Coded Parity Packet Transmission Method for Two Group Resource Allocation

Gap value control is investigated when the number of source and parity packets is adjusted in a concatenated coding scheme whilst keeping the overall coding rate fixed. Packet-based outer codes which are generated from bit-wise XOR combinations of the source packets are used to adjust the number of both source packets. Having the source packets, the number of parity packets, which are the bit-wise XOR combinations of the source packets can be adjusted such that the gap value, which measures the gap between the theoretical and the required signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), is controlled without changing the actual coding rate. Consequently, the required SNR reduces, yielding a lower required energy to realize the transmission data rate. Integrating this coding technique with a two-group resource allocation scheme renders efficient utilization of the total energy to further improve the data rates. With a relatively small-sized set of discrete data rates, the system throughput achieved by the proposed two-group loading scheme is observed to be approximately equal to that of the existing loading scheme, which is operated with a much larger set of discrete data rates. The gain obtained by the proposed scheme over the existing equal rate and equal energy loading scheme is approximately 5 dB. Furthermore, a successive interference cancellation scheme is also integrated with this coding technique, which can be used to decode and provide consecutive symbols for inter-symbol interference (ISI) and multiple access interference (MAI) mitigation. With this integrated scheme, the computational complexity is signi cantly reduced by eliminating matrix inversions. In the same manner, the proposed coding scheme is also incorporated into a novel fixed energy loading, which distributes packets over parallel channels, to control the gap value of the data rates although the SNR of each code channel varies from each other

Takaful participation readiness model (TPRM): the influence of takaful knowledge, religious commitment and materialism with the moderating effect of switching costs / Hartini Ab Ghani

Takaful (Islamic Insurance) was introduced in Malaysia to provide a better alternative for Muslims. As Muslims are known to be very concerned with religious obligation, family Takaful, thus, should be the life insurance coverage of choice. However, despite the obligation of having family Takaful and Muslim is the predominant religion in Malaysia, the penetration rate of family Takaful in 2013 was only 14 percent as compared to conventional life insurance of 55 percent. It is therefore essential to investigate the factors causing or inhibiting the low penetration rate. Past studies have shown that switching costs are among the contemporary issues in explaining consumer behaviour. The effect of switching costs, however, has never been tested in the area of Takaful. The objective of this study is therefore to empirically test the relationship between switching costs and behavioural intention of the Malay professional conventional policyholders, leading to advancing a Takaful Participation Readiness Model (TPRM)

Direct liquefaction of Mukah Balingian low rank Malaysian coal using water-tetralin mixture at supercritical state / Zaidi Ab Ghani

Direct liquefaction on untreated Mukah Balingian (MB) coal using water-tetralin mixture was successfully performed in batch-wise reactor system, carried out at temperatures of 375 - 450°C and under pressure up to 22 MPa. The coal conversion and oil+gas yield obtained at optimum conditions of 450°C and 70:30 tetralin to water ratio, 22 MPa, 30 min reaction time, 1:10 coal-to-solvent ratio and with 500 rpm stirring rate, were 70.6 % and 66.1 % respectively. It was observed that heat plays an important role in comparison to pressure in contributing to high coal conversion and oil+gas yield, and these results are well correlated with the high content of reactive macerals. The addition of tetralin to water increased the coal conversion and oil+gas yield by the stabilization of radical fragments and inhibition of radical recombination. In this study, the application of response surface methodology (RSM) and central composite rotatable design (CCRD) for modeling the influence of reaction temperature and solvent mixed ratios on the liquefaction of MB coal. Predicted values were found to be in good agreement with the experimental values (R2 values of 0.9989 and 0.9931 for coal conversion and oil+gas yield respectively).This study has shown that the CCRD and RSM could efficiently be applied for the modeling liquefaction of coal and it is economical way of obtaining the maximum amount of information in a short period of time and with the fewest number of experiments. In this study, microwave irradiation pretreatment was applied on MB coal prior to coal conversion and products yield. The coal conversion and oil+gas yield obtained increased up to 8 - 16 % and 10 - 19 %, respectively. Inherent moisture in coal was found to be the determining factor in increasing coal conversion and oil+gas yield by absorbing the microwave energy in order formation of cracks and fissures in coal microstructure that enhanced the coal-to-solvent interaction, and the weakened C-C bonds, respectively

