A Morphological Analysis of English-Igbo Merged Verbs in Code-mixed Utterances

This study examines the influence of Igbo morphemes on English verb structure in code-mixed/switched utterances. There is overwhelming evidence that English and Igbo languages interfere with each other in informal conversations of the Igbo-English bilinguals. This calls for researches to ascertain the degree of English dominance on Igbo language or vice versa. This paper, therefore, examines informal conversations of the Igbo-English bilinguals with particular focus on the verb structure. The paper adopted Corpus Linguistic framework for data collection and Token approach for data description. Data analysis and findings reveal that English verbs can easily be merged with Igbo affixes in code-switched utterances of the English-Igbo bilinguals. They also reveal that a new language known as Engli-Igbo has been formed by the merger. This leads to the conclusion that Engli-Igbo is a present reality. Based on this, this paper recommends further researches on Engli-Igbo linguistic merger in the areas of phonological, syntactic and other areas of morphology

Women in leadership: Interrogating associated covert and overt Paranoia

The issue of gender and leadership, especially of women in leadership, has undoubtedly remained a crucial subject matter of discussion in contemporary politics and leadership not only in Africa, but globally too. Scholars have made several attempts to express their different shades of opinions regarding the issue based on their individual consciousness and understanding of the issue as the case may be. This has thus given rise to the prevailing scale of mixed feelings that always surround discussions about the issue; thus entrenching a strong feeling of paranoia about it. Through qualitative research approach, explored through observation and analytical literature review, and further anchored on the Functional Leadership Theory, the paper interrogates the covert and overt manifestations of the feeling of paranoia that often attend the issue of women in leadership generally. It makes a case for not only integrating women in leadership positions in every sphere of life in the society, but also in giving them a chance at the top where it really matters. Keywords: Gender, Leadership, Male Chauvinism, Paranoia, Patriarchy, Politics, Wome

Effects of Crude Oil on Biomass and Protein Production by Aquatic Yeasts

Toxic effects of Bonny light crude oil on the growth of three aquatic yeasts namely Yarrowia lipolytica, Candida tropicalis and Debryomyces hansenii were studied based on their biomass and protein production. The species showed different responses to the toxic influences of various crude oil concentrations. The growth response was measured spectrophotometrically using optical density (OD) at 600nm. Yarrowia lipolytica responded positively to different crude oil levels. A general assessment indicated that 2% (v/v) crude oil concentration stimulated maximum growth and protein production of this organism. Lower yields were observed at reduced crude oil levels. Growth decreased gradually among Candida tropicalis and Debryomyces hansenii cultures in comparison to the control. Biomass of Candida tropicalis increased from 0.1 (OD600nm) at 0 h to 0.49 after 20 h at 0.5% crude oil concentration. This level gradually declined to 0.04 after 20 h cultivation at 1.5 % crude oil concentration. Maximum decline in optical density of this organism was observed at crude oil concentration of 2.0%. Protein levels for Candida tropicalis decreased from 0.13 mg/mL after 20 h at crude oil concentration of 0.5% to 0.04 mg/mL after 20 h at maximum crude oil concentration of 2%. The biomass of Debryomyces hansenii increased slightly from 0.1(OD600nm) at 0 h to 0.44 after 20 h at 0.5% crude oil level. Further decreases in OD values of this organism occurred progressively as the crude oil concentration was increased. Lowest protein yield was observed at a crude oil concentration of 2% at which the least protein production of 0.05 mg/mL was produced after 20 h.Key words: Crude oil, yeasts; protein; biomass

Green Synthetic Methods for a Schiff Base from 2-Aminopyridine and 4-Ethoxybenzaldehyde

The novel Schiff base was acquired from the reaction between 2-aminopyridine and 4-ethoxybenzaldehyde using three (3) techniques; refluxing in ethanol for 2 hours, stirring in ethanol and an ethanol-water (1:1) mixture at room temperature for an hour. The synthesis of the 2-aminopyridine-4-ethoxybenzaldehyde Schiff base produced dark yellow crystals with melting point range of 95-97oC. The reaction in ethanol under reflux produced the highest yield of 88.2% while the reaction in ethanol and ethanol-water (1:1 v/v) mixture at room temperature gave 69.2% and 43.5% yield of the compound respectively. The IR spectrum showed the following bands; 1681cm-1 (C=N), 1595cm-1 (aromatic C=C stretch), 2981cm-1 (aromatic C-H stretch), 1509cm-1 (aromatic C=N stretch), 1155cm-1 (aliphatic C-C stretch), 1036 (aromatic C-O stretch), 2825 (aliphatic C-H stretch). The 13C NMR spectrum showed the following chemical shifts (δppm); 158.48 (C=N, imino), 154.98 and 150.18 (C-N of aromatic pyridine moiety), 121.44 – 137.53 (aromatic carbons), 158.68 (aromatic C-O), 63.88 (aliphatic C-O), 15.22 (aliphatic C). The 1H NMR spectral data (δppm) for the compound gave the following results; 7.06-7.91, m (8H) (Ar-H), 9.71, s (1H) (HC=N-), 4.10, q (2H) and 1.32, t (3H) (OCH2CH3). The spectral data was in agreement to the predicted structure of the Schiff base

