a study of undergraduate use of cloud computing applications; special reference to Google docs.

The world has been witnessed with many technological revolutions. One of them is the computing technologies. The world is able to do many things with the utilization of this innovation. There have been many revolutions such as mainframe computers, super computers, web technologies, Internet, grid computing, utility computing, etc even in the computing technologies throughout the history of the world. Cloud computing is another evolutions in the field of computingwhere computingis delivered as hosted services over the Internet and it has been evolved from the earlier computing technologies by the integration of some of them and removing the obstacles encountered in them as a new technology to the world. Amazon, Google, Microsoft, Salesforce.com, are some of the organizations who provide this technology to organizations and personal users. Google provides a service called Google Docs, a widely used example of cloud computing. Even though many studies have examined the overall concept of cloud computing, no previous research has analyzed students' usage and acceptance of Google Docs in a university setting. The purpose of this paper is to focuses on the factors influencing the use of Google docs as one of the SaaS offering of cloud computing services. The Theory of Planned Behavior was used as the theoretical model for this research in examining what factors influence students to use Google Docs. The interviews (n=20) and surveys (n=316) were deployed to gain a better understanding of this phenomenon. By using hierarchical regression analysis and a correlation matrix to analyze the data, it was found that all three constructs of the Theory of Planned Behavior (Attitude, Subjective Norm, and Perceived Behavioral Control) are significantly and positively correlated with intention to use Google Docs. Further, it was found that Affect, which measures a person's emotional responses, is also a significant predictor of Behavioral Intention. The findings of this research could be used by multiple stakeholder groups to better understand the factors influencing the usage of Google Docs

The role of corporate social responsibility in enhancing brand Equity: the post-war scenario

The objective of this research is to identify what sort of impacts that the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives of Unilever Sri Lanka in the Northern and Eastern provinces on its Brand Equity by using a portrayed conceptual model. The variables Corporate Social Responsibility as independent variable and Brand Equity as dependent variable in the conceptual model were taken. The data were collected using a questionnaire survey of 100 respondents inclusive of shareholders, women and employees with different background in the Northern and Eastern Province. The sample was 70 percent customers, 15 percent shareholders, 14 percent employees and 1 percent marketing consultant. The sampling method was random sampling in which it was taken the systematic sampling. The researchers conducted descriptive statistics, a factor analysis and correlation and regression modeling using SPSS 16.0 software package for the purpose of analyzing the data collected. The results of this research showed that the continuous and higher the investments on CSR initiatives enabled the organization to build their brand equity in the Northern and Eastern Province. In the perspective of shareholders in relation to the CSR initiatives of Unilever Sri Lanka, the CSR definitely would create a good community relation. Subsequently, it would derive in getting continuous investment, as the results of which, it would help increase the brand equity of the company. In the scenario of women, Unilever Sri Lanka has made a tremendous contribution to the entrepreneurship of women, and their career as well, and the entrepreneurs also have got the positive perception, as a results of which, the company could be able to change the attitude of the women. Subsequently, they could become as a powerful advocates. In the scenario of employees, proper trainings were given in the field of CSR

Cloning and expression of hmgr1 gene from Hevea brasiliensis

Biosynthesis of natural rubber (cis-1,4-polyisoprene) takes place through mevalonate pathway in Hevea. The enzyme 3-hydroxy- 3-methyl glutaryl-CoA reductase (HMGR), which catalyses the synthesis of mevalonate from HMG-CoA is a key regulatory enzyme in this pathway. This study aimed to clone and express hmgr1 gene, in order to obtain the HMGR protein in vitro and to further use this protein as a marker for yield potential in Hevea. For this purpose, mRNA was isolated from the latex of Hevea (clone RRII 105). cDNA was synthesized and PCR amplification of coding region of hmgr1 was performed using hmgr1 specific primers. The PCR amplified product (~1.8 kb) was cloned into an expression vector (pRSET-A) and transformed into E. coli (BL21DE3) cells. Protein expression in transformed cells when monitored by SDS-PAGE analysis indicated the presence of HMGR protein (61.6 kDa). The protein would be used for developing specific antibody that could be further utilized for the quantification of HMGR in different Hevea clones for screening the yield potential. The details of cloning and expression of hmgr1 are presented and discussed

Bioadsorption of multiple heavy metal ions by Rhizophora Apiculate sp. and Elaesis Guineensis sp. / M.B. Nicodemus Ujih …[et al.]

