Become a Digital Marketer Today

I trust your day

​is going well.

I Write to bring to your notice that Afterschool Centre for Career Development (ACCD) will be hosting a Digital Marketing Training for young people, Entrepreneurs (CEOs of MSMEs) and Communication Officers at private sector organisations.

ACCD  is partnering with Livity Africa to host the Digify Bytes- Digital Marketing Training in Calabar scheduled to hold between Tuesday, 3rd  – Saturday 7th May 2016

​. The programme is proudly sponsored by Google

​.​

 

The Digify Bytes training programme is designed to give learners a shot of digital marketing skills in an effort to grow their business, increase employability and value delivery to their place of employment as well as enable them build their personal brand.

Delivered in Nigeria, South Africa and Kenya the workshop engages participants on the basics of digital marketing and strategy that will enable them develop the winning strategies that will increase followers and build consumer loyalty.

 

Please find below the application link:

Sign up  via  http://bit.ly/digifycalabar   

Kindly share wit

​h​

your contacts,register and also nominate your staff and friends to attend.

Registration and Attendance is FREE!

 

For more information visit: ​

http://afterschoolcentre.org/afterschool-centre-for-career-development-partners-livity-africa-to-boost-digital-skills/

 

 

Esther Eshiet

Faculty Lead

Afterschool Centre for Career Development (ACCD)

#53 Mount Zion Road(Champions BET Building)

Calabar, Cross River State

Nigeria

​

WAEC to release Results for Candidates of indebted States in 24hrs

WAEC to release Results for Candidates of Indebted 

States in 24hrs

The West African Examination Council (WAEC) has bowed to pressure to release the May/June 2015 West African Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination (WASSCE), prior withheld as a consequence of the debt owed by a few states. 

This was because of the intercession of the Nigeria Governors Forum and different partners who spoke to the examination body to rethink its choice in perspective of the impact the withholding of the outcomes would have on the fate of the applicants. 

Leader of the Nigeria National Office of WAEC, Mr. Charles Eguridu, reported the release, on Wednesday, at a joint news gathering with the Deputy Director of the Nigeria Governor's Forum (NGF), Alhaji L.O.T Shitu, night-time of dialog on the Money owed the council by a few states. 

He revealed that the results would be uploaded on the council site within 24 hours of the declaration, saying the choice was in light of the wish of the council not to block the educational advancement of any Nigerian child. 

In his words:

“Following appeals from our stakeholders, including parents, the All Nigeria Confederation of Principals of Secondary Schools, notable Nigerians, other well-meaning citizens and most importantly, the intervention of secretariat of Nigeria Governors Forum, which we have informed is on the directive of the chairman of the forum and governor of Zamfara State, Alhaji Abdulaziz Yari, we have decided to hearken to appeals and review our earlier position.

 “More so, the continued withholding of the results will adversely affect the educational prospects of the affected candidates for admission purposes.

“Consequently, the management of the council has decided that the results of the candidates of indebted states would be released in deference to all the appeals and commitment of the NGF. 

“The results are, therefore, to be uploaded on our result website in the next 24 hours. This decision is based on our wish not to impede the educational progress of any Nigerian child,” he said.

Want to lower the risk of heart disease?

Want to lower the risk of heart disease?

 High vitamin C concentrations in the blood from the intake of fruit and vegetables are associated with a reduced risk of cardiovascular disease and early death, a new large-scale study has found.

Researchers from the University of Copenhagen and Herlev and Gentofte Hospital in Denmark studied data from 100,000 Danes and their intake of fruit and vegetables as well as their DNA.

"We can see that those with the highest intake of fruit and vegetables have a 15 per cent lower risk of developing cardiovascular disease and a 20 per cent lower risk of early death compared with those who very rarely eat fruit and vegetables", said Camilla Kobylecki, a medical doctor and PhD student at the Department of Clinical Biochemistry, Herlev and Gentofte Hospital.

