Search results for: selected sites in Enugu state

Authors: Samia Ait Ali Yahia

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The Tifra site is one of 54 sites with rock paintings discovered in Kabylia (Algeria). It consists of two shelters: Ifran I and Ifran II. From an aesthetic point of view, these two shelters appear poor. It shows a human silhouette, a hand, enigmatic designs and especially Libyc inscriptions. The paint used, is the natural red ocher. Today, these paintings are threatened by the frequentation of tourists to the sites as well as by the degradation which result from it. It is therefore vital to us to list and analyze these paintings before they disappear. The analysis of these paintings will be focused on the epigraphic and iconographic level and their meanings.

Keywords: cave painting, Libyc inscription, conservation, valorization

Procedia PDF Downloads 132

Authors: Manotar Tampubolon

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Indonesia is a country that upholds the law, human rights and religious freedom. The freedom that implied in various laws and constitution (Undang-undang 1945) is not necessarily applicable in practice of religious life. In one side, the state has a duty as protector and guarantor of freedom, on the other side, however, it turns into one of the actors of freedom violations of religion minority. State action that interferes freedom of religion is done in various ways both intentionally or negligently or not to perform its obligations in the enforcement of human rights (human rights due diligence). Besides the state, non-state actors such as religious organizations, individuals also become violators of the rights of religious freedom. This article will discuss two fundamental issues that interfere freedom of religion in Indonesia after democratic era. In addition, this article also discusses a comprehensive state policy that discriminates minority religions to manifest their faith.

Keywords: religious freedom, constitution, minority faith, state actor

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Authors: Sabry A. El Azazy

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The archaeological heritage sites are one of the most important touristic attractions worldwide. Egypt has various archaeological sites and historical locations that are classified within the list of the archaeological heritage destinations in the world, such as Cairo, Luxor, Aswan, Alexandria, and Sinai. This study focuses on how to manage the archaeological sites and provide them with all services according to the traveler's needs. Tourism management depends on strategic planning for supporting the national economy and sustainable development. Additionally, tourism management has to utilize highly effective standards of security, promotion, advertisement, sales, and marketing while taking into consideration the preservation of monuments. In Egypt, the archaeological heritage sites must be well-managed and protected, which would assist tourism management, especially in times of crisis. Recently, the monumental places and archeological heritage sites were affected by unstable conditions and were threatened. It is essential to focus on preserving our heritage. Moreover, more efforts and cooperation between the tourism organizations and ministry of archaeology have to be done in order to protect the archaeology and promote the tourism industry. Methodology: Qualitative methods have been used as the overall approach to this study. Interviews and observations have provided the researcher with the required in-depth insight to the research subject. The researcher was a lecturer of tourist guidance that allows visiting all historical sites in Egypt. Additionally, the researcher had the privilege to communicate with tourism specialists and attend meetings, conferences, and events that were focused on the research subject. Objectives: The main purpose of the research was gaining information in order to develop theoretical research on how to effectively benefit out of those historical sights both economically and culturally, and pursue further researches and scientific studies to be well-suited for tourism and hospitality sector. The researcher works hard to present further studies in a field related to tourism and archaeological heritage using previous experience. Pursing this course of study enables the researcher to acquire the necessary abilities and competencies to achieve the set goal successfully. Results: The professional tourism management focus on making Egypt one of the most important destinations in the world, and provide the heritage and archaeological sites with all services that will place those locations into the international map of tourism. Tourists interested in visiting Egypt and making tourism flourish supports and strengths Egypt's national economy and the local community, taking into consideration preserving our heritage and archaeology. Conclusions: Egypt has many tourism attractions represented in the heritage, archaeological sites, and touristic places. These places need more attention and efforts to be included in tourism programs and be opened for visitors from all over the world. These efforts will encourage both local and international tourism to see our great civilization and provide different touristic activities.

Keywords: archaeology, archaeological sites, heritage, ministry of archaeology, national economy, touristic attractions, tourism management, tourism organizations

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Authors: Anshu Anshu

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In the red corridor famed for the Left Wing Extremism, lies small district of Jamui in Bihar, India. The district lies at 24º20´ N latitude and 86º13´ E longitude, covering an area of 3,122.8 km2 The undulating topography, with widespread forests provides pristine environment for invigorating experience of tourists. Natural landscape in form of forests, wildlife, rivers, and cultural landscape dotted with historical and religious places is highly purposive for tourism. The study is primarily related to the identification of potential ecotourism sites, using Geographic Information System. Data preparation, analysis and finally identification of ecotourism sites is done. Secondary data used is Survey of India Topographical Sheets with R.F.1:50,000 covering the area of Jamui district. District Census Handbook, Census of India, 2011; ERDAS Imagine and Arc View is used for digitization and the creation of DEM’s (Digital Elevation Model) of the district, depicting the relief and topography and generate thematic maps. The thematic maps have been refined using the geo-processing tools. Buffer technique has been used for the accessibility analysis. Finally, all the maps, including the Buffer maps were overlaid to find out the areas which have potential for the development of ecotourism sites in the Jamui district. Spatial data - relief, slopes, settlements, transport network and forests of Jamui District were marked and identified, followed by Buffer Analysis that was used to find out the accessibility of features like roads, railway stations to the sites available for the development of ecotourism destinations. Buffer analysis is also carried out to get the spatial proximity of major river banks, lakes, and dam sites to be selected for promoting sustainable ecotourism. Overlay Analysis is conducted using the geo-processing tools. Digital Terrain Model (DEM) generated and relevant themes like roads, forest areas and settlements were draped on the DEM to make an assessment of the topography and other land uses of district to delineate potential zones of ecotourism development. Development of ecotourism in Jamui faces several challenges. The district lies in the portion of Bihar that is part of ‘red corridor’ of India. The hills and dense forests are the prominent hideouts and training ground for the extremists. It is well known that any kind of political instability, war, acts of violence directly influence the travel propensity and hinders all kind of non-essential travels to these areas. The development of ecotourism in the district can bring change and overall growth in this area with communities getting more involved in economically sustainable activities. It is a known fact that poverty and social exclusion are the main force that pushes people, resorting towards violence. All over the world tourism has been used as a tool to eradicate poverty and generate good will among people. Tourism, in sustainable form should be promoted in the district to integrate local communities in the development process and to distribute fruits of development with equity.

