The Role of Solvents’ Dielectric Constants in the Delicate Interplay between Microstructure and Optical Properties of Poly (3-Hexylthiophene) Thin Films

In order to gain a deeper understanding of the interplay between microstructure and functional properties of conducting polymers such as their optical behaviors, precise control of the structure formation methods of such polymers is of great importance. This work concerns the study of the role of solvents on the formation of different structures and how the resultant structural features affect the functional optical properties of a model Poly (3-hexylthiophene) conjugated system. Thin films of P3HT have been formed from solvents of different polarities and the structural features of the resultant films studied using optical microscopy and XRD technique. The photo-physical characteristics have been studied using UV-Vis spectroscopy and photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy.  We report that the nature of polymer structure and thus the resultant optical properties greatly depend on the solvent polarity and their dielectric constants rather than their solubility power. We have asserted that the solvent polarities have their fingerprints in the resultant film crystallinities, grain sizes, optical photoluminescence and the optical band gaps and by extension on the opto-electronic device applications

Taxonomic Identification and Characterization of African Nightshades (Solanum L. Section Solanum)

African nightshades play an important role in meeting the nutritional needs ofrural households, and are reported as being particularly rich in protein, vitamin A, iron and calcium. Nightshades are among three top priority African indigenousvegetables identified for improvement and promotion through research. A majorconstraint facing this objective is the scantiness of taxonomic and nomenclaturalknowledge on African nightshades resulting in extensive synonymy andconfusion. As a consequence, the toxic species are difficult to discriminate fromthose with high nutritional value. It is also difficult to identify species with goodagronomic traits for genetic enhancement. This study was conducted to identify,characterize, and delimit African nightshade species. Fifty accessions ofSolanum section Solanum from eastern, southern and western Africa were raisedin a greenhouse at the Botanical and Experimental Garden, Radboud University,Nijmegen, the Netherlands. A descriptor list with 48 vegetative and reproductivecharacters was developed and used to characterize flowering and fruiting plants.Counting of chromosome was done on root squash preparations from one weekold seedlings, aided by digital enhancement of microscopic images. Nine species were represented in the study material, including two diploids: Solanum americanum, and Solanum chenopodioides; five tetraploids: Solanum retroflexum, Solanum villosum, Solanum florulentum, Solanum grossidentatum and Solanum tarderemotum; and two hexaploids: Solanum nigrum and Solanum scabrum. Most of the section Solanum species were distinguishable and easily identified. The exception was S. florulentum and S. tarderemotum which were identified tentatively and assigned respective names, but are difficult to differentiate and require further studies. The S. florulentum/tarderemotum group has three distinguishable variants and further studies are needed to determine the taxonomic status of each as a separate species, subspecies or genotypic/phenotypic variants. Furthermore, S. retroflexum, S. villosum and S. scabrum each had a high degree of within-species variation, and further studies are recommended to determine whether the variations within each constitute subspecies.Key words: Solanum sp., Identification, Characterization 

Effect of Stakeholders’ Awareness of Vision and Mission Statements on Internal Efficiency in Public Secondary Schools: The case of Kisumu and Usain -Gishu Counties, Kenya

The study sought to establish the effect of stakeholders’ awareness of vision and mission statements on internal efficiency in terms of promotion rates and retention. The convergent parallel mixed-methods design was employed in the study. A sample size of 342 comprising 57 principals, 57 PA chairpersons; and 228 teachers in the quantitative phase and a further 54 respondents comprising 9 principals, 9 PA chairpersons and 36 teachers for qualitative strand.  Data were collected via Questionnaires, interview schedule, document analysis and observation schedules.  The study found that all stakeholders were aware of the school vision and mission statements, although the principals were more aware than the rest. The overall awareness was moderate and had a positive influence on internal efficiency in terms of grade promotion rate than on retention. It was concluded that stakeholders’ awareness of vision and mission statements has positive moderate influence on internal efficiency in public secondary schools. The study recommends that The Ministry of Education consistently sensitize key stakeholders on school vision and mission statements. Keywords: Stakeholders’ Awareness, Vision and Mission Statements, Internal Efficiency, public secondary schools, Kenya. DOI: 10.7176/JEP/11-26-01 Publication date:September 30th 202

Cost- Saving Measures in Public Secondary Schools: Are these strategies making education affordable in Kisumu West District, Kisumu County, Kenya?

