Migration and Identities in Chika Unigwe’s Novels

Monumental dispersals caused by the phenomenon of migration greatly affect the identities of people. Much like the process of globalization, migration is highly sexualized and gendered. To this extent, it is necessary to centralize women and their peculiar experiences in migration discourses and theories. Beyond the usual focus on the economics, politics and sociology of migration, which at any rate do not often adequately address gender-specific migratory experiences; this study takes a literary route that considers the fictional representations of migrant women in two of the novels of Chika Unigwe: The Phoenix (2005) and On Black Sisters’ Street (2008). The focus here is to underscore the validity and significance of gender as an imperative analytical premise in contemporary literary debates particularly by African migrants. In demonstrating how the inflections of gender portend different outcomes for men and women, the study significantly uncovers how the woman’s body is simultaneously the site of physical and symbolic migration. The essay traces the movement in transition and the impact of these and new environment on the bodies of female migrants and how the embodied motifs of migration ultimately alter the identities and realities of migrant African women in particular. In all, the essay hopes to expand some of the current theorizations on the new directions in the development of the fictional representations of Nigerian women as well as to contextualize the role of the émigré author in these developments.

Influence of Recreation Spaces on the Aged Health in the Urban Fringes of Akure, Nigeria

The study is aimed at investigating the alternative medium of improving the failing health condition of the aged in the urban fringes of Akure through recreation. Two nearby settlements were chosen, each from the two local governments that constitutes Akure. Personal oral interview was the methodological procedure adopted for this study because many of the residents in the study area are not literate. Observations and secondary data were also used to supplement the data collected during the field work. The finding corroborates the literature as it revealed the absence of recreation spaces and inadequacy of health facilities in the study areas. This affirms the need for proper planning policy implementation that will consider the nearby settlements of any city during urban development through the provision of physical infrastructure and creation of recreation spaces for public health support, mostly to help the aged in the community. Keywords: Aged health, Akure, health facilities, planning policy, recreation spaces, urban fringes

Fine needle aspiration cytology of breast lumps with histopathologic correlation in Owo, Ondo State, Nigeria: a five-year review

Objective: To determine the histopathologic correlation of fine needle aspiration cytology FNAC of breast masses seen in the department of histopathology of the Federal Medical Center Owo, Southwestern Nigeria.Design: This is a 5-year retrospective study of breast lumps seen at Department of Histopathology, Federal Medical Centre Owo, a tertiary health care facility in Southwestern Nigeria between January 1 2010 and December 31 2014.Participants: All patients who had Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology of Breast lumps with subsequent histological confirmation over this period were included in the study.Results: In the five years under review (2010-2014), a total of 289 FNAC of breast lumps were done. The aspirates were obtained from 275 (95.2%) females and 14 (4.8%) males. There were 161 cases of FNAC with corresponding tissue for histological correlation giving a biopsy rate of 55.7%. The sensitivity of FNAC in determining the final histologic diagnosis was found to be 99.4% while the specificity was 100%. FNAC was able to determine final histologic diagnosis conclusively in 86.3% of cases.Conclusion: We therefore concluded that FNAC is a reliable diagnostic tool of breast lumps in our centre. Being a fast and cheap diagnostic tool as highlighted by previous studies, we advocate that clinicians should continue to embrace this diagnostic technique in the surgical management of breast lumps.Funding: This study was entirely funded by the authors

Microbial Qualities of Vegetables, Water and Soils from Vegetable Gardens in Lagos State, Nigeria

The presence of coliforms in vegetables, water and soil samples from gardens in Lagos State was assayed for. The vegetables sampled were cabbage, waterleaf, carrot, lettuce and cucumber collected from five sites representing five geograpical zones. The isolates obtained were cultured on MacConkey (MAC) agar, Sorbitol MacConkey agar, Eosine Methylene Blue (EMB) agar and Salmonella-Shigella (SSA) agar. They were identified using morphological, biochemical and Analytical Profile Index 20E and 20SA kit. Hemolytic activity of the isolates was assayed for using Blood agar. The aerobic plate counts of soil, water and vegetable samples ranges from 8.80 x 107 to 8.00 x 109 cfu/g, 3.90 x 109 to 6.15 x 109 cfu/ml, and 3.30 x 109 to 1.08 x 1010 cfu/g, respectively. Coliforms were the predominant bacteria isolated from the sites. The coliform counts of cabbage, waterleaf, carrot, lettuce and cucumber were5. 01 x 109cfu/g, 6.76 x 107cfu/g, 5.49 x 107cfu/g, 1.58 x 108cfu/g and 4.67 x 104cfu/g respectively. The fecal colifom population range was between 2.51 x 103 and 1.31 x 108 cfu/g, while Salmonella and Shigella species ranged from 1.38 x 102-3.09 x 104 cfu/g. Escherichia coli 0157: H7 was not isolated from any of the sites. The study showed that washed vegetableswere contaminated with high microbial load especially coliforms