Biotransformation of selected natural products and phytochemistry of fermented Alnus sieboldiana and liverwort Conocephalum conicum / Nurunajah Ab Ghani

Biotransformation is a process by which organic compounds are transformed into its derivatives, aided by organisms such as fungi, bacteria and enzymes. Biotransformations are used as a valuable strategy to diversify chemistry of compounds particularly natural products. The aim of this work is to explore biotransformation on natural products using several concepts, in order to obtain varieties of natural entities. This thesis presents biotransformation studies on two classes of bioactive natural products represented by an anthraquinone and chalcones, followed by in-situ transformation of chemical constituents of male flowers by fungus, and changes in biosynthetic pathways when Japanese liverwort is grown under stressed condition. Small scale biotransformation of the bioactive anthraquinone nordamnacanthal 8 using 19 selected strains revealed its sturdy nature where only Absidia coerulea managed to convert the compound into lucidin 143. Then, in-labo biotransformation was pursued with microbial transformation of hydroxychalcones; 4'- hydroxychalcone 145 and 4-hydroxychalcone 146 by Aspergillus niger. After 7 days of fermentation, four dihydrochalcone derivatives were obtained. Isolated products were identified as 4'-hydroxydihydrochalcone 147, 4-hydroxydihydrochalcone 149, 3\4'-dihydroxydihydrochalcone 148 and 3,4-dihydroxydihydrochalcone 150, resulting from bioreduction at a,P-unsaturated double bond of hydroxychalcone and hydrogenation reaction at the activated phenyl rings. On the other hand, in-situ transformation of Alnus sieboldiana male flowers by fungus Penicillium sp. is of interest due to the common infection causing significant change in the smell. Infected male flowers were allowed to ferment for six months. Analysis of the volatile components of the fermented male flowers revealed P-phenylethyl cinnamate 174 (10%) as a major component followed by 2-phenylethanol 170 (8.7%). The level of 2- phenylethanol 170 in the fermented male flowers is three times higher as compared to the fresh male flowers (2.7%) which explained the unpleasant odor of fermented male flowers. Yashabushidiol A 72, yashabushidiol B 73 and naringenin 69, which were known to be original constituents of the fresh male flowers, were successfully isolated from the ethyl acetate extract of fermented male flowers. Additional transformation products isolated includes six flavonoids kaempferol 195, quercetin 196, pinocembrin dimethyl ether 197, /Lram-3-hydroxy-5,7-dimethoxyflavanone 198, galangin-5,7- dimethyl ether 199 and 5-methoxy-3,6,7-trihydroxyflavanone 200. Detailed analysis of the metabolic pathways of isolated compounds suggested flavanone-3-hydroxylase, flavonoid-3'-hydroxylase and plant-O-methyl-transferases enzymes were released due to the enzymatic action of fungus Penicillium sp. When Japanese liverwort Conocephalum conicum was grown under stressed condition, the biosynthesis pathways taking place in the plant seem to be affected resulting in confusions from chemotype perspective. Under normal growth conditions, (+)-bornyl acetate 94 is the major component in the type-II C. conicum while ds-methyl cinnamate 204 and transmethyl cinnamate 87 should not be present. However, when grown under stressed conditions, ^nms-methyl cinnamate 87 was found to be present as the major component instead of (+)-bornyl acetate 94, indicating activation of shikimate pathway along with mevalonic acid pathway. Thus, it is suggested that the stress C conicum to be categorized under Vnms-methyl cinnamate > bornyl acetate' subtype, since there were dual biogenetic pathways present at stressed condition

Factors influencing intention to apply for a job among millennials in ICT industry : a perspective of final year students at XYZ university college

