The Exchange Rate and Interest Rate Differential Relationship: Evidence from Two Financial Crises

This paper examines the contemporaneous and inter-temporal interaction between real exchange rate and real interest rate differential in the two financial crises of 1997 and 2008 by using data from thirteen countries from different world regions. The empirical result shows that negative contemporaneous relationship exists in most countries. In addition, there is little evidence on a systematic inter-temporal relationship between the real interest rate differential and the real exchange rate, and an absence of consistent result in supporting a negative relationship among the thirteen economies. An extremely low change in the conditional correlation between real interest rate differential and real exchange rates can be found in small countries.Contemporaneous, inter-temporal relationship, exchange rate, interest rate differential, financial crisis

Impact of Palm Oil based Minimum Quantity of Lubrication on Machinability of Ti and its Alloy (Ti-6AI-4V)

This project investigates the usage of palm oil as a metal cutting fluid in minimum quantity lubrication assisted turning operations and its effect on surface roughness, tool wear and cutting temperature for Titanium alloy Ti-6Al-4V. Artificial Neural Network models were developed to determine the optimum cutting parameters considering the sustainability of palm oil in titanium alloy machining to improve future manufacturing costs and qualities

COMPARISON STUDY OF ANTIOXIDANT, ANTIMICROBIAL AND CYTOTOXIC PROPERTIES OF SECONDARY METABOLITE AND PROTEIN EXTRACTS FROM CLINACANTHUS NUTANS

Objective: The present study aims to evaluate the antioxidant, antimicrobial and cytotoxic properties of the secondary metabolites and proteins extracted from Clinacanthus nutans. Methods: Methanol (ME) and acetone (AC) and also protein (PE) extracts were obtained from Clinacanthus nutans. Antioxidant activity of sample extracts was examined by using 1,1-Diphenyl-2-Picrydyl Hydrazyl (DPPH) assay and antimicrobial activity was examined by using the agar diffusion method against Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus cereus, Streptococcus pyrogenes, Escherichia coli, and Pseudomonas aeroginosa bacterial strain. The cytotoxic potential was determined by brine shrimp lethality assay. Results: Methanol extract (ME) demonstrated to have the highest antioxidant activity with IC50 value of 98.84 μg/ml, followed by acetone extract (AE) with IC50 value of 134.83µg/ml, and protein extract (PE) with IC50 value of 353.49 µg/ml. Among all of the sample extracts, only methanol crude extracts (ME) displayed moderate inhibition against Gram-positive B. cereus (7.33±1.15 mm) and S. pyrogenes (8.67±0.57 mm) at concentration of 100 mg/ml, while both acetone (AE) and protein (PE) extracts had no activity against all tested microorganisms. All extracts from methanol (ME), acetone (AE) and protein (PE) exhibited significant cytotoxic activity against brine shrimps at LC50 7.2 μg/ml, 1.42 μg/ml and 70.6 μg/ml respectively. Conclusion: These data proved that methanol extract from the leaves of Clinacanthus nutans is the most potent among all samples tested and has the potential to be developed as an antioxidant, antimicrobial and cytotoxic agents. Whilst, acetone and protein crude extracts have potent antioxidant and cytotoxicity activities

Enhancing Job Awareness Through Career Exploration Course – A Report

In recent years, in developed countries such as the USA, Europe and Japan, ‘career search behaviour’ awareness and practice via university courses have been a keen focus. However, this is not the case in Malaysia, even worse is, university students do not think about it at all.  This career exploration course was introduced with the aim to raise undergraduate students’ awareness toward job searching before graduation. This was a 14-week career exploration introductory course with four main interventions; 1) to set your future career goal, conduct an interview with a graduated senior from the same faculty, who work in the industry you are interested in and then share with your course mate the interview results and what you have learned from the interview via oral presentation, 2) once the career goal is set,  learn the techniques of making career-related documents(e.g., resume writing), 3)do a self-examination on the knowledge and skills required in the job market and make a career searching action plan, 4) share and discuss your actual job search action plan via second oral presentation. Learning achievement is measured via continuous assessments and final written examination. Excerpts from the written examination revealed that students were more aware of the importance of conducting job searching activities before graduation and skills learned on career-related documents and writing the job search action plan have been useful to them.近年、欧米、日本を中心に大学生の「キャリア探索行動」のような意識と実践に着目してきた一方、マレーシアでは大学生が職業の前に職業探索を行うところか、それを考えることさえ意識していない。そこで就職活動に対する意識向上させる授業実践を行った。本実践では一学期、すなわち１４週間にわたり、次の４つを学生にさせた。１）職業についての希望や目標を明確にしていくため、自分が興味のある業界で働いている学部の先輩を訪ね、実際の仕事と内容などをインタビューする。そのインタビューの結果をクラス内発表し、発表を通じて、教室でクラスメートとOBOG訪問する際に必要であったマナーなどの情報を共有する。２）明確になった自己の職業に対する目標を設定し、企業への履歴書など書類作成する。３）職場における必要な知識、スキルなど自己検討し、今後のキャリア計画を考え作成する。４）再びクラス内で、キャリア計画を発表し、クラスメート間でコメントし合う。本授業の学習達成度は、教師の継続評価と期末試験で測る。期末試験で本授業に対する内省文を書かせたところ、多くの学習者が自己理解、就職活動の準備を卒業する前に行う、キャリア計画の重要性が有意義であったと回答した。また、本授業の学習者同士のコメントの話し合いを通じて、OBOGに対するマナーや言葉遣いなどが重要であることを学ばせることができた

