Exploring The Potential Of Hybrid Wind-Solar Energy Systems For Residential Applications In North Dakota

North Dakota\u27s high residential energy consumption, driven by extreme weather, is largely met by fossil fuels, contributing significantly to CO₂ emissions. This study evaluates the technical performance, environmental benefits, and economic viability of hybrid wind-solar-energy systems for residential applications in the state. Using HOMER modeling, two scenarios were analyzed: homes using a combination of utility gas and electricity, and homes relying solely on electricity. Simulations for Grand Forks, Bismarck, and Dickinson showed that hybrid systems reliably met residential energy demand, covering 100% of the annual load in the gas-electric scenario across all locations. In the all-electric scenario, systems achieved at least 90% load coverage, with Dickinson showing the highest reliability based on lower Loss of Power Supply Probability (LPSP) and higher capacity factors due to superior solar and wind resources. Substantial environmental benefits were observed, with CO2 emissions reductions of 65% to 100%. The all-electric configuration in Dickinson achieved the greatest impact, offsetting 11.5 metric tons of CO2 annually and using surplus energy to further reduce grid emissions. Economic viability, however, was highly dependent on electricity rates. At the state’s average electricity price of $0.11/kWh, hybrid systems struggled to achieve payback. Conversely, with modeled rates of$0.27/kWh, in Dickinson and Bismarck, hybrid systems achieved payback within 8 to 13 years, with competitive Levelized Costs of Electricity (LCOE). These findings underscore the potential of hybrid systems to deliver sustainable energy and environmental benefits. However, economic feasibility depends heavily on electricity rates, emphasizing the need for supportive policies and pricing to drive adoption

Spectral filtering experimentation on photovoltaic cells using novel bio-filter made from copper coated hibiscus-ethanol extract

The challenges facing solar power grid system in Africa is huge. Most salient of these challenges is the inefficiency of the photovoltaic (PV) panel to sustain its output for more than a year. Certainly, the harsh weather condition in the region can be said to be one of the reasons for the shortcoming that was earlier highlighted. In this research, bio-filters were suggested to filter the harmful radiation hitting the PV panel. The bio-filter is made up of copper coated hibiscus extract. The hibiscus extract was done using ethanol solution. It was observed that the bio-filter was able to filter the some of the harmful radiation as expected. The quantity of the harmful solar radiation was not estimated because of the limitations of the equipment used for the research. It is recommended that this highlighted shortcoming of the research should be taken further to ascertain i.e. in percentage the harmful radiation that has been filtered by the bio-filter during the experiment

Locus Of Control, Social Comparison And Propensity To Crime On Predisposition Towards Internet Fraud Among The Youths In Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria

On the basis of the believe that certain individual psychological characteristic could influence act of committing internet fraud, this study investigates the influence of locus of control, social comparison, and propensity to crime on the predisposition towards internet fraud among youths in some selected universities in Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria. Using a cross-sectional survey design, data were collected from 400 undergraduates across five universities in Ibadan. Structured questionnaires were used to measure locus of control, social comparison, propensity to crime, and predisposition towards internet fraud. Findings revealed that locus of control (β = .26, t = 6.06, p < .001) and propensity to crime significantly influenced predisposition towards internet fraud (β = .38, t = 8.87, p < .001), with individuals exhibiting an external locus of control and higher criminal tendencies being more likely to engage in fraudulent activities. Social comparison, however, did not have a significant independent effect (β = .002, t = 0.05, p = >.05). However, the results indicate that locus of control, social comparison, and propensity to jointly influenced predisposition towards internet fraud (R = .49, R² = .24, F(3, 442) = 47.64, p < .001). Additionally, gender and age were significant predictors, with males and younger individuals showing a higher predisposition towards internet fraud (R = .19, R² = .04, F(2, 443) = 8.16, p < .001). The study concludes that fostering an internal locus of control, addressing criminal propensities, and reducing socio-economic pressures are crucial in mitigating the prevalence of internet fraud among youths

Condition of Drainage System and Its Impact on the Residents of Mowe, Ogun State, Nigeria

This study examines the impacts of drainage infrastructure conditions on Mowe, Ogun State, residents. The study used a quantitative research design, using a systematic random sampling technique to select ten (10) residential estates (three public-owned and seven privately owned) in the study area. In all, 107 residents were sampled using a structured questionnaire. The data collected was analysed using descriptive statistics. Based on the findings of this study, it was evident that the surface drainage system, mainly constructed with sandcrete blocks, was predominant in the study area. The result established that the drainage\u27s minimum height in the study area was 0.1524 metres, while the maximum was 0.889 meters. The analysis shows that the effect of flooding was mostly on properties (68.6%). Moreover, the majority of the residents agreed that drainage infrastructure had an impact on their living conditions. The study underscores the need for policy implications that could aid in the formulation of relevant policies by the Department of Flood and Erosion Control in the Ogun State Ministry of Environment towards improving the residents\u27 quality of life and the environment

VGEA: an RNA viral assembly toolkit.

