An Assessment of Ecotourism Potentials in Kupe Muanenguba Division, South West Region, Cameroon

Kupe Muanenguba Division (KMD) can be termed as an ecotourism cornucopia because of her richness in floral and faunal biodiversity, juxtaposed with beautiful terrain and lakes as well as a wonderful cultural mix. The main objective of this study was to identify and assess the ecotourism potentials in the division so as to create awareness to nationals and foreign tourists on what this division is endowed with. Data for this study consisted of primary and secondary sources. Primary sources of data collection included on-the-spot observation, interviews and the use of camera. The Geographic Positioning System (GPS) was also used to map out the ecotourism potentials and tourism infrastructures in KMD. Secondary sources of data collected included literature from published and unpublished sources such as: text books, articles, journals, reports of research organizations and theses. Stratified and purposive sampling techniques were used in the administration of the questionnaires. Results revealed that KMD is endowed with rich ecotourism potentials that are still lying unharnessed meanwhile others are not even known to all and sundry. The study has recommended amongst others that the Cameroon government should involve the indigenous people (by employing them and taking their own opinions into account) in the protection and conservation of the natural resources and involve them in all ecotourism activities

Lignite zone as an indicator to lost circulation belt: a case study of some locations of Anambra State, Southeastern Nigeria

Eighteen (18) water boreholes were studied for lost circulation. When locations of the boreholes associated with lost circulation were plotted on the map of Anambra State a lost circulation belt was observed around the River Niger – Onitsha – Oba – Nnewi axis. Lost circulation intervals range between 20-50m and 75-90m depth and were found to be associated with lignite and peaty clay members of the Ogwashi-Asaba Formation and/or the Ameki/Bende Formation. This suggests that natural rather than anthropogenic factors are responsible for the widespread occurrence of lost circulation in the State, although the latter could aggravate the former. Lignite and peaty clay of the Ogwashi-Asaba and Ameki/Bende Formation cause lost circulation because they are woody to earthy in nature and are easily eroded when they occur above the water table. These conditions favour the development of vugs, leading to increase in permeability and porosity, making the formation prone to lost circulation. Pre-drilling geophysical, geological and hydrogeological investigations are recommended, since these would go a long way to identify the presence or absence of lignite and thus help to avert possible lost circulation intervals. Journal of Applied Sciences and Environmental Management Vol. 10 (3) 2006: 31-3

Origins and Implications of Myths Related to Natural Landscapes in Cameroon Folklore

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Assessment of the choice of malaria diagnostic methods among household heads of the Nkwen village in Bamenda-3 municipality

Malaria remains a major threat to life in Bamenda in particular and Cameroon in general. Despite numerous and relatively affordable malaria diagnostic and treatment methods, accurate choice of diagnosis remains a major challenge to the inhabitants of the almost 14,285 households in the Nkwen village of the Bamenda 3 municipality. This study was designed to investigate the key determinants of the choice of malaria diagnostic methods (demand side analysis) in the Nkwen village of the Bamenda 3 municipality. A purposive and randomized sampling method was employed to recruit of 560 household’s heads from the 46 quarters of the Nkwen village. The Multinomial Logistic Regression Model and Chi-Square analysis were used to analyze the collected data. The findings reveal that gender, marital status, educational level, income, household size, age, religion and health insurance policy contribute to the choice of malaria diagnostic methods in the study area. Therefore, the integration of socio-economic factors into malaria control policies will feasibly contribute to malaria decrease in the study area

Online Versus Face-To-Face Nutrition Courses at a Community College: A Comparative Study of Learning Outcomes

Students have been gravitating towards the Online Learning Environment (OLE). The preference for online learning models (OLM) among students has grown more rapidly than for traditional face-to-face models in community colleges in the United States of America. Research about OLMs has focused on teaching efficiency and effectiveness to support the growth of online education. Administrators and teachers have continually sought to gain more knowledge about this issue, especially with concerns regarding engagement of students in an online learning environment. Increased student dissatisfaction with online learning models, a high withdrawal rate, and inadequate student-learning outcomes are some of the factors that have contributed to this comparative analysis of online versus face-to-face learning models. Of the 541 student records collected for this post hoc study, initial analysis indicated that learning outcomes of students enrolled in an online nutrition class showed a statistically significant difference from the learning outcomes of the face-to-face section of the same class, although the difference was small