"At the same time, we can see that the reduced risk is related to high vitamin C concentrations in the blood from the fruit and vegetables", Kobylecki said.

Vitamin C is a potent antioxidant which protects cells and biological molecules from the damage which causes many diseases, including cardiovascular disease.

The human body is not able to produce vitamin C, which means that we must get the vitamin from our diet.

"Eating a lot of fruit and vegetables is a natural way of increasing vitamin C blood levels, which in the long term may contribute to reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease and early death", said Borge Nordestgaard, a clinical professor at the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, and a consultant at Herlev and Gentofte Hospital.

"You can get vitamin C supplements, but it is a good idea to get your vitamin C by eating a healthy diet, which will at the same time help you to develop a healthier lifestyle in the long term, for the general benefit of your health", said Nordestgaard.

The study has just been published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

Source:PTI

Physicists shatter stubborn mystery of how glass forms

Physicists shatter stubborn mystery of how glass forms

A physicist at the University of Waterloo is among a team of scientists who have described how glasses form at the molecular level and provided a possible solution to a problem that has stumped scientists for decades.

Their simple theory is expected to open up the study of glasses to non-experts and undergraduates as well as inspire breakthroughs in novel nano materials.

The paper published by physicists from the University of Waterloo, McMaster University, ESPCI ParisTech and Université Paris Diderot appeared in the journal, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).

Glasses are much more than silicon-based materials in bottles and windows. In fact, any solid without an ordered, crystalline structure -- metal, plastic, a polymer -- that forms a molten liquid when heated above a certain temperature is a glass. Glasses are an essential material in technology, pharmaceuticals, housing, renewable energy and increasingly nano electronics.

"We were surprised -- delighted -- that the model turned out to be so simple," said author James Forrest, a University Research Chair and professor in the Faculty of Science. "We were convinced it had already been published."

The theory relies on two basic concepts: molecular crowding and string-like co-operative movement. Molecular crowding describes how molecules within glasses move like people in a crowded room. As the number of people increase, the amount of free volume decreases and the slower people can move through the crowd. Those people next to the door are able to move more freely, just as the surfaces of glasses never actually stop flowing, even at lower temperatures.

The more crowded the room, the more you rely on the co-operative movement with your neighbors to get where you're going.

Likewise, individual molecules within a glass aren't able to move totally freely. They move with, yet are confined by, strings of weak molecular bonds with their neighbors.

Theories of crowding and cooperative movement are decades old. This is the first time scientists combined both theories to describe how a liquid turns into a glass.

"Research on glasses is normally reserved for specialists in condensed matter physics," said Forrest, who is also an associate faculty member at Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics and a member of the Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology. "Now a whole new generation of scientists can study and apply glasses just using first-year calculus."

Their theory successfully predicts everything from bulk behaviour to surface flow to the once-elusive phenomenon of the glass transition itself. Forrest and colleagues worked for 20 years to bring theory in agreement with decades of observation on glassy materials.

An accurate theory becomes particularly important when trying to understand glass dynamics at the nanoscale. This finding has implications for developing and manufacturing new nanomaterials, such as glasses with conductive properties, or even calculating the uptake of glassy forms of pharmaceuticals.

The Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) of Canada and Perimeter funded the research

Story Source:

The above post is reprinted from materials provided by University of Waterloo. Note: Materials may be edited for content and length.

Each person may have a unique sense of smell

Smell fingerprints? Each person may have a unique sense of smell

The olfactory fingerprint of the person in the middle remains consistent, even after 30 days (right), but is very different from that of another person (left).

 

Credit: Weizmann Institute of Science

Each of us has, in our nose, about six million smell receptors of around four hundred different types. The distribution of these receptors varies from person to person -- so much so that each person's sense of smell may be unique. In research recently published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), Weizmann Institute scientists report on a method of precisely characterizing an individual's sense of smell, which they call an "olfactory fingerprint."

The implications of this study reach beyond the sense of smell alone, and range from olfactory fingerprint-based early diagnosis of degenerative brain disorders to a non-invasive test for matching donor organs.