Next generation sequencing (NGS)-based studies have vastly increased our understanding of viral diversity. Viral sequence data obtained from NGS experiments are a rich source of information, these data can be used to study their epidemiology, evolution, transmission patterns, and can also inform drug and vaccine design. Viral genomes, however, represent a great challenge to bioinformatics due to their high mutation rate and forming quasispecies in the same infected host, bringing about the need to implement advanced bioinformatics tools to assemble consensus genomes well-representative of the viral population circulating in individual patients. Many tools have been developed to preprocess sequencing reads, carry-out de novo or reference-assisted assembly of viral genomes and assess the quality of the genomes obtained. Most of these tools however exist as standalone workflows and usually require huge computational resources. Here we present (Viral Genomes Easily Analyzed), a Snakemake workflow for analyzing RNA viral genomes. VGEA enables users to map sequencing reads to the human genome to remove human contaminants, split bam files into forward and reverse reads, carry out de novo assembly of forward and reverse reads to generate contigs, pre-process reads for quality and contamination, map reads to a reference tailored to the sample using corrected contigs supplemented by the user's choice of reference sequences and evaluate/compare genome assemblies. We designed a project with the aim of creating a flexible, easy-to-use and all-in-one pipeline from existing/stand-alone bioinformatics tools for viral genome analysis that can be deployed on a personal computer. VGEA was built on the Snakemake workflow management system and utilizes existing tools for each step: fastp (Chen et al., 2018) for read trimming and read-level quality control, BWA (Li & Durbin, 2009) for mapping sequencing reads to the human reference genome, SAMtools (Li et al., 2009) for extracting unmapped reads and also for splitting bam files into fastq files, IVA (Hunt et al., 2015) for de novo assembly to generate contigs, shiver (Wymant et al., 2018) to pre-process reads for quality and contamination, then map to a reference tailored to the sample using corrected contigs supplemented with the user's choice of existing reference sequences, SeqKit (Shen et al., 2016) for cleaning shiver assembly for QUAST, QUAST (Gurevich et al., 2013) to evaluate/assess the quality of genome assemblies and MultiQC (Ewels et al., 2016) for aggregation of the results from fastp, BWA and QUAST. Our pipeline was successfully tested and validated with SARS-CoV-2 (n = 20), HIV-1 (n = 20) and Lassa Virus (n = 20) datasets all of which have been made publicly available. VGEA is freely available on GitHub at: https://github.com/pauloluniyi/VGEA under the GNU General Public License

Geophysical investigation of groundwater contamination in urban areas: a case study of active dumpsites in oyo town, Nigeria

nvironmental safety is a pressing global concern, particularly in Africa, where poor sanitation and contaminated water sources contribute to rising health issues. Active dumpsites are recognized as a source of groundwater pollution, yet their specific impact on water quality remains insufficiently documented. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate potential groundwater contamination resulting from active dumpsites in the Ilaka area of Oyo town, Nigeria. Electrical Resistivity Tomography was established on two traverses at the study area with a total length of 150 m and 5 m electrode spacing. Eight Vertical Electrical Sounding points were sounded at the established profiles. The geoelectric sections revealed three distinct layers: the topsoil, the weathered layer, and the fresh basement. In Traverse One, the recorded layer resistivity ranges from 29 to 938 Ωm, while in Traverse Two, it ranges from 30 to 1243 Ωm. The corresponding layer thickness varies from 0.8 to 21 m in Traverse One and from 2.5 to 24 m in Traverse Two, indicating a shallow overburden thickness. The 2D image of ERT revealed extremely low resistivity values in all the traverses across the dumpsites which suggests the presence of clay formation underlying the topsoil which may have been trapped in the contaminant plumes. Groundwater from the study area was found to be free from contaminants

Emergence and spread of two SARS-CoV-2 variants of interest in Nigeria

Identifying the dissemination patterns and impacts of a virus of economic or health importance during a pandemic is crucial, as it informs the public on policies for containment in order to reduce the spread of the virus. In this study, we integrated genomic and travel data to investigate the emergence and spread of the SARS-CoV-2 B.1.1.318 and B.1.525 (Eta) variants of interest in Nigeria and the wider Africa region. By integrating travel data and phylogeographic reconstructions, we find that these two variants that arose during the second wave in Nigeria emerged from within Africa, with the B.1.525 from Nigeria, and then spread to other parts of the world. Data from this study show how regional connectivity of Nigeria drove the spread of these variants of interest to surrounding countries and those connected by air-traffic. Our findings demonstrate the power of genomic analysis when combined with mobility and epidemiological data to identify the drivers of transmission, as bidirectional transmission within and between African nations are grossly underestimated as seen in our import risk index estimates

The evolving SARS-CoV-2 epidemic in Africa: insights from rapidly expanding genomic surveillance

Investment in SARS-CoV-2 sequencing in Africa over the past year has led to a major increase in the number of sequences generated, now exceeding 100,000 genomes, used to track the pandemic on the continent. Our results show an increase in the number of African countries able to sequence domestically, and highlight that local sequencing enables faster turnaround time and more regular routine surveillance. Despite limitations of low testing proportions, findings from this genomic surveillance study underscore the heterogeneous nature of the pandemic and shed light on the distinct dispersal dynamics of Variants of Concern, particularly Alpha, Beta, Delta, and Omicron, on the continent. Sustained investment for diagnostics and genomic surveillance in Africa is needed as the virus continues to evolve, while the continent faces many emerging and re-emerging infectious disease threats. These investments are crucial for pandemic preparedness and response and will serve the health of the continent well into the 21st century