IGIHE

Author: IGIHE

  • Gisagara: Community meeting discuss on response to crime

    {A community security meeting held Monday in Gisagara District reviewed and discussed the security status in the area, in a move to devise more strong and collaborative approaches that would help prevent the few common crimes that still exist in the district.}

    The meeting chaired by the Governor of the Southern Province, Marie Rose Mureshyankwano, was attended by over 2, 000 residents as well as Senior Police officers and members of other security organs.

    Present was also the Southern Region Police Commander (RPC), Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP), Gilbert Gumira.

    The meeting covered a spectrum of security related issues, and ended with a renewed commitment of everyone to play a personal responsibility towards a crime-free society.

    Governor Mureshyankwano pointed out that security is crucial to all aspects of social welfare and sustainable development, which requires individual and collective responsibility.

    She spoke on narcotic drugs and its influence to criminal acts including domestic conflicts, gender based violence, child abuse and assault.

    “Narcotics is a criminal business that everyone should fight against,” the Governor said, calling for strong partnership to fight all sorts of criminal and unlawful acts.

    “The economic prosperity the country has registered is because of security. It is therefore, imperative that we continue to join hands to fight anything that would frustrate the security we to enjoy.” Governor Mureshyankwano noted.

    She, however, commended the good working relations between Rwanda National Police and the people citing the full participation of citizens during the just concluded Police Week, which focused on community development and anti-crime awareness.

    The governor further challenged residents to play a role to ensure that the upcoming presidential elections are conducted in peaceful and secure environment.

    ACP Gumira, who also lauded the role of the public in community policing, urged residents of Gisagara to always provide real time information on anything suspicious.

    ACP Gumira further challenged residents to also embrace ‘Neighborhood Watch’, and play part in night patrols to prevent criminal acts committed under darkness.

    Source:Police

  • Memory for stimulus sequences distinguishes humans from other animals

    {Humans possess many cognitive abilities not seen in other animals, such as a full-blown language capacity as well as reasoning and planning abilities. Despite these differences, however, it has been difficult to identify specific mental capacities that distinguish humans from other animals. Researchers at the City University of New York (CUNY) and Stockholm University have now discovered that humans have a much better memory to recognize and remember sequential information.}

    “The data we present in our study indicate that humans have evolved a superior capacity to deal with sequential information. We suggest that this can be an important piece of the puzzle to understand differences between humans and other animals,” says Magnus Enquist, head of the Centre for the Study of Cultural Evolution at Stockholm University.

    The new study collated data from 108 experiments on birds and mammals, showing that the surveyed species had great difficulties in distinguishing between certain sequences of stimuli.

    “In some experiments, animals had to remember the order in which a green and a red lamp were lit. Even this simple discrimination turned out to be very difficult, and the difficulties increase with longer sequences. In contrast, animals perform as well as humans in most cases in which they have to distinguish between single stimuli, rather than sequences,” says Johan Lind, a co-author of the study and an Associate Professor at Stockholm University.

    Recognizing sequences of stimuli is a prerequisite for many uniquely human traits, for instance language, mathematics, or strategic games such as chess. After establishing that non-human animals have trouble distinguishing stimulus sequences, the researchers proposed a theory for why it is so.

    “We found that the limited capacities of non-human animals can be explained by a simpler kind of memory that does not faithfully represent sequential information. Using a mathematical model, we show that this simpler memory explains the results from animal experiments,” says Stefano Ghirlanda, lead author of the study and Professor of psychology at Brooklyn College and the CUNY Graduate Center.

    This research can explain why no language-trained animal has successfully mastered sequential aspects of language, such as the difference between “the dog bit the lady” and “the lady bit the dog.” The researchers’ hypothesize that, some time during human prehistory, the capacity to recognize and remember sequences of stimuli evolved, supporting the later evolution of human-level language, planning, and reasoning.

    The article “Memory for stimulus sequences: a divide between humans and other animals?” is published on Royal Society Open Science.

    Macaques, and other animals, have great difficulties in distinguishing between sequences of stimuli. This might be what separates humans from other animals.

