Penggunaan ICT dalam proses pengajaran dan pembelajaran di kalangan pendidik fakulti pendidikan Universiti Teknologi Malaysia Skudai, Johor

Kajian ini dijalankan untuk mengenalpasti sejauhmana penggunaan ICT membantu para pendidik Fakulti Pendidikan, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia dalam proses pengajaran dan pembelajaran serta mengenalpasti kemudahan ICT yang digunakan dan kekangan yang dihadapi oleh mereka. Seramai 70 orang pendidik daripada Fakulti Pendidikan yang terdiri daripada pelbagai jawatan telah dipilih menjadi responden kajian ini. Borang soal-selidik telah digunakan sebagai instrument kajian. Data bagi kajian ini dianalisis dengan menggunakan perisian Statistical Package For Social Science (SPSS) Version 11.0 for WINDOWS. Statistik deskriptif, min dan korelasi Pearson telah digunakan. Hasil kajian menunjukkan bahawa kemudahan ICT yang digunakan oleh para pendidik adalah tinggi tetapi kekerapan pendidik menggunakan kemudahan serta peralatan ICT yang telah disediakan dalam proses P&P adalah sederhana manakala sambungan internet mengalami gangguan merupakan kekangan utama terhadap keperluan serta penggunaan ICT dalam proses P&P. Diharapkan kajian ini dapat membantu pihak-pihak tertentu untuk mengatur strategi latihan-latihan atau kursus tertentu yang diperlukan oleh para pendidik, seterusnya meningkatkan profesionalisme dan integriti pendidik Fakulti Pendidikan, UTM, Skudai

Harmonic Impact Of Inverter Based Distributed Generation And Optimal Harmonic Control Using Improved Gravitational Search Algorithm

Presence of distributed generation (DG) in the distribution system may lead to several advantages such as voltage support, loss reduction, deferment of new transmission and distribution infrastructure and improved system reliability. However, when inverter based DG is connected to a distribution system, it may contribute to power quality problem such as harmonic distortion and resonance. The effect of harmonic not only presents a severe power quality problem but it can also trip protection devices and cause damage to sensitive equipment. In this research, the first objective is to investigate the harmonic impact of different types of DG. For this purpose, a comprehensive study is made to compare the harmonic distortion produced by the different types and number of DG units in a low voltage distribution system. Here, three types of DG units are considered, namely, a mini hydro power, wind turbine doubly fed induction generator and photovoltaic system. The second objective is to determine the maximum allowable penetration level of inverter based DG by considering the harmonic resonance phenomena and harmonic distortion limits. Simulations were carried using the MATLAB/SimPowerSystems software to investigate the impact of DG at different penetration depths. To control harmonic propagation in a distribution system with DG units, an appropriate planning of DG units is considered by determining optimal placement, sizing and voltage control of DG units. Thus, the third objective of this research is to develop an effective heuristic optimisation technique such as improved gravitational search algorithm (IGSA) technique for determining the optimal placement, sizing and voltage control of DG units in a radial distribution system. A multi-objective function is formulated to minimise total power losses, voltage total harmonic distortion (THDv) and voltage deviation in a distribution system. The loadflow algorithm from MATPOWER and harmonic loadflow are integrated in the MATLAB environment to solve the multi-objective optimisation problem. The proposed IGSA technique is compared with other optimisation techniques, namely, particle swarm optimisation (PSO) and gravitational search algorithm (GSA). Test results on the harmonic impact of inverter based DG show the presence of resonance phenomena and harmonic distortion due to the interaction of the inverter based DG and grid impedance. Moreover, the results also indicate that the maximum permissible penetration level of inverter based DG in the test distribution system is found as 50% of total connected load. Four case studies on an IEEE 13 bus and 69 bus distribution system have been conducted to validate the effectiveness of IGSA. The optimisation results shown that IGSA gives the best fitness value and the fastest average elapsed time compared to PSO and GSA

Voltage stability analysis of load buses in electric power system using adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system (anfis) and probabilistic neural network (pnn)