Impacts of food processing industry on some environmental health and safety factors

In developing countries, it is common to site (or locate) industries without environmental impact assessment. In this study the impacts of two food processing industries on land use and land capability, noise and vibration, environmentally sensitive areas and visual quality as environmental elements were investigated. The research method adopted was the investigative survey research approach (ISRA) which included the collection of baseline and screening data. Noise level was determined using the decibel scale. The impacts of the industries on land use and land capability, noise and vibration, environmentally sensitive areas and visual quality included: displacement of agricultural production, quarrying activity and fishermen; loss of forestry and pasture lands; cracks on buildings near or adjacent to the industries due to vibrations from heavy machines; noise pollution from processing machines leading to hearing loss/impairment; reduced shell-fish yield; increased commercial and social activities; and distortion of visual content and coherence. The need for environmental impact auditing and the importance of impact auditing as a project management tool were highlighted. It was concluded that the food processing industries do have positive and negative impacts on the environment and recommendations towards alleviating negative impacts were made

Maximum Likelihood Estimation of the Kumaraswamy Exponential Distribution with Applications

The Kumaraswamy exponential distribution, a generalization of the exponential, is developed as a model for problems in environmental studies, survival analysis and reliability. The estimation of parameters is approached by maximum likelihood and the observed information matrix is derived. The proposed models are applied to three real data sets

Managing and Improving Upon Bandwidth Challenges in Computer Network

Managing the bandwidth of a computer network is always faced with great challenges. This research was necessitated by the urgent need to manage the University network currently experiencing congestion in both the local LA� and on the internet backhaul with a view to improving network performance and reduce the huge recurrent on the WA� link. However, there exists various ways that have been deployed towards solving these problems. In this paper we examined existing bandwidth management, effect of limited bandwidth on the network performance and profound solutions of techniques that enhanced or improved the bandwidth efficiency. Also, included in this research work are the studies of the effect of limited bandwidth on work load, type of protocol used and the effect of network congestion on the quality of service of a Wide Area �etwork (WA�). By comparison, from the modeling of the effect of work load and limited bandwidth on the throughput of a wide area network based on experimental simulation and real time simulation scenarios, some observations were made and recommendation of solutions were given from the analyzed results

On Comparison of Some Imputation Techniques in Multivariate Data Analysis

Listwise or pairwise deletion as the method of handling missing data in multivariate data leads to loss of statistical power, biased results and underestimation of standard errors and P-values.Four imputation techniques namely Regression, Stochastic, Expectation-Maximization (EM) and Multiple Imputation (MI) were considered and compared in terms of preserving the original distribution of the (multivariate) data and the relationships among the variables before the techniques were applied. Results show that none of the techniques performed absolutely better than the rest leaving the choice of imputation techniques in any dataset on the objectives of the researcher. Keyword: Imputation, missing data, Expectation Maximization, Multiple Imputation, Root Mean Square Error

Challenges of Small Poultry Farms in Layer Production in Ikwuano Local Government Area of Abia State, Nigeria.

The study assessed constraints to increased layers production among small-scale poultry farmers in Ikwuano Local Government Area of Abia State. Data were collected using a multistage sampling technique to select 120 small-scale poultry farmers. Descriptive statistics (frequencies counts, percentages) were used to describe the socio-economic characteristics of the respondents. The result shows that the mean age of the respondents was 48 years and majority (77.5%) of the farmers had higher education. Majority of the respondents (73%) practiced sweeping and packing of dirt in the poultry house as the daily routine management on their farms. The major constraint faced by the respondents was disease and pest attack (76.7%) followed by difficulty in credit and loan procurement processes (73.3%). The study therefore recommends that Government should tackle the problem of loan/credit procurement, market price instability, disease and pest as well as proper funding of small-scale layers poultry business so as to enhance the commercialization of poultry industry in Nigeria.Keywords: Poultry Farms, Layer Production, Socio-Economic Characteristics, Constraints

Diameter distribution of Nauclea diderrichii (D Wild) Merr. Plantations in a restricted tropical rainforest of Nigeria

Distribution of tree diameter in a specific stand provides basic information for forest management. Little attention is given to the use of probability distribution functions in characterising the stem diameters of most Nigeria indigenous species. This study used Three-parameters lognormal and Weibull probability distribution functions in characterising the diameter of Nauclea diderrichii plantations within a restricted tropical rainforest of Nigeria for sustainable management. Thirty temporary sample plots of dimensions 20 m × 20 m were randomly laid in three age strata (42, 43 and 46 years). Stem diameters of all living Nauclea diderrichii trees with diameter at breast height ≥10.0 cm in all the sampled plots were enumerated. The performance and suitability result revealed that lognormal distribution gave superior description of the stem diameter for the Nauclea diderrichii species in the study area, with least values of Bias (0.00001), Mean absolute error (0.1214), Mean square error (0.7421), Kolmogorov-Smirnov (0.02781) and Anderson Darling (0.49562) statistics. Hence, three-parameter lognormal using maximum likelihood method was recommended for distributing stem diameter of Nauclea diderrichii in the study area.Keywords: Indigenous species; Lognormal; Maximum likelihood; Probability distribution function; Weibul