The effect of thermo-mechanical treatments and external magnetic fields on the transport critical current of Cr, Mo and In substituted TI-1212 dip-coated tapes / Rohani Omar

In this work, Tl-1212/Ag dip-coated (DC) tapes were fabricated using TI1212 superconducting powders prepared from different nominal compositions and subjected to different combinations of thermal and mechanical treatments. The effects of the thermo-mechanical treatment on the transport critical current density (Jc) in zero field and low magnetic fields were investigated. The superconducting powder prepared with nominal compositions Tl0.9Cr0.1Sr2Ca0.9Pr0.1Cu2O7 (In-tapes), Tl0.9Bi0.1Sr1.9Mo0.1Ca0.9Y0.1Cu2O7 (Mo-tapes) and Tl0.9Bi0.1Sr1.9In0.1Ca0.9Y0.1Cu2O7 (In-tapes) which were synthesized by conventional solid state method. In the DC technique, silver strips were dipped into slurry made from mixture of superconducting powder, solvent, binder and dispersant. Some of the resulting tapes were subjected to mechanical rolling to investigate the effect of rolling on 1212 phase formation, critical temperature, TC and critical current density (Jc) of the tapes. For Cr-tapes, reannealing at > 870 °C caused higher Tl, evaporation resulted in lower 1212 volume % and produced partial melted microstructure. By considering the volume % of 1212, Tc and Jc, annealing at 870 °C was the best heat treatment to produce reasonable Jc. The higher magnitude of JC is attributed to the enhancement of grains contact within the core of the tapes as observed form its microstructure. For Mo-tapes, it was observed that different thermomechanical treatment on the tapes resulted in different values of Jc. JC enhancement was observed for tapes annealed at 2 870° C in combination with mechanical rolling. The results show that re—annealing at 2 870° C improves 1212 phase formation and Jc for Mo-tapes. However annealing at lower temperature caused the presence of higher amount SrCO3. The best performance in external magnetic field was observed for rolled tapes annealed at 910° C. For In-tapes, annealing at higher temperature improves 1212 phase and reduced SrCO3 content. The presence of SrC03 may be the other reason for lower Tc and Jc values. The performance of JC in magnetic field was limited by weak links. However, the development of strong links was much easier for In-tapes compared to Mo-tapes. In general, mechanical rolling promotes grains connectivity and improves intergranular connectivity. It was observed that appropriate annealing temperature in combination with rolling improves 1212 phase, TC and Jc. However the presences of impurities limit the superconducting properties of the dip-coated tapes. Jc observed in this work are generally comparable to the values of Tl-1212 tapes using powder-in—tube (PIT) method

Innovation in logistics services – halal logistics

Purpose: The expansion of liberalization of trade and services has forced companies to consider the global market demand in their competitive strategic planning. Hence, business organisations need to be continuously as innovation could promise potential growth and development so as to gain competitive advantage in being ahead in the market. Specifically, supply chain has always been viewed as the most important areas to be innovated as it would be an effective means to gain efficiencies and eliminate accumulating competitive pressures and thus increasing innovations. Thus, the purpose of this study is to present a case study that demonstrates an innovation created in the logistics services, i.e. halal logistics services, as to fulfil the increasing demand of the customers throughout the world particularly the rising number of Muslim population. Research approach: This study uses case study approach to elaborate the implementation of halal logistics practice. In achieving the objective, related literature concerning the halal concept is reviewed and explained to provide better understandings of the concept and how it is applied to logistics services. The emphasis on the innovativeness of this concept is also included. The data for the case study is gained from in-depth interviews with the corporate and operation managers of two leading logistics service providers in Malaysia, who are the subjects of the case. Findings and Originality: This study found new logistics services that are able to fulfil the growing demand of the customers especially the increasing number of Muslims. This is important as these services have taken into consideration several factors such as comprehensive hygiene practices and thus, is also crucial to other customers. However, understanding the basic concept of halal practice and the rationale of its implementation is very crucial before one can commit to its practice. This study contributes to the advancement of knowledge through the elaboration of a case study, which demonstrates the application of halal concept into logistics service practices. Research impact: This study introduces a new concept of halal logistics, which applies the concept of halal into logistics. The needs to initiate more logistics services that are based on halal concept are crucial in meeting the needs of the increasing demand by the customers. Practical impact: The findings provide insights to the practitioners of the importance in implementating halal logistics services. It also indicates the needs for logistics companies to be innovative in creating more halal logistics services to fulfill these demands.Halal logistics, innovation, case study

It's not what you play, it's how you play it: timbre affects perception of emotion in music.

