IMPROVING THE RELIGIOUS BASE OF THE CONVERT COMMUNITY IN JAMBI PROVINCE

The Indonesian Mualaf Center Foundation (MCI) is a social institution operating in the social and religious sectors, with a growing number of converted converts. As of November 2022, there have been 113 Muslim converts in Jambi Province. It was MCI's fourth year in Jambi Province. The growth in the number of assisted converts to Islam positively responds to their presence in Jambi Province. This independent social institution has no affiliation with any party. Its existence is even needed, and it supports government programs for developing Muslim converts. Then, how this institution guides converts to Islam will be described in this article, which is the final report of the community service program. The mentoring method used is PAR (Participatory Action Research), focusing on three fundamental aspects of Islamic teachings: circumcision for men, assistance in reading and writing the Al-Qur'an for male and female converts to Islam and strengthening lessons in the practice of religious fiqh. The inhibiting factor in this activity comes from the converts, who still need to be consistent in their learning. Various programs have been prepared by the administrators and volunteers of the Indonesian Mualaf Center, but due to busy schedules and economic factors, only a few converts regularly attend and participate in the scheduled activities. Abstrak: Yayasan Mualaf Center Indonesia (MCI) adalah lembaga social yang bergerak dibidang social dan keagamaan yang memiliki mualaf binaan yang terus mengalami penigkatan mencapai 113 binaan sampai November 2022 pada tahun tahun keempat MCI di Provinsi Jambi. Pertumbuhan jumlah mualaf binaan tersebut dapat dikatakan sebagai respon positif atas kehadiarannya di Provinsi Jambi. Lembaga sosial independent ini tidak memiliki afiliasi dengan pihak manapun. Keberadaannya bahkan dibutuhkan dan mendukung program pemerintah dalam pembinaan terhadap para mualaf. Lalu bagaimana lembaga ini melakukan pembinaan terhadap para mualaf diuraikan pada artikel ini yang merupakan laporan akhir dari program pengabdian kepada masyarakat. Metode pendampingan yang digunakan adalah PAR (Partisipation Action Research) dengan berfokus pada tiga aspek dasar ajaran Islam, yakni; berkhitan bagi laki-laki, pendampingan baca tulis al-Quran bagi mualaf laki-laki maupun perempuan, dan penguatan pelajaran praktek fiqh ibadah. Adapun faktor penghambat pada kegiatan ini adalah berasal dari pihak mualaf itu sendiri yang belum konsisten untuk belajar. Berbagai program telah disusun oleh para pengurus dan relawan Mualaf Center Indonesia, namun karena kesibukan dan faktor ekonomi sehingga hanya beberapa mualaf saja yang secara rutin hadir dan mengikuti kegiatan yang telah dijadwalkan. Kata Kunci: Mualaf, Binaan Mualaf Center Indonesia (MCI) Regional Jambi. &nbsp

Interior Atmosphere: Does It Really Have an Impact on Consumer Purchasing Behavior at Self- Serving Convenience Stores?

The main aim of this study was to investigate the impact of interior store atmosphere on consumer purchasing behavior at self-serving convenience stores in Ampara District, Sri Lanka.  Today, retail industry became highly competitive with the increasing number of convenience and other types of retail stores in the area. Hence, the retailers need to be more customer focused and have to differentiate from their competitors by making their interior atmosphere more attractive to consumers and to encourage them to spend more time, money, to purchase more merchandises and to stimulate their repeat purchase intention. A survey research was employed to collect primary information from 292 customers from convenience stores in Ampara District. Interior atmospheric factors such as, music, scent, light and color were used to identify the impact of interior atmosphere on consumer purchasing behavior. Convenience sampling was employed for data collection using a questionnaire with a five-point Likert scale. SPSS 20.0 was used to analyze the data. Significant interior atmospheric factors that influence consumer purchasing behavior included music, scent, light and it is found out that color has no any impact on consumer purchasing behavior. Keywords: Interior atmosphere, convenience stores, consumer behavio

Heat transfer in a channel with inclined target surface cooled by single array of centered impinging jets

An experimental investigation has been carried out to study the heat transfer characteristics in a channel with heated target plate inclined at an angle cooled by single array of equally spaced centered impinging jets for three different jet Reynolds numbers (Re=9300, 14400 and 18800). Air ejected from an array of orifices impinges on the heated target surface The target plate forms the leading edge of a gas turbine blade cooled by jet impingement technique. The work includes the effect of jet Reynolds numbers and feed channel aspect ratios (H/d = 5, 7, 9 where H=2.5, 3.5, 4.5 cm and d=0.5 cm) on the heat transfer characteristics for a given orifice jet plate configuration with equally spaced centered holes with outflow exiting in both directions (with inclined heated target surface). In general, It has been observed that, H/d=9 gives the maximum heat transfer over the entire length of the target surface as compared to all feed channel aspect ratios. H/d=9 gives 3% more heat transfer from the target surface as compared to H/d=5 (for Re=14400). Also, it has been observed that the magnitude of the averaged local Nusselt number increases with an increase in the jet Reynolds number for all the feed channel aspect ratios studied

