The impact of computer-assisted instruction on secondary school students' achievement in geography

A research on how ICT's have impacted positively to the Geography pass rates in rural Zimbabwe schools being the case study.This research, carried out in Manicaland Province in Zimbabwe, aimed to investigate the impact of computer-assisted instruction on students’ performance in Geography. The equivalent group research design which included a pre-test post-test control group design was used. Respondents to interviews and pre-test and post-test questionnaires were made up of forty Form 3 students and eight teachers randomly selectedfrom two secondary schools. The data obtained were analysed using t-test, chi-square and SPSS descriptive statistical techniques. The results showed that the computer-assisted instruction (CAI) gave a higher student performance rate in comparison to those who used expository (traditional) instructional strategy (EIS'). There was no significant difference on performance between male and female students exposed to computer-assisted instruction. Recommendations for a follow-up study are made

Assessment of Subsurface Conditions in a Coastal Area of Lagos using Geophysical Methods

An integrated geophysical and geotechnical survey was carried out at Magodo Estate, Lagos, Nigeria. The buildings in this area are either sinking or intensively affected by severe cracks showing structural instability. The survey was aimed at characterizing the shallow subsurface in order to delineate features that may have caused structural instability that led to cracking and sinking of the residential buildings in the area. To image the subsurface, resistivity profiling (2-D) using a Wenner array and Cone Penetration Test (CPT) was carried out on five profiles of length 180 m each. The acquired data were processed and interpreted integrally to image the shallow geotechnical setting of the site. Integrated interpretation led to the delineation of low resistivity, low bearing capacity clay which is identified as the main cause of instability that resulted in potentially dangerous cracking and sinking of residential buildings in the area.Keywords: Geo-materials, resistivity, geotechnical, geophysica

Knowledge and utilization of non-pneumatic anti-shock garment for the management of postpartum hemorrhage among Midwives in government hospitals in Ogun State, Nigeria

Objective: To assess the knowledge and determine the level of utilization of Non-Pneumatic Anti-Shock Garment (NASG) for the management of PPH among Midwives. Method: The study employed a descriptive cross-sectional study design, using a validated self-administered questionnaire. A total of 198 randomly selected midwives across three health facilities in Ogun State participated in the study. A 10-point knowledge scale was used to assess the knowledge of midwives on NASG. Descriptive statistics were used to determine the level of utilization of NASG among midwives, while Chi-square statistics were used to determine the relationship between the dependent and independent variables of interest at p<0.05 level of significance. Results: Most (88.9%) of the respondents were female with a mean age of 40.2±5.6years. Most (48.5%) had a BNS degree. The majority (74.7%) of the respondents were aware of NASG. Close to a half (49.3%) of the respondents had fair knowledge scores, 34.5% had good knowledge scores, while 16.2% had poor knowledge scores. Only 22.7% of the respondents had ever used NASG in the management of PPH; 77.3% never used it before. Also, 67.2% of the respondents reported NASG was not available in their facilities. There was a significant influence of knowledge of NASG on the utilization among midwives (X2=37.151, P<0.05, df=2). Conclusion: This study demonstrated that midwives in healthcare facilities were aware, but did not have good knowledge of NASG. The utilization of the garment for the management of PPH was also very poor, probably due to suboptimal knowledge and non-availability of the garment

The Effect of Marketing Strategies on Corporate Performance of Estate Surveying and Valuation Firms in Kaduna Metropolis of Nigeria

The issue of marketing management has been of little concerned to most real estate surveying and valuation firms in Nigeria in the time past probably because of the limited number of firms jostling for work then. Many of them were of the erroneous opinion that marketing was not more than mere letting or selling of properties and which does not require more than either placing of advertisement in the newspapers or hanging of “for sale” or “to let” boards on such properties to sell or let. It was this erroneous belief which was responsible for the property industry being lagged behind in performance when compared with most other industries especially the consumer goods and service industries. This study is set out to examine marketing strategies being adopted by estate surveying and valuation firms practising in Kaduna metropolis and how such strategies impact their corporate performance. To achieve the objective of the study, structured questionnaires were administered on estate surveying firms operating within the metropolis and the retrieved questionnaires were subsequently analysed with the aid of simple statistical techniques. The study revealed that there is a positive relationship between marketing strategies adopted and corporate performance of the firms. The study recommends the practising estate firms should employ aggressive marketing strategies at driving their products and services with a view to making their existence more known