Culture conditions for optimal growth of actinomycetes from marine sponges

Actinomycetes are filamentous gram-positive bacteria that can be found abundantly in both terrestrial and marine environment. These bacteria are known as producers of many bioactive compounds through the production of secondary metabolites for their survival and adaptation in nature and have been widely used today as therapeutic agents. Marine actinomycetes have been the focus of researc over the past decade for new drugs discovery due to its unique adaptation in the harsh sea environment. It is believed that marine actinomycetes could produce compounds that are rare and unique compared to the terrestrial actinomycetes. Despite its potential, marine actinomycetes are critically difficult to culture in laboratory because these actinomycetes live in extreme environment in the sea with high salt concentration, high pressure, low temperature, and constant pH changes of seawater in its natural environment. Hence, in this study, optimum condition to culture marine actinomycetes was achieved by culturing the marine actinomycetes from marine sponges on different culture condition such as different types of isolation media, pH, seasalt concentration, temperature, and incubation time. Starch casein agar (SCA) is shown to be the best isolation media compared to actinomycetes isolation agar (AIA) and Kuster agar (KUA). The growth of marine actinomycetes is optimum at pH 7, 40 % of seasalt concentration, 20–30 °C and 7–10 days of incubation time

Effect of heavy metal contamination on the DNA Mutation on Nepenthes plant from abandoned mine

Objective: Heavy metal contamination on water, soil, crops and including to the other living organisms, including their effects on DNA mutation in abandoned mine is highlighted in this study Methodology: In this study, 6 toxic metals, Zn, Pb, Fe, Cd, Cr and Mn in Nepenthes plants at an abandoned copper mine site were investigated. A total of 20 Nepenthes plants were collected from different sites of the abandoned mine. Metal concentration was determined using the Inductively Coupled Plasma/Optical Emission Spectrometry (ICP/OES) technique and electrophoresis gel and Inter Simple Sequence Repeat (ISSR) amplification processes for DNA mutation analysis. The total concentration trend of metal concentrations recorded with Cu (up to 88.797 mg kg–1)>Mn (39.018 mg kg–1)>Zn (30.260 mg kg–1)>Pb (8.206 mg kg–1)>Cd (0.168 mg kg–1). Results: The results also showed that concentration of heavy metals in Nepenthes plants collected from the abandoned mine were much higher than in control plants. However, the concentrations were still under the tolerance limit of heavy metals in plants except for Cu concentration. Besides, the concentration of heavy metals generally is higher in the flowers of the plants. For DNA analysis, based on the image obtained the result showed the DNA bands were located at the same location with the control Nepenthes which indicated there is no mutation occurred for the Nepenthes collected from the abandoned mine. Conclusion: From the result it is suggested that pitcher plant such Nepenthes may act as a potential phytoextraction of heavy metal from contaminated soil or water compounds at the abandoned mine

The synthesis of linear-optimal heave control of electromagnetic suspension systems.

SIGLEAvailable from British Library Document Supply Centre- DSC:D67923/86 / BLDSC - British Library Document Supply CentreGBUnited Kingdo

Persistent hiccup in a continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis patient following ingestion of star fruit

AbstractAnimal studies have suggested that ingestion of star fruit, which belongs to the Oxalidaceae family, may cause neurotoxicity. Outbreaks of intractable hiccups have been reported following ingestion of star fruit in patients on regular hemodialysis. Other complaints have included insomnia, agitation and mental confusion. We report a patient on continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD) who presented with acute confusion and persistent hiccup following ingestion of star fruit. Symptoms resolved spontaneously. Other reported cases and management strategies are discussed