Bit Communication in Artificial Swarm

Bit communication in swarm agents is a communication process of transmitting data within specific area. The data must be delivered to all agents in the area which this process also closely related to broadcasting manner through bit-communication as a way to spread out the data among all those agents. This research field is supposed to have a deep study of behavior of homogeneous agents by inspecting the reversing and non-reversing approach. It also included the investigation of the independent and characteristic of transmitting and receiving data for random process of swarm. In this paper, swarm technique is implemented which is useful for bit-communication behavior. There are two approaches are used for transmitting and receiving process. For the reverse approach, the data can be resend back to the sender for the next cycle where the program randomly select one-of nearest agent for transmitting the data. While in non-reversing approach, the data cannot retransmit back to the sender in the previous cycle; this approach may increase the system performance and efficiency

Bit-Communication In Artifical Swarm

Bit communication in swarm agents is a communication process of transmitting data within specific area. The data must be delivered to all agents in the area which this process also closely related to broadcasting manner through bit-communication as a way to spread out the data among all those agents. This research field is supposed to have a deep study of behavior of homogeneous agents by inspecting the reversing and non-reversing approach. It also included the investigation of the independent and characteristic of transmitting and receiving data for random process of swarm. In this paper, swarm technique is implemented which is useful for bit-communication behavior. There are two approaches are used for transmitting and receiving process. For the reverse approach, the data can be resend back to the sender for the next cycle where the program randomly select one-of nearest agent for transmitting the data. While in non-reversing approach, the data cannot retransmit back to the sender in the previous cycle; this approach may increase the system performance and efficiency

Knowledge, attitude and practice about leptospirosis prevention among town service workers in northeastern Malaysia: a cross sectional study

Introduction. Many efforts have been done to reduce leptospirosis infections in Malaysia especially among high risk groups including town service workers. Town service workers are more likely to be exposed to the leptospiral infection resulting from their occupational activities.Methods. A cross sectional study was conducted in northeastern Malaysia involving 321 town service workers who were subjected to answer an interviewer-guided validated questionnaire which consists of sociodemographic, knowledge, attitude and practice information. Data were entered and analyzed using SPSS Version 20.Results. All of the respondents were Malay with mean (SD) age of 40.6 (10.28) years old. The mean (SD) duration of employment was 12.1 (9.62) years. Fifty four respondents (16.8%) had never heard of leptospirosis. Among the respondents, 215 (67.0%) of them had poor knowledge on leptospirosis. Meanwhile, 167 (52.0%) and only 128 (39.9%) of them had satisfactory attitude and practice respectively. It was found that knowledge on risk factors for leptospirosis was lacking. There were high risk attitudes such as drinking habit and protective equipment used during working with the favourable answers ranged from 67.3% to 89.1%. The weakest area identified in their practice was also on the use of protective equipment.Conclusions. The workers’ level of knowledge and practice were relatively poor despite an overall good practice on leptospirosis. This finding might expose them to an increased risk of contracting leptospirosis. Identified weak areas in their knowledge, attitude and practice will assist the policy makers to develop a focused and well-directed intervention program on leptospirosis infection. 

Second look Percutaneous Nephrolithotomy (PCNL) for residual renal calculi: 3 years experience in Hospital Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia

Presence of residual calculi post PCNL is not rare. Patient might be subjected to a repeat PCNL which is done under general anesthesia, and not without the risk of morbidity. Second look PCNL which is done under local anaesthesia might reduce the chance of a repeat PCNL and its morbidity. The aim of our study is to audit retrospectively the outcome of Second Look PCNL in our institution. Thirty-three patients underwent Second Look PCNL for residual stones from January 2003 to October 2005. The records of each patient are traced and the data is analysed. The stone clearance, tolerability, complication, and operation time are the variables and outcomes studied.The mean age at surgery is 53.3 (24-70). The mean operating time is 43.3 minutes (15-120 min). Out of the 33 patients, 22 patients had their stones completely cleared. Another 10 patients had incomplete clearance which which were successfully treated with extracorporeal shock-wave lithotripsy (ESWL) and didn't need repeated PCNL. ln a patient. we failed to proceed with the second look PCNL due to technical difficulty. As a conclusion, second look PCNL is safe and effective in treating residual calculi post PCNL