Keywords: buffer analysis, digital elevation model, ecotourism, red corridor

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Authors: Janiel David Melamed Visbal

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The Islamic State has become one of the most remarkable threats for international security through their religious extremism and their establishment of a new caliphate by force. The main objective of this organization is to obtain territorial expansions beyond the Middle East and eventually to consolidate an Islamic global order based on their extremist ideology. This paper will conduct an analysis regarding how, over the past year, many jihadist organizations worldwide have pledged their alliagance to the Islamic State, transforming it into the most important jihadist franchise globally.

Keywords: Islamic state, franchise, jihad, Islamic fundamentalism, caliphate

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Authors: Zsofia Nagy, Tibor Dessewffy

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The relationship between social movements and the media that represents them comprises both of the media representation of movements on the one hand, and the media strategies employed by movements on the other. A third possible approach is to connect the two and look at the interactions connecting the two sides. This relationship has been affected by the emergence of social networking sites (SNS) that have a transformative effect on both actors. However, the extent and direction of these changes needs to be investigated. Empirical case studies that focus on newly enabled forms of social movements can contribute to these debates in an analytically fruitful way. Therefore in our study, we use the case of Migration Aid, a Hungarian Facebook-based grassroots relief organization that gained prominence during the refugee crisis that unfolded in Hungary in 2015. Migration Aid formed without the use of traditional mobilizational agents, and that took over roles traditionally occupied by formal NGOs or the state. Analyzing different movement strategies towards the media - we find evidence that while effectively combining these strategies, SNSs also create affordances for movements to shift their strategy towards creating alternatives, their own micromedia. Beyond the practical significance of this – the ability to disseminate alternative information independently from traditional media – it also allowed the group to frame the issue in their own terms and to replace vertical modes of communication with horizontal ones. The creation of micromedia also shifts the relationship between social movements and the media away from an asymmetrical and towards a more symbiotic co-existence. We provide four central factors – project identity, the mobilization potential of SNSs, the disruptiveness of the event and selectivity in the construction of social knowledge – that explain this shift. Finally, we look at the specific processes that contribute to the creation of the movement’s own micromedia. We posit that these processes were made possible by the rhizomatic structure of the group and a function of SNSs we coin the Social Information Thermostat function. We conclude our study by positioning our findings in relation with the broader context.

Keywords: social networking sites, social movements, micromedia, media strategies

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Authors: N. Tochukwu, M. Mukhopadhyay, A. Mohamed

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It is no new that Nigeria faces a continual power shortage problem due to its vast population power demand and heavy reliance on nonrenewable forms of energy such as thermal power or fossil fuel. Many researchers have recommended using geothermal energy as an alternative; however, Past studies focus on the geophysical & geochemical investigation of this energy in the sedimentary and basement complex; only a few studies incorporated the remote sensing methods. Therefore, in this study, the preliminary examination of geothermal resources in the Middle Benue was carried out using satellite imagery in ArcMap. Landsat 8 scene (TIR, NIR, Red spectral bands) was used to estimate the Land Surface Temperature (LST). The Maximum Likelihood Classification (MLC) technique was used to classify sites with very low, low, moderate, and high LST. The intermediate and high classification happens to be possible geothermal zones, and they occupy 49% of the study area (38077km2). Riverline were superimposed on the LST layer, and the identification tool was used to locate high temperate sites. Streams that overlap on the selected sites were regarded as geothermal springs as. Surprisingly, the LST results show lower temperatures (<36°C) at the famous thermal springs (Awe & Wukari) than some unknown rivers/streams found in Kwande (38°C), Ussa, (38°C), Gwer East (37°C), Yola Cross & Ogoja (36°C). Studies have revealed that temperature increases with depth. However, this result shows excellent geothermal resources potential as it is expected to exceed the minimum geothermal gradient of 25.47 with an increase in depth. Therefore, further investigation is required to estimate the depth of the causative body, geothermal gradients, and the sustainability of the reservoirs by geophysical and field exploration. This method has proven to be cost-effective in locating geothermal resources in the study area. Consequently, the same procedure is recommended to be applied in other regions of the Precambrian basement complex and the sedimentary basins in Nigeria to save a preliminary field survey cost.

