The relationship between thermoregulatory and haemodynamic responses of the skin to relaxation and stress

The present study investigated the effects of stress and relaxation on (1) EEG coherence and (2) peripheral blood flow. EEG coherence of two meditators in two different but adjacent rooms was measured during eyes opened, eyes closed, single meditation and group meditation. The skin temperatures of the subjects together with their room temperatures were also recorded. EEG coherence plots (Cospar) showed a spread out of the alpha band to the beta, theta and occasionally to the delta wave bands during group meditation. The area above the 0.98 coherence threshold in the alpha band was greater during group meditation than during single meditation and eyes closed. The peripheral blood flow study included measurement of arterial and venous blood volume, and temperature of the fingertips. Finger blood flow and temperature were measured by photoplethysmography and thermistor, respectively. The mean of the peak cross correlation between the blood volume and the temperature of the fingertips of the nine cases studied was 0.9236 ± 0.0408. The finger temperature closely followed that of the finger blood flow but at a slower rate. It was also observed that the finger blood flow and the temperature increased during eyes closed relaxation, but decreased during stressful state. Changes in venous blood volume (temperature), corresponded to changes in the amplitude of the arterial blood volume. Thus, during relaxation the finger arterioles are vasodilated, and during stress they are vasoconstricted

GREEN SPACE DEPLETION IN URBAN AFRICA: A COMPARATIVE STUDY BETWEEN KUMASI AND ACCRA, GHANA.

Urban green spaces are important natural assets that support city growth in a variety of ways. However, statistics show that these regions are gravely threatened as a result of the dire situation in Africa. In order to design solutions to address the issue, this study set out to evaluate the forms and trends of the loss of green space. Accra and Kumasi, Ghana's two major cities, served as the focus of a comparative analysis of the issue using the multiple case study method. Approaches utilizing a mix of methods were employed. Representatives of the stakeholders and local people made up the study population, and various qualitative approaches (document review and interview guides) were used. Questionnaires and an examination of land use and land cover made up the quantitative methodology. The study found that urbanization, weak implementation of planning laws and controls, a lack of cooperation among stakeholders, and other factors have all contributed to the rapid loss of green space in Accra and Kumasi during the past ten years. The study selected specific green spots in the study locations, two from Kumasi (Adehyeman Parks, Fante new town Park), and one from Accra (Achimota forest), in order to gain a thorough understanding of the pattern of the loss of green space. As the hub of commerce in Ghana, Kumasi has seen the loss of the Adehyeman Gardens and Fante New Town Park to primarily commercial activity while the Achimota forest has been lost to mostly settlement. Although both Kumasi and Accra lost green space between 2000 and 2022, the comparison analysis showed that Kumasi continued to lose green space while Accra experienced a slight rise in 2022. However, over time, the quantity of green space lost in both locations doubled. Some sustainable approaches to solving the problem include the use of bulldozers, education, stakeholder cooperation, and allocating funds to manage green places. Key words: Depletion, Accra metropolitan area, Kumasi metropolitan area, green space

Adolescents' knowledge of JUUL policies and perceptions of enforcement

JUUL is a PAX labs electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) product that entered the e-cigarette market in late 2015 and accounted for 40% of the market share in 2017 (Willet et al., 2018; Huang et al., 2019). This study seeks to understand adolescents’ knowledge of JUUL policies, perceptions of policy enforcement, and intentions to use JUUL based on perceptions of policy enforcement. 300 middle and high school students from both private and public schools in Howard County, Maryland will be surveyed. Data will be analyzed using univariate and bivariate analyses. Understanding what adolescents know, think, and do in response to policies is helpful in strengthening policies and curtailing underage JUUL use

The role of the drummer in Akan society

Drumming is widely enjoyed in all Akan communities of the Gold Coast, but unlike singing, the performers are fewer than might be expected, for the art of drumming requires skill and perfection which only a few attain. Moreover opportunities of drumming and learning to drum are not open to all. In social life all the important forms of drumming are carried on by individuals or groups of individuals selected from the male section of various Akan communities. Women do not drum as a rule, first because drumming is strenuous, and second because in the past it was thought that a woman might defile the drums, particularly those of the state, since some of the important drums, like other things, were not to be touched by a woman in her monthly period. The only drums that women were allowed to play and still do play are the donna drums which are used during the celebration of puberty rites for girls

PERCEPTION OF STUDENTS ON HAND WASHING PRACTICES IN SELECTED SENIOR HIGH SCHOOLS IN MAMPONG MUNICIPALITY, GHANA

The study sought to investigate the perception of students on hand washing in order to prevent diseases in Senior High Schools in the Mampong Municipal Assembly. The study employed the use of descriptive research design to find out the attitudes of students on hand washing practices. The instrument for the data collection was a questionnaire which has been administered to the students. The results indicated that, there were insufficient resources for hand washing such as soap, towel, sanitizers, hand antiseptics, portable/tap water, detergent, warm water and alcohol-base rub. Also, there was lack of hand washing practices among students such as after/before visiting toilet, eating, touching raw material, touching rubbish and playing games. Again, there was lack of education and advise on hand washing. It was therefore recommended that school management and government agencies in charge of health and education should increase the education on hand washing in senior high boarding schools.   Article visualizations

Modern trends in Ghana music

In Ghana two new musical traditions have emerged as a result of the forces of acculturation out of which Ghana herself has been born. The first which has developed gradually over the past sixty years or more is fairly well standardized and is popularly known by the English title of High Life, a title which reflects the early attitude of people to it as a new but somewhat insidious form of social music. Though based on gay rhythms of African foundation, it began from the inspiration of Western band music which was admired for its noisy splendour, and later the ballroom at which thoughtful Africans never looked favourably. These incorporated percussion and movement, and suggested a new line for creating a gay type of African music which would be markedly different from the lighter type of traditional music

Entrevista a Ricardo Tacuchian

O prof. Kwabena Nketia, após seus estudos fundamentais em Gana, transferiu-se, em 1944, para Londres, onde estudou Lingüística e Música Ocidental (isto é, teoria, musicologia e piano). Em 1949 retomou para sua terra natal onde assumiu uma posição de pesquisador de Música Africana, na Universidade de Gana, durante dez anos. Em 1958 recebeu uma bolsa da Rockfeller Foundation e foi estudar na Julliard School of Music, tendo entre outros professores, o compositor Henry Cowell. Em 1968, Nketia assumiu uma posição na UCLA. Em 1982, transfere-se de Los Angeles para a University of Pittsburgh onde trabalha até hoje. A atividade acadêmica do pesquisador, nos Estados Unidos, alternou-se com as atividades no lnstitute of African Studies da University of Ghana