    Source:Science Daily

  • Police Senior Command students in Tanzania for study tour

    {Police officers from nine African countries currently attending a ‘Police Senior Command and Staff Course’ at the National Police College (NPC), have started a week-long external study tour in Tanzania where they will visit different public, private and security organs.}

    The study tour, which is part of the one year course, started Monday with the course participants visiting the Headquarters of the Tanzania Police Force (TPF) where they were received by the Inspector General of Tanzania Police Force, Simon Sirro.

    IGP Sirro, while briefing the students, stressed the importance of “multilateral cooperation in general in curbing crimes and facilitating exchange of professional knowledge.”

    He emphasized the “oneness of African countries and societies on which African countries should build their unity.”

    The delegation was also briefed on the general security situation in Tanzania and threats related to emerging crimes like cybercrimes, radicalization, environmental crimes, communal conflicts especially associated with land.

    The delegation further visited the Dar es Salaam Police Academy, Civil Disorder Management Unit and the Dog and Horse Section.

    At Dar es Salaam Police Academy, they were briefed on the courses conducted and how they contribute to the overall peace and security in Tanzania.

    At the Civil Disorder Management Unit, the delegation was taken through civil disorder modules and witnessed live demo performed by the Field Force Unit on how to respond to civil disorder.

    The Commandant of NPC, Commissioner of Police (CP) Felix Namuhoranye, who is heading the students on the study tour, said that conducting a study tour in Tanzania was a deliberate choice with high expectations some of which were already met from the first day.

    “We thank the Inspector General of Tanzania Police Force for having responded, without delay, to the request for the visit and the warm reception accorded to us,” said CP Namuhoranye.

    He underscored the importance of learning from each other as a contributing factor to the “African brotherhood” and to the “peace and security.”

    CP Namuhoranye further said cooperation especially in the field of training and exchange of knowledge and skills, is an essential factor in the face of globalization.

    The tour for the fifth intake conducted under the theme: “Socio-economic Development, Good Governance and Justice as pillars of Peace and Security.”

    According to CP Namuhoranye, it is aims at enabling course participants to interact with practitioners and policymakers in various institutions of interest to realize how different theories learnt in class are put into practice.

    “Special emphasis is being put on the institutions delivering strategic policing; leadership and management; peace and security; economic development; diplomacy; policymaking and regional integration,” said the Commandant.

    He added that conducting a study tour in other countries helps course participants make a comparative analysis of the nexus between peace, security and socio-economic development from different countries’ perspective.

    This, he said, offers students an opportunity to share practical experience with members of host institutions with a view to developing best practices that will enhance their professional performance.

    The Police students are also expected to visit other institutions like Uongozi Institute, Ministry of Finance and Planning, Export Processing Zone (EPZ); Ministry of Foreign Affairs; East African Community offices; Tanzania Harbor Port Authority; College of Diplomacy; and Tanzania People Defense Force, among others.

    The students are from Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Namibia, Sierra Leone, Somalia, south Sudan, Uganda, Cameroon, the Gambia and Rwanda, the host.

    The one-year course offers strategic Command and leadership skills as well Master’s programme in Peace Studies and Conflict Transformation offered in partnership with the Centre for Conflict Management of the University of Rwanda.

    Source:Police

  • Vaccine that lowers cholesterol in mice offers hope of immunizing against cardiovascular disease

    {A vaccine to immunize people against high levels of cholesterol and the narrowing of the arteries caused by build-up of fatty material (atherosclerosis) may be possible following successful results in mice. Now, a phase I trial in patients has started to see if the findings translate to humans.}

    The study, which is published in the European Heart Journal, is the first to show that it is possible to immunize genetically modified mice with a molecule that causes the body to produce antibodies against an enzyme called PCSK9 (Proprotein covertase subtilisin/kexin type 9), which plays a role in preventing the clearance of low density lipoprotein cholesterol (“bad” cholesterol) from the blood.

