Further Reflecting on the Six-Year Primary Project of the Institute of Education, University of Ife: The Key Players

African linguistic complexity is often defined in terms of its multilingualism and a complicated colonial sociolinguistic heritage. Tis colonial heritage is seen in the prevalence of European languages, especially English and French, in the lingual Franca of sub-Saharan states. A corollary to the latter assertion is that education in Africa, south of the Sahara, is primarily Eurocentric and quite unAfrican in context. More often than not, it is disempowering rather than empowering if we go by Paulo Freire’s notion of education as being central to empowerment and poor education as the primary agent and metaphoric vehicle for modern day disempowerment, a knowledge base that does not liberate the mind or embrace the cognitive progression of the learner.1 After all, the original goal of colonial education was to train the “natives” in European languages so as to be able to communicate with and, ipso facto, serve their colonial “masters,” and help him to rule the same “natives.” The proverbial “Food for the slave” is relevant here; and as the saying goes, “it is not given to provide the slave nourishment or enhance good growth, but to provide just enough energy to keep on serving the malevolent master.” Such is the unfortunate paradigm that captures the essence of colonial education in which the lingua franca of the indigenous learner is not only backgrounded but altogether demonized in some cases. Otherwise, how else could the common warning in the typical colonial classroom “Vernacular speaking is prohibited”? The so-called “vernacular” in question is the Yoruba language!

Experimental and Numerical Study of Thermal Performance of an Innovative Waste Heat Recovery System

One of the biggest challenges the world is facing these days is to reduce the greenhouse gases emissions in order to prevent the global warming. Since a significant quantity of CO2 emissions is the result of the energy producing process required in industry or buildings, the waste heat recovery is an important aspect in the fight for preserving the planet. In this study, an innovative waste heat recovery system which can recover waste heat energy from cooling liquids used in industry or in different processes, was designed and subjected to experimental investigations. The equipment uses heat pipes to capture thermal energy from the residual fluids transiting the evaporator zone and transfer it to the cold water transiting the condenser zone. The efficiency of the heat exchanger was tested in 9 scenarios, by varying the temperature of the primary agent to 60, 65 and 70 °C and the volume flow rate of the secondary agent to 1, 2 and 3 L/min. The temperature of the secondary agent and the volume flow rate of the primary agent were kept constant at 10 °C, respectively 24 L/min. The results were later validated through numerical simulations, and confirmed that the equipment can easily recover waste thermal energy from used water with low and medium temperatures at very low costs compared to the traditional heat exchangers. The results were promising, revealing an efficiency of the equipment up to 76.7%.

Transfer of Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae-specific cell mediated immunity to neonatal piglets

Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae is the primary agent of enzootic pneumonia in pigs. Although cell mediated immunity (CMI) may play a role in protection against M. hyopneumoniae, its transfer from sows to their offspring is poorly characterized. Therefore, maternally-derived CMI was studied in piglets from vaccinated and non-vaccinated sows. The potential influence of cross-fostering before colostrum ingestion on the transfer of CMI from dam to piglets was also investigated. Six M. hyopneumoniae vaccinated sows from an endemically infected herd and 47 of their piglets, of which 24 piglets were cross-fostered, were included, as well as three non-vaccinated control sows from an M. hyopneumoniae-free herd and 24 of their piglets. Vaccinated sows received a commercial bacterin intramuscularly at 6 and 3 weeks prior to farrowing. The TNF-α, IFN-γ and IL-17A production by different T-cell subsets in blood of sows, colostrum and blood of piglets was assessed using a recall assay. In blood of sows cytokine producing T-cells were increased upon M. hyopneumoniae vaccination. Similarly, M. hyopneumoniae-specific T-cells were detected in blood of 2-day-old piglets born from these vaccinated sows. In contrast, no M. hyopneumoniae-specific cytokine producing T-cells were found in blood of piglets from control sows. No difference was found in M. hyopneumoniae-specific CMI between cross-fostered and non-cross-fostered piglets. In conclusion, different M. hyopneumoniae-specific T-cell subsets are transferred from the sow to the offspring. Further studies are required to investigate the role of these transferred cells on immune responses in piglets and their potential protective effect against M. hyopneumoniae infections.

