Speckle filtering techniques for different quality level of healthy kidney ultrasound images

The increasing reliance of modern medicine on diagnostic techniques such as computerized tomography, histopathology, magnetic resonance imaging, radiology and ultrasound imaging shows the importance of medical images [1]. Ultrasound (US) imaging is an imaging technique that is far the least expensive and most portable comparing to other standard medical imaging modalities. US imaging is a safe technique, easy to use, noninvasive nature and provides real time imaging, hence it is used extensively. But on the downside, ultrasound imaging has a poor resolution of image compared with other medical imaging instrument like Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI). US has wide spread application as a primary diagnostic aid of obstetrics and gynecology, due to the lack of ionizing radiation or strong magnetic fields. General US imaging applications include soft tissue organ and carotid arter

Houses in Malaysia: Fusion of the east and the west

A great number of architectural scholars in Malaysia learned about western architecture to be used as precedent studies in their design. Few realized that part of the origin of the modern western architecture was actually from the east. Segments of the new approaches in modern architecture was already part and parcels of the local eastern heritage. The trend of following the west was also evident in the design of the modern detached houses. However, the already existed easten local heritage inevitably also played a major contribution to the thinking process of the designers. The main aim of the book is to unfold or clarify the origins of architectural elements in modern detached houses in Malaysia. The significance of the book is to establish the factors that contribute to the architectural thinking of the local architects besides clarifying the current trend or direction of the present style in Malaysia. In other words, to get a clearer picture of the past architecture in order to formulate or suggest a clearer guidelines or criteria for architectural design in the future

Design of heat exhanger network using pinch method

Chemical or oil refineiy processes utilize huge amounts o f energy in their routine operations. Therefore, it is vital for such industries to find ways o f maximizing the use of energy and make the system more efficient through reduction in energy, water and raw material consumption. Waste energy can be transferred to another process and that will increase the profitability of the industries. When the use of a heat exchanger network (HEN) is considered for these tasks, the framework developed in this study can be implemented to make a cost-benefit analysis. This thesis represents a framework for generating the H E N over a specified range of variations in the f l ow rates and temperature o f the streams. So that the heat exchanger area, number o f heat exchange units and load on the heat exchangers can be estimated. The proposed method to analyze and design the H E N is called pinch method, which is one o f the most practical tools and used to improve the efficiency o f energy usage, fuel and water consumption in industrial processes. This method investigates the energy flows within a process and identifies the most economical ways of maximizing heat recovery. This method consists o f five major steps to follow, which will finally lead to H E N design. The steps are: (1) choose a minimum temperature approach temperature (DTmin), (2) construct a temperature interval diagram, (3) construct a cascade diagram and determine the minimum utility requirements and the pinch temperature, (4) calculate the minimum number o f heat exchangers above and below the pinch and (5) construct the heat exchanger network. The emphasis of this work has been on the designing of the H E N . However, to demonstrate the practical implications of pinch analysis, D T m i n and the heat exchanger costs, it is necessary to estimate the heat transfer area o f the H E N , which will help in arriving at the total cost including capital and running costs o f the designed H E N . The effect o f changing the D T m i n gave a good indication on the overall costs

Penghasilan panduan keselamatan industri bagi kegunaan bakal graduan Kejuruteraan Elektrik Politeknik

