Journal articles on the topic 'Calmar Communications'

We investigate how central banks' governance frameworks influence their financial stability communication strategies and assess the effectiveness of these strategies in preventing a worsening of financial cycle conditions. We develop a simple conceptual framework of how central banks communicate about financial stability and how communication shapes the evolution of the financial cycle. We apply our framework using data on the governance characteristics of 24 central banks and the sentiment conveyed in their financial stability reports. We find robust evidence that communications by central banks participating in interagency financial stability committees more effectively mitigate a deterioration in financial conditions and advert a potential financial crisis. After observing a deterioration in conditions, such central banks also transmit a calmer message, suggesting that the ability to use policy tools other than communications strengthens incentives not to just "cry wolf".

In the digital mobile communication signal transmission system, the inter-symbol interference is one of the main factors affecting the performance. In order to make the error rate reducing to a minimum, this paper designs a new Calman digital equalization filter. It is based on Calman filter principle, and establishes the control mathematical model of observation equation and state equation, and uses MATLAB programming to realize the algorithm. In order to verify the effectiveness and reliability of this filter, this paper uses filter toolbox of MATAB to do numerical simulation on the filtering effect. Through comparing with normal digital equalization filter effect, after adding the Calman digital equalizer filter, the feedback signal is conformed to the reference signal. The duty ratio of SPWM follows the basic changing law, so as to maximize the elimination of crosstalk inter-symbol. It provides reference data for the research on mobile communication inter-symbol interference.

Young people in Calabar have diverse sexual and reproductive health challenges. Many argue that integrating gender into health programming will help reduce some of these issues because gender is central to shaping many sexual and reproductive health issues. This study used story theatre, as a qualitatively, narrative and participatory approach in trying to understand how gender relates to and influences adolescent sexual and reproductive health. Twenty story sessions were held for a hundred young people (aged 10-19) in four selected communities’ Akai Effa, Ikot Ekpo, Efut Uwanse and Nyakassang all situated in Calabar Municipality and Calabar South Local Government Areas of Cross River State, South-South Nigeria. Sessions were recorded and later coded and analyzed for sexual and reproductive health as well as gender themes. Key findings revealed that rape and gender-related sexual assault and violence, teenage pregnancy, intergenerational as well as the objectification of women ranked amongst the highest Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health (ASRH) and gender issues in the communities. Young females seem to be getting more of the negative effects than boys because they are seen as pleasurable and economic assets. It is recommended that out of the box approaches which will involve multi-systems and stakeholders be used in finding a solution to this worrisome issue.

This paper examines the phenomenon of Skolombo in Calabar (Nigeria) in relation to the challenge of urban subalternism in that context. This is against the backdrop of the evolution of the Skolombo into a rising urban subaltern category involved in the underworld and ant-social activities. By means of exploratory and conversational discourse that relies on extant literature as well as insights from personal communications, the paper posits that Skolombo phenomenon represents an existential struggle by abandoned and rejected street children who are surviving against structural societal victimization. Away from home, these children have found the streets, not only an inevitable abode but also a space for opportunistic survival. Over the years, they have evolved a pattern of street living characterized, among other things, by restiveness, touting, gangsterism, and criminality. Associated with this pattern of existence is an emerging subaltern identity that highlights a crisis of urbanity in Calabar metropolis of Nigeria. Keywords: Calabar, Skolombo, street living, subaltern identity, urban criminality, urban subalternism

In the digital baseband transmission system, the intersymbol interference is one of the main factors affecting the performance. Therefore, how to overcome its influence, making the system error rate reduction must study and solve the problems in the digital baseband system. This paper designs a new mobile communication non intersymbol interference filtering system based on MATLAB numerical simulation, the system is the integration of the Calman filter theory, and combining the genetic algorithm and PID control algorithm to achieve the rapidity and stability of the system filter. The filter design and validation simulation can be seen that the filter can effectively eliminate the measurement and observation error in the mobile communication process, to avoid the signal fluctuation caused by intersymbol interference. Through the system response curve, it can be seen that the system does not appear overshoot, fast convergence speed, and good response stability will provide the technical reference for the research of mobile communication system.

At the core of the knowledge inquiry about behavioural differences is the nature versus nurture debate which has been central to the development of various theories of human personality. The metaphor of a pendulum, swinging back and forth between nature and nurture, has been used to depict the opinion of scholars and practitioners in the social sciences and psychology in this debate. Nature / Nurture debate seeks to proffer answers to the following questions: why do people differ significantly in temperament, approach to challenges and level of intelligence even when they are siblings sharing from the same pool of genes? The debate also seeks to understand why people with different genetic trait behave alike within a group. How does our physical environment affect human behaviour and what role does communication play in the development of human personality? In the context of street children in Nigeria, should we attribute human personality to nature or nurture? These are issues this paper seeks to deconstruct. Methodologically, the paper examines critical theories of human personality and utilises a mix of review of relevant literature, comments and observations to discuss the role of communication in the formation of human personality. It concludes that though nature contributes towards human behaviour and personality, communication, which is the tool that drives socialisation, is central to the development of personality among the street children of Calabar. Thus, if communication can influence personality negatively, then the street children of Calabar have a chance of being rehabilitated through a different kind of communication aimed at behaviour modification.

The current study reports on an attempt to implement some results from a previous study on natural conversation as a Part of Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) and Communication Training Material for Face to Face Communication in Service Industry. The specific research on natural conversation is Oktarini (2016). That study analyzed a heated complaint sequence of interaction (complaint sequence-in short) between a hotel staff and a guest using Conversation Analysis (CA) (Have, 2007; Sidnell, 2010). It appeared that some of the actions of the hotel staff result in more preferable responses than the others. In terms of resolving the complaint sequence amicably, any actions that lead to calmer guest or formulation of problem, are deemed to be preferred. The current study specifically attempts to, firstly capture the moment by moment of small actions (nudges) (Cf. The Royal Institution, 2015) of the staff that garners preferable responses and vice versa; and secondly, translate those “nudges” as a component of SOP design and Communication Training Material. The framework use to translate staff’s actions into SOP design and training material is Conversation Analysis Role-play Method or CARM (Stokoe, 2014, 2018).

