The Impacts of National Rebirth Programme on the Moral Character of Nigerian Civil Service Employees (1999 a 2011): Akwa Ibom State Perspective

This study examines the National Rebirth Programme with a view to determine the extent to which it has affected the attitude and behaviour patterns of Nigerians with special emphasis on Akwa Ibom State civil servants The study s objectives were to investigate the impact of the National Rebirth Programme on the moral character of civil service employees in Akwa Ibom State to find out whether the programme has engendered efficiency in service delivery in the state civil service and to recommend ways of making the programme more responsive effective and relevant The study adopted the qualitative and quantitative research methods and utilized data from both the primary and secondary sources which were analyzed within the context of structural functional theory The findings of the study revealed that prior to the commencement of Obasanjo s administration in 1999 Nigerian civil public service was plagued by moral decadence inefficiency and poor attitude to work Moreover the study revealed that the civil service that was supposed to be the engine room of the system was not spared as vices such as corruption indiscipline and other related parochial considerations became prevalent in place of meritocracy diligence and accountability Our analysis revealed that the National Rebirth Programme have had a positive impact on the moral character ethical behaviour and general attitude of Akwa Ibom State civil servants as it has engendered a reduction in the level of corruption discipline and increased work commitment in the civil service The study noted however that a greater proportion of civil servants are still influenced by certain negative forces within the larger society Consequently the study recommended among others that government should make civic education compulsory to all civil servants in order to help in inculcating the right values and ideals in the citizenry while earnest effort should be made to address the poor conditions of service thu

The Impacts of National Rebirth Programme on the Moral Character of Nigerian Civil Service Employees (1999 a 2011): Akwa Ibom State Perspective

This study examines the National Rebirth Programme with a view to determine the extent to which it has affected the attitude and behaviour patterns of Nigerians with special emphasis on Akwa Ibom State civil servants The study s objectives were to investigate the impact of the National Rebirth Programme on the moral character of civil service employees in Akwa Ibom State to find out whether the programme has engendered efficiency in service delivery in the state civil service and to recommend ways of making the programme more responsive effective and relevant The study adopted the qualitative and quantitative research methods and utilized data from both the primary and secondary sources which were analyzed within the context of structural functional theory The findings of the study revealed that prior to the commencement of Obasanjo s administration in 1999 Nigerian civil public service was plagued by moral decadence inefficiency and poor attitude to work Moreover the study revealed that the civil service that was supposed to be the engine room of the system was not spared as vices such as corruption indiscipline and other related parochial considerations became prevalent in place of meritocracy diligence and accountability Our analysis revealed that the National Rebirth Programme have had a positive impact on the moral character ethical behaviour and general attitude of Akwa Ibom State civil servants as it has engendered a reduction in the level of corruption discipline and increased work commitment in the civil service The study noted however that a greater proportion of civil servants are still influenced by certain negative forces within the larger society Consequently the study recommended among others that government should make civic education compulsory to all civil servants in order to help in inculcating the right values and ideals in the citizenry while earnest effort should be made to address the poor conditions of service thu

Altered liver expression of genes involved in lipid and glucose metabolism in mice with partial IGF-1 deficiency: an experimental approach to metabolic syndrome

Abstract Background Insulin growth factor 1 (IGF-1) has multiple effects on metabolism. Much evidence suggests that the deficiency of this hormone increases insulin resistance, impairs lipid metabolism, augments oxidative damage and deregulates the neuro-hormonal axis. An inverse relationship between IGF-1 levels and the prevalence of Metabolic Syndrome (MetS) with its cardiovascular complications has been identified. However, the underlying mechanisms linking IGF-1 and MetS are still poorly understood. In order to elucidate such mechanisms, the aim of this work was to study, in mice with partial IGF-1 deficiency, liver expression of genes involved in glucose and lipid metabolism as well as serum levels of glucose, triglycerides and cholesterol, as well as liver malondialdehyde (MDA) levels, as a marker for oxidative damage. Methods Three experimental groups were studied in parallel: Controls (CO), wild type mice (igf-1 +/+); untreated heterozygous mice (Hz, igf-1 +/−) and Hz (igf-1 +/−) mice treated with low doses of IGF-1 for 10\ua0days (Hz\ua0+\ua0IGF-1). Results A reduction of IGF-1 serum levels in the Hz group was found, which was normalized by IGF-1 therapy. Serum levels of glucose, triglycerides and cholesterol were significantly increased in the untreated Hz group as compared to both controls and Hz\ua0+\ua0IGF-1 groups. The expression of genes involved in gluconeogenesis, glycogenolysis, lipid synthesis and transport, and catabolism were altered in untreated Hz animals and the expression of most of them was normalized by IGF-1 therapy; MDA was also significantly increased in the Hz untreated group. Conclusions The mere partial IGF-1 deficiency is responsible for the reduction in the expression of genes involved in glucose and lipid metabolism, resulting in dyslipidemia and hyperglycemia. Such genetic alterations may seriously contribute to the establishment of MetS

Open data from the first and second observing runs of Advanced LIGO and Advanced Virgo

Advanced LIGO and Advanced Virgo are monitoring the sky and collecting gravitational-wave strain data with sufficient sensitivity to detect signals routinely. In this paper we describe the data recorded by these instruments during their first and second observing runs. The main data products are gravitational-wave strain time series sampled at 16384 Hz. The datasets that include this strain measurement can be freely accessed through the Gravitational Wave Open Science Center at http://gw-openscience.org, together with data-quality information essential for the analysis of LIGO and Virgo data, documentation, tutorials, and supporting software

NEOTROPICAL ALIEN MAMMALS: a data set of occurrence and abundance of alien mammals in the Neotropics

Biological invasion is one of the main threats to native biodiversity. For a species to become invasive, it must be voluntarily or involuntarily introduced by humans into a nonnative habitat. Mammals were among first taxa to be introduced worldwide for game, meat, and labor, yet the number of species introduced in the Neotropics remains unknown. In this data set, we make available occurrence and abundance data on mammal species that (1) transposed a geographical barrier and (2) were voluntarily or involuntarily introduced by humans into the Neotropics. Our data set is composed of 73,738 historical and current georeferenced records on alien mammal species of which around 96% correspond to occurrence data on 77 species belonging to eight orders and 26 families. Data cover 26 continental countries in the Neotropics, ranging from Mexico and its frontier regions (southern Florida and coastal-central Florida in the southeast United States) to Argentina, Paraguay, Chile, and Uruguay, and the 13 countries of Caribbean islands. Our data set also includes neotropical species (e.g., Callithrix sp., Myocastor coypus, Nasua nasua) considered alien in particular areas of Neotropics. The most numerous species in terms of records are from Bos sp. (n = 37,782), Sus scrofa (n = 6,730), and Canis familiaris (n = 10,084); 17 species were represented by only one record (e.g., Syncerus caffer, Cervus timorensis, Cervus unicolor, Canis latrans). Primates have the highest number of species in the data set (n = 20 species), partly because of uncertainties regarding taxonomic identification of the genera Callithrix, which includes the species Callithrix aurita, Callithrix flaviceps, Callithrix geoffroyi, Callithrix jacchus, Callithrix kuhlii, Callithrix penicillata, and their hybrids. This unique data set will be a valuable source of information on invasion risk assessments, biodiversity redistribution and conservation-related research. There are no copyright restrictions. Please cite this data paper when using the data in publications. We also request that researchers and teachers inform us on how they are using the data