Band gap engineering in finite elongated graphene nanoribbon heterojunctions: Tight-binding model

A simple model based on the divide and conquer rule and tight-binding (TB) approximation is employed for studying the role of finite size effect on the electronic properties of elongated graphene nanoribbon (GNR) heterojunctions. In our model, the GNR heterojunction is divided into three parts: a left (L) part, middle (M) part, and right (R) part. The left part is a GNR of width $W_{L}$, the middle part is a GNR of width $W_{M}$, and the right part is a GNR of width $W_{R}$. We assume that the left and right parts of the GNR heterojunction interact with the middle part only. Under this approximation, the Hamiltonian of the system can be expressed as a block tridiagonal matrix. The matrix elements of the tridiagonal matrix are computed using real space nearest neighbor orthogonal TB approximation. The electronic structure of the GNR heterojunction is analyzed by computing the density of states. We demonstrate that for heterojunctions for which $W_{L} = W_{R}$, the band gap of the system can be tuned continuously by varying the length of the middle part, thus providing a new approach to band gap engineering in GNRs. Our TB results were compared with calculations employing divide and conquer rule in combination with density functional theory (DFT) and were found to agree nicely.Comment: arXiv admin note: text overlap with arXiv:1404.249

Legal Challenges to Election Coverage in Nigeria: A Political Communication Discourse on the Nigerian 2007 and 2011 General Elections

The main thesis in this study is anchored on the declaration of Omu 1978 p 248 and Dare 1997 p 537 on the performance of post-independence press in Nigeria While Omu states that the post-independence press in Nigeria provided a remarkable example of overzealous and irresponsible partisanship Dare quoting one of the architects of modern Nigeria Anthony Enahoro equally states that the Nigerian press lacked men of stature as well as the vision to recognize danger and the courage to oppose wrong There is no doubt election periods are usually exciting moments in every democratic society It is a period for the showing of strength by political parties and candidates from constituency to constituency It is also a period when the electorate shows appreciation and support to candidates and political parties who had fulfilled their electoral promises During this period proprietors of newspapers daily smile to the banks as the sale of newspapers pick up just as advert patronages also increase However it is a challenging moment for newsmen as the urge to report unfolding scenario on the political turf could fetch them the wrath of the law This study focuses on such challenges with special reference to the 2007 and 2011 General Elections in Nigeria While noting that law is necessary to guarantee orderly conduct of polls and through that ensure a hitch-free civilian-to-civilian transition the paper notes that Nigerian newsmen are occasionally overzealous and careless in their handling of political issues which fetched some newsmen the wrath of the law The paper therefore recommends the need for training as well as refresher courses to update the knowledge of Nigerian political reporter

Exact Jastrow-Slater wave function for the one-dimensional Luttinger model

We show that it is possible to describe the ground state of the Luttinger model in terms of a Jastrow-Slater wave function. Moreover, our findings reveal that one-particle excitations and their corresponding dynamics can be faithfully represented only when a Jastrow factor of a similar form is applied to a coherent superposition of many Slater determinants. We discuss the possible relevance of this approach for the theoretical description of photoemission spectra in higher dimensionality, where the present wave function can be straightforwardly generalized and can be used as a variational ansatz, that is exact for the 1D Luttinger model.Comment: 10 pages, one figure, to appear in Phys. Rev.

Information Asymmetry between microfinance banks and Poor women in Oyo State, Nigeria: A Critical Examination

