The New England health-care experiment

Several ambitious health-care policies are being tested in New England. The most far-reaching, in Massachusetts, is premised on shared responsibility. Government, employers, insurers, providers, and patients all have obligations and benefits.Health care reform - New England

Human Resource Management And The Performance Of Selected Small And Medium Manufacturing Enterprises

Despite many studies on human resource management can be found in the literature, until recently, studies on the moderating effects of this factor on the relationship between innovation and firm performance are hardly existent. In filling the literature gap, this study attempts to address the questions of how HRM practices and its interactions with innovation affect the performance of SMEs. Two hundred eighty-four samples were obtained from the food and beverage, textile and clothing and wood-based small and medium manufacturing enterprises in Malaysia. Using the multiple regression analysis, this study found that human resource management practices in terms of employee and employer’s trainings interacted with innovation and significantly affected the performance of SMEs. Keywords: Human Resource Management, Innovation, Firm Performance, Malaysi

The importance of personal financial planning: a study of Maxis Berhad / Rohaida Rosman

Based on AKPK’s report, they have assisted 53,000 individuals with debts totaling RM5 billion since 2006. It shows that, here in Malaysia, most of us are not wise in dealing and planning our own personal finance. Where in the past, the personal financial planning was not an issue but today, this matter has become one of the must-to-know issues. The reason is that most of the public has been living in the dark on how to manage their own personal finance and they eventually end up suffer with financial problems and some might even been declared bankrupt. Based on the findings, in summary, some might have consciousness in personal financial planning, but the consciousness on that matter does not seem to give any atomic impact to their attitudes towards personal financial planning. Meanwhile, financial knowledge has given more impact to an individual’s attitudes towards personal financial planning. The reason is that, those high conscious individuals may not making the right steps in planning for their personal finance if they do not have the knowledge on personal financial planning. Thus, this research is conducted to study the importance of personal finance among Maxis employees. Employees at Maxis come from all walks of life. Some of them have been working for more than 10 years. Therefore, basically, this research aims to determine how many percents of employees in Maxis have knowledge and consciousness in personal finance and how that will affect their way of managing their personal finance and are the way they manage their personal finance align with the knowledge and consciousness they claimed they have

BIOSINTESIS MENTHOL PADA BERBAGAI PERIODE PENCAHAYAAN TANAMAN MENTHA (Mentha piperita L.)

ABSTRAKPenelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengkaji mekanisme sintesis mentholpada berbagai periode pencahayaan tanaman M. piperita L. Penelitiandilakukan di Instalasi Penelitian Balai Penelitian Tanaman Obat danAromatik, Lembang, Jawa Barat, dari bulan Januari 2000 hingga Juli 2000.Penelitian dilakukan tiga tahap. Tahap pertama membuat variasilingkungan cahaya, tahap kedua penyulingan dan analisis komponenminyak dengan kromatografi gas spektrometer massa dan tahap ketigamerunut lintasan biosintesis menthol. Penelitian menggunakan rancanganacak kelompok 5 perlakuan, yaitu L 0 (panjang hari normal sebagaikontrol), L 1 (pemutusan periode gelap 1 jam, pukul 21.00-22.00 mulaiumur 30 hari), L 2  (pemutusan periode gelap 1 jam, pukul 21.00-22.00mulai umur 60 hari), L 3 (penambahan cahaya 4 jam, pukul 18.00-22.00mulai umur 30 hari), dan L 4 (penambahan cahaya 4 jam, pukul 18.00-22.00 mulai umur 60 hari). Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwaperubahan lingkungan mempengaruhi mekanisme sintesis menthol didalam tanaman Mentha piperita L. Perubahan lingkungan mengubahlintasan menthol yang selanjutnya mengubah komponen minyak dan mutumenthol. Tingginya kadar menthol dan rendahnya menthofuran padapenambahan cahaya 4 jam terjadi melalui penghambatan pembentukansenyawa menthofuran dengan mereduksi pulegon menjadi menthol,sehingga menthol meningkat, sedangkan pada perlakuan kontrol terjadioksidasi pulegon ke menthofuran sehingga menthol rendah. Penambahancahaya 4 jam mulai umur 30 hari setelah tanam menghasilkan minyakdengan kadar menthol paling tinggi yaitu 54,89% dan menthofuran palingrendah yaitu 7,83%.Kata kunci :  Mentha, Mentha piperita L., periode pencahayaan, hasil,komposisi minyak, Jawa BaratABSTRACTThe effect of photoperiod on menthol sysnthesis ofMentha piperita L.Research on the effect of photoperiod on menthol synthesis ofMentha piperita L, was carried out at the Experimental Garden of InstituteReseach for Medicinal and Aromatic Crops, Lembang, West Java, fromJanuary until July, 2000. The objective is to study the machanism ofmenthol synthesis in relation with the manipulation of light periode, threesteps were taken: The first step was manipulation of environment using TLlamps (two experiments), the second step was distillation and analisis ofpeppermint oil from their products with gas chromatography and massspectrometry, and the third step was tracing the pathway on mentholbiosynthesis. At the first experiment, 5 treatments were given i.e. (1)control or normal light period, (2) four hours light supplement at the age of30 days and 60 days after planting, and (3) one hour interruption of darkperiod at the age of 30 days and 60 days. The result showed that the effectof light period manipulation can change the pathway of mentholbiosynthesis and oil component and finally the quality of menthol. Fourhours light supplement at the age of 30 days after planting could enhancethe menthol content and reduce menthofuran by blocking the reaction frompulegone to menthofuran, so the pulegone was reduced into menthon andmenthol. Four hours light supplement at 30 days after planting showed thehighest menthol content (54.89%) and the lowest menthofuran (7.83%).Control treatment (normal light period) showed the lowest mentholcontent, due to no reduction of pulegone into menthon, but pulegone wasoxidized into menthofuran. Without additional light the menthol contentdecreased and the menthofuran content increased.Key words : Mentha, Mentha piperita L., oil composition, photoperiod,yield, West Jav