    People with high levels of LDL cholesterol, either due to their genetic inheritance, or to poor diet and lifestyles, are at much greater risk of developing cardiovascular disease prematurely. These diseases of the heart and blood vessels, caused by atherosclerosis, have overtaken infections as the main cause of illness and death throughout the world. At present, drugs such as statins can be used to lower LDL cholesterol, but they have to be taken on a daily basis and although they are generally well-tolerated they can cause adverse side effects in some people. The most recently approved cholesterol-lowering compounds are monoclonal antibodies targeting PCSK9, which are highly effective, but their effect is short-lived, resulting in frequent re-application and high costs.

    The research published today shows that the AT04A vaccine, when injected under the skin in mice that have been fed fatty, Western-style food in order to induce high cholesterol and the development of atherosclerosis, reduced the total amount of cholesterol by 53%, shrank atherosclerotic damage to blood vessels by 64%, and reduced biological markers of blood vessel inflammation by 21-28%, compared to unvaccinated mice. Furthermore, the induced antibodies remained functional over the whole study period and concentrations were still high at the end of the study.

    Dr Günther Staffler, chief technology officer at AFFiRis (the company that developed AT04A) and one of the authors of the study, said: “AT04A was able to induce antibodies that specifically targeted the enzyme PCSK9 throughout the study period in the circulation of the treated mice. As a consequence, levels of cholesterol were reduced in a consistent and long-lasting way, resulting in a reduction of fatty deposits in the arteries and atherosclerotic damage, as well as reduced arterial wall inflammation.

    “The reduction in total cholesterol levels was significantly correlated with induced antibody concentration, proving that induced antibodies caused the reduction in cholesterol and also are ultimately responsible for the reduction of atherosclerosis development. As antibody concentrations remained high at the end of the study, it can be assumed they would continue to reduce cholesterol levels for some time afterwards, resulting in a long-lasting effect, as has been shown in previous studies.

    “If these findings translate successfully into humans, this could mean that, as the induced antibodies persist for months after a vaccination, we could develop a long-lasting therapy that, after the first vaccination, just needs an annual booster. This would result in an effective and more convenient treatment for patients, as well as higher patient compliance.”

    The enzyme PCSK9 is made in the liver and it locks on to LDL cholesterol receptors, reducing their ability to get rid of LDL cholesterol from the blood. When injected, AT04A causes the body to produce antibodies that block the function of PCSK9, so that the activity of the LDL cholesterol receptors is increased.

    “The way that AT04A is administered is comparable to a vaccine,” explained Dr Staffler. “However, the difference between a conventional vaccine and our approach is that a vaccine induces antibodies that are specific to bacterial or viral proteins that are foreign to the body — pathogens — whereas AT04A induces antibodies against a target protein that is produced by the body — endogenous proteins. This it is really an immunotherapeutic approach rather than a vaccine approach.”

    In 2015, a phase I clinical study started at the Department of Clinical Pharmacology, Medical University of Vienna, Austria, studying AT04A and another molecule AT06A in 72 healthy people to assess its safety and activity. The study is expected to complete at the end of this year.

    In an accompanying editorial, Professor Ulrich Laufs, of Saarland University, Germany, and Professor Brian Ference, of the University of Bristol, UK, and the Wayne State University School of Medicine, Detroit, USA, write: “It appears promising to further evaluate long-term LDL cholesterol lowering by vaccination against PCSK9 for the prevention of atherosclerotic events.” However, they say that “safety, the response in humans and the very important but unknown long-term immune effects need to be very carefully addressed during the course of clinical development.” In particular, reductions in total cholesterol via statins and other drugs are associated with an increase in new onset diabetes.

    “Therefore, one potential safety concern for long-term lowering of LDL cholesterol with a vaccine directed against PCSK9 is the potential for an increased risk of new onset diabetes. In the short term, the LDL cholesterol lowering effect of statins and PCS9 inhibitors appears to far outweigh the risks of new onset diabetes.”

    Source:Science Daily

  • What’s your take on cohabiting before marriage?

