Asymmetric farm retail price movements in the Malaysian poultry market

The relationship between farm, wholesale, and retail prices provides insight into marketing efficiency including the welfare of both consumers and farmers. Investigating the price transmission process at different levels in the marketing channel is crucial in assessing the market efficiency in poultry meat and egg subsectors in Malaysia. Changes in the farm or wholesale price could lead to changes in retail prices asymmetrically and this might distort the poultry and egg markets. This study applied the error correction model of price transmission for the entire poultry meat and egg value chain. The test was carried out using retail and farm monthly price data of poultry meat and eggs from 2000 to 2007. Empirical results suggest that the farm and retail price transmission process for the poultry and egg market is asymmetric. Price transmission estimates with rising farm prices generally are larger than corresponding estimates associated with falling farm prices

Students’ Perceptions toward Usage of Edmodo Social Learning Platform

This study focused on the students perception on the strength and weakness of Edmodo Social Learning Platform (ESLP) as well on factors inhibiting active participation of students in forum board. A total of 42 first year students of the School of Industrial Technology (SIT), Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) enrolled for IMK209- Food Physical Properties course were involved in this study. Findings of the study was obtained through the descriptive analysis of the open-ended questionnaire revealed time constraints and technical aspects were found to be the main factors inhibiting the active participation of students in ESLP. The endings proved that the ESLP is accepted as a learning platform by the students and able to promote a high level of collaboration and interaction in teaching and learning

Structural and optical properties of zinc borotellurite glass co-doped with lanthanum and silver oxide

A series of zinc borotellurite glass co-doped with lanthanum and silver oxide with the chemical formula of [{[(TeO2)0.7(B2O3)0.3]0.7(ZnO)0.3}0.96(La2O3)0.04]1-x(Ag2O)x where the molar frac-tion of silver oxide, x = 0.02, 0.04, 0.06, 0.08 and 0.10 had been successfully prepared via the conventional melt-quenching technique. The structural properties of the glasses were unveiled through X-ray Diffraction (XRD) and Fourier Transform Infra-Red (FTIR) spectroscopy while optical properties of the glasses were investigated with Ultra Violet Visible (UV-Vis) spectropho-toscopy. The short range periodic atomic arrangement in the glass matrix that implies the amorphous nature of the glass was confirmed with the presence of a broad hump in the XRD pattern. On the other hand, the three absorption bands observable in the FTIR spectra had proven the existence of BO4, BO3 as well as TeO4 units in the glass network. The absorbance values retrieved from UV-Vis spectroscopy were utilized to calculate the indirect energy band gap and Urbach energy values of the fabricated glass. By employing the equations proposed by Mott and Davis, the obtained indirect energy band gap have val-ues ranging from 2.16 to 4.16 eV.The decreasing trend in indirect energy band gap and increasing Urbach energy values were related to the increasing num-ber of nonbridging oxygen (NBO) in the glass that is created from the breaking of Te-O-Te or B-O-B bonds after lanthanum as well as silver oxide are incor-porated into the zinc borotellurite glass network

Open, Honest, Passionate and with Some Humor: Understanding Trust Building Between British Muslims and the Wider Community

open access articleThe “Trust Building” initiative, launched in the United Kingdom in April 2016, aimed to dispel myths about Islam and build trust between Muslims and the wider community. This community-led initiative involved trained Trust Building “Ambassadors” delivering workshops at places of work and other community settings to talk about Islam and facilitate open dialogue. Previously, the project reported trust among participants had significantly improved, but the reasons for this were not explored. In this paper, we unpack how and why trust was being built. Providing a forum that permits open dialogue between Muslims and the wider community allowed opportunities for stories and experiences to be shared, enabling negative stereotypes to be uncovered and addressed, and for mutual values to be recognised. With negative media portrayal and rise in hate crime towards minorities, this research is a promising model that has important implications to address the trust deficit seen within our society

Neuroprotective effects of ethyl acetate extract of Zingiber zerumbet (L.) Smith against oxidative stress on paraquat-induced parkinsonism in rats