En 1937, se estrenó en Paris un cortometraje tridimensional llamado “Euskadi”. Rodado con la pionera técnica de “cinéma en relief” ideada dos años antes por Louis Lumière, esta película desconocida ha estado desaparecida hasta que, en 2016 el grupo de investigación NOR de la UPV/EHU dio con ella en Paris. El presente trabajo, estudia el hallazgo y la historia de esta rareza del cine 3D, analizándola en su contexto cinematográfico (el cine francés de los 30 y la invención de Lumière), político (La guerra civil española en el País Vasco peninsular, y la tranquila calma al norte de la frontera), y cultural (los numerosos documentales realizados por cineastas extranjeros sobre el País Vasco continental).

Abstract. The aim of present study was to investigate the relationships between temperament score and milk production, as well as somatic cell count in a herd of Jersey and Holstein Friesian breeds. The temperament of 283 Jersey and 69 Holstein Friesian cows were assessed (scored) by the temperament score test (behaviour of animals was assessed in a 5-score system (1: calm, 5: nervous) while spending 30 s on the scale during weighing). The daily milk yield, fat, protein content and somatic cell count were also investigated in this study. Our investigation did not reveal any correlation between daily milk yield and temperament score. But milk somatic cell count was showed positive moderate relation with the temperament scores of Jersey (rrank=0.67; P=0.0001) and Holstein Friesian (rrank=0.66; P=0.0001) cows. Calmer cows had lower somatic cell count (Jersey: 135.40×103/cm3; Holstein Friesian: 176.07×103/cm3) compared to the more temperamental cows (Jersey: 540.44×103/cm3; P=0.0001; Holstein Friesian: 744.91×103/cm3; P=0.0001, resp.).

Parenting for early childhood should be prioritized due to the importance of both physical and psychological aspects of children’s growth and development. A parenting model accompanied by parents, teachers and also psychological experts will result the balance oh physical and psychological health of the children. The development of social media like WhatsApp Messenger which has not been used optimally for parenting support socialization could be mentioned as an unfortunate chance. Due to that matter, the purpose of this research, thus: to describe the existing communication flow between parents and the school of TK Islam Mutiara Hikmah dan TK Lalita Kita Bintaro, to describe the result of parenting support model development in the teachers’ and parents’ behavior, and to find supporting and challenging factors to the communication development of the parenting model support that uses the WhatsApp Messenger. Methodology used in this research is descriptive methodology by the qualitative approach. Furthermore, the informants are invited by purposive and accidental methods. The informants consisted of two educators at TK Mutiara Hikmah, two psychologists from both schools, two educators at TK Lalita Kita Bintaro, eight students’ guardians from TK Mutiara Hikmah and nine students’ guardians from TK Lalita kita Bintaro. Data collection is conducted by doing in- depth interviews, documentations, and observation. The data analysis technique is conducted by using qualitative analytical method and descriptive method periodically since the beginning of data collection to the end of the research. To create the meaning of concluded data, researchers did the data analysis and the interpretation. The validity of data is tested by implementing source triangulation. Research output is to develop the communication model of parenting support by using WhatsApp Messenger. Theoretical basis used in this research is Osgood and Schramm’s Circular Communication Model. This model of communication is laid on the understanding that communication is conducted by two sides. Osgood explains that communication exists circularly rather than in linear way. The research is done for 6 months from January 25–July 25 2018. The results show: 1. The description of communication flow between teachers and parents has not been carried out in significant way since there are many parents working. Thus, the researchers tried to develop the communication model for parenting support by using WhatsApp Messenger to ease the more interactive communication for working parents. Furthermore, the use of social media could also ease the delivery of parenting support materials such as, curriculums, school’s subjects, and the announcements so that more dynamical communications with feedback can exist. 2. The result of parenting support model development is the coordination of the parenting support program can be done easier and optimally for those who already have the WhatsApp Messenger account. The delivery of materials and discussions via WhatsApp Messenger gives solution for parenting support problem. Significant results are as follow: a. Parents got helped by sharing activities via WhatsApp Messenger, b. Those materials shared via WhatsApp made children more independent and easier to control the psychological development, c. Children get braver at school and hyperactive children get calmer, d. Facilitating the problem solving process, e. Changing of children’s behavior such as, communication skills, concern feelings, and getting more method of learning and playing based on the ages, f. Raising concern for parents about all aspects of children’s growth and development, g. Giving more knowledge of parenting to parents by visualizing it through videos and variative tutorials. Supporting and challenging factors to the development of communication model via WhatsApp Messenger are as follow: internet connection service, financial problem of parents to provide the facilities and phycologists, schools’ poor facilities and infrastructures, and poor parents’ role since they are working are the challenging factors. While supporting factors are parents’ concern, internet connection, dynamic discussion between parents and teachers so that parents could easily implement the materials at home, and facilities provided by school, teachers’ concerns to children’s psychological development. Communication flow between parents and teachers has not been conducted optimally even though WhatsApp Messenger was already used by them, this model is positively reacted by the school and parents, and also, the benefits are considered directly. Furthermore, significant factors for the success of this model is human resources, facilities and infrastructure, and financial problems.

