A review of Ghana’s food system and its implications on sustainability and the development of national food-based dietary guidelines

Food-Based Dietary Guidelines (FBDG) provide culturally-appropriate and actionable recommendations based on which populations can make healthy food choices. Food systems sustainability, from production to consumption, and disposal of food and foodrelated items, should be a critical consideration for developing such guidelines. This rapid review assesses Ghana's food systems to determine the level of sustainability to inform the FBDG recommendations. Peer-reviewed articles, documents and reports of relevance to Ghana were included in this rapid review. A hundred and eight papers, answering different questions on food system sustainability were reviewed. Bread, cereals, fish and indigenous vegetables are the most frequently consumed food groups. Sugar-Sweetened Beverages are the most consumed imported foods. In rural areas, 53% of dietary protein comes from plant sources. Fish is the main the source of animal protein for most Ghanaian households. There is intensive exploitation of marine and fresh water resources. Most livestock are raised by smallholder farmers using freerange system. Poultry is frequently kept on deep litter system and only a few are largescale. Crop production for household consumption and small-scale animal rearing are predominant, especially in Northern Ghana. By weight, fruits and vegetables are the least cultivated and consumed crops at the household level. Wood is the commonest source of fuel for cooking, especially in rural areas. Single use plastic is the most used and preferred material for food packaging. Indiscriminate and poor management of waste and pesticide misuse is commonly reported. The findings suggest the need for promoting production diversification, use of clean fuel and reusable food packaging as part of FBDGs to enhance sustainability of Ghana’s food systems.&nbsp

METODE LANGSUNG (DIRECT METHOD) TERHADAP PEMBELAJARAN MAKNA KATA PADA ANAK AUTIS

ABSTRACT The autistic students are the students who have social, behavioural, language, and communicatin disturbances. Those make autistic students difficult to live normally, especially on the aspects of language and communication which play an important role in the social interaction. Language learning for autistic students has special characteristics  empashizing on how produced words are suitable to the meaning which has been agreed by communities. Direct method is learning method which assumes that a good language learning is conducted through using the language intensively in the communication, so that the students use each language element that is appropriate to its meaning and intention. It is expected that the language that the autistic students produce words without meaning (ekolalia), but the meaningfull words. The purpose of this research is to describe the level of effectiveness using direct method on learning word meaning of the second year autistic students of Mutiara Hati special education elementary school Mojokerto. This quantitative research used Pre-Experimental Design with one Group Pre-Test and Post-Test. The subjects were 6 autistic students of second class in Mutiara Hati special education elementary school Mojokerto. The data were analyzed by using non parametric statistics with sign test. From the result of statistical test in this research showed that Zh score was 2.05, which means that Zh score = 2.05 is langer than critical value of 1.96, thus the Null hypothesis (Ho) was rejected and alternative hypothesis (Ha) was accepted. Therefore, it can be concluded that direct method is effective to use on learning word meaning of the second year autistic students of Mutiara Hati special education elementary school Mojokerto.   Keywords : Word Meaning Learning, Direct Metho

A review of Ghana’s food system and its implications on sustainability and the development of national food-based dietary guidelines

Food-Based Dietary Guidelines (FBDG) provide culturally-appropriate and actionable recommendations based on which populations can make healthy food choices. Food systems sustainability, from production to consumption, and disposal of food and foodrelated items, should be a critical consideration for developing such guidelines. This rapid review assesses Ghana's food systems to determine the level of sustainability to inform the FBDG recommendations. Peer-reviewed articles, documents and reports of relevance to Ghana were included in this rapid review. A hundred and eight papers, answering different questions on food system sustainability were reviewed. Bread, cereals, fish and indigenous vegetables are the most frequently consumed food groups. Sugar-Sweetened Beverages are the most consumed imported foods. In rural areas, 53% of dietary protein comes from plant sources. Fish is the main the source of animal protein for most Ghanaian households. There is intensive exploitation of marine and fresh water resources. Most livestock are raised by smallholder farmers using freerange system. Poultry is frequently kept on deep litter system and only a few are largescale. Crop production for household consumption and small-scale animal rearing are predominant, especially in Northern Ghana. By weight, fruits and vegetables are the least cultivated and consumed crops at the household level. Wood is the commonest source of fuel for cooking, especially in rural areas. Single use plastic is the most used and preferred material for food packaging. Indiscriminate and poor management of waste and pesticide misuse is commonly reported. The findings suggest the need for promoting production diversification, use of clean fuel and reusable food packaging as part of FBDGs to enhance sustainability of Ghana’s food systems

