Abstract: We study the mutual effects of neuronal electrical activity and DNA dynamics in a network of electrically coupled neurons with nearest neighbors communication. For that we develop by means of the coupling function method, a mathematical DNA-neuron model that can be considered as an extension of the simplified Hodgkin-Huxley models. Numerically, we explore the biological properties of the model with emphasis on local phase transitions and synchronous neural activity. Our results sug...
Abstract: This study proposes a new electroencephalography (EEG) biometric authentication for humans based on eye blinking signals extracted from brainwaves. The brainwave signal has been investigated for person authentication over the years because of its difficulties in spoofing. Due to advancing low-cost EEG hardware equipment, it has recently been significantly explored. Most studies in brainwave authentication focus on the use of imagination and mental task to authenticate a subjec...
Abstract: The ever-increasing population growth and economic developments have heightened demand for energy. This has resulted in depletion and ever-rising prices of petroleum diesel, thus increasing environmental degradation. These complications have motivated this study for the search of an alternative eco-friendly and renewable source of energy such as biodiesel. Biodiesel has been found to be a potential alternative fuel for diesel. Biodiesel was produced by transesterification reaction ...
Abstract: The widespread use of mobile phones has contributed significantly to the emergence of Mobile Money Transfer Services (MMTS) in Lesotho. This invention made a great contribution to the financial sector as it bridged the gap between those who qualify for a bank account and those who have to rely on other financial services except for bank, for their financial needs. The main objective of this research study is to enhance the security of MMTS in Lesotho, and solve its security vulnera...
Abstract: The multidimensional nature of dengue virus (DENV) infections, which can be caused by four distinct serotypes of the virus, complicates the sensitivity of assays designed for the diagnosis of infection. Different viral markers can be optimally detected at different stages of infection. Of particular clinical importance is the early identification of infection, which is pivotal for disease management and the development of blood screening assays. Non-structural protein 1 (NS1) is an...
Abstract: Fermentation remains an important food preparation technique of health, cultural and economic importance throughout the world. In Sub-Saharan Africa, traditional alcoholic fermentation of cereal and non-cereal based substrates into alcoholic beverages is deeply rooted in the society. Although a multitude of traditional alcoholic beverages from cereal substrates are well researched and documented, their non-cereal based counterparts, mostly produced from indigenous, inexpensive subs...
Abstract: A new paradigm shift from eLearning to mLearning will inevitably change the learning process. There is an immense proliferation of mobile technologies however in education these technologies are not fully utilised. Thus the key question that arises is that what are the factors which influence students to adopt mobile technologies in education? The purpose of the study is to extend and apply Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) as the theoretical framework to explain the determinants o...
Abstract: The objective of face recognition is, given an image of a human face identify the class to which the face belongs to. Face classification is one of the useful task and can be used as a base for many real-time applications like authentication, tracking, fraud detection etc. Given a photo of a person, we humans can easily identify who the person is without any effort. But manual systems are biased and involves lot of effort and expensive. Automatic face recognition has been an import...
Abstract: We collected pine dust and Acacia tortilis samples from Zimbabwe and Botswana, respectively. We then pyrolyzed them in a bench-scale plant under varying conditions. This investigation aimed to determine an optimum temperature that will give result to maximum yield and quality of the bio-oil fraction. Our experimental results show that we obtain the maximum yield of the oil fraction at a pyrolysis temperature of 550 ◦C for the acacia and at 500 ◦C for the pine dust. Our results ...
Abstract: Currently, the world is facing an energy crisis due to an increase in the global energy demand and this has led to an increased dependence on fossil fuels for energy generation and transportation. The steady rise in the world population which is more than seven billion currently is met with an increase in fossil fuel consumption thereby increasing the threat of fossil depletion and an apparent energy deficit. Fossil fuel emissions pose a threat to the environment and the general hu...
Abstract: Composites of titanium nitride reinforced with graphite were synthesized using spark plasma sintering at 2000 °C. The effects of graphite addition on the microstructure, relative density, and mechanical properties of TiN ceramics matrix were examined. The investigation was performed on TiN powder with varying graphite content (1–5 wt.%) for 8 h using an energy ball milling equipment. Results show that TiN without and with graphite (TiN + 1 wt.% graphite) sintered at 2000 °C rec...
Abstract: Polymer waste that has been viewed as a major threat to our environment is currently gaining attention as valuables resources are being obtained from it. Researchers are now developing nanocomposites/blends from plastic wastes as a way of recycling waste plastic rather than employing incineration and landfilling methods of recycling that are not environmentally friendly. The utilization of nanofiller to recycle waste polymers will enhance the mechanical, thermal and optical propert...
Abstract: Lead is a heavy metal that is bio accumulative and non-biodegradable that poses a threat to our health when it exists in excess in our bloodstream. It has found its way into wastewater from mostly chemical industrial processes. In this article, we investigated the adsorption and hence removal of lead (II) ions from wastewater in order to purify it for re-use in industrial processes or for plant and animal use. We synthesized nano silica hollow spheres (NSHS) and used them as adsorb...
Abstract: Data has turned to be an essential aspect of every individual, group, industry, financial system, business enterprise, commercial enterprise and society. In this era, where social networks yields inconceivable volumes of data for different purposes on daily bases, an improved approach to analysis of data is required to extract information that best matches user interest. One of the ways of achieving this is through data mining. Data mining could help any consumer or producer of inf...
Abstract: The purpose of this study is to assess the factors that influence the success of agriculture mobile information systems in Botswana. Agriculture mobile information systems have been widely adopted in the commercial and subsistence agricultural sector however little research has explored the success of agricultural mobile information systems. Firstly, the factors that influence the success of agricultural mobile information system were identified and adopted from the DeLone and McLe...