Resolving the Political Tension: How Online Photographs Portray Candidates in Nigeria’s 2015 Presidential Election

This paper investigates the online pictorial portrayal of two frontline candidates in Nigeria’s 2015 presidential elections and how it resolved the related political tensions. Careful observation and analyses of the candidates’ photographs, in accordance with the social constructivist perspective, enabled the determination of their conduct and verbal communication in a social context. Findings show that candidates’ facial expression, body language, among others, portrayed mutual accord, cordiality and partnership. The impressions created from these did help to neutralize the perceived threats of violence from both sides of the political divide. In spite of the unpleasant rhetoric by the candidates on several occasions, the photographs portrayed them as friends as the images symbolized unity in diversity. One fact emerged from this study: When texts and rhetoric from political candidates and their supporters came like a flood, photographs were there to raise a standard against it

Technical and political aspects of the 2006 Nigerian population and housing Census

Nigeria’s last census was in 2006. If the decennial rule is followed, the country is barely three years away from another headcount. In this paper, we examine the technical and political aspects of that census in order to derive lessons for subsequent censuses. The focus is not on the census results but rather on the processes leading up to and including the actual enumeration. We describe the connections between population size, revenue allocation and political representation as a means of understanding the social and political dynamics that could undermine the execution of a technically adequate census. These connections are examined through reference to logistic, recruitment and enumeration procedures of the 2006 Nigerian Census. We argue that, like most post-independence Censuses before it, there were motivation and opportunities for manipulating the Census figures. These parameters have not changed

CHARACTERIZATION AND HOT CORROSION BEHAVIOR OF BOILER TUBE STEELS AT 700oC

Industrial boiler tubes undergo the effect of hot corrosion during their operating lifetime. The main objective of this project is, to study the degree of hot corrosion affection to the base steel metal, used in the manufacturing of boiler tubes. The objective is attained by initially characterizing, and quantifying the chemical composition of the alloy in question, on both surface and cross-sectional areas. Continuously, the alloy samples are exposed to a corrosive environment, composed basically of molten salts: sodium sulphate (Na2SO4) and sodium chloride (NaCl), in a laboratory oven at a temperature of 700oC. This is done to subject the metal to the effect of hot corrosion. Once the samples have undergone oxidation and hot corrosion, Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) analysis is done to study the surface morphology, and identify the chemical composition present after the process. The degree of penetration of the hot corrosion, through the cross section of the sample is also analyzed, to determine how deep the hot corrosion is able to penetrate the sample, during the total number of cycles applied in the experiment

Sustainability in guinea worm eradication programme

Following an agreement between by Global 2000 of Carter Foundation and the Nigerian Ministry of Health, the Nigeria Guinea Worm Eradication Programme (NIGEP) was inaugurated in 1988 with the objective of eradicating guinea worm disease from Nigeria by 31 December, 1995. This paper examines strategies and structures established by NIGEP to ensure sustainability of eradication in the post-intervention period. It maintains that without maximum participation and empowerment of endemic communities towards guinea worm eradication, the sustainability of programme objectives in the post-intervention period may be jeopardized. South East Zone is focus for discussing this paper

Semiotics of alterity and the cultural dimensions of Bible translation

Translated sacred writings from various religious traditions often retain a few selected cultural terms borrowed from the incipient sign system, while other cultural dimensions are translated in ways that can broadly be construed as domestication. By contrast, many Bible translation agencies eschew translation strategies in which cultural terms are borrowed, advocating in stead for wholesale domestication. In this article, we develop a theoretical framework for representing the alterity, but not the foreignness, of the Bible in translation. Alterity involves the incipient sign system, namely the biblical languages and their cultural contexts ranging from Iron Age Israel within the context of the Ancient Near East for the Old Testament to Roman Palestine in the first century for the New Testament. Examples from African contexts, including Afrikaans (South Africa), Lokaa (Nigeria) and Tira (Sudan), illustrate multiple approaches to representing alterity and provide an important corrective to current practice in many Bible translation projects.

