Polynomial approximation approach to transient heat conduction with internal heat generation

This work reports polynomial approximation approach to transient heat conduction in a long slab, long cylinder and sphere with linear internal heat generation. It has been shown that the polynomial approximation method is able to calculate average temperature as a function of time for higher value of Biot numbers. This agrees with Keshavarz and Taheri [19] and also shows that their work becomes a special case of ours. The simplified relations obtained in this study can be used for engineering calculations in many condition

Enhanced Stegano-Cryptographic Model for Secure Electronic Voting

The issue of security in Information and Communication Technology has been identified as the most critical barrier in the widespread adoption of electronic voting (e-voting). Earlier cryptographic models for secure e-voting are vulnerable to attacks and existing stegano-cryptographic models can be manipulated by an eavesdropper. These shortcomings of existing models of secure e-voting are threats to confidentiality, integrity and verifiability of electronic ballot which are critical to overall success of e-democratic decision making through e-voting.This paper develops an enhanced stegano-cryptographic model for secure electronic voting system in poll-site, web and mobile voting scenarios for better citizens’ participation and credible e-democratic election. The electronic ballot was encrypted using Elliptic Curve Cryptography and Rivest-Sharma-Adleman cryptographic algorithm. The encrypted voter’s ballot was scattered and hidden in the Least Significant Bit (LSB) of the cover media using information hiding attribute of modified LSB-Wavelet steganographic algorithm. The image quality of the model, stego object was quantitatively assessed using Peak Signal to Noise Ratio (PSNR), Signal to Noise Ratio (SNR), Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) and Structural Similarity Index Metrics (SSIM).The results after quantitative performance evaluation shows that the developed stegano-cryptographic model has generic attribute of secured e-voting relevant for the delivery of credible e-democratic decision making. The large scale implementation of the model would be useful to deliver e-voting of high electoral integrity and political trustworthiness, where genuine e-elections are conducted for the populace by government authority. Keywords: Electronic Voting, Cryptography, Steganography, Video, Image, Wavelet, Securit

Further Results on the Effects of Variable Viscosity and Magnetic Field on Flow and Heat Transfer to a Continuous Flat Plate in the Presence of Heat Generation and Radiation with a Convective Boundary Condition

The steady, laminar boundary layer flow with a convective boundary condition, to a continuously moving flat plate is studied taking into account the variation of viscosity with temperature in the presence of a magnetic field, heat gen-eration and thermal radiation. The fluid viscosity is assumed to vary as a linear function of temperature. The resulting, gov-erning equations are non-dimensionalized and transformed using a similarity transformation and then solved numerically by sixth order Runge-Kutta method alongside with shooting method. Comparison with previously published work is performed and there was a perfect agreement at large value of the Biot number. A parametric study of all the embedded flow parameters involved is conducted, and a representative set of numerical results for the velocity and temperature profiles as well as the skin-friction parameter and the Nusselt number is illustrated graphically to show typical trend of the solutions. It is worth pointing out that, when the variation of viscosity with temperature is strong in the presence of the effect of a magnetic field, radiation, heat generation, the results of the present work are completely different from those that studied the same problem in the absence of magnetic field, thermal radiation and the heat generation. It is interesting to note that higher the values of Prandtl number lesser the effects of Biot number and the magnetic field intensit

On the Classification of Gasoline-fuelled Engine Exhaust Fume Related Faults Using Electronic Nose and Principal Component Analysis

The efficiency and effectiveness of every equipment or system is of paramount concern to both the manufacturers and theend users, which necessitates equipment condition monitoring schemes. Intelligent fault diagnosis system using patternrecognition tools can be developed from the result of the condition monitoring. A prototype electronic nose that uses array ofbroadly tuned Taguchi metal oxide sensors was used to carry out condition monitoring of automobile engine using itsexhaust fumes with principal component analysis (PCA) as pattern recognition tool for diagnosing some exhaust relatedfaults. The results showed that the following automobile engine faults; plug-not-firing faults and loss of compression faultswere diagnosable from the automobile exhaust fumes very well with average classification accuracy of 91%.Key words: Electronic nose, Condition Monitoring, Automobile, Fault, Diagnosis, PCA

DESIGN OF A CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK FOR A MEDICAL TELE-MANAGEMENT SYSTEM (MTMS) IN RESOURCE-CONSTRAINED SETTINGS

