The World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO)and the Intergovernmental Committee: Developments on Traditional Knowledge and Cultural Expressions

The past 20 years has seen Indigenous or traditional knowledge take centre stage in discourses on the conservation of biological diversity, sustainable socio-economic development and poverty alleviation in developing countries. It is these countries that contain the majority of mega-biologically diverse regions in the world with Australia being one of two exceptions to the rule. The utility of knowledge in the conservation and sustainable use of biological resources, held by traditional custodians of land, is specifically addressed in the Convention on Biological Diversity 1992 (CBD). Articles 8 (j), I 10 (C)2 and 18 (4)3 of the CBD recognise the significance of such traditional knowledge and custom. Equally, the need to "respect, preserve and maintain knowledge, innovations and practices of indigenous and local communities embodying traditional lifestyles" ,4 "encourage customary use"s and "methods of cooperation"6 are emphasised in the context of prior informed consent and mutually agreed terms with a view to the fair and equitable sharing of the benefits arising out of the utilisation of such knowledg

Geo-spatial analysis of land use and land cover changes in the Lake Bosomtwe Basin of Ghana

This paper examines forest degradation and biodiversity loss in the Lake Bosomtwe Basin of Ghana between 1986 and 2008 from a geospatial perspective. The study was conducted using an integrated approach with Remote Sensing and GIS techniques, and supported with socioeconomic data for forest cover change detection and biodiversity loss. A supervised per-pixel classification approach using a maximum likelihood algorithm was employed to generate land cover maps from Landsat Thematic Mappers of 1986 and 2002, as well as ETM+ of 2008 imagery. Statistical analyses of the land cover classifications indicate that forest cover around the basin has experienced remarkable loss in the past 22 years. Specifically, between 1986 and 2008, the basin lost 18.0% of the total forest cover as a result of anthropogenic activities. Land cover changes were mainly caused by extensive farming and building, with increases of 16224.5ha and 7139.3ha respectively. The paper concludes that the current state of forest cover and biodiversity loss in the basin results from human activities underpinned by complex interaction of socio-economic, institutional and technological processes at multiple scales. This provides a snapshot of the real situation of forest degradation and biodiversity loss in Ghana. Conservation efforts need to be in harmony with short- and long-term interests of the local communities and investors in the tourism and hospitality industry in order to reduce the environmental problems in the Lake Basin.Keywords: Deforestation; forest degradation; land use; land cover; environmental sustainability; Lake Bosomtwe basi

Determinants of moonlighting in Ghana: an empirical investigation

The desire of workers to engage in moonlighting, a phenomenon of multiple job-holding is a reflection of some of the changing labour market outcomes. Public sector workers who suffered loss of jobs through public sector retrenchment and privatisation as part of Ghana’s economic reform resorted to holding more than one job to earn enough to avert any substantial drop in their living conditions. Despite the seemingly conspicuous existence of multiple job-holding in Ghana, much remains to be learnt about its determinants and characteristics of the phenomenon. This article employs the probit regression estimation technique based on the two most recent nationwide household surveys conducted in 1998/99 and 2005/06 to investigate the main determinants of moonlighting in Ghana. It provides empirical evidence to suggest that personal and household characteristics as well as location and labour market characteristics such as individual earnings and hours spent in the main job significantly influence an individual’s desire to engage in more than one job. The study concludes that apart from the financial motive that drives an individual’s decision to moonlight, the engagement of moonlighting on account of lower working hours in the individual’s main job could be a symptom of visible or time-related underemployment. Keywords: Moonlighting, Multiple job-holding, Employment, Earnings, Underemployment, Ghan