Spatial distribution of agro-input centers and their accessibility to farmers in Oyo State, Nigeria

socio-economic characteristics of respondents were described using frequency counts and percentages. Inferential statistics such as chi-square was used to test the hypotheses. Geographic Information System (GIS) software (ArcView 9.3) was used to map locations and analyse distances and multiple buffers were developed around input centers to determine farmers' accessibility. Results from the study show that inputs like fertilizer (65%), agro-chemicals (94.38%), and planting materials like seeds and stems (90.63%) were majorly procured from private input centers. Majority (74.37%) of the farmers interviewed travel more than 15 km to procure input from government established input centers. Chi-square results showed significant relationship between sex (χ2=29.51, P=0.05), marital status (χ2=10.97, P=0.00), income (χ2=32.55, P=0.00) and farm size (χ2=14.73, P=0.00). Improvement in agricultural output will depend to some extent on farmers’ access to agro-input centers. The government should establish agro-input input centers closer to farmers and make inputs available at subsidized rates; this will make them affordable to farmers and increase agricultural production

Biodegradation of p-Chloroaniline by Bacteria Isolated from Contaminated Sites

Enrichment of water from a contaminated site in a textile industry in Ikeja resulted in the isolation of two bacteria belonging to the genera Alcaligenes and Cellulomonas. These bacteria were able to mineralize para-chloroaniline (p-chloroaniline). Time course degradation of p-chloroaniline using pure cultures of these organisms showed that p-chloroaniline supported the growth of these isolates. An initial increase in cell densities of 7.50-9.46 cfu/mL was recorded from day 0-9th day for Cellulomonas sp. while for Alcaligenes denitrificans it was 7.20-9.40 cfu/mL. After day 9, a decrease in population occurred, indicating non-availability of nutrients or toxicity of the medium. Simultaneously, a decrease in the pH, indicative of increased acidity of the medium, was also observed from the first day. The result of the GC analysis of the pure isolates on p-chloroaniline shows that 86.5% of the p-chloroaniline was degraded by the Cellulomonas sp. while 81.2% was degraded by the A. denitrificans in 30 days. These bacterial isolates utilized other hydrocarbons such as pyrene, anthracene, crude oil and chlorobenzoates as sole source of carbon and energy but not phenanthrene, naphthalene and biphenyl. The two isolates tolerated NaCl concentration of up to 5%

Microbial Quality of Public Swimming Pools in Lagos

The microbial quality of some public swimming pools in Lagos State, Nigeria was investigated to determine possible risks of infections to swimmers. Ten swimming pools (Pools AJ) were investigated for their microbial and physico-chemical qualities. The pH of the pools ranged from 5.24-8.71 and the residual chlorine ranged from 0.01-0.07. Water samples from the pools were cultured on differential and selective media. The microbial loads varied with different swimming pools. The fungal population ranged from 0-4.7× 10 4 cfu ml-1, while the bacterial population ranged from 0-1.12 x 10 5 cfu ml-1. Eight bacterial isolates were obtained and identified using Microbact 24E kit. Fungal isolates (6) were identified by microscopy, Gram’s staining and chloramphenicol test. The isolates include Aeromonas hydrophila (4), Burkolderia pseudomallei (2), Serratia marcescens (1), Enterobacter agglomerans (1), Candida albicans (3), Saccharomyces spp.(2) and Aspergillus flavus (1). Antifungal sensitivity test showed 50% susceptibility to nystatin and 50% resistance to voriconazole, while the bacteria were resistant to most of the antibiotic tested. The Multiple Antibiotics Resistance (MAR) index for the isolates ranged from 0.125 to 1.000. The feedback from the questionnaires administered, showed that unhygienic practices and maintenance of pools could contribute to low levels of swimming pool water quality. The high microbial loads and the types of microorganisms isolated from the pools show that contaminated swimming pools can constitute a serious public health hazard to the users

Natural Convection Heat Transfer and Entropy Generation Analysis in Saltbox Roof under Summer Conditions

