Minimal pairs of polytopes and their number of vertices

We define what is called Blaschke difference for polytopes as an inverse operation to Blaschke addition. Using this operation we give a new algorithm to reduce and find a minimal pair of polytopes from the given class of the Rådström-Hörmander lattice containing a pair of polytopes in IR2. This method gives a better algorithmic insight and easy to handle than the one given by Handschug (1989). We also prove that a pair of polytopes in the plane is minimal if and only if the sum of the number of their vertices is minimal in the class. However, it is shown in the paper that, this last statement does not hold true in general for higher dimensional spaces

Dynamics of the Cult of Sheik Hussein of Bale, Ethiopia: Its Course and Curse of the Extremists, a Historical Perspective

This article explores historical dynamics, values and emerging threats to the cult of Sheik Hussein of Bale. Oral, archival and secondary sources have been collected and crosschecked in the interpretation. Sheik Hussein, an Islamic wali who lived about 800 years ago at a sanctuary named after him known as Dirre Sheik Hussein, is the icon of Bale. His connection to the blood line of Prophet Mohammed, as well as his spiritual graces and deeds in the Isalmization of Bale were factors behind his fame, which led to his veneration as a saint while already he was alive and fully transformed into a cult, after his death. The cult, which evolved from the pre-Islamic muudaa tradition of the Oromo, consists of pilgrimages, baaroo and rituals at his shrine twice a year. It has immense potential for tourism that fascinates even the pilgrims, involving tour of scenic landscapes, famous shrines and singing in honor of the saint and Allah. However, due to the proliferation of extremist teachings of the Salafists and Wahabbists, attacks on pilgrims and marginalization of adherents have been strengthening. Even the extremists vow to destroy the shrine. There were problems arising from lack of viable conservation schemes and ample studies that jeopardized the heritage constraining its registration as Permanent World Heritage Site by the UNESCO. Thus, building the capacity of the darga, community based conservation of the shrine and promoting tolerance embedded in the cult are required to sustain the heritage calling for a lookout.Key words: Sheik Hussein, cult, dynamics, pilgrimage, extremis

PENDAMPINGAN DAN PELATIHAN PENGOLAHAN KULIT KAKAO DI DESA TANDUNG KECAMATAN TINAMBUNG PROVINSI SULAWESI BARAT

Desa Tandung termasuk daerah yang memiliki banyak kekayaan alami atau sumberdaya alam tertinggi Permasalahan yang kini terjadi adalah perekonomian mayoritas masyarakat disana bekerja sebagai sebagai petani di perkebunan, sehingga pendapatan masyarakat disana sangat minim. Penghasilan terbesar adalah hasil perkebunan seperti kulit kakao yang terdiri dari kulit buah, keping biji dan plasenta. Tujuan dari kegiatan pengabdian kepada masyarakat   (PKM)   ini adalah untuk mendampingi masyarakat dalam pengolahan produk kakao khususnya pada bagian kulit kakaokarena masyarakat belum memahami dengan baik hal tersebut. PKM ini dilakukan di Desa Tandung Kecamatan   Tinambung Kabupaten   Polewali Mandar Provinsi Sulawesi Barat pada tanggal 17 Juli - 2 November 2023. Metode yang digunakan tahapan persiapan yaitu kegiatan sosialisasi yang dilaksanakan dengan 2 tahapan, yaitu tahapan pertama diperuntukan untuk mitra dan tahapan kedua diperuntukan kepada masyarakat umum, kemudian tahapan pelaksanaan berupa kegiatan pemilihan dan pengeringan kulit kakao serta pendampingan pengolahan kulit kakao. Kegiatan ini menghasilkan produk keripik dengan campuran bahan kulit kakao yang diberi nama dagang Keripik Kakao. Hasil pengabdian pemberdayaan masyarakat melalui pengolahan kulit kakao membantu dalam mengatasi limbah kakao menjadi produk makanan yang dapat membantu ekonomi masyarakat khususnya ibu-ibu PKK di Desa Tandung

Spatial and Temporal Variability of Rainfall at Seasonal and Annual Time Scales at Tekeze River Basin, Ethiopia