The method is based on how similar or different two odors are from one another. In the first stage of the experiment, volunteers were asked to rate 28 different smells according to 54 different descriptive words, for example, "lemony," or "masculine." The experiment, led by Dr. Lavi Secundo, together with Dr. Kobi Snitz and Kineret Weissler, all members of the lab of Prof. Noam Sobel of the Weizmann Institute's Neurobiology Department, developed a complex, multidimensional mathematical formula for determining, based on the subjects' ratings, how similar any two odors are to one another in the human sense of smell. The strength of this formula, according to Secundo, is that it does not require the subjects to agree on the use and applicability of any given verbal descriptor. Thus, the fingerprint is odor dependent but descriptor and language independent.

The 28 odors make for 378 different pairs, each with a different level of similarity. This provides us with a 378-dimensional fingerprint. Using this highly sensitive tool, the scientists found that each person indeed has an individual unique pattern -- an olfactory fingerprint.

Could this finding extend to millions of people? The researchers say their computations show that 28 odors alone could be used to "fingerprint" some two million people, and just 34 odors would be enough to identify any of the seven billion individuals on the planet.

The next stage of the research suggested that our olfactory fingerprint may tie in with another system of ours in which we all differ the immune system. They found, for example, that an immune antigen called HLA, today used to assess matches for organ donation, is correlated with certain olfactory fingerprints. This part of the study was conducted together with Dr. Ron Loewenthal, and Nancy Agmon-Levin, and Prof. Yehuda Shoenfeld, all of Sheba Medical Center.

The researchers think that olfactory fingerprinting, in addition to helping identify individuals, could be developed into methods for the early detection of such diseases as Parkinson's and Alzheimer's, and it could lead to non-invasive methods of initial screening as to whether bone marrow or organs from live donors are a good match.

Prof. Noam Sobel's research is supported by the Norman and Helen Asher Center for Brain Imaging, which he heads; the Nella and Leon Benoziyo Center for Neurosciences, which he heads; the Carl and Micaela Einhorn-Dominic Institute for Brain Research, which he heads; the Nadia Jaglom Laboratory for the Research in the Neurobiology of Olfaction; the Adelis Foundation; the James S. McDonnell Foundation 21st Century Science Scholar in Understanding Human Cognition Program; Mr. & Mrs. H. Thomas Beck, Canada; the Minerva Foundation; the European Research Council; Nathan and Dora Oks, France; Mike and Valeria Rosenbloom through the Mike Rosenbloom Foundation; and the Estate of David Levidow.

Source: Sciencedaily

African pear tops list of novel plants for drug-resistant malaria

African Pear

African pear tops list of novel plants for drug-resistant malaria

Commonly called African pear, native pear or bush butter, Dacryodes edulis belongs to the plant family Burseraceae. It called safoutier in French. In Nigeria, it is ibe in Kalabari; boshu in Bokyi; orunmwun in Edo (indicating something edible); ube in Ibo; orumu in Urhobo; and elemi in Yoruba.

It is usually eaten in Nigeria with corn (maize). They go hand in hand. The fruit is oval in shape and matures within the months of May and July. The fruit pulp -the fleshy parts of the body- is boiled, roasted or eaten raw as a dessert fruit. The pulp may also be boiled or roasted to form a kind of butter.

The season for African pear, local pear or rather native pear is here again! It is usually eaten as snack, but recent scientific findings suggest they might provide the next best anti-malaria drug, toothpaste and skin care product.

Researchers have identified the compounds responsible for the anti-malarial activity of African pear, Dacryoedes edulis, and their suitability as leads for the treatment of drug resistant malaria.

The study published in PLOS ONE is titled “New Antimalarial Hits from Dacryodes edulis (Burseraceae) – Part I: Isolation, In Vitro Activity, In Silico “drug-likeness” and Pharmacokinetic Profiles.” 