Keywords: ArcMap, geothermal resources, Landsat 8, LST, thermal springs, MLC

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Authors: Barnali Thakuria, Labananda Choudhury

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Gender equality and women’s empowerment is one of the components of eight Millennium Development Goal (MDG).Literacy and employment are the parameters which reflect the empowerment of women. But in a developing country like India, literacy and working status among the females are not satisfactory. Both literacy and employment technically can be measured by Literate Life Expectancy (LLE) and Working Life Expectancy (WLE).One can also combine both the factors literacy and working to get a better new measure. The proposed indicator can be called literate-working life expectancy (LWLE). LLE gives an average number of years a person lives in a literate state under current mortality and literacy conditions while WLE defined as average number of years a person lives in a working state if current mortality and working condition prevails. Similarly, LWLE gives number of expected years by a person living under both literate and working state. The situation of females cannot be figured out without comparing both the sexes. In the present paper an attempt has been made to estimate LLE and WLE in India along with some selected states from various zones of India namely Assam from the North-East, Gujarat from the West, Kerala from the South, Rajasthan from the North, Uttar Pradesh from the Central and West Bengal from the East respectively for both the sexes based on 2011 census. Furthermore, we have also developed a formula for a new indicator namely Literate-Working Life Expectancy (LWLE) and the proposed index has been applied in India and the selected states mentioned above for both males and females. Data has been extracted from SRS(Sample Registration System) based Abridged Life Table and Census of India. The computation of LLE follows the method developed by Lutz while WLE has followed the method developed by Saw Swee Hock. By combining both the factors literacy and employment, the new indicator LWLE also follows the method like LLE and WLE. Contrasted results have been found in different parts of India. The result shows that LLE at birth is highest(lowest) in the state Kerala(Uttar Pradesh) with 61.66 (39.51) years among the males. A similar situation is also observed among the females with 62.58 years and 25.11 years respectively. But male WLE at birth is highest (lowest) in Rajasthan(Kerala) with 37.11 (32.64) years. Highest female WLE at birth is also observed in Rajasthan with 23.51 years and the lowest is concentrated in Uttar Pradesh with 11.76 years. It is also found that Kerala’s performance is exceptionally good in terms of LWLE at birth while the lowest LWLE at birth prevails in the state Uttar Pradesh among the males. Female LWLE at birth is highest(lowest) in Kerala(Uttar Pradesh) with 19.73(4.77)years. The corresponding value of the index increases as the number of factors involved in the life expectancy decrease. It is found that women are lagging behind in terms of both literacy and employment. Findings of the study will help the planners to take necessary steps to improve the position of women.

Keywords: life expectancy, literacy, literate life expectancy, working life expectancy

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Authors: Sang-Wook Han, In-Hui Hwang, Zhenlan Jin, Chang-In Park

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We used temperature-dependent X-Ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) measurements to examine the local structural properties around vanadium atoms at the V K edge from VO₂ films. A direct comparison of simultaneously-measured resistance and XAFS from the VO₂ films showed that the thermally-driven structural phase transition (SPT) occurred prior to the metal-insulator transition (MIT) during heating, whereas these changed simultaneously during cooling. XAFS revealed a significant increase in the Debye-Waller factors of the V-O and V-V pairs in the {111} direction of the R-phase VO₂ due to the phonons of the V-V arrays along the direction in a metallic phase. A substantial amount of structural disorder existing on the V-V pairs along the c-axis in both M₁ and R phases indicates the structural instability of V-V arrays in the axis. The anomalous structural disorder observed on all atomic sites at the SPT prevents the migration of the V 3d¹ electrons, resulting in a Mott insulator in the M₂-phase VO₂. The anomalous structural disorder, particularly, at vanadium sites, effectively affects the migration of metallic electrons, resulting in the Mott insulating properties in M₂ phase and a non-congruence of the SPT, MIT, and local density of state. The thermally-induced phonons in the {111} direction assist the delocalization of the V 3d¹ electrons in the R phase VO₂ and the electrons likely migrate via the V-V array in the {111} direction as well as the V-V dimerization along the c-axis. This study clarifies that the tetragonal symmetry is essentially important for the metallic phase in VO₂.

Keywords: metal-insulator transition, XAFS, VO₂, structural-phase transition

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Authors: Odunayo E. Popoola, Charles A. Aladesaye, Sunday O. Gbenro

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The study investigated the impact of technological advancement on the academic performance of Mathematics students in tertiary institutions in Ekiti State, Nigeria. The quasi-experimental research design was adopted for the study. The population for the study consisted of all the 100 level undergraduates and all Mathematics lecturers in the Department of Mathematics in all the five tertiary institutions in the State. The sample of this study was made of one hundred (100) students and fifty (50) lecturers randomly selected using stratified sampling technique. Hypotheses were postulated to find out whether (i) advancement in technology influences the academic performance of students in Mathematics (ii) teaching method and gender disparity influences the academic performance of students in Mathematics. The study revealed that teaching method, gender, and technology influence academic performance of students in Mathematics. Based on the findings, it is recommended that curriculum and assessment in school Mathematics should explicitly require that all undergraduate become proficient in using digital technologies for mathematical purposes so as to enhance the better performance of students in Mathematics.

Keywords: mathematics, performance, tertiary institutions, technology

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Authors: Abubakar Ibrahim, Muhammad Garba, Adelusi Oluwaseyi Abiodun

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Website development and administration has already become a very critical issue in many organisations due to the fact that most of the organisations have embraced the use of the internet to deliver their services and products seamlessly but even with huge advantages of being present on the internet, and website are very difficult and expensive to develop and maintain. In recent years, a number of open-source web Contents Management System (CMS) have been developed to allow organisations to internally develop and maintain their websites without the need to hire professional web developers to provide such services for them. This study aimed at performing a comparative analysis of the two most widely used open source CMS Joomla and wordpress, based on the following criteria: intuitiveness, responsiveness richness in features, meeting expectation, fill secured, ease of navigation, structure, and performance. Two identical applications were developed using the said CMS. In this study, a purposive sampling technique was adopted to administer the questionnaires, and a total of 50 respondents were selected to surf sites and fill out a questionnaire based on their experience on the two sites. Gt-matrix was used to carry out further analysis of the applications. The result shows that Joomla is the best for developing an e-commerce site due to the fact that it is best in terms of performance, better structure, meeting user expectations, rich features, and functionality. Even though Wordpress is intuitive and easy for navigation. One can still argue that Joomla is superior.