Nigeria like any other developing country is facing the problems of poverty, Nigeria’s case is peculiar given the country’s natural endowment in agriculture, mineral resources, crude oil, human capital and friendly climatic conditions. World Bank estimated that over 70 percent of Nigerians are classified as poor, and half of this number lives in absolute poverty. Indeed, part of the experience in rural development in Nigeria has clearly shown that efforts at expanding the economic base of the rural areas almost always fail because of scarcity of and restrictive access to loanable funds. Poverty alleviation is perhaps one of the most difficult challenges bedeviling the developing countries of the world today. Poor women were targeted because they lack assets that can be used as collateral to obtain loans from commercial banks. However, some horrible occurrences experienced by the commercial banks due to information asymmetry between the banks and the clients are a major reason why the commercial banks insist on collaterals before issuing out loans. In Nigeria, poverty alleviation has been a rather herculean venture because the causes of poverty are ubiquitous and the solution to the problem would require a mix of interventions and programmes in an integrated manner. Statistical evidences show that there has been a surge in poverty since 1960 in Nigeria. The level of poverty in Nigeria between 2004 and 2010, rose from 54.4%, to 69% and by 2011, relative poverty had risen to about 71.5% (National Bureau of Statistics NBS (2012). Microfinance was adopted by Nigeria as a tool for poverty alleviation after the worldwide acceptance of a Grameen Bank model. In order to enhance the flow of financial services to the poor, Nigeria along with other developing nations adopted microfinance as a tool for poverty reduction. Microfinance policy was released in the year 2005 by the Central Bank of Nigeria, existing Community banks were converted to Microfinance banks and establishment of new Microfinance banks were encouraged by the government. The intention is for the banks to cater for the financial needs of the poor populace both in the rural and urban areas of the country by lending in small chunks to them. Data collection was done through the use of well-structured questionnaires. A total of 50 questionnaires were distributed to the Managing Directors of the 50 Microfinance Banks in Oyo State. A total of 39 Banks (78%) returned their questionnaire. 623 women were randomly selected out of which 529 (85%) submitted filled questionnaire. This study adopted descriptive, correlation and regression statistical analysis. The descriptive analysis used includes frequency distributions, means and percentages between the identified variables. The correlation and regression analysis measure, explain and predict the linkage between the variables. Correlation and regression analysis were also used to test the hypothesis, answer the research questions and to determine the relationships among asymmetric information, microfinance lending and poverty alleviation. The analysis of the hypothesis gave values (r = .009, N= 529, P\u3e .05). Since r is close to 0, it means there is no relationship between the variables (response from Clients on information asymmetry and response from the banks on information asymmetry). The High P value of .836 obtained indicates a true Null hypothesis. Hence, the Null hypothesis is accepted. This means that information asymmetry does exist between the Banks and the clients. The findings of this study indicates that Microfinance has succeeded in providing financial services to the poor women and it has enhanced their income thereby assisting them in meeting their basic financial needs. Microfinance has also empowered these poor women, by providing them with confidence, self-esteem, and the financial means to play a larger role in their household and the economy in general, thereby gradually alleviating the poverty that had impoverished Nigeria

Distance two labeling of direct product of paths and cycles

Suppose that $[n]=\left\{0,1,2,...,n\right\}$ is a set of non-negative integers and $h,k \in [n]$. The $L(h,k)$-labeling of graph $G$ is the function $l:V(G)\rightarrow[n]$ such that $\left|l(u)-l(v)\right|\geq h$ if the distance $d(u,v)$ between $u$ and $v$ is one and $\left|l(u)-l(v)\right| \geq k$ if the distance $d(u,v)$ is two. Let $L(V(G))=\left\{l(v): v \in V(G)\right\}$ and let $p$ be the maximum value of $L(V(G)).$ Then $p$ is called $\lambda_h^k-$number of $G$ if $p$ is the least possible member of $[n]$ such that $G$ maintains an $L(h,k)-$labeling. In this paper, we establish $\lambda_1^1-$ numbers of $P _m \times C_n$ graphs for all $m \geq 2$ and $n\geq 3$.Comment: 13 pages, 9 figure

Development of a Secured Information System to Manage Malaria Related Cases in South Western region of Nigeria

Effective community based management of malaria incidences in most community health care centers are hampered by failure in the prompt diagnosis and treatment of malaria. This challenge is exacerbated by the emergence of multidrug resistant plasmodium parasites which makes ineffective most of the effective therapeutic drugs used in the treatment of malaria. Furthermore, even at abrupt changes in the therapeutic recommendations does not always translate to an immediate change in the effective management and control of malaria. Thus, the quest for effective diagnosis and appropriate treatment becomes a daunting and necessary task. . In this article, a secured Information system to manage malaria related cases was developed by 2-tier architecture by using the VB.NET programming language within the Microsoft Visual studio 2008 edition. The database employed for storing relevant data was the SQL server 2005 edition and fingerprint device integrated into the information system was the Microsoft fingerprint reader. From the results in this study, we modeled a feasible medical history system for prompt diagnosis, effective drug recommendations and promulgation of policies that would serve as palliatives for community health care centers that suffers shortages in material and human resources handling malaria and its related diseases

