Bridges

The article presents the poem Bridges, by Ismail S. Talib. First Line: Bridges do not bridge distance, Last Line: What are bridges for

Technical efficiency in transport manufacturing firms: evidence from Malaysia

This study aims to identify the level of technical efficiency and the determinants of technical inefficiency for transport manufacturing firms in Malaysia for 2010 using cross-sectional data of 130 firms acquired from the Department of Statistics (DOS). Based on the stochastic frontier analysis (SFA) approach, the results of the study reveal that the average level of technical efficiency is moderate. The estimated result identifies the important determinants of technical inefficiency which are due to employee wage rates as well as the cost of information and communication technology. The fundamental implications of this study are that transport manufacturing firms need to boost motivation among employees and strengthen the network of the production market via wage increment and communication cost

Stress level and its influencing factors among employees in a plastic manufacturing and the implication towards work performance

Stress has been viewed as an inevitable consequence of work life. A worker will fell stress when his or her does not match their job requirements. Work stress come from a variety of sources and it can affect people in different ways. In the report The Scale of Occupational Stress (Smith et al., 2000 in Jeremy, 2005) it was estimated that there were 5 million workers suffering the high level of stress at work. The study shows the important outcomes that approximately one in five workers reported stress arising from work. There were cause by excessive workloads or lack of managerial support, ill health and back pain, together with certain health related activities such as smoking and alcohol intake

Observations on Growth and early Production of some Durian (Durio zibethinus Murr) Clones at Universiti Pertanian Malaysia Orchard

The establishment of a 22 acre durian orchard on an oxisol soil formerly under old rubber is recorded outlining the nature of the environment and the cultural practices adopted since 1969. The growth pattern of all clones planted, early flowering and fruiting patterns are also discussed together with possible causes of poor fruiting habits of D2 and D96. Some possible areas for research are suggested for future work based on these observations

An overview of research on experts and novice problem solvers in physics

Problem solving is regarded as one of the most important cognitive activities in our daily life and in professional contexts. There are differences between expert and novice in terms of their behaviour and knowledge organisation in solving physics problem. In terms of behaviour, usually experts employ planning, monitoring, evaluating and making qualitative analysis in their solution as compared to novices. Studies in problem solving usually compare behaviour between the two groups to see how these two groups performed. There were three criteria uses to select the group such as experiences, performances and background knowledge

Check List of the algae in Diyala River, Iraq

A total of 722 algal taxa are recorded in Diyala River by different authors. Most of the identification algae belong to three Divisions: Bacillariophyceae (367, 50.8%), Chlorophyceae (179, 24.8%), and Cyanophyceae (126, 17.5%)

Intersectionality: Implikasi Proses Sosialisasi Politik terhadap Budaya Politik Wanita Cina di Semenanjung Malaysia

Budaya politik wanita Cina di Semenanjung Malaysia bersifat pasif. Fenomena ini dapat dilihat melalui bilangan wanita Cina antaranya di dalam Parlimen dan DUN. Malahan bilangan wanita Cina di peringkat pembuat keputusan dalam parti berorientasikan masyarakat Cina seperti DAP serta MCA masih lagi rendah, walaupun sistem kuota 30 peratus wanita telah dibentuk. Proses sosialisasi politik melalui agen sosialisasi politik merupakan antara indikator penting yang mempengaruhi budaya politik wanita Cina di Semenanjung Malaysia. Agen sosialisasi ini dilihat tidak berdiri sendiri dan saling berkait seperti yang diketengahkan melalui teori intersectionality dan telah memberikan kesan berbeza kepada wanita. Kajian kualitatif ini mengenal pasti agen sosialisasi politik melalui proses sosialisasi politik, yang telah mempengaruhi budaya politik wanita Cina di Semenanjung Malaysia. Temu bual secara intensif telah dijalankan ke atas tujuh orang informan dalam kalangan perwakilan wanita Cina, seorang ahli politik lelaki, aktivis wanita Cina dari Organisasi Bukan Kerajaan (NGO) dan ahli akademik. Hasil temu bual dianalisis di mana proses transkripsi temubual telah dikodkan dan ditemakan. Tema ini kemudiannya telah dibahagikan kepada dua iaitu agen sosialisasi politik lingkaran dalaman dan agen sosialisasi politik lingkaran luaran. Agen sosialisasi lingkaran dalaman terdiri daripada pendidikan, ekonomi, budaya, agama, keluarga serta gender. Agen sosialisasi lingkaran luaran pula terdiri daripada NGO/persatuan, parti politik dan masyarakat. Model Agen Sosialisasi Politik Wanita Cina melalui dimensi intersectionality turut dibangunkan untuk menggambarkan hubung kait agen sosialisasi politik wanita Cina di Semenanjung Malaysia

