Archives-September 2018

Widow inheritance is a prevalent cultural practice among some Asian and Sub Saharan African communities and has been found to affect the lives of widows. The general purpose of this study was to establish socio-economic implications of widow inheritance rituals. The objectives of the study were to: describe the rituals associated with widow inheritance, decipher the underlying cultural meaning and value of widow inheritance rituals and explore the socio-economic implications of widow inheritance rituals. The theoretical framework was anchored on Clifford Geertz theory of the interpretation of culture. This theory puts emphasis on the uniqueness of a ritual that one may not find even in a similar culture. The uniqueness derives from their loci. Descriptive research design was adopted in this study. The study population was 214 people of Kagan clan in Homabay County. Simple random sampling was used to select 48 widows, 7 Luo elders and 10 HIV intervention officers. The study sample therefore, comprised a total of 65 key informants. Interviews and questionnaires were used to collect data from the sampled respondents. The test-retest approach was used to determine the reliability of the research instruments and validity of the instruments was ascertained by presenting the questionnaires and interview guide to experts who are authorities in the study area for scrutiny and advice on the instruments. Qualitative thematic analysis was the main method adopted in analysing data. The researcher found out that despite the original good intensions of widow inheritance rituals, the current practice involving professional inheritors, an alternative as cleansing ritual, has made widows vulnerable to HIV and AIDS and the practice was degrading and humiliating the widows. The study concluded that widow inheritance has got adverse effects on widows’ socio-economic lives. Therefore the study recommended that community based education targeting the Luo elders, widow inheritors and inherited widows should be enhanced so that safer sexual practices are adopted even as widow inheritance rituals continue. In addition, widows and inheritors empowerment through education is necessary to enable them make informed choices.

The placement of a patient undergoing chronical hemodialysis needs a double blood access[1]. This could be perment (arteriovenous fistula, vascular prothesis) or non permanent (short term catheter, long term catheter…)We have thus led a survey whose objective is to identify the survival factors and risk complicated ones especially for aged people.The multicenter study was conducted in December 2013 in six hemodialysis centers in the Oriental region. 102 patients have been under observation. The incidence of aged people in comparison with the whole hemodialysed people was 24%.The average age was 72+5.5 years. The sex ratio male/female was 1.04. 83% had a maintained physical autonomy. Only 14.7% of our patients had health insurance: a weak rate in comparison with the national average. High blood pressure and diabetes were the underlying etiologies behind dialysis.31% of nephropathies were of unknown origin. Toxic habits, tuberculosis, embolic stroke constituted the most antecedents in our patients. Renal failure was found uncontrolled in 55.9% of our observed patients and consequently urgent intervention was recommended for 54.9%.Half of our patients benefited from 2 dialysis sessions per week.The other half underwent three sessions a week. Renal failure was associated to a positive hepatitis C serology in 6.9% of our patients and only 1% had hepatitis B serology.85% of our patients had anemia among whom 56.9% were under erythropoietine EPO. 33% of our patients suffred from heart disease. The average number of vascular approaches was 1.5 and 59.9% were held the team of vascular surgery in Oujda. The catheters were the most used as a first vascular access (55.9%) , then came arteriovenous fistula for 44.1% of our patients.33.9% of the patients benefited from a second vascular approach that was for 85% of arteriovenous fistula, whereas, the remaining 15% used catheters. Only 17 patients benefited from a third vascular approach, thas is say 16%, most of whom were arteriovenous fistula. That is say. A fourth vascular approach was held for 4 patients having exclusively arteriovenous fistula.31.4 % of patients reported complications: Dysfunction was the most frequent immediate complication (5.9%), followed by thrombosis (3.9%), then comes hemorrhage (2.9%). Aneurysm was the most frequent tardive complication (13.7%) followed by dysfunction found in 5.9%. Thrombosis was found only in 2.9% of patients. Finaly, only one patient had infection of the vascular approach. On the basis of this one targetted research, we have come to notice that : Age, dialysis term, number of sessions per week, viral status B/C are predictive factors of complications for aged people.The optimal dialysis treatment at this age, not only involves nephrologists but also recommends a convenient surgical access.

One of the last products in commercial aviation belonging to China is the C919 passenger airplane. This latest product is a product made by China to enter the market, especially against the series of Airbus A320 and Boeing 737. So it is a modern passenger plane consisting of single corridor and three-row seats like its competitors. In this study, composite structures used in the body of this new aircraft are discussed. Since the A320 and Boeing 737 are older design products, the use of composite materials in their fuselages is very low. At least the aviation use of composites is a surprising fact. The lowest utilization rate of composites is the aviation sector, which is a surprising fact. Because, although composite materials have been developed with aviation and aircraft industry, the rate of utilization in the sector is not very high yet. Especially in terms of weight and cargo we can say that the capacity is still higher in the high-altitude airplanes than in service conditions of metal alloys.

As air traffic is rapidly growing in the ASEAN region, it is essential to undertake proper planning and measures to modernize or improve current ATM operations in order to accommodate future traffic. One operational concept that may be of interest to the ASEAN region is the Direct Route Environment within ASEAN airspace to facilitate shorter flight routes for increased capacity, efficiency and safety. In this study, a Direct Route Environment was modelled within Singapore?s Flight Information Region which is within the ASEAN airspace. The direct route operations were modeled and simulated by assigning optimum flight profile under normal wind and weather conditions. The conflict patterns and aircraft performance output were then compared between current and direct route operations, with the latter showing considerable economic, safety and environmental benefits over the former.

We are very happy to announce that from 28th September 2018, Dr.R.Uthrakumar has joined the team of Elixir Editorial Advisory Board. He/She will carry a special responsibility for dealing with manuscripts based on Crystal Growth and Nanomaterials. Dr.R.Uthrakumar is working as Assistant Professor, Department of Physics, Government Arts College (Autonomous), Salem, Tamilnadu, India. The appointment of Dr.R.Uthrakumar as member, Editorial Advisory Board strengthens the links and will make it easier for prospective authors to establish contact with the journal.

Table of contents for the month of September 2018