Search results for: African sharp tooth cat fish

Authors: Shadreck Muchaku, Grey Magaiza, Jerit Dube

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The high insolvency rate of female-led emerging enterprises in the Southern African mountain region reflects the various vulnerabilities that exist. Although this is the case, there is a limited understanding of how these vulnerabilities influence entrepreneurship failure. This paper focuses on female entrepreneurs because of their role in economic development. Emerging female entrepreneurs in this region often operate in uncertain environments, which makes it difficult for them to thrive. The form and nature of entrepreneurial opportunities rural women of the Afro Montane region engage in are largely unsustainable as a lot of women struggle with confidence, and they need help with understanding their skills. However, there is still a gap in the existing literature on women entrepreneurship resilience and vulnerability reduction in the Afromontane. Furthermore, a major problem is the lack of empirical studies on this matter and limited studies indicating a general profile of emerging female entrepreneurs in this region. This systematic literature review attempts to fill in the gap of knowledge on entrepreneurship resilience and vulnerability reduction of emerging female entrepreneurs in the Afromontane regions and other similar precarious environments. In this review, we focus much on highlighting the nexus between entrepreneurship resilience and vulnerability reduction of emerging female entrepreneurs in academic literature through a chronological dispersal of publications in developing countries. This review adopts an ATLAS ti.22 software-based thematic analysis to analyze results obtained from reviewed academic journal articles. As research on entrepreneurship resilience and vulnerability reduction is still developing in the Sothern African mountain region, the results of this review will contribute to the body of literature and provide recommendations and a foundation for future research. This systematic review paper provides valuable insights and methodological approaches to scholarship in a nascent area of emerging female entrepreneurs in the Afromontane.

Keywords: entrepreneurship resiliency, vulnerability reduction, female entrepreneurs, mountain regions

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Authors: Muhammad Jamil, Ning He, Aqib Mashood Khan, Munish Kumar Gupta

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Ti-6Al-4V has numerous applications in the medical, automobile, and aerospace industries due to corrosion resistivity, structural stability, and chemical inertness to most fluids at room temperature. These peculiar characteristics are beneficial for their application and present formidable challenges during machining. Machining of Ti-6Al-4V produces an elevated cutting temperature above 1000oC at dry conditions. This accelerates tool wear and reduces product quality. Therefore, there is always a need to employ sustainable/effective coolant/lubricant when machining such alloy. In this study, Finite Element Modeling (FEM) and experimental analysis when cutting Ti-6Al-4V under a distinctly developed dry ice mixed hybrid lubri-coolant are presented. This study aims to model the milling process of Ti-6Al-4V under a proposed novel hybrid lubri-coolant using different cutting speeds and feed per tooth DEFORM® software package was used to conduct the FEM and the numerical model was experimentally validated. A comparison of experimental and simulation results showed a maximum error of no more than 6% for all experimental conditions. In a nutshell, it can be said that the proposed model is effective in predicting the machining temperature precisely.

Keywords: friction coefficient, heat transfer, finite element modeling (FEM), milling Ti-6Al-4V

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Authors: Geoffrey Nwaka

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After many years of a border dispute between Nigeria and Cameroon over the ownership of the Bakassi Peninsula, the International Court of Justice ruled in 2002 that, based on the 1913 colonial boundary agreement between Britain and Germany, the oil-rich Peninsula, inhabited for generations by Nigerians, and hitherto administered as one of Nigeria’s 774 Local Government Areas, belongs to Cameroon, and not to Nigeria. Under pressure from the international community, Nigeria and Cameroon signed the Greentree Accord in 2006 to comply peacefully with the ICJ ruling and to protect the fundamental rights and freedoms of the Bakassi people, whether they opted to remain in the Peninsula under the authority of Cameroon or relocate to Nigeria. Sadly, the Nigerian government and the international community underestimated the scale of displacement that would follow the withdrawal of the Nigerian administration and military forces from the area and did not prepare adequately for the massive influx of tens of thousands of Bakassi people hurriedly dislodged by the reported hostility of the Cameroon authorities and their security services. The paper discusses the historical context and contemporary significance of the crisis, the chaotic resettlement schemes and appalling humanitarian relief camps in ‘New Bakassi’, and the prolonged hardship and disillusionment of the disaffected refugees/returnees. The lesson for African and Asian governments and peoples is to avoid needless conflicts over the 'imported' colonial boundaries, to remove unnecessary border restrictions, and take fully into account the development needs and well-being of borderland communities that sometimes rightly feel that distant central governments negotiate their political and international interests at the expense of the borderlands; and finally, to begin to see the boundaries more as links and bridges for the cooperation and integration of African and Asian states and peoples, rather than as barriers and static lines of demarcation on the map.

