Hybrid Differential Optical Sensing Imager

Methods and systems for a differential compressed sensor optical design is proposed to form a smart optical imager. Specifically, the novel design uses both active (laser) and passive (ambient light) to intelligently sample the direct image information within a Three Dimensional (3-D) spatial frame with potential to 4-D (3-D space plus 1-D time) sampling. An electronically agile lens-based distance sensor is engaged that can produce smart sampling of target by adjusting the size of the laser beam spot on the target sampling grid to produce a boundary outline by a light flooding method. This target dependent direct sampling of the target results in direct compressed sensing. A passive light acquisition pin-hole sampling optical sensor design is proposed that produces the pixel-basis Laplacian to determine the compressed sensed pixels ill the incident image

EFFECTIVENESS OF SERVQUAL DIMENSIONS IN INCREASING CUSTOMER SATISFACTION BETWEEN HOTEL AND RESORT IN MELAKA

The role of service quality in the success of hotel businesses cannot be denied. It is vital for the hotel managers to have a good understanding on what exactly the customers want. Furthermore there also had been concerns that service quality dimensions may differ from one country to another. Hence this study intends to analyze the service quality dimensions in increasing customer satisfaction by conducting comparative study between three star hotels and resorts in Melaka, Malaysia to identify which service quality dimensions are significant in both type of establishment, to identify whether there are any differences regarding the perceived dimensions and to find out which dimensions are the best predictor of overall service quality. Probability sampling techniques were used to collect data from the modified SERVQUAL instruments. SPSS 16.0 for Windows was employed for the data analysis. Descriptive analysis such as means, standard deviation and frequencies are calculated. Reliability issues are tested and dimensionality of the scale is confirmed through an exploratory factor analysis. Finally, regression models were developed and analyzed for both type of establishments. Factor analysis confirmed the five-dimensional structure of SERVQUAL both in hotel and resort category; however, some of the dimensions found and their components were different from the original SERVQUAL. Results of regression analysis revealed that four dimensions were significant in determining overall service quality in hotel category while only one dimension were significant in determining overall service quality in resort category. The study concluded that identifying the perceptions of customers, the dimensions of service quality, and their relative importance for customers for each specific segment of the hotel industry would definitely help managers in the challenge of increasing customer satisfaction between Hotel and Resort in Melaka. Keywords: effectiveness, SERVQUAL dimensions, increasing, customer satisfactio

Broadening Color Shade of Dyed Wool Fibre with Binary and Ternary Natural Plant Dye Combinations

A limited selection of natural dyes’ color impedes the development of textile dyeing with natural plant dyes. Inspiring by the conventional coloration of textiles with a combination of three synthetic dyes generally, the present work is to investigate the broadening color shade of dyed wool fiber with ternary natural dye combinations of madder red (MR), gardenia yellow (GY), and gardenia blue (GB) without mordants in a decamethylcyclopentasiloxane (D5) medium. The wool yarn was wetted in an aqueous solution of pH 3 to own a 300% pickup rate, followed by immersion in a D5 medium containing 2% of alcohol ethoxylate (AEO-3) and solid natural dyes at 90°C for 90 min for coloration. The colorfastness to washing was achieved at a 4–5 for fading and a 5 rating for staining for all colors. The XRD patterns and TGA analysis confirmed that the dyeing procedure did not affect the crystallinity nature and stable thermal tendency. SEM images and cross-sections showed that the dyeing procedure did not damage the morphological structure of the wool fiber surface, and the dyes were evenly distributed. Finally, many color shades of dyed fibers were prepared with various dyes’ ratios

The Effectiveness of Detritus Balls on Cockle (Anadara granosa) Growth

The detritus balls had been found to be effective as food for the survival of the cockles (blood cockle, Anadara granosa, Linnaeus 1785) kept in captivity but have not been tested in the field. In this study two plots of farm areas each measuring 20 m X 20 m were selected as testing fields where one served as test plot and the other was the control plot. Initially, there were cockles present in both plots aged about 18 months old measuring between 19 mm to 29 mm and only test plot was treated with 100 detritus balls. After the six months period (from Januar