Salient sensory experiences often have a strong emotional tone, but the neuropsychological relations between perceptual characteristics of sensory objects and the affective information they convey remain poorly defined. Here we addressed the relationship between sound identity and emotional information using music. In two experiments, we investigated whether perception of emotions is influenced by altering the musical instrument on which the music is played, independently of other musical features. In the first experiment, 40 novel melodies each representing one of four emotions (happiness, sadness, fear, or anger) were each recorded on four different instruments (an electronic synthesizer, a piano, a violin, and a trumpet), controlling for melody, tempo, and loudness between instruments. Healthy participants (23 young adults aged 18-30 years, 24 older adults aged 58-75 years) were asked to select which emotion they thought each musical stimulus represented in a four-alternative forced-choice task. Using a generalized linear mixed model we found a significant interaction between instrument and emotion judgement with a similar pattern in young and older adults (p < .0001 for each age group). The effect was not attributable to musical expertise. In the second experiment using the same melodies and experimental design, the interaction between timbre and perceived emotion was replicated (p < .05) in another group of young adults for novel synthetic timbres designed to incorporate timbral cues to particular emotions. Our findings show that timbre (instrument identity) independently affects the perception of emotions in music after controlling for other acoustic, cognitive, and performance factors

LIMITED SEED DISPERSAL MAY SHAPE GENETIC STRUCTURE OF Hydnophytum formicarum JACK. POPULATIONS IN MANGROVE ECOSYSTEM

Hydnophytum formicarum is an epiphytic plant, commonly distributed throughout Southeast Asia. However, its distribution is currently declining due to forest fragmentation and the subsequent habitat changes which may have also consequently affected the genetic structure of H. formicarum populations. Hence, this study aimed to understand the genetic variation and differentiation within and among populations of this species. Using Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers, the genetic variation and genetic differentiation among three populations were assessed in order to identify potential conservation management strategies for this species in the mangrove ecosystem in Malaysia. Ten highly reproducible primers were used in the population analysis, resulting in a total of 221 discernible fragments. Genetic variation among populations was high at 98% identified polymorphic fragments. AMOVA showed significant genetic differentiation among the populations (ΦPT = 0.554, p ≤ 0.001), with pairwise genetic distances between the populations ranging from 0.495 - 0.589. PCoA clustering analysis separated the populations according to their geographical locations. The high genetic variation within a population, high genetic differentiation between populations and clear separation in the cluster analysis indicated a restricted seed dispersal of the species

Life Table of the Green Lacewing Apertochrysa sp. (Neuroptera:Chrysopidae) Reared on Rice Moth Corcyra cephalonica(Lepidoptera: Pyralidae)

The survivorship from egg to adult emergence and fertility of Apertochrysa sp. fed on Corcyra cephalonica were studied in laboratory and population parameters of Apertochrysa sp. were used for construction of life table under ideal condition in laboratory free from natural enemies. The highest mortality occurred in eggs (44.3%) followed by mortality (15.4%) in 2nd instar larva and in pupal stage (11.4%). The sex ratio (proportion of female to male) was 1:1.4. The maximum life span of female was 38 days. The highest number of eggs produced per female was 6.33 at seventh day of oviposition. The gross reproductive rate (GRR) was 19.48 females per female per generation. The net reproductive rate (Ro) was 2.28 females per female per generation. Mean generation time (T) was 40.6 days, while the intrinsic rate of natural increase (r) was 0.02 female per female per day. The finite rate of increase (λ) was 1.02 females per female per day. The population double time (DT) was within 14.8 day

