Scholarship voyage

The Merdeka Award Lecture covers the various stages of development in the voyage of scholarship of Zaini Ujang; from childhood to professorship, from personal experience to philosophical maturity, from uncertainties to idealism, and from pure chemistry to professional insights on water sustainability. The focus of the talk is on traits of scholarship and inlellectual development as well as university and intellectual idealism. The role of academia in value creation, innovation and creativity will be highlighted, focusing on the strategy and initiative towards an innovation ecosystem and dynamic intellectual climate which Zaini believes should thrive if the academia wants to remain relevant and competitive. Important milestones in the academic pursuit and scholastic excellence expounded by Zaini are also highlighted in his strive towards creating a vibrant knowledge culture and fertile intellectual ecosystem in UTM where he leads as the Vice Chancellor. Special reference to his academic venture in water sciences and sustainability is also included

Linking activity and place attachment dimensions in enhancing the sense of place

Sense of place definition includes the point where the physical form, activity and meaning are intertwined in the people experience of a place. In urban design and place quality research, much has been discussed on the influence of the physical form and activity on the sense of place. However, the linkage between these components with place meaning and attachment has not been adequately explored, in particular on urban streets. This paper highlights the role of activity in supporting attachment to shopping streets in the city centre of Kuala Lumpur. Surveys and face-to-face interviews with users of Jalan Tunku Abdul Rahman (JTAR), Jalan Masjid India (JMI), Jalan Petaling (JP) and Jalan Bukit Bintang (JBB) were conducted to examine their perception of the streets’ activities and its significance to their association with the places. The research demonstrates that activity has strongly influenced place attachment as reflected in the users’ identification of and dependence on the shopping streets. The attachment is the result of constant and long term engagement with the activities, mainly shopping, trading and socio-cultural interaction

PENGARUH BIMBINGAN ORANG TUA TERHADAP MOTIVASI BELAJAR SISWA DALAM MENGIKUTI PENDIDIKAN DINIYAH TAKMILIYAH AWALIYAH

Pendidikan keagamaan berfungsi mempersiapkan peserta didik menjadi anggota masyarakat yang memahami dan mengamalkan nilai-nilai ajaran agamanya dan/atau menjadi ahli ilmu agama. Pendidikan keagamaan bertujuan untuk terbentuknya peserta didik yang memahami dan mengamalkan nilai-nilai ajaran agamanya dan/ atau menjadi ahli ilmu agama yang berwawasan luas, kritis, kreatif, inovatif, dan dinamis dalam rangka mencerdaskan kehidupan bangsa yang beriman, bertakwa dan berakhlak mulia. Tetapi di dalam kenyatannya, anak-anak didalam mengikuti kegiatan belajar mengajar banyak mengalami kesulitan-kesulitan, sehingga menghambat perolehan belajar yang diharapkan. Hal ini sering dijumpai oleh para orang tua dan para guru. Anak-anak yang demikian jelas sulit memperoleh prestasi yang baik karena tidak dapat mengikuti pelajaran dengan baik, hal ini disebabkan kurangnya bimbingan dari orang tua. Metode yang digunakan dalam penelitian ini adalah metode kuantitatif deskriptif inferensialdengan pengumpulan data yang dilakukan di lapangan melalui observasi, wawancara, angket dan studi dokumentasi, guna memperoleh data yang jelas. Analisis korelasional digunakan untuk mengetahui pengaruh antara Bimbingan Orang Tua (variabel X) dan Motivasi Belajar Siswa (variabel Y). Uji korelasi ini dilakukan dengan uji korelasi Rank Spearman. Berdasarkan hasil perhitungan diperoleh thitung = 5,37 dan ttabel = 2,074 yang mana jika thitung  lebih besar dari ttabel maka dapat disimpulkan bahwa terdapat korelasi/ hubungan yang signifikan antara bimbingan orang tua (variabel x) dengan motivasi belajar siswa dalam mengikuti pendidikan diniyah takmiliyah awaliyah (variabel Y). Dengan demikian, H0 yang menyatakan tidak adanya hubungan yang signifikan antara bimbingan orang tua dengan motivasi belajar siswa dalam mengikuti pendidikan diniyah takmiliyah awaliyah ditolak danH1 diterim

