28,845 research outputs found
The principle of non-interference in ASEAN: Can Malaysia spearhead the effort towards a more interventionist ASEAN
The principle of non-interference in the internal aff airs of ASEAN member states has been identified as among the most significant element that shaped ASEAN intra relations and still remain very much appreciated. By not allowing member states to interfere into another’s internal affairs,
especially into politico-security issues, it has created a stable and secured environment in the region which contributed tremendously to the efforts of national building and economic development. However, several regional
incidents such as the 1997 Asian Economic Crisis, the spread of the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), Indonesian Smog/Haze crisis and the Myanmar internal political quandary have questioned if not shaken the belief that the doctrine of non-interference is an untouchable sacred political arrangement. This paper will investigate the genesis of this doctrine, the incidents that challenge the doctrine and Malaysia’s readiness as a country to lead changes in the doctrine
Economic valuation of household preference for solid waste management in Malaysia: A choice modeling approach
This study estimated the economic values of household preferences for improved solid waste management (SWM) service attributes in Malaysia. The Choice Model (CM) was employed on 859 randomly selected urban households in Kajang and Seremban areas. The study found that households were willing to pay a premium for improvements in the SWM system. More specifically, the study ascertains that households on average are willing to pay a charge of RM1.57 per month for a change in collection frequency - from 3 irregular times to either 3 scheduled times or 4 times per week, ceteris paribus; RM3.32 if waste disposal method was improved from control tipping to sanitary landfill, ceteris paribus; and RM2.48 if transportation mode was improved from a mix of compactor and open trucks to either compactor or a mix of compactor and covered trucks, ceteris paribus. The CM has also shown that households derive positive utility from the provisions of recycling facilities and compulsory kerbside recycling with an implicit price (willingness to pay) of about RM3.51 monthly. Results from the study can be used by service providers to identify any mismatch between what the public actually wants and are willing to pay for and the affordability of supply on the part of service providers
Meeting at Middle Ground: American Quaker Women’s Two Palestinian Encounters
In the late nineteenth century the Palestinian town of Ramallah began receiving American missionary women who embodied their middle-class ideology of womanhood and ventured to discourse on Arab women and culture. Their conviction of the American woman as the model for other “unfortunate” women prevented these missionaries from integrating in the Palestinian cultural context. Consequently, this americentric belief led them to construct overwhelmingly negative views of Palestinian women as oppressed, living in ignorance and degraded conditions, and of Arab culture as backward and inept. However, American women missionaries after World War I grew in their cultural and linguistic understanding of Arab culture. this change in perspective came as a result of numerous social and cultural developments in Palestine and the United States that prepared these women to establish an accommodative middle ground between them and the Palestinians, thus modifying their previous perceptions.1 among these developments were the increased secularization of the Quakers’ curriculum, more cultural and linguistic training of American teachers, the significance of Palestine as the “Holy land” in missionary imagination, and most importantly the emergence of the strategy of cooperation and devolution among the different Protestant missions in Syria and Palestine after World War I
Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons biodegradation using isolated strains under indigenous condition
The treatment and disposal of domestic sIudge is an expensive and environmentally sensitive
problem. It is also a growing problem since sludge production will continue to increase as
new wastewzter treatment plants are built due to population increase. The large volume of
domestic sIudge produced had made it difficult for many countries including Malaysia to
assure complete treatment of the sludge before discharging to the receiving environment.
Domestic sludge contains diverse range of pollutants such as pathogen, inorganic and organic
compounds. These pollutants are toxic, mutagenic or carcinogenic and may threaten human
health. Iiilproper disposal and handling of sludge may pose serious impact to the environment
especially on soil and water cycles. Previous studies on Malaysian domestic sludge only
reported on bulk parameters and heavy metals. Thus, no study reported on organic micro
pollutants, namely, polycylic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). Their recalcitrance and
persistence make them problematic environmental contaminants. Microbial degradation is
considered to be the primary mechanism of PAHs removal from the environment. Much has
been reported on biodegradation of PAHs in several countries but there is a lack of
information quantitative on this subject in Malaysia. This study is carried out to understand
the nature of domestic sludge and to provide a better understanding on the biodegradation
processes of PAHs. The methodology of this study comprised field activities, laboratory work
and mathematical modelling. Field activities involved sampling of domestic sludge from
Kolej Mawar, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Shah Alam, Selangor. Laboratory activities
include seven phases of experimental works. First phase is characterization study of domestic
sludge based on bulk parameters, heavy metals and PAHs. Second phase is enrichment and
purification of bacteria isolated from domestic sludge using single PAHs and mixed PAHs as
growth substrate. This was followed by identification of bacteria using BIOLOG system. The
fourth phase focussed on turbidity test to monitor growth rate of the isolated bacteria.
Preliminary degradation study involves optimization of the process at different substrate
concentration, bacteria concentration, pH and temperature. The optimum conditions
established from optimization study were used in degradation study. In biodegradation study,
two experimental conditions were performed. These conditions include using bacteria isolated
from single PAHs as substrate and bacteria isolated from mixed PAHs. Protein and pH tests
were done during degradation study. Final activity is mathematical modelling of the
biodegradation process. In general results on bulk parameters are comparable to previous
studies. Zinc was the main compound with a mean concentration of 11 96.4 mglkg. PAHs
were also detected in all of the samples, with total concentration between 0.72 to 5.36 mglkg
dry weight for six PAHs. In the examined samples, phenanthrene was the main compound
with a mean concentration of 1.0567 mglkg. The results fiom purification studies of bacteria
strains sucessfull isolated 13 bacteria strains fiom single PAH substrate while three bacteria
were isolated from the mixed PAHs substrate. Based on bacteria growth rates, only six strains
grown on single PAHs and three strains grown on mixed PAHs were used for further studies.