AbstractObjectiveIntegrating spiritual care into multidisciplinary care teams has seen both successful thoughtful collaboration and challenges, including feelings of competition and poor cross-disciplinary understanding. In Israel, where the profession is new, we aimed to examine how spiritual care is perceived by other healthcare professionals learning to integrate spiritual caregivers into their teams.MethodSemi-structured qualitative interviews of 19 professionals (seven physicians, six nurses, three social workers, two psychologists, and one medical secretary) working with spiritual caregivers in three Israeli hospitals, primarily in oncology/hematology. The interviews were transcribed and subjected to thematic analysis.ResultsRespondents’ overall experience with adding a spiritual caregiver was strongly positive. Beneficial outcomes described included calmer patients and improved patient–staff relationships. Respondents identified reasons for a referral not limited to the end of life. Respondents distinguished between the role of the spiritual caregiver and those of other professions and, in response to case studies, differentiated when and how each professional should be involved.ConclusionDespite its relative newness in Israel, spiritual care is well received by a wide variety of professionals at those sites where it has been integrated. Steps to improve collaboration should include improving multidisciplinary communication to broaden the range of situations in which spiritual caregivers and other professionals work together to provide the best possible holistic care.

Abstract This qualitative study explored parents’ perspectives on their child receiving individual music therapy in a community setting in an NHS service in London, UK. Parents of children aged 6–11 receiving or recently discharged from music therapy took part. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews which were digitally recorded, transcribed, and analyzed following procedures of inductive thematic analysis. Music therapy was generally perceived to provide a nurturing environment for children, and communication with music therapists was mostly experienced as helpful, but with some perceived challenges. Parents perceived positive outcomes of music therapy, including children becoming calmer and engaging more with musical activities at home. Understanding of music therapy was perceived as an evolving process for parents. Some parents described a need for more information prior to music therapy. The findings of this study broadly support the model in the service of working with children aged 6–11 without parents generally present during sessions. However, there were indications that, for some families, a more flexible approach might be beneficial for the child. Participants’ commentaries on perceived outcomes for children indicate potential for intervention studies investigating the impact of music therapy, while broader perceptions of the value of music therapy indicate a need for studies exploring reasons for effectiveness.

Abstract Aki Kaurismäki is arguably the best-known Finnish filmmaker, owing largely to his feature films such as Crime and Punishment (Rikos ja rangaistus, Finland, 1983), Calamari Union (Finland, 1985), Shadows in Paradise (Varjoja paratiisissa, Finland, 1986), Hamlet Goes Business (Hamlet liikemaailmassa, Finland, 1987), Ariel (Finland, 1988), The Match Factory Girl (Tulitikkutehtaan tyttö, Finland, 1990), I Hired a Contract Killer (Finland/ Sweden, 1990), La vie de bohéme (Finland/France/ Sweden/Germany, 1992), Take Care of Your Scarf, Tatiana (Pidä huivista kiinni, Tatjana, Finland/Germany, 1994), Drifting Clouds (Kauas pilvet karkaavat, Finland, 1996), Juha (Finland, 1999), The Man Without a Past (Mies vailla menneisyyttä, Finland, 2002), Lights in the Dusk (Laitakaupungin valot, Finland, 2006) and Le Havre (Finland/France, 2011). A large body of his work has been made in Finland, but also in countries like France and Great Britain. Besides feature films, he has also made documentaries and short films, as well as musical films with the group Leningrad Cowboys. In a broader context, Kaurismäki has a unique place in Finnish and international film history, as well as in media and communication culture. Kaurismäki’s cultural context includes elements that have been turned into national and transnational symbols of social communication and narrative interaction by his stylisation. The director’s cinematic strategy investigates and makes choices evoking a social understanding of characters that has special communicative value. Kaurismäki’s films have been scrutinised for over thirty years.

ABSTRACTThe use of the English language in Nigeria dates back to the late sixteenth and early seventeenth century when British merchants and Christian missionaries settled in the coastal towns called Badagry, near Lagos in the present day South Western Nigeria and Calabar, a town in the present day South Eastern Nigeria. The merchants initially traded in slaves until the slave trade was abolished in 1807, at which time freed slaves of Nigerian origin returned to the country. Many of them, who had been exposed to Western education and Christianity, later served as translators or interpreters for the Christian missionaries. The primary aim of the Christian mission was not to make their converts speak English; rather, it was to make them literate enough to read the bible in their indigenous languages. This must be the reason why Samuel Ajayi Crowder translated the English bible into Yoruba, the major language in South Western Nigeria.With the attainment of independence, English gradually grew to become the major medium for inter-ethnic communication. Like most African nations, the country, after independence, had to grapple with multi-ethnicity and acute multilingualism. In this article, we shall examine the expansion in the functions of English during the post-colonial period.

Desde el inicio del VIH/sida en los años 80, el relato audiovisual no sólo ha servido para situar al espectador en un contexto social sino que le ha ayudado a reflexionar sobre la epidemia más devastadora de la medicina contemporánea. El miedo y el desconocimiento han fomentado procesos de discriminación provocando que personas con VIH/sida no sean tratadas con dignidad y respeto. Desde el ámbito de la educomunicación como vehículo de transmisión de conocimientos a través del medio, se pretende como objetivo principal concienciar sobre la importancia de la prevención del VIH/sida a la generación Z, los primeros adolescentes del siglo XXI. Para ello, se presenta una metodología: mediante una propuesta edu-inclusiva con pequeñas píldoras audiovisuales de la serie de televisión Élite (2018) y a través de la teoría ecológica de Bronfenbrenner sobre cómo influye en el desarrollo cognitivo y conductual los ambientes que rodean a una persona. Dando como resultados un impacto a nivel sensorial, actuando como transformador de conciencia saludable y logrando subsanar prejuicios y heridas sociales. Se concluye que es esencial trabajar sobre VIH/sida desde edades tempranas, ya que más vale comunicar para prevenir que callar para curar.Palabras clave: cine; VIH/sida; adolescentes; educación para la salud; series tv.; comunicación.Abstract Since the beginning of HIV/AIDS in the 1980s, the audiovisual story hasn´t only served to situate the viewer in a social context but it has helped him to reflect on the most devastating epidemic of contemporary medi­cine. Fear and ignorance have fostered discrimination processes causing people with HIV/AIDS not to be treated with dignity and respect. From the field of educommunication as a vehicle for the transmission of knowledge through the media, the main objective is to raise awareness of the importance of HIV/AIDS pre­vention to Generation Z, the first teenagers of the 21st century. Because of this, it is presented a methodo­logy through an edu-inclusive proposal with small audiovisual pills from the TV series Élite (2018) and through Bronfenbrenner´s ecological systems theory about how the environments that surround a person can influence cognitive and behavioural development. As a result there is an impact at sensory level, acting as a healthy conscience transformer and managing to correct prejudices and social wounds. In conclusion: it´s essential to work on HIV/AIDS from an early age, because it´s better to communicate to prevent than be silent in order to heal.Keywords: cinema; HIV/AIDS; teenagers; education for the health; TV series; communication.

