2021

The study examined on the perception of mass media as tools for sensitizing the public about infectious pandemic: a case study of corona virus in Benin City, Nigeria. Survey method was adopted and the instrument used for data collection was the questionnaire. Using the Taro Yameni formula, 400 people were sampled from the population of 1,495,800 in Benin City being the capital of Edo state, these Statistic figures of 2016 population census, during the cause of this survey. 400 questionnaires were distributed through the city and all 342 were retrieved. Data collected was analyzed in tables and simple percentages. The media play an important role in the dissemination of information on the 2019 novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. The novel Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), first identified in Wuhan China in December2019, has rapidly spread to almost every region of the world. To prevent spread of the virus, civil societies and government agencies embarked on enlightenment campaigns for good hygiene and social distancing. However, it is important to measure whether the population is receiving information that calms it down, as well as whether such news are in accordance with the magnitude of the issue. This study assessed knowledge and perceptions about COVID-19 among the general public in Nigeria during the initial week of the pandemic lockdown in the country. The findings affirm that Nigerians are highly knowledgeable about COVID-19 and their premier sources of information about the pandemic is the social media. Covid -19 pandemic is one of the major public health concerns in the country. Using the mass media in creating the awareness through the media campaign of breast cancer has become imperative.

This study, investigated efficacy of self- instructional therapy in managing truancy among secondary school students in Oredo local government area of Edo State. The study also examined the effects of parental socioeconomic status and sex on truancy among secondary school students in Oredo Local Government Area of Edo State. To address the problem of the study, five research questions were raised and formulated into four hypotheses, and were tested at 0.05 level of significance. This study adopted pre-test, post-test, non-equivalent control group and Quasi experimental research design. The target population of the study consisted of all the thirteen thousand and fifty one (13,051) senior secondary school students from the fourteen (14) public
senior secondary schools in Oredo local government area of Edo State. A sample size of two hundred (200) students made up of one hundred males and one hundred females were selected using balloting without replacement. The standardized questionnaire adapted from Ehindero (2015) titled: Students Level of Truancy Questionnaire (SLTQ) was used by the researcher with two sessions, A and B and administered to the students in their various schools to evaluate truancy level among students. This instrument was validated by the researcher’s supervisor and two other lecturers in the Department of Educational Evaluation and Counselling Psychology (EECP). The reliability of the instrument was determined using Cronbach alpha statistics and it yielded a reliability coefficient of 0.64. Data were analyzed using the two way ANOVA, descriptive statistics of mean and standard deviation. The findings of the study revealed that there is a significant difference in the pre-test and post-test scores in truancy level among secondary school students exposed to Self- Instructional Therapy; there is a significant difference in the pre-test and post-test scores in truancy level among secondary school students exposed to Self -Instructional Therapy and those in the Control Group; there is no significant interaction effect of treatment by sex on the level of truancy among secondary school students in Oredo Local Government Area of Edo State, and there is no significant interaction effect of treatment by Parental Socio-Economic Status on the level of truancy among secondary school students in Oredo Local Government Area of Edo State. Based on the findings, it was recommended among others that, experts in the field of counselling psychologist should train and retrain students on the use of self–instructional therapy because of its effectiveness in managing students with truant behaviour.

Reports have shown that extracts of Detarium Microcarpum possess potent pharmacological properties. The aim of this research was to investigate the in vitro antisickling property of ethyl acetate extracts of Detarium Microcarpum stem bark. The stem bark was first ground to powder and soaked in ethyl acetate to obtain an ethyl acetate soluble fraction. The sickling of the red blood cells (RBCs) was introduced using sodium metabisulphite followed by treatment with ethyl acetate extract, Phosphate buffer saline and p-hydroxybenzoic acid. Sickling of red cells occur as a result of polymerization of deoxygenated HbS molecules, so that, they become stacked linearly. In vitro studies have revealed that plant extracts altered the polymerization of deoxyHbS molecules. Therefore, the present study was aimed at determining the effect of Detarium microcarpum stem back on haemoglobin polymerization. About 5ml of venous blood was collected from each Sickle cell patient with a sterile syringe. The blood samples were washed thrice with Phosphate Buffered Saline (PBS) using standard procedures and the resulting packed cell was used for haemoglobin polymerization assay. Detarium microcarpum is a legume tree shrub belonging to the family of Fabacae. Its roots, stem bark, leaves and fruits are known to possess medicinal properties. The in vitro haemoglobin polymerization properties of Ethyl Acetate (EA) fraction of D. microcarpum stem bark was evaluated using blood samples obtained from forty confirmed sickle cell disease patients using standard techniques. At the end of the research it was observed that D. microcarpum extract significantly (p<0.05) reduced polymerization of haemoglobin at t/90min with a reduction of about 46.05% when compared to the control (PBS+HbSS Blood sample) which was 90%. This was most significant (p<0.05) at t/40min which was 20% and t/90min which was 46.05% against the control which was 25% and 90%. A similar trend was also observed when D. microcarpum extract was compared to the standard (p-hydrozybenzoic acid; reference antisickling drug) with a significant xi (p<0.05) percentage reduction of 70% at t/90min when compared to the Control. This result shows an inhibition of haemoglobin polymerization in the test group treated with D. microcarpum. Conclusively, the study showed that the extract of Detarium Microcarpum exacerbated polymerization of deoxyHbS molecules in a concentration and time dependent manner. The Ethyl Acetate extract of Detarium Microcarpum demonstrated the most significant antisickling effect with a potential for use in the clinical management of Sickle Cell Disease (SCD).