Results from the optimization study of biodegradation indicated that maximum rate of PAHs
removal occurred at 100 mg~-' of PAHs, 10% bacteria concentration, pH 7.0 and 30°C. The
results showed that bacteria grown on lower ring of PAHs are not able to grow on higher ring
of PAHs. As for example Micrococcus diversus grown on napthalene as sole carbon source
was unable to degrade other PAHs like acenapthylene, acenapthene, fluorene, phenanthrene
and antlracene. In the case of bacteria isolated from mixed PAHs, the results showed that
most of the napthalene was degraded by isolated strains with the highest average degradation
rate followed by acenapthylene, acenapthene, fluorene, phenanthrene and anthracene. 377.1�781.8�781�+
D4ff + c\,cpda~ition trends were observed in the study could be attributed to the different
subsr , i,lo\~ir 'Led during isolation process. Interaction through cometabolism and synergistic
ocolq bacteria strains isolated from single substrate. Thus, only synergistic interaction
was oL, :a 77ed for bacteria isolated from mixed substrate. Corynebacterium urolyticum
re\e;;ed I,, be the best strain in degrading PAHs. The experimental results have led to a model
conccl~t desclibing I'AHs degradation
Building a Community Among Early Arab Immigrants in Milwaukee, 1890s–1960s
Like other immigrant groups that came to Wisconsin, most of the late nineteenth and early twentieth century Arab immigrants came to the United States for economic betterment, as well as political and religious freedom. From the start, most immigrants intended to work for a few years and then return to their villages and towns after accumulating some wealth, although that original goal evolved over time as many early immigrants found success in their new country. Most of the community originally settled in a tightly knit community located in the Third Ward area. Over time, the settlement pattern of the Arab community changed as subsequent generations were Americanized
Book Review of \u3cem\u3eMuslim Fashion: Contemporary Style Cultures\u3c/em\u3e, by Reina Lewis
Deconstructing the Dogma of Domesticity: Quaker Education and Nationalism in British Mandate Palestine
This paper focuses on the Friends Girls School (FGS) in Ramallah as a site of interaction between Americans and Palestinians during the British Mandate between 1920 and 1947. It draws on extensive archival records as well as Palestinian students\u27 writings and oral accounts to trace how Quakers\u27 education and the nationalist discourse in the country influenced the students\u27 personal and national identities. Palestinian students utilized Quaker education as a springboard for the subversion of gendered religious, political and Orientalist discourses which were prevalent during this time period
Spatial-temporal data modelling and processing for personalised decision support
The purpose of this research is to undertake the modelling of dynamic data without losing any of the temporal relationships, and to be able to predict likelihood of outcome as far in advance of actual occurrence as possible. To this end a novel computational architecture for personalised ( individualised) modelling of spatio-temporal data based on spiking neural network methods (PMeSNNr), with a three dimensional visualisation of relationships between variables is proposed. In brief, the architecture is able to transfer spatio-temporal data patterns from a multidimensional input stream into internal patterns in the spiking neural network reservoir. These patterns are then analysed to produce a personalised model for either classification or prediction dependent on the specific needs of the situation. The architecture described above was constructed using MatLab© in several individual modules linked together to form NeuCube (M1). This methodology has been applied to two real world case studies. Firstly, it has been applied to data for the prediction of stroke occurrences on an individual basis. Secondly, it has been applied to ecological data on aphid pest abundance prediction. Two main objectives for this research when judging outcomes of the modelling are accurate prediction and to have this at the earliest possible time point. The implications of these findings are not insignificant in terms of health care management and environmental control. As the case studies utilised here represent vastly different application fields, it reveals more of the potential and usefulness of NeuCube (M1) for modelling data in an integrated manner. This in turn can identify previously unknown (or less understood) interactions thus both increasing the level of reliance that can be placed on the model created, and enhancing our human understanding of the complexities of the world around us without the need for over simplification. Read less
Keywords
Personalised modelling; Spiking neural network; Spatial-temporal data modelling; Computational intelligence; Predictive modelling; Stroke risk predictio
Spatial-temporal data modelling and processing for personalised decision support
The purpose of this research is to undertake the modelling of dynamic data without losing any of the temporal relationships, and to be able to predict likelihood of outcome as far in advance of actual occurrence as possible. To this end a novel computational architecture for personalised ( individualised) modelling of spatio-temporal data based on spiking neural network methods (PMeSNNr), with a three dimensional visualisation of relationships between variables is proposed. In brief, the architecture is able to transfer spatio-temporal data patterns from a multidimensional input stream into internal patterns in the spiking neural network reservoir. These patterns are then analysed to produce a personalised model for either classification or prediction dependent on the specific needs of the situation. The architecture described above was constructed using MatLab© in several individual modules linked together to form NeuCube (M1). This methodology has been applied to two real world case studies. Firstly, it has been applied to data for the prediction of stroke occurrences on an individual basis. Secondly, it has been applied to ecological data on aphid pest abundance prediction. Two main objectives for this research when judging outcomes of the modelling are accurate prediction and to have this at the earliest possible time point. The implications of these findings are not insignificant in terms of health care management and environmental control. As the case studies utilised here represent vastly different application fields, it reveals more of the potential and usefulness of NeuCube (M1) for modelling data in an integrated manner. This in turn can identify previously unknown (or less understood) interactions thus both increasing the level of reliance that can be placed on the model created, and enhancing our human understanding of the complexities of the world around us without the need for over simplification. Read less
Keywords
Personalised modelling; Spiking neural network; Spatial-temporal data modelling; Computational intelligence; Predictive modelling; Stroke risk predictio
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