The use of corticosteroids in patients with COPD or asthma does not decrease lung squamous cell carcinoma

BACKGROUND: Asthma and COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) lead to persistent airway inflammation and are associated with lung cancer. The objective of the study was to assess the relationship between inhaled (ICS) and oral corticosteroid (OCS) use, and risk of lung squamous cell carcinoma (SqCC). METHODS: This study was a nested case–control study. Patients with newly diagnosed asthma or COPD between 2003 and 2010 were identified from the National Health Insurance Database. Cases were defined as patients diagnosed with SqCC after enrollment. For each case, four control individuals who were randomly matched for sex and age and date diagnosis of asthma or COPD were selected. RESULTS: From the 1,672,455 eligible participants, 793 patients with SqCC were matched with 3,172 controls. The odds ratios (ORs) of SqCC in men who received high and low-dose ICS were 2.18 (95 %CI, 1.56–3.04) and 1.77 (1.22–2.57), respectively. Similarly, the ORs were 1.46 (95 %CI, 1.16–1.84) and 1.55 (95 %CI, 1.22–1.98) for men who were placed on low and high dose OCS. However, there was no significant association between cumulative ICS and/or OCS and risk of SqCC in women. Recent dose increase in corticosteriod was significantly associated with risk of SqCC. Specifically, among men, the ORs for SqCC were 8.08 (95 %CI, 3.22–20.30) for high-dose ICS + OCS, 4.49 (95 % CI, 2.05–9.85) for high-dose ICS, and 3.54 (95 % CI, 2.50–5.01) for high-dose OCS treatments, respectively. The OR for SqCC in women who received high-dose OCS was 6.72 (95 %CI, 2.69–16.81). CONCLUSION: Corticosteroid use did not decrease SqCC in patients with asthma or COPD. Recent dose increase in corticosteroids was associated with SqCC

Operating and Financing a Family Biogas Plant

The paper studied the overview of activities of biogas operations in different parts of the world and the technology involved in the production of biogas from anaerobic digestion of organic wastes in a biogas plant. Different designs of biogas plants operating in different places in the globe were highlighted. Public health aspects of biogas technology activities were fully treated to allay the fear of infection of bacteria of public health significance by the workers. The paper dwelt extensively on the financial options for consideration during the execution of family biogas digester. Solutions were proffered for the popularization and adoption of family biogas digester for cooking in a clean environment. The paper touched on the socio-economic benefits of the deployment of biogas as a source of energy. Keywords: operating, financing, family and biogas plant

E-Learning Readiness in the Teaching and Learning of Mathematics in Secondary Schools in Mezam Division

Mathematics is the backbone of technological breakthrough and this becomes even more evident in this digital age. Students are very much engage with technological tools while teachers tend to ignore the technologies, whereas there is need for teachers engage with digital curriculum and teach and supervise students’ academic works using these technological tools. The purpose of this study was to determine the E- Learning readiness of some selected secondary schools in Mezam division. This study adopted a descriptive survey design. Two research questions and one null hypothesis formulated at 0.05 level of significance guided the study. The population of the study was made-up of some secondary school students and mathematics teachers of Mezam division. The accessible population of the study was made up of 250 students and 12 mathematics teachers. Data was collected using structured questionnaire. The reliability of the instrument was established using Cronbach alpha and the index obtained was 0.79. Data collected was analyzed using percentages. The findings reveled that mathematics teachers do not possess ICT skills required for e-learning and teaching of mathematics. The results also revealed that students possess ICT skills required for e-learning but do not exploit these skills to improve on the learning of mathematics. It was concluded that mathematics teachers do not possess ICT skills required for e-learning of mathematics and so must build up their capacities. Based on the findings of the study, it was recommended that teachers should engage in digital curriculum and upgrade their teaching from chalk and blackboard to e-learning with the aid of ICT. It is also recommended that government should improve on the ICT tools in multimedia available centers in some schools