Keywords: open source, content management system, Joomla, WordPress

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Authors: Rosa Nurtazina, Yerkebulan Zhumashov, Maral Tomanova

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Humanity is entering an era when 'virtual reality' as the image of the world created by the media with the help of the Internet does not match the reality in many respects, when new communication technologies create a fundamentally different and previously unknown 'global space'. According to these technologies, the state begins to change the basic technology of political communication of the state and society, the state and the state. Nowadays, image of the state becomes the most important tool and technology. Image is a purposefully created image granting political object (person, organization, country, etc.) certain social and political values and promoting more emotional perception. Political image of the state plays an important role in international relations. The success of the country's foreign policy, development of trade and economic relations with other countries depends on whether it is positive or negative. Foreign policy image has an impact on political processes taking place in the state: the negative image of the countries can be used by opposition forces as one of the arguments to criticize the government and its policies.

Keywords: image of the country, country's image classification, function of the country image, country's image components

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Authors: Khaled A. Alsaif, Mosaad A. Foda

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The present work aims at development of traffic noise maps for Riyadh City using the software Lima. Road traffic data were estimated or measured as accurate as possible in order to obtain consistent noise maps. The predicted noise levels at some selected sites are validated by actual field measurements, which are obtained by a system that consists of a sound level meter, a GPS receiver and a database to manage the measured data. The maps show that noise levels remain over 50 dBA and can exceed 70 dBA at the nearside of major roads and highways.

Keywords: noise pollution, road traffic noise, LimA predictor, GPS

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Authors: Kiomars Sefidi

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Dead and habitat tree such as fallen logs, snags, stumps and cracks and loos bark etc. is regarded as an important ecological component of forests on which many forest dwelling species depend, yet its relation to management history in Caspian forest has gone unreported. The aim of research was to compare the amounts of dead tree and habitat in the forests with historically different intensities of management, including: forests with the long term implication of management (PS), the short-term implication of management (NS) which were compared with semi virgin forest (GS). The number of 405 individual dead and habitat trees were recorded and measured at 109 sampling locations. ANOVA revealed volume of the dead tree in the form and decay classes significantly differ within sites and dead volume in the semi virgin forest significantly higher than managed sites. Comparing the amount of dead and habitat tree in three sites showed that dead tree volume related with management history and significantly differ in three study sites. Also, the numbers of habitat trees including cavities, Cracks and loose bark and Fork split trees significantly vary among sites. Reaching their highest in virgin site and their lowest in the site with the long term implication of management, it was concluded that forest management cause reduction of the amount of dead and habitat tree. Forest management history affect the forest's ability to generate dead tree especially in a large size, thus managing this forest according to ecological sustainable principles require a commitment to maintaining stand structure that allow, continued generation of dead tree in a full range of size.

Keywords: forest biodiversity, cracks trees, fork split trees, sustainable management, Fagus orientalis, Iran

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Authors: A. Georgiou, A. Galani, A. Karatza, G. E. Bampasidis

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Augmented Reality (AR) technology has become integral in enhancing visitor experiences at Greece's UNESCO World Heritage Sites. This research meticulously investigates various facets of AR applications/games associated with these revered sites. The cultural heritage represents the identity of each nation in the world. Technology can breathe life into this identity. Through Augmented Reality (AR), individuals can travel back in time, visit places they cannot access in real life, discover the history of these places, and live unique experiences. The study examines the objectives and intended goals behind the development and deployment of each augmented reality application/game pertaining to the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Greece. It thoroughly analyzes the scenarios presented within these AR games/applications, examining how historical narratives, interactive elements, and cultural context are incorporated to engage users. Furthermore, the research identifies and assesses the technological platforms utilized for the development and implementation of these AR experiences, encompassing mobile devices, AR headsets, or specific software frameworks. It classifies and examines the types of augmented reality employed within these applications/games, including marker-based, markerless, location-based, or immersive AR experiences. Evaluation of the benefits accrued by visitors engaging with these AR applications/games, such as enhanced learning experiences, improved cultural understanding, and heightened engagement with the heritage sites, forms a crucial aspect of this study. Additionally, the research scrutinizes potential drawbacks or limitations associated with the AR applications/games, considering technological barriers, user accessibility issues, or constraints affecting user experience. By thoroughly investigating these pivotal aspects, this research aims to provide a comprehensive overview and analysis of the landscape of augmented reality applications/games linked to the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Greece. The findings seek to contribute nuanced insights into the effectiveness, challenges, and opportunities associated with leveraging AR technology for heritage site preservation, visitor engagement, and cultural enrichment.