According to the study, five compounds were isolated from ethyl acetate and hexane extracts of D. edulis stem bark and tested against 3D7 (chloroquine-susceptible) and Dd2 (multidrug-resistant) strains of Plasmodium falciparum, using the parasite lactate dehydrogenase method. 

Cytotoxicity studies were carried out on LLC-MK2 monkey kidney epithelial cell-line. In silico analysis was conducted by calculating molecular descriptors using the MOE software running on a Linux workstation. 

The “drug-likeness” of the isolated compounds was assessed using Lipinski criteria, from computed molecular properties of the geometry optimized structures. Computed descriptors often used to predict absorption, distribution, metabolism, elimination and toxicity (ADMET) were used to assess the pharmacokinetic profiles of the isolated compounds. 

Anti-plasmodial activity was demonstrated for the first time in five major natural products previously identified in D. edulis, but not tested against malaria parasites. 

The most active compound identified was termed DES4. It had IC50 values of 0.37 and 0.55 µg/mL, against 3D7 and Dd2 respectively. In addition, this compound was shown to act in synergy with quinine, satisfied all criteria of “Drug-likeness” and showed considerable probability of providing an antimalarial lead. 

The remaining four compounds also showed anti-plasmodial activity, but were less effective than DES4. None of the tested compounds was cytotoxicity against LLC-MK2 cells, suggesting their selective activities on malaria parasites.

The researchers concluded: “Based on the high in vitro activity, low toxicity and predicted “Drug-likeness” DES4 merits further investigation as a possible drug lead for the treatment of malaria.” 

They added: “The emergence and spread of resistance to frontline anti-malarials is a real challenge to malaria control, which can be addressed by expanding the arsenal of antimalarial products. Medicinal plants are well known sources of antimalarials. Over a thousand plant species are commonly used across Africa for prevention and/or treatment of malaria symptoms, and some of these had been revealed as housing uniquely effective antimalarial. The examples of quinine and artemisinin isolated from Cinchona species and Artemisia annua -source of Artemisinin Combination Therapies (ACTs)- are highly illustrative.

“Previous investigations demonstrated the analgesic, anti-inflammatory, anti-allergic, anti-cancer and antimicrobial and antimalarial activity of D. edulis, and significant anti-plasmodial activity had also been recorded for this plant, with IC50 below 10 µg/mL on drug resistant malaria parasites. However the bioactive ingredients were yet to be identified. Moreover, the stem bark which is preferably employed in Cameroonian folk medicine is still to be fully investigated.”

READ FULL ARTICLE FROM THE GUARDIAN

Dangers of Tramadol Abuse

Dangers of Tramadol Abuse

What Are the Dangers of Tramadol Abuse?

Tramadol is one of the most popular and potent prescription painkillers that has been widely prescribed for long-term management of severe pain that is unresponsive to over-the-counter pills. Although the dependence potential of tramadol is low, it is still one of the most widely abused painkillers.

MedWatch released a report suggesting that there are almost 766 cases of recognized and reported tramadol addiction and about 482 cases of reported withdrawal symptoms upon discontinuation of tramadol. This data has been obtained over a period of almost 9 years (1995 to 2004) with an incidence rate of 2.7%. It is expected that the actual number of cases is much higher than that.

Another report published by DAWN (The Drug Abuse Warning Network) suggested that over 12,000 acute toxicity cases reported in emergency centers from 1995 to 2002 involved tramadol.

Acute reaction to tramadol abuse

Although tramadol is mostly tolerated well when consumed in prescription dosage, taking more than the recommended dosage may present acute side effects such as:

• Nausea and vomiting that may be followed by dizziness and vertigo
• Constipation and other gastrointestinal symptoms
• Itching and rash
• Sweating
• Agitation, drowsiness or altered level of consciousness
• In some individuals, an epileptic seizure may also occur, especially individuals who have a history of seizure or epilepsy.