El objeto de este estudio de caso fue evaluar las habilidades psicológicas de jugadoras de hockey hierba, y, por otro lado, la eficacia de la participación en un programa de entrenamiento psicológico en las características psicológicas relacionadas con el rendimiento deportivo. Participaron 10 jugadoras de hockey de 16 a 26 años de la selección de hockey hierba femenino de categoría senior. La intervención psicológica se realizó en Montevideo-Uruguay, durante 16 sesiones a través de trabajo individualizado (voluntario) y trabajo grupal (obligatorio) con un enfoque cognitivo-conductual. La intervención estuvo formada por técnicas y estrategias como la reestructuración cognitiva; la autocaracterización; la técnica de la Rejilla de concentración y Stroop; habilidades de comunicación y de autoconocimiento; auto-registros conductuales; observaciones-confrontaciones e interpretaciones; y técnicas de relajación y visualización. Se administró el Cuestionario de Características Psicológicas relacionadas con el Rendimiento Deportivo en jugadores de fútbol (CPRD-f, Olmedilla, García y Martínez, 2007) antes y después de la intervención de 4 meses de duración. Los resultados indican que las habilidades psicológicas en estas deportistas son caracterizadas por niveles altos de autoconfianza; impermeabilidad a la evaluación del rendimiento; manejo de la ansiedad competitiva y de la atención-concentración. Aparecen diferencias significativas tras la intervención que favorecen la calma ante las diferentes situaciones relacionadas con la competición, con un aumento del manejo de la ansiedad competitiva. Se plantea la necesidad de transferir esta información a psicólogos del deporte que intervengan a jugadoras de hockey, facilitando la selección y ajuste de estrategias psicológicas específicas en los planes de entrenamiento con el objetivo de mantener y fortalecer sus habilidades psicológicas llegando a conseguir que se manifiesten al máximo nivel. Palabras clave: entrenamiento psicológico, hockey femenino, CPRD-f, rendimiento deportivo. The purpose of this pilot study was to evaluate the psychological skills of grass hockey players, and, on the other hand, the effectiveness of participation in a psychological training program on psychological characteristics related to athletic performance. Ten hockey players from 16 to 26 years old participated in the senior women's field hockey team. The psychological intervention was carried out during 16 sessions through individualized work (voluntary) and group The intervention consisted of techniques and strategies such as cognitive restructuring; self-characterization; the technique of the concentration grid and Stroop; communication and self-knowledge skills; behavioral self-records; observations-confrontations and interpretations; and relaxation and visualization techniques. The CPRD-f (Olmedilla, García and Martínez, 2007) was administered before and after the 4-month intervention. The results indicate that the psychological skills in these athletes are characterized by high levels of self-confidence; impermeability to performance evaluation; management of competitive anxiety and attention-concentration. Significant differences appear after the intervention that favor calm against the different situations related to the competition. The need arises to transfer this information to sports psychologists who intervene hockey players, facilitating the selection and adjustment of specific psychological strategies in training plans with the aim of maintaining and strengthening their psychological skills, getting them to manifest themselves to the maximum level. Keywords: Psychological training, female hockey, CPRD-f, sports performance. O objetivo deste estudo de caso foi avaliar as habilidades psicológicas de jogadoras de hóquei na grama, assim como a efetividade durante a participação em um programa de treinamento baseado nas características psicológicas relacionadas com o desempenho esportivo. Dez jogadoras de hóquei entre 16 e 26 anos participaram da seleção feminina ha categoria sênior. A intervenção psicológica foi realizada em Montevidéu, Uruguai, por meio de 16 sessões, através de trabalho individualizado (voluntário) e trabalho em grupo (obrigatório) com uma abordagem cognitiva/comportamental. A intervenção foi realizada por técnicas com o emprego de estratégias como reestruturação cognitiva, autocaracterização, técnica da capacidade de concentração e habilidades de comunicação e autoconhecimento, registros autocomportamentais, observações, confrontos e interpretações e técnicas de relaxamento e visualização. Foi aplicado um questionário das características psicológicas relacionadas ao desempenho esportivo em jogadores de futebol (CPRD-f, Olmedilla, García y Martínez, 2007) antes e após a intervenção de quatro meses. Os resultados indicam que as habilidades psicológicas desses atletas são caracterizadas por altos níveis de autoconfiança e permeabilidade à avaliação do desempenho da gestão competitiva da ansiedade e concentração. Diferenças significativas apareceram após a intervenção que favorecem a calma diante das diferentes situações relacionadas à competição, com um aumento no gerenciamento da ansiedade competitiva. Surge a necessidade então de transferir essas informações aos psicólogos esportivos que intervêm junto aos jogadores de hóquei, facilitando a seleção e o ajuste de estratégias específicas nos planos de treinamento como objetivo de manter e fortalecer suas habilidades psicológicas, fazendo com que elas se manifestem no mais alto nível. Palavras-chave: Treinamento psicológico, hóquei feminino, CPRD-f, desempenho esportivo.