Structural neuroanatomy of face processing in frontotemporal lobar degeneration

Impairments of face processing occur frequently in frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD) but the neuroanatomical basis for these deficits has seldom been studied systematically. Here a prospective voxel based morphometry study is described addressing the neuroanatomy of two key dimensions of face processing—face identification and facial emotion recognition—in a single cohort of 32 patients with FTLD (19 with frontal variant and 13 with temporal variant FTLD). For the FTLD group as a whole, face identification was positively associated with grey matter in the right anterior fusiform gyrus while recognition of angry expressions was positively associated with grey matter in the bilateral insula cortex. FTLD provides a perspective on the neuroanatomy of face processing that is complementary to focal lesion and normal functional imaging work

Identifying the level of flexibility, agility and speed among track and field athletes with disabilities

In order to become a successful track and field athlete, an athlete must develop skills in flexibility, agility and speed. However, to date, all the research regarding flexibility, agility and speed have concentrated on normal athletes. The present study extends this line of research to disabled track and field athletes in Malaysia. The aims of the present study were to achieve the set a benchmark for measuring level of flexibility, speed and agility among track and field athletes with disabilities; and to examine the influence of participation in either track or field events on the development of flexibility, agility and speed. Thirty-eight (n=38) track and field athletes with disabilities comprising of 27 males and 11 females participated in the study. Each participant completed six tests made up of sit and reach test, lateral change of direction test, hand grip strength test; back leg dynamometer test and sit-up test. A descriptive analysis was used to assess differences in performance between track and field athletes with disabilities on the six tests. It was observed that track athletes with disabilities were superior on agility, speed and agility than field athletes with disabilities. All the data were analysed using SPSS and presented as mean of (± SEM). The mean value height and weight for male 168.35 ± 1.46m and 66.73 ± 3.28kg. Meanwhile, the mean value height and weight for female’s 153.82 ± 2.10m and 45.08 ± 1.94kg. For male Body Mass Index (BMI), the mean was 23.33 ± 4.5 kg.m2 and 19.09 ± 1.6 kg.m2 for females. When divided according to gender category, the mean back grip test for male subjects was 92.06 ± 44.2 kg and 48.45 ± 17.2 kg for females. Sit-ups test revealed that the mean performance for male was 35.52 ± 9.8 and 28.36 ± 8.14 for the female athletes. Besides that in the sit and reach test, the mean for male athletes was 30.78 ± 12.2 cm and 23.18 ± 12.40 cm for females athletes. In the hand grip test, male subjects mean was 70.51 ± 30.5 kg and 45.47 ± 15.91 kg for females. The mean value for lateral change of direction test for male athletes was 13.66 ± 3.7 and 15.78 ± 2.9 for the female athletes. The field athletes were, however, superior on flexibility, back grip test and hand-grip test than track disabled athletes. The results showed the three measures of flexibility, agility and speed were appropriate for determining the physical fitness level of track and field athletes with disabilities

SRPTackle: A semi-automated requirements prioritisation technique for scalable requirements of software system projects

ContextRequirement prioritisation (RP) is often used to select the most important system requirements as perceived by system stakeholders. RP plays a vital role in ensuring the development of a quality system with defined constraints. However, a closer look at existing RP techniques reveals that these techniques suffer from some key challenges, such as scalability, lack of quantification, insufficient prioritisation of participating stakeholders, overreliance on the participation of professional expertise, lack of automation and excessive time consumption. These key challenges serve as the motivation for the present research.ObjectiveThis study aims to propose a new semiautomated scalable prioritisation technique called ‘SRPTackle’ to address the key challenges.MethodSRPTackle provides a semiautomated process based on a combination of a constructed requirement priority value formulation function using a multi-criteria decision-making method (i.e. weighted sum model), clustering algorithms (K-means and K-means++) and a binary search tree to minimise the need for expert involvement and increase efficiency. The effectiveness of SRPTackle is assessed by conducting seven experiments using a benchmark dataset from a large actual software project.ResultsExperiment results reveal that SRPTackle can obtain 93.0% and 94.65% as minimum and maximum accuracy percentages, respectively. These values are better than those of alternative techniques. The findings also demonstrate the capability of SRPTackle to prioritise large-scale requirements with reduced time consumption and its effectiveness in addressing the key challenges in comparison with other techniques.ConclusionWith the time effectiveness, ability to scale well with numerous requirements, automation and clear implementation guidelines of SRPTackle, project managers can perform RP for large-scale requirements in a proper manner, without necessitating an extensive amount of effort (e.g. tedious manual processes, need for the involvement of experts and time workload)