Evaluation of pharmacological and catalytic activity of CuO and Zn doped CuO nanoparticles

124-129CuO and Zn doped CuO nanoparticles (Zn-CuO NPs) with varying concentration i.e., ZnxCu1−xO (where x = 0, 0.5, 1, and 1.5%) have been prepared via microwave assisted method. The spheroid structure of CuO NPs and the nanorod structure of Zn- CuO NPs have been determined using High Resolution Scanning Electron Microscopy (HR-SEM) analysis. Elemental analysis has been carried out using Energy Dispersive X-ray Analysis (EDAX). The particle size and surface area of CuO and Zn-CuO NPs have been confirmed by Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) method. The antibacterial studies have been revealed that Zn(1.5%)-CuO NPs exhibited maximum zone of inhibition (19-29 mm) against the tested four bacterial strains. Zn-CuO NPs have been displayed robust action of antibacterial activity with minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of 0.09 μM against Campylobacter coli (C. Coli). DPPH and H2O2 radical scavenging assay investigation have been revealed that the significant scavenging activity has showed by Zn(1.5%)-CuO. The in vitro cytotoxicity evaluation of synthesized material against human breast (MCF7) and human lung (A549) cancer cell lines have been demonstrated that Zn(1.5%)-CuO NPs exhibited better cytotoxic activity against MCF7 cell lines (97.5% cell death) than A549 cell lines (90% cell death)

Punching Shear Characterization of Steel Fiber-Reinforced Concrete Flat Slabs

Punching shear failure in thin slabs under concentrated loads can cause shear stresses near columns. The use of steel fiber is a practical way to improve a slab-column connection's punching strength and deformation capacity. In this study, the capacity and behavior of steel fiber-reinforced concrete flat slabs are examined under punching shear force. Ten small-scale flat slabs were tested, eight of which had steel fiber and two without. Two parameters are studied in this paper, which are the fiber volume ratio (from 0% to 2%) and the stub column load shape (circle and square). The test results include the concrete compressive strength, crack patterns, punching shear, and load-defection behavior of the slabs. Based on the experimental results, it was found that the punching shear capacity of slabs with steel fiber (S5) increased by 21.8% compared to slabs without steel fiber (S1), and the slabs with steel fiber had more ductility compared to the slabs without fiber. Doi: 10.28991/HIJ-2022-03-04-08 Full Text: PD

A redox-sensitive nanofluidic diode based on nicotinamide-modified asymmetric nanopores

[EN] We demonstrate a redox-sensitive nanofluidic diode whose ion rectification is modulated by the oxidation and reduction of chemical moieties incorporated on its surface. To achieve this goal, we have first synthesized the chemical compounds 1-(4-aminobutyl)-3-carbamoylpyridin-1-ium (Nic-BuNH2) and 3-carbamoyl-1-(2,4-dinitrophenyl)pyridinium (Nic-DNP). Then, the surface of track-etched single asymmetric nanopores is decorated with the redox-sensitive Nic-BuNH2 and Nic-DNP molecules using carbodiimide coupling chemistry and Zincke reaction, respectively. The success of the modification reactions is monitored through the changes in the current¿voltage (I¿V) curves prior to and after pore functionalization. Upon exposing the modified pore to solutions of hydrogen peroxide (oxidizing agent) and sodium dithionite (reducing agent) the surface charge is reversibly modulated from positive to neutral, leading to measurable changes in the electronic readout of ion current passing through the nanopore. On oxidation, the quaternary nicotinamide units impart positive charge to the pore surface, resulting in the ion current rectification (anion-selective pore). On the contrary, the complementary reduced dihydronicotinamide moieties resulted in the loss of surface charge and ohmic behaviour (non-selective pore). The experimental results are further theoretically described by using Poisson-Nernst-PlanckM.A., S.N. and W.E. acknowledge the funding from the Hessen State Ministry of Higher Education, Research and the Arts, Germany, under the LOEWE project iNAPO. P. R. and S. M. acknowledge financial support by the Generalitat Valenciana (Program of Excellence Prometeo/GV/0069), the Spanish Ministry of Economic Affairs and Competitiveness (MAT2015-65011-P), and FEDER. I.A. and C.M.N. acknowledge financial support through the Helmholtz programme BioInterfaces in Technology and Medicine. The authors are also thankful to Prof. C. Trautmann, Department of Materials Research from GSI, for support with irradiation experiments.Ali, M.; Ahmed, I.; Ramirez Hoyos, P.; Nasir, S.; Mafe, S.; Niemeyer, CM.; Ensinger, W. (2017). A redox-sensitive nanofluidic diode based on nicotinamide-modified asymmetric nanopores. Sensors and Actuators B Chemical. 240:895-902. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.snb.2016.09.061S89590224