Economic evaluation of participatory women's groups scaled up by the public health system to improve birth outcomes in Jharkhand, eastern India

An estimated 2.4 million newborn infants died in 2020, 80% of them in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. To achieve the Sustainable Development Target for neonatal mortality reduction, countries with high mortality need to implement evidence-based, cost-effective interventions at scale. Our study aimed to estimate the cost, cost-effectiveness, and benefit-cost ratio of a participatory women's groups intervention scaled up by the public health system in Jharkhand, eastern India. The intervention was evaluated through a pragmatic cluster non-randomised controlled trial in six districts. We estimated the cost of the intervention at scale from a provider perspective, with a 42-month time horizon for 20 districts. We estimated costs using a combination of top-down and bottom-up approaches. All costs were adjusted for inflation, discounted at 3% per year, and converted to 2020 International Dollars (INT$). Incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICERs) were estimated using extrapolated effect sizes for the impact of the intervention in 20 districts, in terms of cost per neonatal deaths averted and cost per life year saved. We assessed the impact of uncertainty on results through one-way and probabilistic sensitivity analyses. We also estimated benefit-cost ratio using a benefit transfer approach. Total intervention costs for 20 districts were INT$ 15,017,396. The intervention covered an estimated 1.6 million livebirths across 20 districts, translating to INT$9.4 per livebirth covered. ICERs were estimated at INT$ 1,272 per neonatal death averted or INT$41 per life year saved. Net benefit estimates ranged from INT$ 1,046 million to INT$ 3,254 million, and benefit-cost ratios from 71 to 218. Our study suggests that participatory women's groups scaled up by the Indian public health system were highly cost-effective in improving neonatal survival and had a very favourable return on investment. The intervention can be scaled up in similar settings within India and other countries

Economic evaluation of participatory women's groups scaled up by the public health system to improve birth outcomes in Jharkhand, eastern India

An estimated 2.4 million newborn infants died in 2020, 80% of them in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. To achieve the Sustainable Development Target for neonatal mortality reduction, countries with high mortality need to implement evidence-based, cost-effective interventions at scale. Our study aimed to estimate the cost, cost-effectiveness, and benefit-cost ratio of a participatory women's groups intervention scaled up by the public health system in Jharkhand, eastern India. The intervention was evaluated through a pragmatic cluster non-randomised controlled trial in six districts. We estimated the cost of the intervention at scale from a provider perspective, with a 42-month time horizon for 20 districts. We estimated costs using a combination of top-down and bottom-up approaches. All costs were adjusted for inflation, discounted at 3% per year, and converted to 2020 International Dollars (INT$). Incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICERs) were estimated using extrapolated effect sizes for the impact of the intervention in 20 districts, in terms of cost per neonatal deaths averted and cost per life year saved. We assessed the impact of uncertainty on results through one-way and probabilistic sensitivity analyses. We also estimated benefit-cost ratio using a benefit transfer approach. Total intervention costs for 20 districts were INT$ 15,017,396. The intervention covered an estimated 1.6 million livebirths across 20 districts, translating to INT$9.4 per livebirth covered. ICERs were estimated at INT$ 1,272 per neonatal death averted or INT$41 per life year saved. Net benefit estimates ranged from INT$ 1,046 million to INT$ 3,254 million, and benefit-cost ratios from 71 to 218. Our study suggests that participatory women's groups scaled up by the Indian public health system were highly cost-effective in improving neonatal survival and had a very favourable return on investment. The intervention can be scaled up in similar settings within India and other countries.</p

Canopy versus epigeal beetle species differential diversity and feeding ecological characteritics employing light-based trapping methods across different oil palm age stand types