Glass House for Diver

Overall composition of the building consists of roof and transparent glass to enclose interior space with the aforementioned concrete block structure. There is no roof over the concrete blocks. Therefore rays of the sun pour over the blocks, and the reflection of the light shines inside the house. Furthermore, vines of various flowers will be planted along the block, changing breakwater-like structure to a hill of flower and greenery in the future.https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/bcs/1180/thumbnail.jp

Pandangan tentang keselamatanahl al-kitab dalam tafsir al-maraghiThe Concept of Salvation for ahl al-kitab in the

ABSTRACT The main aim of the research is to review al-Maraghi\u27s interpretations of the all\u27 al-kitiib and its salvations. The model of research is library research. Then, the abundant data was collected from Tafsir al-Maraghi, especially his interpretations related to the topic. All of the data were collected by using Qur\u27anic concordance. The versus are collected by refering to words or phrases which indicates to the conditions, appreciations, and salvation of ahl al-kith\u27\u27\u27. Then they will be classified according to the content and al-Maraghi\u27s interpretations. The primary result of the research is that, according to al-Maraghi, basically all of the ahl al-kita communities will get salvation if they have "surrender to the will of God" or have islam (in its general meaning). However, in another side of his exegeses, he also emphasizes that the salvation for them must be restricted to believe in Muhammad. In other word, in order to get salvation they need to convert as Moslem first. Actually, this kind of doctrine, according to al-Maraghi, has been written down in its own sacred texts, but is corrupted by the writers or the scholars since the first time. Finally, it is worth nothing that most of al-Maraghi\u27s exegeses about the salvation of ahl al-kitiib are inclusive ones, This can be proved by the fact that most of his interpretations tend to appreciate their spirituality and belief. Key words: Al-Maraghi, Fafsir aI-Maraghi, ahl al-kita, salvatio