Ionic transport through chemically functionalized hydrogen peroxide-sensitive asymmetric nanopores

We describe the fabrication of a chemical-sensitive nanofluidic device based on asymmetric nanopores whose transport characteristics can be modulated upon exposure to hydrogen peroxide (H2O2). We show experimentally and theoretically that the current-voltage curves provide a suitable method to monitor the H2O2-mediated change in pore surface characteristics from the electronic readouts. We demonstrate also that the single pore characteristics can be scaled to the case of a multipore membrane whose electric outputs can be readily controlled. Because H2O2 is an agent significant for medical diagnostics, the results should be useful for sensing nanofluidic devices.MA, S.N. and W.E. acknowledge the funding from the Hessen State Ministry of Higher Education, Research and the Arts, Germany, under the LOEWE project iNAPO. P.R and S.M. acknowledge the support from the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Competitiveness and FEDER (project MAT2012-32084) and the Generalitat Valenciana (project Prometeo/GV/0069 for Groups of Excellence). I.A. and C.M.N. acknowledge financial support through the Helmholtz programme Bio-Interfaces in Technology and Medicine. The authors are thankful to Prof. C. Trautmann, Department of Materials Research from GSI, for support with irradiation experiments.Ali, M.; Ahmed, I.; Nasir, S.; Ramirez Hoyos, P.; Niemeyer, CM.; Mafe, S.; Ensinger, W. (2015). Ionic transport through chemically functionalized hydrogen peroxide-sensitive asymmetric nanopores. ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces. 7(35):19541-19545. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsami.5b06015S195411954573

A proposed model for the selection of workers on crowdsourcing platforms utilizing nested criteria matching

The objective of this study is to examine the concept of crowdsourcing and the corresponding method for employee selection. In recent years, there has been a growing trend towards the utilization of crowdsourcing, wherein both businesses and individuals harness the power of collective cooperation to provide solutions, ideas, or contributions across several domains, including but not limited to product development and scientific research. This study examines the concept of crowdsourcing as a means of gathering occupations or tasks completed by individuals with diverse qualifications. In this study, we examine the worker selection mechanism as explored in prior research and put forth a novel worker selection model incorporating a profile matching algorithm. The subsequent phase involves enhancing the profile matching algorithm to accommodate nested criteria for matching worker requirements. Upon concluding the investigation, a comparative analysis was conducted to assess the outcomes of matching workers' criteria using both single criterion and nested criteria. Additionally, the proposed formula was implemented to evaluate the case involving nested criteria. The findings reveal substantial disparities between the suggested workforces, particularly in terms of their composition. The proposed workforce with nested criteria exhibits a reduced and more precise numerical representation compared to the proposed workforce with a single criterion. This demonstrates that the utilization of the proposed selection model offers a viable solution to the challenge of identifying workers with layered criteria

Mobile station movement direction prediction (MMDP) based handover scanning for mobile WiMAX system

Mobile WiMAX is a broadband technology that is capable of delivering triple play services (voice, data, and video). However, mobility in mobile WiMAX system is still an issue when the mobile station (MS) moves and its connection is handed over between base stations (BSs). In the handover process, scanning is one of the required phases to find the target BS. During the handover scanning process, the MS must synchronize with all the advertised neighbour BSs (nBSs) to select the best BS candidate for the incoming handover action. Without terminating the connection between the SBS and MS, the SBS will schedule the scanning intervals and sleep-intervals (also called interleaving interval) to MS for the handover scanning. However, during the scanning interval period, all the coming transmissions will be paused. Therefore, the redundant or unnecessary scanning of neighbouring BS cause delay and MAC overhead which may affect real-time applications. In this paper, the MS movement direction prediction (MMDP) based handover scanning scheme is introduced to overcome the mobile WiMAX handover scanning issue. It based on dividing the BS coverage area is into zones and sectors. According to the signal quality; there are three zones, no handover (No-HO), low handover (Low-HO) and high handover (High-HO) zones respectively and six sectors. In this scheme, only two BSs can become candidates; the two that the MS moves toward them will be chosen as the candidate for the handover scanning purpose. Hence, the handover scanning process repetition will be reduced with these two shortlisted BS candidates instead of scanning all nBSs. Thus, MMDP will reduce scanning delay and the number of exchange messages during the handover scanning comparing to the conventional scanning scheme. Although, the MMDP may need an extra computational time, the prediction and scanning process will be finished before the MS reach the High-HO zone, which mean the end-user’s running application will be affected. Simulation results show that the proposed MMDP scheme reduces the total handover scanning delay and scanning interval duration by 25 and 50 % respectively. Also, the size of scanning message is reduced, which leads to reduced signalling overhead