Afe Babalola University Based Journals
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Adaptive Radio Access Technology Selection Algorithm for Heterogeneous Wireless Networks
Get PDFIn Heterogeneous Wireless Networks (HWNs), Radio Access Technologies (RAT) can only consider the situation of one particular Radio Resource Management (RRM) which is unsuitable for managing multiple RATs. This study deployed an adaptive RAT selection scheme model to allocate users to the best RAT with the use of the cost function variable. The adopted model uses different input criteria like signal strength, network loads, service type and QoS requirement for the best access network selections. The adaptive RAT selection algorithm was executed in different service mixes (voice and data service) to access model suitability for users in Global System for Mobile Communications with Enhanced Data Rates for Global Evolution Radio Access Network (GERAN) and Universal Mobile Telecommunications System Radio Access Network (UTRAN). The proposed algorithm resulted in the call blocking probability reduction by 0.03 for GERAN and 0.14 for UTRAN as validated with the existing algorithm based on load balancing, service-based and priority-based. The drop implied an increased probability of ensuring session stability and high quality of the active service, leading to a high load distribution
Machine Learning for Health Insurance Prediction in Nigeria
Get PDFHealth insurance coverage remains critical to healthcare accessibility, particularly in developing nations like Nigeria. This paper focused on predicting the likelihood of medical insurance coverage among individuals in Nigeria by employing four prominent Machine learning techniques: Logistic Regression, Random Forest, Decision Tree, and Support Vector Machine classifiers. The dataset utilized for analysis comprises demographic information, socioeconomic factors, and health-related variables collected from a diverse sample across Nigeria. Four models are trained and evaluated: Logistic Regression widely accepted for its simplicity and interpretability. Random Forest is a robust ensemble learning algorithm capable of capturing complex relationships within the data. The decision Tree model is simple to understand and visualize and the Support Vector Machine model is known for producing a very good classification. Furthermore, the performance metrics uutilized to rate the predictive capabilities of the models are Accuracy, Precision, Sensitivity, F Score, and area under the Receiver Operating Characteristic (AUC & ROC Curve). Additionally, a features importance analysis is conducted for the identification of the dominant factors contributing to the prediction of the spread of medical insurance in Nigeria. The outcome of this paper gives insights in the efficiency of each machine learning models used to forecast medical insurance coverage, and identifying key determinants influencing insurance coverage can assist policymakers and healthcare stakeholders in devising targeted strategies to improve healthcare access and affordability for the Nigerian people
Language, Visuality and Representation of Nigeria - China Relations in Nigerian Digital Space
Get PDFNigeria – China relationship has witnessed significant upsurge in the last decade. The budding relationship however continues to attract diverse perceptions as reflected in digital spaces. In this study, ten images – cartoons – from the Internet were subjected to Multimodal Critical Discourse Analysis. The depictions of Chinese influence and activities in Nigeria are engaged and representations that oscillate from financial/economic concerns to issues around sociality and culture are identified. Within the discourses around economy, China is revealed as a superpower attempting to exert its influences through subtle force to take over national sovereignty, while Nigerian leaders are shown as complicit in the exploitation of their citizens. In the context of sociality and culture, China is represented as a thriving society which is worthy of emulation although issues around racism and discrimination are also tackled. The diversity of representations manifests the complications that continue to engage issues of globalisation, fear of domination, and China’s rise in Africa
The Impact of Christianity on the Extinction of Ekau Feminine Cult in Ekori
Get PDFThere is no argument that Christianity played a great and positive role in Ekori by getting rid of heinous cultural practices, provision of health care services and educating the people, but it has also robbed the people of certain cultural institutions and heritage. Ekau Cult was a highly placed and important social institution that played a variety of roles in the community; ranging from maintaining ethical order and stability, judicial, economic and security roles. The qualitative method of data collection and analysis which includes both primary and secondary materials. Primary data were gathered from the field through extensive oral interviews under a conducive atmosphere void of external influences which attest to the originality of the information obtained. The secondary data includes works written by scholars found in journals, textbooks and Internet. It was discovered in the course of this research that the extinction of Ekau Feminine Cult has resulted to insecurity, moral decadence, infertility and infidelity, broken relationships, domestic violence, among others. The need for cultural revivalism, self identity and religious tolerance is among the recommendations made in this work