Vesna Jovanović-Čupić, M.D., Ph.D. conducted a research study on 57 tramadol abusers over a 3- year period. By the end of this period, 31 of 57 patients (54.4%) reported tonic clonic seizures (45% reported a single episode while 55% reported multiple seizure episodes over a 3-year period)

If tramadol is consumed in toxic amounts, the risk of imminent death is fairly high. Toxicity is fatal within the first hour of ingestion. If you or anyone you know has consumed a toxic dose of tramadol, it is recommended to seek early treatment or intervention.

A case study was published by S. Wang in 2008 in which a 19-year-old male patient developed multiple-organ dysfunction while on a prescribed dose of tramadol over a period of 6 months. The toxicology screen showed that with tramadol levels of 9.5 mg/L, the patient was in a coma, with severe renal and liver failure and severe respiratory depression. No other drug was found in the system, indicating that tramadol alone caused multiple-organ dysfunction on a prescription dose within a period of 6 months.

Symptoms of toxicity

There is no absolute toxic dose of tramadol since different individuals respond differently, depending upon the mode of administration, dosing regimen, kidney and liver functioning, and prior history of narcotic abuse. However, it is very important to know the danger signs to prevent the risk of toxicity and impending life-threatening sequelae.

Some danger signs indicating tramadol toxicity include:

• Drowsiness, altered level of consciousness or a fainting episode
• Feeling of sudden weakness
• Changes in the character or pressure of pulse (like dropping pulse or abnormal heart rate)
• Low blood pressure
• Hallucinations or changes in the thought process that may include vivid dreaming or alteration in vision
• Coma or deep sleep that may or may not be associated with convulsion or seizure activity

How to ensure safe tramadol consumption

Any prescription medication can be a potential threat to health. Therefore, it is very important to maintain safe and hazard-free drug intake by having complete knowledge of the basic functioning of tramadol.

The 2001 revised tramadol package clearly states that moderate consumption of tramadol may induce psychological and physical dependence that is not limited to those who have a prior history of drug abuse or risky drug behavior.

Factors that can influence tramadol induced complications?

Tramadol acts as a CNS depressant in order to increase the pain threshold. This action is achieved by increasing the serotonin concentration in the brain. The risk of toxicity or complications increases in the following circumstances:

• When tramadol is consumed with any drug. This includes other opioid agents and recreational drugs that can increase the serotonin levels in the blood like cocaine, MDMA, and pharmacological drugs like antidepressants (tricyclic antidepressants and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) and amphetamines.
• Concurrent consumption of tramadol and alcohol
• Renal or hepatic dysfunction since metabolism and excretion of tramadol takes longer. This results in prolonged duration of action and higher blood concentration of active drug molecules. 

Tramadol deaths

25 deaths of adults involving tramadol have been reported. 20 of these are considered not to be caused by tramadol intoxication but by concomitant consumption of other drugs (mainly benzodiazepines and serotoninergics). 2 have been caused by tramadol alone, in concentrations 5- respectively 6-fold higher than the toxic level of tramadol (2 mg/L). So the main risk factor is combining tramadol with other substances, particularly sedatives and serotoninergics. Just say no.

Drug trials in pet dogs with cancer may speed advances in human oncology

Drug trials in pet dogs with cancer may speed advances in human oncology

University of Illinois veterinary clinical medicine professor Timothy Fan, pictured here with his dog, Ember, describes the advantages of testing potential cancer therapies on pet dogs with spontaneously occurring cancers. 

Pet dogs may be humans’ best friends in a new arena of life: cancer treatment, said University of Illinois veterinary clinical medicine professor Timothy Fan. Physiological similarities between dogs and humans, and conserved genetics between some dog and human cancers, can allow pet dogs to serve as useful models for studying new cancer drugs, he said.

In a meeting sponsored by the National Cancer Policy Forum of the National Academies’ Institute of Medicine in Washington, D.C., Fan and 15 other experts in the field described the benefits of using pet dogs with naturally occurring (rather than laboratory-induced) tumors in early cancer drug trials.

