Characterisation of Textile Dye-Degrading Properties of Ligninolytic Fungus Isolate 5-UPM

Local white-rot fungi isolated from soil and wood samples were screened for their ability to degrade textile azo dyes. Sixty three white-rot fungi cultures isolated from various Peninsular Malaysia locations in Selangor, Kelantan, Perak and Terengganu were screened for the ability to degrade four textile azo dyes; Ponceau 2R (C.I. 16450), Orange G (C.I. 16230), Direct Blue 71 (C.I. 34140) and Biebrich Scarlet (C.I. 26905). Forty isolates gave positive results with varying degrees of degradation. Based on these results, an unidentified white-rot fungus (Isolate 5-UPM) isolated from Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) Selangor campus was selected for further studies due to its ability to completely degrade all four azo dyes in the minimum amount of time. Nutritional studies on defined solid medium showed that Isolate 5- UPM was only able to degrade the four azo dyes under nitrogen-limiting conditions and an additional carbon source such as glucose was needed to provide sufficient energy for the degradation to occur. When grown in two-stage liquid cultures, Isolate 5-UPM was able to degrade 93 to 99 % of 0.2 g/L azo dyes in two to eight days with each dye being degraded at different rates. Direct Blue 71 was degraded the fastest followed by Orange G, Ponceau 2R and Biebrich Scarlet. Generally, azo dye degradation rates were shown to be higher in agitated cultures compared to static cultures, with rates almost twice those in static cultures. Isolate 5-UPM degraded the four azo dyes optimally when incubated at 35 to 45 "C in static cultures. The initial degradation medium (pH 4.5 to 5.9) did not have any significant effects on the degradation rates except for Ponceau 2R cultures where the degradation rate was highest at pH 4.5. However, the final pH of all cultures dropped to approximately pH 4.0. Assays for lignin-modifying enzymes (LMEs) involved in azo dye degradation showed only the presence of laccase (E.C. 1.10.3.2) while lignin peroxidase (E.C. 1.1 1.1.14) and manganese peroxidase (E.C. 1.1 1 .l. 13) were not detected. Laccase activity profile in static liquid degradation cultures showed correlation to the azo dye degradation profile and was highest in cultures incubated at room temperatures except for Biebrich Scarlet cultures, which was highest at 30 "C. The initial pH of the degradation medium (pH 4.5 to 5.9) did not have any significant effect on laccase activity except in Direct Blue 71 culture where it is highest at pH 5.9. Laccase produced by Isolate 5-UPM during azo dye degradation was partially purified and when 2,2'-azinobis (3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonate) (ABTS) was used as the substrate, it was shown to have a K,,, value of 0.1 mM, optimum activity at 50 to 70 "C and pH 3.5 to 4.0 while being most stable at room temperature and pH 6.0 to 7.0. Laccase was proven to directly degrade the four azo dyes with the K, values of 1.5 x 10 '3 mM, 9.8 x 10 4 m ~ 1,.8 x 10 4 m an~d 1 .8 x 10 4 m fo~r Po nceau 2R, Orange G, Direct Blue 71 and Biebrich Scarlet, respectively although the latter azo dye inhibited laccase activity at concentrations higher than 0.8 mg/L

A preliminary study on the effectiveness of new students’ adjustment to university / Normala Ismail and Mohamad Kamil Ariff Khalid

Adjustment among new students at the university plays an important role in determining their success at university. This study showed one of the reasons students fail to complete their study is due to adjustment problems. Students found to be unable to deal with the challenges and demands on campus and experience a variety of problems that some of them failed to proceed to the next semester. The population of the study consist of 143 First Semester Diploma students in the Faculty of Business and Management studies at Universiti Teknologi MARA Pahang Raub Campus. The instrument used is questionnaires. There are four subscales designed to measure the effectiveness of student adjustment to university that are academic adjustment, social adjustment, personal (emotional) adjustment and institutional commitment. The study shows that adaptability on campus has a relationship with psychosocial abilities possessed by the students. Among the psychosocial abilities have a positive and significant impact on student adjustment is emotional intelligence, coping, and social support. All three of these psychosocial capabilities found to play an important role in helping students adjust at the university. Thus, the university must take proactive steps to develop emotional intelligence, coping and social support among new students to improve their adaptability

The relationship between cumulative grade point average achievement and time management skills among students at higher learning institution / Normala Ismail and Mohamad Kamil Ariff Khalid

