Looking into the energy future of developing nations (a case for nuclear technology)

Includes bibliographical references.The energy poverty being witnessed in many developing countries and the fear of a deteriorating environment are some of the factors driving the nuclear renaissance. Over the years, global energy demand has continued to increase without matching supply, giving signs of impending energy crises. The argument for nuclear technology seems to sound more convincing in the face of these problems. After more than two decades following the accidents of Chernobyl and Three Mile Island, the fear of global warming allegedly coming from fossil fuel seems to be trumping the fear and apprehension associated with radiation. With the rise in trade and industry in many emerging economies, the proponents of nuclear technology have been advocating for its usage in some of these developing nations. This paper examines different alternative energy sources. It also explores the potentials of nuclear technology vis-a-vis the environmental health and safety issues. In conclusion, the paper contends that even though nuclear energy has great potential, and is capable of providing emission free energy, the financial cost, security, environmental health, and safety implications of its usage currently makes it an unrealistic means for most developing nations.B.S. (Bachelor of Science

Studies on the anatomy of South Indian timbers

The first account of Indian Timbers was published in 1831 by Dr. Aitken. His studies were confined to the Timbers of Assam. In 1881 J.S. Gamble published The Manual of Indian Timbers which comprised a brief survey of the various timbers of the different parts of India. A more complete and much more extensive edition of his work was published in 1920. Mr. R.S. Pearson and Dr. H.P. Brown, published a detailed account of the "Commercial Timbers of India" in 1932, During the past few years Dr. K.A. Chowdhury of Dehra Dun has made very extensive studies of numerous timbers, chiefly of N. India. The materials examined here are some of the lesser known timbers, particularly of Malabar (Travancore - Cochin State), They are mostly confined to the rain forest region and the adjoining plains. These trees nave not been studied in detail before. As yet no exhaustive or complete account of the timbers of S. India has been made, though some of the most important and well known commercial timbers have been described ay the persons mentioned above. The present work has been carried out with a view to describe the structure, to identify certain timbers, and to make an exhaustive and analytical study of the behaviour of the various wood elements of the dicotyledonous trees o the rain- forest area where growth is almost continuous throughout the year. The first part of the work comprises a detailed account of the anatomical structure of the various trees under investigation with a brief account of their external morphology, habit and habitat. The second part consists of a detailed account of the structural variations brought about in the various wood elements in the growth of the tree. No such work on Indian Timbers has been done before

Supreme Audit Institutions and Public Accountability: Evidence in Nigeria

The aim of this study is to examine whether SAIs have been effective in enhancing public accountability in Nigeria. Public officers charged with the responsibility of managing her common wealth overtime have not been deligent in effectively and efficiently managing the resources due to the high level of corruption in the public sector. The SAI which is to serve as watch dogs by enhancing public accountability has been found wanting in this regards.The study revealed that autonomy, appointment and removal by the executives, weakness on the part of the legislature (public accounts committee), lack of infrastructures and adequate manpower, lack of cooperation from other stakeholders and ICT Usage are major challenges faced by SAIs in enhancing public accountability in Nigeria. The study recommends that the financial, political and organizational autonomy of SAIs in Nigeria be strengthened to enable them act as the watch dog of public officers which in turn will foster public accountability among others. Keywords: Supreme Audit Institutions, Accountability, Auditor General, Autonom

Testing the validity of free cash flow hypothesis: Evidence from Nigeria

Purpose: This study empirically tests the validity of the free cash flow hypothesis among firms quoted on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) from 2007 to 2017. Research methodology: The study employed a dynamic panel system Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) in analyzing the data generated. Results: the result failed to provide empirical evidence in support of the Jensen free cash flow hypothesis in Nigeria. The equally showed that a high concentration of shareholding in the hand of a few individual increases the amount of dividend paid out to shareholders. The result is however robust using different methods.  Limitations: We focused only on testing the validity of the free cash flow hypothesis proposed by Jensen (1986). Contribution: The study provided empirical evidence that invalidates the propositions of the free cash flow hypothesis among publicly quoted firms in Nigeria. The result is robust using different estimation techniques.  Keywords: Free cash flow hypothesis; Dividend payou

Traditional Medicine and The Promotion Of Inter-Group Relations: The Igbo And Igala (Igara) Experiences In Nigeria