PRARANCANGAN PABRIK NATRIUM NITRAT DARI NATRIUM KLORIDA DAN ASAM NITRAT KAPASITAS 55.000 TON/TAHUN

INTISARI Habib Anggara dan Naf’an, 2015, Prarancangan Pabrik Natrium Nitrat dari Natrium Klorida dan Asam Nitrat Kapasitas 55.000 Ton/tahun, Jurusan Teknik Kimia, Fakultas Teknik, Universitas Sebelas Maret, Surakarta Natrium nitrat banyak digunakan pada berbagai industri seperti industri pupuk, korek api, reagen kimia, dan farmasi. Untuk memenuhi kebutuhan dalam negeri dan adanya peluang ekspor yang masih terbuka, maka dirancang pabrik natrium nitrat dengan kapasitas 55.000 ton/tahun, hasil samping berupa chlorine (Cl2) 14.017,458 ton/tahun dan nitrocyl chloride (NOCl) 15.170,063 ton/tahun. Hasil pengupan dari evaporator dan rotary dryer berupa asam nitrat (HNO3) 5.171,757 ton/tahun dan air (H2O) 29.474,521 ton/tahun dengan bahan baku asam nitrat 63.887,196 ton/tahun, natrium klorida 39.502,873 ton/tahun dan air pelarut 15.443,730 ton/tahun. Dengan memperhatikan aspek penyediaan bahan baku maka pendirian pabrik natrium nitrat di Kawasan Industri Cilegon, Jawa Barat. Bahan baku asam nitrat diperoleh dari PT Multi Nitrotama Kimia, Cikampek, sedangkan natrium klorida diperoleh dari PT Cheetham Garam Indonesia, Cilegon. Pendirian pabrik natrium nitrat direncanakan akan berdiri pada tahun 2017 dan pengoperaian pabrik pada tahun 2020. Reaksi pembuatan natrium nitrat (NaNO3) dilakukan dengan mereaksikan larutan asam nitrat ( HNO3) dengan larutan natrium klorida (NaCl) dalam Reaktor Alir Tangki Berpengaduk (RATB) yang dilengkapi dengan jaket pemanas pada tekanan 1,013 bar dan 60 0C. Pada perancangan ini digunakan rasio mol reaktan antara asam nitrat (HNO3) dengan natrium klorida (NaCl) yang digunakan adalah 1,5 : 1, sehingga akan diperoleh konversi sebesar 95% terhadap natrium klorida (NaCl) (U.S.Patent 221,5450,1940). Produk gas yang keluar dari reaktor masuk ke menara distilasi untuk dipisahkan antara chlorine (Cl2) dengan nitrosyl chloride (NOCl), sedangkan produk cair berupa sisa asam nitrat ( HNO3) dan natrium klorida (NaCl), produk berupa natrium nitrat (NaNO3) dan air (H2O) yang terbentuk di reaktor dialirkan ke evaporator untuk penguapan air dan sebagian asam nitrat. Larutan dari evaporator dikristalkan dalam crystallizer. Dari crystallizer, produk diumpankan ke centrifuge untuk memisahkan kristal dengan mother liquor-nya, dan selanjutnya kristal dikeringkan di dalam rotary dryer. Unit pendukung proses didirikan untuk menunjang proses produksi yang terdiri dari unit penyediaan air 3.239,5882 kg/jam, steam 8.353,9849 kg/jam, tenaga listrik disuplai dari PLN 500 KW dan listrik cadangan dari generator 400 KW, penyediaan bahan bakar menggunakan natural gas untuk bahan bakar boiler 402,7303 L/jam dan diesel oil untuk generator 0,08 L/jam, serta unit pengolahan limbah. Agar mutu bahan baku dan kualitas produk tetap terkendali, maka keberadaan laboratorium sangat diperlukan. Dalam pabrik Natrium Nitrat ini terdapat tiga buah laboratorium, yaitu laboratorium fisik, laboratorium analitik, dan laboratorium penelitian dan pengembangan. Bentuk perusahaan adalah PT (Perseroan Terbatas) dengan struktur organisasi line and staff. Sistem kerja karyawan berdasarkan pembagian jam kerja yang terdiri dari karyawan shift dan non shift. Hasil analisa ekonomi terhadap prarancangan pabrik natrium nitrat diperoleh bahwa Total Cost Investment (TCI) US$11.850.014dan total biaya produksi (Production Cost) US$ 1.832.993. Dari analisa kelayakan diperoleh Return of Investment (ROI) sebelum pajak 50,50% dan setelah pajak 35,35%. Pay Out Time (POT) sebelum pajak 1,71 tahun dan setelah pajak 2,31 tahun, Break Event Point (BEP) 43,29%, Shut Down Point (SDP) 31,94% dan Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) 24,70%. Dari analisis ekonomi yang telah dilakukan, dapat diambil kesimpulan bahwa pendirian pabrik natrium nitrat dengan kapasitas 55.000 ton/tahun layak dipertimbangkan untuk direalisasikan pembangunannya

Identifikasi Tanda Tangan Berdasarkan Grid Entropy Menggunakan Multi Layer Perceptron

