ICT tools patterns of use among Malaysian ESL undergraduates

The proposal to undertake major reforms in universities to cater to the need of the so-called “digital natives” has revealed the belief that there is a homogenous generation of university students highly skilled in the usage of technology is untrue. Instead these students seem more inclined to use technology for social rather than academic purposes. In Malaysia, the use of technology in learning English as Second Language (ESL) has generally been well received. However the characteristics of the “digital natives” have not been clearly defined until recently when Thang et al. (2014) undertook a study to investigate patterns of ICT use of students in a public university in Malaysia. Their findings are somewhat similar to those of other countries but they differ in that they found students show a preference for the teachercentred approach. The current study extends on this by undertaking a study involving four different types of public universities. A questionnaire designed by the research team was used to collect data which were analysed quantitatively using SPSS. The findings revealed that students from all four universities generally felt that technology is useful for learning ESL. However, their usage is more for recreation than for learning ESL. It further revealed that the teachers used technology only moderately, but the students still felt that their teachers are competent in the use of technology. This shows their unwillingness to criticize their teachers openly. However, there were some variations which suggest that students from older research universities are more self-reliant and students from newer universities are more receptive to the use of technology for learning ESL

A convolutional neural network based deep learning methodology for recognition of partial discharge patterns from high voltage cables

It is a great challenge to differentiate partial discharge (PD) induced by different types of insulation defects in high-voltage cables. Some types of PD signals have very similar characteristics and are specifically difficult to differentiate, even for the most experienced specialists. To overcome the challenge, a convolutional neural network (CNN)-based deep learning methodology for PD pattern recognition is presented in this paper. First, PD testing for five types of artificial defects in ethylene-propylene-rubber cables is carried out in high voltage laboratory to generate signals containing PD data. Second, 3500 sets of PD transient pulses are extracted, and then 33 kinds of PD features are established. The third stage applies a CNN to the data; typical CNN architecture and the key factors which affect the CNN-based pattern recognition accuracy are described. Factors discussed include the number of the network layers, convolutional kernel size, activation function, and pooling method. This paper presents a flowchart of the CNN-based PD pattern recognition method and an evaluation with 3500 sets of PD samples. Finally, the CNN-based pattern recognition results are shown and the proposed method is compared with two more traditional analysis methods, i.e., support vector machine (SVM) and back propagation neural network (BPNN). The results show that the proposed CNN method has higher pattern recognition accuracy than SVM and BPNN, and that the novel method is especially effective for PD type recognition in cases of signals of high similarity, which is applicable for industrial applications

Blumea balsamifera (L.) DC. elicit anti-kinase, anti-phosphatase and cytotoxic activities against acute promyelocytic leukemia cells (HL-60)

Blumea balsamfera (L.) DC. (B. balsamfera) extract has been shown to exhibit many biological activities. However, the anti-kinase, anti-phosphatase and cytotoxic activities of B. balsamfera are not well understood. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the anti-kinase and antiphosphatase activities using MKK1, MSG5 and PP1 screening systems. Cytotoxic activity was evaluated using acute promyelocytic leukemia cell lines (HL-60). Methanol extracts of B. balsamfera were partitioned into hexane (HE), chloroform (CE), chloroform-methanol (CME), butanol (BE) and aqueous fractions (AQE). Only the CE fraction demonstrated toxic activity against PP1 screening system. Other fractions did not show activity in PP1 screening. CE fractions were further fractionated using silica gel chromatography and a further 11 fractions were obtained. Fraction 2 (CE.F2) showed activity against PP1 and was further fractionated and tested. CE.F2.F6.F3 fraction tested positive against PP1. Inhibition of PP1 by the F2.F6.F3 fraction was further confirmed using an enzymatic reaction and the Vmax and Km constants were 124.999 µmol/ml.min and 204.624 µM, respectively. A Lineweaver-Burk plot outcome of F2.F6.F3 revealed decreasing of Km and Vmax values which supported the inhibition of PP1 activities. Cytotoxic activities against HL-60 were observed for the CE, CE.F1, CE.F2 and CE.F7 fractions. We have demonstrated that B. balsamfera and its specific fractions exhibited anti-kinase and anti-phosphatase activities. These substances have the potential to be used as treatment agent for acute promyelocytic leukemia

ICT tools patterns of use among Malaysian ESL undergraduates

The proposal to undertake major reforms in universities to cater to the need of the so-called “digital natives” has revealed the belief that there is a homogenous generation of university students highly skilled in the usage of technology is untrue. Instead these students seem more inclined to use technology for social rather than academic purposes. In Malaysia, the use of technology in learning English as Second Language (ESL) has generally been well received. However the characteristics of the “digital natives” have not been clearly defined until recently when Thang et al. (2014) undertook a study to investigate patterns of ICT use of students in a public university in Malaysia. Their findings are somewhat similar to those of other countries but they differ in that they found students show a preference for the teacher-centred approach. The current study extends on this by undertaking a study involving four different types of public universities. A questionnaire designed by the research team was used to collect data which were analysed quantitatively using SPSS. The findings revealed that students from all four universities generally felt that technology is useful for learning ESL. However, their usage is more for recreation than for learning ESL. It further revealed that the teachers used technology only moderately, but the students still felt that their teachers are competent in the use of technology. This shows their unwillingness to criticize their teachers openly. However, there were some variations which suggest that students from older research universities are more self-reliant and students from newer universities are more receptive to the use of technology for learning ESL

