:" times="" new="" roman";mso-fareast-font-family:"times="" roman";="" mso-bidi-font-family:"times="" roman";mso-ansi-language:en-gb;mso-fareast-language:="" en-us;mso-bidi-language:ar-eg"="" lang="EN-GB">Both species showed no signs of hermaphroditism. Temperature is found to be the factor which possibly triggers reproduction.</span

Variable nitrogen sources effect on Xanthomonas campestris ATCC 13915 ability for xanthan production in culture supplemented with pineapple waste

Xanthan gum is widely known as the source for numerous applications, for example, in the food industry, pharmaceuticals, and more recently, in the improvement of oil production. It is used in many industries as this biopolymer's properties meet the industry's needs. However, due to economic constraints, xanthan gum is produced in many industries using continuous fermentation technology. Glucose is the carbon substrate in the commercial manufacture of xanthan, which raises the cost of xanthan synthesis. Using a less expensive substrate, like agricultural waste, is one technique to lower the price of xanthan. Besides, a suitable nitrogen source with optimal concentration is vital to obtain high xanthan production. Therefore, this study emphasises the effect of different nitrogen sources supplemented with liquid pineapple waste in the cultivation medium for high xanthan production. The result shows that the medium supplemented with 12 gL-1 ammonium dihydrogen phosphate successfully produced the highest xanthan production of about 12.5 gL-1. This finding shows an increment of about 60% from the original medium used in xanthan production using Xanthomonas campestris ATCC 13951 in submerged cultivation

A quantitative approach to measure women's sexual function using electromyography: a preliminary study of the Kegel exercise

Background: Currently, the reference standard used to clinically assess sexual function among women is a qualitative questionnaire. Hence, a generalised and quantitative measurement tool needs to be available as an alternative. This study investigated whether an electromyography (EMG) measurement tecnique could be used to help quantify women's sexual function. Material/Methods: A preliminary intervention study was conducted on 12 female subjects, who were randomised into a control (n=6) and an intervention (n=6) group. Intervention involved a set regimen of pelvic floor muscle exercises (Kegel) and the control group did not have any treatment. All subjects were asked to answer a validated, self-rated Pelvic Organ Prolapse/Urinary Incontinence Sexual Function Questionnaire (PISQ). EMG measurements of the pelvic floor muscles (PFM) and the abdominal muscles were taken from all women at recruitment and 8 weeks after study commencement. Results: After 8 weeks, most of the subjects in the control group did not display any noted positive difference in either PISQ score (4/6) or in their muscle strength (4/6). However, a noted progressive difference were observed in subjects who were placed in the Kegel group; PISQ score (5/6) and muscles strength (4/6). Conclusions: The noted difference in the Kegel group subjects was that if progress is observed in the sexual function, improvement is also observed in the strength of at least 2 types of muscles (either abdominal or PFM muscles). Thus, EMG measurement is a potential technique to quantify the changes in female sexual function. Further work will be conducted to validate this assumption