Keywords: Africa, forced displacement, resettlement, border conflict, Bakassi

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Authors: S. Farzad, M. Ali Mandegari, J. F. Görgens

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The South African Sugar Industry, which has a significant impact on the national economy, is currently facing problems due to increasing energy price and low global sugar price. The available bagasse is already combusted in low-efficiency boilers of the sugar mills while bagasse is generally recognized as a promising feedstock for second generation bioethanol production. Establishment of biorefinery annexed to the existing sugar mills, as an alternative for the revitalization of sugar industry producing biofuel and electricity has been proposed and considered in this study. Since the scale is an important issue in the feasibility of the technology, this study has taken into account a typical sugar mill with 300 ton/hr sugar cane capacity. The biorefinery simulation is carried out using Aspen PlusTM V8.6, in which the sugar mill’s power and steam demand has been considered. Hence, sugar mills in South Africa can be categorized as highly efficient, efficient, and not efficient with steam consumption of 33, 40, and 60 tons of steam per ton of cane and electric power demand of 10 MW; three different scenarios are studied. The sugar cane bagasse and tops/trash are supplied to the biorefinery process and the wastes/residues (mostly lignin) from the process are burnt in the CHP plant in order to produce steam and electricity for the biorefinery and sugar mill as well. Considering the efficient sugar mill, the CHP plant has generated 5 MW surplus electric powers, but the obtained energy is not enough for self-sufficiency of the plant (Biorefinery and Sugar mill) due to lack of 34 MW heat. One of the advantages of second generation biorefinery is its low impact on the environment and carbon footprint, thus the plant should be self-sufficient in energy without using fossil fuels. For this reason, a portion of fresh bagasse should be sent to the CHP plant to meet the energy requirements. An optimization procedure was carried out to find out the appropriate portion to be burnt in the combustor. As a result, 20% of the bagasse is re-routed to the combustor which leads to 5 tons of LP Steam and 8.6 MW electric power surpluses.

Keywords: biorefinery, sugarcane bagasse, sugar mill, energy analysis, bioethanol

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Authors: Ravinesh C. Deo

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This article reviews the role of nozzle-exit conditions on the flow field of a plane jet. The jet issuing from a sharp-edged orifice plate at a Reynolds number (Re=18000) with nozzle aspect ratio (AR=72) exhibits the greatest shear-layer instabilities, highest entrainment and jet-spreading rates compared to the radially contoured nozzle. The growth rate of the shear-layer is the highest for the orifice-jet although this property could be amplified for larger Re or AR. A local peak in turbulent energy is found at x=10h. The peak appears to be elevated for an orifice-jet with lower Re or AR. The far-field energy sustained by the orifice-jet exceeds the contoured case although a higher Re and AR may enhance this value. The spectra displays the largest eddies generated by the contoured nozzle. However, the frequency of coherent eddies is higher for the orifice-jet, with a larger magnitude achievable for lower Re and AR.

Keywords: plane jet, Reynolds number, nozzle-exit conditions, nozzle geometry, aspect ratio

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Authors: Isabelle Gobatto

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Based on an anthropological approach, this paper explores the medical profession and the construction of medical practices by considering the multiform articulations between structural poverty and the production of care from a low-resource francophone West African country, Burkina Faso. This country is considered in its exemplary dimension of culturally differentiated countries of the African continent that share the same situation of structural poverty. The objective is to expose the effects of structural poverty on the ways of constructing professional knowledge and thinking about the sense of the medical profession. If doctors are trained to have the same capacities in South and West countries, which are to treat and save lives whatever the cultural contexts of the practice of medicine, the ways of investing their role and of dealing with this context of action fracture the homogenization of the medical profession. In the line of anthropology of biomedicine, this paper outlines the complex effects of structural poverty on health care, care relations, and the moral economy of doctors. The materials analyzed are based on an ethnography including two temporalities located thirty years apart (1990-1994 and 2020-2021), based on long-term observations of care practices conducted in healthcare institutions, interviews coupled with the life histories of physicians. The findings reveal that disabilities faced by doctors to deliver care are interpreted as policy gaps, but they are also considered by physicians as constitutive of the social and cultural characteristics of patients, making their capacities and incapacities in terms of accompanying caregivers in the production of care. These perceptions have effects on know-how, structured around the need to act even when diagnoses are not made so as not to see patients desert health structures if the costs of care are too high for them. But these interpretations of highly individualizing dimensions of these difficulties place part of the blame on patients for the difficulties in using learned knowledge and delivering effective care. These situations challenge the ethics of caregivers but also of ethnologists. Firstly because the interpretations of disabilities prevent caregivers from considering vulnerabilities of care as constituting a common condition shared with their patients in these health systems, affecting them in an identical way although in different places in the production of care. Correlatively, these results underline that these professional conceptions prevent the emergence of a figure of victim, which could be shared between patients and caregivers who, together, undergo working and care conditions at the limit of the acceptable. This dimension directly involves politics. Secondly, structural poverty and its effects on care challenge the ethics of the anthropologist who observes caregivers producing, without intent to arm, experiences of care marked by an ordinary violence, by not giving them the care they need. It is worth asking how anthropologists could get doctors to think in this light in west-African societies.

Keywords: Africa, care, ethics, poverty

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Authors: Ashwag Abdul-Hakeem Al-Thubaiti

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This study aims at analysing women's hesitant attitudes towards marriage in Margaret Drabble's novels, A Summer-Bird-Cage (1964) and The Millstone (1965), to prove that these ambivalent feelings are due to their search for autonomy. The heroines' radical outlook on independence is only meant to hide their conflict regarding sex-experience and fear of intimacy, a fear that has been enhanced by their rejection of the expression of faith that considers marriage a sacred bond and instead focus on their own identity and dissolve any bond that may affect their independence. To achieve their autonomy, they have to depend on themselves financially and focus on their aspirational goals. This sharp division between the two worlds, the family life and the personal success attributes negatively to their lives and leads to a self-identity crisis. Drabble tends to solve this struggle by awakening their maternal instinct. Once they respect their physical needs and appreciate their role as it is assigned to them by nature and society, they reach a balanced identity.

