Training Design Development: The Practice Of Four Development Agencies In Malaysia

Efficient and effective training programmes are needed to produce competent workers in order to achieve the development goals of a country.Therefore, strategy-oriented , coordinated training designs are important to maximize the impact of the training activities. This study was conducted to identify the training design(s)and components employed by the training personnel of Malaysian Agricultural Research and Development Institute (MARDI ),the Federal Land Development Authority ( FELDA ),the Rubber Industr

Design and Characterisation of a Scale-Down Platform for the Recovery of Periplasmic Fab’ From E.coli

The need to speed up bioprocessing and to enhance process understanding of the heat extraction process, for the recovery of periplasmic Fab’ from E.coli cells, has led to the development of two workable scale-down models that are capable of predicting the performance of the lab scale and pilot scale process. In this work, a design of experiment (DoE) study was initially conducted at the 2L scale to identify the effect of key parameters such as heating duration (6-14 hours), heating temperature (55-65°C) and specific power input (0.05-0.41W L-1) on the heat extraction process. The results showed that extraction temperature and duration had the most impact on the process whereas specific power input had no significant impact in the range studied. Fluid dynamic studies were conducted on the 2L vessel, and on a scale-down 20mL vessel and shaken 24-well deep square-well (DSW) plate, in order to assess mixing performance under various operating conditions. Mixing time studies were performed on all three models using the dual indicator system for mixing time (DISMT). The mixing time curves between the 2L and 20mL vessel were well matched over the same range of specific power input values and the results showed that mixing time stayed relatively constant for both scales above a specific power input value of 0.05W L-1. Particle image velocimetry (PIV) experiments were also conducted on the 20mL vessel in order to visualise flow patterns and analyse fluid velocity. The data indicated that flow patterns were fully formed at 300rpm (9 x 10-4W L-1) and that velocity stabilised after 0.05W L-1. Mixing time studies in the DSW plate showed that turbulent mixing was achieved above 500rpm. Process verification studies were performed between the two scale-down models and the 2L vessel, and the performance was compared using Fab’ titre, total protein concentration, dsDNA concentration, HCP profiles and Fab’ profiles. The results demonstrated that both models were capable of correctly mimicking the performance in the 2L vessel for a variety of different experimental conditions, using feed material from different batches and using different E.coli strains and Fab’ types, provided that the heating profiles were matched and there was sufficient turbulent mixing at all scales. The results also agreed with data from the DoE and fluid dynamic studies, thus establishing the 20mL vessel and 24-well DSW plate as two feasible scale-down models for the periplasmic heat extraction process

Sexual Science as Manifested in Hardy's Marriage Plot

This study starts with the exploration of Darwin's theory of 'Natural Selection' also known as 'Survival of the Fittest' (based on The Origin of Species). The exploration continues with the discussion on 'Sexual Selection'. Darwin' s theory is investigated through the creative works of Thomas Hardy. The novels chosen for discussion are from the Wessex novels. The Woodlanders (1887) introduces the sense of struggle in nature as well as in characters; Tess of the D'Urbervilles (1891) represents the endless struggle of an unfortunate victim due to cruel environment; and finally, Jude the Obscure (1895) attacks the institutional law of marriage. The investigation mostly focuses on his marriage plot. Darwin's theory works towards establishing the defining features of struggle in Hardy' s characterisation and structure of each text with regards to sexuality. The nature of human evolution may be considered as the underlying theme in relation to the themes of struggle with morality, sexuality, and marriage of Hardy's works. The exploration of the nature of human evolution through Hardy's work concomitantly relates to problematic relationship and marriage during the Victorian era while keeping in mind another underlying factor in Darwin's theory, that is, 'spiritual void' (the notion that God plays no role in the creation of different species). The behaviour of each character and the outcome of their action are explained scientifically. The survival of Hardy' s characters depends on their ability to adapt to their surrounding environment. The notion of 'adaptation' and 'maladaptation' to the environment are the reference points to understand the underlying forces of male and female sexuality in relation to marriage. The study'S focus on the individual struggle against the Victorian morality (concerning the relationship between man and woman) is based on Darwin's explanation on human sexual instinct versus Victorian orthodox law. This struggle could either result in a strong marriage that stays at the end of the novel or death of the protagonist. Death is a reoccurrence event in his work. Finally, this research concludes with the tragic death of each character and why he/she is unable to survive in his/her marriage

