Journal of Basic and Applied Research International

Aquatic ecosystems are heavily polluted by potentially toxic substances deposited in the sediment as a result of anthropogenic activities. These substances have the potential to enter the food chain, posing significant risks to human health and the environment. Five trace metals such as chromium (Cr), nickel (Ni), cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb) and Polycyclic Aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) which are regarded as potentially toxic substances were determined in sediments and soft tissues of three commonly consumed fish species, Ageneiosus ucayalensis, Alestes baremoze, and Clarias gariepinus, collected at six sampling sites in Ede Onyima Creek, Okarki-Engenni, Rivers State, Nigeria. The results of trace metals in sediments showed the following range: Ni (1.25 – 11.90 mg/kg); Pb (0.23 – 20.21 mg/kg), Cd (0.09 – 0.72 mg/kg); Cr (0.25 – 11.96 mg/kg) and PAHs (1.25 – 11.90 mg/kg). The mean whole-body concentration of the analyte in three fish species followed the order: Pb > Ni > Cd > PAHs > Cr. The concentrations of the trace metals in sediment were below the quality guideline values; PAHs, had higher threshold and probable effect concentrations (LEL, TEL-HA28, PEL-HA28), indicating toxicity to benthic organisms. The biota-sediment accumulation factor (BSAF) for the fish species ranked in the following order Cd>Pb> Ni>PAHs> Cr. Trace metal concentrations in the fish species exceeded the international permissible limits, indicating that these species are not suitable for human consumption. The contamination level of analytes was determined using the metal pollution index (MPI), which revealed gross contamination of fish species by Cd and Pb in the order Clarias gariepinus (1.8) > Ageneiosus ucayalensis (1.5) > Alestes baremoze (1.4). Furthermore, the flood event had a significant effect on the sedimentary compartment, remobilizing PTSs availability for fish ingestion while washing away legacy contaminated streambed deposits during baseflow.

The main interest was to examine the women’s engagement level and constraints in cassava processing and marketing. The multistage sampling method was adopted in picking 320 respondents. Data was obtained with the help of structured questionnaires and gotten data was analysed using Likert scale, descriptive statistics and regression analysis. The study established that respondents were matured with an average ages of 44 years that were mostly married female gender with low educational levels. Operations of respondents were on full- time with a family size of a 9 persons having 18 years’ experience. The mean of 3.20 revealed that women were actively engaged. Family labour supply was mostly adopted with Osusu (peer contributions) sources of credits by respondents was absence of capital followed by unstable prices/Government unfavourable policies that ranked first (1^st) and second (2^nd) respectively. The constraints’ economic implication was the loss of revenue (income) and household stress increase, which is dangerous for the economic survival of households, especially women. The study recommends an immediate relief package to cassava processors and marketers by government and NGOs. Also Government and various stake holders should enact favourable policies in enhancing processing and marketing of cassava operations especially in the area of credits.

Single-use plastics in packaging and service ware contribute the most to plastic pollution which leads to global accumulation of non-degradable wastes. A promising solution to this issue should be favorably banana plastic, a lightweight, durable, and biodegradable alternative to high-density polyethylene (HDPE) and polystyrene plastic. In this study, the application of banana plastic as a packaging material was examined with modifications to the synthesis process for further efficiency and industrial viability.

Banana plastic was synthesized by grinding banana peels and using the chemical processes of acidification for HCl hydrolysis, glycerin plasticization, and NaOH neutralization, followed by a 72 hour dry and modified heat treatment at 65°C in a dehumidifier. Sodium metabisulfite was used to control the degree of biodegradability of the banana plastic. Using Onshape and Flashforge 3D printing software, the optimal packaging mold with the least shrinkage and maximum printing efficiency was created and used for producing the packaging materials.

Data suggested that a concentration of 0.1 M Na₂S₂O₅ created the sustainable and durable packing materials. A percent weight decrease of 64.95% was recorded over 12 weeks in degradability monitoring at a 37°C incubator, demonstrating the compostable characters of the banana plastic. Because of the bioplastic’s unique chemical and physical qualities, banana plastic created with a concentration of 0.1 M Na₂S₂O₅ could be a sustainable alternative to industrial packing materials.

In this paper, we report development of an Artificial Intelligence (“AI”) based pipeline to localize inner canthus for human body temperature evaluation. Locating inner canthus in a camera feed remains a challenging endeavor. We have utilized numerous Facial points, nose points and eye landmarks to locate inner canthus and report four novel aspects of our work in evaluating human body temperature. Our first novelty lies in the process of locating ROI for correct observations. Our second novelty lies in solving the challenge of mapping RGB and Thermal images to get exact data points. Our third novelty lies in testing our algorithms/technology by developing automated testing pipelines on large datasets. Moreover, the fourth novel aspect of our work lies in our methodology to normalize the temperature from forehead, inner canthus & using our hardware configuration. We tested our algorithm with data comprising of different age groups, gender and geographical location and obtained 98.37% accuracy.

This book, "Scientific Theory of Gene Recycling" by Dr. Zachariah Mathew and Dr. Thankam Mathew [1] is a brilliant piece of scientific and spiritual manuscript interwoven like the DNA's double helix. It gives you an idea how life can exist after death.

One of the major scientific highlights, quoted from the book is:

" The fact of evolution is the backbone of biology, and biology is thus in the peculiar position of being a science founded on an improved theory, is it then a science or faith? ."[2].

And one of the major spiritual highlights, excerpts is as follows:

1. D. God Can Raise Up Children From Stones:

Matthew 3:9, New American Standard Bible 1995 [3] “and do not suppose that you can say to yourselves, we have Abraham for our father; “for I say to you, that God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham”. The authors interpretation of this verse is as follows: "We cannot simply ignore this as a statement by John the Baptist out of his anger or frustration. If we read it in between the lines, then we can understand or presume, that the soil and the stones may contain the genes of the human beings, hence John the Baptist knowingly or unknowingly said that God can raise the people from the stones/soil".