Keywords: autonomy, marriage, maternity, women

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Authors: Luís Miguel Estevão Cristóvão, Constâncio Augusto Machanguana, Fernando Chichango, Salvador Grande

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Sub-Saharan African nations depend greatly on agriculture, a sector mainly marked by low production. Most of the farmers live in rural areas and employ basic labor-intensive technologies that lead to time inefficiencies and low overall effectiveness. Even with attempts to enhance farmers’ welfare through improved seeds and fertilizers, meaningful outcomes are yet to be achieved due to huge amounts of post-harvest losses. Such losses significantly endanger food security, economic stability, and result in unsustainable agricultural practices because more land, water, labor, energy, fertilizer, and other inputs must be used to produce more food. Drying, as a critical post-harvest process involving simultaneous heat and mass transfer, deserves attention. Among alternative green-energy sources, solar energy-based drying garners attention, particularly for small-scale farmers in remote communities. However, the intermittent nature of solar radiation poses challenges. To address this, energy storage solutions like rock-based thermal energy storage offer cost-effective solutions tailored to the needs of farmers. Methodologically, three solar dryers were constructed of metal, wood, and clay brick. Several tests were carried out with and without energy storage material. Notably, it has been demonstrated that soapstone stands out as a promising material due to its affordability and high specific energy capacity. By implementing these greener technologies, Sub-Saharan African countries could mitigate post-harvest losses, enhance food availability, improve nutrition, and promote sustainable resource utilization.

Keywords: energy storage, food security, post-harvest, solar dryer

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Authors: Sudip Mondal, Biswanath Mondal, Sudit S. Mukhopadhyay, Apurba Dey

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Bioactive materials improve devices for a long lifespan but have mechanical limitations. Mechanical characterization is one of the very important characteristics to evaluate the life span and functionality of the scaffold material. After implantation of scaffold material the primary stage rejection of scaffold occurs due to non biocompatible effect of host body system. The second major problems occur due to the effect of mechanical failure. The mechanical and biocompatibility failure of the scaffold materials can be overcome by the prior evaluation of the scaffold materials. In this study chemically treated Labeo rohita scale is used for synthesizing hydroxyapatite (HAp) biomaterial. Thermo-gravimetric and differential thermal analysis (TG-DTA) is carried out to ensure thermal stability. The chemical composition and bond structures of wet ball-milled calcined HAp powder is characterized by Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray Diffraction (XRD), Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FE-SEM), Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), Energy Dispersive X-ray (EDX) analysis. Fish scale derived apatite materials consists of nano-sized particles with Ca/P ratio of 1.71. The biocompatibility through cytotoxicity evaluation and MTT assay are carried out in MG63 osteoblast cell lines. In the cell attachment study, the cells are tightly attached with HAp scaffolds developed in the laboratory. The result clearly suggests that HAp material synthesized in this study do not have any cytotoxic effect, as well as it has a natural binding affinity for mammalian cell lines. The synthesized HAp powder further successfully used to develop porous scaffold material with suitable mechanical property of ~0.8GPa compressive stress, ~1.10 GPa a hardness and ~ 30-35% porosity which is acceptable for implantation in trauma region for animal model. The histological analysis also supports the bio-affinity of processed HAp biomaterials in Wistar rat model for investigating the contact reaction and stability at the artificial or natural prosthesis interface for biomedical function. This study suggests the natural sourced fish scale-derived HAp material could be used as a suitable alternative biomaterial for tissue engineering application in near future.

Keywords: biomaterials, hydroxyapatite, scaffold, mechanical property, tissue engineering

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Authors: Xiaofei Hu, Zhiyu Cai, Weian Yao

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V-notch problem under dynamic loading condition is considered in this paper. In the time domain, the precise time domain expanding algorithm is employed, in which a self-adaptive technique is carried out to improve computing accuracy. By expanding variables in each time interval, the recursive finite element formulas are derived. In the space domain, a Symplectic Analytical Singular Element (SASE) for V-notch problem is constructed addressing the stress singularity of the notch tip. Combining with the conventional finite elements, the proposed SASE can be used to solve the dynamic stress intensity factors (DSIFs) in a simple way. Numerical results show that the proposed SASE for V-notch problem subjected to dynamic loading condition is effective and efficient.

Keywords: V-notch, dynamic stress intensity factor, finite element method, precise time domain expanding algorithm

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Authors: Pármenas Costa Macedo do Nascimento

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Periodontal disease is the most common disease in the oral cavity of felines. It starts with the accumulation of bacteria on the tooth surface supporting the tissues of the periodontal tissue, namely gums, alveolar bone, cementum, and periodontal ligament. The main clinical symptom observed by the owner is bad breath, which may lead to local and systemic consequences depending on the stage of periodontal disease, such as bleeding and bone loss. Therefore, the study is important to educate tutors to take better care of the felines oral health in order to try to prevent the disease. For this epidemiological study, the target population has been felines, located on the outskirts of Manaus, in the state of Amazonas, with a geographic area of 155.68 km², with no defined breed, from October 1st to 10th, 2021, whose samples has been randomly selected, with a detailed profile. The variables of interest for this study have been: absence or presence of periodontal disease, gender, age (delimited by age group), and condition (domiciled or homeless). Using a sample of 40 felines from 4 districts of the east side of Manaus chosen at random, an oral exam has been made to identify the studied disease. The animal's apparent age, condition, sex, and presence or absence of periodontal disease has been noted. It has been observed that 70% (28/40) of them had periodontal disease, mostly females, aged between 0 and 5 years and domiciled, totaling 30% (12/40).

