ghanaopendata/ghanaian-research-english huggingface dataset:
Solar Powered Automatic Waste Management System using LoRaWAN

Solid waste segregation is essential in waste management. This project seeks to present a method of separating four kinds of wastes; metal waste, plastic waste, solid wet waste and paper waste. A short message is sent using LoRaWAN technology to the waste collector alerting him on the status of the waste in the bin. The project has a front ultrasonic sensor which detects the presence of a person 40cm to the bin and then automatically opens the bin for the person to drop the waste. Three sensors made up of inductive and capacitive proximity sensor and a moisture sensor are employed in the dump tray to detect whether the waste is metal, paper or a wet substance and subsequently direct the waste to the appropriate bin. Four other ultrasonic sensors are fitted on top of each of the individual bins to determine the level of the waste in the bins. These four sensors are linked to the front sensor to automatically shut the bin to prevent further addition of waste. A 12volt 60watts solar panel is used to power the system through a lithium rechargeable battery. This project will go a long way to solve the waste challenges wwe have in schools, hotels, hospitals and churches

Source: UG
Soldiers in Civilian Uniforms: The Role of the Military in the Pursuit of Third-Termism

Abstract Militaries are to defend national territorial integrity, protect the citizenry, uphold the constitution and play a supportive role in upholding the democratic ideals of a country. However, some militaries across African countries have defined their roles differently, relying on the instrumentality of force to engage in politics and thereby subvert the people’s right to self-determination and suppress democratic freedoms. The result has been an endless tale of militarism in African politics and an undermining of democratic governance on the continent. Militarism in African politics has manifested itself overtly and covertly. Overtly, mainly through coups d’état, merrcenary activities and civil wars. Covertly, the military’s role in African politics has involved lending support to politicians who refuse to leave after losing elections; or, after exhausting their term in office and manipulating the constitution to extend their stay in power (third-termism). The focus of this chapter is on the support the military expresses or has expressed for third-termism.

Source: UG
Solid medical waste: a cross sectional study of household disposal practices and reported harm in Southern Ghana

Background: Solid medical waste (SMW) in households is perceived to pose minimal risks to the public compared to SMW generated from healthcare facilities. While waste from healthcare facilities is subject to recommended safety measures to minimize risks to human health and the environment, similar waste in households is often untreated and co-mingled with household waste which ends up in landfills and open dumps in many African countries. In Ghana, the management of this potentially hazardous waste stream at household and community level has not been widely reported. The objective of this study was to investigate household disposal practices and harm resulting from SMW generated in households and the community. Methods: A cross-sectional questionnaire survey of 600 households was undertaken in Ga South Municipal Assembly in Accra, Ghana from mid-April to June, 2014. Factors investigated included socio-demographic characteristics, medication related practices, the belief that one is at risk of diseases associated with SMW, SMW disposal practices and reported harm associated with SMW at home and in the community. Results: Eighty percent and 89% of respondents discarded unwanted medicines and sharps in household refuse bins respectively. A corresponding 23% and 35% of respondents discarded these items without a container. Harm from SMW in the household and in the community was reported by 5% and 3% of respondents respectively. Persons who believed they were at risk of diseases associated with SMW were nearly three times more likely to report harm in the household (OR 2.75, 95%CI 1.15-6.54). Conclusion: The belief that one can be harmed by diseases associated with SMW influenced reporting rates in the study area. Disposal practices suggest the presence of unwanted medicines and sharps in the household waste stream conferring on it hazardous properties. Given the low rates of harm reported, elimination of preventable harm might justify community intervention. © 2017 The Author(s).