Risk management plan (RMP) : implementation and challenges towards sustainability and green concept for public projects in Terengganu / Yuhainis Abdul Talib, Siti Nirwana Mat Usof and Kharizam Ismail

Risk management become be the most significant and integral part of project management. The construction project may fail or succeed, depending on the adopted risk management approach. As risk management is predicting the unpredictable, it is one of the most vital management tools to cope with project risks and uncertainties. In Jabatan Kerja Raya (JKR), risk management is being implemented as part of the project management plan. Despite going through the process, some JKR‟s project still have problem in the project delivery. Due to this scenario, the objective of this study is to identify the level awareness in implementing the risk management to public authority (JKR). Futhermore, it will also aim to identify and rank the challenges faced by JKR in managing risk management in public projects. Questionnaire survey was carried out in order to obtain a better view of result. Although JKR‟s organization is provided with standard guideline and most of them aware about it, but it will still face with the construction risks as there is no supervision or weakness in monitoring about implementation of risk management in construction project. Therefore, sufficient knowledge, practice and systematic risk management is essential to reduce the complexity and uncertainties in construction project and finally can promote sustainability toward green concept in finishing project in due time

Problem-solving skills and suicidal ideation among Malaysian college students: the mediating role of hopelessness

Objective: Recent evidence suggests that suicidal ideation has increased among Malaysian college students over the past two decades; therefore, it is essential to increase our knowledge concerning the etiology of suicidal ideation among Malaysian college students. This study was conducted to examine the relationships between problem-solving skills, hopelessness, and suicidal ideation among Malaysian college students. Methods: The participants included 500 undergraduate students from two Malaysian public universities who completed the self-report questionnaires. Results: Structural equation modeling estimated that college students with poor problem-solving confidence, external personal control of emotion, and avoiding style were more likely to report suicidal ideation. Hopelessness partially mediated the relationship between problem-solving skills and suicidal ideation. Conclusion: These findings reinforce the importance of poor problem-solving skills and hopelessness as risk factors for suicidal ideation among college students

The role of hardiness in reducing stress and suicidal ideation in a sample of undergraduates students

Suicide is a serious and growing public health problem, and it remains a serious cause of death in the world; therefore, it is essential to increase our knowledge concerning the etiology of suicide among undergraduate students. Previous studies have shown that perceived stress increases vulnerability to suicidal ideation. However, factors that may explain the association have not been studied empirically. A cross-sectional study was conducted to examine hardiness as a potential mediator between perceived stress and suicidal ideation among undergraduate students. The participants comprised 500 undergraduate students from Malaysian public universities. They completed the Personal Views Survey, Beck Scale for Suicidal Ideation, and the Perceived Stress Scale. Structural equation modeling estimated that undergraduate students with low levels of hardiness were more likely to report suicidal ideation. As expected, hardiness partially mediated between perceived stress and suicidal ideation. Our findings demonstrated that lower hardiness and greater perceived stress significantly predicted suicidal ideation among undergraduate students. These findings reinforce the importance of hardiness as a protective and predictive factor against perceived stress and suicidal ideation among undergraduate students