Keywords: felines, oral cavity, oral exam, periodontal disease

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Authors: S. Pullteap, M. Pathomsuriyaporn

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In this article, a study of employee’s opinion to the factors that affect to the flood preventive and the corrective action plan in an electronic industry at the Sharp Manufacturing (Thailand) Co., Ltd. has been investigated. The surveys data of 175 workers and supervisors have, however, been selected for data analysis. The results is shown that the employees emphasize about the needs in a subsidy at the time of disaster at high levels of 77.8%, as the plan focusing on flood prevention of the rehabilitation equipment is valued at the intermediate level, which is 79.8%. Demonstration of the hypothesis has found that the different education levels has thus been affected to the needs factor at the flood disaster time. Moreover, most respondents give priority to flood disaster risk management factor. Consequently, we found that the flood prevention plan is valued at high level, especially on information monitoring, which is 93.4% for the supervisor item. The respondents largely assume that the flood will have impacts on the industry, up to 80%, thus to focus on flood management plans is enormous.

Keywords: flood prevention plan, flood event, electronic industrial plant, disaster, risk management

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Authors: M. A. Mabasa, O. Ramokolo, M. Z. Mnikathi, D. Mathabatha, T. Manyapelo

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The study examines the importance of translating South African folklore from Oral into Written Literature in a Multilingual Education. Therefore, the study postulates that translation can be regarded as a valuable tool when oral and written literature is transmitted from one generation to another. The study entails that translation does not take place in a haphazard fashion; for that reason, skills such as translation principles are required to translate folklore significantly and effectively. The purpose of the study is to indicate the significance of using translation relating to folklore in teaching and learning. The study also observed that Modernism in literature should be shared amongst varieties of cultures because folklore is interactive in narrating stories, folktales and myths to sharpen the reader’s knowledge and intellect because they are informative and educative in nature. As a technological tool, the study points out that translation is of paramount importance in the sense that the meanings of different data can be made available in all South African official languages using oral and written forms of folklore. The study opines that tradition and customary beliefs and practices in the institution of higher learning. The study envisages the way in which literature of folklore can be juxtaposed to ensure that translated folklore is of quality assured standards. The study alludes that well-translated folklore can serve as oral and written literature, which may contribute to the child’s learning and acquisition of knowledge and insights during cognitive development toward maturity. Methodologically, the study selects a qualitative research approach and selects content analysis as an instrument for data gathering, which will be analyzed qualitatively in consideration of the significance of translating folklore as written and spoken literature in a documented way. The study reveals that the translation of folktales promotes functional multilingualism in high-function formal contexts like a university. The study emphasizes that translated and preserved literary folklore may serve as a language repository from one generation to another because of the archival and storage of information in the form of a term bank.

Keywords: translation, editing, teaching, learning, folklores

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Authors: Marwan Ahmed Swileh, Amal Hussein Abuaffan

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Objective: This study aimed to explore the existence of golden proportion (GP) between the widths of maxillary anterior teeth and golden standard (GS) for width to height ratio of maxillary central incisor in individuals with attractive and non-attractive smiles. Materials and methods: A total of 82 females were recruited and divided into 2 groups: attractive smile (n= 41) and non-attractive smile (n= 41). Frontal photographs were taken, scanned, and saved on a personal computer. The apparent mesiodistal width of each anterior tooth was measured. The data were analyzed using the appropriate statistical tests at p-value < 0.05. Results: Frequency of GP was very low among the total sample, and most proportions were higher than GP. No significant differences were found between both groups in relation to central-to-lateral ratio while significant differences were found in relation to canine-to-lateral ratio. Similarly, most proportions of width to height ratio were higher than GS. Difference between groups was significant for left side and for both sides (p < 0.05) but was not for right side (p > 0.05). Conclusion: Frequency of golden proportion was very low among the study population. Smile attractiveness is not related that much to the proportions between the teeth.

Keywords: golden proportion, golden standard, attractive smile, esthetic, anterior teeth

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Authors: Gabriel Acha Ekobi

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Fathers play a crucial role in meeting family needs such as affection, protection, and socio-economic needs of children in the world in general and South Africa in particular. Fathers’ role in children’s lives is important in providing socialization, leadership skills, and teaching societal norms. Fathers influence is very significant for children’s well-being and development as it provides the child with moral lessons, guidance, and economic support. However, there is a paucity of information regarding the effects of fathers on children. In addition, despite legal frameworks such as the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the child (1999) introduced by the African Union to promote child rights nevertheless, it appears maltreatment, abuse, and poor health care continue to face children. Also, the Constitution of 1996 of the Republic of South Africa (Section 28 of the Bill of Rights) and the Children’s Act 38 of 2005 were introduced by the South African government to foster the rights of children. Nevertheless, these legal frameworks remain ineffective as children’s rights are still neglected by resident fathers. This paper explores the impact of resident fathers on children in the Golf View, Alice town of the Eastern Cape Province, South Africa. A qualitative research method and an exploratory research design were utilized, and 30 participants took part in the study. The participants comprised of single mothers or caregivers of children, resident fathers and social workers. Eighteen (18) single mothers or caregivers, 10 resident fathers, and two (2) social workers participated in the study. Data was collected using semi-structured and unstructured interviews and analysed thematically. Two main themes were identified: the role of fathers on children and the effects of resident fathers on children. The study found that the presence of fathers in the lives of children prevented psychosocial issues such as stress, depression, violence, and substance abuse. A father’s presence in a household was crucial in instilling moral values in children. This allowed them to build positive characters such as respect, kindness, humility, and compassion. Children with more involved fathers tend to have fewer impulse control problems, longer attention spans, and a higher level of sociability. The study concludes that the fathers’ role prevented anxiety, depression, and stress and led to the improvement of children’s education performance. Nevertheless, the absence of a father as a role model to act as a leader by instilling moral values hinders positive behaviours in children. This study recommended that occupational training and life skills programmes should be introduced by the government and other stakeholders to empower the fathers as this might provide the platform for them to bring up their children properly.