Tanda tangan merupakan salah satu bukti pengesahan dokumen yang sering digunakan. Pentingnya mengenal bentuk tanda tangan seseorang diperlukan untuk melakukan verifikasi terhadap dokumen apakah benar yang memberikan tanda tangan adalah orang yang bersangkutan atau orang lain. Pada penelitian ini penulis mendesain sistem identifikasi tanda tangan dengan fitur yang digunakan adalah nilai entropy yang diambil dari grid image (sub-citra) suatu citra tanda tangan. Model pelatihan dan pengujian menggunakan multi layer perceptron dan cross validation dengan tiga ukuran grid (4x4, 8x8, dan 16x16) dan dua jenis representasi citra (citra biner dan citra outline). Hasil pengujian terbaik adalah untuk pengujian ukuran grid sebanyak 8x8 dan menggunakan citra outline yaitu dengan tingkat akurasi sebesar 97.78%, nilai korelasi 0.981, dan nilai kappa 0.977

Review of Ghana’s food environment: Drivers of availability, barriers to healthy food access, and impact of interventions and policies

Food environments exert a significant effect on population dietary choices and health outcomes. Policies that influence the food environment, can have a significant impact on individual and population dietary choices. This rapid review assessed the nature and interaction within the Ghanaian food environment, and the impact that existing school, workplace, and national food policies have on dietary intake and nutritional outcomes. Online databases and university repositories were searched for relevant articles and documents. A total of forty articles and documents were included in the review. Majority of the reviewed papers (85%) used a cross-sectional design. The findings show that traditional outlets (open markets) constitute the main food source among the Ghanaian populace, while convenience stores serve as an important source of processed foods. Prepared local foods are often consumed outside the home and are mainly sourced from street food vendors. Street foods are perceived as less expensive, convenient, and delicious. The food environment was found to influence dietary acquisition, intake, and nutritional outcomes. Although most nutrients provided by the School Feeding Programme (SFP) are below recommended intake standards, the SFP contributes positively to improved diets and nutrition status of school-age children. Children attending SFP-implementing schools experience higher intakes of protein, iron, zinc, calcium, vitamin A, folate, and have higher haemoglobin, and lower prevalence of stunting, underweight, and thinness than children in non-SFP implementing schools. Availability of a private room for breastfeeding mothers improved breastfeeding frequency. Ghana’s fatty meat restriction policy has reduced the availability and sale of fatty meat on the Ghanaian market. Reported drivers and barriers to healthy foods consumption include socio-economic factors, media information, food storage facilities, cultural perception, fruit seasonality, knowledge on the nutrient value of fruits and vegetables, safety profile of fruits and vegetables, and contribution of household production to dietary intake. In conclusion, the food environment review reveals the drivers of availability, barriers to healthy food access, and impact of interventions and policies on the Ghanaian food environment.&nbsp

A stable isotopic study of the diet of Potamonautes sidneyi (Brachyura: Potamonautidae) in two coastal lakes of the iSimangaliso Wetland Park, South Africa

Potamonautes sidneyi Rathbun 1904, is a dominant freshwater crab in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Recent flood events in the iSimangaliso Wetland Park have allowed a substantial range expansion of this species, including previously hypersaline and desiccated areas. A stable isotope study was conducted to examine the feeding habits of the populations from Lake Sibaya and Mpophomeni Stream, two contrasting sites in the iSimangaliso Wetland Park. Juveniles from Mpophomeni Stream were more depleted in δ13C and more enriched in δ15N compared to adults, indicating a more carnivorous diet and higher trophic position. A general shift in diet was observed at both sites, with consumption of aquatic invertebrates and sedimentary organic matter more prevalent in the wet summer months, while greater proportions of detritus and microphytobenthos were consumed in autumn/winter. No significant difference was observed between adults from the two sites despite the abiotic variations. The species appears to play a complex role in the trophic web, by acting as an intermediate consumer facilitating the flow of nutrients across levels and by breaking down decomposing organic matter, allowing for rapid recycling of nutrients within its ecosystem.Keywords: diet, trophic role, stable isotopes, freshwater, brachyurans, opportunistic feeder