Preliminary findings for Pulau Jerejak Leper Settlement: reconstructing the built and living environment of Camp 5

The purpose of this paper is to share the historical development of Camp 5, a leper camp on Pulau Jerejak. Pulau Jerejak Leper Settlement was operated from 1871 until 1969. The settlement has been an important collection center for leprosy patients in British Malaya before Sungai Buloh Leper Settlement was built in 1930s. During this period, six camps were built scattered around the island. One of the most important camps was Camp 5, completed in 1936. The camp was planned against the conservative idea of strict segregation where leprosy patients were segregated rigidly in prison-like environment. Camp 5 was planned in such ways where leprosy patients could freely conduct social-cultural events, practice their faiths, establish their own families, appointed as inmate workers, and etc. The houses were planned in clustered manner with well-planned agriculture plots and socio-cultural facilities. The planning layout of Camp 5 is an important historical clue to suggest how leprosy patients could have been segregated more humanely. Today, most of the structures in Camp 5 are in semi-ruined conditions. The available information is insufficient to support the current research. Therefore, this research had to rely on three methods; archival researches, interview and field works. Archival materials such as governmental annual reports and old illustrations will help to reconstruct its chronological developments, and the indexed remnants from the field works will be used to analysis and overlay with its chronological developments. Interviews are crucial to obtain deliberate information to reconstruct the previous living and built environment of Camp 5. By understanding the segregation idea implemented in Camp 5, researchers may be able to interpret and argue the theoretical discourse of modern segregations in dealing with diseases and suggest some historical lessons

Evolutionary Neural Network Based Energy Consumption Forecast for Cloud Computing

The success of Hadoop, an open-source framework for massively parallel and distributed computing, is expected to drive energy consumption of cloud data centers to new highs as service providers continue to add new infrastructure, services and capabilities to meet the market demands. While current research on data center airflow management, HVAC (Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning) system design, workload distribution and optimization, and energy efficient computing hardware and software are all contributing to improved energy efficiency, energy forecast in cloud computing remains a challenge. This paper reports an evolutionary computation based modeling and forecasting approach to this problem. In particular, an evolutionary neural network is developed and structurally optimized to forecast the energy load of a cloud data center. The results, both in terms of forecasting speed and accuracy, suggest that the evolutionary neural network approach to energy consumption forecasting for cloud computing is highly promising

The Metal-Insulator Transition in \u3cem\u3eVO\u3csub\u3e2\u3c/sub\u3e\u3c/em\u3e Studied using Terahertz Apertureless Near-Field Microscopy

We have studied the metal-insulator transition in a vanadium dioxide (VO2) thin film using terahertz apertureless near-field optical microscopy. We observe a variation of the terahertz amplitude due to the phase transition induced by an applied voltage across the sample. The change of the terahertz signal is related to the abrupt change of the conductivity of the VO2 film at the metal-insulator transition. The subwavelength spatial resolution of this near-field microscopy makes it possible to detect signatures of micron-scale metallic domains in inhomogeneous VO2 thin films

Knowledge and perception of breast cancer and its treatment among Malaysian women: Role of religion

Purpose: To investigate the association between religiosity, perceptions, and knowledge of breast cancer and its treatment among women in Malaysia.Methods: Knowledge and perceptions of breast cancer and its treatment were determined via a questionnaire adapted from previous studies. The Duke Religion Index was used to measure participants’ religiosity. The questionnaires were distributed among women in public areas in Kuala Lumpur.Results: A total of 384 women participated in this study. Non-organisational religious activity (NORA; r = -0.113, p < 0.05) and intrinsic religiosity (IR; r = -0.183, p < 0.01) were significantly negatively correlated with knowledge of breast cancer. NORA (r = 0.115, p < 0.05) and IR (r = 0.229, p < 0.01) were positively, significantly correlated with the perception that patients who underwent treatment for breast cancer can enjoy good quality of life. There was also a significant positive correlation between NORA (r = 0.175, p < 0.05) and IR (r = 0.249, p < 0.01) on the statement that spiritual support improves treatment for breast cancer. IR was the only subscale positively, significantly associated with the perception of choosing breast-conserving surgery as a primary treatment choice (r = -0.111, p < 0.05) and dietary therapies (r = 0.126, p < 0.05) or acupuncture (r = 0.120, p < 0.05) as alternative treatments for breast cancer.Conclusion: Religiosity should be considered in improving women’s knowledge and perceptions of breast cancer and its treatment.Keywords: Breast cancer, Knowledge, Perceptions, Religiosit