This study investigates numerically the 2D laminar natural convection in a Saltbox roof type geometry under summer climate conditions as obtained in Africa, particularly Nigeria using ANSYS FLUENT to model the boundary conditions. The effects of Rayleigh number (Ra) within the range of 103-107 and pitch angles (top and base) on heat transfer, the flow structure, temperature distribution and entropy generation within the geometry were analysed. Results show that the flow is nearly symmetric at lower Ra, while for higher Ra, the flow becomes asymmetric. The Nusselt number (Nu) has a proportional relationship with the top pitch angle and an inverse relationship with the base pitch angle when the Rayleigh number is fixed. The effect of the Ra on the Nu is insignificant at lower Ra, but becomes noticeable at higher Ra. The total entropy generation increases with an increase in top pitch angle and a decrease in base pitch angles, at fixed Rayleigh numbers. The physical implication is that, for a Saltbox roof type geometry, at fixed Ra, the best convective heat transfer process is achieved by lowering the base pitch angle and increasing the top pitch angle

Field Observations and Geophysical Research Applied to the Detection of Manganese (Mn) Deposits in the Eastern Part of Oban Massif, South-Eastern Nigeria: An Integrated Approach

The growing need for an industrialized world, especially in Africa, cannot be feasible without adequate mineral resources. Thus, the search for more mineral deposits will continue to be necessary. An integrated approach involving geological mapping and a high-resolution geophysical (aeromagnetic) investigation was conducted to assess the manganese mineralization in parts of the Oban Massif, southeast Nigeria. The aeromagnetic data were processed using regional-residual anomaly separation techniques, first vertical derivative (1VD), analytical signals, source parameters imaging (SPI), and Euler deconvolution to better understand magnetic source distributions and their depths of occurrence. The geological investigation revealed a dominant variety of metamorphic rock types, including migmatitic (banded) gneisses hornblende granite gneisses, amphibolites, charnockites, and some quartzite ridges. Also present are some indications of pockets of dolerites. The study area also observed epithermal Mn+Fe+Qtz vein type mineralization associated with hydrothermal alteration zones whose orientation coincides with dominant structural orientation from aeromagnetic interpretation. Analysis of aeromagnetic data shows that the study area is dominated by ENE, NNE, and E-W structural directions (near-surface basement structures), with the ENE trends related to mineralization in the area. The manganese mineralization within Oban Massif is structurally controlled. The depths of the magnetic anomalies in the study area were estimated using SPI and Euler decomposition algorithms. SPI delineated the shallow, intermediate, and deep magnetic anomalies at 84–142 m, 152–200 m, and 215–656 m, respectively. Euler decomposition, however, revealed that shallow, intermediate, and deep depths occurrence of the magnetic anomalies are at 200–377 m, 393–472 m, and 499–793 m, respectivel

Field Observations and Geophysical Research Applied to the Detection of Manganese (Mn) Deposits in the Eastern Part of Oban Massif, South-Eastern Nigeria: An Integrated Approach

The growing need for an industrialized world, especially in Africa, cannot be feasible without adequate mineral resources. Thus, the search for more mineral deposits will continue to be necessary. An integrated approach involving geological mapping and a high-resolution geophysical (aeromagnetic) investigation was conducted to assess the manganese mineralization in parts of the Oban Massif, southeast Nigeria. The aeromagnetic data were processed using regional-residual anomaly separation techniques, first vertical derivative (1VD), analytical signals, source parameters imaging (SPI), and Euler deconvolution to better understand magnetic source distributions and their depths of occurrence. The geological investigation revealed a dominant variety of metamorphic rock types, including migmatitic (banded) gneisses hornblende granite gneisses, amphibolites, charnockites, and some quartzite ridges. Also present are some indications of pockets of dolerites. The study area also observed epithermal Mn+Fe+Qtz vein type mineralization associated with hydrothermal alteration zones whose orientation coincides with dominant structural orientation from aeromagnetic interpretation. Analysis of aeromagnetic data shows that the study area is dominated by ENE, NNE, and E-W structural directions (near-surface basement structures), with the ENE trends related to mineralization in the area. The manganese mineralization within Oban Massif is structurally controlled. The depths of the magnetic anomalies in the study area were estimated using SPI and Euler decomposition algorithms. SPI delineated the shallow, intermediate, and deep magnetic anomalies at 84–142 m, 152–200 m, and 215–656 m, respectively. Euler decomposition, however, revealed that shallow, intermediate, and deep depths occurrence of the magnetic anomalies are at 200–377 m, 393–472 m, and 499–793 m, respectively