Understanding  climate variability using surface observed climatic parameters like rainfall at watershed spatial scale is a great input in decision making for practitioners in agriculture planning, water resources projects, rainfall-runoff modeling activities ,environmental impact assessment and civil works. This study examines the spatio-temporal variability of seasonal and annual rainfall totals over Tekeze river basin in Ethiopia. The indices were used over the basin based on data available from 28 meteorological stations having variable record length spanning from 1992-2009 for most of the stations. The data were subjected to main quality tests of outliers and homogeneity tests. Temporal variability was analyzed by coefficient of variability and spatial distribution and variability was investigated using ordinary kirging interpolation technique. The result showed: The annual and kiremt (June to September) season rainfall distribution are highest at the southwest part of the river basin and decrease to other directions. South and northeast part of the basin receive highest amount of Belg (February to May) season rainfall. The temporal variability of Belg rainfall is much higher than the kiremt rainfall. The spatial variability of annual and kiremt rainfall is higher than the spatial variability of Belg rainfall. Keywords:  Seasonal Rainfall, Annual Rainfall, Temporal variability, spatial variabilit

Woody Species Diversity, Community Structure, and Regeneration Capacity in Central Ethiopian Urban Forest Patches

Land cover change in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia’s capital, is driven by recurring drought and the economic problems of society-initiated afforestation. The goal of this study was to learn about the state of woody species regeneration in Yeka’s urban forest patches. Thirty plots (20 m x 20 m in size) were sampled to identify plants for this purposE. All wooden trees with a height greater than 1.3 m in each plot were identified, enumerated, and their diameter were measured. Acacia decurrens was determined to be the predominant species, with an importance value index (IVI) of 161.09, followed by Acacia melanoxlon (IVI = 44.69). The bootstrapping PERMANOVA test was used to show how the species in the community overlapped. The result reveals that dissimilarity is low (p > 0.05), which is supported by the assumption of multivariate dispersion homogeneity. The area’s generalized linear model (GLM) showed all species statistically significant for characteristics associated with closure year and presence of mature trees and the entire closure year. Two of the twenty tree species, i.e., Acacia decurrens and Acacia melanoxylon were found in nearly equal numbers in all three growth stages as well as having strong regenerating potential. The rapid expansion of exotic Acacia spp. necessitates careful attention to their regeneration. To reinforce and improve ecosystem services, conservation and restoration efforts should encourage the regeneration of native plant species

A framework for defining equity and sustainability in the Nile River Basin

Published ArticleThe objectives of this research were to objectively define the two important terms, ‘equity’ and ‘without appreciable harm’, in the water utilization principles enshrined in the United Nation (UN) Convention in the context of visions of the Nile Basin Initiative (NBI). Need-based allocation of Nile waters and the new emerging concept of ‘reserved’ and ‘shared’ water were used as tools to quantify equity. Results of allocation based on per capita per year indicated that Ethiopia, Sudan, Egypt and Equatorial states, each, will get 15, 22, 49, and 14% of the annual flow of Nile waters, respectively. Evaluation of allocation scenarios of the Nile waters revealed that allocation based on the 1959 Water Agreement does not guarantee sustainable utilization and does not comply with the UN Convention. However, allocation based on the weighted area and per capita methods were found to guarantee sustainable utilization and to comply with the UN Convention. The results of this study can be used as a framework of negotiation platform to open up more fruitful discussions and dialogues among decision makers in the basin states

Spektrin Havainnointi Kognitiivisissa Matkaviestinlaitteissa

Radio spectrum is becoming a scarce resource as increasing number of wireless devices attempt to access it. As a solution to this issue, spectrum sensing based cognitive radios have been proposed. However, significant part of them are mobile, consumer-grade devices that have strict price and form-factor limitations. This works aims to address the issues related to mobile spectrum sensing by characterizing the non-idealities with a spectrum sensor prototype. Two efficient sensing algorithms and a coarse-fine controller, which aims to minimize the energy consumption and run time of an individual sensor, are implemented on an FPGA. Functionality of the implementations is verified by laboratory and field measurements. Finally, a spatial interpolation method, Kriging, is applied to the non-ideal measurement data to create a uniform radio environment map.Langattomien laitteiden yleistyminen kasvattaa radiospektrin käyttöastetta ylärajaa kohti. Ratkaisuksi ongelmaan on kehitetty spektrin havainnointiin perustuvat kognitiiviset radiot. Näistä valtaosa on kuitenkin kuluttajatason matkaviestinlaitteita, joilla on tiukat rajoitteet muun muassa hinnan ja fyysisen rakenteen suhteen. Tässä työssä perehdytään spektrin havainnoinnin haasteisiin tutkimalla havainnoinnin epäideaalisuuksia spektrisensoriprototyypillä. Työssä on toteutettu FPGA:lle kaksi energiatehokasta havainnointialgoritmia sekä karkea-herkkä -ohjain, joka pyrkii minimoimaan yksittäisen spektrisensorin energiakulutusta sekä havainnointiaikaa. Toteutettujen algoritmien toiminta ja suorituskyky verifioidaan laboratorio- sekä kenttämittauksilla. Lopuksi esitellään avaruudellinen interpolaatiomenetelmä, Kriging, jota sovelletaan epäideaaliseen kenttämittausdataan kattavan radiopeitekartan luomiseksi