    {Welcome everyone to this Sunday’s edition of the Elcrema Sunday Love Special, and we’d be looking at a 21st century trend today — something that’s very common among many relationship partners — cohabiting before marriage.}

    Cohabiting before marriage is now a normal thing, and many see it as the serious of a relationship? But is it right? Is it healthy? Is it moral? Is it okay?

    Drama and Shawn will tell us how they feel about cohabiting before marriage.

    {{Drama}}

    Cohabiting before marriage has negatives and positives, and what you get out of it is a direct product of who you’re with. What I’m trying to say is, it can be rewarding and equally disastrous if the person you’re with is not ready.

    So I think it’s important to consider that before you move in with anyone. Some people want to date, but don’t know what it means to get married, because that is exactly what you do when you live together with your partner. You may not have done the marriage rites, but you’re married, and live like husband and wife. A person who isn’t mature enough for marriage and that level of commitment will be broken and discouraged from courting or even getting married if you co-habit with them because there’s so much that you learn about people when you stay together. You find out who a person truly is and what their true identities are when you live with them.

    For some, it’s a good thing because they get to understand their potential spouse better and know how to treat them, while for others, it can change their feelings towards you, especially when they find out too much dirt on your personality. So it really goes both ways. It can help a relationship or marriage be stronger and more successful, and it can mean the end of it too. So it’s important to know who you date before you think of cohabiting with them.

    If you’re dating someone who isn’t fully ready for that level of commitment just yet, or they’re just not mature enough for it just yet, then, you’re probably better off staying apart. A clear sign of people like this are those who don’t have an issue with not talking to you for as long as 2, 3 days or who show withdrawal signs when you get too close. If on the other hand, they are all over you, and they always seem to want to be with you, then, it’s a sign that they won’t have a problem with cohabiting. I also think it’s important to go at it gradually. Spend the night on occasions, and see what their reaction is, then you can know what the next move would be from there.

    I honestly have no problems with cohabiting; I just think it depends on who you’re with, and what you’re looking for. Only people who plan on being together for the long haul should try it though.

    {{Shawn}}

    Of course, everyone is entitled to their own opinion and what might be good for Mr A will not really augur well with Mr B. Cohabiting before marriage is a trend that has come to stay in the 21st century relationship world. You don’t need to look too far to find a couple who are staying together but aren’t married.

    Personally, I find it flawed for so many reasons, but I’d share just two of my opinions.

    Firstly, it takes away the spark of being married and starting a new family when you are already acting like you are married. Living together with your partner long before you even decide to tie the knots will be the same when (if) you eventually get married; there wouldn’t be any joy added or anything new, and if you aren’t careful the marriage might get stale too soon.

    Secondly, cohabiting before marriage doesn’t give room for personal development. People who cohabit believe that they get to know more about their partners this way than when they stay apart, but I doubt it. Cohabiting with each other doesn’t give room for personal development; you might remain stuck and redundant when you cohabit with a partner. The more months and years you spend together, the less likely you get to build on your individual lives. Knowing how to be independent even when in a relationship is a strength that’ll help you in marriage. You ought to learn about each other and improve on your flaws during a relationship. But when you cohabit, you learn about each other but don’t have the space to improve on certain aspects of your life and the relationship.

    You also don’t get to miss each other when you cohabit; you get so used to each other’s presence that you don’t look forward to life after marriage, because you are already experiencing it even though it’s unofficial. Cohabiting doesn’t bring that spark of “I’ve missed you”, and when you have lost this so early on, it might cause problems in the near future.

    There you have it; Drama and Shawn have both revealed what they think about cohabiting before marriage. What’s your take on this subject?

    Source:Elcrema

  • Volcanic eruptions triggered dawn of the dinosaurs

    {Huge pulses of volcanic activity are likely to have played a key role in triggering the end Triassic mass extinction, which set the scene for the rise and age of the dinosaurs, new Oxford University research has found.}

    The Triassic extinction took place approximately 200 million years ago, and was proceeded by the dinosaur era. One of the largest mass extinctions of animal life on record, the casualty list includes large crocodile-like reptiles and several marine invertebrates. The event also caused huge changes in land vegetation, and while it remains a mystery why the dinosaurs survived this event, they went on to fill the vacancies left by the now extinct wildlife species, alongside early mammals and amphibians. This mass extinction has long been linked to a large and abrupt release of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, but the exact source of this emission has been unknown.