Source: UG
Solid state fermentation of maize (Zea mays) cob by Pleurotus ostreatus strain EM-1: Biopolymer profiles and cellulose degradability

The low digestibility and low protein content of maize cob are major limitations to its use as animal feed in Ghana. The possibility of enhancing the feed potential of maize cob through solid state fermentation by Pleurotus ostreatus strain EM-1 was investigated. At the end of spawn run, lignin, cellulose and hemicelluloses content had decreased by 42.3, 5.6% and 41.0% respectively. No further reduction in lignin content occurred thereafter. In contrast, after 28 days, cellulose and hemicellulose had been degraded by 36.0% and 58.5% respectively. A biphasic protein profile, characterized by a 6-fold increase by day 14, followed by a dramatic decline was observed. The rate of release of reducing sugars from spent maize cobs during incubation with exogenous cellulase was 400% greater than that of untreated maize cobs. The present findings indicate that the positive effects of P. ostreatus strain EM-1 on the nutritive value of maize cob appear to be optimal after complete colonization by mycelia. At this stage, maximum biodegradation of lignin had occurred, protein content was markedly elevated and the reduction in cellulose content was negligible. Thus, solid state fermentation by Pleurotus ostreatus strain EM-1 may be an efficient means of transforming maize cob into nutritive animal feed.

Source: UG
Solid waste management in African cities: Sorting the facts from the fads in Accra, Ghana

Municipal solid waste management continues to be an environmental health burden in many African cities. Overwhelmed with the magnitude of the problem, city authorities tend to seek out 'environmentally friendly' but costly "win-win" technologies via public-private partnerships with firms often from the North, yet these technologies may be inappropriate for the local conditions. While the authorities' intentions may be laudable, the approach may be born out from an empirical vacuum. Using case studies from Accra, we illustrate how investments in new solid waste management technologies may well be ill-fated if the requisite waste stream composition data does not exist to justify such investments. We also highlight the importance of recognizing the innovations of "informal" waste pickers and legitimizing them with the formal system. Until the evidence - along with appropriate institutional and financial instruments - show favorable conditions for investing in advanced waste management technologies, authorities in African cities would do well to consider integrating proven innovations taking place in their own "backyard.". © 2012 Elsevier Ltd.

Source: UG
Solid Waste Management in Ghana -Beneficiaries Willingness to Pay for Improved Services

Recent rapid urbanization and changing lifestyles have created serious environmental problems in most cities in the developing world, especially in the area of solid waste management and financing. This study analyzes the factors that influences household’s willingness-to-pay for improved solid waste management. Using a stratified random sampling technique, a total of 920 households were selected for the study and then a logit model-based contingent valuation method employed to estimate their willingness-to-pay for improved services. The results indicated that all the variables but the household size had significant influence on respondents’ willingness-to-pay. It also revealed a potentially large market segment of households in low-income areas prepared to pay for improved services, which is yet to be tapped into. The study opined that with proper policies, the exploitation of this potential market can help disburden the authorities’ total municipal budget. It thus calls for policy interventions through the use of the socio-economic characteristics to draw comprehensive market segments for waste collection instead of the current zoning patterns which failed to take cognizance of intra-zonal differentials.

Source: UG
Solid Waste Management in Ghana: Willingness to Pay for Improved Services.

Recent rapid urbanization and changing lifestyles have created serious environmental problems in most cities in the developing world, especially in the area of solid waste management and financing. This study analyzes the factors that influences household’s willingness-to-pay for improved solid waste management. Using a stratified random sampling technique, a total of 920 households were selected for the study and then a logit model-based contingent valuation method employed to estimate their willingness-to-pay for improved services. The results indicated that all the variables but the household size had significant influence on respondents’ willingness-to-pay. It also revealed a potentially large market segment of households in low-income areas prepared to pay for improved services, which is yet to be tapped into. The study opined that with proper policies, the exploitation of this potential market can help disburden the authorities’ total municipal budget. It thus calls for policy interventions through the use of the socio-economic characteristics to draw comprehensive market segments for waste collection instead of the current zoning patterns which failed to take cognizance of intra-zonal differentials

Source: UG
Solidification cracking susceptibility of ferritic stainless steels using Modified Varestraint Transvarestraint (MVT) method