The major thrust of the study reported in this paper was to examine the cost-saving measures employed by school managers to make education affordable in public Secondary Schools in the study locale of Kisumu West District. The objective was to establish the extent to which these strategies had   reduced the cost of subsidized secondary education to become affordable to all, especially among students from poor backgrounds. The study was premised on Cost Effectiveness Analysis based on the works of Hanusek (1986) and Levin (1995) who contend that analytical   decision should take incorporate alternatives of both costs and consequences in a more systematic way. A descriptive survey research design was adopted to guide the study. Combinations of purposive and stratified sampling techniques were used to draw a sample size of 103 subjects comprising of 10 principals, 60 teachers, 30 members of the PTA, and 3 Ministry of Education officials deployed in the study locale. Questionnaire for teachers and principals were used to collect quantitative data while interviews with   members of the PTA and Ministry of education officers generated qualitative data.  It was established that despite the introduction of free day secondary education (FDSE), the latent cost of secondary education was still high and beyond the reach of the poor households. As a result, schools in the study locale had devised cost saving measures including: outsourcing basic services like transport services, converting classrooms into micro-libraries, sharing facilities with neighbouring institutions , introduction of income generating activities and assigning multiple tasks to staff, amongst others. Despite these innovative strategies, the cost of education had not substantially decreased for a majority of students from poor backgrounds. It is recommended that the Government of Kenya through the Ministry of education should increase the amount of capitation and also encourage schools to intensify income generating and cost saving measures geared towards making  education  affordable by all [310 words]. Key Words: Cost-saving measures, affordable education, Public secondary schools, free day secondary education, Kisumu West District, Kisumu County, Kenya

Effective Microporosity for Enhanced Adsorption Capacity of Cr (VI) from Dilute Aqueous Solution: Isotherm and Kinetics

The adsorbent pore structure significant to enhanced adsorption capacity of Cr (VI) from dilute aqueous solution is evaluated. As reference, low-cost micro-mesoporous activated carbon (AC) of high basicity, mesoporosity centred about 2.4 nm, and effective microporosity centred about 0.9 nm was tested for removal of Cr (VI) from dilute aqueous solution in batch mode. At pH 2 the low-cost AC exhibited highly improved Langmuir Cr (VI) capacity of 115 mg/g which was competitive to high performance commercial AC. A Comparison with treated characterization results of literature adsorbents/ACs showed that moderate to high effective micropore volume of average pore-size about 0.9 ± 0.1 nm is critical for increased adsorption capacity of Cr (VI) from dilute aqueous solutions. The mesostructure of the tested low-cost AC was associated with rapid kinetics that was fitted by the Pseudo-second kinetics model. While Biot numbers suggested slight significant contribution of intraparticle diffusion. It is hoped that this study may be a useful contribution to development of effective adsorbents for the efficient abatement of toxic Cr (VI) from wastewater and water

Causal Effect of Financial Market Frictions and Flight to Quality on Cost of Credit in Kenya

Financial market conditions have been declining over the past ten years globally as most developing countries continue to adopt more liberal financial policies, such conditions may amplify adverse shocks to the economy. The Kenyan Banking sector was highly profitable before the implementation of financial market frictions, with industry return on equity’s average of 20%. The ratio of credit supply to gross domestic product was 35%; and the economy grew by 5.6 %. Nonetheless, after its adoption, listed Banks recorded negative Earnings per Share growth of 8.2%, compared to an average positive growth of 14.1%, The Net Interest Margin declined to 8.4% from 9.4%. Studies relating to financial market frictions, flight to quality and Cost of Credit have produced mixed results. It was on this basis that this study sought to establish the effect of financial market frictions and flight to quality on cost of credit in Kenya. The study adopted correlational research design. Secondary data from the Kenyan Market for the period January 2009 to December 2019 was analyzed. Augmented Dickey Fuller and Philips-perron unit-root test was used to test the stationarity of the data. VECM was estimated to establish the speed of adjustment towards the long run equilibrium; Wald statistics was also estimated to establish short run causalities amongst the variables. Based on cointegrating equations, the error correction term indicated a negative sign and was significant at 5% level (C (1) = -0.153042, .0429 < 0.05), an indication that a long run relationship exists amongst the variables. Wald statistics revealed that the estimated coefficients in the VECM were insignificantly different from zero (.8417; .5603; .9188>p=0.05),however, Central Bank rate was found to be different from zero and significant at 5% level (.0163>p=0.05), an indication that there was a short run casualty running from the Central Bank rate to cost of credit. The study therefore recommends that for Micro finance institutions to maximize their profits they should adopt new technologies like Mobile Banking for their credit facilities, this does not require administrative and operation costs, in a bid to cope with the market shocks and frictions. Keywords: Financial Market Frictions, Flight to Quality, Cost of Credit, Kenya DOI: 10.7176/JESD/12-6-07 Publication date:March 31st 202