Optimisation des paramètres photovoltaïques du CIGS a l aide du simulateur AMPS-1D

[FR] Le Silicium Indium de Gallium et Cuivre (CIGS) dans sa structure chalcopyrite possède des propriétés électriques et électroniques intéressantes. Notre étude a porté sur la concentration de dopage des différentes couches constituant le CIGS et les effets des contacts avant et arrière sur les performances photovoltaïques de la cellule solaire. Nous avons fait la simulation de la variation de la concentration de dopage des différentes couches constituant le CIGS à l¿aide d¿AMPS-1D. Les effets du dopage des différentes couches constituant la cellule solaire à base de CIGS sur les paramètres photovoltaïques tel que le rendement (¿) la tension de circuit ouvert (Vco) et la densité de court-circuit(Jsc) ont été étudiés.L¿augmentation de la concentration de dopage des couches a un effet sur les performances des cellules solaires. Le plus grand rendement a été obtenu lorsqu¿on a augmenté la concentration dedopage de la couche absorbeur. L¿augmentation des conditions aux limites du contact avant diminue le rendement des cellules photovoltaïques tandis que l¿augmentation des conditions aux limites du contact arrière l¿augmente.[EN] Copper indium gallium (di) selenide (CIGS) in its chalcopyrite structure has electrical and electronic properties. Our study focused on the doping of the various layers constituting the CIGS and the effects of the front and back contacts on the photovoltaic performance of the solar cell. We simulated the variation of the doping concentration of the various layers constituting the CIGS using AMPS-1D. The effects of the doping of the various layers of the CIGS solar cell on the photovoltaic parameters such as the efficiency (¿) open circuit voltage (Vco) and the court circuit density (Jsc) have been analyzed. The increase in the doping of the layers has an effect on the performance of the solar cells. The greatest efficiency was obtained when the doping of the absorbed layer is height. The increase in the boundary conditions of the front contact decreases the efficiency of the photovoltaic cells while the increase in boundary conditions of the back contact increases.Oyedele, S.; Boko, A.; Marí, B. (2017). Optimisation des paramètres photovoltaïques du CIGS a l aide du simulateur AMPS-1D. Afrique Science. 13(2):274-283. http://hdl.handle.net/10251/101852S27428313

Stochastic analysis of seepage under water-retaining structures

This paper investigated the problem of confined flow under dams and water retaining structures using stochastic modelling. The approach advocated in the study combined a finite elements method based on the equation governing the dynamics of incompressible fluid flow through a porous medium with a random field generated hydraulic conductivity using a lognormal probability distribution. The resulting model was then used to analyse confined flow under a hydraulic structure. Cases for a structure provided with cutoff wall and when the wall did not exist were both tested. Various statistical parameters that reflected different degrees of heterogeneity were examined and the changes in the mean seepage flow, the mean uplift force and the mean exit gradient observed under the structure were analysed. Results reveal that under heterogeneous conditions, the reduction made by the sheetpile in the uplift force and exit hydraulic gradient may be underestimated when deterministic solutions are used

Yellow Vein Mosaic disease in kenaf (Hibiscus cannabinus l.) under different sowing dates in two agroecologies

Determination of appropriate sowing dates is an important approach towards obtaining optimum crop yield as it affects the resistance/susceptibility of crops to insect pests and diseases. The study investigated the effect of three sowing dates (May, June and July) on the occurrence and incidence of yellow vein mosaic disease in kenaf variety (IFEKEN-100) planted in the experimental fields of the Institute of Agricultural Research and Training (IAR&T) located in Ibadan and Ilora. The incidence of yellow vein mosaic disease was high in May at the two locations with means of 25 and 30% for Ibadan and Ilora, respectively. Plant height was not significantly different in the two locations across the three months. The highest stem diameter was obtained in May from Ilora and Ibadan with means of 1.44 and 1.53 cm, respectively. The best bast fiber yield was recorded in June at Ibadan with a mean value of 1.72 tha-1. Nucleic acid spot hybridization (NASH) was used to confirm the disease and the results revealed that Begomovirus was present in kenaf sowm in the two locations during the period of the three months except in kenaf sown in July at Ilora. The results of this study revealed the importance of sowing dates on the occurrence of viral diseases on the field. If the sowing date is optimum, the effect of viruses may not be pronounced in the crop as seen in the month of June having relatively low virus incidence as well as the highest plant height and bast fibre yield.Keywords: Begomovirus, kenaf, nucleic acid hybridization, yiel

X-Ray Scattering at FeCo(001) Surfaces and the Crossover between Ordinary and Normal Transitions

In a recent experiment by Krimmel et al. [PRL 78, 3880 (1997)], the critical behavior of FeCo near a (001) surface was studied by x-ray scattering. Here the experimental data are reanalyzed, taking into account recent theoretical results on order-parameter profiles in the crossover regime between ordinary and normal transitions. Excellent agreement between theoretical expectations and the experimental results is found.Comment: 9 pages, Latex, 1 PostScript figure, to be published in Phys.Rev.

