Dislocated liminalities: Achebe's rabid dogs, arrows and gods

No Abstrac

The Sisyphean myth, negative capability and societal relevance

Different forms of literature over the years have expressed mankind’s views, thoughts, notions, beliefs, and  inclinations. The feelings of futility, negativity, absurdism, nihilism expressed in the myth of Sisyphus is just one of the numerous representations that literature can offer. But not all literary expressions are posers of questions and problems. Certain concepts such as Keats’ Negative Capability suggest solutions to Camus’ Sisyphean  problem and its ilk. This paper explores this problem-solution relationship and finds complementarity and  possibility feasible

Girl Child Education and Its Importance to Her Economic Advancement

This study examines the importance of girl child education to her economic advancement in Nigeria. The study highlighted the importance of education of women as well as girl child. It is on record that ‘man in his position as father and husband is the direct oppressor and beneficiary, individually and directly, of the subordination of women’. This patriarchal position of the society subjected women to the position they found themselves today. The study adopted the Modernisation Theory because this theory blames internal cultural factors for women’s subordination in the developing world. The central thrust of this theory is that males are accorded patriarchal control and dominance over a range of female activities and, consequently, women have little status in developing societies. There are various challenges faced by women to obtain equal education in all forms of formal education in Nigeria. I concluded that given women quality education will empower them more than any other empowerment programme. Education should be a right for all Nigerian children irrespective of gender, religion and disability. By way of recommendation, education therefore is the best empowerment programme we can give to our female children as well as male children to have a good future. Keywords: Empowerment, Education, Gender Inequality, Social Development, Marginalisatio

Kinetic Evaluation of Naphthalene Removal using Acid - Modified and Unmodified Bentonite Clay Mineral

Kinetic evaluation of naphthalene onto acid – modified and unmodifiedbentonite clay mineral was investigated by means of the effects of  concentration, contact time and pH. The amount of naphthalene adsorbed was determined spectrophotometrically. The optimum pH value and  equilibrium contact time for the adsorption of naphthalene onto acid –modified and unmodified samples were found to be 6.0 and 30 minutes, respectively. The maximum adsorption capacity (qm) for acid – modified and unmodified adsorbents was found to be 10.52 mg/g and 5.56 mg/g. These values were close with the experimental data (qe) obtained from the adsorption of naphthalene onto acid – modified (9.0 mg/g) and  unmodified (4.0 mg/g) adsorbents. The adsorption isotherm fitted well with Langmuir equation model for the acid – modified than the unmodified adsorbent. Kinetic evaluations of the adsorption showed that the process followed the pseudo – second – order equation model. The results obtained showed that modified bentonite clay mineral was reasonably effective adsorbent for the removal of naphthalene (organic contaminant), which is an important source for environmental pollutant. ©JASEMKEYWORDS: Naphthalene, equilibrium, kinetics, sorption, acid – modified bentonite.

Development of Gocing Storage Method for Cocoyam

Lack of good storage reduces the shelf life of harvested cocoyam (Colocasia spp and Xanthosoma spp) corms and cormels. This is a major challenge facing cocoyam farmers, processors, and marketers in Nigeria. The National Root Crops Research Institute (NRCRI), Umudike, Nigeria, which has a national mandate to research into root and tubers crops of economic importance, has developed the ‘Gocing Storage’ for improved storage of cocoyam. The paper highlights this improved method of storing cocoyam as an advancement in cocoyam research, to reduce loss of cocoyam in storage, and make highly quality cocoyam available to consumers, processors and marketers throughout the year.Gocing Storage; Cocoyam; NRCRI and Nigeria

Bio prospecting in Nigeria: evaluating the adequacy of laws and practices and the implications for the environment