Genetic diversity and transmission patterns of Echinococcus granulosus sensu stricto among domestic ungulates of Sardinia, Italy

Cystic echinococcosis (CE), a parasitic zoonosis of public health and economic concern, is highly endemic in Sardinia, Italy. The study involved examining the intraspecific variability and demographic structure of Echinococcus granulosussensu stricto (s.s.) in common hosts of this parasite. Molecular surveillance included the fragment amplification of a partial mitochondrial gene, cox1 (750 bp), for a total of 69 isolates derived from sheep (n = 52), cattle (n = 11), pigs (n = 4), and goats (n = 2). It was ascertained that E. granulosus s.s. was the primary agent of infection among these ungulates and G1 genotype was highly prevalent (79.71%). Considerable intraspecific variation was found, revealing the existence of 22 haplotypes with relatively high haplotype (0.8555 ± 0.033) and low nucleotide diversities (0.00281 ± 0.00030). Population demographics indicated an expanding parasitic population signifying negative deviation from neutrality indices. Little genetic differentiation was found between the subpopulations of E. granulosus s.s. in the island. Moreover, the geographic dispersal of genotypes G1 and G3 also indicated similarity between Sardinian and mainland Echinococcus granulosus s.s. populations reaffirming the sympatric occurrence and efficient transmission of G1 and G3 genotypes. Molecular survey of CE has the potential to yield baseline information on the infective genotypes among the intermediate hosts and helps in devising suitable control strategies for curtailing the disease.

Análise da percepção ambiental de alunos do ensino básico acerca da qualidade da água

Resumo A qualidade da água é uma necessidade universal, que exige atenção por parte das autoridades sanitárias e consumidores em geral. Os problemas ambientais, especialmente os relacionados a este recurso, têm se acentuado, de acordo com o crescimento populacional. Deste modo, intervenções, sobretudo as destinadas a formar um pensamento crítico na população, se fazem necessárias, para se obter resultados significativos, entre elas a educação ambiental. A escola é o principal agente para esclarecer, produzir consciência e formar comportamento cidadão participativo nas questões ambientais. Para isso, é necessário medir o conhecimento prévio dos alunos a respeito do assunto. Então, esta pesquisa visou conhecer, por meio da aplicação de um questionário, a visão de discentes do 7º ano do Ensino Básico Fundamental de uma escola pública situada no município de Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, acerca de inúmeras situações relacionadas à qualidade de água, que dizem respeito à sociedade, à saúde e ao meio ambiente. Os resultados mostram que, apesar de não existir uma disciplina específica para a educação ambiental, os conhecimentos empíricos dos alunos sobre o tema são mais adequados que os conteúdos abordados dentro da disciplina Ciências, que necessitariam de outra abordagem, mais ativa e efetiva, pois o conhecimento formal nesta área se apresentou insuficiente. Palavras-chave: Ciências. Educação ambiental. Ensino fundamental. Qualidade da água. Abstract Water quality is a universal need, which requires attention from health authorities and consumers in general. Environmental problems, especially those related to this resource, have been accentuated, according to population growth. Thus, interventions, especially those aimed at forming critical thinking in the population, are necessary to obtain significant results, including environmental education. The school is the primary agent to clarify, raise awareness and form participatory citizen behavior on environmental issues. Therefore, it is necessary to measure the students' prior knowledge on the subject. Hence, this research aimed to know, through a questionnaire, the view of 7th grade students of a public basic education school located in the city of Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, about numerous situations related to water quality, which concern society, health, and the environment. The results show that, although there is no specific subject for environmental education, students' empirical knowledge on the topic is more appropriate than the content covered within the Science subject, which would need another, more active and effective approach, as the formal knowledge in this area proved to be insufficient. Keywords: Sciences. Environmental education. Elementary school. Water quality Resumen La calidad del agua es una necesidad universal, que requiere la atención de las autoridades sanitarias y de los consumidores en general. Los problemas ambientales, especialmente los relacionados con este recurso, se han acentuado, de acuerdo con el crecimiento de la población. Por lo tanto, intervenciones, especialmente las destinadas a formar un pensamiento crítico en la población, son necesarias, para que se logren resultados significativos, entre ellas la educación ambiental. La escuela es el principal agente para aclarar, generar conciencia y formar comportamiento ciudadano participativo en las cuestiones ambientales. Para ello, es necesario medir los conocimientos previos de los estudiantes sobre el tema. Entonces, esta investigación tuvo como objetivo conocer, mediante la aplicación de un cuestionario, la opinión de los estudiantes del séptimo año de educación básica de una escuela pública ubicada en la ciudad de Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, sobre numerosas situaciones relacionadas con la calidad del agua, que afectan a la sociedad, a la salud y al medioambiente. Los resultados muestran que, aunque no exista una disciplina específica para la educación ambiental, el conocimiento empírico de los estudiantes sobre el tema es más adecuado que los contenidos cubiertos por la disciplina Ciencias, que necesitarían un enfoque más activo y efectivo, porque el conocimiento formal en esta área demostró ser insuficiente. Palabras-clave: Ciencias. Educación ambiental. Educación básica. Calidad del agua.