ANALISIS UNSUR INTRINSIK CERPEN “PENGEMIS DAN SHALAWAT BADAR†KARYA AHMAD TOHARI

Short stories are part of fictional literary works based on the results of essays and human thoughts in telling a problem that is told through the characters briefly starting from the introduction, the problems to the end of the problems experienced by the characters. In general, short stories literary works tell a variety of frenzied problems of life. A short story has a constructing element, namely the intrinsic element. Intrinsic elements include theme, character, setting, characterization, style, point of view, language style and message. In this case, the researcher will analyze the intrinsic elements of Ahmad Tohari's short story entitled "Pengemis dan Salawat Badar". Researchers used a qualitative descriptive method that aims to describe the facts in a short story. Researchers are interested in analyzing this short story because it contains moral and religious messages that must be used as learning. Based on the results of the analysis, the intrinsic elements contained in this cepen, namely, the theme of the short stories related to social and religion, there are six characters and their characterizations with each different character, the plot is a progressive flow, there are three setting places and one atmosphere, perspective use the first person and the mandate teaches to be sincere and patient in every situation and always say greetings, multiply solawat praise the Prophet Muhammad

ANALISIS PENGARUH LEBAR TEETH TERHADAP PENURUNAN NILAI COGGING TORQUE PADA PMSG 18S16P

Pada paper ini, peneliti membahas pengaruh lebar teeth terhadap penurunan nilai cogging torque yang berada pada permanent magnet synchronous generator (PMSG) 18 slot 16 pole. Penelitian dilakukan dengan menggunakan software design electromacnetic. Dalam penelitian dilakukan dengan cara mendesain PMSG 18 slot 16 pole dengan memvariasiakan dua desain lebar teeth. Desain pertama menggunakan lebar teeth 8 mm dan desain kedua menggunakan lebar teeth 4 mm. Hasil penurunan nilai cogging torque yang didapat adalah sebesar 0.012676 Nm. metode numerik yang digunakan adalah Finite Element Method (FEM) digunakan untuk menganalisa pengaruh lebar teeth terhadap penurunan niali cogging torque

Finding of coefficients and oxidizable nitrogen from palm oil mill effluent (POME) for activated sludge models(ASMs)

Activated Sludge Models (ASMs) have been widely used as a basis for further model development in wastewater treatment processes. Values for parameters to be used are vital for the accuracy of the modeling approach. The objective of this study is to determine coefficients of the system, and oxidizable nitrogen of palm oil mill effluent (POME). A continuous stirred tank reactor (CSTR), with continuous flow for 20 hours, was used in this study. The DO profile for 11 days was monitored. The total, soluble, insoluble COD and soluble ammonia nitrogen were measured at the beginning and end of the experiment. Also, the coefficients and oxidizable nitrogen fractions are determined

Affective perception of place: attachment to Kuala Lumpur historical urban places

Asian cities have witnessed the changes in the urban landscape and social behaviour in the past decades. As a result of a continuous transformation of urban centres of metropolitan cities, the sense of place is often subdued by a global culture and imagery that may have impacted the people’s perception and experience of the city. This paper dwells into the urbanites’ relationship with historical urban places in the context of Kuala Lumpur city, Malaysia. Based on a qualitative inquiry, this paper presents the way in which the places shape the perception, knowledge, emotion and memory of the urbanites. The study discovered that Kuala Lumpur urbanites’ experience, roles, length of associations and age provided varying reactions that defined the attachment. Place attachment was reflected in the urbanites’ economic and cultural dependency on the places they engaged in. The architectural and cultural significance of the places were manifested in the colonial and multi-cultural identity. Thus, reinterpretation of culture and tradition should take into consideration the continuity of place legacy, heritage, place dependency and socio-cultural values. Despite the urbanites’ strong identification and knowledge of the built heritage, preserving the place identity is a challenging task due to the complexity of the physical and social environment

Impact of Nutritional Status on the Quality of Life in Head and Neck Cancer Patients Undergoing Radiotherapy