Keywords: augmented reality, AR applications, UNESCO sites, cultural heritage, Greece, visitor engagement, historical narratives

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Authors: May Newisar, Richard Kingston, Philip Black

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Heritage-led regeneration developments have been considered as one of the cornerstones of the economic and social revival of historic towns and cities in the UK. However, this approach has proved its deficiency within the development of Liverpool World Heritage site. This is due to the conflict between sustaining the tangible and intangible values as well as achieving the aimed economic developments. Accordingly, the development of such areas is influenced by a top-down approach which considers heritage as consumable experience and urban regeneration as the economic development for it. This neglects the heritage sites characteristics and values as well as the design criteria for public open spaces that overlap with the heritage sites. Currently, knowledge regarding the relationship between the physical built environment of the heritage sites including the intangible values and the design development of the public open spaces is limited. Public open spaces have been studied from different perspectives such as increasing walkability, a source of social cohesion, provide a good quality of life as well as understanding users’ perception. While heritage sites have been discussed heavily on how to maintain the physical environment, understanding the courses of threats and how to be protected. In addition to users’ experiences and motivations of visiting such areas. Furthermore, new approaches tried to overcome the gap such as the historic urban landscape approach. This approach is focusing on the entire human environment with all its tangible and intangible qualities. However, this research aims to understand the relationship between the heritage sites and public open spaces and how the overlap of the design and development of both could be used as a quality to enhance the heritage sites and improve users’ experience. A meaning-making approach will be used in order to understand and articulate how the development of Liverpool World Heritage site and its value could influence and shape the design of public open space Pier Head in order to attract a different level of tourists to be used as a tool for economic development. Consequently, this will help in bridging the gap between the planning and conservation areas’ policies through an understanding of how flexible is the system in order to adopt alternative approaches for the design and development strategies for those areas.

Keywords: historic urban landscape, environmental psychology, urban governance, identity

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Authors: S. A. Agbalajobi, W. A. Bello

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This study examines rock properties of crushed aggregate in some selected quarries in Kwara state, Nigeria. Some physical properties (chemical composition, mineral composition, particle size distribution) of gneiss sample were determined using ISRM standards. The physicomechanical properties (specific gravity, dry density, porosity, water absorption, point load index, tensile, and compressive strength) of the gneiss rock were evaluated. The analysis on the gneiss samples revealed the mean dry density and the unit weight are 2.52 g/m3, 2.63 g/m3, 2.38 g/m3; and 24.1 kN/m3, 25.78 kN/m3, 23.33 kN/m3, respectively (for locations A,B,C). The water absorption level of the gneiss rock sample ranged from 0.38 % – 0.57 % for the three locations. The mean Schmidt hammer rebound value ranged from 51.0 – 52.4 for the three locations and mean point load index values ranged from 9.89 – 10.56 MPa classified as very high strength while the uniaxial compressive strength of the rock samples revealed that its strength ranged from 120 - 139 MPa (for location A, B, and C) classified as strong rock. The aggregate impact value test and aggregate crushing value test conducted on the gneiss aggregates from the three locations in accordance with British Standard. The gneiss sample from the three locations (A, B, and C) is a good material for the production of construction works such as concrete, bricks, pavement, embankment among others, the compressive strength of the material is within the accepted limit.

Keywords: gneiss, aggregate impact, aggregate crushing, physic-mechanical properties, rock hardness

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Authors: Uzoamaka Nwugo Akwiwu

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Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) among rural dwellers depletes quality of agricultural labour, and reduces quality of life. Use of Antiretroviral Therapy (ART) has not significantly reduced consequences of infection, as the effort is being compromised by inadequate dietary intake. This study analysed the dietary intake of People Living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) in rural communities of Imo State, Nigeria. Data was collected from 114 PLWHA randomly selected from members of two rural support groups with high prevalence of HIV in Imo State using interview schedule. The data was analysed using descriptive statistics, Pearson product moment correlation, and t-test at α0.05. Level of involvement in agriculture was (mean 12.7) and reduced to 7.0 after infection. Extent of involvement in agriculture significantly reduced after infection in Imo (t=8.1). Health status of 42.1% of PLWHA was perceived as poor. Diet diversity score (4.3±1.6) was low among majority (62.3%) of the PLWHA, with diet of 76.3% being inadequate. However, perceived health status had no significant correlation with dietary intake (r=0.09). The study concluded that diet of PLWHA in Imo State was inadequate, thus there is need for agricultural extension agents to collaborate with the health sector to develop nutritional guideline for PLWHA in rural communities.

Keywords: dietary intake, diet diversity, people living With HIV/AIDS, perceived health status

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Authors: Lip Vui Tshin

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Sabah, one of the thirteen Malaysian states, is located in the northern part of Malaysian Borneo. It is a melting pot of many different cultures and traditions, being home to about 2.9 million people with more than 30 ethic groups. It is also known as one of the twelve mega-diversity sites in the world with its rich living heritage; ethnic makes it ideal for the ecotourism industry. Sabah enjoys a steady flow of eco tourists from domestic and international markets with a gradual increase in the number of visitor arrival each year. Sabah’s ecotourism is categorized by its natural attraction, wildlife and wilderness habitats. This paper sets out to interpret and develop the indicators for success ecotourism sites in Sabah and measures its development stage. The long-term viability of tourism can be assured only when the limitations and favorable opportunities of the overall environment for tourism development are understood and ways to measure changes induced by tourism are identified and applied. This is a literature review of ecotourism site success indicators, and the outcome of this review is the identification of existing clusters and categorization of indicators and charting the way forward to develop a better understanding in ecotourism site success.