One central objective of history is to preserve knowledge especially where such knowledge is endangered. Even as a historian is not to sound evangelical, his views could and do change views and salvage threatened knowledge systems.  In Igboland, the knowledge of traditional medicine is seriously threatened by the spate of condemnation it attracts from those who want to become more Catholic than the Pope. The spate of condemnation of African traditional medical practices are alarming and at best disturbing. This is because, the same people who would stop at nothing to buy Chinese made herbal drugs would condemn in its totality drugs made by local medical practitioners here in Nigeria. Rather than take the pains to study and understand the art involved in the profession and harness its potentials and more importantly preserve the knowledge therein, many obstacles are placed on the way of the traditional medicine men on account that they are “diabolic”, their products “ unhygienic” and unsafe to drink or a nuisance to human health. The present writers hold a contrary view as traditional medicine is a portent force in inter-group relations and very effective where orthodox medicine has failed.  How true the latter statement is to be demonstrated in how two brands of traditional medicine-Odiette and Akpaballa have helped in cementing relationships between the Igbo and Igala especially as it concerns their health and security. Lessons from the experience of these groups would go a long way in fostering peace in the nation especially now that there are several security threats to its citizens. Key Words: Traditional medicine, inter-group relations, Igbo, Igala, Nigeri

An Extension of Peano Axioms for the Natural Number System

As a fundamental requirement, a natural number system must necessarily satisfy   Peano axioms. These axioms altogether justify whether or not a number system is a natural number system. In this paper, a set of axioms have been proposed and established to augment and extend the existing Peano axioms for the natural number system. Key Words: Natural numbers, Rational numbers, Peano axioms, Pearson   correlation  coefficient, Even and Odd partitions

Population characteristics and taxonomy of lantern fishes of genus Diaphus (Family Myctophidae) off south west coast of India

Globally most of the conventional fish stocks have reached a state of optimum exploitation or even over-exploitation; efficient utilization of non-conventional resources is necessary to meet the supply-demand gap for protein supply. Mesopelagic fishes can be considered as one such promising resource for the future, if appropriate harvest and post-harvest technologies are developed. Increasing human population and increasing demand for cheaper food fishes has made myctophids a possible potential resource for future exploitation and utilization. Earlier studies indicated the abundance of Diaphus spp. in the eastern and northeastern Arabian Sea. The present study also indicates the dominance of Diaphus spp. in the deep sea trawling grounds of south west coast of India

TIME MANAGEMENT: ESSENTIAL TOOL FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING IMPROVEMENT IN CHALLENGING RESOURCE PERIOD IN NIGERIA

ABSTRAC

Formulation and Analysis of Silodosin Tablets

Related Substances. Related substances are structurally related to a drug substance. These substances may be identified or unidentified degradation products or impurities arising from a manufacturing process or during storage of a material. Since the sample is light resistant, there may b a slight chance of degradation or either impurities in excipients or source of material obtained from vendor. Impurities can be overcome by either understanding the degradation of the Drug product or checking the quality of the solvent (mehylenedichloride) or improvising the formulation. CONCLUSION: The results obtained during the formulation and evaluation of Silodosin 4mg Tablet J.P. states that the formulation is stable and rate of impurity in the drug needs to be controlled. According to ICH guidelines, impurities in the drug substance produced by chemical synthesis can broadly be classified into following three categories – 1. Organic Impurities (Process and Drug related), 2. Inorganic Impurities, 3. Residual Solvents, Organic impurities may arise during the manufacturing process and or storage of the drug substance may be identified or unidentified, volatile or non-volatile, and may include 1. Starting materials or intermediates, 2. By-products, 3. Degradation products. FUTURE SCOPE: The Study may be extended to the isolation and characterization of impurities

Impact of income level and foreign aid on economic growth in Sub-Saharan Africa: the case of Anglophone and Francophone countries

The study examines the impact of foreign aid on economic growth (EG) of 40 Sub-Saharan African countries classified according to their colonial history and the level of income. Domestic capital formation and labour participation served as control variables. For empirical analysis, annual data for the period 1982–2018 are used, and a structural model is estimated using the pooled mean group estimation approach. The results reveal that (1) bilateral foreign aids (bfa) strongly favour the Francophone better than the Anglophone as it exerts strong favourable effect on the former (2) Multilateral aid exerts strong unfavourable effect on the Anglophone but weak on the francophone (3) only bilateral aid is a significant positive determinant of EG in low income countries (LICs) and low middle income countries (LMICs) in the long-run and in upper middle income countries (UMICs) in the short-run. One percent increase in bfa increases EG by 1.829%, 18.95%, 7.998%, 40.19% and 187.2% in the Anglophone, francophone, LICs, LMICs, and UMICs, respectively. These suggest that to significantly increase output productivity in the regions more of bilateral aid is required. To encourage inflow of foreign aid, complementary gross fixed capital formation should be increased and labour productivity enhanced