Autonomic function in epilepsy

Autonomic function may help to localize and manage the epilepsies. It is likely that the mechanisms of Sudden Unexpected death in Epilepsy (SUDEP) involve autonomic disturbance and a better understanding of these might lead to measures that would help reduce the mortality in patients afflicted with epilepsy. In this thesis, I first provide a comprehensive literature review of the association between epilepsy and the autonomic nervous system. I then evaluate heart rate variability and other cardiac and endocrine parameters as indices of cardiac autonomic function to test three hypothesis; 1) Changes in heart rate variability (HRV), can occur in the peri-ictal period during both (a) subclinical electrographic seizures and (b) clinically overt partial seizures, and can help to localise and lateralise the ictal discharge. 2) Intractable epilepsy can disrupt the heart rate variability and its circadian rhythm. 3) Epileptic seizures affect the serum concentration of the catecholamines and the electrolytes and that these changes could impact on the corrected QT interval. Subjects (n=207) with intractable epilepsy who were being evaluated with video-EEG telemetry for epilepsy surgery were recruited for this study. I found that subclinical seizures have no effect on the HRV. However, in overt partial seizures, HRV decreases, corrected QT is prolonged and plasma catecholamines increases. The reduction in HRV during seizures is not affected by the hemispheric or lobar location of the epileptic focus. However, in the interictal period, reduced HRV differs in left vs. right hemisphere, and in temporal vs. extratemporal areas. The diurnal pattern of HRV is not altered in epilepsy and the mean day HRV were significantly different from mean night HRV. The reduction in HRV is also associated with the following clinical factors: prolonged medical history of epilepsy, the cortical pathology itself, the nature of the seizures, higher seizure frequency and the antiepileptic drug treatment. The plasma electrolytes: Na, K+, Ca2+ and cardiac troponin are not affected after a seizure. However, plasma Mg2+ was seen to increase after a seizure. These abnormalities in autonomic control, particularly the reduction in HRV might be one contributory mechanism of Sudden Unexpected Death in Epilepsy (SUDEP)

Aqueous extract of Lannea microcarpa attenuates dextran sulphate-induced paw oedema and xylene-induced ear oedema in rodents

Background: Lannea microcarpa Engl. and K. Krause (Family Anacardiaceae), a tropical tree is used traditionally used in Africa for both medicinal and non-medicinal purposes. Folkoric uses of the plant include wound healing, conjunctivitis, stomatitis and gingivitis among others. Inflammatory reactions are involved in several diseases which this plant is traditionally used to manage. This study was therefore aimed at investigating the antiinflammatory effects of the aqueous extract of Lannea microcapa.Methods: Oedema was induced in the right hind paws of Sprague Dawley rats (200-250g, 12 weeks old, n=5) using dextran sulphate solution whiles ear oedema was induced in ICR mice (25-30g, 6 weeks old, n=5) using xylene solutions. Aqueous extracts of ALM (30, 100 and 300mg kg-1) were administered in a set of rats and mice for both prophylactic and therapeutic studies. In the dextran sulphate-induced paw oedema, rats (200-250g) were treated orally with ALM (30, 100 and 300 mg kg-1) for both prophylactic and therapeutic studies. The paw thickness of the rats was measured before and after dextran sulphate injection at an hourly interval for 5 h. For xylene-induced ear oedema, ICR mice (25-30g) were given the same doses of the ALM and the ear weight of mice were measured after 2 h.Results: In the dextran sulphate-induced paw oedema, the ALM reduced the mean maximal paw oedema significantly (P ≤0.05) to 36.392±9.207% and 26.050±3.396% at 100 and 300 mg kg-1 (prophylaxis) and 32.192±5.670%, 31.398±6.921% and 31.593±5.841% at 30, 100 and 300 mg kg-1 (therapeutic) in dose dependent manner when compared to the control respectively. Similarly, the ALM dose dependently showed a significant (P ≤0.05) reduction of percentage mean oedema in xylene-induced ear oedema by 43.56%, 59.63% and 68.07% at 30, 100 and 300 mg kg-1 when compared to the control respectively.Conclusions: Aqueous extract of Lannea microcapa (30 -300 mg kg-1) caused significant reduction of oedema in both dextran sulphate-induced paw oedema and xylene-induced ear oedema

