Life Stages, Source Of Infestation And Control Of Rhinoceros Beetle Oryctes Rhinoceros (LINN) (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) In A Newly Replanted Oil Palm Plantation

The life stage of Oryctes rhinoceros was investigated in empty fruit bunches (EFBs) in a newly replanted area in FELDA Lepar Utara 05 Plantation, Bandar Jengka, Pahang. Three stages instar larvae (instar 1-3), prepupa and pupa were found in empty fruit bunches. However no egg was found during the study period. The larvae and pupae were continuously encountered in the EFB during 20 weeks of study

Predation of potential insect pests in oil palm plantations, rubber tree plantations, and fruit orchards

In human‐modified landscapes, important ecological functions such as predation are negatively affected by anthropogenic activities, including the use of pesticides and habitat degradation. Predation of insect pests is an indicator of healthy ecosystem functioning, which provides important ecosystem services, especially for agricultural systems. In this study, we compare predation attempts from arthropods, mammals, and birds on artificial caterpillars in the understory, between three tropical agricultural land‐use types: oil palm plantations, rubber tree plantations, and fruit orchards. We collected a range of local and landscape‐scale data including undergrowth vegetation structure; elevation; proximity to forest; and canopy cover in order to understand how environmental variables can affect predation. In all three land‐use types, our results showed that arthropods and mammals were important predators of artificial caterpillars and there was little predation by birds. We did not find any effect of the environmental variables on predation. There was an interactive effect between land‐use type and predator type. Predation by mammals was considerably higher in fruit orchards and rubber tree than in oil palm plantations, likely due to their ability to support higher abundances of insectivorous mammals. In order to maintain or enhance natural pest control in these common tropical agricultural land‐use types, management practices that benefit insectivorous animals should be introduced, such as the reduction of pesticides, improvement of understory vegetation, and local and landscape heterogeneity

Implementation of seat belt monitoring and alert system for car safety

Modern cars have many safety features which are playing a significant role in reducing traffic injuries and deaths. One of the reasons that cause cars accident’s fatalities is not wearing a seat belt. In order to overcome this problem, an attempt has been made to design a car safety system whereby the car will not run unless the driver and passengers use the seat belt first before turning on the car. In the proposed system, the ultrasonic devices and limit switches are used to detect driver and passengers and also to detect seat belts that have been used, respectively. In addition, the switch of electric circuits is designed and installed between seat belts and ignition systems to control start engines. Arduino Mega microcontroller act as a signal processing unit to control the security system in the car. The experimental results show that the system is accurately able to enhance the safety aspects of driver and passengers

Concept of al-amanah (trustworthiness) and al-mas'uliyyah (responsibility) for human's character from ethical Islamic perspective

Al-Amanah (trusts) and al-mas'uliyyah (responsibilities) refer to the ethical character of the human character that must be practiced in daily life, especially by every Muslim. Both of these noble qualities will help someone avoid something that can cause him to be regarded as a badly-touted individual. This article will discuss the concept of al-Amanah (trustworthiness) and al-mas'uliyyah (responsibility) according to the ethical Islamic perspective. This article analyzes the thoughts of several Islamic scholars such as al-Ghazali (505H) and several exegetes (mufassirin) in understanding the two terms through their works. Finally, this study concludes that the concept of al-amanah (trust) and al-mas'uliyyah (responsibility) is capable of creating the quality of human character among Muslim individuals according to the ethical Islamic perspective. © 2019, Allied Business Academies