    Following the discovery of volcanic rocks of the same age as the extinction, volcanic carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions had previously been suggested as an important contributor to this extinction event. Previous studies have also shown that this volcanism might have occurred in pulses, but the global extent and potential impact of these volcanic episodes has remained unknown. These volcanic rocks covered a huge area, across four continents, representing the Central Atlantic Magmatic Province (CAMP).

    Researchers from the Oxford University Department of Earth Science worked in collaboration with the Universities of Exeter and Southampton to trace the global impact of major volcanic gas emissions and their link to the end of the Triassic period. The findings link volcanism to the previously observed repeated large emissions of carbon dioxide that had a profound impact on the global climate, causing the mass extinction at the end of the Triassic Period, as well as slowing the recovery of animal life afterwards.

    By investigating the mercury content of sedimentary rocks deposited during the extinction, the study findings revealed clear links in the timing of CAMP volcanism and the end-Triassic extinction. Volcanoes give off mercury gas emissions, which spread globally through the atmosphere, before being deposited in sediments. Any sediments left during a large volcanic event would therefore be expected to have unusually high mercury content.

    The team sourced six sediment deposits were sourced from the UK, Austria, Argentina, Greenland, Canada and Morocco, and their mercury levels analysed. Five of the six records showed a large increase in mercury content beginning at the end-Triassic extinction horizon, with other peaks observed between the extinction horizon and the Triassic-Jurassic boundary, which occurred approximately 200 thousand years later.

    Elevated mercury emissions also coincided with previously established increases in atmospheric CO2 concentrations, indicating CO2 release from volcanic degassing.

    Lawrence Percival, Lead author and Geochemistry Graduate student at Oxford University, said: ‘These results strongly support repeated episodes of volcanic activity at the end of the Triassic, with the onset of volcanism during the end-Triassic extinction.

    ‘This research greatly strengthens the link between the Triassic mass extinction and volcanic emissions of CO2. This further evidence of episodic emissions of volcanic CO2 as the likely driver of the extinction enhances our understanding of this event, and potentially of other climate change episodes in Earth’s history.’

    Huge pulses of volcanic activity are likely to have played a key role in triggering the end Triassic mass extinction, say researchers.

    Source:Science Daily

  • President Kagame visits Zambia’s iron plant

    {President Paul Kagame who is on a two day state visit to Zambia has visited a Kafue Steel Plant located in Kafue city.}

    The plant which employs over 1000 employees and has contributed a lot to creating jobs and reducing poverty to the region in which it operates was inaugurated in 2006 during Levy Mwanawasa’s presidency.

    Before making iron locally, Zambia imported steel from South Africa.

    Kafue Steel Plant committed to producing 200,000 tons of iron per annum and targets satisfying Zambia market and Southern Africa region.

    It is equipped with high technology enhancing environment friendly operations.

  • Recruitment firms to go international

    {Private institutions involved in recruitment and selection, connecting job-seekers with employers in Rwanda are set to be licensed to enable them connect more Rwandans to jobs abroad following Rwanda’s ratification of international law governing such institutions.}

    The draft bill of ratification to international agreements enabling private institutions to seek jobs for employees was passed yesterday in the Senate.

    The agreements were approved in Geneva, Switzerland in the 85th summit International Labor Organization on 19th June 1997.

    The Minister of Public Service and Labor, Judith Uwizeye told senators that ratifying the international agreements will facilitate mobility of labour.

    “It will help us to settle laws determining functioning of institutions seeking jobs for employees based on these agreements, help to harmonize laws in functioning of such institutions with international standards and set strong policies of free movement of employees in Rwanda,” she said.

