Please, Read the Comments: Exploring the Racial Dialectic of Online Racial Discourse

More people than ever before are living significant portions of their social lives online due to advancements in internet technology. Over the last few years, we have begun to see the most public discussions of racism increasingly occur online, to be later embedded in the public’s consciousness. It is therefore important for race critical scholars to observe how digital spaces affect racial discourse in the United States. Utilizing a race critical perspective, I explore comment section reactions to counter-framing articles to examine contemporary racial discourse. Through a discourse analysis, I find that counter-framing articles initiate the racial dialectic by inviting white racial frames, thereby structuring contemporary racial discourse. My research suggests race critical scholars should explore the internet as a racialized institution and a site of racial contestation. Race critical theorist must begin to grapple with how such a racialized institution will alter the experiences of racism in social life

Quality Characteristic of Kunu Produced from Orange Fleshed Sweetpotato for Empowerment of Rural Women in Nigeria

Kunu is a non-alcoholic beverage consumed in Nigeria, and originated from the northern part of the country. It is being hawked by mostly women to earn a living, and originally produced using grains like millet and sorghum. Following the popularization of orange fleshed sweet potato (OFSP), Kunu was produced using variety 440293 of OFSP obtained from National Root Crops Research Institute Umudike.  The production of Kunu from orange fleshed sweet potato was done at different fermentation periods of 0 hrs (Sample A), 6 hrs (Sample B), and 12 hrs (Sample C). The biochemical, microbial, sensory characterizations and cost analysis were carried out.  The results showed that β-carotene content of Kunu was still retained compared to the fresh tuber sample. The sensory evaluation showed that sample B and C were most preferred to sample A in general acceptability, however, sample A ranked highest in appearance. The microbial analysis revealed that the microbial load of Kunu was low with 1.01CFU/mL x 106, 1.03 CFU/mL x106 and 1.04 CFU/mL x106 for A, B and C respectively. The cost analyses showed that Kunu from OFSP would be helpful in improving the income of rural women in Northern Nigeria

Structural Evolution, Magmatism, and Effects of Hydrocarbon Maturation in Lower Benue Trough, Nigeria: A Case Study of Lokpaukwu, Uturu, and Ishiagu.

The Benue Trough of Nigeria has been affected by at least two episodes of deformation in the Cenomanian and Santonian times. The deformations generated NE-SW trending structural features, which accommodated massive igneous activities in the Trough. The Lokpaukwu–Uturu–Ishiagu magmatic belt of the Lower Benue Trough is an example of these structurally controlled igneous intrusions. The igneous rocks are predominantly intermediate to basic in character, rich in plagioclase and ferromagnesian minerals and have impacted high maturity on the source sediments due to thermal effect. Total organic carbon contents of the mudrock inclusions in the pyroclastics range from 0.60%wt – 0.86%wt. It is apparent that prior to the eruption, an initial shaly source rock with higher organic carbon content was cooked during the eruption, thereby reducing the source quality of the rocks. Thus, heat from the igneous intrusions raised the temperature of the source rocks above the liquid oil window limit, and thus inhibited the preservation of the essential constituents of petroleum in the shales within the Lower Benue Trough

Effect of water yam (Dioscorea alata) flour fortified with distillers spent grain on nutritional, chemical, and functional properties

It was envisaged that the inclusion of treated distiller ’ s spent grain ( DSG ) to yam fl our might increase its nutritional value, with the aim of reducing nutritional diseases in communities consuming yam as a staple. Hence, yam fl our was fortifi ed with DSG at 5–35%. The effects of this fortifi cation on the nutritional, chemical, and functional properties of yam fl our were investigated. The result showed a signifi cant increase ( P 0.001) in fat, ash, protein, total amino acids, total dietary fi ber, and insoluble dietary fi ber contents of the blends as DSG increased except for starch and soluble dietary fi ber contents, which decreased. The functional properties showed a signifi cant ( P 0.001) reduction with DSG inclusion. The inclusion of DSG increased both the tryptophan and methionine contents of the blends. Therefore, the DSG fortifi ed yam fl our could contribute to quality protein intake in populations consuming yam as a staple, due to its indispensible amino acid content

COVID-19 and COVID-19 vaccination experiences and perceptions and their predictors among community members during the COVID-19 pandemic in Ebonyi state, Nigeria: an analytical cross-sectional study

Abstract Background COVID-19 is still a disease of global public health importance which requires long term application of control measures as millions of new infections or re-infections and thousands of related deaths still occur worldwide and the risk of an upsurge from new strains of the virus continues to be a threat. The decrease in the use of and non-use of preventive public health measures are among the factors fuelling the disease. The (previous) experiences and perceptions of people regarding the COVID-19 pandemic, COVID-19 vaccination, and the vaccination process are factors that will influence subsequent use of preventive/control measures. We explored the COVID-19 and COVID-19 vaccination and the vaccination process experiences and perceptions, and their predictors, among the community members in Ebonyi state, Nigeria. Methods We conducted an analytical cross-sectional study between March 12 and May 9, 2022 among all consenting/assenting community members aged 15 years and above in 28 randomly selected geographical clusters. A structured interviewer-administered electronic questionnaire in KoBoCollect installed in android devices was used to collect data which was analysed using descriptive statistics and bivariate and multivariate generalized estimating equations. Results Of the 10,825 community members surveyed: only 31.6% had strong COVID-19 experience and perception, 72.2% had good COVID-19 vaccination expectation and perception, and only 54.2% had positive COVID-19 vaccination process experience and perception. The most important predictors of the extent/level of COVID-19 and COVID-19 vaccination and the vaccination process experiences and perceptions were level of attitude towards COVID-19 and COVID-19 vaccination and level of knowledge about COVID-19. Other important predictors were marital status, educational level, and main occupation. Conclusions This study’s evidence, including the identified predictors, will inform subsequent policy actions regarding COVID-19 in the strategies to improve the COVID-19 and COVID-19 vaccination and the vaccination process experiences and perceptions of community members (and their use of preventive/control measures) in Ebonyi state and Nigeria, and other similar contexts. It will also inform future policy actions/strategies regarding similar diseases

Additional file 1 of COVID-19 and COVID-19 vaccination experiences and perceptions and their predictors among community members during the COVID-19 pandemic in Ebonyi state, Nigeria: an analytical cross-sectional study

Supplementary Material