This study was conducted to identify the factors influencing intention to apply for a job among millennials in ICT industry. The perspectives of final year students of Computer Science and Multimedia Faculty at XYZ University College have been studied. It is crucial for the organizations to understand the preferences of this generation toward employment attributes in order to attract talented candidates to apply for a job vacancy and subsequently join the organization. This study focuses on millennials as currently they are dominating the Malaysian workforce, while final year undergraduate students were chosen because most likely they will be dealing with the decision to apply for a job after completing their studies. Quantitative approach with self-administered questionnaires method has been employed for this study. Based on simple random sampling method the questionnaires were distributed to all of 213 final year students of Computer Science and Multimedia Faculty at XYZ University College to gather the data. A total of 150 useable responses were obtained and used for the purpose of data analysis. IBM Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) software, Version 22.0 was used to analyze the collected data. The results of regression analysis revealed that all three factors which were meaningful work, professional growth opportunity and work-life balance have a significant relationship with intention to apply for a job. While professional growth opportunity was the most influential factor on the intention to apply for a job. The findings can form the basis for useful recommendation to employers to plan and improve their recruitment strategies in order to attract the top qualified talent

Expression Of Phac1 And Phac2 From Pseudomonas Sp. USM4-55 In Escherichia Coli Expression System [QR82.P78 B195 2007 f rb].

Polihidrosialkanoat (PHA) disintesiskan secara intrasel dalam pelbagai mikroorganisma sebagai bahan simpanan untuk sumber karbon dan tenaga. PHA sintase (PhaC) merupakan enzim utama dalam pempolimeran PHA. Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) are synthesized intracelullarly by a variety of microorganisms as reserve materials for carbon and energy source. PHA synthase (PhaC) is the key enzyme in the polymerization of PHAs

PREDICTING WHISTLE-BLOWING INTENTION AMONG SUPERVISORS IN MALAYSIA

The function of whistle-blowing as an effective internal control mechanism has long been accepted around the globe. Several individual factors have been considered as predictive variables of whistle-blowing intention. However, findings are still inconclusive. Using the theory of planned behaviour as a framework, this study examines the relationship between the selected predictive variables (internal locus of control, work experience and ethics training) and whistle-blowing intention. Data were collected randomly from 311 supervisors within large manufacturing companies in Malaysia. Applying multiple regression analysis, results indicated that work experience and ethics training are significantly related to whistle-blowing intention. On the other hand, there is no significant relationship between internal locus of control and whistle-blowing intention. Implications for theory and practice from the findings are discussedwhistle-blowing intention, theory of planned behaviour, internal locus of control, work experience, ethics training, Malaysia

Economic Impact of the Implementation of Chain of Custody (CoC) Certification in Sawmilling in Malaysia

Chain of Custody (CoC) certification has influenced the market of forestproducts since the establishment of forest certification in early the 1990s. CoC certification is one way for companies to promote and market their forest products from a sustainably managed forest. Furthermore, the supply and demand of certified forest products have also grown significantly corresponding to the increase in the numbers of certified companies. However, the costs of CoC certification are perceived to be crucial for the companies to become certified. The main objective of this study is to determine the costs of obtaining a CoC certification from the MTCC for sawmills and to estimate the economic impact of CoC certification in sawmilling in Malaysia. A survey was conducted on sawmilling companies with CoC certificate from the MTCC. The results from thedata analysis indicate that there exist three types of cost in obtaining the MTCCCoC certificates namely (i) cost to meet CoC standard or requirement, (ii) auditing cost and (iii) surveillance visit cost. Cost to meet the CoC standard is categorized as an indirect cost and was the major certification cost (95% of the total cost of certification) whereas auditing cost and surveillance visit cost are direct costs for the firms. It is argued that, these costs mainly depend on the size of the companies. However, the chi squares test has found that the relationship between costs of CoC certification with the size of companies, as measured by total workforce and annual sales turnover is not significant in the case of sawmills. Estimations of econometric relationships also shows that the cost in obtaining CoC certification for sawmills is not related to annual sales turnover,number of years in operation. But there was a statistically significant relationship between surveillance visit cost and the level of annual production. The second objective of this study is to ascertain the economic impact of CoC certification in the sawmilling industry in Malaysia. The input-output analysis showed that certified sawntimber has led to significant impacts on total output,income and employment to the Malaysia. These economic impacts were distributed in many sectors that helped to stimulate the nation’s economic growth. CoC certification can play an important role in the development of the Malaysian forest sector. Hence, effort should be made by relevant agencies to improve the certification process in order to minimize the costs and to enhance the benefits to sawmillers. Promotion should be enhanced to raise the adoption of CoC certification among timber industry. Ways and means have to be provided to support the holders of CoC certification to reap the benefits from certification