Abstract: This paper examines the key legitimating role of communication and the media, and the role of taming-labour, in constructing the Ontario neo-liberal hegemonic project in 1995. Media-content analysis and examination of the communication strategies of the Ontario government in the 1996 public-service strike show that the government relied on constructing the perception of a hegemonic crisis and framing labour as oppositional to the public interest of resolving the crisis. The government’s general strategy of quick-attack communications offensives curtailed media and opposition scrutiny, increasing the likelihood of policy success and media dependence on its framing of issues. A strong challenge to the government led by labour and social justice groups failed in the face of state public relations, media silence, and internal dissension. Examination of a second strike in 2002 suggests that even without a crisis, the government continued its attack on labour. Résumé : Cet article examine le rôle clé de légitimation joué par les communications et les médias, ainsi que les efforts déployés pour calmer la main-d’œuvre, lors de l’exécution d’un projet hégémonique néo-libéral en Ontario en 1995. Une analyse de contenu médiatique et l’examen des stratégies communicationnelles du gouvernement ontarien lors de la grève du service public en 1996 montrent que le gouvernement a tenté de faire croire à une crise hégémonique et a suggéré que la main-d’œuvre s’opposait à l’intérêt public en entravant la résolution de la crise. La stratégie du gouvernement, qui consistait en de rapides attaques communicationnelles, a empêché l’opposition et les médias de faire leur travail, augmentant à la fois la dépendance que les médias avaient de la version gouvernementale des faits, et ainsi augmentant les chances de succès du gouvernement. Des groupes de main-d’œuvre et de justice sociale se sont fortement opposés au gouvernement, mais ont échoué face à la campagne de relations publiques de l’État, au silence des médias et à cause de différends internes. L’examen d’une seconde grève en 2002 suggère que, même sans crise, le gouvernement a continué à attaquer la main-d’œuvre syndiquée.

With the rapid expansion of non-implementation of management planning functions, there is a drastic reduction/dawn fall in the performance of the Cross River State Water Board Limited Calabar (CRSWBL).The adequate and regular supply of water in Calabar by Cross River State Water Board Limited, has been disdain or neglected in the planning functions and control of the organization by government as well as the management of the board. The imperative implication of inadequate and irregular supply of water in Calabar Metropolis by CRSWBL is no doubt a recurring issued in the life of Cross Riverians and other occupants in the state capital. This study principally focused on implementing management planning functions and organizational performance of the Cross River State Water Board Limited Calabar. The study employed a theoretical based approached supported with secondary data sourced from text books, journals and internet materials. The study revealed that planning functions has a significant relationship with the organizational performance of CRSWBL Calabar. The study also revealed that there is a significant relationship between organizing function and the quality of water supply by the organization. It also indicated that there is a positive relationship between controlling function and the quantity of water supply by the organization. Based on the findings, the study recommended that government and management of the organization should ensure proper and adequate implementation of predetermine goals, objectives as well as plans setting, in order to enhance steady performance of the firm. The management should also ensure that the structure of the organization needs to be well designed in order to allow a free flow of communication system among workers and management of the enterprise.

As more natural language processing (NLP) applications benefit from neural network based approaches, it makes sense to re-evaluate existing work in NLP. A complete pipeline for digitisation includes several components handling the material in sequence. Image processing after scanning the document has been shown to be an important factor in final quality. Here we compare two different approaches for visually enhancing documents before Optical Character Recognition (OCR), (1) a combination of ImageMagick and Unpaper and (2) OCRopus. We also compare Calamari, a new line-based OCR package using neural networks, with the well-known Tesseract 3 as the OCR component. Our evaluation on a set of Setswana documents reveals that the combination of ImageMagick/Unpaper and Calamari improves on a current baseline based on Tesseract 3 and ImageMagick/Unpaper with over 30%, achieving a mean character error rate of 1.69 across all combined test data.

Background: Despite many years of research and concerted efforts at control of malaria, the achievement of a malaria free world remains a dream. The prevalence of the disease continues to increase in many parts of the world especially among under-5 children and pregnant women. However, in Nigeria, the scale up of malaria control strategies has produced recognizable public health impact in several communities and this has led to the development of new tools and strategies, including integrated approach to control, aimed at further consolidating malaria control goals. Objectives: To evaluate malaria control practices by Caregivers of under-five children in Calabar South LGA, Cross River State, Nigeria. Methods: A cross sectional study involving the administration of questionnaires to 440 Caregivers of under-five children selected through a multi-stage sampling and simple random sampling techniques. The administration of the questionnaires to the respondents was used to evaluate malaria control practices by Caregivers of under-5 children in Calabar South LGA since the launch of the Roll back Malaria (RBM) Program in Nigeria in 1998. Results: The sociodemographic characteristics of respondents are as follows: 35.3% of respondents fell within the age brackets of 26-31 years, 85% were married, 56.3% had, at least, secondary school education, 35.8% were traders, 98.5% were Christians, 40.8% were medium income earners, 56.3% had 3-5 persons per household. Evaluation of Caregivers in the LGA on knowledge of malaria control practices, show they had good knowledge on strategies to control malaria but many of them did not practice them in their homes. The very few that were involved in the practice of malaria control activities rely on vertical approaches to control instead of integrated malaria control efforts as advocated during the launch of the RBM program in Nigeria in 1998. Conclusions: The state Ministry of Health, Calabar, Cross River State, Nigeria, through the Department of Public Health, needs to invest more on education, communication and information dissemination strategies to reach Caregivers of under-5 children to adopt integrated approach to malaria control instead of using isolated vertical approach if they are to achieve the malaria control targets set by RBM and MDGs for under-5 children in Nigeria in general and Calabar South LGA in particular.

