Is Halal Certification Process “Green”?

These days, the environmental perspective on operations is becoming more common. In fact, any effort in improving efficiency in the organization is closely related to sustainability of our environment. The Environmental Management System (EMS) certification such as ISO 14001 has been accepted as the world standard. In addition to these ISO standards, there are other certifications such as Halal certification. There is no research that investigates the relationship between Halal Certification process and its effect on our environment. Hence, our main research question is that is Halal Certification process can be considered as environmental friendly? In this paper, we argue that Halal Certification also contributes towards green initiatives. We used EDC-UUM as our case study. EDC-UUM is actively seeking the Halal certification from Malaysian authority agency or JAKIM. In this study, we assessed the perception of the EDC-UUM staff on the issue of going green. The findings and implications are discussed in the paper

Motor imagery classification in Brain Computer Interface (BCI) based on EEG signal by using machine learning technique

This paper focuses on classification of motor imagery in Brain Computer Interface (BCI) by using classifiers from machine learning technique. The BCI system consists of two main steps which are feature extraction and classification. The Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) features is extracted from the electroencephalography (EEG) signals to transform the signals into frequency domain. Due to the high dimensionality of data resulting from the feature extraction stage, the Linear Discriminant Analysis (LDA) is used to minimize the number of dimension by finding the feature subspace that optimizes class separability. Five classifiers: Support Vector Machine (SVM), K-Nearest Neighbors (KNN), Naïve Bayes, Decision Tree and Logistic Regression are used in the study. The performance was tested by using Dataset 1 from BCI Competition IV which consists of imaginary hand and foot movement EEG data. As a result, SVM, Logistic Regression and Naïve Bayes classifier achieved the highest accuracy with 89.09% in AUC measurement

Isolation of cellulose nanocrystals from Gigantochloa scortechinii ASAM pulp

This study aims to characterize the cellulose nanocrystals (CNC) isolated from alkaline sulfite anthraquinone and methanol (ASAM) bamboo (Gigantochloa scortechinii) pulp. The hydrolysis was carried out using 64% (w/w) sulfuric acid at 45 °C for 45 min. The CNC was subjected to field emission scanning electronic microscopy (FESEM), X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The measurement of diameter for CNC was done by FESEM and TEM, which was in the range of 10–20 nm. The XRD and FTIR results exhibited that bamboo CNC has higher crystallinity index, 78% compared to bleached ASAM bamboo pulp, 60%

Polyaniline-modified nanocellulose prepared from Semantan bamboo by chemical polymerization: preparation and characterization

Crystalline nanocellulose was prepared from Semantan bamboo (Gigantochloa scortechinii) via acid hydrolysis and was used to synthesize a nanocomposite of polyaniline/crystalline nanocellulose (PANi/CNC) via in situ oxidative polymerization of aniline in the presence of crystalline nanocellulose. The electrochemical properties of the nanocomposite were studied using a modified PANi/CNC electrode via cyclic voltammetry, and higher current response was observed for the PANi/CNC-modified electrode compared to that for the modified electrode with PANi. The results obtained from EIS displayed lower value of Rct for the PANi/CNC-modified electrode, indicating that the incorporation of CNC into the PANi structure could enhance the electron transfer rate. The characteristic peaks of PANi and CNC were observed in the FTIR spectra of the nanocomposite, indicating the incorporation of CNC inside the nanocomposite structure. Moreover, in the XRD diffractogram, lower crystallinity was observed at the 2 theta values of 22.6 and 16.1 for PANi/CNC compared to that for pure CNC. The FESEM images showed high porosity of the nanostructure with no phase separation, revealing the homogenous polymerization of the monomer on the surface of the crystalline cellulose. Aggregation of PANi particles was observed with the increasing aniline concentration

Islamic legal methodologies and Shariah screening standards: application in the Indonesian stock market

This article provides a framework for applying the principles of Islamic legal methodology to determine the optimal Shariah screening standards for Islamic equity markets. It is argued that using maslahah mursalah (unrestricted benefit) is an appropriate method for identifying appropriate financial standards and its principles stipulate that the benchmark that yields the best economic returns to investors should be chosen. The methodological framework is applied to the Indonesia equity market where the economic implications of the Islamic stock screening standards of the Indonesian Islamic Shariah Stock Index and four global indices are assessed. Portfolios are constructed by applying Islamic stock screening standards for each of the indices by using data on 377 stocks listed in the Indonesian stock market for 5 years. The performances measured by the Sharpe ratio, Treynor index, and Jensen alpha reveal that the Dow Jones Islamic Index screening criteria performs the best. Based on the method of maslahah mursalah, the article recommends using the screening standard of this index in the Indonesian stock market to maximize benefits to investors. While the approach used in this article is applied to Islamic equity markets, the methodological framework can also be used for other similar cases in Islamic finance

We can have the cake and eat it too: leisure and spirituality at ‘veiled’ hotels in Turkey

This paper uses ethnographic methods to inquire how new forms of consumption arise as a result of bridging Islamic spirituality with leisure in the newly growing tesettür hotels in Turkey, which have become a magnet of popular and academic attention. We aim to offer a multi-layered analysis of the leisure and consumption practices of Muslim women in the context of the new Islamic hospitality industry by looking at the interactions between spiritual Islam and modern capitalism. We focus on the consumption process of the female customers of these hotels as part of defining and redefining their newly developing identity that is Islamic and spiritual; as well as modern and luxurious. The study responds to the call of Gökarıksel and Secor to analyse new Islamic patterns of consumption and leisure by building on their perspectives bridging neoliberal capitalism and resurgence of Islamic identities. We call for a critical and contextual perspective to understand the dynamic emergence of new forms of Islamic lifestyles and capitalism; emphasising a future agenda of further research that is sensitive to the complexities of desires and leisure activities of veiled Muslim women in diverse countries

Bumiputera Graduate Entrepreneurs in Describing Social Status and Their Social Status Attainment Experience

Social status is essential to every individual whether they may or may not be aware of it and admit the importance of social status in their lives. Even in the case of Bumiputera graduates entrepreneurs, they acknowledged that social status is beneficial in businesses although some of them were reluctant to admit the importance of social status. That is not surprising because the Bumiputera has a culture of communicating indirectly. Being too honest is considered insensitive or rude. Interviews with seven Bumiputera graduate entrepreneurs in Klang Valley found that they have other ways to describe social status. To them, social status represents their view of themselves, their feeling of satisfaction, and the attention given to them. These elements change according to their achievements or failures in their lives. The model of social status attainment experience by the Bumiputera graduate entrepreneurs is also illustrated in this paper