Keywords: ecotourism, ecotourism indicators, ecotourism success, Sabah

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Authors: Hamidreza Bagheri, Alireza Shariati

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There are many difficulties in the purification of raw components and products. However, researchers are seeking better ways for purification. One of the recent methods is extraction using supercritical fluids. In this study, the phase equilibria of benzoic acid-supercritical carbon dioxide system were investigated. Regarding the phase equilibria of this system, the modeling of solid-supercritical fluid behavior was performed using the Perturbed-Chain Statistical Association Fluid Theory (PC-SAFT) and Peng-Robinson equations of state (PR EoS). For this purpose, five PC-SAFT EoS parameters for pure benzoic acid were obtained using its experimental vapor pressure. Benzoic acid has association sites and the behavior of the benzoic acid-supercritical fluid system was well-predicted using both equations of state, while the binary interaction parameter values for PR EoS were negative. Genetic algorithm, which is one of the most accurate global optimization algorithms, was also used to optimize the pure benzoic acid parameters and the binary interaction parameters. The AAD% value for the PC-SAFT EoS, were 0.22 for the carbon dioxide-benzoic acid system.

Keywords: supercritical fluids, solubility, solid, PC-SAFT EoS, genetic algorithm

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Authors: Ali Christian Chinedu, Asogwa Vincent Chidindu, Ejiofor Toochukwu Eleazar, Okadi Ashagwu Ojang

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The increasing rate of Boko Haram insurgency, farmer-herder clashes, and kidnapping in Nigeria has resulted in food shortages and high cost of protein sources like beef and fish. This challenge could be curbed with the production of edible insects, which contain several nutritional benefits like calories, protein, fat, vitamins, and minerals, depending on their species, metamorphic stage, and diet. Unfortunately, the benefits and competencies in producing, preserving, and marketing edible insects are still unknown to the public, including prospective farmers in Nigeria. Hence, this study determined teachers’ perception of integrating edible insects into the Animal Husbandry Curriculum in Senior Secondary Schools in Nigeria to equip the future generation with the relevant competencies for alternative sustainable protein supply. The study was carried out in Enugu State, Nigeria. The participants for the study comprised 162 agricultural science teachers. A questionnaire titled: Edible Insects Integration in Animal Husbandry Curriculum Questionnaire (EIIAHCQ) was used to collect data using a descriptive survey research design. We conducted data collection with the help of six research assistants. The study identified 11 objectives, 11 contents, 10 teaching methods, and 9 evaluation methods that could be integrated into the existing curriculum of animal husbandry in Nigeria. Among others, the Ministry of Education should integrate the finding of this study into the curriculum of Animal Husbandry in Nigeria to enhance the protein supply and curb food insecurity now and in the future.

Keywords: animal husbandry curriculum, edible insects, entomophagy, integration, secondary school, Nigeria

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Authors: Ahmed A. Lugard, Mohammed A. Aliyu

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This paper studied the influence of urban development and its accompanied land surface transformation on sediment concentration of a natural flowing Ginzo river across the city of Katsina. An opposite twin river known as Tille river, which is less urbanized, was used to compare the result of the sediment concentration of the Ginzo River in order to ascertain the consequences of the urban area on impacting the sediment concentration. An instrument called USP 61 point integrating cable way sampler described by Gregory and walling (1973), was used to collect the suspended sediment samples in the wet season months of June, July, August and September. The result obtained in the study shows that only the sample collected at the peripheral site of the city, which is mostly farmland areas resembles the results in the four sites of Tille river, which is the reference stream in the study. It was found to be only + 10% different from one another, while at the other three sites of the Ginzo which are highly urbanized the disparity ranges from 35-45% less than what are obtained at the four sites of Tille River. In the generalized assessment, the t-distribution result applied to the two set of data shows that there is a significant difference between the sediment concentration of urbanized River Ginzo and that of less urbanized River Tille. The study further discovered that the less sediment concentration found in urbanized River Ginzo is attributed to concretization of surfaced, tarred roads, concretized channeling of segments of the river including the river bed and reserved open grassland areas, all within the catchments. The study therefore concludes that urbanization affect not only the hydrology of an urbanized river basin, but also the sediment concentration which is a significant aspect of its geomorphology. This world certainly affects the flood plain of the basin at a certain point which might be a suitable land for cultivation. It is recommended here that further studies on the impact of urbanization on River Basins should focus on all elements of geomorphology as it has been on hydrology. This would make the work rather complete as the two disciplines are inseparable from each other. The authorities concern should also trigger a more proper environmental and land use management policies to arrest the menace of land degradation and related episodic events.

Keywords: environment, infiltration, river, urbanization

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Authors: Olusola Joseph Adesina, Abiodun Ezekiel Adesina

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Efforts at improving the falling standard of education in the country call for the need-based assessment of the primary tier of education in Nigeria. Teachers’ cluster meeting intervention is a step towards enhancing the teachers’ professional competency, efficient and effective pupils’ academic achievement and attitudinal development. The study thus determined the impact of the intervention on pupils’ achievement in Oyo State, Nigeria. Three research questions and four hypotheses guided the study. Pre-test, post-test control group, quasi-experimental design was adopted for the study. Eight intact classes from eight different schools were randomly selected into treatment and control groups. Two response instruments, pupils academic achievement test (PAAT; r = 0.87) and pupils attitude to lesson scale (PALS; r = 0.80) were used for data collection. Mean, standard deviation and analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) were used to analyse the collected data. The results showed that the teachers’ cluster meeting have significant impact on pupils academic achievement (F (1,327) =41.79; p<0.05) and attitudinal development (F (1,327) =26.01; p<0.05) in the core subjects of primary schools in Oyo State, Nigeria. The study therefore recommended among others that teachers’ cluster meeting should be sustained for teachers’ professional development and pupils’ upgradement in the State.