“We have a lot of dogs in the United States, approximately 70 million of them, and it’s believed that about 25 percent of pet dogs will develop some form of cancer in their lifetime,” he said. “We’re using dogs to help guide drug development for people, but at the same time we’re offering new, innovative therapies that would otherwise never be available to dogs, to help them as well.”

Several attributes make pet dogs attractive subjects for such studies, Fan said.

“Dogs tend to develop cancer as a geriatric population, just like people,” he said. “Because the tumors develop spontaneously, there is heterogeneity in that tumor population, as a human being would have. The size of the tumors and the speed of growth of those tumors are comparable in dogs and human beings. So there are many attributes of a dog that develops cancer spontaneously that recapitulate the biology that we see in people.”

Some studies have already begun using dogs to test new cancer therapies. Starting in 2007, for example, Fan began testing an anti-cancer drug called PAC-1 (developed by U. of I. chemistry professor Paul Hergenrother) in pet dogs with naturally occurring lymphomas and osteosarcomas. The results in dogs allowed the scientists to advance PAC-1 as a potential therapy against human cancers. The drug is now in phase I human clinical trials at the U. of I. Cancer Center in Chicago.

Other investigational therapeutics historically piloted in pet dogs with cancer include muramyl tripeptide, an immune-stimulating agent that could not be tested in immune-deficient mice or rats with induced cancers, Fan said.

“Because you’re taking a human cancer tissue and implanting it in a mouse, that’s a foreign tissue, and the mouse’s immune system will reject it,” he said. “So you have to transplant those tissues into an immunocompromised mouse. Dogs are immunocompetent, and so were an ideal study subject for testing immunomodulatory cancer therapies.

“Another example in which dogs have been important in demonstrating drug activity was an anti-cancer compound produced by the pharmaceutical company Gilead Sciences,” he said. “The company produced a pro-drug, which must be activated by a naturally occurring enzyme in human leukocytes before it can become effective. Mice and rats lack this enzyme, but dogs have it, so the compound was tested in dogs.”

Fan also addressed the strengths and limitations of using mice and rats in preclinical trials of cancer drugs.

“We’ve relied almost exclusively on murine preclinical models, and we’ve been able to show that investigational agents are very good at fighting cancer in these models,” he said. “But only about one in 10 of the agents that show great activity in mice will show similar activity in humans. So the question that we begin to ask is: Why is the hit rate so low?”

It may be that laboratory-induced cancers in mice fail to mimic the natural process of cancer development in humans, he said.

“The formation of cancer in those mice is very artificial, it’s very accelerated, and it’s in the context of an incompetent immune system,” Fan said. “So we can easily understand as scientists why there would be some limitations to that model.”

There also are limitations to the use of pet dogs in cancer drug trials.

“There are some tumors that will not be that relevant,” Fan said. “Colon cancer, for example, is heavily driven by diet, and we don’t see much colon cancer in dogs. So pet dogs might not be a suitable model for colon cancer in humans.”

Mice and rats will likely always be used in preclinical trials of cancer drugs and do offer some significant advantages, Fan said. They are cheaper to rear, their lifespans are shorter, and genetic manipulations of these animals can produce specific and uniform traits. That genetic homogeneity allows researchers to identify how a drug agent is working “without having to deal with a lot of confounding factors,” he said.

“But are human beings genetically identical? Absolutely not,” Fan said. “There is heterogeneity in the human population and in dogs. So I would argue that if your drug agent produces positive results in dogs, that would give me greater confidence that those findings would be translatable to people.”

NNPC/Chevron 2015/2016 Scholarship Application is Approaching Deadline.

NNPC/Chevron 2015/2016 Scholarship Application is Approaching Deadline.

The ongoing NNPC/Chevron Scholarship award application is approaching its deadline. 

 

The scholarship award application will be ending on the 16th June, 2015. 

Owing to the proximity of the application deadline, every student that is qualified and eligible to apply should click here now and apply for the scholarship award.