Time management skills are one of the key learning skills that students can master in order to help them achieve excellence while studying at universities. However, a thorough study of the extent to which this skill is owned by students and the impact on their academic performance is rarely focused especially among Universiti Teknologi MARA students. Hence, this paper examines the issue based on a study of 200 diploma level students from three faculties in various programs studying at Universiti Teknologi MARA Pahang Branch Raub Campus. Data were collected using a set of questionnaires and analyzed descriptively using t-test, ANOVA and Pearson’s Correlation. The findings show that in general, time management skills among students are moderate and these skills differ significantly between gender and program of study. This study also found a significant relationship between time management skills and the students Cumulative Grade Point Average

Tahap literasi komputer pelajar sekolah menengah di Kedah

Computer literacy has become the main agenda in today’s life. It has become one of the main sources for a country’s development. The main objective of the research is to measure the level of computer literacy among upper secondary school students in the state of Kedah. Moreover the research is to identify the relationship between parent’s level of education and income with student’s computer literacy. Furthermore the study also explores the relationship between student’s attitude and computer skill with computer literacy. Data was collected through the questionnaires distributed to 698 students from form four, form five and Lower Six in twelve secondary schools of seven provinces in Kedah state. Tools for measurement used in this study are Attitude Toward Computer Scale (ATCS), Computer Self – Efficiency Scale (CSES) and Minnesota Computer Literacy and Awareness Assessment Test (MCLAAT). To measure the objective and to examine the hypotheses of the study, tests such as mean, percentage, Chi Square and Cramer V are used. Significance level of 0.05 is used to accept or to reject the null hypothesis. Data is analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 12.0. The study finds that the student’s computer literacy level is moderately high with mean score of 66.67%. The overall findings conclude that there is a significance relationship between parent’s level of education and income with student’s computer literacy. However there is no significance relationship between student’s attitude and computer skill with computer literacy. The study suggests that schools should offer more computer related activities as to increase student’s computer literacy level

Validation of the Bahasa Malaysia version of the Coping Inventory for Stressful Situation (CISS)

Introduction: There is an appealing need to have a validated Bahasa Malaysia (BM) questionnaire that is able to gauge stress coping styles among Malaysian population. A culturally accepted questionnaire will generate further research in the aspect of stress coping patterns in the Malaysia population. Objective: To translate the Coping Inventory for Stressful Situations (CISS) questionnaire into BM and to determine the construct validity, reliability and other psychometric properties of the translated BM version of the English CISS 48-item. Method: Two parallel forward and backward translations were done in BM in accordance to guideline and its validation was determined by using confirmatory factor analysis among 200 Malaysian subjects. Results: The BM CISS had very good Cronbach’s alpha values, 0.91, 0.89 and 0.85 respectively for Task-, Emotional- and Avoidance-oriented. The overall Cronbach’s alpha was 0.91. It also had good factor loading for most of its items where 44 items out of 48 had Confirmatory Factor Analysis values of more than 4.0. Conclusions: BM CISS had been adequately and correctly translated into Bahasa Malaysia with high psychometric properties. Minimal readjustment may be required in a few of its items to obtain excellent results

Tahap literasi komputer pelajar: satu tinjauan awal / Normala Ismail and Mohamad Kamil Ariff Khalid

Objektif utama kajian ini adalah untuk mengenal pasti tahap literasi komputer di kalangan pelajar. Kedua, kajian ini meneliti sama ada wujud hubungan di antara faktor demografi dengan tahap literasi komputer pelajar. Sampel kajian terdiri daripada 34 pelajar bahagian 02 program pengajian Diploma Perbankan (DIB) dan Diploma Pentadbiran Awam (DPA) Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) Cawangan Kedah. Instrumen kajian ialah satu set borang soal selidik yang diedarkan kepada sampel kajian. Dapatan kajian secara langsung menunjukkan bahawa pelajar-pelajar bersikap positif di samping mempunyai kemahiran berkomputer yang tinggi dengan min skor melebihi 3.00. Dari aspek ujian pengetahuan kognitif pula, hasil kajian mendapati dimensi kesan kepada masyarakat mencapai min skor tertinggi berbanding dengan dimensidimensi lain. Hasil kajian turut menunjukkan bahawa tiada kaitan di antara tahap literasi komputer pelajar dengan faktor demografi, iaitu bahagian pengajian, Himpunan Purata Gred Keseluruhan (HPGK), jantina dan keahlian kelab komputer. Hasil Analisis Regresi Berganda pula menunjukkan wujud hubungan di antara tahap literasi komputer dengan kemahiran menggunakan komputer, sikap terhadap penggunaan komputer dan pengetahuan kognitif pelajar. Di antara ketiga-tiga faktor di atas, didapati kemahiran menggunakan komputer adalah paling dominan dalam mempengaruhi tahap literasi komputer pelajar. Dapatan kajian turut mencadangkan agar pihak universiti dapat mengadakan lebih banyak aktiviti yang dapat memberi pendedahan mengenai komputer kepada semua pelajar agar tahap literasi komputer mereka bertambah dari semasa ke semasa