Keywords: children, fathering, household, resident, single parent

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Authors: Syeda Afsana Azad

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Climate change, due to the release of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere has been recognized as one of the biggest threats to the present world. The condition of the earth is getting worse day by day due to climate change. Bangladesh is considered to be one of the most vulnerable countries to climate change due to large population, sharp urbanization, etc. Construction of green building is a very good solution to reduce the greenhouse effect. Green building technology refers to that kind of structures which are environmentally friendly and resource-efficient throughout a building’s service life. This technology can provide at least 50% energy saving opportunity to the nation. The necessity of the construction of structures in an environment-friendly way is increasing now. This study shows the scenario of rapid population growth, urbanization, necessity of green building in Bangladesh and also discusses the construction process of green building. As the present climate condition of Bangladesh is not friendly, construction of green building is very much needed. To battle climate change, it is mandatory to construct green building.

Keywords: Bangladesh, climate change, green building, green house effect

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Authors: Lamia L. G. Al-Mahamad, Benjamin R. Horrocks, Andrew Houlton

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Hydrogels based on metal coordination polymers of nucleosides and a range of metal ions (Au, Ag, Cu) have been prepared and characterized by atomic force microscopy (AFM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, ultraviolet-visible absorption spectroscopy, and powder X-ray diffraction. AFM images of the xerogels revealed the formation of extremely long polymer molecules (> 10 micrometers, the maximum scan range). This result is also consistent with TEM images which show a fibrous morphology. Oxidative doping of the Au-nucleoside fibres produces an electrically conductive nanowire. No sharp Bragg peaks were found at the at the X-ray diffraction pattern for metal ions hydrogels indicating that the samples were amorphous, but instead the data showed broad peaks in the range 20 < Q < 40 and correspond to distances d=2μ/Q. The data was analysed using a simplified Rietveld method by fitting a regression model to obtain the distance between atoms.

Keywords: hydrogel, metal ions, nanowire, nucleoside

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Authors: Nagwa Abouserie Soliman

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The Victorian era, which started with the reign of Queen Victoria from June 1837 to January 1901, could be considered as one of the most significant eras that had a crucial impact which formed contemporary British life despite the fact that with the rise of the British empire many negative aspects surfaced, namelysocial inequalities such as class differences, child labor, population increase and poverty due to the industrial revolution. Charles Dickens was one of the most prominent writers of the Victorian era who perceived the hypocrisy of the Victorian mores. The appropriate researchstyle that was chosen for this literary analysis is a qualitative research method in which the researcher used the conceptual approach to analyse theDickensian characterisation andwriting style through diction, narrative voice, and images. The aim of this paper is to argue that Charles Dickens inGreat Expectations (1861) was highly satirical of the Victorian mores, as he uses a lot of sharp irony-to satirize various Victorian traditions such as class divisions, the justice system, the poor working class, and the upper-class snobbery that he thought are inhumane and unjust.

Keywords: victorian, child labour, poverty, class division, snobbery

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Authors: Awais Ali, Hesham Ali

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The absence of teeth through either premature loss or developmental absence is a common condition with potentially severe impact on affected individuals. Management of these cases presents a clinical challenge which may be difficult to resolve given the effects of tooth loss or hypodontia over the course of a patient’s lifetime. Treatment of such cases is often best provided by a multi-disciplinary team, where the patient’s expectations and care delivery can be optimally managed. Orthodontic treatment is often used to prepare the dentition in advance of restorative replacement of missing teeth. Conversely, the placement of implants may precede the delivery of orthodontic treatment and indeed may function as an adjunctive orthodontic procedure. We discuss the use of both approaches here and illustrate their clinical implementation with two case reports. The first case demonstrates the use of fixed appliances to prepare the mouth for an opposing implant-retained complete denture. A second case demonstrates the use of implant-retained crowns to provide orthodontic anchorage in a partially dentate patient. We propose that complex cases such as these should always be planned and treated by a multi-disciplinary team in order to optimise the delivery of care, patient experience, and treatment outcome. The presented cases add to the body of evidence in this area.

Keywords: orthodontics, dental implantology, hypodontia, multi-disciplinary

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Authors: Y. Kobori, S. Tanaka, N. Tsukiji, N. Takai, H. Kobayashi

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This paper proposes two kinds of new single-inductor dual-output (SIDO) DC-DC switching converters with ripple-based hysteretic control. First SIDO converters of type 1 utilize the triangular signal generated by the CR-circuit connected across the inductor. This triangular signal is used for generating the PWM signal instead of the saw-tooth signal used in the conventional converters. Second SIDO converters of type 2 utilize the triangular signal generated by the CR-circuit connected across the voltage error amplifier. This paper describes circuit topologies, Operation principles, simulation results and experimental results of the proposed SIDO converters. In simulation results of both type of SIDO converters, static output voltage ripples are less than 5mVpp and over/under shoots of the dynamic load regulations for the output current step are less than +/- 10mV. In experimental results of single output converter of type 2, static output voltage ripples are about 20mVpp. Output ripples of SIDO type 1 converter are about 80mVpp.