 

Brief on Eligibility and Certificates required for application:

1. Student must have a GPA of 3.5 and above 
2. Student must be a certified 200level student of any Nigerian University
3. Birth Certificate
4. O'level Result
5. Admission Letter
6. Passport (Two)
7. Jamb Result Slip

 

Who Can Apply

E-applications are invited from full-time SECOND YEAR (200 LEVEL) degree students of the under-listed courses, in Nigerian Universities:

1.  Accountancy

2.  Agricultural Engineering/Agricultural Science

3.  Architecture
4.  Business Administration/Economics

5.  Chemical Engineering

6.  Civil Engineering

7.  Computer Science/Computer Engineering/System Engineering                      
8.  Electrical/Electronic Engineering

9.  Environmental Studies/Surveying

10. Geology/Geophysics

11. Law

12. Mass Communication/Journalism

13. Mechanical/Metallurgical & Materials Engineering

14. Human Medicine/Dentistry/Pharmacy

15. Petroleum Engineering

Please note that we will accept applications through this web site address only. Visit:http://scholastica.ng/schemes/cnlawards 
Hard copies of any document submitted will not be processed. All interested students are advised to click on “How to Apply” tab to proceed.

In line with our e-scholarship administration system, selected students will be invited for computer-administered qualifying tests in selected examination centers nationwide. Short-listed candidates for the qualifying test will be invited by email and SMS text messages. All applicants are therefore advised to ensure that GSM telephone numbers and personal email addresses are properly entered into the e-forms on the web site.


QUALIFICATION PROCESS: Interested applicants should click on the "How To Apply" tab to proceed.
Deadline: Closing date for receipt of e-applications is strictly June 16, 2015.

ONLY SHORTLISTED CANDIDATES WILL BE CONTACTED.
APPLICANTS ARE REQUIRED TO ENTER VALID PERSONAL BANK ACCOUNT DETAILS.
MULTIPLE APPLICATION LEADS TO AUTOMATIC DISQUALIFICATION.

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WAEC not Yet Ready for CBT

 WAEC not Yet Ready for CBT

 

The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) earlier this  week said that it would not adopt the Computer Based Test (CBT) mode fully for now, considering the variables involved in conducting its examinations. 

WAEC’s Head of National Office (HNO), Dr Charles Eguridu, told the some journalists in Lagos that the CBT mode being demanded by some people was not feasible for now.

Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) had, during its 2015 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) recently, migrated fully to the CBT mode.

JAMB said that it migrated to the CBT mode to eradicate impersonation and other forms of examination malpractice.

According to Eguridu, those making the call are ignorant of the socioeconomic variables that are necessary for the adoption of the CBT for WAEC examinations.

He said: “WAEC examinations involve the use of multiple choice questions, essay and practical, in which case we test various domains of learning.

“And with this, it is not going to be valid to test certain domains of learning with CBT.

“Or can you use CBT in measuring proficiency in certain trade subjects such as carpentry and others? ’’

He also stated, that the inadequacy of internet connectivity and constant electricity in the country, especially in rural areas, would make such a venture almost impossible.

Eguridu said that the huge capital outlay that would be required to provide computers and its accessories for every candidate nationwide makes the cost of the venture prohibitive.

“All what I am trying to explain here is that it will not be possible for us to adopt the CBT mode for our examinations at least for now.

“Probably what we will do as an organisation is to adopt the CBT for certain aspects of our examination and not all the areas.

“ We are already trying to work out something based on that,” he said.

Oxford University appoint its first female VC in 800 years

Oxford University appoint its first female VC in 800 years

Prof. Louise Richardson

The University of Oxford said today that it had nominated a female vice-chancellor for the first time in its 800 year history, naming terrorism expert Professor Louise Richardson to the chief executive role.

Richardson, who has previously taught at Harvard and is currently vice-chancellor of the University of St Andrews in Scotland, will be the first woman to hold the position since it was created in 1230.

Chris Patten, who holds the ceremonial post of chancellor, said the nominating panel was "deeply impressed by Professor Richardson's strong commitment to the educational and scholarly values which Oxford holds dear".