Rosamines Targeting the Cancer Oxidative Phosphorylation Pathway

Reprogramming of energy metabolism is pivotal to cancer, so mitochondria are potential targets for anticancer therapy. A prior study has demonstrated the anti-proliferative activity of a new class of mitochondria-targeting rosamines. This present study describes in vitro cytotoxicity of second-generation rosamine analogs, their mode of action, and their in vivo efficacies in a tumor allografted mouse model. Here, we showed that these compounds exhibited potent cytotoxicity (average IC50<0.5 µM), inhibited Complex II and ATP synthase activities of the mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation pathway and induced loss of mitochondrial transmembrane potential. A NCI-60 cell lines screen further indicated that rosamine analogs 4 and 5 exhibited potent antiproliferative effects with Log10GI50 = -7 (GI50 = 0.1 µM) and were more effective against a colorectal cancer sub-panel than other cell lines. Preliminary in vivo studies on 4T1 murine breast cancer-bearing female BALB/c mice indicated that treatment with analog 5 in a single dosing of 5 mg/kg or a schedule dosing of 3 mg/kg once every 2 days for 6 times (q2d×6) exhibited only minimal induction of tumor growth delay. Our results suggest that rosamine analogs may be further developed as mitochondrial targeting agents. Without a doubt proper strategies need to be devised to enhance tumor uptake of rosamines, i.e. by integration to carrier molecules for better therapeutic outcome

Omega-3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids: The Way Forward in Times of Mixed Evidence.

lmost forty years ago, it was first hypothesized that an increased dietary intake of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) from fish fat could exert protective effects against several pathologies. Decades of intense preclinical investigation have supported this hypothesis in a variety of model systems. Several clinical cardiovascular studies demonstrated the beneficial health effects of omega-3 PUFA, leading medical institutions worldwide to publish recommendations for their increased intake. However, particularly in recent years, contradictory results have been obtained in human studies focusing on cardiovascular disease and the clinical evidence in other diseases, particularly chronic inflammatory and neoplastic diseases, was never established to a degree that led to clear approval of treatment with omega-3 PUFA. Recent data not in line with the previous findings have sparked a debate on the health efficacy of omega-3 PUFA and the usefulness of increasing their intake for the prevention of a number of pathologies. In this review, we aim to examine the controversies on the possible use of these fatty acids as preventive/curative tools against the development of cardiovascular, metabolic, and inflammatory diseases, as well as several kinds of cancer

Toe Tissue Transfer for Reconstruction of Damaged Digits due to Electrical Burns

BackgroundElectrical burns are one of the most devastating types of injuries, and can be characterized by the conduction of electric current through the deeper soft tissue such as vessels, nerves, muscles, and bones. For that reason, the extent of an electric burn is very frequently underestimated on initial impression.MethodsFrom July 1999 to June 2006, we performed 15 cases of toe tissue transfer for the reconstruction of finger defects caused by electrical burns. We performed preoperative range of motion exercise, early excision, and coverage of the digital defect with toe tissue transfer.ResultsWe obtained satisfactory results in both functional and aesthetic aspects in all 15 cases without specific complications. Static two-point discrimination results in the transferred toe cases ranged from 8 to 11 mm, with an average of 9.5 mm. The mean range of motion of the transferred toe was 20° to 36° in the distal interphalangeal joint, 16° to 45° in the proximal interphalangeal joint, and 15° to 35° in the metacarpophalangeal joint. All of the patients were relatively satisfied with the function and appearance of their new digits.ConclusionsThe strategic management of electrical injury to the hands can be both challenging and complex. Because the optimal surgical method is free tissue transfer, maintenance of vascular integrity among various physiological changes works as a determining factor for the postoperative outcome following the reconstruction

Measuring the likeliness among young adults to green their homes

It requires a team effort to reduce our overall impact on the planet earth. If each of us would do our parts, we could preserve the environment well and give our future generations a clean and comfortable place to live. Sustainability starts at home. Ways to green our homes have been suggested by people from all walks of life and are easily available as well. However, very little attention has been paid to the extent to which the people would take the initiative to green their homes. With the intention to explore the topic of home greening, this research aims to measure the likeliness among young adults to green their homes. Young adults are targeted because they are future leaders and their actions today will have an effect on the quality of the environment for the next fifty to one hundred years. The data needed are collected using a self-administered structured questionnaire. Eighty-eight young adults living in the Klang Valley of Malaysia have responded to the survey form but only eighty-five sets of it are analysable after detecting outliers. Mean ranking analysis is performed to rank the home greening efforts made by the respondents. The results show that the respondents have highest tendency to use energy-efficient appliances and water-saving devices, fixtures, and technologies for their homes to save the environment. On the contrary, the respondents have lowest tendency to find creative ways to recycle household goods at their homes to save the environment. In general, there is no significant difference in the home greening tendency levels of males and females