Heavy metal ions contamination has become more serious which is caused by the releasing of toxic water from industrial area and landfill that are very harmful to all living organism especially human and can even cause death if contaminated in small amount of heavy metal concentration. Currently, peoples are using classic method namely electrochemical treatment, chemical oxidation/reduction, chemical precipitation and reverse osmosis to eliminate the metal ions from toxic water. Unfortunately, these methods are costly and not environmentally friendly as compared to bioadsorption method, where agricultural waste is used as biosorbent to remove heavy metals. Two types of agricultural waste used in this research namely oil palm mesocarp fiber (Elaesis guineensis sp.) (OPMF) and mangrove bark (Rhizophora apiculate sp.) (MB) biomass. Through chemical treatment, the removal efficiency was found to improve. The removal efficiency is examined based on four specification namely dosage, of biosorbent to adsorb four types of metals ion explicitly nickel, lead, copper, and chromium. The research has found that the removal efficiency of MB was lower than OPMF; whereas, the multiple metals ions removal efficiency decreased in the order of Pb2+ > Cu2+ > Ni2+ > Cr2+

Production of sensitive gas sensors using CuO/SnO2 nanoparticles

Metal oxide nanoparticles, such as CuO and SnO2, are outstanding systems for H2S gas sensing in air. In this work, those nanoparticles were deposited with different mixing percentages on substrates to form percolating networks of nanoparticles. Electrical electrodes were deposited on the nanoparticles’ films to investigate their gas sensing response against H2 and H2S, and their electrical characteristics. The sensor devices based on CuO–SnO2 nanoparticles revealed enhanced sensing characteristics against H2S with a sensitivity of 10 ppm. The enhanced sensing characteristics could be attributed to the formation of PN-junctions among CuO and SnO2 nanoparticles. The reasonable production cost (due to simple structure and cheap used materials), low power consumption ( ~ 1 µW for H2S at room temperature), high sensitivity, high response, and reasonable response time of the present sensors qualify them for practical implementation in portable gas sensing devices with enhanced characteristics.Open Access funding provided by the Qatar National Library. This work was supported by both Qatar National Research Fund (QNRF) under a Grant Number UREP21-035-2-013, and Qatar University fund under a Grant Number QUCG-CAS-20182019-1. The SEM/EDS measurements were accomplished in the Central Laboratories unit at Qatar University. Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations

Micro-hydrokinetic turbine potential for sustainable power generation in Malaysia

Micro-hydrokinetic turbine (μ-HKT) technology is considered a viable option for sustainable, green and low cost power production. In recent years, there is growing number of research and development on this technology to replace conventional power production systems such as fossil fuel as well as to provide off-grid electrification to communities in remote areas. This paper provides an overview of μ-HKT system, the implementation of the technology and the potential of using μ-HKT in Malaysia. A review on the climate in Malaysia shows that its average annual rainfall is higher than the world's average annual rainfall. It contributes to the total hydropower resource of about 29,000 MW which is available all year-round. Currently, hydropower resource contributes only 7.4% of the total electrical power production in Malaysia but is expected to increase with the main contribution coming from μ-HKT. However, the μ-HKT technology has not been adopted in Malaysia due to some challenges that hinder the development of the system. This paper reviews the μ-HKT technology and its potential for application in Malaysia, particularly in remote areas

Challenges during Operation and Shutdown of Waxy Crude Pipelines

Transportation of waxy crude oil faces great challenges due to shear and temperature dependency. At high temperatures, waxy crude exhibits low viscous Newtonian behavior where the resistance to flow due to friction is low, and hence low pumping pressure is required to transport it. At low temperatures, however, the crude exhibits shear thinning non-Newtonian behavior where its apparent viscosity becomes shear-dependent. In such cases, the operated pipeline needs to maintain a high pressure to guarantee a continuous flow. Moreover, due to heat transfer between the internal pipeline and surroundings, oil temperature declines along the pipeline. It follows that the crude viscosity and, hence, frictional resistance increase. If the flow is interrupted for any reason, i.e., emergency or planned shutdown, then the restartability of the pipeline becomes a challenge because of the nonexistence of heating generated from friction. In this chapter, the challenges normally facing transportation of waxy crude oil will be discussed. The chapter will introduce the rheological properties of waxy crude oil and explain and describe how these properties can affect the pressure losses inside the pipeline during its operation and shutdown. The measures that need to be considered when designing a waxy crude pipeline will be discussed

