Scale characteristics in relation to size in cichlid fish, Oreochromis mossambicus

Teleostean scale characteristics like length, width, number of circuli, primary radii, secondary radii and ctenii were studied to delineate its relationship with total length in a euryhaline fish, Oreochromis mossambicus (perciformes: cichlidae). Statistical analysis proved a positive correlation between the scale characteristics and fish size. The characteristics of midlateral scales indicated that these scales appeared first during squamation chronology. Further observations also indicated that differences in salinity could modify the morphometries of scales

Optimization of Impact Energy of TIG Mild Steel Welds Using RSM

TIG welding, is about the most popular welding method, which finds its applications in the fabrication industry. The integrity and service life of engineering structures is a very important factor in the welding technology sector, one of the problem facing the fabrication industry is the control of the process input parameters to obtain a good welded joint. Research has shown that one of the practical ways to improving on weld qualities is to optimize the input process parameters. The aim of this study is to optimize the impact energy of TIG mild steel welds using RSM with the purpose of achieving the highest impact energy.In this study, twenty experimental runs were carried out, each experimental run comprising the current, voltage and gas flow rate, the TIG welding process was used to join two pieces of mild steel plates measuring 60 x40 x10 mm, the tensile strength was measured respectively. Thereafter the data collected from the experimental results was analysed with the RSM Analysis of variance (ANOVA) a p-value of 0.0001 which is <0.005 indicates that the model is significant. To validate the significance and adequacy of the model based on its ability to optimize the ultimate impact energythe goodness of fit statistics showns that the model posses an R2 value of 0.705989 and R2 adjusted of 0.537617a noise to signal ratio of 7.89717 was realized, a ratio greater tha 4 is desired  indicating thatt the model possesed adequate signal  to predict the target response.the result shows that a combination of current 90 amps,voltage 22volts and gas flow rate 13lit/min will produce an optimum UTS of 381Mpa and impact energyof 116.6898J  with a desiribility value of 0.889

Optimization and Prediction of Ultimate Tensile of TIG Mild Steel Welds Using ANN

TIG welding, is about the most popular welding method, which finds its applications in  the fabrication industry. The integrity and service life of engineering structures is a very important factor in the welding technology sector, one of the problem facing the fabrication industry is the control of the process input parameters to obtain a good welded joint . Research has shown that one of the practical ways to improving on weld qualities is to optimize the input process parameters. The aim of this study is to predict the ultimate tensile strength of TIG mild steel welds using ANN.In this study, twenty experimental runs were carried out, each experimental run comprising the current, voltage and gas flow rate, the TIG welding process was used to join two pieces of mild steel plates measuring 60 x40 x10 mm , the tensile strength was measured respectively. Thereafter the data collected from the experimental results was analysed with the ANN. The experimental results for the ultimate tensile strength was analyzed with the Artificial Neural Networks. The best validation performance is 0.48429 and occurred at epoch five (5). The R-value (coefficient of correlation ) for training shows of 99.9%closeness ,99.4% for validation and 89.8% for  testing respectively. The overall R-value is shown to be 98.7%. For ultimate tensile strength, both the artificial neural network and the Response surface methodology models fit well. However the RSM model Provided a better overall fit to the experimental data than the ANN.

Optimization and Prediction of Ultimate Tensile of TIG Mild Steel Welds Using RSM

TIG welding, is about the most popular welding method, which finds its applications in the fabrication industry. The integrity and service life of engineering structures is a very important factor in the welding technology sector, one of the problem facing the fabrication industry is the control of the process input parameters to obtain a good welded joint . Research has shown that one of the practical ways to improving on weld qualities is to optimize the input process parameters. The aim of this study is to optimize and predict the ultimate tensile strength of TIG mild steel welds using RSM with the purpose of achieving the highest tensile strength.In this study, twenty experimental runs were carried out, each experimental run comprising the current, voltage and gas flow rate, the TIG welding process was used to join two pieces of mild steel plates measuring 60 x40 x10 mm , the tensile strength was measured respectively. Thereafter the data collected from the experimental results was analysed with the RSMAnalysis of variance (ANOVA) a p-value  of 0.0001 which is <0.005 indicates that the model is significant To validate the significance and adequacy of the model based on its ability to optimize the uultimate tensile strength and impact energythe goodness of fit statistics showns that the model posses an R2 value of 0.905 and R2 adjusted of 0.837 a noise to signal ratio of 12.897  was realized, a ratio greater tha 4 is desired  indicating thatt the model possesed adequate signal  to predict the target response.the result shows that a combination of current 90 amps,voltage 22volts and gas flow rate 13lit/min will produce an optimum UTS of 381Mpa  with a desiribility value of 0.889

Prediction of Impact Energy of TIG Mild Steel Welds Using ANN

The present trend in the fabrication industries is the use of automated welding processes to obtain high production rates and high quality output.TIG welding, happens to be the best welding method employed in  the manufacturing industry. one of the problem facing the fabrication industry is the control of the process input parameters to obtain a good welded joint . however it is essential to establish the relationship between process parameters and weld quality output to predict and control weld bead quality .The aim of this study is to predict the impact energy of TIG mild steel welds using ANN.In this study, twenty experimental runs were carried out, each experimental run comprising the current, voltage and gas flow rate, the TIG welding process was used to join two pieces of mild steel plates measuring 60 x40 x10 mm , the impact energy was measured respectively. Thereafter the data collected from the experimental results was analysed with the ANN. The experimental results for the impact energy was analyzed with the Artificial Neural Networks. The overall R-value is shown to be 98.7%.  The best validation performance is 0.48429 and occurred at epoch five (5). The coefficient of correlation for training shows of 99.9%closeness ,99.4% for validation and 89.8% for  testing respectively