Inventing a Prosthetic Bourgeoisie: Romania and the Aromanians, 1848–1906

The present article focuses on the period between 1848 and 1906—between the politicized “discovery” of Balkan Aromanians as a kinfolk by Romanian nation-state builders and the aftermath of the community’s recognition by the Ottoman government. Examining how Romania imagined its own entanglement in the Macedonian Question, the article aims to raise the broader question of how a nation-state imagined the agency of kinfolk beyond its borders and, as part of a geographically distributed national division of labor, ascribed a specific task to one part of its ethnic body. In Romania’s case, this had a double thrust. One, Aromanians were imagined as the natural bourgeoisie of the southern Balkans, a people superior in their origins, culture, and mores to other ethnic groups—and a natural vanguard for Romania’s economic interests in the region. Two, they were imagined as a vanguard for catalyzing the internal development of a native merchant class in Romania proper, which was understood as a primary agent for economic and social progress but perceived to be problematically absent. Thus, this study hones in on the process of ascribing the status of a “prosthetic bourgeoisie” to the Aromanians, and its insistent discursive recurrence.

Thomas Torrance, Mark 16:19–20 and the ascended Christ's prophetic role

This article argues that, unlike some exegetes (e.g. Francis Moloney), Thomas Torrance correctly interpreted Mark 16:19–20 in support of a theology of the ascended Christ's continuing prophetic activity. In the ministry of the Word, Christ remains present and at work witnessing to himself. This prophetic office, associated with and not to be separated from his kingly and priestly functions, is not to be played down. He is the primary agent forever actively involved in Christian proclamation.

Fire-induced rock spalling as a mechanism of weathering responsible for flared slope and inselberg development

Inselbergs, such as Uluru in central Australia, are iconic landscape features of semi-arid and deeply denuded continental interiors. These islands of rock are commonly skirted by steep, overhanging cliffs (flared slopes) at ground level. The weathering processes responsible for formation of flared slopes and steep-sided inselbergs in flat, planated landscapes are enigmatic. One model emphasizes sub-surface weathering followed by denudation and excavation of saprolite to expose the unweathered bedrock while other models advocate slope development under subaerial conditions at ground level. We present a new hypothesis that identifies wildfire as a primary agent of flared slope development via fire-induced rock spalling around the periphery of inselbergs. Widespread fire-spalling following the 2019–2020 Australian fires illustrates that this is a common form of physical weathering in fire-prone environments but its effects are particularly evident in semi-arid regions where lateral fire-spalling dominates over fluvial and chemical weathering to create flared slopes and steep-sided inselbergs.

Efficacy of Oral Sarolaner for the Treatment of Feline Otodectic Mange

Otodectes cynotis is a mite with a cosmopolitan distribution that is the primary agent for the development of otitis externa in feline species. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of the oral administration of sarolaner for the treatment of feline otodectic mange. We used 20 adult cats of both sexes that were naturally infested with O. cynotis. The mite infestation scoring was performed by video-otoscopy before treatment. The cats were randomized according to the infestation score and divided into two groups (treated and control). The treated group underwent oral administration of sarolaner in a single dose of 2–4 mg/kg. The evaluations were performed by video-otoscopy to evaluate the reduction of infestation score 2, 4, 6, 24 and 48 h and 7, 14, 21 and 28 days after medication. At the end of the study, the cats were sedated to enable the recovery of live and dead mites to determine efficacy. No adverse effects or laboratory changes were observed in these cats. Sarolaner showed 100% efficacy 48 h after treatment. Based on the results, a single oral dose of sarolaner was effective in controlling otodectic mange in naturally infested cats.

The influence of Rose Bengal photosensitizer on the productivity and pigment composition of Haematococcus pluvialis

The stimulation of astaxanthin synthesis in Haematococcus pluvialis cells under high-intensity light in the combined action of Rose Bengal photosensitizer has been established. It was revealed that when Rose Bengal was used as an additional inducer of carotenogenesis in high-intensity light, the dry weight of the Haematococcus and the diameter of the cells in suspension increase compared to the action of only high-intensity light on algae cells. The observed increases in dry weight are significant and reach 40 % excess over control. We suggest that the increase in dry weight, Haematococcus cell diameter and astaxanthin yield when H. pluvialis photosensitizer is added to the incubation medium against the background of high-intensity light is not associated with increased stress (since the used concentrations of Rose Bengal are too small to induce photo-oxidative stress), but the signaling properties of the generated Rose Bengal singlet oxygen, which may be the primary agent in the transduction of a signal that triggers increased synthesis of astaxanthin in H. pluvialis cells.