Panduan keselamatan industri merupakan satu bentuk bimbingan yang penting kepada pelajar supaya mereka dapat mengetahui dengan jelas tentang amalan dan pengurusan keselamatan keija. Dengan adanya kesedaran dan pengetahuan yang jelas tentang keselamatan keija maka sudah tentu matlamat kemalangan sifar akan mudah tercapai. Untuk perkara ini, satu penyelidikan telah dijalankan untuk menguji tahap pengetahuan pelajar tentang keselamatan industri bagi tujuan untuk menghasilkan sebuah panduan keselamatan industri. Panduan yang telah dihasilkan ini, telah dibuat penilaian mengenai isi kandungan , kebolehlaksanaan dan mesra pengguna kepada pelajar Diploma Kejuruteraan Elektrik di Polileknik Sultan Abdul Halim Muadzam Shah, Jitra, Kedah. Instrumen yang digunakan dalam kajian ini adalah soal selidik. Hasil analisis kajian menunjukkan bahawa nilai purata yang diperolehi daripada penilaian terhadap tahap pengetahuan pelajar adalah sederhana rendah manakala isi kandungan, kebolehlaksanaan dan mesra pengguna pula telah menunjukkan kadar setuju yang agak tinggi. Oleh itu sebagai rumusannya didapati bahawa panduan keselamatan industri yang dihasilkan ini boleh diterima pakai dan boleh membantu meningkatkan pengetahuan pelajar dalam pembelajarannya. Adalah diharapkan agar penyelidikan lanjutan dapat dilakukan terhadap panduan keselamatan industri ini agar ianya dapat dihasilkan kedalam bentuk yang lebih berkesan penggunaannya

Properties and performance of high strength fibre reinforced concrete by using steel and polypropylene fibres

Many reinforced concrete structures suffer severe degradation due to the effect from freezing and thawing, shrinkage and expansion, aggressive environment, earthquake and drastic increase of live loads. The most common sign of deterioration in concrete is cracking. Plain or unreinforced concrete is characterised by its low tensile strength, low strain capacities and brittle in nature. The tensile strength of plain concrete is considered lost once cracking occurred. Discrete short fibre reinforcement is being considered to be used for structural applications since it can reduce cracking phenomena, improve ductility and failure mode, and to some extent improve the durability of reinforced concrete. Fibre added in concrete has also been found to be effective in controlling cracks due to plastic and drying shrinkage. Shrinkage in concrete is greatly influenced by the surrounding environment and types of fibre included. Therefore, the aim of this research is to investigate the engineering and shrinkage properties of reinforced concrete containing a combination of steel and polypropylene fibres under different exposure conditions. In this study, the physical and engineering properties of fibre reinforced concrete (FRC) are investigated by using steel fibre (SF) type hooked end and polypropylene fibre (PPF) type virgin fibrillated. The objectives of the study are to assess the effect of hybrid fibres on its engineering properties, shrinkage properties under the influence of tropical climate and finally the structural performance of the FRC beams. Laboratory testing program is first conducted to determine the physical properties of the fibres. Then, the fibre reinforced concrete were tested to determine the engineering properties include compressive strength, tensile splitting strength, flexural strength, toughness, Modulus of Elasticity and shrinkage. The desired optimum mix is evaluated by the volume fractions (Vf) of 0.5%, 1.0% and 1.5%., and the combination of SF 100% + PPF 0%, SF 75% + PPF 25%, SF 50% + PPF 50%, SF 25% + PPF 75%, SF 0% + PPF 100%. The engineering properties and structural performance are then determined based on the optimum percentage using high strength concrete grade C60 to simulate concrete strength of sample manufactured at the factory. Test on the efficiency of fibres in limiting the shrinkage deformation for indoor and outdoor exposure are performed. The results indicated that the best combination of fibres is for concrete containing SF 75% + PPF 25%. The combination of SF and PPF fibres in concrete is able to enhance the engineering properties and controlling the growth of cracks in concrete. The results also indicated that concrete with both SF and PPF produced higher tensile and flexural strengths as compared with the control by 77% and 170%, respectively. The variation in relative humidity and temperature was found to have small effect on the drying shrinkage of the FRC. Results for the FRC beam test show that the percentage proportion of SF 75% + PPF 25% give the best flexural performance compared to other beams. Thus, the use of hybrid fibres, SF 75% + PPF 25%, was found to enhance the performance of either plain concrete or reinforced concrete

Penguasaan kemahiran generik di kalangan graduan hospitaliti di politeknik : satu kajian berkenaan keperluan industri perhotelan, persepsi pensyarah dan pelajar