Life Histories of Infertile Women in Ugep, Southern Nigeria

This paper discusses the main qualitative results of an investigation into the meanings and consequences of infertility among the Yakurr of southern Nigeria, based on life histories of infertile women in Ugep, Cross River State. Five out of the six respondents were ever-married and four had been divorced at least once, on account of infertility. By examining biographical narratives of infertile women among the deeply pronatalist Yakurr, the paper brings a variety of local structural factors and ideologies to bear on the understanding of infertility in southern Nigeria. The narratives promote appreciation of the context-specific factors that shape the human experience of childlessness. The results indicate that this experience is molded by the moral order, which is moderated by human agency. They show that treatment seeking behaviour is inconstant and gendered, and a function of the prominent considerations of infertile women as they move through the life course. In discussing these and related subjects, the paper contributes to the renewed emphasis in social demography on the human and existential character of population events

CHARACTERIZATION AND HOT CORROSION BEHAVIOR OF BOILER TUBE STEELS AT 700oC

Industrial boiler tubes undergo the effect of hot corrosion during their operating lifetime. The main objective of this project is, to study the degree of hot corrosion affection to the base steel metal, used in the manufacturing of boiler tubes. The objective is attained by initially characterizing, and quantifying the chemical composition of the alloy in question, on both surface and cross-sectional areas. Continuously, the alloy samples are exposed to a corrosive environment, composed basically of molten salts: sodium sulphate (Na2SO4) and sodium chloride (NaCl), in a laboratory oven at a temperature of 700oC. This is done to subject the metal to the effect of hot corrosion. Once the samples have undergone oxidation and hot corrosion, Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) analysis is done to study the surface morphology, and identify the chemical composition present after the process. The degree of penetration of the hot corrosion, through the cross section of the sample is also analyzed, to determine how deep the hot corrosion is able to penetrate the sample, during the total number of cycles applied in the experiment

Work-Overload and Work-place Stress on Hospital Staff in Ugep-Urban of Yakurr Local Government Area, Cross River State, Nigeria

Work-overload in hospital settings has contributed to poor work performance and poor job satisfaction. Selye’s Theory of Systematic Stress and Person-Environment Fit Theoretical Model were used to design a cross sectional descriptive study to determine the relationship between work-overload and work-place stress among hospital staff. A semi-structured self-administered questionnaire and an interview guide were used to collect data from 198 staff in 11 hospitals in Yakurr. Data were coded and analyzed using SPSS version 20 and results were presented using descriptive statistics. Results show 151 (76.3%) female and 47 (23.7%) male staff. However, 34 (72.3%) males and 119 (78.8%) females affirmed that they ‘very often’ feel stressed resulting from work-overload. Women are also more likely to be vocal about stress than men and better at applying coping strategies that work (55.6%) when compared to males (19.1%). The Chi-square (X2) analysis, testing the relation between work-overload and work-place stress among hospital staff, was significant at 0.05 with calculated X2=8.505. There was a significant relationship between work-overload and work-place stress at critical X2=7.82.  Result of hypothesis tested showed that there is a statistically significant difference between work-overload and increase in work stress on hospital staff. Following the results and findings of the study, it is recommended that work-place stress among hospital staff can be reduced and managed by considering and maintaining a balance between the following variables: (i) the task requirement (patient influx, proportion of ailments, etc) and staff ability (technical-no-how, skills, etc), and (ii) staff ability (technical-no-how, skills, etc), needs, expectations and satisfaction with resources provided (both human and material). Keywords: Work-overload, work stress, hospital staff, Presenteeism, Key Informant Interview

La regulación del modelo energético de la UE-27. Un análisis de su cambio estructural = The regulation of the EU-27 energy model. An analysis of its structural change

Este trabajo tiene como objetivo analizar el cambio estructural en el mix energético experimentado por la Unión Europea (UE). Para ello, primero se analiza el nexo entre la energía y la economía. Posteriormente se examina el estado actual de la transición del modelo energético de la UE. Después, se revisan los principales cambios en la regulación energética promovidos por las instituciones de la UE, dado que son esenciales (entre otros factores) para explicar el cambio estructural en el mix energético de los Estados Miembros de la UE desde 1990. A continuación, se estudian las particularidades de la estructura energética de la UE desde la perspectiva de las tres dimensiones del trilema energético. Adicionalmente, como un ejemplo de la vulnerabilidad energética de la UE se evalúan los efectos económicos de la reciente invasión de Ucrania por parte de Rusia. Por último, con el fin de verificar el cambio estructural, se ha realizado un análisis clúster