Modelling and Simulation of Chemical Adsorption Heat Pump for Drying and Heating Applications
Get PDFThe performance of a chemical adsorption heat pump drying system is largely influenced by the selection of working fluid, operating conditions, and system configuration and design. In this study, tomato slices were dried at five different air temperatures (35 °C, 40 °C, 45 °C, 50 °C, and 55 °C) with a tomato slice flow rate of 400 kg/hr and an air flow rate of 200 kg/hr using a modelled and simulated chemical adsorption heat pump drying system. Four adsorbent-adsorbate pairs were used: magnesium chloride-methanol, calcium chloride-ethanol, calcium chloride-water, and aluminium trifluoride-dimethyl ether, at evaporating and condensing temperatures of 10 °C and 15 °C, respectively. The specific moisture extraction rate ranged from 0.116 kg/kWh to 0.149 kg/kWh. The coefficient of performance (COP) of the heat pump drying (HPD) system ranged from 0.960 to 0.987, and the overall exergy efficiency at the highest ambient air temperature (30 °C) ranged from 3.84% to 20.29%. Exergy analysis of the system's components revealed that the condenser and evaporator contributed significantly to exergy destruction, exhibiting low exergy efficiency
Impact of Studio Spaces on the Academic Performance of Architecture Students: A Case of the Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA)
Get PDFDue to the peculiarity of the architecture profession, architecture students usually work within environments that require specific spaces to function within design studios. Adequate spaces within a studio environment consist of drawing boards, sitting stools, drawers/lockers where drawings and other instruments are kept, and ample circulation space. The aim of this study was to investigate if the spaces provided for in architecture studios are adequate, based on the number of students per studio, and if these spaces are adequate, whether they have positive or negative impacts on the academic performance of the architecture students. The methodology involved gathering data on final year students’ academic performance for three different sessions involving three different studio spaces on ARC 501 (Advanced Architectural Design), which is a core course and the final design course of final year students before graduating with a bachelor’s degree from the Federal University of Technology Akure (FUTA), Nigeria. Findings from the study revealed that with the increase in the floor area of the studio spaces per student, there was no significant increase in their academic performance; rather, there was a gradual decline in the students’ academic performance. This study has proven that studio spaces may not have corresponding positive effects on the academic performance of architecture students, but rather have somewhat negative effects, and probably there are other factors not considered in this study that may be responsible for better academic performance of architecture students in universities besides spacious studio spaces. The study also found that while small studio spaces tend towards better academic performance, large studio spaces tend towards low academic performance in architecture design courses
Physical Properties and Marshall Stability of High-Density Polyethylene and Rubber Crumb Modified Bitumen for Road Application
Get PDFStandard bitumen used in road construction may not meet engineering requirements due to it becoming brittle in cold weather and softening in hot weather. This study investigates the mechanical and physical properties of bitumen modified with high-density polyethylene (HDPE) and rubber crumb for road applications. Bitumen sourced from Ilaje, Ondo State, Nigeria, underwent characterisation tests including penetration, softening point, ductility, and fire point. Waste HDPE and rubber crumb, collected from dumpsites in Zaria, Kaduna State, Nigeria, were sorted, washed, dried, and milled to a size of 600 microns. The waste plastic was then blended with the bitumen using an optimised mix design obtained from the design of experiment. Characterisation tests (Marshall stability, penetration, softening point, ductility, and fire point) were performed on the resulting waste plastic-modified bitumen. The test results showed that the stability of the road asphalt increases as the proportion of HDPE and rubber crumb used in the bitumen modification increases. The control group (100% bitumen) exhibited the lowest Marshall stability (19.81 kN, 13.12 kN, and 17.82 kN for samples A, B, and C, respectively). The stability of sample A increased by 62.2%, the stability of sample B increased by 75.6%, and that of sample C increased by 56.6%. Based on the research findings, modifying bitumen with waste materials offers several advantages for road construction, which are reducing material costs as waste plastics and tires are readily available, waste utilisation reduces environmental impact, and modified bitumen enhances road durability