Suitability of canopy-height light trap tailored from both primary and secondary tropical forests was compared with the newly modified pit-light trap within the context of oil palm plantation of various age stand types and across different seasons. Beetle species were chosen as the representative of other insects within oil palm plantations as to evaluate the effectiveness of both trapping methods. Results showed that the canopy-height light trap employed over the canopy stratum of the selected oil palm age stands produced unstable and unreliable data, with characteristics of overlapping beetle species communities along significant ordination gradients. Modified pit-light trap, on the other hand, showed clear separations of beetle species community structures between younger-older oil palm age stands along significant ordination gradients, as well as accurate divisions of beetle species ecological feeding groups corresponded to different oil palm age stand types and seasons, and acceptable diversity levels. The modified pit-light trap, employed on the epigeal stratum of selected oil palm plantations, paralleled with most anthropogenic and naturally occurring microhabitats, could reduce the risks of attracting unintended beetle species from unrelated oil palm age stand types, as well as possible surrounding secondary tropical forests. It is proposed that the modified pit-light trap to be applied officially for improved evaluations of insect species’ diversity and ecological attributes within oil palm agro-ecosystems

Teaching Science and Mathematics in English Steering Mastery in English Language Amongst Sciences Students in UKM

AbstractThis study was conducted to ascertain teaching Science and Mathematics in English will enhance English proficiency amongst the science stream students in UKM. The study found that the students agreed that the teaching of Science and Mathematics in English can improve their English proficiency. The results showed that teaching Science and Mathematics in English is capable of being a driven force in mastering basic English language and communication, and also in improving the explanation of the concept of Science and Mathematics in English

Populismens framväxt i politiken : En kvalitativ idéanalys om Sverigedemokraterna, Moderaterna &amp; Socialdemokraterna förhåller sig till varandra utifrån ett populistiskt perspektiv 2014 respektive 2018

The purpose of this essay is to examine the subject of populism's four subtypes among three of the Swedish Parliamentary Parties; the Sweden Democrats, the Social Democrats, and the Moderate Party during the period of 2014 and 2018. The study examines the parties ́ election manifestos and applies the VDP-tool, in order to identify the parties' values, descriptions, and recommendations. Furthermore, the study refers to Cas Muddes' definition and categorization of the phenomena of pupulism. The four subtypes that the study examines are: empty-populism, excluding populism, anti-elitist populism, and complete populism. The results show that the Sweden Democrats has a strong connection to anti-elitist populism during the year of 2014, and excluding and complete populism in 2018. The Moderate party shows a connection to the empty-populism in the year 2014, however changes to both an empty-populism and excluding populism in 2018. The Social Democrats displays both an empty-populism and an anti-elitist populism both in 2014 and 2018

Traffic Detectors Using Image Processing Method (Pengesan Lalu Lintas Dengan Kaedah Pemprosesan Imej)

Most traffic detectors in service today work based on inductive loops buried under the road surface. Recently cameras and image processing with highspeed computers were beginning to be adopted for traffic surveillance system. This study was conducted to develop efficient traffic detector using image-processing with a personal computer Traffic images were captured using ordinary analogue video camera and digitised using a video blaster. Four algorithms were developed i.e. algorithm for traffic counting, algorithm for vehicle classification, algorithm to determine the speed of the counted vehicles and algorithm for incident detection. The four algorithms were found to be sufficiently efficient to be executed by a personal computer to capture multiple road lane traffic data simultaneously with high accuracy both during daytime and during night. (Kebanyakan pengesan lalu lintas yang ada sekarang menggunakan gelung induksi yang ditanam di bawah permukaan jalan raya. Semenjak akhir-akhir ini penggunaan kamera dan pemerosesan imej oleh komputer khas berkuasa tinggi telah mula digunakan untuk memantau lalu lintas. Kajian ini adalah untuk membangunkan pengesan lalu lintas yang cekap dengan kaedah pemperosesan imej oleh komputer peribadi. Imej lalu lintas diperolehi dengan menggunakan kamera analog dan didigitkan dengan menggunakan ‘video blaster'. Empat algoritnta telah dibangunkan, iaitu algoritma untuk mengira isi padu kenderaan, algoritma kenderaan, algoritma mendapatkan kelajuan kenderaan dan mengesan kejadian lalu lintas. Keempat-empat algoritma didapati cepat sehingga sebuah komputer peribadi berkemampuan untuk mendapatkatn data dari banyak lorong di jalan raya secara berasingan dalam masa serentak dengan ketepatan yang tinggi pada waktu siang atau malam)