Phytochemical and anti-microbial potential of Mallotus mollissimus and Solanum erianthum extracts

Mallotus mollissimus (M. mollissimus) and Solanum erianthum (S. erianthum) plants have been reported to possess medicinal properties and have been effectively used by indigenous communities. However, the precise compositional and anti-microbial properties of these plants remain unclear. Hence, this study aims to investigate the qualitative phytochemicals and anti-microbial properties of the extract from M. mollissimus and S. erianthum. Anti-microbial activities and phytochemical studies were carried out using crude methanolic extract, chloroform fractions and selected chromatography fractions of M. mollissimus and S. erianthum. Anti-microbial activities targeting Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria were performed using the disk diffusion method at 100 mg/mL. M. mollissimus have superior anti-microbial activities as compared to S. erianthum where Streptococcus pneumoniae were inhibited by CE.F3 fraction of M. mollissimus with an average inhibition diameter of 7.0 mm ± 0.48. We qualitatively determined the alkaloids, steroids, and cardiac glycosides in both plant extracts using biochemical assays. Interestingly, flavonoids, terpenoids, and tannins were found in M. mollissimus, which were correlated to the inhibition of Streptococcus pneumoniae. These findings indicate that M. mollissimus and S. erianthum contains large phytochemicals which give rise to anti-microbial effects

Antimicrobial activities and phytochemical properties of Blumea balsamifera against pathogenic microorganisms

Medicinal plants have been widely used in healthcare based on traditional knowledge. We investigated the antimicrobial activities and phytochemical contents of a plant known as Blumea balsamifera (B. balsamifera), which Sabah native people have used for health benefits. Methanolic extracts and fractions of the leaves of B. balsamifera were tested for their phytochemical contents and their antimicrobial activities against four Gram-negative and five Gram-positive strains of bacteria. The extracts of B. balsamifera showed antimicrobial activities against three Gram-positive, and one Gram-negative bacteria, with the zone of inhibition ranging from 7.8 mm±0.41 to 10.5 mm±0.71. Fraction CE.F7 exerted the broadest antimicrobial activity towards four Gram-positive or Gram-negative bacteria. The phytochemical constituents identified in the extracts were alkaloid, flavonoid, steroid, and cardiac glycosides. The plant extract demonstrated antimicrobial activities and contained multiple phytochemical constituents. Further investigations into potential antimicrobial agents containing promising fractions would validate the medicinal properties of B. balsamifera used in Sabah

Investigating the ICT Needs of ‘Digital Natives’ in the Learning of English in a Public University in East Malaysia

This paper examined the undergraduates‟ patterns and perceptions of technology use in the teaching and learning of English in an attempt to throw further light into the current debate of the need to change the knowledge content and method of delivery in universities to cater to the needs of “digital natives.� A questionnaire survey was used to collect data and was analysed quantitatively through the use of descriptive and inferential statistics. Findings revealed a large majority of the university students surveyed are comfortable with the use of technology, and are incorporating a range of traditional and emerging technologies in their daily and academic lives. However, areas where the use of and familiarity with technology based tools are far from universal or uniform among the students, implying that any effort to optimise the use of technology in language teaching and learning in the university has to be appropriate to the learning environment

Mallotus mollissimus and Solanum erianthum exhibit antikinase, antiphosphatase and anti-cancer properties

Cancer is a leading cause of death worldwide and caused by dysregulated signal transduction from kinase and phosphatases. Inhibitors of kinase and phosphatase have demonstrated anticancer properties. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the antikinase, antiphosphatase and cytotoxic properties of Mallotus mollissimus (M. mollissimus) and Solanum erianthum (S. erianthum). Toxic activities against PP1, MKK1 and MSG5 assays were demonstrated by S. erianthum methanol extract. Bioassay-guided fractionation of the methanolic extracts showed that chloroform fraction (CE) of M. mollissimus exhibited toxic activity against PP1. Meanwhile, CE of S. erianthum showed positive activity on PP1 assay. Column chromatography separation of the CE has revealed that fractions F1 and F2 of M. mollissimus are toxic against PP1. Meanwhile, F1 and F2 CE fractions of S. erianthum were positive against PP1 and F9 fraction showed toxic activity in PP1 assay. Chloroform extracts of both plants exhibit cytotoxicity activity against HeLa, CaOV3 and MCF7 cell lines. This study demonstrated the potential of M. mollissimus and S. erianthum extracts in antikinase, antiphosphatase and anti-cancer activities which warrant further purification and identification