Hubungan etnik di Malaysia

Buku Hubungan Etnik di Malaysia Edisi Keempat ini telah disemak dan disusun semula selaras dengan keperluan kurikulum dan garis panduan kursus Hubungan Etnik di IPTA. Beberapa bahagian dalam buku edisi baharu ini telah dikemas kini, ditulis semula dan diubah suai mengikut perkembangan dan keperluan semasa. Secara amnya buku ini menyentuh pelbagai isu terkini berkaitan dengan hubungan etnik khususnya dari segi politik, ekonomi, sosial dan budaya. Penyusunan bab-bab serta kandungan buku ini dibuat dengan mengambil kira keperluan dan kepentingannya dalam konteks pembinaan negara dan jalinan hubungan masyarakat berbilang kaum di Malaysia. Keseluruhan kandungan buku ini mengandungi sepuluh bab, iaitu Pengenalan Hubungan Etnik di Malaysia secara Umum; Konsep Asas Hubungan Etnik; Latar Belakang Pluraliti Masyarakat Alam Melayu; Perlembagaan Malaysia dan Hubungan Etnik; Pembangunan Ekonomi dan Hubungan Etnik: Pemodenan dan Proses Pembangunan Negara; Politik dan Hubungan Etnik: Ke Arah Pembentukan Satu Malaysia; Pendidikan dan Hubungan Etnik; Agama dan Hubungan Etnik di Malaysia; Budaya dan Hubungan Etnik di Malaysia; serta Hubungan Etnik, Integrasi dan Cabaran. Kesemua bab telah dikemas kini dan ditambah baik hasil maklum balas yang diterima oleh para penulis. Buku ini ditulis oleh para ahli akademik yang cukup berpengalaman dalam bidang masing-masing dan dipersembahkan dalam bentuk nota yang mudah dan padat bagi membantu para pelajar mengikuti kursus Hubungan Etnik. Buku ini juga sesuai dibaca oleh masyarakat awam yang ingin mengetahui latar belakang masyarakat dan pembinaan negara Malaysia

Extrinsic surface scattering and intrinsic absorption loss of vinyl based hybrid organic-inorganic materials for optical waveguides applications

Hybrid photosensitive materials were prepared by using vinyltriethoxysilane (VTES), tetraethoxysilane (TEOS) and tetrabutoxytitanate (TTBu) precursors through sol-gel technique. The materials are intended for optical telecommunication applications. Thus, high optical transmissions at the second and third optical telecommunication windows are essential. Extrinsic surface scattering due to surface roughness and intrinsic absorption due to aliphatic CH and OH groups are always ascribable to the optical power attenuations at aforementioned optical telecommunication windows. Optical waveguide based on hybrid sol-gel materials were fabricated, characterized and analyzed in order to investigate the extrinsic and intrinsic sources of attenuation and their contributions. The fabricated samples were characterized for propagation loss, surface condition, and Fourier transform IR (FTIR) absorption spectra. Propagation loss were measured by means of cut-back method as 1.6 and 6.9 dB/cm at 1310 and 1550 nm wavelengths, respectively. Surface scattering loss was modeled based on measured rms roughness of 0.724 nm and turned out to contribute less than 0.01% of the total propagation loss. FTIR absorption spectra show the persistent existence of aliphatic CH and OH groups within the final hybrid sol-gel materials

Epidemiology of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma (NPC) in Pahang, Malaysia

Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is among the most frequently reported cancer in Malaysia. The most recent National Cancer Registry (NCR), stated that NPC was the fourth most common cancer among Malaysian and third most common cancer among Malaysian men. While there have been several studies on NPC previously carried out in a few states in Malaysia, a comprehensive study in Pahang had never been reported. The current epidemiological study is designed to feature the number of cases and distribution of NPC in Pahang, as well as risk factors of the development of the disease. This study involved two major referral centers in Pahang, namely Hospital Tengku Ampuan Afzan (HTAA) in Kuantan and Hospital Sultan Haji Ahmad Shah (HOSHAS) in Temerloh. A total of 87 confirmed NPC cases were reported from the two hospital between 2012 and 2015. The ages at diagnosis of patients ranged from 14 to 82 years with mean age was 49.4 years (SD ±14.3). Majority of them were male (77%) with ratio male to female was 3.3:1. Regarding ethnicity, Malay predominates with 56%, followed by Chinese 35% and others 9%. The total number of diagnosed cases increased from 2012 to 2014 and declined slightly in 2015. The age-standardised rate (ASR) were calculated every year and showed an increasing trend among male from 1.6 per 100,000 in 2012 to 3.3 per 100,000 in 2015. Generally, the highest age-specific incidence rate was at the 50-54 age groups. Ongoing analysis on available data is currently being carried out to unravel the lifestyle risk factor in this population of NPC patients. This study will hopefully provide the first ever four-year comprehensive data on the epidemiology of NPC in the state of Pahang, Malaysia

Malaysian Students Acceptance Towards Learning with Augmented Reality Technology

This paper presents a study that sought to investigate student perceptions and attitudes towards the use of augmented reality (AR) technology for learning in Multimedia University. An AR mobile application was designed using Authentic Learning principles outlined by J. Herrington and L. Kervin, Educational Media International 44, 219 (2007) as a framework and developed using UNITY software. A Technology Acceptance Model was used to gauge student perception and to identify the factors that influence their intention to use AR learning materials. Results of the study indicate that students responded positively to the perceived use (PU) and perceived ease of use (PEOU) of the AR application, which led to a positive attitude towards usage (ATU) and intention to use (BIU). The encouraging response provides support for more research into the use of AR technology to enhance learning environments