This paper presents the application of neural networks for analysing voltage stability of load buses in electric power system. Voltage stability margin (VSM) and load power margin (LPM) are used as the indicators for analysing voltage stability. The neural networks used in this research are divided into two types. The first type is using the neural network to predict the values of VSM and LPM. Multilayer perceptron back propagation (MLPBP) neural network and adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system (ANFIS) will be used. The second type is to classify the values of VSM and LPM using the probabilistic neural network (PNN). The IEEE 30-bus system has been chosen as the reference electrical power system. All of the neural network-based models used in this research is developed using MATLAB

Customers' perceptions towards Mid Valley Megamall's servicescapes in 2008 / Nur Fazliana Mohd Zuki

This research is conducted for the purposed of "Customers' Perceptions towards Mid Valley Megamall's Servicescapes in 2008". With the fast growing numbers of shopping malls and giant shopping malls (megamall) around the world and Malaysia principally, the competitions for these companies to be the best attraction for the customers are very stiffs. This is because the attraction can lead for bigger crowds and in the greatest extent; the shopping mall can be one of the tourists' attractions for shopping in one country. Since these facilities are only a service provider, their services are usually be assessed by their service environment or the servicescapes of their facilities. This research is particularly to study customers' perceptions towards the servicescapes in terms of the location of the facility, the interior and exterior design, the ambient condition and interpersonal condition. The main objectives of the research are to measure the level of customers' perceptions towards servicescapes of Mid Valley Megamall, to recognize the relationship between respondents' demographic profiles with customers' perceptions towards servicescapes of Mid Valley Megamall and to identify the relationship between the servicescapes and customers' perceptions towards Mid Valley Megamall. This research is conducted by using non-probability sampling technique and the sampling method used is quota sampling. 100 customers of Mid Valley Megamall were selected to be the respondents by distributing each of them a questionnaire to answer. The conclusions of the study were from the outcome from the data analysis and findings. Based on the findings, some of the recommendations are suggested for the benefit of future research

Studies on Labisia pumila var. alata extract with phytoestrogenic effects: impact on biological activities and gene expression

In Malaysia, Labisia pumila var. alata (LPva) has been used by women for generations. Traditionally, the plant is boiled, either alone or in decoction with other herbs. It is claimed to have health benefits such as to contract the uterus after childbirth, allay painful menstruation and irregular periods and to generally alleviate fatigue. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the scientific basis of LPva phytoestrogenic activities in different animal models and cell lines. In Paper I, we investigated the effects of a standardized water extract of LPva (10, 20 and 50 mg/kg body weight/day) and compared to estrogen replacement (ERT), on body weight gain, uterus weight, adipose tissue mRNA and protein levels of adipokines in ovariectomized (OVX) female Sprague-Dawley rats. After a month of oral treatment, ERT- and LPva-treated OVX rats showed significantly less weight gain compared to untreated OVX rats. Ovariectomy caused plasma leptin levels to decrease significantly but when treated with LPva or ERT, plasma leptin and mRNA levels increased to levels higher or comparable to that seen in the sham operated control rats (SHAM). In contrast, the elevated plasma resistin concentrations in OVX rats were significantly reduced in rats given ERT and LPva extracts. The uterus to body weight ratio of untreated OVX rats was significantly low compared to SHAM, but showed dose-dependent increase upon treatment with LPva. The study provides evidence that LPva exerts uterotrophic effect and regulates body weight gain. In Paper II, we evaluated the effects of LPva on 11-beta hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type-1 (Hsd11b1) and corticosterone (CORT) expressions in OVX rats. Hsd11b1 was chosen because it was highly expressed in a microarray analysis of OVX rat liver compared to SHAM. Using samples from Paper I, Hsd11b1 expressions were measured and found that mRNA levels in liver of OVX rats were significantly increased when compared to SHAM and restored to normal level after treatment with LPva or ERT. In adipose tissues, the Hsd11b1 mRNA level of OVX group was increased by 55 % in comparison to SHAM, normalized in LPva. Protein levels of 11β-HSD1 were down-regulated in both liver and adipose tissue of LPva- and ERT-treated rats, in comparison to OVX rats. CORT levels in OVX group increased significantly compared to SHAM. The results showed that the treatment with LPva normalized Hsd11b1 mRNA expression and 11β-HSD1 levels in OVX rats, in parallel with decreased CORT levels. Thus, LPva is useful for postmenopausal treatment based upon its regulation at body weight partially via inhibition of Hsd11b1 expression in adipose tissue and liver. In Paper III, we investigated the effect of LPva on body composition and metabolic features in a rat model of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). LPva (50 mg/kg body weight daily) increased uterine weight (27%) and insulin sensitivity (36%) measured by euglycemic hyperinsulinemic clamp compared to control PCOS rats. Lipid profile was improved in LPva rats and plasma resistin levels were increased. In adipose tissue, LPva decreased leptin mRNA expression but did not affect expression of resistin and adiponectin. No effects on body composition, adipocyte size or plasma leptin levels were observed. Therefore, in this study, LPva increases uterine weight, indicating estrogenic effects, and improves insulin sensitivity and lipid profile in PCOS rats without affecting body composition. In Paper IV, the effects of LPva treatment on urinary tract infection (UTI) were investigated in an infection model using uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC) strain CFT073 and the bladder epithelial cell line, T24. Our results demonstrate that LPva treatment induced apoptosis and significantly reduced the number of intracellular E.coli in bladder epithelial cells. LPvainduced apoptosis was coupled with up-regulated expression of pro-apoptotic caveolin-1. LPva treatment down-regulated the expression of β1 integrin as indicated by reduced levels of gene specific mRNA. However, LPva did not exhibit direct antimicrobial properties and did not influence antimicrobial peptide levels in cells. These findings suggest that LPva facilitates the exfoliation of infected bladder cells and may thereby mediate beneficial effects during UTI