This paper seeks to examine the emerging sociolinguistic trends in Nigeria with the view to ascertaining the use of English as a first language among its speakers particular in Calabar, Nigeria. The study adopts Vygotsky’s (1978) Social Interactionist Theory. The theory is relevant because it accounts for the intentional and changing linguistic attitudes of children believed to be influenced by their early exposure to English as the language spoken by adults and peers within their immediate environment. Data for the study were generated through primary sources, particularly by means of participant observation and administration of questionnaire. Using random sampling technique, 468 questionnaires were distributed to children within the school age bracket of 06 - 13 in 10 selected Private Primary and Junior Secondary Schools in Calabar. With the aid of 20 trained research assistants who are bi/multilinguals in some Nigerian indigenous languages and English, 400 questionnaires filled under supervision were retrieved from the respondents from where the data were extracted and collated for analysis. Findings indicate that 37 percent of the pupils/students are monolinguals who speak only English as their ‘first and native language’. Similarly, 32.5 percent of the target population understand their mother tongue(s) while 30.8 percent of affirm that they speak the indigenous language(s) fluently. Also, it is observed that a total of 63 percent are bi/multilinguals in their mother tongue(s) and English language and could switch or mix codes. The reasons for the increasing preference towards English language, the researchers have observed, range from the persuasive influence from parents, teachers and peers, and the consequences of globalization in addition to the multiple domains of use of English language. This trending communication practice would continue to increase the growing population of English speakers in Nigeria while the indigenous are further endangered.

Urgency. The atmosphere and geospace are widely used as a radio channel in solving problems of radar, radio navigation, direction finding, radio communication, radio astronomy, and the remote sensing of the Earth from space or the near-earth environment from the surface of the planet. The parameters of the atmospheric-space radio channel are determined by the state of tropospheric and space weather, which is formed mainly by non-stationary processes on the Sun (solar storms) and partly by high-energy processes on the Earth and in the atmosphere. Geospace storms give rise to the strongest disturbances of the atmospheric-space radio channel, and it is important to note that these storms are diverse, so that no two storms are alike. At the same time, storms have both similar and individual features. Currently, there is insufficient knowledge about both of these features, and their study remains an urgent task of space geophysics and space radio physics. In particular, the identification of general patterns is advisable by performing a statistical analysis of a large number of storms. The aim of this work is to statistically analyze the parameters of the solar wind and geomagnetic field during the Solar Cycle 24 activity (2009–2020). Methods and Methodology. The parameters of the disturbed solar wind (number density nsw, velocity Vsw, and temperature Tsw), the disturbed values of the By- and Bz-components of the interplanetary magnetic field, which is the cause of magnetic storms on Earth, as well as the indices of geomagnetic activity (AE, Dst and Kp) are selected as source input to the study. In this paper, geomagnetic storms with Kр ≥ 5 or G1, G2, G3, and G4 geomagnetic storms are considered. In total, there were 153 storms with Kp ≥ 5. The time series of the nsw, Vsw, Tsw maximum values, of the By- and Bz-components, and of the AE, Dst and Kp indices, as well as of the Bz-component and the Dst index minimum values have been analyzed. Results. The main statistical characteristics of the parameters of the solar wind, interplanetary magnetic field, and of the geomagnetic field have been determined for 153 events that took place during Solar Cycle 24. Conclusions. The geomagnetic situation during Solar Cycle 24 was calmer than during Solar Cycle 23.

In exploring the link between ecospirituality and the hard sciences, I argue that the former provides a much-needed complement to the latter. The fragmentation of disciplinary pursuits fostered by the Enlightenment and by the continued progress of unquestioned technological advance as an end in itself finds its ultimate expression in our current disconnection from the natural world, from each other, and even from ourselves. As a corrective to such disconnection, ecospiritual impulses emerge in an attempt to unify a discombobulated subject, a self so fragmented by the multiple narratival requirements of a communication-obsessed age (where we can be reached by cell phone, regular phone, multiple email addresses, Facebook, and other social media) that the "contemplative" facet of being human within the rhythms of the natural world is all but obscured-indeed, is hardly given the requisite environment in which to function. Against this over-reliance on technology, on where the hard sciences have led us, ecospirituality emerges as a balm for the terrorized human spirit. Don DeLillo's recent novel Point Omega documents this poignantly. His narrator speaks of the "usual terror" of cities with their "endless counting down," with people constantly checking their watches and other time-keeping devices. DeLillo's protagonist moves to the desert where "geological time" becomes the paradigm through which a restorative calm is generated. Alan Lightman's fiction proves even more relentless in its depiction of the dissociation engendered by an over-reliance on technology. Lightman's protagonist in The Diagnosis is an information trader who suffers a breakdown and is only restored to well-being through a re-acquaintance with his own natural body rhythms along with those of the natural world. Many of the characters in the short-story collection Einstein's Dreams also find that a connection to nature counteracts the senseless competition of a consumer-driven, technologically-enhanced world. Al explorar el nexo entre eco-espiritualidad y ciencias duras, sostengo que la primera proporciona un complemento necesario a las segundas. La fragmentación de los objetivos disciplinarios, promovida por la Ilustración y por un continuo progreso tecnológico incontestable, encuentra su expresión máxima en la actual desconexión del mundo natural, de los demás y de nosotros mismos. Contra dicha desconexión, los impulsos eco-espirituales surgen en un intento de unificar una materia confusa, un ser tan fragmentado por las múltiples exigencias de una época obsesionada con la comunicación (en la que se nos puede alcanzar por móvil, teléfono fijo, diferentes direcciones de correo electrónico, Facebook y otras redes sociales) que la faceta "contemplativa" de una existencia humana al ritmo del mundo natural no está del todo oscurecida, pero tampoco puede funcionar en su ambiente ideal. Contra esta sobre-dependencia en la tecnología a la que nos han llevado las ciencias duras, la eco-espiritualidad surge como bálsamo para el espíritu aterrorizado. La reciente novela de Don De Lillo Point Omega lo documenta de forma conmovedora. El narrador habla del "terror usual" de ciudades con su "interminables cuentas atrás", con la gente mirando continuamente sus relojes y otros dispositivos parecidos. El protagonista de De Lillo se muda al desierto, donde el "tiempo geológico" llega a ser el paradigma gracias al cual se genera una calma reparadora. La ficción de Alan Lighman resulta aun más despiadada al representar la disociación producida por la sobre-dependencia en la tecnología. En The Diagnosis, el protagonista de Lightman es un comerciante de información que sufre una crisis nerviosa y sólo le devuelve al bienestar el re-conocimiento de los ritmos naturales de su cuerpo y del mundo. También muchos de los personajes de la colección de relatos cortos Einstein's Dreams descubren que una conexión con la naturaleza contrarresta la absurda competencia de un mundo altamente tecnológico movido por el consumo.