Keywords: DC-DC converter, switching converter, SIDO converter, hysteretic control, ripple-based control

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Authors: Nazeef, Suleiman, Umar, Danladi Muhammad, Ja'afar Ali, Zaliha Adamu Umar

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The population dynamics of Auchenoglanis occidentalis from the Dadin-Kowa reservoir were studied. Population dynamic parameters such as growth, mortality and recruitment patterns were analyzed using length frequency data over a 12-month period employing FiSAT II software. Findings revealed that LWR (b - constant) = 2.88, K = 0.72 -yr., L∞ = 40.91 cm and Tmax = 3.57 years and Ɵ’ = 3.14. Mortality indices revealed that natural mortality (M = 1.39), fishing mortality (F = 0.22) and exploitation ratio (E = 0.14), Lc/L∞ = 0.48, Emax = 0.64, while Lopt = 26.4 cm. Uni-modal recruitment peak observed with Lm = 27.3 cm. A restocking program is suitable to ensure its continuous existence as it seems to have a low population.

Keywords: fish population dynamics, auchenoglanis occidentalis, FISAT II, natural mortality

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Authors: Zohaib Ellahi, Guolong Zhao

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Ceramic matrix composite (CMC) material possesses high strength, wear resistance and anisotropy thus machining of this material is very difficult and demands high cost. In this research, FEM simulations and physical experiments have been carried out to assess the machinability of carbon fiber reinforced silicon carbide (C/SiC) using polycrystalline diamond (PCD) tool in slot milling process. Finite element model has been generated in Abaqus/CAE software and milling operation performed by using user defined material subroutine. Effect of different milling parameters on cutting forces and stresses has been calculated through FEM simulations and compared with experimental results to validate the finite element model. Cutting forces in x and y-direction were calculated through both experiments and finite element model and found a good agreement between them. With increase in cutting speed resultant cutting forces are decreased. Resultant cutting forces are increased with increased feed per tooth and depth of cut. When machining performed along the fiber direction stresses generated near the tool edge were minimum and increases with fiber cutting angle.

Keywords: experimental & numerical investigation, C/SiC cutting performance analysis, milling of CMCs, CMC composite stress analysis

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Authors: Iruka C. Anugwo, Winston M. Shakantu

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The objective of this study is to uncover the basic business-forces that necessitated the survival and sustainable performance of the medium scale contractors in the South African construction market. This study is essential as it set to contribute towards long-term strategic solutions for combating the incessant failure of start-ups construction organizations within South African. The study used a qualitative research methodology; as the most appropriate approach to elicit and understand, and uncover the phenomena that are basic business-forces for the active contractors in the market. The study also adopted a phenomenological study approach; and in-depth interviews were conducted with 20 medium scale contractors in Port Elizabeth, South Africa, between months of August to October 2015. This allowed for an in-depth understanding of the critical and basic business-forces that influenced their survival and performance beyond the first five years of business operation. Findings of the study showed that for potential contractors (startups), to survival in the competitive business environment such as construction industry, they must possess the basic business-forces. These forces are educational knowledge in construction and business management related disciplines, adequate industrial experiences, competencies and capabilities to delivery excellent services and products as well as embracing the spirit of entrepreneurship. Convincingly, it can be concluded that the strategic approach to minimize the endless failure of startups construction businesses; the potential construction contractors must endeavoring to access and acquire the basic educationally knowledge, training and qualification; need to acquire industrial experiences in collaboration with required competencies, capabilities and entrepreneurship acumen. Without these basic business-forces as been discovered in this study, the majority of the contractors gaining entrance in the market will find it difficult to develop and grow a competitive and sustainable construction organization in South Africa.

Keywords: basic business-forces, medium scale contractors, South Africa, sustainable organisations

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Authors: Cecil Blake, Tolu Kayode-Adedeji, Innocent Chiluwa, Charles Iruonagbe

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National, regional and international security threats have dominated the twenty-first century thus far. Insurgencies that utilize “terrorism” as their primary strategy pose the most serious threat to global security. States in turn adopt terrorist strategies to resist and even defeat insurgents who invoke the legitimacy of statehood to justify their action. In short, the era is dominated by the use of terror tactics by state and non-state actors. Globally, there is a powerful network of groups involved in insurgencies using Islam as the bastion for their cause. In Africa, there are Boko Haram, Al Shabaab and Al Qaeda in the Maghreb representing Islamic groups utilizing terror strategies and tactics to prosecute their wars. The task at hand is to discover and to use multiple ways of handling the present security threats, including novel approaches to policy formulation, implementation, monitoring and evaluation that would pay significant attention to the important role of culture and communication strategies germane for discursive means of conflict resolution. In other to achieve this, the proposed research would address inter alia, root causes of insurgences that predicate their mission on Islamic tenets particularly in Africa; discursive and non-discursive counter-terrorism approaches fashioned by African governments, continental supra-national and regional organizations, recruitment strategies by major non-sate actors in Africa that rely solely on terrorist strategies and tactics and sources of finances for the groups under study. A major anticipated outcome of this research is a contribution to answers that would lead to the much needed stability required for development in African countries experiencing insurgencies carried out by the use of patterned terror strategies and tactics. The nature of the research requires the use of triangulation as the methodological tool.