Laser cladding of tool steel for grain boundary stability

Laser cladding is one of the best methods to modify the steel surface for enhanced thermal stability properties. Added carbide particle impeded the grain boundary migration which often occurred in metastable modified microstructure at high working temperature. In this thesis, an experimental study of laser cladding on H 13 tool steel with tungsten carbide (WC) particles addition is presented. The aim is to produce WC cladded layer with enhanced properties for high temperature applications specifically in die-casting. The laser cladding was conducted using laser systems of 1.06 µm wavelength. The preliminary experiment (DOE 1) was processed using the Nd:YAG laser while other DOE (DOE 2, DOE 3 and DOE 4) with fibre laser. The cladded layer of WC particles with sodium silicate and 4% PYA binder's agent was preplaced prior to laser processing. DOE I consists of 16 samples investigates the powder distribution on cladded layer at different parameter settings. Meanwhile, DOE 2 and DOE 3 investigate the effect of binders to powder distribution ratio on clad layer thickness as well as laser energy absorption of the surface. DOE 4 was developed using Box-Behnken design to study the powder distribution and grain evolution of cladded layer. All samples were characterised for hardness properties, depth of cladded layer, elemental changes in microstructure by EDXS analysis and phase transformation by XRD analysis. Thermal wear test that simulated die-casting environment was conducted to investigate the thermal stability of cladded layer. The thermal wear test involves cyclic heating ofcladded samples in molten aluminium alloy at an elevated temperature range of 800-850 °C and quenching in room temperature water bath, for I000, 3000 and 5000 cycles. Sample characterisation was carried out to measure the properties of thermally worn cladded layer. A thermal simulation was developed using ABAQUS software to study the distribution of thermal stress and temperature within cladded layer. The statistical analysis was conducted for DOE 4 with design optimisation. From the findings, powder distribution within clad layer improvement was achieved in samples of DOE 4. The resulted WC particle distribution in DOE 4 shows significant microhardness increment up to 70 %, due to high hardness carbides within the iron matrix. The EDXS analysis indicates WC particle dissolution in the clad layer where W element diffused to the grain boundary, thus strengthen the iron matrix. Four main phases were detected from XRD analysis namely; a-Fe, y-Fe, tungsten (W), tungsten carbide (W2C) and qusongite (WC). From the thermal wear test, mass loss and volume of the eroded surface of cladded samples shows an increment with an increasing number of thermal wear cycles. Crack formation and propagation were observed on the thermally worn cladded samples with the increasing number of thermal wear cycles. Phases like NiFeA104, CoW04 and FeW04 were diffracted on the thermally worn sample surface in addition to the existing phases (a-Fe, y-Fe and W2C) indicating oxidation and atomic diffusion occurred on the surface affected by thermal cyclic. Overall, laser clad samples hardness properties reduction was 23 %. Thermal modelling shows significant effect ofthermal fatigue parameter towards temperature and stress distribution on cladded sample. The statistical analysis generated optimised design at 0.901. These findings are significant to enhance surface properties especially thermal stability at high working temperature for dies and high wear resistant applications