Haid daripada perspektif sains dan maqasid syariah

Setiap kejadian semula jadi merupakan rahmat dan memberi kemaslahatan kepada manusia termasuklah pendarahan haid dalam kalangan wanita. Haid merupakan suatu proses yang unik dan terancang yang melibatkan tiga fasa utama iaitu fasa haid, fasa folikel dan fasa luteal. Objektif penyelidikan ini ialah untuk mengkaji dan menghubungkaitkan kebaikan haid daripada perspektif sains dan maqasid syariah. Kajian ini dijalankan dengan menggunakan ulasan literatur secara deskriptif. Kajian mendapati bahawa perubahan hormon, warna darah dan faktor fiziokimia lain memberi kesan terhadap kenormalan kitaran haid. Darah haid juga dikenal pasti mempunyai agen antimikrob terutamanya terhadap bakteria E. coli dan bakteria Gram-negatif lain. Hal ini bertepatan dengan maqasid syariah memelihara jiwa kerana haid mampu juga memelihara kesihatan wanita. Selain itu, kajian lepas menemukan bahawa darah haid terdiri daripada sel stem yang boleh digunakan dalam aktiviti klinikal pada masa akan datang. Maqasid syariah melindungi keturunan juga dapat dilihat dengan kehadiran haid yang sering digunakan bagi menjangkakan waktu subur bagi merancang kehamilan. Hikmah Islam melarang mendekatkan diri (bersetubuh) dengan wanita yang sedang haid adalah satu rahmat yang besar, kerana wanita yang sedang haid biasanya mempunyai kelaziman gejala prahaid (PMS) yang melibatkan isu kesihatan. Oleh itu, haid daripada perspektif sains adalah bertepatan dengan maqasid syariah

Optimum Welding Parameters for Friction Stir Welded AA6063 Pipe Butt Joint Using the Taguchi Method

Welding parameters for pipe joint friction stir welding (FSW) have been identified based on L-9 orthogonal arrays used in the Taguchi Method. Different welding parameters, such as rotation speed, travel speed and axial force, have been used to produce several quality friction stir welded AA6063 pipe butt joints. The reliability of products obtained in the FSW process can be improved through the identification of the optimum combination of welding parameters. Weld quality was evaluated based on its tensile strength and residual stress profiles. The S/N analysis and Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) have been used to determine significant welding parameters that affect weld quality. Maximum tensile strength with acceptable residual stress was obtained at the optimum welding parameters of 1300 rpm, 5 mm/s and axial force between 5 and 6 kN. The goal of this study was to optimize welding parameters for high tensile strength and low residual stress

Measuring customer satisfaction towards entertainment magazines of Utusan Karya Sendirian Berhad

Entertainment magazines are magazines that provide readers with consistently updated entertainment news locally and internationally. This research aimed to identify the factors that influenced customers’ satisfaction. The target population of this research was students of quasi-government polytechnic, Kolej Politeknik MARA in Bangi, Malaysia. A total of 317 questionnaires were distributed. Using SPSS, it was found that the front page was the most influencing factor that affected customer satisfaction. However, it was also found that respondents were neither satisfied nor dissatisfied with entertainment magazines. It is suggested that continuous efforts and new marketing plans need to be carried out in order to improve customer satisfaction of the entertainment magazines. Post-purchase product satisfaction need to be studied as a continuation of this study

Isolation and characterization of a 2,4-dinitrophenol-degrading bacterium

2,4-dinitrophenol (2,4-DNP) is utilized in the production of wood preservatives, dyes, and also as a pesticide. Human acute (short-term) exposure to 2,4-DNP in humans by means of oral exposure are nausea or vomiting, sweating, headaches, dizziness, and weight reduction. Thus, the removal of this compound is highly sought. A 2,4-DNP-degrading bacterium (isolate 1) was isolated from a sample soil from Terengganu. This bacterium (isolate 1) was characterized as a rod Gram positive, non-sporulated, and non-motile bacterium. The bacterium is oxidase negative and had catalase positive activity and was able to grow aerobically on 2,4-dinitrophenol as the sole carbon source. This bacterium showed maximal growth on 2,4-DNP at the temperature optimum of 30 °C, pH 5.0 and was tolerant to 2,4-DNP concentration of up to 0.5 mM (0.092 g/L). This bacterium prefers to use urea as the nitrogen source in addition to yeast extract for mineral source and vitamin precursors