Entrepreneurial Inclination Among Business Students: a Malaysian Study

Entrepreneurship has been the fundamental topics of discussion among the politicians, economists, and academics. Business creation is especially critical in developing countries to stimulate economic growth. The present study attempts to examine entrepreneurial inclination among students who are a potential source of entrepreneurs. The fi ndings of the present research study indicate that majority of our business students are not entrepreneurial-inclined. They do not seem to possess strong entrepreneurial characteristics and entrepreneurial skills, and they are not keen in starting a new business. The roles of higher institutes of education and the government in promoting entrepreneurship are discussed

Suitable Strategies for In-plane Orbit Acquisition using Micro-thrusters

The deviations in the injection orbital parameters, resulting from launcher dispersions, need to be corrected through a set of acquisition maneuvers to achieve the desired nominal parameters. When multiple satellites are injected into a single orbital plane, as a part of constellation establishment, they have to positioned in the plane with appropriate semi-major axis ‘a’ and mean anomaly ‘M’. In this paper, three strategies are studied for achieving orbit acquisition. The first strategy is by deriving an analogy to the Linear Quadratic Regulator (LQR). The state dynamics and the control law are of the form X&= AX + BU and U = −KX . The feedback gain K is calculated by minimizing the cost function. Under this strategy the thrust (N) and velocity increment ( ÄV ) are functions of time and only the matrix K needs to be up-linked. Any revision in the current or the target states, will then lead to a simple re-calculation of K and up-linking them. The second strategy assumes that ÄV is same for each maneuver and calculates the number of maneuvers and the ÄV required for each maneuver. If the maneuvers are stopped for reasons like orbit assessment, and thruster performance evaluation, the strategy can be restarted easily without having any penalty on the overall ÄV. Besides these two strategies, a third strategy based on the application of Fuzzy Modified Potential Function is also studied for autonomous orbit acquisition with constraints in the path. By adding Fuzzy logic to the potential function it is shown that, maneuvers can be changed gradually ahead of the constraints. Onboard implementation related aspects are also briefly addressed for all the strategies

Strength Behaviour Of Biomass Fiber-Reinforced Concrete Slab

This paper investigates the compressive strength and flexural strength of biomass fibre-reinforced concrete slab. The main objective of this study is to examine the effect of biomass aggregate and fibre glass on the concrete slab strength. The biomass aggregate is used to replace the natural aggregates. A total of 36 slab samples (250 mm x 600 mm x 50mm thick) and 36 numbers of 150 mm cube samples containing 0%, 30%, 60% and 100% biomass aggregate were prepared.  The E-class fibre and Supracoat SP800 were added to increase the strength and to achieve the required workability. All the samples were cured in water with room temperature of around 27oC and tested at the age of 7, 14 and 28 days respectively. The result showed that cube specimens containing 30% biomass aggregate concrete achieved minimum strength of 15 MPa at 28 days. The flexural strength for slab specimens containing 30% biomass aggregate, Supracoat SP 800 and fibre glass gained higher strength compared with control specimens. The 100% biomass aggregate slab achieved 88% of the control specimen strength. The workability was between 150 mm to 170mm slump. The density of the specimens was reduced 20% for cube and 28% for slab compared with control specimens. It can be concluded that the biomass aggregate has good potential as partial aggregate replacement in slab construction when combined with the use of glass fibre and superplasticizer. However, more research needs to be carried out to self-compacting biomass aggregate concrete for sustainable constructio

Rheological properties, textural properties, and storage stability of palm kernel-based diacylglycerol-enriched mayonnaise

The effect of replacement of soybean oil (SBO) with 0, 5, 10, 15, and 20% palm kernel based-diacylglycerol (PKDG) which were referred to as SD1000, SD9505, SD9010, SD8515, and SD8020 formulations, respectively, on the rheological properties, textural properties, and storage stability of mayonnaise were evaluated in this study. Emulsion stability results demonstrated no significant differences (P > 0.05) among all formulations except SD8020 which exhibited diminished emulsion stability. In terms of textural properties, both SD9010 and SD8020 showed closer textural characteristics compared with control. Microstructure evaluation of all mayonnaise formulations revealed significant increases in oil droplet diameter in tandem with increasing PKDG concentration. For rheological properties, all mayonnaise formulated displayed similar gel-like behavior with greater storage modulus (G') than loss modulus (G”) and loss tangent (tan δ) less than 0.3. Results indicated that up to 10% PKDG was suitable to be incorporated in healthy mayonnaise formulation. Both SD9505 and SD9010 were subsequently evaluated for their stability throughout a 2-month storage period. All mayonnaise displayed satisfying stability during storage with gradual increment in peroxide value, free fatty acid level, and G'G” crossover value except control. Additionally, an insignificant change in viscoelastic properties (P > 0.05) was observed after storage for all formulations examined. Practical applications: This present work has three main practical applications: (i) enable the incorporation of PKDG as a functional ingredient into a mayonnaise system; (ii) provide knowledge and understanding of the physicochemical, rheological, and textural properties of PKDG-enriched mayonnaise; and (iii) give insight into the storage stability of PKDG-incorporated mayonnaise throughout the 2-month storage period