Keywords: teachers’ cluster meeting, pupils’ academic achievement, pupils’ attitudinal development, academic achievement

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Authors: Zs. Csanádi, A. Szabó Nagy, J. Szabó, J. Erdős

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Atmospheric aerosols have several important environmental impacts and health effects in point of air quality. Monitoring the PM10-bound polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) could have important environmental significance and health protection aspects. Benzo(a)pyrene (BaP) is the most relevant indicator of these PAH compounds. In Hungary, the Hungarian Air Quality Network provides air quality monitoring data for several air pollutants including BaP, but these data show only the annual mean concentrations and maximum values. Seasonal variation of BaP concentrations comparing the heating and non-heating periods could have important role and difference as well. For this reason, the main objective of this study was to assess the annual concentration and seasonal variation of BaP associated with PM10 in the ambient air of Northwestern Hungary seven different sampling sites (six urban and one rural) in the sampling period of 2008–2013. A total of 1475 PM10 aerosol samples were collected in the different sampling sites and analyzed for BaP by gas chromatography method. The BaP concentrations ranged from undetected to 8 ng/m3 with the mean value range of 0.50-0.96 ng/m3 referring to all sampling sites. Relatively higher concentrations of BaP were detected in samples collected in each sampling site in the heating seasons compared with non-heating periods. The annual mean BaP concentrations were comparable with the published data of the other Hungarian sites.

Keywords: air quality, benzo(a)pyrene, PAHs, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons

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Authors: Eny Suastuti

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This paper is about state’s capital equity in establishing State-owned Company (PT Merpati Persero). Under private law regime, PT Merpati Persero equity is a state asset allocated separately from the State Budget. Consequently, it is no longer a state asset; rather, it becomes a part of company assets. The adoption of Act No. 17 of 2003 on State Finance, Act No. 31 of 1999, which is amended by Act No. 20 of 2001 on Eradication of Corrupt Practices, Act No. 15 of 2004 on Auditing, Management, and Accountability of State Finance, and Act No. 15 of 2006 Audit Board raises legal issues of whether State-owned Company’s (PT Merpati Persero) loss may be deemed as loss on state finance made by the Directors of PT Merpati Persero, which implication leads to corrupt practices conducted by the Directors. The principle of civil law states that state assets are separated from the state budget is not a government asset. Therefore the case of a lease agreement 2 (two) units of Boeing 737-400 and Boeing 737-500 between PT Merpati Nusantara Airlines with companies Third Stone Aircraft Leasing Group (TALG) the United States cannot be prosecuted under Articles 2 and 3 of Act No. 31 of 1999 Jo Act No. 20 of 2001 on Eradication of Corrupt Practices (Law PTPK). From this paper, three things are found. First, state’s capital equity, which has been allocated separately from state assets in establishing the PT Merpati Perserois not state asset; rather, it is company’s asset. Second, in the case of mismanagement leading to company loss, the Directors of PT Merpati Persero may not be charged with committing corrupt practice as prescribed in Articles 2 and 3 of Corrupt Practices Eradication Law. Third, misperception has been made by judicial practices since the courts consider loss in certain transaction made by Directors of PT Merpati Persero to be loss of state finance whose implication is applicability of Articles 2 and 3 of Corrupt Practices Eradication Law.

Keywords: corrupt practice, loss, state's capital equity, state finance (PT Merpati Persero)

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Authors: Idowu J. Diyaolu, Ebenezer O. Obayomi, Taiwo A. Bamidele

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Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has been observed to have influence on the lifestyle of youths in general. Dressing styles, fashion consciousness and choice of role model are some of the areas of influence. The study was carried out to examine the perception and influence of ICT on the clothing culture of selected Senior Secondary School Students in Ife-East Local government area of Osun State, Nigeria. Two hundred Senior Secondary School Students from public and private schools were randomly selected. Data was collected using structured questionnaire. The result showed that 79.0% were computer literate, 64.5% have facebook account and 93.5% browse with phones. Based on their perception on the influence of ICT, 74.5% of the respondents agreed that frequent use of ICT has increased their level of fashion consciousness while 60.5% were motivated by the images and dressing pattern in magazines, on TV and the internet. Also, large proportions (60.5%) were influenced by the dressing styles of their friends on social media. Male students were significantly more engaged in ICT related activities than females (t = 1.29, P < 0.05), whereas there is no significant difference in the involvement in ICT activities between private and public school students (t = 0.325, P > 0.05). Since ICT has influence on dressing, appropriate dressing pattern should be encouraged on mass media.

Keywords: dress culture, information and communication technology, fashion trend, role model

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Authors: Tolu Lawal

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The genuine development of the grassroots particularly in the developing societies depends largely on the participation of the rural populace in policy conception and implementation, especially in the area of development policies, fundamentally, the rural people play a vital and significance role in economic and political development of the nation. This is because the bulk of the economic produce as well as votes come from these areas. However, the much needed development has continued to elude the rural communities inspire of the various development policies carried out by successive governments in the state. The exclusion of rural communities from planning and implementation of facilities meant to benefit them, and the international debate on sustainable rural development led Ondo State government to re-think its rural development policy with a view to establishing more effective strategies for rural development. The 31s initiatives introduced in 2009 emphasizes the important role of communities in their own development. The paper therefore critically assessed the 31s initiative of the present government in Ondo State with a view to knowing its impact on rural people. The study adopted both primary and secondary data to source its information. Interviews were conducted with the key informants, and field survey (visit) was also part of method of collecting data. Documents, reports and records on 31s initiatives in the selected villages and from outside were also consulted. The paper submitted that 31s initiative has not impacted positively on the lives of rural dwellers in Ondo-State, most especially in the areas of infrastructure and integrated development. The findings also suggested that 31s initiatives is not hopeless, but needs a different kind of investment, for example introducing measures of accountability, addressing the politicization of the initiative and exploiting key principles of development and service delivery.