Digestibility and metabolizable energy of selected tropical feedstuffs estimated by in vitro and prediction equations

In vivo determination of digestible organic matter (dOM) and metabolisable energy (ME) concentrations of feeds is laborious and expensive, whereas analysis of their nutrient contents is routinely performed. Prediction equations based on the chemical composition of feeds can be a compromise. This study compared dOM and ME estimates of tropical feeds derived from selected equations (Yan and Agnew, 2004; Stergiadis et al., 2015a; Stergiadis et al., 2015b; AFRC, 1993) with those determined by the in vitro gas production method (Menke and Steingass, 1988). Samples of supplement feedstuffs (n = 12) and the herbaceous and ligneous vegetation on native pastures (n = 12) were collected in Lower Nyando, Kenya, over two seasons of one year. Samples were analysed for dry matter (DM; in % of fresh matter), crude ash, crude protein, ether extract, neutral and acid detergent fiber (NDF, ADF) (all in % of DM). Gross energy was determined by calorimetry. Nutrient concentrations varied across all samples with 8.5 – 87.9% DM, 5.2 – 16.8% crude ash, 36.7 – 74.1% NDF, 25.5 – 39.4% ADF, 3.2 – 14.2% crude protein, and 0.6 – 4.5% ether extract. The gross energy, in vitro dOM, and ME concentrations were 14.5 – 18.8 MJ/kg DM, 26.3 – 54.5%, and 3.8 – 8.4 MJ/kg DM, respectively. Compared with the in vitro method, all nutrient-based equations overestimated dOM (P 0.5). Nutrient-based equations do not sufficiently account for differences in nutrient availability, an aspect better simulated in vitro. Further development and/or validation of nutrient-based equations might be needed to more accurately predict dOM and ME of tropical feeds. AFRC. 1993. Wallingford: CAB International. Stergiadis et al. 2015a. J Dairy Sci, 98(5), 3257–3273 Stergiadis et al 2015b. Brit J Nutr, 113(10), 1571–1584. Yan and Agnew. 2004. J Anim Sci., 82, 1367–1379

INFLUENCE OF TEACHERS’ KNOWLEDGE COMPETENCY ON PUPILS’ ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT IN KISUMU COUNTY, KENYA

Academic achievement of pupils’ in Kisumu County has not been encouraging coupled with disparities between the sub-counties. Purpose of the study was to establish the influence of teachers’ knowledge competency on pupils’ academic achievement. The study employed survey research design. The study was conceptualized on principles of high-quality teaching and learning. Study Population comprised 3290 teachers, 658 head teachers, 7 assurance officers and 7 directors. Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill table was used to select sample of 294 teachers and 203 head teachers. Study sample were selected by stratified, random and purposive sampling. Samples selected comprised 294 teachers, 203 head teachers, 7 assurance officers and 7 directors. Informed consent, confidentiality of respondents was observed and data collected at work place. All sources were cited to avoid plagiarism Data was collected using questionnaire, interview schedule and observation checklist. Validity was ensured by comprehensively including all the study variables after which they were presented for assessment to the specialists in Curriculum and Instruction in Kisii University. Reliability of the instruments was determined by test-retest method. Correlation coefficient of teachers’ questionnaire, Head teachers’ questionnaire, QASOs interview schedule, ADDTMs interview schedule and teachers’ observation checklist yielded 0.75, 0.71, 0.73, 0.74 and 0.77 respectively. Level of significance was set at 5%. Data was analyzed using quantitative and qualitative techniques. Quantitative data was sorted, coded and processed using SPSS version 20 to generate frequencies and percentages. Hypotheses were tested using Pearson’s Product-Moment Correlations and Multiple Linear Regressions to establish presence or absence of correlations and association. Qualitative data were sorted into themes and sub-themes, analyzed in an on-going process then reported in prose. Teaching skills and assessment competencies had statistically significant relationship with pupils’ academic achievement at (0.125), p-value (0.027) < 0.05 and (0.121), p-value (0.033) < 0.05 respectively. It was recommended that teachers’ competencies be enhanced through in-service courses; review tests and measurements in professional studies offered in colleges. Article visualizations