Community-Government Partnership and Sustainability of Rural Water Programmes in Anambra State, Nigeria

In a Multi-Indicator survey published in 2013 by the National Bureau of statistics, has shown that over 70 million Nigerians have no access to safe water and thereby projecting Nigeria as the third globally ranked number of people without access to safe water. However, the Nigerian constitution as contained in the second Draft of the National water Resources Bill of April 2007 accords jurisdiction over rural water supply to states in conjunction with the benefitting communities. The  unbalanced community-government partnership in relinquishing responsibilities in terms of ownership, control, improved service delivery and as well as provision of the required technical know-how, has become a principal factor constraining sustainable rural water projects in Anambra State for so long. It is evident from a deductive rational survey with what is obtainable in Nigerian rural water projects as against 2007 constitutional provision that disclosed dormant rural water policy propagation across the states and its docile forms of practice. Rural water projects are dynamic in nature, the choice and use of good management approach or combination of approaches is always circumspect. Community-government partnership is a worthwhile management approach that acquaint with the strength and weaknesses inherent in other management methods, and is able to use these effectively and circumspectly. This paper takes detailed explanations at factors weighing-down the success of a sustainable water provision in the rural communities in the State. We proffered a prolific approach to contain the plaguing constraints in the essential elements of planning, participation, project implementation and water policies of the State. The idea in community-government partnership is to strike a balance where the objectives of having sustainable rural water projects are achieved through proactive co-operation. Keywords: Community-government partnership, Rural water supply, Sustainability

Contemtious Issues on Poor Stakeholder Management in Some Major Road Construction Projects in Anambra State, Nigeria

The unwary attitude of most construction firms in mapping-out as well as analyzing various stakeholders’ interest and influence during projects execution has brought about a lot of conflicting issues that has deterred success on these road construction projects in Anambra State. Constructions sites are marred with uncertainties, which most times if unchecked may likely spread all through the Project phase. Ambiguities associated with road construction projects are sometimes innately embedded in the job description and it is very unwise to neglect the influence of some extraneous variables like some of the construction stakeholders. This paper discussed confrontational issues prevalent in road Construction projects in the State and its consequences on Project schedule and consequently cost. Based on some highly debated arguments surrounding the causes of Project delays, our research surveys was conducted in phases to capture all the involved stakeholders in the road construction projects in the state. In the first phase of our study, we conducted an interview within the concerned communities (n1 = 25). Various community stakeholders were interviewed (n2 = 298); the interview questions used in this phase was structured based on four parameters suspected to be the likely causes of project delays. These are as follows: duration of the Project, quality of materials used, environmental management, and community participation in decision making. The structured questions asked were made concise, coherent and complete enough to elicit the required information concerning the success and delays witnessed in most of the awarded road projects in the State. In the subsequent phase of the study, a survey questionnaire was designed based on the stakeholder’s arguments and interviewed response of the selected community stakeholders. The questionnaires were sent to three key different players in these road construction projects in the state who had actively participated in some of these road construction activities. The studied groups were made up of four consultants, twelve major contractors and nine project managers. Their various responses was tabulated and analyzed with respect to the initial purported arguments that characterized the study needs. We also took study of some road construction projects awarded from 2006 to 2009; the effects of poor stakeholders management on their execution timetables were also analyzed reflecting percentages of delayed, stalled, and timely executed projects. The study was able to unveil the causes of project delays and pivotal issues surrounding stalled projects in the State. The protracted arguments that led to the study was clarified from the study and recommendation were proffered that will assist both the contractors and the State government to timely execution of projects with adequate resources being utilized optimally in the road construction Projects in the State. Keywords: Stakeholders, Road Construction, Management, Anambra Stat

Penrose Limits, Deformed pp-Waves and the String Duals of N=1 Large n Gauge Theory

A certain conformally invariant N=1 supersymmetric SU(n) gauge theory has a description as an infra-red fixed point obtained by deforming the N=4 supersymmetric Yang-Mills theory by giving a mass to one of its N=1 chiral multiplets. We study the Penrose limit of the supergravity dual of the large n limit of this N=1 gauge theory. The limit gives a pp-wave with R-R five-form flux and both R-R and NS-NS three-form flux. We discover that this new solution preserves twenty supercharges and that, in the light-cone gauge, string theory on this background is exactly solvable. Correspondingly, this latter is the stringy dual of a particular large charge limit of the large n gauge theory. We are able to identify which operators in the field theory survive the limit to form the string's ground state and some of the spacetime excitations. The full string model, which we exhibit, contains a family of non-trivial predictions for the properties of the gauge theory operators which survive the limit.Comment: 39 pages, Late

A generation apart? Youth and political participation in Britain

Conventional wisdom holds that young people in Britain are alienated from politics, with some claiming that this reflects a wider crisis of legitimacy that should be met by initiatives to increase citizenship. This article addresses these areas, presenting both panel survey and focus group data from first-time voters. It concludes that, contrary to the findings from many predominantly quantitative studies of political participation, young people are interested in political matters, and do support the democratic process. However they feel a sense of anti-climax having voted for the first time, and are critical of those who have been elected to positions of political power. If they are a generation apart, this is less to do with apathy, and more to do with their engaged scepticism about ‘formal’ politics in Britain

sp‐Carbon incorporated conductive metal‐organic framework as photocathode for photoelectrochemical hydrogen generation

Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) have attracted increasing interest for broad applications in catalysis and gas separation due to their high porosity. However, the insulating feature and the limited active sites hindered MOFs as photocathode active materials for application in photoelectrocatalytic hydrogen generation. Herein, we develop a layered conductive two-dimensional conjugated MOF (2D c-MOF) comprising sp-carbon active sites based on arylene-ethynylene macrocycle ligand via CuO4 linking, named as Cu3HHAE2. This sp-carbon 2D c-MOF displays apparent semiconducting behavior and broad light absorption till the near-infrared band (1600 nm). Due to the abundant acetylene units, the Cu3HHAE2 could act as the first case of MOF photocathode for photoelectrochemical (PEC) hydrogen generation and presents a record hydrogen-evolution photocurrent density of ≈260 μA cm−2 at 0 V vs. reversible hydrogen electrode among the structurally-defined cocatalyst-free organic photocathodes

Electrically stimulated light-induced second-harmonic generation in glass: evidence of coherent photoconductivity

A strong electrostatic field applied to glass is spatially modulated by intense light at frequencies ω and 2ω. The phenomenon is explained in terms of photoconductivity being dependent on the relative phase of the light fields at different frequencies

An ALMA Spectroscopic Survey of the Brightest Submillimeter Galaxies in the SCUBA-2-COSMOS Field (AS2COSPEC): Physical Properties of z = 2–5 Ultra- and Hyperluminous Infrared Galaxies

We report the physical properties of the 18 brightest (S 870 μm = 12.4–19.2 mJy) and not strongly lensed 870 μm–selected dusty star-forming galaxies (DSFGs), also known as submillimeter galaxies (SMGs), in the COSMOS field. This sample is part of an ALMA band 3 spectroscopic survey (AS2COSPEC), and spectroscopic redshifts are measured in 17 of them at z = 2–5. We perform spectral energy distribution analyses and deduce a median total infrared luminosity of L IR = (1.3 ± 0.1) × 1013 L ⊙, infrared-based star formation rate (SFR) of SFRIR = 1390 ± 150 M ⊙ yr−1, stellar mass of M * = (1.4 ± 0.6) × 1011 M ⊙, dust mass of M dust = (3.7 ± 0.5) × 109 M ⊙, and molecular gas mass of M gas = (α CO/0.8)(1.2 ± 0.1) × 1011 M ⊙, suggesting that they are one of the most massive, ISM-enriched, and actively star-forming systems at z = 2–5. In addition, compared to less massive and less active galaxies at similar epochs, SMGs have comparable gas fractions; however, they have a much shorter depletion time, possibly caused by more active dynamical interactions. We determine a median dust emissivity index of β = 2.1 ± 0.1 for our sample, and by combining our results with those from other DSFG samples, we find no correlation of β with redshift or infrared luminosity, indicating similar dust grain compositions across cosmic time for infrared luminous galaxies. We also find that AS2COSPEC SMGs have one of the highest dust-to-stellar mass ratios, with a median of 0.02 ± 0.01, significantly higher than model predictions, possibly due to too-strong active galactic nucleus feedback implemented in the model. Finally, our complete and uniform survey enables us to put constraints on the most massive end of the dust and molecular gas mass functions

Raman spectroscopy in head and neck cancer

In recent years there has been much interest in the use of optical diagnostics in cancer detection. Early diagnosis of cancer affords early intervention and greatest chance of cure. Raman spectroscopy is based on the interaction of photons with the target material producing a highly detailed biochemical 'fingerprint' of the sample. It can be appreciated that such a sensitive biochemical detection system could confer diagnostic benefit in a clinical setting. Raman has been used successfully in key health areas such as cardiovascular diseases, and dental care but there is a paucity of literature on Raman spectroscopy in Head and Neck cancer. Following the introduction of health care targets for cancer, and with an ever-aging population the need for rapid cancer detection has never been greater. Raman spectroscopy could confer great patient benefit with early, rapid and accurate diagnosis. This technique is almost labour free without the need for sample preparation. It could reduce the need for whole pathological specimen examination, in theatre it could help to determine margin status, and finally peripheral blood diagnosis may be an achievable target

Antifibrotic Effects of the Dual CCR2/CCR5 Antagonist Cenicriviroc in Animal Models of Liver and Kidney Fibrosis

Background & Aims Interactions between C-C chemokine receptor types 2 (CCR2) and 5 (CCR5) and their ligands, including CCL2 and CCL5, mediate fibrogenesis by promoting monocyte/macrophage recruitment and tissue infiltration, as well as hepatic stellate cell activation. Cenicriviroc (CVC) is an oral, dual CCR2/CCR5 antagonist with nanomolar potency against both receptors. CVC’s anti-inflammatory and antifibrotic effects were evaluated in a range of preclinical models of inflammation and fibrosis. Methods Monocyte/macrophage recruitment was assessed in vivo in a mouse model of thioglycollate-induced peritonitis. CCL2-induced chemotaxis was evaluated ex vivo on mouse monocytes. CVC’s antifibrotic effects were evaluated in a thioacetamide-induced rat model of liver fibrosis and mouse models of diet-induced non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and renal fibrosis. Study assessments included body and liver/kidney weight, liver function test, liver/kidney morphology and collagen deposition, fibrogenic gene and protein expression, and pharmacokinetic analyses. Results CVC significantly reduced monocyte/macrophage recruitment in vivo at doses ≥20 mg/kg/day (p < 0.05). At these doses, CVC showed antifibrotic effects, with significant reductions in collagen deposition (p < 0.05), and collagen type 1 protein and mRNA expression across the three animal models of fibrosis. In the NASH model, CVC significantly reduced the non-alcoholic fatty liver disease activity score (p < 0.05 vs. controls). CVC treatment had no notable effect on body or liver/kidney weight. Conclusions CVC displayed potent anti-inflammatory and antifibrotic activity in a range of animal fibrosis models, supporting human testing for fibrotic diseases. Further experimental studies are needed to clarify the underlying mechanisms of CVC’s antifibrotic effects. A Phase 2b study in adults with NASH and liver fibrosis is fully enrolled (CENTAUR Study 652-2-203; NCT02217475)