Study and Analysis of Fabrication and Properties of Sand Lime Bricks

The main purpose of this report is to document the author’s finding, activities and the progress work that had been done in Final Year Project. The project entitles “Study and Analysis of Fabrication and Properties of Sand Lime Brick”. Briefly the project is to study the process of making sand lime brick but with using powder processing root as the method of making the sample. The result of the experiment may vary from the ASTM requirement for sand lime brick. As for the compaction pressure and sintering temperature, the result has shown improvement as increasing compacting pressure will increase green density and decrease porosity of sample

One City; Two Conditions: Exigent Parameters for Paint Performance in Lagos, Nigeria

Tropical buildings are subjected to many militating elements of climate, prominent among which are insolation and rainfall. However, the study area has an additional influence from the Atlantic Ocean which is just a few meters away from the buildings. The sea breeze is laden with high salt content which has adverse effects and reactions on the materials used for building finishes. The outer skin-external surface of any building does not have any protection in most cases due to its function as the protective layer. However, the influence of this prevalent saline air differs from one part of the study area to another due to distance. The study bifurcated the city through a survey approach into two zones A&B to obtain data for empirical analysis. Various correlations were drawn while regression analysis was carried out. The means of the two zones were determined through ANOVA to establish the performance of paint in service in the two locations. Frequencies and all the analysis were run through SPSS version 15.0 for the study. Data was also obtained from practicing Architects in Lagos through a structured interview. It shows that depreciation of paint sets in faster and repainting is required earlier in Zone A than Zone B due to more aggressive impact of saline air. The established research findings that stipulate 5-7years for maintenance of paint does not hold in areas subjected to saline air. The research is geared towards establishing the appropriateness of the use of paint in a saline laden environment when compared with other parts of the tropical region. Specifiers/architects, developers and property owners are hereby educated on the implication of their choice. Manufacturers are equally advised to develop paint that will retard the effect of saline air the more. This study is the first attempt to analytically investigate the impact of saline air on the maintenance requirement of paint in the tropical region. Keywords: Atlantic Ocean; external finishes; climate; frequency; impact; maintenance; paint; performance; saline air; sal

The effect of self-evaluation skills in developing the quality of individual performance Action Research

Grade 12 students participated in a study that looks to answer the question" does use of self-assessment skills as teaching technique improve student the quality of individual achievement and performance and their attitudes in grade 12 science courses in our schools? Attitudes were measured with a Likert Scale survey "Questionnaire"; while achievement was measured with pre-posttest. The unit included in this study is " Chemical Calculations of the Elements" which is one of the most difficult subjects for the students. The main sources of information were teachers and grade 12 student's book. Students took both a unit test and Likert scale following the instructional period. The results show that using self-assessment skills enhanced and improve the test scores. The Likert scale survey shows that students in the first group like the way of using self-assessment skills and enjoy it. In contrast, the second group which subjected to the traditional way did not like it. Keywords: self-assessment skills, individual performance, quality, schools. DOI: 10.7176/JPCR/55-07 Publication date:November 30th 202

PERAN JAWATANKUASA PENDAMAI DI DALAM MENANGGULANGI PERCERAIAN (STUDI KASUS DI MAHKAMAH RENDAH SYARIAH TAPAH PERAK, MALAYSIA).

menangani perceraian di Mahkamah Rendah Syariah(Pengadilan Agama) Tapah Perak, Malaysia. Menurut Enakmen(undang-undang) 6 tahun 2004, Undangundang Keluarga Islam Negeri Perak seksyen(pasal) 47(5), Yaitu memberikan peruntukan khusus tentang Jawatankuasa Pendamai yang dilantik khas oleh mahkamah syariah untuk menjalankan tugas sebagai juru damai terhadap perlakuan syiqaq(persengketaan) antara suami istri. Tujuan dari penelitian ini adalah untuk mengetahui tentang Pelaksanaan Jawatankuasa Pendamai, tinjauan Enakmen 6 Tahun 2004 Undang-undang Keluarga Islam Negeri Perak, dan tinjauan Hukum Islam terhadap Jawatankuasa Pendamai di dalam menangani perceraian di Mahkamah Syariah Tapah, Perak. Populasi penelitian ini terdiri dari 12 orang yang bekerja di mahkamah rendah syariah Tapah, karena jumlah populasi sedikit tidak digunakan sampel dengan menggunakan teknik total sampling. Dalam pengambilan data, peneliti menggunakan beberapa teknik yaitu wawancara, observasi dan studi dokumentasi untuk mendapatkan bahan analisis. Data-data yang terkumpul tersebut bersumberkan kepada data primer yaitu data-data yang peneliti peroleh dari lapangan dan data sekunder yaitu data-data yang diperoleh dari buku-buku bacaan yang mempunyai hubungan dengan masalah yang diteliti. Setelah data terkumpul, kemudian dianalisis dengan menggunakan metode kualitatif. Setelah peneliti melakukan penelitian, maka dapat diketahui dalam tinjauan Hukum Islam bahwa, ternyata peranan Jawatankuasa Pendamai dari setiap aspek yang berkaitan dengannya telah tertulis dan diambil oleh Hukum syara’ untuk menjaga kemaslahatan rumah tangga daripada terjadinya perceraian. Setiap upaya perdamaian yang dijalankan bertujuan memberi peluang kepada suami istri untuk mengintropeksi diri dalam mengembalikan keharmonisan rumah tangga. Oleh karena itu, kerjasama antara pihak yang terkait dalam hubungan damai terutama pihak Hakam sangat penting untuk mencari jalan damai dan mengembalikan keharmonisan rumah tangga