Immunological corollary of the pulmonary mycobiome in bronchiectasis:The Cameb study

Understanding the composition and clinical importance of the fungal mycobiome was recently identified as a key topic in a “research priorities” consensus statement for bronchiectasis. Patients were recruited as part of the CAMEB study: an international multicentre cross-sectional Cohort of Asian and Matched European Bronchiectasis patients. The mycobiome was determined in 238 patients by targeted amplicon shotgun sequencing of the 18S–28S rRNA internally transcribed spacer regions ITS1 and ITS2. Specific quantitative PCR for detection of and conidial quantification for a range of airway Aspergillus species was performed. Sputum galactomannan, Aspergillus specific IgE, IgG and TARC (thymus and activation regulated chemokine) levels were measured systemically and associated to clinical outcomes. The bronchiectasis mycobiome is distinct and characterised by specific fungal genera, including Aspergillus, Cryptococcus and Clavispora. Aspergillus fumigatus (in Singapore/Kuala Lumpur) and Aspergillus terreus (in Dundee) dominated profiles, the latter associating with exacerbations. High frequencies of Aspergillus-associated disease including sensitisation and allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis were detected. Each revealed distinct mycobiome profiles, and associated with more severe disease, poorer pulmonary function and increased exacerbations. The pulmonary mycobiome is of clinical relevance in bronchiectasis. Screening for Aspergillus-associated disease should be considered even in apparently stable patients.MOE (Min. of Education, S’pore)NMRC (Natl Medical Research Council, S’pore)Published versio

Distinct 'Immuno-Allertypes' of Disease and High Frequencies of Sensitisation in Non-Cystic-Fibrosis Bronchiectasis

Rationale: Allergic sensitization is associated with poor clinical outcomes in asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and cystic fibrosis; however, its presence, frequency, and clinical significance in non–cystic fibrosis bronchiectasis remain unclear. Objectives: To determine the frequency and geographic variability that exists in a sensitization pattern to common and specific allergens, including house dust mite and fungi, and to correlate such patterns to airway immune-inflammatory status and clinical outcomes in bronchiectasis. Methods: Patients with bronchiectasis were recruited in Asia (Singapore and Malaysia) and the United Kingdom (Scotland) (n = 238), forming the Cohort of Asian and Matched European Bronchiectasis, which matched recruited patients on age, sex, and bronchiectasis severity. Specific IgE response against a range of common allergens was determined, combined with airway immune-inflammatory status and correlated to clinical outcomes. Clinically relevant patient clusters, based on sensitization pattern and airway immune profiles (“immunoallertypes”), were determined. Measurements and Main Results: A high frequency of sensitization to multiple allergens was detected in bronchiectasis, exceeding that in a comparator cohort with allergic rhinitis (n = 149). Sensitization was associated with poor clinical outcomes, including decreased pulmonary function and more severe disease. “Sensitized bronchiectasis” was classified into two immunoallertypes: one fungal driven and proinflammatory, the other house dust mite driven and chemokine dominant, with the former demonstrating poorer clinical outcome. Conclusions: Allergic sensitization occurs at high frequency in patients with bronchiectasis recruited from different global centers. Improving endophenotyping of sensitized bronchiectasis, a clinically significant state, and a “treatable trait” permits therapeutic intervention in appropriate patients, and may allow improved stratification in future bronchiectasis research and clinical trials.Ministry of Education (MOE)Ministry of Health (MOH)National Medical Research Council (NMRC)Published versionSupported by the Singapore Ministry of Health’s National Medical Research Council under its Transition Award NMRC/TA/0048/2016 (S.H.C.) and Changi General Hospital Research grant CHF2016.03-P (T.B.L.). The work performed at NUS was supported by the Singapore Ministry of Education Academic Research Fund, SIgN, and National Medical Research Council grants N-154-000-038-001, R-154-000-404-112, R-154-000-553-112, R-154-000-565-112, R-154-000-630-112, R-154-000-A08-592, R-154-000-A27-597, SIgN-06-006, SIgN-08-020, and NMRC/1150/2008 (F.T.C.); J.D.C. is supported by the GSK/British Lung Foundation Chair of Respiratory Research

South Korea’s Demographic Dilemma: Impact on Economy and Security

South Korea is facing a rapid ageing dilemma with a long-term impact on its economic dynamism and national security. Innovative approaches and a new mindset will help defuse this impending demographic crisis