An Overview of the Evidence and Mechanisms of Herb–Drug Interactions

Despite the lack of sufficient information on the safety of herbal products, their use as alternative and/or complementary medicine is globally popular. There is also an increasing interest in medicinal herbs as precursor for pharmacological actives. Of serious concern is the concurrent consumption of herbal products and conventional drugs. Herb–drug interaction (HDI) is the single most important clinical consequence of this practice. Using a structured assessment procedure, the evidence of HDI presents with varying degree of clinical significance. While the potential for HDI for a number of herbal products is inferred from non-human studies, certain HDIs are well established through human studies and documented case reports. Various mechanisms of pharmacokinetic HDI have been identified and include the alteration in the gastrointestinal functions with consequent effects on drug absorption; induction and inhibition of metabolic enzymes and transport proteins; and alteration of renal excretion of drugs and their metabolites. Due to the intrinsic pharmacologic properties of phytochemicals, pharmacodynamic HDIs are also known to occur. The effects could be synergistic, additive, and/or antagonistic. Poor reporting on the part of patients and the inability to promptly identify HDI by health providers are identified as major factors limiting the extensive compilation of clinically relevant HDIs. A general overview and the significance of pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic HDI are provided, detailing basic mechanism, and nature of evidence available. An increased level of awareness of HDI is necessary among health professionals and drug discovery scientists. With the increasing number of plant-sourced pharmacological actives, the potential for HDI should always be assessed in the non-clinical safety assessment phase of drug development process. More clinically relevant research is also required in this area as current information on HDI is insufficient for clinical applications

Proton nuclear magnetic resonance study of water + t-butyl alcohol, water + t--butylamine and water + t-butyl alcohol + t--butylamine mixtures

Hydroxyl-proton chemical shifts for water and t-butyl alcohol in water + t-butyl alcohol mixtures with 8 mol% t-butyl alcohol, and the average hydroxyl and amino proton chemical shift for water + t-butylamine mixtures, have been determined at 200 MHz for four temperatures (263, 278, 298 and 313 K) as a function of composition. Further measurements have been made for water + t-butyl alcohol + t-butylamine ternary mixtures at 310 K over the complete mole fraction range at 60 MHz. Variations in solvent composition have little effect on the resonance for the methyl protons of the cosolvent, but the signal for the hydroxylic protons is substantially influenced. The water proton resonance initially shifts to higher frequencies (low fields) as the cosolvent is added to water, and the shift to higher frequency is strongly temperature dependent, the effect being greatly enhanced at lower temperatures. As the proportion of cosolvent increases the hydroxyl proton signals in the water + t-butyl alcohol system and the average proton signals in water + t-butylamine mixtures shift to lower frequency (high field). (Received November 22, 2001; revised July 4, 2002) (Bulletin of The Chemical Society of Ethiopia: 2002 16 (2): 187-198

An Assessment of the Effectiveness of Open Market Operations Instrument of Monetary Policy Management in Nigeria

This study empirically examined the effectiveness of Open Market Operations (OMO) instrument of monetary policy management in Nigeria. In doing this, the study adopted the monetarist theory as the basis for measuring the effectiveness of OMO instrument of monetary policy management in Nigeria. The investigation was carried out using the Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) method of estimation. Unit Root and Co-integration tests were performed on all the variables and the results revealed that the variables have long run relationship and are suitable for OLS estimation. The empirical results indicated a significant relationship between monetary policy instruments such as open market operations, required reserve and monetary policy rate with broad money supply which is the proximate target for monetary policy management. This implies that Open Market Operations has been an effective instrument of monetary policy management in Nigeria. The study further showed that monetary policy rate could serve as a veritable instrument for the control of money supply and effective monetary policy management in the economy. It is recommended, among others, that the CBN should review periodically the performance of monetary policy with a view to enhancing the effectiveness of monetary policy instruments in order to achieve macroeconomic stability. Keywords: OMO, Monetary policy effectiveness, Macroeconomic stability, Nigeria

Factors Associated with Patient Satisfaction at Prof. Dr. W. Z Johannes General Hospital, Kupang, East Nusa Tenggara

Background: Patient satisfaction is an important factor for the survival of health care delivery system. It is used as a measure of quality of care at the level of the individual provider as well as for health care systems and programs. Earlier studies have shown that patient satisfaction correlates with adherence to treatment, loyalty to a provider, and lower medico legal risk. This study aimed to examine factors associated with patient satisfaction at Prof. Dr.W.Z Johannes general hospital, Kupang, East Nusa Tenggara. Subjects and Method: This was a cross-sectional study conducted at Prof. Dr. W. Z Johannes General Hospital, Kupang, East Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia. A total of 88 patients were selected by simple random sampling. The dependent variable was satisfaction. The independent variables were response time and social health insurance. The data were collected by questionnaire and interview. The data were analyzed by chi-square test. Results: Factors influencing patient satisfaction were fast response time (OR= 1.71; 95% CI= 1.25 to 2.40; p= 0.003) and covered by social health insurance (OR= 1.90; 95% CI= 1.19 to 3.05; p= 0.007). Conclusion: Factors influencing patient satisfaction are fast response time and covered by social insurance. Keywords: patient satisfaction, response time, social health insurance