Timbral Spectogram of The Bonang From Malaysian Gamelan

This study explores timbral visualization to recognize the sound from Malaysian Gamelan and provide detailed description of the sound.The timbre of two sets of bonang (bonang penerus and bonang barung ) are used to perceive the sound recorded from the Malaysian Gamelan. The higher pitch bonang penerus are smaller in size than the bonang barung . The bonang panerus plays a part that is similar to the bonang barung with frequency twice as bonang barung .The timbral characteristics can precisely and objectively describes the sound characteristics of aboning that was always faced by ethnomusicologists in field work activities. The sound profile from each set of boning shows different characteristics which indicate that the recognition process showed a high recognition rate. From the finding bonang penerus showed a clear fundamental frequency indicated by the brightest colors’ in the spectrogram (yellow and red). Bonang barung showed a strong attack and decay rapidly.The sustainability or the rapid decay is also indicated by the Q factor.Q factor for bonang penerus range from 20.20 to 23.87 whereas the Q factor for bonang barung is slightly small from 12.70-17.00

The Frequency Spectrum and Time Frequency Analysis of Different Violins Classification as Tools for Selecting a Good-Sounding Violin

This work evaluates four violins from three distinct manufacturers, notably Eurostring, Stentor, and Suzuki, using a scientific approach. Eurostring1 and Eurostring2 were the names given to the two Eurostring units. The purpose of this study is to identify elements in various violins that could be used as tools for selecting a pleasantsounding violin by having them classified by a professional violinist. The signal’s time varying frequency was evaluated using a frequency spectrum and a time frequency plane, and the combination of frequency spectrum and time frequency domain is utilised. PicoScope oscilloscopes and Adobe Audition version 3 were used to record the acoustic spectra in terms of time and frequency. The time frequency plane is identified, and time frequency analysis (TFA) is produced by Adobe Audition spectrograms. The sound was processed in order to generate Fast Fourier Transform analysis: Fourier spectra (using PicoScope) and spectrograms (using Adobe Audition). Fourier spectra identify the intensity of the fundamental frequency and the harmonic spectra of the overtone frequencies. The highest frequencies that can be read are up to and including the 9th overtone. All violins have a constant harmonic overtone pattern with an uneven acoustic spectrum pattern. Eurostring1 showed inconsistent signal in the string G with 6th and 7th overtone missing, whereas Eurostring2 lack of the 6th overtone. Among the string D, only Eurostring1 display an exponential decay for the overtone. All the string A except for Suzuki showed nice and significant peak of fundamental and overtone. Stentor displays up to the 5th overtone. Among the string E, Suzuki showed inconsistent harmonic peak intensity. TFA revealed that the fundamental frequency of string E for Eurostring1 was lower than the first overtone. Only Eurostring1 has an uneven decay for the overtone frequency, whereas Eurostring2 exhibits a large exponential decay for the overtone frequency

Preliminary Production of Material Compound from Sago Waste

Sago palm or its scientific name, Metroxylon sago Rottb is commonly found in tropical low forests and processed into sago flour. Processing of sago flour will produce sago waste (SW).This excess waste has been found to cause ecosystem imbalance. The research looks into the preliminary process of recycling the sago waste into a new material compound that can be used by any modeler as a substitute in the production of any products that are compatible with the material. The process goes through the filtering stage, drying stage and molding stage using only natural resources as the main ingredients with different level of contents tested. The compound is also tested for its durability as a modeler material. The research shares the results from the process, the end product that can be used for model making and a sample of a product that is produced from the material compound

Preliminary Production of Material Compound from Sago Waste

Sago palm or its scientific name, Metroxylon sago Rottb is commonly found in tropical low forests and processed into sago flour. Processing of sago flour will produce sago waste (SW).This excess waste has been found to cause ecosystem imbalance. The research looks into the preliminary process of recycling the sago waste into a new material compound that can be used by any modeler as a substitute in the production of any products that are compatible with the material. The process goes through the filtering stage, drying stage and molding stage using only natural resources as the main ingredients with different level of contents tested. The compound is also tested for its durability as a modeler material. The research shares the results from the process, the end product that can be used for model making and a sample of a product that is produced from the material compound