Solution of Radiative Casson Hybrid Nanofluid Flow in a Permeable Rotating Cone with Nanolayer and Mixed Convection
Get PDFThe research investigates the MHD Casson hybrid nanofluid in the presence of thermal radiation, nanolayers, and mixed convection inside a porous, permeable rotating cone. A slip boundary condition was applied for the problem. The governing flow model describing the problem captures Darcy-Forchheimer, mixed convection, thermal radiation, and dissipation. The coupled PDEs representing flow are obtained and transformed to ODEs via similar variables. The obtained ODEs are solved numerically by the shooting method together with the order six Runge Kutta method. MAPLE mathematical software is used to code and simulate the problem. The effects of embedded flow parameters (tangential and azimuthal velocities, thermal field, Nusselt number, and skin friction coefficient) are presented graphically and in tabular form and discussed in details. The results reveal that higher interfacial nanolayer parameters increase the thermal field. The magnitude of heat transfer rate boosts via greater fluid material and thermal radiation values, while it diminishes through the Prandtl number and Eckert number
THE “COMFORT ZONE” OF GENDER INEQUALITY: A REFLECTION
No full textGlobally, gender inequality has remained a persistent problem confronting humanity. The global community recognizes it as “an unfinished business of our time”. Despite centuries of efforts, the World Economic Forum Global Gender Gaps reported in June 2024 that achieving gender equality in all regions may not be possible until the year 2158. While diverse factors are known to contribute to gender inequality, this paper argues that gender inequality persists because gender inequality is a “comfort zone”. Making use of documentary sources including relevant examples of how “this” comfort zone plays out in gender relations and interactions between men and women, especially in Africa, the author tries to establish the theory of the comfort zone of gender inequality. Findings revealed that gender inequality is beneficial to the powers-that-be, and being in a comfort zone of gender inequality is a choice. In other words, the choice to keep gender inequality alive is a rational one and it is authoritative power that sustains it. Given “the comfort” that goes with gender inequality, it then follows that commitment to gender equality is often low, making the efforts to achieve gender equality a struggle all over the world. It is therefore recommended that feminists and human activists keep up with the struggle because, just like sit-tight presidents who find it difficult to transfer power or leave office, those in the comfort zone of gender inequality would not want to leave the zone, as it is a “familiar” terrain. Thus, a need for more “push” and a consistent struggle to achieve gender equality
Heavy metal intrusion and geospatial analysis of groundwater resources in Isoko North Local Government Area, Delta State, Nigeria.
No full textAbstract
This study examined the spatial variation in the intrusion of heavy metals in underground water resources of Isoko North Local Government Area, Delta State, where it conducted a comparative study from ten (10) spatially distributed boreholes, for possible intrusion of the pathogen. The data that was produced were subjected to Heavy Metal Index (HMI) technique to analyse the significant contamination rate in the samples extracted from the study area (using the World Health Organisation Standard and the Nigerian Standard for Drinking Water Quality as the Control Variable). The result of the analysis showed that the undergroundwater there has slightly higher concentrations of Iron and lead than any other parameters. Lead (Ppm) has a range of values of 0.11 to 0.18, with areas like Owhelogho (0.18), Iyede (0.18) and Ellu (0.17) having higher values than others. The range of value for Iron (Ppm) is 0.31 to 0.43, with all the areas having significant values slightly higher than the WHO and NSDWQ standard of 0.3. The study identified places where heavy metals intrusion is prevalent, also a substantial association between pollutant from host rocks and groundwater supplies. The heavy metal index evaluation revealed a class "II" grade, indicating the presence of lead and iron oxide in modest quantities, although its presence is a cause for concern for the well-being of borehole water consumers.The statistics are quite close to the next class on the indexing chart, which is "slightly affected". Any small infiltration raises the stakes to the next level