FUSING IMAGES FOR VISION CLARITY

The importance of image fusion keeps increasing and its application can be found in many fields; from military and security up to medical diagnostics. This project of image fusing has been undertaken by the author to improve the clarity of night vision. The technique used is basically a pixel replacement technique between optical image and infra red (IR) image. By such technique, the fused image will have a better percept where it still have the color characteristic from optical image as well as clarity at dark portion, which is from IR image. The methodology involved in this project include identifying the problem statement, objective and scope of the project, research and review of relevant literature, familiarization with software (Matlab - Image Processing Tool and Graphical User Interface), creating the interface outline, perform fusion of still images and improvising the interface as well as the fused images. Further work for this project can be fusion for movie data, followed by real time fusion. To work with stream of movie data, such data must be batched first into sequence of image frames, where the fusion will take part continuously on this sequence of frames. The image processing and interface used for this project will be done using MATLAB v7.1. Progress of the project, discussions and recommendations also had been detailed in this report in their respective chapters

Synthesis and characterization of gold nanoparticles for mercury adsorption

This research was carried out to synthesize and characterize different sizes and shapes of gold (Au) nanoparticles in order to find the optimum synthesis parameters for maximum mercury adsorption. The different sizes and shapes of Au nanoparticles were prepared using microwave (MW) polyol method. By using different polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) concentrations (1.9-33.3 mM), different concentration of sodium chloride (NaCl) (10-30 mM) and different amount of [Au]1/[Au]0 molar ratio (1-9), different sizes and shapes of Au nanoparticles were obtained. The Au nanoparticles were characterized using ultra violet-visible (UVVis) absorption spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The different sizes and various mixtures of spherical, triangular, cubic, hexagonal, octahedral, decahedral, icosahedral and one-dimension (1-D) particles were obtained using those methods. Mercury adsorption was determined based on different sizes and shapes of Au nanoparticles and measured using atomic absorption spectrophotometer (AAS). The optimum PVP concentration is 22.2 mM for 92 % spherical particles of a size in range less than 10 nm. It was found that, using 11.1 mM of PVP solution, the sizes and shapes can be further reduced in the presence of chloride ions. It was also found that, 20 mM of NaCl is sufficient to produce stable Au nanoparticles with most of the particles are spherical in which 97 % of particles diameter is less than 10 nm. The different of [Au]1/[Au]0 molar ratio led to the high yield of polygonal nanoparticles and the size is increase with increasing [Au]1/[Au]0 molar ratio. However, the optimum values of [Au]1/[Au]0 molar ratio cannot be determined because the sizes and shapes are irregular. High mercury adsorption was obtained for spherical nanoparticles (263.18 mg/g) with 99 % particles size less than 10 nm. The defect on spherical nanoparticles surface contributes to high mercury adsorption. In addition, smaller sizes of Au nanoparticles increase the total surface area available for mercury adsorption. It was found that the formation of sizes and shapes of Au nanoparticles was depend on parameters such as the concentration of PVP, NaCl, as well as [Au]1/[Au]0 molar ratio, and thus affects the mercury adsorption