Students Use of Academic Libraries in Nigeria: A Case of Obafemi Awolowo University Library, Ile-Ife

A survey of student use of Hezekiah Oluwasanmi Library was carried out with five hundred students as respondents. While 95 percent of respondents use the library, those who do not have various reasons for it. It also showed that of all the library materials, indexes/abstracts, microfilms, and government publications are the least used library resources. Recommendations for improving the use of library resources are made

A review of hyperandrogenism state in polycystic ovarian syndrome

Polycystic ovary syndrome is one of the most prevalent endocrinopathy in premenopausal women. The pathophysiology of PCOS is not clear, however disturbance in the hypothalamic-pituitary-ovarian axis and abnormal steroidogenesis along with genetic and environmental factors act as main contributors to this disorder. The steroidogenic pathway is affected by the overexpression of the CYP11A, CYP17, and CYP19 genes in PCOS, which results in a hyperandrogenic condition. The initial effect of too much androgen in PCOS is impaired folliculogenesis. The most frequent clinical manifestations of hyperandrogenism in women with PCOS include hirsutism, acne, and androgenic alopecia. Women with PCOS may have an excess of androgen during foetal life due to the elevated expression of P450c17a during the whole pregnancy. PCOS is believed to be formed in utero by the influence of androgen excess on gene expression in adolescence and adulthood, which offers more solid evidence that real PCOS can be induced by prenatal androgenization. A prenatal androgen excess-induced epigenetic phenomena is suggested by the current theory of PCOS's developmental genesis. It is currently believed that the many tiny follicles seen in polycystic ovaries and the considerable irregularity in the very early stages of folliculogenesis are associated to the formation of anovulation in PCOS

Testing in the incremental design and development of complex products

Testing is an important aspect of design and development which consumes significant time and resource in many companies. However, it has received less research attention than many other activities in product development, and especially, very few publications report empirical studies of engineering testing. Such studies are needed to establish the importance of testing and inform the development of pragmatic support methods. This paper combines insights from literature study with findings from three empirical studies of testing. The case studies concern incrementally developed complex products in the automotive domain. A description of testing practice as observed in these studies is provided, confirming that testing activities are used for multiple purposes depending on the context, and are intertwined with design from start to finish of the development process, not done after it as many models depict. Descriptive process models are developed to indicate some of the key insights, and opportunities for further research are suggested

Processing DNA molecules as text

Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) is the DNA-equivalent of Gutenberg’s movable type printing, both allowing large-scale replication of a piece of text. De novo DNA synthesis is the DNA-equivalent of mechanical typesetting, both ease the setting of text for replication. What is the DNA-equivalent of the word processor? Biology labs engage daily in DNA processing—the creation of variations and combinations of existing DNA—using a plethora of manual labor-intensive methods such as site-directed mutagenesis, error-prone PCR, assembly PCR, overlap extension PCR, cleavage and ligation, homologous recombination, and others. So far no universal method for DNA processing has been proposed and, consequently, no engineering discipline that could eliminate this manual labor has emerged. Here we present a novel operation on DNA molecules, called Y, which joins two DNA fragments into one, and show that it provides a foundation for DNA processing as it can implement all basic text processing operations on DNA molecules including insert, delete, replace, cut and paste and copy and paste. In addition, complicated DNA processing tasks such as the creation of libraries of DNA variants, chimeras and extensions can be accomplished with DNA processing plans consisting of multiple Y operations, which can be executed automatically under computer control. The resulting DNA processing system, which incorporates our earlier work on recursive DNA composition and error correction, is the first demonstration of a unified approach to DNA synthesis, editing, and library construction

An epitaph to Section 28? Telling tales out of school about changes and challenges to discourses of sexuality

This is a postprint of an article whose final and definitive form has been published in the International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education,© 2007 Copyright Taylor & Francis; International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education, is available online at http://www.informaworld.comThis article seeks to develop an understanding of the professional and personal lives of LGBT teachers in relation to the discriminatory statute Section 28, which prohibited 'promotion' of 'the acceptability of homosexuality as a pretended family relationship' by local education authorities in the UK (except Northern Ireland). Interviews with a small sample of serving teachers are analysed using a feminist poststructuralist methodology to discover whether the removal of this legislation marks a shift in theorization, policy or practice. Findings are arranged to focus on the workings of official policy, on informal or unofficial classroom and staffroom practices, and on relations with a local community. Analysis and discussion reveal a complex matrix of constituents (space, relationships and other variables) only some of which respond to the (perhaps) superficial stimulus of legislative change. Such change goes only a small way to challenge a deeply embedded discourse of inequality, which may respond only to a more profound epistemological transformation

A Novel Edge Detection Algorithm based on Cumulative Residual Entropy

In this paper, We proposed a novel edge detection algorithm based on Cumulative Residual Entropy (CRE). It is an essential concept in information theory. However, in our knowledge, it has relatively little consideration in image processing. Image thresholding and edge detection techniques play a crucial role in several of the tasks needed for pattern recognition and computer vision. In this paper, we have studied, implemented,and applied the CRE measure for edge detection. Firstly, We have defined a thresholding criterion based on the CRE measure that is related to the image. Secondly, the optimal solution is used to find edge detection image. The efficiency of the proposed approach proved by using examples from a different type of images. We have compared the proposed technique with several classic edge techniques on the same data set. The performance of the proposed method based on peak signal to noise ratio (PSNR) has been presented

Distribution of ostracode assemblages along the nearshore and offshore areas of Malabar coast, Kerala (west coast of India)

Sixty-one ostracode species have been identified in 76 sediment samples from 28 nearshore and 48 offshore locations off Malabar Coast, Kerala. Q mode cluster analysis of the ostracode assemblages of the nearshore sediments indicates that the entire nearshore assemblages can be classified into two clusters – cluster I – Kumbla (A₁) – Hosdurg (B₁) and Mattul (D₁) blocks and Cluster II – Payyannur (C₁) – Cannanore (E₁) – Telicherry (F1) blocks. This clustering is probably due to the differences in the depositional environment. The influence of estuarine environment is predominant in the cluster I due to the mixing of freshwater from the surrounding land masses. Several backwaters are observed in the areas covered by this cluster. Cluster analysis of offshore assemblages indicate that the entire offshore off Malabar coast can be divided into two clusters, cluster I – Kumbla (A₂) and Bekal (B₂), cluster II – Neeleswaram (C₂), Payyannur (D₂) and Payangoti (E₂) blocks. The presence of shallow water ostracode species in cluster I which lived in nearshore sand and silty sand substrate under the influence of subtropical water currents are inferred and further indicated by the fossil molluscan assemblages. Q-mode cluster analysis and details of physical and ecological parameters suggest that there is a substantial influence of substrate, organic matter and salinity in the distribution, diversity and abundance of the ostracode. Based on this, the Malabar coast of Kerala is significantly classified as a marine ecosystem/environment category