Kajian yang dijalankan ini bertujuan untuk mengenal pasti kepentingan kemahiran generik mengikut keperluan industri perhotelan di Malaysia dengan persepsi pensyarah dan persepsi pelajar Jabatan Hospitaliti. Oleh kerana matlamat kurikulum pendidikan kini adalah untuk melahirkan graduan yang dapat memenuhi keperluan pihak industri, maka kajian ini dijalankan untuk menilai hubungan di antara keperluan industri perhotelan di Malaysia dengan persepsi pensyarah dan pelajar Jabatan Hospitaliti di Politeknik. Terdapat 13 kemahiran generik yang diperolehi daripada Kementerian Pelajaran dan Latihan Ontario (1997) dijadikan sebagai skop kepada instrumen kajian. Responden kajian terdiri daripada tiga pihak utama iaitu industri perhotelan di Malaysia yang melibatkan 40 buah hotel yang diwakili oleh MAH Chapter dan jawatankuasa dalam Malaysian Associated of Hotel (MAH), pensyarah Unit Hotel dan Katering dan pelajar semester akhir Diploma Hotel dan Katering di Politeknik Johor Bahru, Johor dan Politeknik Merlimau, Melaka. Kajian rintis yang dijalankan menunjukkan nilai Alpha Cronbach pada 0.8781. Data yang diperolehi dianalisis secara deskriptif dan inferensi dengan menggunakan perisian Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) versi 11.5. Melalui dapatan kajian, satu senarai berkenaan kemahiran generik yang diperlukan oleh industri perhotelan telah dapat dihasilkan. Selain itu, senarai kemahiran generik menurut persepsi pensyarah dan juga persepsi pelajar turut dihasilkan. Hasil statistik dan graf garis yang diperolehi menunjukkan terdapat perbezaan di antara kemahiran generik yang diperlukan oleh industri perhotelan di Malaysia dengan kemahiran generik menurut persepsi pensyarah dan persepsi pelajar Politeknik. Dapatan analisis menggunakan korelasi Pearson mendapati bahawa tidak terdapat perhubungan yang signifikan di antara kemahiran generik yang diperlukan oleh industri perhotelan dengan persepsi pensyarah dan persepsi pelajar. Namun begitu, terdapat hubungan yang signifikan di antara persepsi pensyarah dengan persepsi pelajar berkenaan dengan amalan kemahiran generik di Politeknik

Containing Muslim extremism and radicalism

This article argues that wars, atrocities, radicalism and extremism have been caused by many interrelated external socio-economic, political and ethnic factors, even though religious communities are involved. However, internal factors such as the role of religious education, are instrumental in understanding religious radicalism and extremism, including among some Muslims. This article also elucidates the dual nature of Islamic religiosity in Asia i.e. its manifested diversity and underlying unity, traces Muslim historical treatment of religious extremism, and suggests that certain methodological and doctrinal aspects of contemporary Islamic education may have contributed to an extremist outlook and behavior. It offers a few specific and practical recommendations involving the external and internal factors to significantly reduce the phenomena of extremism among Muslims, especially in Asi

Leadership capability of team leaders in construction industry

This research was conducted to identify the important leadership capabilities for Malaysia construction industry team leaders. This research used exploratory sequential mix-method research design which is qualitative followed by quantitative research method. In the qualitative phase, semi-structured in-depth interview was selected and purposive sampling was employed in selecting 15 research participants involving team leaders and Human Resource Managers. Qualitative data was analysed using content and thematic analyses. Quantitative data was collected using survey questionnaire involving 171 randomly selected team leaders as respondents. The data was analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics consisting of t-test, One-way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), Pearson Correlation, Multiple Regression and Structured Equation Modeling (SEM). This study found that personal integrity, working within industry, customer focus and quality, communication and interpersonal skill, developing and empowering people and working as a team were needed leadership capabilities among construction industry team leaders. The research was also able to prove that leadership skill is a key element to develop leadership capability. A framework was developed based on the results of this study, which can be used as a guide by employers and relevant agencies in enhancing leadership capability of Malaysia construction industry team leade