Effect of Nitrogen Fixation on Yield and some Yield Component of Common Bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) Genotypes under Moisture Stress

Moisture stress is a worldwide production constraint for common beans and biological nitrogen fixation. The effect of drought has been widely reported and is an important environmental factor resulting in crop yield losses. This study aims at assessing the effect of nitrogen fixation on yield and some yield component of common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) genotypes under moisture stress levels. Experiments were carried out in screen house and field at Sokoine University of Agriculture. The genotypes used were Kijivu, Yellow, Msolini, Masusu, Kasukanywele, Uyole 04, Mbulamtwe, Bilfa-Uyole and G 51495 A, a non-nodulating genotypes as a check. The soil moisture was maintained at 100, 75, 50 or 25% of the soil’s field capacity. Moisture stress reduced yield up to 67%. Genotypes Yellow (2.9 and 11.2g/palnt), Msolini (3.3 and 10.7g/plant), Masusu (3.6 and 7.7g/plant) and Bilfa Uyole (4.1 and 7.2g/plant) were observed to have some degree of drought tolerance based on its response under moisture stress environments for yield. These results suggest that moisture stress has a substantial impact on the general performance of common bean genotypes. Selection of superior performing genotypes under moisture stress, and integrating them into the breeding programs is an important to increase crop productivity. Keywords; N2-fixation; Drought; Nodulation; Legume

Las TICs y la redacción académica en estudiantes de educación superior: caso Canelos

Academic writing is the process in which everyone involved in higher education creates and formulates academic documents to later share them with the community in general. It is an essential process at this level of learning. Writing involves the use of various language and communication skills, focusing on reading-writing. The appearance of ICTs can present an advantage or disadvantage in the (integral) writing task for young people of this decade, is what will be discovered in this work. Therefore, this research was conducted as a case study, to describe and analyze the realities that higher education students have when producing a text, we proceeded to a review of specialized bibliography and the contrast between a survey and what was observed in the class. It follows that 53% (of 30) consider that their writing would improve without the use of the Office auto-checker. If we add this to the fact that only 23% read academic documents, it presents us with an interesting scenario for reflection. It can be said that ignorance in the use of technology is the true rival of ICTs and academic writing.La redacción académica es el proceso en el cual toda persona involucrada a educación superior crea y formula documentos académicos para posteriormente compartirlos con la comunidad en general. Es un proceso esencial de este nivel de formación. La redacción implica el dominio de varias habilidades del lenguaje y la comunicación, enfocándose en la lectura-escritura. La aparición de las TICs puede presentar una ventaja o desventaja en la tarea (integral) de redacción para los jóvenes de esta década, es lo que se intenta descubrir en este trabajo. Por ello se realizó esta investigación bajo el concepto de estudio de caso, para describir y analizar las realidades que tienen los estudiantes de educación superior al producir un texto, se procedió a la revisión de bibliografía especializada y el contraste entre una encuesta y lo observado en las aulas. De esto se desprende que el 53% (de 30) considera que su redacción mejoraría sin el uso del auto corrector de Office. Si juntamos esto a que apenas el 23% lee documentos académicos nos presenta un escenario interesante para la reflexión. Se puede afirmar que el desconocimiento en el uso de la tecnología es el verdadero rival de las TICs y la redacción académica

Gradient-based Instantaneous Traffic Flow Optimization on a Roundabout

In this article we focus on instantaneous traffic fl ow optimization on a roundabout using a macroscopic approach. The roundabout is modeled as a concatenation of 2x2 junctions with one main lane and secondary incoming and outgoing roads. We consider a cost functional that measures the total travel time spent by drivers on the roundabout and compute its gradient with respect to the priority parameters at junctions. Then, through numerical simulations, the traffic behavior is studied on the whole roundabout. The numerical approximations compare the performance of a roundabout for instantaneous optimization of the priority parameters and fixed constant parameters