Keywords: counter-terrorism, discourse, Nigeria, security, terrorism

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Authors: Peter Ekene Egwu

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Waste management is of critical importance in Africa for reasons related to public health, human dignity, climate resilience and environmental preservation. However, delivering waste management services requires adequate funding, which has generally been lacking in a context where the generation of waste is outpacing the development of waste management infrastructure in most cities. The sector represents a growing percentage of cities’ greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and some of the African cities profiled in this study are now designing waste management strategies with emission reduction in mind.

Keywords: management waste material, Africa, uses of new technology to manage waste, waste management

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Authors: Bruno Cossu, Elio Carlo

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The invention (patent pending) relates to the field of devices aimed to harness wave energy (WEC) especially for artificial upwelling, forced downwelling, production of compressed air. In its basic form, the pump consists of a hydro-pneumatic machine, driven by wave energy, characterised by the fact that it has no moving mechanical parts, and is made up of only two structural components: an hollow body, which is open at the bottom to the sea and partially immersed in sea water, and a tube, both joined together to form a single body. The shape of the hollow body is like a mushroom whose cap and stem are hollow; the stem is open at both ends and the lower part of its surface is crossed by holes; the tube is external and coaxial to the stem and is joined to it so as to form a single body. This shape of the hollow body and the type of connection to the tube allows the pump to operate simultaneously as an air compressor (OWC) on the cap side, and as an airlift on the stem side. The pump can be implemented in four versions, each of which provides different variants and methods of implementation: 1) firstly, for the artificial upwelling of cold, deep ocean water; 2) secondly, for the lifting and transfer of these waters to the place of use (above all, fish farming plants), even if kilometres away; 3) thirdly, for the forced downwelling of surface sea water; 4) fourthly, for the forced downwelling of surface water, its oxygenation, and the simultaneous production of compressed air. The transfer of the deep water or the downwelling of the raised surface water (as for pump versions indicated in points 2 and 3 above), is obtained by making the water raised by the airlift flow into the upper inlet of another pipe, internal or adjoined to the airlift; the downwelling of raised surface water, oxygenation, and the simultaneous production of compressed air (as for the pump version indicated in point 4), is obtained by installing a venturi tube on the upper end of the pipe, whose restricted section is connected to the external atmosphere, so that it also operates like a hydraulic air compressor (trompe). Furthermore, by combining one or more pumps for the upwelling of cold, deep water, with one or more pumps for the downwelling of the warm surface water, the system can be used in an Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion plant to supply the cold and the warm water required for the operation of the same, thus allowing to use, without increased costs, in addition to the mechanical energy of the waves, for the purposes indicated in points 1 to 4, the thermal one of the marine water treated in the process.

Keywords: air lifted upwelling, fish farming plant, hydraulic air compressor, wave energy converter

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Authors: Steven Sam, Ximena Schmidt, Hugh Dickinson, Jens Jensen

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The goal of this study is to explore the potential of data science and citizen science approaches to develop an interactive, digital, open infrastructure that pulls together African indigenous agriculture and food systems data from multiple sources, making it accessible and reusable for policy, research and practice in modern food production efforts. The World Bank has recognised that African Indigenous Knowledge (AIK) is innovative and unique among local and subsistent smallholder farmers, and it is central to sustainable food production and enhancing biodiversity and natural resources in many poor, rural societies. AIK refers to tacit knowledge held in different languages, cultures and skills passed down from generation to generation by word of mouth. AIK is a key driver of food production, preservation, and consumption for more than 80% of citizens in Africa, and can therefore assist modern efforts of reducing food insecurity and hunger. However, the documentation and dissemination of AIK remain a big challenge confronting librarians and other information professionals in Africa, and there is a risk of losing AIK owing to urban migration, modernisation, land grabbing, and the emergence of relatively small-scale commercial farming businesses. There is also a clear disconnect between the AIK and scientific knowledge and modern efforts for sustainable food production. The study combines data science and citizen science approaches through active community participation to generate and share AIK for facilitating learning and promoting knowledge that is relevant for policy intervention and sustainable food production through a curated digital platform based on FAIR principles. The study adopts key informant interviews along with participatory photo and video elicitation approach, where farmers are given digital devices (mobile phones) to record and document their every practice involving agriculture, food production, processing, and consumption by traditional means. Data collected are analysed using the UK Science and Technology Facilities Council’s proven methodology of citizen science (Zooniverse) and data science. Outcomes are presented in participatory stakeholder workshops, where the researchers outline plans for creating the platform and developing the knowledge sharing standard framework and copyrights agreement. Overall, the study shows that learning from AIK, by investigating what local communities know and have, can improve understanding of food production and consumption, in particular in times of stress or shocks affecting the food systems and communities. Thus, the platform can be useful for local populations, research, and policy-makers, and it could lead to transformative innovation in the food system, creating a fundamental shift in the way the North supports sustainable, modern food production efforts in Africa.