The Modified Varestraint Transvarestraint (MVT) test was used to investigate the solidification cracking susceptibility of an unstabilised, a Nb-stabilised and two (Ti + Nb) dual-stabilised ferritic stainless steels. Two different welding speeds of 6 and 3 mm/s using autogenous gas tungsten arc welding were employed. At the welding speed of 6 mm/s, the high-content (Ti + Nb) steel was resistant and the Nb-stabilised steel was marginally susceptible to solidification cracking. At the welding speed of 3 mm/s, the Nb and the high (Ti + Nb) steels were found to be marginally susceptible to solidification cracking while the unstabilised and low-content (Ti + Nb) grades were resistant to solidification cracking. The weld metal microstructures transverse to the welding direction revealed columnar grains in all the samples for both welding speeds. The ferritic stainless steels were generally resistant to solidification cracking, except the Nb-stabilised steel, which was marginally susceptible to solidification cracking.

Source: UG
Solidification Morphology and Bifurcation Predictions with the Maximum Entropy Production Rate Model

The use of the principle of maximum entropy generation per unit volume is a new approach in materials science that has implications for understanding the morphological evolution during solid–liquid interface growth, including bifurcations with or without di useness. A review based on a pre-publication arXiv preprint is first presented. A detailed comparison with experimental observations indicates that the Maximum Entropy Production Rate-density model (MEPR) can correctly predict bifurcations for dilute alloys during solidification. The model predicts a critical di useness of the interface at which a plane-front or any other form of di use interface will become unstable. A further confidence test for the model is o ered in this article by comparing the predicted liquid di usion coe cients to those obtained experimentally. A comparison of the experimentally determined solute di usion constant in dilute binary Pb–Sn alloys with those predicted by the various solidification instability models (1953–2011) is additionally discussed. A good predictability is noted for the MEPR model when the interface di useness is small. In comparison, the more traditional interface break-down models have low predictiveness.

Source: UG
Soluble factors from plasmodium falciparum-infected erythrocytes induce apoptosis in human brain vascular endothelial and neuroglia cells

The severity of malaria is multi-factorial. It is associated with parasite-induced alteration in pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokine and chemokine levels in host serum and cerebrospinal fluid. It is also associated with sequestration and cytoadherence of parasitized erythrocytes (pRBCs) in post-capillary venules and blood-brain barrier (BBB) dysfunction. The role of these factors in development of vascular injury and tissue damage in malaria patients is unclear. While some studies indicate a requirement for pRBC adhesion to vascular endothelial cells (ECs) in brain capillaries to induce apoptosis and BBB damage, others show no role of apoptosis resulting from adhesion of pRBC to EC. In the present study, the hypothesis that soluble factors from Plasmodium falciparum-infected erythrocytes induce apoptosis in human brain vascular endothelial (HBVEC) and neuroglia cells (cellular components of the BBB) was tested. Apoptotic effects of parasitized (pRBC) and non-parasitized erythrocyte (RBC) conditioned medium on HBVEC and neuroglia cells were determined in vitro by evaluating nuclear DNA fragmentation (TUNEL assay) in cultured cells. Soluble factors from P. falciparum-infected erythrocytes in conditioned medium induced extensive DNA fragmentation in both cell lines, albeit to a greater extent in HBVEC than neuroglia, indicating that extended exposure to high levels of these soluble factors in serum may be associated with vascular, neuronal and tissue injury in malaria patients. © 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Source: UG
Soluble FcɛRI: A biomarker for IgE‐mediated diseases

The Department of Parasitology conducts research into parasitic diseases of public health importance with the overall goal of reducing their transmission and the heavy disease burden that they impose on affected populations. The Department maintains focus on parasitic diseases in general. These include major diseases such as malaria, and others listed under the Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTD) control initiative such as, lymphatic filariasis, onchocerciasis, schistosomiasis, soil-transmitted helminthiasis, trypanosomiasis and leishmaniasis.