The British Enlightenment and Ideas of Empire in India 1756-1773

PhDThis dissertation examines the relationship between Enlightenment political thought and the conduct of imperial affairs on the Indian subcontinent between 1756 and 1773. It is concerned with the ways in which Enlightenment ideas affected the response of politicians, thinkers, merchants and East India Company officials, to the Company's actions and conduct in Bengal. It seeks therefore to uncover the underlying political principles that informed debates regarding the future of Britain's connection with the acquired territories. At first, controversy raged between the Company and the British state over the question of property rights: in 1767 the British government tried to assert its right to the territorial revenues of Bengal that had been acquired by the Company in 1765. The government was not successful and the issue of ownership would remain unresolved in this period and beyond. However, as the Company began to appear incapable of managing and reforming its own affairs, the British government was forced to confront the question of what the best way of conducting policy in the east might be. This thesis makes use of an array of under-utilised printed sources - pamphlets, books and tracts - as well as analysing contemporary parliamentary debate, to recover the ways in which empire was both rationalised and theorised. The first part of the dissertation lays out the narrative of events, gives a brief sketch of ideologies of empire in Britain after 1690, and reviews the historiography on the East India Company's rise to power. It then proceeds, in part two, to set out the ways in which Enlightenment conceptions of a science of politics underpinned both the condemnation of the Company's government of Bengal and plans for its reform. In the third part of the thesis, particular attention is given to the thought of Sir James Steuart who was specifically approached by the Company to provide a solution to their monetary problems in Bengal. This was a brief that he fulfilled comprehensively, making use of the concept of self-interest, and revealing the rationale that he believed should inform the Company's commercial policy towards a British dependency. Throughout this work, the political ideas examined are situated in the broader context of debate regarding sociability, international trade, the nature and obligation of governments in general, and of the British constitution in particular

Keperluan Latihan Pegawai-Pegawai Barisan Hadapan RISDA(Training Needs of RISDA's Frontline Workers)

A study was conducted among 194 RISDA'sfrontline workers throughout Peninsular Malaysia. The aim of the study was to identify front line workers' training needs in technical and non-technical areas. The findings of the study should serve as a useful guide in curriculum development for inservice training of RISDA 's front line workers. The study indicated that the front line workers need training in the areas related to the modernization programme specifically in diversifying income sources for the rubber smallholders. The areas identified are the rearing of sheep, cattle and buffaloes (76 per cent), fresh-water fish rearing (73.65 per cent), agricultural economics (73.4 per cent) and poultry rearing (73.28 per cent). The officers were also found to have low job-competencies in these areas probably because the areas are comparatively new within the. whole range of rubber smallholders development programmes

MARINE: Man-in-the-middle attack resistant trust model IN connEcted vehicles

Vehicular Ad-hoc NETwork (VANET), a novel technology holds a paramount importance within the transportation domain due to its abilities to increase traffic efficiency and safety. Connected vehicles propagate sensitive information which must be shared with the neighbors in a secure environment. However, VANET may also include dishonest nodes such as Man-in-the-Middle (MiTM) attackers aiming to distribute and share malicious content with the vehicles, thus polluting the network with compromised information. In this regard, establishing trust among connected vehicles can increase security as every participating vehicle will generate and propagate authentic, accurate and trusted content within the network. In this paper, we propose a novel trust model, namely, Man-in-the-middle Attack Resistance trust model IN connEcted vehicles (MARINE), which identifies dishonest nodes performing MiTM attacks in an efficient way as well as revokes their credentials. Every node running MARINE system first establishes trust for the sender by performing multi-dimensional plausibility checks. Once the receiver verifies the trustworthiness of the sender, the received data is then evaluated both directly and indirectly. Extensive simulations are carried out to evaluate the performance and accuracy of MARINE rigorously across three MiTM attacker models and the bench-marked trust model. Simulation results show that for a network containing 35% MiTM attackers, MARINE outperforms the state of the art trust model by 15%, 18%, and 17% improvements in precision, recall and F-score, respectively.N/A

Virtual Screening of Phytochemicals for Cancer Therapy

Cancer is one of the leading cause of deaths in the world. Vast majority of contemporary cancer therapies have side effects. Dietary plants and plant-based products have been shown to reduce the severity of the condition with minimal or no side effects. However, the precise molecular interactions that lead to this are largely unknown. In this study, several target proteins in cancer pathways were chosen and a collection of chemical derived from plants, or phytochemicals, were virtually screened in silico using molecular docking techniques. Furthermore, the docking modes were subjected to extended molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. The pharmacokinetic properties of these phytochemicals were also checked using in silico prediction techniques. A short list of phytochemicals were identified, including ellagic acid, macrocarpal A, epigallocatechin gallate and quercetin, which appeared to bind to the protein Rab5A, a GTPase involved in intracellular membrane trafficking. MD simulations also produced stable interactions between the protein and the ligands. These molecules also showed an acceptable drug score and could therefore be subjected to further validation

The Functions of Code Switching in ESL Classroom Discourse

This study objective to investigate the discourse functions of code-switching used by the teachers in ESL classrooms in a Pakistani university. Another aim of this study was to find out the forms of code-switching used by the teachers and functions of these code-switching usages at diploma level. In the light of these aims, four diploma classes were observed and audio recorded. The data obtained from these recordings were transcribed using the content analysis method and the following results have been obtained: 1) teachers use code-switching in the classes for educational and social reasons; 2) the most frequent form of code-switching was observed to be used discourse markers. Keywords: Function of Code-switching, Classroom discourse