Keywords: Africa indigenous agriculture knowledge, citizen science, data science, sustainable food production, traditional food system

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Authors: Jessica Leigh Thornton

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The South African Constitution outlines provisions for every detainee and sentenced prisoner in relation to the human rights recognized in the country since 1994; but currently, across the country, prisons have yet to meet many of these criteria. Consequently, their day-to-day lives are marked by extreme lack of privacy, high rates of infection, poor nutrition, and deleterious living conditions, which steadily erode prisoners’ mental and physical capacities rather than rehabilitating inmates so that they can effectively reintegrate into society. Even more so, policy reform, advocacy, security, and rehabilitation programs continue to be based on research and theories that were developed to explain the experiences of men, while female offenders are seen as the “special category” of inmates. Yet, the experiences of women and their pathways to incarceration are remarkably different from those of male offenders. Consequently, little is known about the profile, nature and contributing factors and experiences of female offenders which has impeded a comprehensive and integrated understanding of the subject of female criminality. The number of women globally in correctional centers has more than doubled over the past fifteen years (these increases vary from prison to prison and country to country). Yet, female offenders have largely been ignored in research even though the minority status of female offenders is a phenomenon that is not peculiar to South Africa as the number of women incarcerated has increased by 68% within the decade. Within South Africa, there have been minimal studies conducted on the gendered experience of offenders. While some studies have explored the pathways to female offending, gender-sensitive correctional programming for women that respond to their needs has been overlooked. This often leads to a neglect of the needs of female offenders, not only in terms of programs and services delivery to this minority group but also from a research perspective. In response, the aim of the proposed research is twofold: Firstly, the lived experiences and views of rehabilitation and reintegration of female offenders will be explored. Secondly, the various pathways into and out of recidivism amongst female offenders will be investigated regarding their inclusion in educational rehabilitation.

Keywords: female incarceration, educational rehabilitation, exclusion, experiences of female offenders

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Authors: Fulufhelo Amanda Doboro, Kgomotso Sebeko, Stephen Njiro, Moritz Van Vuuren

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Ovine herpesvirus 2 (OvHV-2) genome obtained from the lymphopblastoid cell line of a BJ1035 cow was recently sequenced in the United States of America (USA). Information on the sequences of OvHV-2 genes obtained from South African strains from bovine or other African countries and molecular characterization of OvHV-2 is not documented. Present investigation provides information on the nucleotide and derived amino acid sequences and genetic diversity of Ov 7, Ov 8 ex2, ORF 27 and ORF 73 genes, of these genes from OvHV-2 strains circulating in South Africa. Gene-specific primers were designed and used for PCR of DNA extracted from 42 bovine blood samples that previously tested positive for OvHV-2. The expected PCR products of 495 bp, 253 bp, 890 bp and 1632 bp respectively for Ov 7, Ov 8 ex2, ORF 27 and ORF 73 genes were sequenced and multiple sequence analysis done on the selected regions of the sequenced PCR products. Two genotypes for ORF 27 and ORF 73 gene sequences, and three genotypes for Ov 7 and Ov 8 ex2 gene sequences were identified, and similar groupings for the derived amino acid sequences were obtained for each gene. Nucleotide and amino acid sequence variations that led to the identification of the different genotypes included SNPs, deletions and insertions. Sequence analysis of Ov 7 and ORF 27 genes revealed variations that distinguished between sequences from SA and reference OvHV-2 strains. The implication of geographic origin among SA sequences was difficult to evaluate because of random distribution of genotypes in the different provinces, for each gene. However, socio-economic factors such as migration of people with animals, or transportation of animals for agricultural or business use from one province to another are most likely to be responsible for this observation. The sequence variations observed in this study have no impact on the antibody binding activities of glycoproteins encoded by Ov 7, Ov 8 ex2 and ORF 27 genes, as determined by prediction of the presence of B cell epitopes using BepiPred 1.0. The findings of this study will be used for selection of gene candidates for the development of diagnostic assays and vaccine development as well.

Keywords: amino acid, genetic diversity, genes, nucleotide

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Authors: Sipho Mbatha, Anne Mastament-Mason

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South African manufacturing global competitiveness was ranked 22nd (out of 38 countries), dropped to 24th in 2013 and is expected to drop further to 25th by 2018. These impacts negatively on the industrialisation project of South Africa. For industrialization to be achieved through labour intensive industries like the Apparel Manufacturing Industries of South Africa (AMISA), South Africa needs to identify and respond to factors negatively impacting on the development of competitive advantage This paper applied factor conditions from Porter’s Diamond Model (1990) to understand the various challenges facing the AMISA. Factor conditions highlighted in Porter’s model are grouped into two groups namely, basic and advance factors. Two AMISA associations representing over 10 000 employees were interviewed. The largest Clothing, Textiles and Leather (CTL) apparel retail group was also interviewed with a government department implementing the industrialisation policy were interviewed The paper points out that while AMISA have basic factor conditions necessary for competitive advantage in the clothing and textiles industries, Advance factor coordination has proven to be a challenging task for the AMISA, Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) and government. Poor infrastructural maintenance has contributed to high manufacturing costs and poor quick response as a result of lack of advanced technologies. The use of Porter’s Factor Conditions as a tool to analyse the sector’s competitive advantage challenges and opportunities has increased knowledge regarding factors that limit the AMISA’s competitiveness. It is therefore argued that other studies on Porter’s Diamond model factors like Demand conditions, Firm strategy, structure and rivalry and Related and supporting industries can be used to analyse the situation of the AMISA for the purposes of improving competitive advantage.

Keywords: compliance rule, apparel manufacturing industry, factor conditions, advance skills and South African industrial policy

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