Source: UG
Solutions Journalism as a Tool to Erode Polarisation in the Media and Society

In many African countries where people are brutally divided along ethnic, political and religious lines, a polarised media is likely to worsen the status quo. In this reflective essay, we explore what solutions journalism is and make a case for its application in journalism practice. We argue that the application of the six approaches to reporting on issues that polarise society has the potential to offer relevant solutions to societal problems, erode polarisation in the media and make journalism more relevant to society.

Source: UG
Solving the Coloring Problem in Half-Heusler Structures: Machine-Learning Predictions and Experimental Validation

The site preferences within the structures of half-Heusler compounds have been evaluated through a machine-learning approach. A support-vector machine algorithm was applied to develop a model which was trained on 179 experimentally reported structures and 23 descriptors based solely on the chemical composition. The model gave excellent performance, with sensitivity of 93%, selectivity of 96%, and accuracy of 95%. As an illustration of data sanitization, two compounds (GdPtSb, HoPdBi) flagged by the model to have potentially incorrect site assignments were resynthesized and structurally characterized. The predictions of the correct site assignments from the machine-learning model were confirmed by single-crystal and powder X-ray diffraction analysis. These site assignments also corresponded to the lowest total energy configurations as revealed from first-principles calculations

Source: UG
Somalia: An Anti-Thesis of the Western Conception of Failed States?

Failed States” do not necessarily produce terrorists as the evidence from Somalia clearly shows. Regrettably, the fight against terrorists often posits a causal nexus between “Failed States” and terrorism. Even though there may be some iota of truth in this claim, it is essentially a parochial as well as reductionist view that does not allow the emergence of locally evolved legitimate authority like the Union of Islamic Courts to deal with issues of security. This paper reviews the concept of failed states and its supposed results of anarchy, conflict and safe-haven for terrorists. Using the US policy towards Somalia as a case study, it points out the flaws in the concept of “Failed States” and argues that these flaws when not fully dealt with, may affect any meaningful global effort to counter terrorism and to deal with human security issues that arise as a state is classified as “failed” or “collapsed”

Source: UG
Some aspects of the biology and control using botanicals of the rice moth, Corcyra cephalonica (Stainton), on some pulses

The life cycle of Corcyra cephalonica was studied under ambient laboratory conditions (temperature range 27.5-30°C and 60-73% r.h.) on groundnut, bambara groundnut and cowpea. The mean developmental period ranged from 33.2 ± 0.2 to 45.3 ± 1.8 days on whole, broken and powdered forms of the food media. Egg hatchability was found to be 83%, while adult longevity ranged from 1.5 ± 0.5 to 11.9 ± 1.3 days for males and 1.5 ± 0.5 to 16.5 ± 1.2 days for females. Sex ratio (♂:♀) of emerged adults ranged from 1:1 to 1:2.1. Mean fecundities ranged from 128 ± 5 to 157 ± 8 on the food media. In experiments to assess the insecticidal potential of three plant materials against C. cephalonica, Eichhornia crassipes powder showed a higher efficacy than both Citrus sinensis peel powder and the leaf powder of Chromolaena odorata at dosages of 0.5-2.0 g per 40 g of legume seed. At the higher dosage of 2.5 g, C. sinensis was more effective and reduced the population of C. cephalonica by half when compared to the population in control jars over a period of 1.5 months. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd.

Source: UG
Some benefits of migrants' return visits to Ghana

This paper explores some of the benefits associated with expatriates' temporary return visits to Ghana. These return trips to one's place of origin or birth, commonly referred to as 'visiting friends and relatives' (VFR) tourism, represent one of the major outcomes of the migration-tourism nexus. The benefits assessed in this study relate to donations, expenditures and investments made in Ghana by these visiting expatriates. Using two datasets derived from newspaper content analyses on donations made in Ghana by visiting non-resident Ghanaians, and the other a questionnaire interview schedule organised in the United Kingdom for resident Ghanaians on their expenditure and investment outlays during their most recent visit, a number of pertinent issues are investigated. Some of these issues relate to the quantity, timing and beneficiaries of donations, as well as their spatial distribution and their potential for poverty alleviation. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Source: UG
Some Carleson measures for the Hilbert–Hardy space of tube domains over symmetric cones