Bio-prospecting is a subject of interest especially as to its utility in environmental protection. It is the purposeful evaluation of wild biological materials in search of valuable new products and involves the application of advanced technologies to develop new pharmaceuticals, agrochemicals, cosmetics, flavorings, fragrance, industrial-enzymes and other products from biodiversity. On the face of it, bio-prospecting is a major threat to the continuous flow of genetic resources. However when substituted with other consumption patterns or when properly regulated such that benefits derived from it are invested in technologies geared towards conserving the databank of the bio resources, or the provision of the needs of the local peoples whose practices mount undue pressure on the resources, it becomes a viable tool for resource conservation. This paper examines the regulatory regime of bio-prospecting in Nigeria from international and national perspectives to evaluate their adequacy. It also examines the environmental implications of the state of affairs and recommends the protection of the local peoples’ interest, and their involvement in strategic planning and policy formulation on bio prospecting, amongst others as a way of bio conservation to profit bio-prospecting.Keywords: Bio-prospecting, environment, biodiversit

Utilization of Tertiary Institutions Social Health Insurance Programme (TISHIP) among undergraduate students in Enugu State

Introduction: Utilization of Health Insurance Scheme services varies for a variety of reasons but it appears that the determining factors are universal.TISHIP was developed to counteract the detrimental effects of user fees which sometimes lead to catastrophic health expenditures. This study aimed to ascertain level of awareness and utilization of TISHIP in tertiary institution in NigeriaMethods: The study was carried out among full time undergraduate studentsEnugu State University of Science and Technology, Enugu state. Nigeria. Analytical cross sectional study design involving use of questionnaire was done. Chi Square test and Binary logistic regression were used to ascertain socio-demographic factors influencing utilization of TISHIP.Results: Majority of respondents were aged 21-25 years 149(48.7%) and lived off-campus 267(87.3%). About 137(44.8%) were aware of TISHIP with major source of awareness from friends/relatives 82(59.8%). Also 60% had positive attitude, 88(28.8%) has registered for the programme and 46(52.3%0 registered >1 year ago.Major factors influencing TISHIP includes; long waiting time 195(63.7%) and poor attitude of the medical staff 186(60.8%). There were statistical significant associations between use of TISHIP with address, education and occupation of both parents. (p< 0.05). Identified predictors were being females (AOR 0.74; 95% CI 0.35-0.96), living in hostel (AOR 3.24; 95% CI 1.52-6.77), father being civil/public servant (AOR 2.34; 95% CI 1.66-5.61) and mother being civil/public servant (AOR 3.13; 95% CI 1.02-7.54).Conclusion: The study showed that knowledge on TISHIP was poor, Also utilization of TISHIP was poor However, majority had positive attitude on TISHIP. There is need for improvement especially as regards sensitization and dissemination on availability of TISHIP to achieve the set objective of the programme.Key words: Tertiary, Health, Insurance, Student

A Comparative Analysis of the Use of Purdue Improved Cowpea Storage Bags, Sealed Jericans, Azaradirachta Indica (Neem) and Actellic in Cowpee Preservation

The research work made a comparative analysis between four different methods of preserving cowpea grains for the purpose of determining the most effective. Two purposes and two research questions guided the study. Materials such as dry clean cowpea grains, Purdue improved cowpea storage (PICS) bags, Jerican with lid, Dried leaves of Azaradirachta Indica (NEEM), Actellic (storage chemical), sacks, weighing balance and string/twine. The study was conducted using five different methods which include the use of Purdue Improved Cowpea Storage  (PICS) bags; use of Jerican with lid; use of dried leaves of Azaradirachta Indica; Spraying cowpea grains with diluted Actellic before bagging and bagging dry clean cowpea grains directly without any treatment. The five different set up were kept under the same condition. The use of Purdue Improved Cowpea Storage (PICS) bags and sealed Jerican proves to be the most effective methods. They both recorded 100% effectiveness as the same weight 50kg was maintained at the pre and post experimental period. This was followed by the use of Azaradirachta Indica leaves with 95.12% and the use of diluted Actellic with 91.22% respectively. The control method recorded the least weight percentage of 49.44. Useful recommendations such as the need for massive production of Purdue Improved Cowpea Storage (PICS) bags for distribution to farmers at subsidized rates, need for sponsoring of extension workers/agents for induction training/conferences by both the state and federal governments and use of campaign medium to encourage farmers to make use of sealed containers like Jericans, clay pots among others were proffered. Keywords: Comparative Analysis, Purdue, Azaradirachta Indica, Actellic and Preservatio