A.Eye Drive: gaze-based semi-autonomous wheelchair interface

Existing wheelchair control interfaces, such as sip & puff or screen based gaze-controlled cursors, are challenging for the severely disabled to navigate safely and independently as users continuously need tointeract with an interface during navigation. This putsa significant cognitive load on users and prevents them from interacting with the environment in other forms during navigation. We have combined eyetracking/gaze-contingent intention decoding with computervision context-awarealgorithms and autonomous navigation drawn fromself-driving vehicles to allow paralysed users to drive by eye, simply by decoding natural gaze about where the user wants to go: A.Eye Drive. Our “Zero UI” driving platform allows users to look and interact visually with at an objector destination of interest in their visual scene, and the wheelchairautonomously takes the user to the intended destination, while continuously updating the computed path for static and dynamic obstacles. This intention decoding technology empowers the end-user by promising more independence through their own agency

Recycling Spent Primary Cells for the Synthesis of Spinel ZnMn2O4 using Waste Polypropylene as Reductant in a Microwave Oven

This work investigates the recycling of spent primary cells for the synthesis of spinel zinc manganese oxide (ZnMn2O4) using waste polypropylene as reductant in a domestic microwave oven. Spent zinc-carbon batteries (TigerHead brand) were cut into approximately two equal parts and the MnO2/Mn2O3/ZnO/carbon black mixture was carefully removed. The residual casing was dismantled and scrap iron, plastic and paper separated. The removed mixture was soaked in water for 24 hours after which it was filtered and the residue air-dried for 24 hours and pulverised in a mortar using a pestle. The pulverised mass was thoroughly mixed with pulverised polypropylene obtained from a mixture of waste bucket and the cap of the zinc-carbon battery. The mixture was then placed in a fireclay crucible and irradiated in a domestic microwave oven (Pioneer, Model PM-25 L, 2450 MHz, 1000 W) for 20 minutes and reaction products were separated and characterised. Spherical particles of spinel zinc manganese oxide (ZnMn2O4) were isolated after crushing the reduced mass. Analysis (XRD) of the residual reduced mass showed that it consisted of several peaks of ZnMn2O4 along with peaks of SiO2 and uncombined ZnO and Mn3O4.Keywords: Spinel ZnMn2O4, Primary cells, Zinc-carbon battery, Polypropylene, Microwave ove

Microwave Production of Manganese from Manganese (IV) Oxide using Postconsumer Polypropylene as Reductant

This work investigates the production of manganese metal from MnO2 by microwave irradiation using postconsumer polypropylene (PP) as reductant. Reagent grade MnO2 was first calcined to Mn3O4 followed by reduction with pulverised PP in a domestic microwave oven (Pioneer, Model PM-25 L, 1000 W, 2.45 GHz) in a recorded temperature range 900-1200 °C. Calcined and reduced products were characterised by XRD, XRF and SEM/EDX. The results showed that microwave irradiation is effective at calcining MnO2 to Mn3O4, evidenced by the complete disappearance of peaks of MnO2 and appearance of peaks of Mn3O4 after 40 minutes. SEM/EDX analysis revealed that calcined Mn3O4 was first transformed to MnO and later to manganese metal. The range of temperature achieved in the microwave oven was below the equilibrium temperature for MnO reduction by solid carbon and accordingly solid carbon produced from PP cannot be wholly responsible for the production of manganese metal. It is therefore concluded that the production of manganese metal observed in this investigation was effected with CH4 (generated from the thermal decomposition of PP) and solid amorphous carbon as the predominant reductants, with solid amorphous carbon providing the heat energy required for the reduction. The reduction of manganese oxides using postconsumer plastics as reductants is therefore a potential route for diverting plastics from landfill sites as well as decrease the amount of expensive metallurgical coke currently used in the ferromanganese process.Keywords: Microwave irradiation, Polypropylene, Calcination, Reduction, Manganes