Cutting plane methods for general integer programming

Integer programming (IP) problems are difficult to solve due to the integer restrictions imposed on them. A technique for solving these problems is the cutting plane method. In this method, linear constraints are added to the associated linear programming (LP) problem until an integer optimal solution is found. These constraints cut off part of the LP solution space but do not eliminate any feasible integer solution. In this report algorithms for solving IP due to Gomory and to Dantzig are presented. Two other cutting plane approaches and two extensions to Gomory's algorithm are also discussed. Although these methods are mathematically elegant they are known to have slow convergence and an explosive storage requirement. As a result cutting planes are generally not computationally successful

Food Safety Knowledge and Practice Among Community in Sg. Pelek, Sepang, Selangor Darul Ehsan

Food safety is a basic requirement of food quality. It is an increasingly important public health issue to prevent and control food borne illnesses. A cross-sectional study was designed to determine level of knowledge and practice on food safety, to determine the association between knowledge and practice, and also to identify the association between socio-demographic factors and practice score of the population studied. This study was conducted among adult population in Taman Bahagia, Sungai Pelek, Sepang, Selangor Darul Ehsan. Data were collected using an interviewed structured questionnaire. A stratified random sampling was performed to obtain houses, followed by simple random sampling to select sample in the house. A total of 115 data sets were analysed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 20.0. Analysis showed that 35% of respondents have poor level of knowledge on food safety, whereas 27% of the respondents have poor level of practices on food safety. Multiple linear regression revealed that there are a significant association between education level (p<0.001), Adj b=2.57 (95% CI: 1.15, 3.99) and gender (p=0.048), Adj b=1.15 (95% CI: 0.01, 2.29) with practice score on food safety. Therefore, health promotion and education on the importance of practicing food safety at home should be focused to prevent further unwanted health effects

Homeless people and community care: An assessment of the needs of homeless people for mental health services

The main aim of this study was to assess the needs of the homeless in temporary hostel accommodation people in Bloomsbury Health District for mental health services. The central question of this assessment was whether the need is for institutional or community care services. Current literature suggests that a high proportion of the homeless are victims of deinstitutionalisation and hinted at their need for institutional treatment. The study aim was achieved by: (a) Comparing the records of homeless and the home-based clients of the CPNs in their problems and care. (b) Comparing a random sample from homeless peoples' hostels with a sample from the chronic psychiatric patients of a community psychiatric service, (c) Undertaking a cross-cultural comparison of the care provided to homeless people in London and New York. The main results of this study showed that the majority of needs of homeless people for mental health services is related to their poverty and homelessness. Nevertheless homeless people with chronic mental illness have many unmet needs that make them disturbed and visible to the general public. The services needed by homeless people to meet their mental health needs should be community-based with a specialist role to work with them in their residential settings. Their need is for a multi-disiplinary service that can incorporate psychiatric, social and substance abuse services