La notion de l’individu comme être humain doué d’un corps propre et d’une identité singulière est née de la notion de sujet. C’est en effet autour de ce concept très occidental que s’est développée l’idée d’un être agissant de manière autonome et réflexive. Mais ce sujet constitué en « soi », en self, est aussi un sujet qui agit, un sujet pratique, engagé dans le monde extérieur selon une volonté et selon des motivations qui lui seraient propres. Un sujet donc non plus en tant que sub-jectum comme l’indique l’étymologie du mot ; non plus un sujet « soumis » à différents pouvoirs d’ordre politique et religieux, mais un sujet qui, au siècle des Lumières, avec la contestation de la royauté absolue et la critique de la hiérarchie catholique, devient un être de raison, constitué en droit (Taylor 1989). Désormais un sujet libre, un sujet libre de penser et libre d’agir comme il l’entend, un sujet dont les libertés sont fondées sur un certain nombre de droits, également partagés. Mais qu’en est-il dans la réalité de nos sociétés contemporaines, convaincues que démocratie et libéralisme économique vont de pair, convaincues aussi qu’elles sont les seules aptes à défendre les droits de l’homme et de l’individu dans leur universalité face à d’autres formes sociales, passant pour plus traditionnelles ? Envisagée du point de vue sociologique, la question a longtemps été de savoir qui, de l’individu ou de la société, est premier par rapport à l’autre. On le sait – pour Émile Durkheim la société ne saurait être considérée comme la somme des individus qui la composent, des individus donnés comme entités premières, dans leurs différents états de conscience. Du « holisme méthodologique » (le tout n’est pas réductible aux parties qui le composent) on est passé au « relationalisme méthodologique » : société et individus sont à comprendre dans des relations qui correspondent à des rapports de réciprocité. Le social et le collectif ne sauraient donc être envisagés comme les simples résultantes des actions et pratiques des individus (comme le laisse entendre l’« individualisme méthodologique »). Entre les individus-atomes (êtres indivis) et l’ensemble social auquel ils sont forcément intégrés, il y a interdépendance, interaction ; il y a « co-construction » des uns par l’autre, et vice versa. L’opposition toute théorique entre l’individuel et le collectif doit donc être dépassée (Corcuff 2007 ; Corcuff, Le Bart, de Singly 2010). Avant la guerre de 39-45, le sociologue et philosophe allemand Norbert Elias s’était déjà interrogé sur la nature de l’homme vivant dans ce qu’il appelait « la société des individus ». Les relations réciproques des individus les uns avec les autres constitueraient la condition même de l’existence humaine ; elles représenteraient l’une des bases de la condition d’être humain. Dès lors la vie sociale et l’appartenance à une société étaient données comme une disposition fondamentale, inscrite dans l’être social de l’homme. Pour Elias (1991), ce n’est que tardivement et épisodiquement, surtout à partir de la Renaissance, que serait apparue la conscience d’un « moi » pourvu d’une intériorité ; cette conscience nouvelle aurait alors entraîné, dans une perspective à vrai dire européocentrée, une « prédominance de l’identité du moi sur l’identité du nous ». Si les hommes en tant qu’individus sont bien interdépendants, la notion même d’individu est ancrée dans l’idée de la constitution d’un « moi » ; elle est fondée dans l’idée de sujet. C’est sur un constat analogue qu’est fondée la distinction tracée par l’anthropologue Louis Dumont (1983) entre sociétés holistes et société individualistes. D’un côté donc, dans les sociétés traditionnelles, un homo hierarchicus dont l’identité est définie par la place qu’il occupe dans l’ensemble social avec ses statuts et ses hiérarchies ; de l’autre un homo aequalis, promu dans les sociétés modernes par l’égalité instituée entre des individus considérés comme autonomes. Mais cette opposition se double d’un autre contraste. D’une part l’homme hors du monde : le modèle en est celui du renonçant indien qui se soustrait au réseau des liens sociaux pour se trouver face à lui-même, dans sa singularité ; d’autre part l’homme dans le monde : tel l’homme moderne, cet homme intra-mondain réalise son identité individuelle au sein de la société ; son individualité est posée comme une valeur et un but. Ainsi on assisterait en Occident à la naissance de l’individu moderne en particulier par la transition calviniste vers un « individu-dans-le-monde » mais pour y accomplir la volonté du dieu unique des chrétiens, puis par le passage à l’Individu de la première « Déclaration des droits de l’homme et du citoyen », libéré de la tutelle de l’Église au nom de la liberté de conscience exercée dans une société égalitaire. Or c’est précisément de la notion de liberté que sont nés tous les malentendus entretenus par une pensée économiste préoccupée de fait par la seule liberté du marché. En effet les libertés fondamentales assises sur les droits partagés qui constituent l’individu abstrait ont été transformées en des libertés individuelles qui permettraient à chacune et chacun de se développer concrètement selon ses capacités propres. Dans cette mesure, l’individualité est assimilée à la sphère privée ; et les droits égaux qui assurent des devoirs réciproques sont réduits aux droits de la personne dans sa singularité (Flahaut 2006), dans la concurrence