Influence of Information Asymmetry on Microfinance Lending to Women in Oyo State, Nigeria: A Critical Examination

Poverty is perhaps one of the most difficult challenges bedeviling the developing countries of the world today. Statistical evidences show that there has been a surge in poverty since 1960 in Nigeria. The level of poverty between 2004 and 2010, rose from 54.4%, to 69% and by 2011, relative poverty had risen to about 71.5% (National Bureau of Statistics NBS (2012). Poverty alleviation has been a rather herculean venture because the causes of poverty are ubiquitous and the solution to the problem would require a mix of interventions and programmes in an integrated manner. Microfinance was adopted by Nigeria as a tool for poverty alleviation after the worldwide acceptance of a Grameen Bank model. It targets poor women because they lack assets that can be used as collateral to obtain loans from commercial banks. However, because loan given is non collaterized, adequate information provides a social collateral, but the problem of information asymmetry between the banks and the clients is a major reason why the banks deny these women opportunity to access loans. Data collection was done through the use of well-structured questionnaires. A total of 50 questionnaires were distributed to the Managing Directors of the 50 Microfinance Banks in Oyo State. A total of 39 Banks (78%) returned their questionnaire. 623 women were randomly selected out of which 529 (85%) submitted filled questionnaire. This study adopted descriptive, correlation and regression statistical analysis. The descriptive analysis used includes frequency distributions, means and percentages between the identified variables. The correlation and regression analysis measure, explain and predict the linkage between the variables. Correlation and regression analysis were also used to test the hypothesis, answer the research questions and to determine the relationships among Information Asymmetry and Lending by Microfinance Banks to the Poor Women in Oyo State. The analysis of the hypothesis gave values (r = .606, N= 529, P\u3c.01). Since r is close to 1, it means there is a relationship between the variables (Information Asymmetry and Lending by Microfinance Banks). The P value of .000 obtained indicates a true Alternative hypothesis. Hence, the Alternative hypothesis is accepted. This means that as banks’ information increases, lending by Microfinance banks also increases. This means that information asymmetry does exist between the Banks and the clients. Increased information disclosure has an incentive of reducing information search costs and promotes informed lending practice. Information sharing avails more information to the lenders which further reduces on the risks of information asymmetry. The findings of this study reveals that, wherever banks believe that they do not have sufficient information either in terms of quality and quantity, problems of moral hazard and adverse selection do occur. The bank either rationalize the funds they loan out, restrict the number of loans the clients can access, screen out some clients based on the quality and quantity of information they have. In the process, some prospective good clients can inadvertently be omitted while bad clients who possesses some information will be given the loans and they will eventually not repay

How Lagos Newspapers Report China in Nigeria

This study is anchored on a range of perspectives regarding the traditional role of the mass media. Whitney (1975, p. 69) asserts that they inform, educate and entertain people as well as deepen their perspectives on issues, but Lasswell (cited in Popoola 2012, p.160) avers that surveillance of the environment, correlation of parts of the society in responding to the environment and transmission of social heritage from one generation to another are their topmost functions. Rao (1968, cited in Martin and Chaudhary, 1983, p. 102) says: “the mass media may not be the primemovers of development in general, but they provide part of the necessary social interactions in a development cycle.†The reports in the Nigerian media on China, a key player in global affairs, were examined with reference to these perspectives. A survey carried out across print media establishments in Lagos, Nigeria, with agenda-setting theory as the anchor, found out that a major determinant of the way China was reported by the Nigerian print media was the newsy nature of developments back home in China. The newsy nature, however, was what the Nigerian editorsconsidered it to be.Keywords: Reporting, print media, surveillance, correlation, framing, agenda setting, China, Nigeria