This study evaluated the effects of spent crude oil on the growth and development of two cocoyam species (Colocasia esculenta [L.] Schott. and Xanthosoma sagitifolim [L.] Schott.] as well as the microbiological, proximate and phytochemical compostion of soil and cocoyam species. Cocoyam corms from both species were collected from different markets in Benin City while the spent crude oil was obtained from mechanic workshop. 250kg of loamy soil was mixed with 10 litres of spent oil, the same treatment was carried out for the other respective treatment 7 litres, 3 litres and the control which was without oil. Then 25kg of the various soil treatment was transferred into the perforated bowls. After which the corm was planted into the bowl, then the plant was monitored for eight months. After eight month the plant that was given control treatment had the highest plant height (75.5 cm). The plants grown on spent oil contaminated soil had better body mass compared to those grown on soil without any contaminants. The microbiological and phytochemical analysis of the control and contaminated soil and cocoyam species was done using standard laboratory methods. The result of the fungi associated with cocoyam revealed a colony-forming unit of between 64×105 and 127×105. The group of fungi mainly associated with the different cocoyam samples obtained from the different markets in Benin City was mainly Aspergillus and Penicillum species. The Aspergillus sp. was more diverse based on their morphological description on PDA when compared to the Penicillum sp. The percentage occurrence of the Penicillium sp. was found to be higher than those of the Aspergillus sp. in all the cocoyam samples analyzed. The results of the proximate values of the Taro samples revealed the presence of carbohydrates, protein, fat, fibre and ash in varying amounts while the results of the phytochemicals revealed the presence of saponin, tannins, alkaloids, flavonoids and polyphenol. Cocoyam contains food compounds that are beneficial and also of economic importance to man. However, there is the need to conserve this food substance against fungal infestation so that its full economic value can be harnessed. Most importantly, the results from the study revealed that the growth and development of cocoyam are affected by spent crude oil pollution of soil. More study is required to elucidate the potential effects and bioremediation potentials of the crops.

Entrepreneurial activities among the youth population is a panacea for unemployment. This paper provides findings on the factors that influence and motivate student entrepreneurship among undergraduate students in University of Benin. Results were gotten on the influence of various factors on engagement in entrepreneurial activities; the gender differences are also presented. The results showed that the social environment including the academic environment serve as a source of influence or motivation for students to be involved in entrepreneurial activities. Engagement in entrepreneurial activity is beneficial to the students in socializing, having financial back up and developing themselves. Findings suggest a relatively low entrepreneurial engagement among students with significant differences across gender.

Color detection is a simple task for humans, but for computers it is not easy. In any industry, individual effort has to be implemented when a computer is dealing with colors. Previous system has primarily relied on paid labor input and manually color-coding items or any given data which most of the time could be monotonous and painstaking. Hence, this project developed a deep learning mechanism program for detection of multiple color in real-time using Python which is a high-level general-purpose programming language and Open-Source Computer Library (OpenCV). The Proposed system provides any computer device the ability to recognize multiple colors in real-time which can be useful in various industries such as big pharma, self-driving vehicle manufacturing companies and robotics which will reduce production time and significantly cut down paid labor expenses

In this paper, a wireless power transmission (WPT) using resonant magnetic coupling for mobile phone charger is presented. Solar energy was used as the energy source to address the scarcity of non-renewable energy sources and
tackles the constraints of wired charging technology such as lack of universal electrical standard, untidiness and inconvenience of wires and wires' wear and tear. The system includes PV panels and battery, oscillator, transmitting coil and receiving coil and rectifier. Proteus 8.1 was used to simulate before implementing in the hardware. The resonant magnetic coupling resonated at 800 kHz ± 10 kHz. The maximum distance to charge a mobile phone was 4 cm at 3.7 V. All the objectives are achieved within the limited time frame. The significance of the project can help to eradicate the use of wires and the need of power plugs. The future research includes the study of efficiency, coil design, system with multiple loads.