Control of phycocyanin production from Spirulina platensis in fed-batch reactor using mid course correction policy

Phycocyanin is a product of cultivation of Spirulina platensis,a blue-green microalga. Phycocyanin is widely used in medical treatment as a cancer inhibitor and as a natural dye for cosmetics and foods.Spirulina platensis has been cultivated recently in fed batch reactor to optimize the cell growth and product formation.Large scale production of Spirulina platensis gives more advantage especially in production cost but it is hard to control the final product to the desired value due to the disturbance occurred during the cultivation process. Therefore,Mid-Course Correction (MCC)policy is introduced to the process.Throughout the MCC,a model predictor is constructed to predict the final product concentration based on the previous experimental data.A control model is build for phycocyanin production based on the light intensity adjustment.The adjustment is made on day 5 of the cultivation process and simulation is done to recheck whether the final phycocyanin production is fall in the desired range

Population differentiation in sticklebacks : disentangling maternal, environmental and genetic effects

Isolated populations of fish living in ponds are often phenotypically and genetically diverged from their source populations. However, to what degree this divergence reflects maternal, genetic or environmental effects is often unclear, as is the possible adaptive nature of this differentiation due to the strong impact of random genetic drift on populations residing in isolated habitats. The aim of my thesis was to investigate the relative influence of genetic, environmental and maternal effects on phenotypic differentiation using Fennoscandian populations of nine-spined sticklebacks, Pungitius pungitius, as a model system. I used controlled crosses of fish from an ancestral Baltic Sea and a derived Pyöreälampi pond population - known to differ both genetically in neutral marker genes (Fst = 0.46) and phenotypically in numerous traits (viz. morphology, anatomy, behaviour and life history) - to explore the relative importance of additive genetic, non-additive genetic, environmental and maternal effects as determinants of population differentiation in morphology, life history, and behaviour. I found evidence for strong genetic contributions to divergence in all studied traits (viz. body size, growth, age at maturity, feeding behaviour), but these genetic effects were not always additive. Rather, strong non-additive (dominance) contributions were observed in some traits, such as age at maturation. Furthermore, evidence for age-dependent dominance was found in the case of feeding behaviour. These results indicate that much of the phenotypic differentiation among marine and pond populations of nine-spined sticklebacks is due to genetic, rather than to environmental or maternal effects. Nevertheless, results from feeding manipulation experiments revealed a great deal of phenotypic plasticity in growth rates and patterns, and in particular, clear evidence for recovery growth. Specifically, full recovery - and even over compensation - was observed in response to unrestricted feeding following a period of resource limitation. The results of these experiments also indicate that there are genetically based population differences in recovery growth potential, and that maternal effects play into explaining patterns of recovery growth in response to feeding treatments. Furthermore, the impact of feeding treatments experienced by mothers was found to carry-over to influence the phenotypes of their offspring. Taken together, the results presented in this thesis demonstrate that the observed phenotypic differences among marine and pond populations of nine-spined sticklebacks are likely to be based on genetic differentiation, although the mode of gene action underlying this differentiation is not always additive. Although environmental and maternal effects were shown to be important modulators of phenotypic variation in this system, their role in explaining population differentiation appears to be secondary. Further studies utilizing an F2-backcross-design - as well as replicate populations - might shed more light on the questions that remain open. Nevertheless, these results reinforce the conjecture that Fennoscandian pond populations of nine-spined sticklebacks might, or should be viewed as a significant evolutionary and conservation unit that require special attention in regional and national management and conservation plans.Ei saatavill