Malnutrition is prevalent in head and neck cancer patients due to premorbid lifestyles, local effects of the tumor, and side-effects of the treatment. Malnutrition has been reported to have a negative impact on the quality of life of these patients while undergoing treatment. This study aims to determine the impact of nutritional status on quality of life of head and neck cancer patients undergoing radiotherapy (primary, adjunctive to surgery or combined with chemotherapy), as well as to identify the contributing factors to these parameters. A cross-sectional study was carried out in a convenience sample of 50 head and neck cancer patients receiving radiotherapy (primary, adjunctive to surgery or combined with chemotherapy) who were admitted to the oncology wards, Hospital Kuala Lumpur. Nutritional status was assessed objectively by using combination of anthropometry, biochemical and dietary method, and subjectively (using Patient-Generated Subjective Global Assessment or PG-SGA). Quality of life was evaluated by using the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Core Questionnaire (EORTC QLQ-C30 and its head and neck module (EORTC QLQ-H&N35). Of 50 patients, 58% (n=29) were found to be malnourished by using objective criteria, while 84% (n=42) were found to be malnourished by using subjective measure (PG-SGA). Poor quality of life was reported in 56% of the patients. None of the sociodemographic factors studied was associated with malnutrition. Bivariate analysis showed that two clinical variables (treatment type and radiation dosage) significantly affected nutritional status. Chemoradiated patients were found to be more malnourished than those treated with radiotherapy alone or post-operative radiotherapy (F= 7.832, p<0.05). Multivariate analysis revealed that neoadjuvant chemoradiation and post-operative radiotherapy significantly affected nutritional status (F = 12.085, p= 0.000, R2= 0.340). Both contributed 34% of the variance seen in the nutritional status of the patients. In terms of QoL, 56% of patients had poor QoL. Bivariate analysis showed that treatment modality and nutritional status were significantly associated with QoL. Post-operative radiotherapy was associated with better quality of life, followed by those treated with radiotherapy alone, neoadjuvant chemoradiation and concurrent chemoradiation (F= 6.721, p<0.05). As anticipated, malnourished patients had significantly poorer QoL (Mann- Whitney test = 66.5, p<0.05). However, multivariate analysis revealed that nutritional status was not a significant contributor of QoL. The only two significant contributors of QoL were household income and post-operative radiotherapy, and both explained about 40% of the variance seen in the QoL of the patients (F= 14.901, p = 0.000, R2 = 0.398). In short, the results of this study has highlighted that malnutrition was very prevalent in head and neck cancer patients. The findings also provide an insight into factors that contribute to both nutritional status and QoL. A longitudinal study is needed in order to determine the real effect of treatment over time in both nutritional status and QoL of the patients

Place Attachment towards Shopping Districts in Kuala Lumpur City Centre, Malaysia

One of the urban design issues concerning Kuala Lumpur is the weakening of the city identity. Changes in the city’s physical environment and the subsequent shift in the users’ perception will continue to be translated into interventions that proved to have altered the urban fabric and disrupted its sense of place. Concurrently, place meanings and attachment are diminishing. In urban design research, much has been discussed on the significance of the physical elements and activities in creating the sense of place and identity; however the role of place attachment as a component of place that gives meaning(s) has not been adequately explored. The aim of the research is to examine place attachment of users from selected places within the city centre of Kuala Lumpur and its associated meanings and influencing factors. The research adopted a mixed methodological approach and strategy in data collection and analysis. Surveys and face-to-face interviews were conducted with users of three selected shopping districts comprising four main shopping streets of Kuala Lumpur to elicit relevant data. The streets are Jalan Tunku Abdul Rahman (JTAR) together with Jalan Masjid India (JMI), Jalan Petaling (JP) and Jalan Bukit Bintang (JBB). A total of 330 randomly selected respondents participated in the survey and 36 purposely chosen respondents were interviewed in the locations. Systematic field observation was carried out to gather evidence of the actual scenes of the places. Urban character appraisal was done to determine the capacity of the places to support users’ activities based on performance indicators established by the researcher. Multiple sources of evidence are gathered, analysed and triangulated and the findings of the research were derived from the convergence of the data. The research has found that place attachment influences the users’ perception of the shopping streets. The places were not only identified based on the quality of the physical elements and diversity of human activities but also based on the attachment and meanings associated with the experience of the places. The form and degree of attachment to the places were influenced by the level of familiarity, the length of engagement, the degree of economic dependency, the role of the users and the ethnic background. The research has established that in securing local place identity, place attachment is one of the factors that should be considered in the design of urban places in Malaysia