Medical tele-management is an emerging field of study in tele-health that proposes an interactive and proactive disease management approach which combines tele-monitoring and tele-consultation services through an information and communications technology (ICT) supported partnership. It is aimed at minimizing the burden of health management both for the patient and physician, especially in developing countries. However, existing solutions in form of systems and frameworks exist singly either as tele-monitoring or tele-consultation systems and majorly in developed countries with dedicated and adequate ICT resources and infrastructure. Hence, this paper presents the design of a Medical Tele-Management System (MTMS) which serves as a framework that combines both tele-monitoring and tele-consultation services within an information and communication technology resource-constrained setting. &nbsp

Short CommunicationAttitude of Infertile Women to Child Adoption in Nigeria

Infertility has serious consequences especially in Africa where a high premium is place on child bearing. An interviewer-administered questionnaire was administered on 396 consenting women seeking infertility treatment at the gynaecological clinic of the University College Hospital, Ibadan in an attempt to assess the attitude of infertile women in Nigeria to child adoption and its acceptability as a management option for infertility. Most (64%) believed its culturally unacceptable and only 17% will try it as an option. Sustained advocacy, community mobilization and enactment of supportive laws were some of the suggestions made by respondents to improve its uptake.Keywords; Infertility, Adoption, Assisted ConceptionNig. J. Physiol. Sci. 25(2010) 47 – 4

Behavioural risk-factors associated with the use of Facemask during Covid-19 pandemic lockdown period in Nigeria: online-based survey

Background:  The Coronavirus disease has rapidly become a public health challenge, with many countries adopting the usage of facemasks as one of the protective strategies against the virus. This study aimed to assess the behavioral risk factors associated with the use of facemasks during the Covid-19 pandemic lockdown period in Nigeria.  Methods:  The study recruited 500 participants in an online-based survey through a cloud-based platform called Google Forms. The main scales; facemask usage and behavioral risk factors were measured on a 0-27 and 0-24 point rating scale respectively, while the subscales are utilization, prevention, and perceived threats were measured on a 0-16, 0-19, and 0-5 point rating scale. Result: The usage of facemasks accounts for 32.8% (daily), 12.2% (weekly), 38.2% (monthly basis), and 16.8% use facemasks out of necessity. More than half (55.6%) use facemasks because of fear of punishment by the task force while challenges associated with the usage of facemasks include: difficulty breathing (47%) and suffocation (24%). A significant association was found between the use of facemasks and the prevention of COVID-19 (b= 0.029, 95% CI =0.055 - 0.114, p-value 0.049, r2=11.1%).  Conclusion:  The use of facemasks has become a norm and passed into law in Nigeria, however not a pleasant practice for most people Recommendation:  Therefore there is a need for mass awareness and education to improve the use of facemasks in Nigeria

Biological sample donation and informed consent for neurobiobanking: Evidence from a community survey in Ghana and Nigeria

Copyright: \ua9 2022 Singh et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Introduction Genomic research and neurobiobanking are expanding globally. Empirical evidence on the level of awareness and willingness to donate/share biological samples towards the expansion of neurobiobanking in sub-Saharan Africa is lacking. Aims To ascertain the awareness, perspectives and predictors regarding biological sample donation, sharing and informed consent preferences among community members in Ghana and Nigeria. Methods A questionnaire cross-sectional survey was conducted among randomly selected community members from seven communities in Ghana and Nigeria. Results Of the 1015 respondents with mean age 39.3 years (SD 19.5), about a third had heard of blood donation (37.2%, M: 42.4%, F: 32.0%, p = 0.001) and a quarter were aware of blood sample storage for research (24.5%; M: 29.7%, F: 19.4%, p = 0.151). Two out of ten were willing to donate brain after death (18.8%, M: 22.6%, F: 15.0%, p<0.001). Main reasons for unwillingness to donate brain were; to go back to God complete (46.6%) and lack of knowledge related to brain donation (32.7%). Only a third of the participants were aware of informed consent (31.7%; M: 35.9%, F: 27.5%, p<0.001). Predictors of positive attitude towards biobanking and informed consent were being married, tertiary level education, student status, and belonging to select ethnic groups. Conclusion There is a greater need for research attention in the area of brain banking and informed consent. Improved context-sensitive public education on neurobiobanking and informed consent, in line with the sociocultural diversities, is recommended within the African sub region