In this note, we obtain a full characterization of radial Carleson measures for the Hilbert-Hardy space on tube domains over symmetric cones. For large derivatives, we also obtain a full characterization of the measures for which the corresponding embedding operator is continuous. Restricting to the case of light cones of dimension three, we prove that by freezing one or two variables, the problem of embedding derivatives of the Hilbert-Hardy space into Lebesgue spaces reduces to the characterization of Carleson measures for Hilbert-Bergman spaces of the upper-half plane or the product of two upper-half planes.

Source: UG
Some constraints of ruminant livestock production in the Coastal Savannah Plains of Ghana

Semi-structured questionnaires were administered to 102 randomly chosen ruminant livestock farmers in the Coastal Savannah Plains of Ghana to determine their production practices and the main production constraints. The involvement of women in livestock production in the Coastal Savannah Plains of Ghana was low (15 %). Forty-nine percent of ruminant livestock keepers interviewed had only one type of animal and among those with more than one, the combination of cattle and goats formed the majority. In all, there were more goat keepers than cattle and sheep keepers. Majority of goat and sheep keepers hold between 1 and 10 animals while majority of cattle keepers had more than 20 animals. In the dry season, 41% of cattle farmers graze their animals within village boundaries, 41% relocated animals 5 -20 km away and 18 % herded cattle to places 1.5 – 6.4 km daily. The most important disease problem of the small ruminants was found to be Peste de petite ruminants (PPR) while that of cattle was dermatophilosis.

Source: UG
Some Demographic Characteristics of two rural communities in Southern Ghana

A study of the demographic characteristics of two rural villages in Southern Ghana in 1987 showed an average rate of natural population increase of 3.8 percent compared to 3.2 per cent recorded nationally (1984 census data). The crude death rates and Infant Mortality rates were far lower than the figures usually quoted, although the birth rate was similar to the national average. It is suggested that if such rates exist in similar villages in Ghana, then official projections are underestimates and will have grave consequences on national development plans. It appears that Primary Health Care (PHC) has succeeded in reducing deaths but has not affected births. Family planning must, therefore, receive more attention.

Source: UG
Some effects of the medicinal plant kalanchoe pinnata.

The hepatoprotective and choleretic effects of Kalanchoe pinnata syrup prepared from its extract were studied using the rat model of toxic hepatitis, produced by the administration of the hepatotoxic compound 50% solution of carbon tetrachloride. The syrup was introduced in a dosage of 30 mg/kg. After the administration of syrup Kalanchoe (per os) in rats with toxic hepatitis, the following enzymes considered to be informative during toxic hepatitis were determined: alanine transaminase, alkaline phosphatase and triglycerides. The cholagogic (choleretic) effect was determined by cannulating the common bile duct and determining the amount and content of bile produced within three hours. The antimicrobial activity of the syrup was determined using a microbial inhibition assay. The Kalanchoe syrup was seen to normalize the level of alaninetransaminase, alkaline phosphatase and triglycerides in the animals with toxic hepatitis and increase the secretion of bile with the contents of cholesterine. Acids and the cholato-cholesteric coefficient in the bile remained unchanged. The syrup was found to react with some strains of Staphylococcus aureus and Escherchia coli. This finding demonstrates the hepatoprotective, choleretic and antimicrobial activity of syrup Kalanchoe.

Source: UG
Some Eighteenth-Century Documents Concerning Eastern Africa in the Archives de France

During the summer of 1964, with the kind assistance of a grant from the Institute of African Studies of the University of Ghana, the writer was able to make some further searches in the Archives de France for documents concerning the eastern African Coast. The object of this present paper is to give a brief description of the results, which brought to light more than sixty fresh documents which throw some light upon the history of eastern African during what is still a most obscure period.

Source: UG