Milk productivity of camel and growth of calves (Camelusdromedarius) in eastern Ethiopia

Milk suckled, off take and growth of calves of Camel was measured from August 2008 to July 2009 in eastern Ethiopia with the aim to evaluate the performance of the herd in terms of milk productivity and growth of calves. Data on milk suckled and growth of calves was collected by methods of weight-suckle-weight. Milk off take of the herd was measured by hand milking method. Productivity of the herd in terms of milk was evaluated based on the sum of milk suckled and off take. Average daily milk suckled was 2.00 ± 0.18 kg, daily milk off take was 3.50 ± 0.14 liter, daily weight gains of calves was 0.243 ± 0.01 kg/day, respectively. Average milk productivity as the sum of milk suckled and off take was 5.5 ± 0.16. Milk sucked, off take and daily weight gain of calves was affected by months of lactation, season of births of calves and parities of dams. Daily milk suckled, off take and weight gain in 3-4 months of lactation was relatively higher than other months of lactation which were 2.17 + 0.22 kg, 3.55± 0.16 liter and 0.300 ± 0.02 kg, respectively. The productivity of the herd in terms of milk yield and growth of calves decrease as the camels advanced in lactation. Daily milk suckled, off take and weight gain was relatively lower in 11-12 months of lactation which was 1.27+ 0.31 kg, 1.69 ± 0.15 liter and 0.193± 0.02 kg, respectively. From the study it was concluded that the Camel herd in eastern Ethiopia managed under arid range condition was comparable to the productivity of Camel in east Africa based on the performance measured in terms of milk productivity and growth of calves.National Camel Research Project and University of Haramayahttp://www.lrrd.org/hb201

Lower relative differential expression of two genes is associated with delayed ripening in melon

[SPA] Con el fin de comparar la expresión génica de un melón cerca de la línea isogénica (NIL) SC10-2 y su parental Piel de Sapo (PS) durante la maduración y para comprender los mecanismos de diferenciación, se realizó una secuenciación transcriptoma. Dos genes de CmGGP (GDP-L-galactosa fosforilasa 1) y CmRAP2-11 (factor de transcripción sensible al etileno RAP2-11) mostraron menor expresión relativa en la NIL SC10 -2 versus PS debido a la introgresión en LG X. Sin embargo, no existieron diferencias en expresión de CmAP2-like X1 (factor de transcripción sensible al etileno, similar a AP2 TOE3 isoforma X1). En consecuencia, la expresión de genes que mapearon en el grupo de ligamiento X como un factor de transcripción de respuesta a etileno o del metabolismo del ácido ascórbico estuvieron probablemente asociados con el retraso de maduración. [ENG] The expression of selected genes during ripening was studied considering a melon Near-isogenic Line (NIL) SC10-2 and its parental “Piel de Sapo” (PS). The expression of CmGGP (GDP-L-galactose phosphorylase 1), CmAP2-like X1 (AP2-like ethylene-responsive transcription factor TOE3 isoform X1) and CmRAP2-11 (ethylene-responsive transcription factor RAP2-11) were differentially expressed in the NIL SC10-2 compared with PS. Consequently, expression of genes that mapped in LG X such as one ethylene response transcription factors or ascorbic acid metabolism gene were probably associated with delayed ripening.Financial support: Fundación Séneca de la Región de Murcia (11784/PI/09), MINECO & UE-FEDER funds (AGL2010-20858). Thanks for the technical assistance to P. Varó and his team in CIFEA-Torre Pacheco (Consejería de Agricultura, Región de Murcia) for crop management and IRTA-CRAG for the seeds of the NIL