"Her distinguished record both as an educational leader and as an outstanding scholar provides an excellent basis for her to lead Oxford in the coming years," said Patten, who served as the last British governor of Hong Kong.

Subject to confirmation from the university's 5,000- strong parliament, Congregation, the Ireland-born Richardson, who is 56, will take over on January 1, 2016 and serve a seven-year term.

Her predecessor, Professor Andrew Hamilton, has been appointed president of New York University (NYU).

The married mother of three children received her undergraduate degree from Trinity College, Dublin, followed by a Masters in political science from UCLA and a Masters and PhD in Government from Harvard.

She said she was "enormously privileged" to be taking the helm at Oxford, "one of the world's great universities".

She will become the school 272nd  Vice Chancellor.

University of Calabar Matriculate Over 8,000 Students Today

 

The prestigious University of calabar today 15th May, 2015 formally welcomed the over 8,000 freshers admitted into the institution on the occasion of her 37th Matriculation Ceremony.

The event which is the forth Matriculation Ceremony Under the current Vice Chancellor Prof. James Epoke  was attended by himself the VC as well as other Principal Officers of the University.

As was the tradition the Students were made to declare loyalty to the University and the nation and thereafter, they were formally presented to the Vice Chancellor by the registrar of the school Mr. Abang, Moses Owan.

The vice Chancellor Prof. James Epoke in his remark welcomed the freshmen and women into the Citadel of learning and urged them to be good ambassador of the institution henceforth and to see themselves as been privileged to be among the few considered for admission by the institution.

Cross Section of Matriculating Students

Meanwhile, the atmosphere at the Abraham Ordia Mini Stadium venue of the event was that of fanfare and Jubilation as freshers were seen with family members, friends and well wishers gathering at different spot within the university environs celebrating. As expected old malabites and Malabresses were not left out in the welcome party as they wokeup as early as 4am to perform the usual ritual of baptizing their junior colleagues with water as a way of welcoming them into the Aluta Business. Also at the venue of the event fellowships, different Community/Village Associations (pkarakpo as fondly called), Clubs andother registered student bodies were available to fill the air with loads of melody to which freshmen and women danced.

Wishing them all a happy Matriculation and a "Reasonable Action throughout stay in the University of Calabar.

Pics from UNICAL-SUG Senate President Wedding

The Senate President of Unical SUG Senate Grand Senator Iwasam Ekom Joshua on Saturday 9th May, 2015 to his better halve Miss Dorathy Dien Udiba to the alter at PCN Afokang, Calabar South in a colorful ceremony that was attended by members of the University of Calabar Community. The Reception was at Cultural Centre Main Bowl.

See Pics......

SUG Senators at the event

SUG Executives at the Event

Couple flanked By Members of Girls Brigade

Iwasam And His Wife

Couple Cutting the cake together

SUG President Comr. Ajang Addressing the Couple

TM Appearance

TM

Wishing them a blissful Married life.

Photos by Sunday Ido & Okon Amah.

Imoke Set to Bring CRUTECH Three Months old Strike to an End

Imoke Set to Bring CRUTECH Three Months old Strike to an End  

CRUTECH Calabar Campus Gate

Governor Liyel Imoke has promised civil savants in the state that his administration will pay salaries of the months of March and April this year before living office on May 29.

Imoke made this promised at Abraham Ordia Sports Stadium, University of Calabar during 2015 Workers Day Celebration stating that the only thing he regretted was not paying workers’ salaries as due.

He also promised to dialogue with the state owned University lecturers (CRUTECH) that has been on strike for over three Months With a view to re-open the university.

The chairman of Cross River State council of Nigeria Labor Congress (NLS), John Ushie said, “as a way forward we suggest that a special grant of N2.3b be release to enable the university to clear arrears of sundry allowances, deliberately owed staff of the institution, review of the monthly subvention from N169m to N250m for effective running of the university and immediate reversal of the directive to the university management to disengage certain staff.