Zingiber zerumbet has been traditionally used as an anti-inflammation and antioxidant agent. The present study investigates the neuroprotective effects of ethyl acetate extract of Z. zerumbet against oxidative stress on paraquat (PQ)-induced Parkinsonism in rats. Forty male Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into five groups: Negative control (normal saline), positive control (N-acetylcysteine, NAC 20 mg/kg + PQ 10 mg/kg), PQ only, 200 mg/kg Z. zerumbet + PQ and 400 mg/kg Z. zerumbet + PQ. The extract was given orally for 19 consecutive days and PQ was administered intraperitoneally on day 8-12th of the treatment regime. Both serum and fresh brains containing substantia nigra (SN) region were taken for biochemical and histological analysis. Administration of both 200 and 400 mg/kg ethyl acetate Z. zerumbet extracts to the PQ-treated groups have resulted in: Decreased levels of MDA and PC in the SN homogenates; and increased SOD, GPx; and CAT activities in the SN and serum. Overall, ethyl acetate extract of Z. zerumbet reduced oxidative stress in the SN of PQ-induced neuronal damages, therefore, has the potential to be developed as a preventive agent for neurodegenerative disorders caused by environmental toxins

Characteristics and Preliminary Study of Ceramic Concretes

One of the most adaptable and frequently used building materials in the world is concrete. It is flexible in terms of size and shape, sturdy, long-lasting, low-maintenance, fireproof, and easy to use. However, further research is needed to increase the durability and sustainability of this material since concrete technology is still in developing industry. Therefore, it's crucial to comprehend how microstructure and characteristics interact in terms of how they affect concrete's strength, dimensional stability, and durability. The findings of this research are crucial in identifying the properties and characteristics of the ceramic concrete used for bridge construction or others. Advanced research to ascertain the hardness and physical qualities and features of ceramic concrete material is required. Thus, it will help to produce a reliable data for engineer to refer for their future works or project. To ascertain its hardness and physical characteristics, research has been conducted on ceramic concrete for several types of grades. In the current study, the ceramic concrete was tested through the physical and Vickers-hardness tests. The X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) on samples were performed to observe the phases and morphology of the ceramic concrete, respectively. For results of physical testing, the density and water absorption correlate to each other by the denser of the sample, the lower of water absorption and the porosity level of the ceramic concrete. Based on the Vickers micro hardness test, it can be seen that longer curing days affected the hardness, where the concretes of grade 30 and 40 at 28 curing days had better hardness value. Next, Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) on samples shown almost same microstructure, while the dominant phase of all ceramic concrete grades was SiO2 by the XRD analysis. In summary, better properties of ceramic concretes were indicated at 28 curing days for both grades of ceramic concretes

Passively mode-locked ultrashort pulse fiber laser incorporating multi-layered graphene nanoplatelets saturable absorber

In this paper, a passive mode-locked erbium-doped fiber laser (EDFL) incorporating graphene nanoplatelet (GNP) powder-based saturable absorber (SA) with short pulse duration in femtosecond range is demonstrated. A good synthesis of GNP can be simply produced via a combination of thermal, chemical, and mechanical exfoliation of expandable graphite. The GNP-SA is fabricated by mechanically imprinting the powder onto the tip of a single mode fiber ferrule. The characterization of SA is done via focus ion beam scanning electron microscope, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, as well as Raman spectroscopy. The fabricated GNP-SA has 1.8 % modulation depth and C-band transmission loss of less than 1.8 dB. The ring-configuration EDFL integrated with GNP-SA yields a mode-locking threshold of 22.6 mW pump power. Net anomalous dispersion of the laser cavity is validated by the observation of Kelly’s sideband in the optical spectrum. At maximum pump power of 115.8 mW, the mode-locked EDFL has a pulse repetition rate of 13.11 MHz, sech2 profile fitted pulse duration of 694 fs, peak-to-pedestal extinction ratio of 58.2 dB, average output power of 6.7 mW, and pulse energy of 507.2 pJ. Our proposed GNP-SA is feasible as a mode-locker for ultrashort pulsed fiber laser with advantage in terms of simple synthesis and fabrication technique

Carbon nanotube-based mode-locked wavelength-switchable fiber laser via net gain cross section alteration

We have proposed and demonstrated a carbon nanotube-based mode-locked erbium-doped fiber laser with switchable wavelength in the C-band wavelength region by varying the net gain cross section of erbium. The carbon nanotube is coated on a tapered fiber to form the saturable absorber for the purpose of mode-locking by exploiting the concept of evanescent field interaction on the tapered fiber with the carbon nanotube in a ring cavity configuration. The propagation loss is adjusted by inducing macrobend losses of the optical fiber in the cavity through a fiber spooling technique. Since the spooling radius can be gradually adjusted to achieve continuous tuning of attenuation, this passive tuning approach can be an alternative to optical tunable attenuator, with freedom of external device integration into the laser cavity. Based on this alteration, the net gain cross section of the laser system can be tailored to three different lasing wavelength ranges; 1533, 1560 nm and both (1533 and 1560 nm) with the minimum pulse duration of 734 fs. The proposed design is simple and stable with high beam quality and good reliability for multiple applications