    Responding to queries of Senator Musabeyezu Narcisse who asked whether worries that kept Rwanda’s abeyance for 20 years were handled, the Minister said; “Most of implications of these agreements are incorporated in our laws and programs. The difference existed in agreements concerning private institutions connecting employees to employers but we have made a progress.”

    The Minister of Public Service and Labor, Judith Uwizeye

  • Fighting kills more than 3,000 in Congo’s Kasai region – Catholic church

    {Congolese security forces and a militia fighting them have killed at least 3,383 people in the central Kasai region since October, the Catholic church said on Tuesday, in the most detailed report to date on the violence.}

    Church officials, citing their own sources in the remote territory bordering Angola, said the army had destroyed 10 villages as it sought to stamp out an insurrection.

    They also accused the Kamuina Nsapu militia of killing hundreds of people, destroying four villages and attacking church property in a campaign to drive out central government troops.

    No one was immediately available to comment from the militia or Democratic Republic of Congo’s army, which has dismissed accusations of excessive force in the past.

    {{Political tensions}}

    The clashes have triggered fears of a wider conflict in the central African giant, a tinderbox of ethnic rivalry and competing claims over mineral resources. Wars at the turn of the century killed millions and sucked in neighbouring countries.

    The church’s report will carry considerable weight in a country where about 40 per cent of the population identifies as Catholic.

    Fighting surged in Kasai in August when the army killed a chief who had been calling for central government forces to quit the region, saying it should be left to local leaders.

    The violence has stoked political tensions already heightened by President Joseph Kabila’s decision to stay in power beyond the December 2016 end of his mandate. Kasai is an opposition stronghold.

    The UN Human Rights Council in Geneva is due to decide this week whether to authorise an investigation into the Kasai violence. UN investigators say they have discovered 42 mass graves.

    Congo’s government opposes an international investigation, saying that would violate its sovereignty.

    The United Nations says more than 1.3 million people have fled the fighting.

    A Congolese boy rests on a wall as he waits for food at a camp for internally displaced persons (IDPs) fleeing from the conflict in Kasai on June 4, 2017 in Kikwit. Thousands have died while more than 1.3 million people have fled the fighting. AFP PHOTO

    Source:Reuters

  • Tropical Storm Bret threatens heavy rain in Venezuela

    {A rare southerly storm is making its way across Trinidad and Tobago and onto South America.}

    Tropical Storm Bret, the second named storm of the 2017 hurricane season, has started to show signs of development off the coast of Guyana in South America earlier this week.

    June storms normally tend to develop further north, usually off the Yucatan Peninsula in the Gulf of Mexico or off the southeast US coast.

    This portion of the Atlantic Basin is an unusual place for storms to develop this early in the season.

    Tropical Storm Bret is just one of the few tropical systems that have formed this month in the open Atlantic.

    The system’s development is also somewhat rare because it formed further south than most tropical cyclones around the world.

    Early on Monday, Bret started to strengthen and move towards the west-northwest, leading it on a path very close to the island of Trinidad and Tobago.

    The Trinidad and Tobago Guardian reported early Tuesday morning that “gusty winds and torrential showers began pounding the eastern swath of Trinidad last night and there were reports of fallen trees, power lines, roofs torn off and flash flooding as citizens battened down for the full might of Tropical Storm Bret”.

    Early on Tuesday, the storm passed just to the south of Trinidad and Tobago, but was still bringing heavy rain and damaging winds to much of the island.

    Later in the day, Bret was expected to skirt the coast of Venezuela with an eventual landfall on the coastal part of Venezuela’s Península de Paria National Park, a rural and mostly uninhibited part of the region.

    Up to 150mm of rain is expected across parts of Venezuela over the next 36 hours.

    Later on Tuesday and into Wednesday, it will be the islands of Curacao and Aruba that will be threatened by the tropical storm. Once the storm passes, it’s expected to begin to weaken and dissipate in the central Caribbean Sea.

    Further to the north, in the Gulf of Mexico, another storm is in the making and could be a significant flood threat to the Gulf Coast of the US by Wednesday evening.

    Tropical Storm Bret bears down on the island of Trinidad and Tobago

    Source:Al Jazeera