A community-based prospective cohort study of dengue viral infection in Malaysia: the study protocol

Daniel Reidpath - ORCID: 0000-0002-8796-0420 https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8796-0420Background Globally, dengue infections constitute a significant public health burden. In recent decades, Malaysia has become a dengue hyper-endemic country with the co-circulation of the four dengue virus serotypes. The cyclical dominance of sub-types contributes to a pattern of major outbreaks. The consequences can be observed in the rising incidence of reported dengue cases and dengue related deaths. Understanding the complex interaction of the dengue virus, its human hosts and the mosquito vectors at the community level may help develop strategies for addressing the problem. Methods A prospective cohort study will be conducted in Segamat district of Johor State in Peninsular Malaysia. Researchers received approval from the Malaysian Medical Research Ethics Committee and Monash University Human Research Ethics Committee. The study will be conducted at a Malaysian based health and demographic surveillance site over a 1 year period in three different settings (urban, semi-urban and rural). The study will recruit healthy adults (male and female) aged 18 years and over, from three ethnic groups (Malay, Chinese and Indian). The sample size calculated using the Fleiss method with continuity correction is 333. Sero-surveillance of participants will be undertaken to identify asymptomatic, otherwise healthy cases; cases with dengue fever who are managed as out-patients; and cases with dengue fever admitted to a hospital. A genetic analysis of the participants will be undertaken to determine whether there is a relationship between genetic predisposition and disease severity. A detailed medical history, past history of dengue infection, vaccination history against other flaviviruses such as Japanese encephalitis and Yellow fever, and the family history of dengue infection will also be collected. In addition, a mosquito surveillance will be carried out simultaneously in recruitment areas to determine the molecular taxonomy of circulating vectors. Discussion The research findings will estimate the burden of asymptomatic and symptomatic dengue at the community level. It will also examine the relationship between virus serotypes and host genotypes, and the association of the clinical manifestation of the early phase with the entire course of illness.https://doi.org/10.1186/s40249-016-0172-35pubpub

Seroprevalence of dengue among healthy adults in a rural community in Southern Malaysia: a pilot study

Daniel Reidpath - ORCID: 0000-0002-8796-0420 https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8796-0420Background The frequency and magnitude of dengue epidemics continue to increase exponentially in Malaysia, with a shift in the age range predominance toward adults and an expansion to rural areas. Despite this, information pertaining to the extent of transmission of dengue virus (DENV) in the rural community is lacking. This community-based pilot study was conducted to establish DENV seroprevalence amongst healthy adults in a rural district in Southern Malaysia, and to identify influencing factors. Methods In this study undertaken between April and May 2015, a total of 277 adult participants were recruited from households across three localities in the Sungai Segamat subdistrict in Segamat district. Sera were tested for immunoglobulin G (IgG) (Panbio® Dengue Indirect IgG ELISA/high-titer capture) and immunoglobulin M (IgM) (Panbio®) antibodies. The plaque reduction neutralization test (PRNT) was conducted on random samples of IgG-positive sera for further confirmation. Medical history and a recall of previous history of dengue were collected through interviews, whereas sociodemographic information was obtained from an existing database. Results The overall seroprevalence for DENV infection was 86.6% (240/277) (95% CI: 83–91%). Serological evidence of recent infection (IgM/high-titer capture IgG) was noted in 11.2% (31/277) of participants, whereas there was evidence of past infection in 75.5% (209/277) of participants (indirect IgG minus recent infections). The PRNT assay showed that the detected antibodies were indeed specific to DENV. The multivariate analysis showed that the older age group was significantly associated with past DENV infections. Seropositivity increased with age; 48.5% in the age group of 45 years (P < 0.001). No associations with occupation, study site, housing type, comorbidity, educational level, and marital status were observed, although the latter two were statistically significant in the univariate analysis. None of the studied factors were significantly associated with recent DENV infections in the multivariate analysis, although there was a pattern suggestive of recent outbreak in two study sites populated predominately by Chinese people. The majority of infections did not give rise to recognizable disease (either asymptomatic or nonspecific symptoms) as only 12.9% of participants (31/240) recalled having dengue in the past. Conclusions The predominantly rural community under study had a very high previous exposure to dengue. The finding of a high proportion of unreported cases possibly due to subclinical infections underscores the need for enhanced surveillance and control methods. This finding also has implications for measuring disease burden, understanding transmission dynamics, and hypothesizing effects on DENV vaccine efficacy and uptake.https://doi.org/10.1186/s40249-017-0384-17pubpub