Applications of machine learning to water resources management: A review of present status and future opportunities

Data availability: No data was used for the research described in the article.The corrected proof will be replaced by version of record in due course.Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Water is the most valuable natural resource on earth that plays a critical role in the socio-economic development of humans worldwide. Water is used for various purposes, including, but not limited to, drinking, recreation, irrigation, and hydropower production. The expected population growth at a global scale, coupled with the predicted climate change-induced impacts, warrants the need for proactive and effective management of water resources. Over the recent decades, machine learning tools have been widely applied to various water resources management-related fields and have often shown promising results. Despite the publication of several review articles on machine learning applications in water-related fields, this review paper presents for the first time a comprehensive review of machine learning techniques applied to water resources management, focusing on the most recent achievements. The study examines the potential for advanced machine learning techniques to improve decision support systems in the various sectors within the realm of water resources management, which includes groundwater management, streamflow forecasting, water distribution systems, water quality and wastewater treatment, water demand and consumption, hydropower and marine energy, water drainage systems, and flood management and defence. This study provides an overview of the state-of-the-art machine learning approaches to the water industry and how they can be used to ensure water supply sustainability, quality, and flood and drought mitigation. This review covers the most recent related studies to provide the most recent snapshot of machine learning applications in the water industry. Overall, LSTM networks have been proven to exhibit reliable performance, often outperforming ANN models, traditional machine learning models, and established physics-based models. Hybrid ML techniques have exhibited great forecasting accuracy across all water-related fields, often showing superior computational power over traditional ANNs architectures. In addition to purely data-driven models, physical-based hybrid models have also been developed to improve prediction performance. These efforts further demonstrate that Machine learning can be a powerful practical tool for water resources management. It provides insights, predictions, and optimisation capabilities to help enhance sustainable water use and management and improve socio-economic development, healthy ecosystems and human existence.EPSRC project reference 2339403 to S. Sayed and A. Ahmed

Indoor Air Quality and Microclimatic conditions in selected Restaurants and Kitchens at a Tertiary Institution in Benin City, Nigeria

This study investigated the levels of selected indoor air pollutant concentrations and microclimatic conditions in restaurants and kitchens at a tertiary institution in Benin City using standard procedures. Ten (10) restaurants and kitchens were randomly selected within the University environment. Indoor particulates (PM1.0, PM2.5 and PM10), Carbon monoxide (CO), Relative humidity (RH), Temperature (Temp) and Wind speed (WS) were measured using Handheld Portable Air Samplers. The results showed that the indoor meteorological and air quality parameters ranged between 34.8 - 35.8°C and 34.5 - 35.9°C (Temp); 42.8 -70.2% and 39.7 - 66.9 (RH); 1.1 - 2.0 m/s and 1.2 - 1.8 m/s (WS); 0.0 - 25.4 and 0.0 - 28.7 mg/m3 (CO); 28.9 - 42.4 µg/m3 and 24.4 µg/m3 - 30.6 (PM1.0); 47.0 - 75. µg/m3 and 37.4 - 50.3 µg/m3 (PM2.5); 62.3 - 91.0 µg/m3 and 53.6 - 56.8 µg/m3 (PM10) within the restaurants and kitchens respectively. The mean concentrations of the CO and particulates were above the recommended regulatory limits of the WHO in all sampling sites. There were generally weak significant associations between the observed meteorological parameters and the indoor air pollutants (R= -0.352, - 0.419 p<0.001), except for CO and indoor temperature in the kitchens (R=0.649, R2 = 0.429 p<0.001). The Air Quality Index (AQI) status of the sampled sites varied from moderate to unhealthy. This study underscores the need for adequate ventilation in the sampled restaurants and kitchens and the creation of awareness of the health risks associated with indoor air pollutants in the study area