Innovation in logistics services – halal logistics

Purpose: The expansion of liberalization of trade and services has forced companies to consider the global market demand in their competitive strategic planning. Hence, business organisations need to be continuously as innovation could promise potential growth and development so as to gain competitive advantage in being ahead in the market. Specifically, supply chain has always been viewed as the most important areas to be innovated as it would be an effective means to gain efficiencies and eliminate accumulating competitive pressures and thus increasing innovations. Thus, the purpose of this study is to present a case study that demonstrates an innovation created in the logistics services, i.e. halal logistics services, as to fulfil the increasing demand of the customers throughout the world particularly the rising number of Muslim population. Research approach: This study uses case study approach to elaborate the implementation of halal logistics practice. In achieving the objective, related literature concerning the halal concept is reviewed and explained to provide better understandings of the concept and how it is applied to logistics services. The emphasis on the innovativeness of this concept is also included. The data for the case study is gained from in-depth interviews with the corporate and operation managers of two leading logistics service providers in Malaysia, who are the subjects of the case. Findings and Originality: This study found new logistics services that are able to fulfil the growing demand of the customers especially the increasing number of Muslims. This is important as these services have taken into consideration several factors such as comprehensive hygiene practices and thus, is also crucial to other customers. However, understanding the basic concept of halal practice and the rationale of its implementation is very crucial before one can commit to its practice. This study contributes to the advancement of knowledge through the elaboration of a case study, which demonstrates the application of halal concept into logistics service practices. Research impact: This study introduces a new concept of halal logistics, which applies the concept of halal into logistics. The needs to initiate more logistics services that are based on halal concept are crucial in meeting the needs of the increasing demand by the customers. Practical impact: The findings provide insights to the practitioners of the importance in implementating halal logistics services. It also indicates the needs for logistics companies to be innovative in creating more halal logistics services to fulfill these demands

Innovation in logistics services – halal logistics

Purpose: The expansion of liberalization of trade and services has forced companies to consider the global market demand in their competitive strategic planning. Hence, business organisations need to be continuously as innovation could promise potential growth and development so as to gain competitive advantage in being ahead in the market. Specifically, supply chain has always been viewed as the most important areas to be innovated as it would be an effective means to gain efficiencies and eliminate accumulating competitive pressures and thus increasing innovations. Thus, the purpose of this study is to present a case study that demonstrates an innovation created in the logistics services, i.e. halal logistics services, as to fulfil the increasing demand of the customers throughout the world particularly the rising number of Muslim population. Research approach: This study uses case study approach to elaborate the implementation of halal logistics practice. In achieving the objective, related literature concerning the halal concept is reviewed and explained to provide better understandings of the concept and how it is applied to logistics services. The emphasis on the innovativeness of this concept is also included. The data for the case study is gained from in-depth interviews with the corporate and operation managers of two leading logistics service providers in Malaysia, who are the subjects of the case. Findings and Originality: This study found new logistics services that are able to fulfil the growing demand of the customers especially the increasing number of Muslims. This is important as these services have taken into consideration several factors such as comprehensive hygiene practices and thus, is also crucial to other customers. However, understanding the basic concept of halal practice and the rationale of its implementation is very crucial before one can commit to its practice. This study contributes to the advancement of knowledge through the elaboration of a case study, which demonstrates the application of halal concept into logistics service practices. Research impact: This study introduces a new concept of halal logistics, which applies the concept of halal into logistics. The needs to initiate more logistics services that are based on halal concept are crucial in meeting the needs of the increasing demand by the customers. Practical impact: The findings provide insights to the practitioners of the importance in implementating halal logistics services. It also indicates the needs for logistics companies to be innovative in creating more halal logistics services to fulfill these demands