Keywords: development, infrastructure, rural development, participation

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Authors: Péter Tanos, József Kovács, Angéla Anda, Gábor Várbíró, Sándor Molnár, István Gábor Hatvani

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The River Tisza is the second largest river in Central Europe. In this study, Morlet wavelet spectrum (periodicity) analysis was used with chemical, biological and physical water quality data for the Hungarian section of the River Tisza. In the research 15, water quality parameters measured at 14 sampling sites in the River Tisza and 4 sampling sites in the main artificial changes were assessed for the time period 1993 - 2005. Results show that annual periodicity was not always to be found in the water quality parameters, at least at certain sampling sites. Periodicity was found to vary over space and time, but in general, an increase was observed in the company of higher trophic states of the river heading downstream.

Keywords: annual periodicity water quality, spatiotemporal variability of periodic behavior, Morlet wavelet spectrum analysis, River Tisza

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Authors: J. O. Ayinde, S. O. Olatunji

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This study assessed rural youth adoption of cassava production technologies in Southwestern, Nigeria. Specifically, it examine the level of awareness and adoption of cassava production technologies by rural youth, determined the extent of usage of cassava production technologies available to the rural youth, examined constrains to the adoption of cassava production technologies by youth and suggested possible solutions. Multistage sampling procedure was adopted for the study. In the first stage, two states were purposively selected in southwest, Nigeria which are Osun and Oyo states due to high level of cassava production and access to cassava production technology in the areas. In the second stage, purposive sampling technique was used to select two local governments each from the states selected which are Ibarapa central (Igbo-Ora) and Ibarapa East (Eruwa) Local Government Areas (LGAs) in Oyo state; and Ife North (Ipetumodu) and Ede South (Oke Ireesi) LGAs in Osun State. In the third stage, proportionate sampling technique was used to randomly select five, four, six and four communities from the selected LGAs respectively representing 20 percent of the rural communities in them, in all 19 communities were selected. In the fourth stage, Snow ball sampling technique was used to select about 7 rural youths in each community selected to make a total of 133 respondents. Validated structured interview schedule was used to elicit information from the respondents. The data collected were analyzed using both descriptive and inferential statistics to summarize and test the hypotheses of the study. The results show that the average age of rural youths participating in cassava production in the study area is 29 ± 2.6 years and 60 percent aged between 30 and 35 years. Also, more male (67.4 %) were involved in cassava production than females (32.6 %). The result also reveals that the average size of farm land of the respondents is 2.5 ± 0.3 hectares. Also, more male (67.4 %) were involved in cassava production than females (32.6 %). Also, extent of usage of the technologies (r = 0.363, p ≤ 0.01) shows significant relationship with level of adoption of the technologies. Household size (b = 0.183; P ≤ 0.01) and membership of social organizations were significant at 0.01 (b = 0.331; P ≤ 0.01) while age was significant at 0.10 (b = 0.097; P ≤ 0.05). On the other hand 0.01, years of residence (b = - 0.063; P ≤ 0.01) and income (b = - 0.204; P ≤ 0.01) had negative values and implies that a unit increase in each of these variables would decrease extent of usage of the Cassava production technologies. It was concluded that the extent of usage of the technologies in the communities will affect the rate of adoption positively and this will change the negative perception of youths on cassava production thereby ensure food security in the study area.

Keywords: assessment, rural youths’, Cassava production technologies, agricultural production, food security

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Authors: Gabriel Roveda-Hoyos, Margarita Ramirez-Gomez, Adrian Perez, Diana Paola Serralde

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The objective of this study was to determine the variability of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (HFMA) communities associated with wild agraz plants (Vaccinium meridionale Swartz) in the Colombian Andes. This species is one of the most promising fruits within the genus Vaccinium because of the high content of anthocyanins and antioxidants in its fruits, and like other species of the Ericaceae family, it depends on the association with HFM for its development in the natural environment. In this study, the presence of mycorrhizae in wild communities of V. meridionale was evaluated, and their relationship with the edaphic and climatic conditions of the study area was analyzed. Sampling was conducted in the rural area of the municipalities of Raquira, and Chiquinquira, Chia, and Tabio in the departments of Cundinamarca and Boyaca, Colombia. Seven sites were selected, and in each site, 5 plants were randomly selected, root and soil samples were taken from each plant in the rhizosphere zone for the quantification of colonization and the presence of spores. The samples were collected on different soils, taxonomic orders Entisols, Inceptisols, and Alfisols, located at altitudes between 2,600 and 3,000 above sea level in the Eastern Cordillera of Colombia. The physicochemical characteristics of the soil were compared with the density of spores and the percentage of presence of mycorrhizae in the roots and variables with the morphometric and physiological characteristics of the plants. Four types of mutual associations were found: arbuscular mycorrhizae, ectendomycorrhiza, ericoid mycorrhizae, and endophytic septate fungi. The main results obtained show a predominance of spores of the genera Glomus and Acaulsopora, in most of the soils analyzed. The spore density of Glomeromycete fungi in the soil varied considerably between the different sites; it was higher ( > 50 spores/g of dry soil) in soil samples with lower bulk density and higher content of organic matter; in these soils a higher cation exchange capacity was found, as well as of nitrogen, calcium, magnesium, manganese and zinc concentration. It can be concluded that Vaccinium meridionale is able to establish in a natural way, association with HFMA.

Keywords: Ericaceae, Arbuscular mycorrhizae, Andes, soils, Glomus sp.

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