entre les individus soumis à la marchandisation (Calame 2008). L’extraordinaire développement des sciences humaines dans les années soixante du siècle dernier a pu sembler sonner le glas du sujet occidental en tant que monade autonome, consciente et réflexive. À vrai dire, les différentes sciences de l’homme ont plutôt contribué à en approfondir les multiples dimensions. Du côté de la psychanalyse le sujet dans son psychisme s’est révélé se situer à l’intersection des pulsions animées par son corps propre et du refoulé accumulé dans l’expérience de son enfance au sein de la famille nucléaire. À l’anthropologue structuraliste ce même inconscient est apparu comme fondé, au-delà des différences culturelles, dans les structures universelles de l’esprit humain. Dans le débat entre individualisme et holisme méthodologiques, les sociologues n’ont pas manqué de subordonner l’individu aux relations sociales, insérant son existence dans les réseaux contraignants que tissent ces rapports souvent asymétriques. Et les linguistes se sont interrogés sur l’existence d’une grammaire universelle qui traverserait les langues et qui serait à la base de la compétence verbale de tout être humain. Ainsi l’atome-individu abstrait est désormais soumis aux déterminations psychiques, sociales, économiques, culturelles, verbales et bientôt neuronales qui découlent de sa constitution organique et psychique ainsi que son environnement « naturel » et social. Dans les différentes perspectives ouvertes par les sciences sociales, le sujet-individu est donc bien à saisir étymologiquement comme sub-jectum ; en tant que tel, il s’avère constamment soumis à des processus de subjectivation qui dépendent largement de son entourage matériel, familial, social et culturel. Loin d’entraver une autonomie morale et intellectuelle censée asseoir l’individu philosophique dans une liberté fondée sur la conscience de soi, ces paramètres d’ordre aussi bien organique que symbolique contribuent au contraire à l’enrichissement identitaire constant des individus singuliers. Cette fabrication est rendue indispensable par l’extraordinaire plasticité neuronale constitutive de l’être humain, en particulier dans ses manières de se représenter le monde social et l’écologie qui le déterminent et dans les modes de son action sur cet environnement humain et matériel. En se fondant sur les résultats relativement récents d’une part de la paléo-anthropologie, d’autre part de la neurologie, quelques anthropologues contemporains sont allés plus loin. Dans son incomplétude, l’homme ne saurait se développer, ni en tant que genre humain, ni en tant qu’individu, si l’organisation sociale et la culture n’étaient pas là pour activer et réaliser ses capacités neuronales ; la nature cérébrale de l’homme se révélerait ainsi dans son extraordinaire plasticité, une plasticité qui implique la contrainte (Ansermet, Magistretti 2004). Autant du point de vue phylogénétique du développement du genre humain qu’en ce qui concerne l’essence organique de l’homme avec son développement individuel, tout se passe en somme comme si la nature présupposait la culture, voire comme si, pour l’être humain, la culture précédait en quelque sorte la nature (cf. Dortier 2004). En effet, en anthropologie culturelle et sociale, la tendance traditionnelle est d’envisager la culture, de même qu’à l’époque du Romantisme allemand, comme le moyen de combler le vide laissé par la nature incomplète de l’homme. Ainsi Geertz (1973): « En résumé, nous sommes des animaux incomplets ou inachevés et nous nous complétons ou nous nous parachevons nous-mêmes par le biais de la culture ». Par le biais de pratiques d’ordre technique et symbolique où l’activité de la communication verbale joue un rôle essentiel, l’homme se constitue lui-même dans son identité affective et réfléchie ; il se construit en interaction obligée avec les différents cercles communautaires qui contribuent à sa fabrication, en interaction avec leurs différentes conventions et traditions qu’à son tour il adopte. Ce processus d’« anthropopoiésis » se poursuit pendant toute sa carrière d’être humain mortel. L’individu se fabrique à la fois par les autres et pour les autres, avec des spécificités individuelles et des processus de subjectivation qui engendrent des transformations dynamiques, mais aussi des affrontements et des conflits (Affergan et al. 2003). D’un point de vue anthropologique, l’identité complexe de chacun de nous repose donc sur une dialectique subtile entre d’une part la nécessaire fabrication sociale et culturelle de l’homme par ses proches et d’autre part le développement de la singularité de l’individu, avec son autonomie partagée entre identité-idem et identité-ipse (Ricœur 1990). L’épanouissement de l’individu en personne avec sa réflexivité critique dépend, dans l’interaction notamment discursive, des différents réseaux de sociabilité auxquels il appartient dans sa vie intellectuelle et pratique ; son émancipation repose sur les différents statuts que lui confère son action sociale, entre travail, cercle familial, activités culturelles, etc. Sans doute une identité personnelle épanouie est-elle la résultante du croisement pratique de plusieurs niveaux identitaires collectifs, d’ordre également ethnique et culturel (Galissot, Kilani, Rivera 2000). Dans cette mesure l’identité individuelle doit sans doute être garantie en situation postmoderne par une série de droits, mais aussi de devoirs.