The research was carried out at the Faculty of Agriculture, University of Benin to investigate the availability of soil phosphorus resulting from microbial inoculation in an Ultisol with maize as the test crop. The experiment was laid out in a Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) in three replications comprising; T1 (control), T2 (NPK15:15:15) and T3 (NPK15:15:15 + Bacillus sp)., to give a total of nine experimental plots measuring 2.5m x2.5m used for the investigation. Results from the work showed a significant effect (P=0.05) of NPK + Bacillus sp on the grain yield (8.7g/18.75m2) of maize than that of the uninoculated treatments (7.7g/18.75m2- 6.6g/18.72m2); while no significant differences were observed in the plant parameters measured until week8 where the leaf area (509.0 cm3) of the inoculated plants (T3) was significantly better than the values observed for T1 (350.7 cm) and T2 (420.3cm) respectively.

In this study, the differential effect of one and two weeks exposure to carbendazim on renal toxicity in rat was carried out. Twenty male rats were grouped into control and test group. The rats were labelled using picric acid and weight of individual rats were taken using a weighing balance and recorded as initial weight. The control group was orally administered 1% tween 80 using a gavage, while the test group was orally administered 200mg/kg body weight of Carbendazim dissolved in 1% tween 80 (acts as vehicle) using a gavage. oral administrations were done once and the rats were monitored for a period of 1-2 weeks and observations were recorded. After one week of Carbendazim exposure, five (5) rats from each group were anaesthesized in chamber containing Chloroform and blood was collected by cardiac puncture. The kidneys were excised, trimmed free of connective tissues and weighed. One kidney from each group was immersed in formalin and used for histopatholigical study while the remaining kidneys were stored at -4 0c until needed for biochemical studies. The parameters measured were; Superoxide Dismutase, Catalase ,Malondialdehyde ,Urea and Creatinine. There was no significant change (p>0.05) in kidney weight of rats when compared with the normal control but the weight of kidney decreased significantly (p<0.05). Increase in MDA levels were not significant (p>0.05)in carbendazim treated groups compared with normal control after 7days and 14 days respectively. The elevation in Catalse activity after 7 days was not significant(P>0.05) in Carbendazim treated group when compared to the control but Catalase activity increased significantly (P<0.05)after 14 days which may be an indicator of the body trying to alleviate oxidative stress. increased Superoxide Dismutase (SOD) is beneficial in event of increased free radical production. SOD levels increased significantly (p<0.05)in carbendazim treated rats compared with the control after 7days of Carbendazim exposure. The significant increase in Urea and Creatinine levels in the blood may be attributed to Carbendazim toxicity. Creatinine levels increased significantly (p<0.05) after 7 days in carbendazim treated group compared with the normal control. After 14 days, the increase in Creatinine levels was not significant (p>0.05) in Carbendazim treated group compared with control. In histopathological examination, Ultra-structural changes were observed in the kidney of rats treated with carbendazim compared to those of control. Inflammatory infiltrates and tubular necrosis which indicates damage to kidney tubules were observed in the kidney of carbendazim treated rats (plate 2 and plate 4) after 7 days and 14days respectively

This study empirically examined the impact of external debt burden on infrastructural growth in Nigeria from 1981-2018. Being a time series data, and to avoid spurious regression result in our model, a test for stationary of the data using Augmented Dickey-Fuller unit root test was carried out. The variables; infrastructural growth, domestic debt, external debt, exchange rate, and interest rate were found to be stationary at their first differences. Then, an ARDL Bound Co-integration technique was used to establish if the stationary variables are co-integrated in the long-run. The finding indicates that the variables were found to be co-integrated in the long run. Further, an ARDL was employed to obtain long run coefficients of the respective regressors. The ARDL result revealed that Domestic Debt (negative impact), Exchange Rate (negative impact), and Interest Rate (positive impact) exerts a significant influence on infrastructural growth while External Debt (positive impact) was found to be insignificantly related to the growth of infrastructures in Nigeria. It recommends amongst others, that the government should as a matter of priority create more favourable institutional policy and regulatory framework to meet up these challenges. On the whole, there is need for the policymakers to adopt policy framework consistent with availability of external finance that is credibly maintained. Conclusively, infrastructure growth is one of major elements of structural reforms in developing economy like Nigeria because of its expected large economic and social impact.