The implementation of the Tsunami Livelihood Restoration Project: Progress report 2005

Natural disasters / Rehabilitation / Living conditions / Farmers’ associations / Sri Lanka / Hambantota District

The Moderating Effect of Gender on Self-Image and House Purchase Intention in Sri Lanka

Self-image is one of the major consumer behaviour constructs that play a major role in house purchase intention. In this context, moderating impact of gender between self-image and house purchasing intention is uncertain and ambiguous. The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of gender moderation on the relationship between self-image and house purchasing intention. The quantitative research method was used for this study. Potential luxury housing buyers in Sri Lanka were used as a population of the study and a structured questionnaire survey was conducted to collect data. The sample size of the study is 100.  Four hypotheses were developed for the study and those hypothesized were analysed using Partial Least Square (PLS) analysis. The findings reveal that actual self-image and house purchase intention have a significant positive relationship and there is no relationship between ideal self-image and house purchase intention. Further, the study failed to support that gender moderates the relationship between self-image (actual and ideal) and house purchasing intention. The present findings of the study will be beneficial for real estate developers, real estate marketers/managers, and academia, relating to the house purchase intention in the luxury housing market. © 2022 The Authors. Published by Department of Estate Management and Valuation, University of Sri Jayewardenepura.   Keywords: Consumer Behaviour, Self-image, Actual Self-image, Ideal self-image, House Purchase Intention, House Buying Behaviou

A rare variant of the superficial ulnar artery, and its clinical implications: a case report

The superficial ulnar artery is a rare variation of the upper limb arterial system that arises from the brachial or axillary artery and runs superficial to the muscles arising from the medial epicondyle [1-3]. The incidence is about 0.7 to 7% [1,4,5]. In our routine dissections we found a superficial ulnar artery, which crossed the cubital fossa superficial to the bicipital aponeurosis making it highly vulnerable to intra-arterial injection. This is a rare variation that every medical and nursing staff member should know about

Past, present and future mathematical models for buildings (i)

This is the first of two articles presenting a detailed review of the historical evolution of mathematical models applied in the development of building technology, including conventional buildings and intelligent buildings. After presenting the technical differences between conventional and intelligent buildings, this article reviews the existing mathematical models, the abstract levels of these models, and their links to the literature for intelligent buildings. The advantages and limitations of the applied mathematical models are identified and the models are classified in terms of their application range and goal. We then describe how the early mathematical models, mainly physical models applied to conventional buildings, have faced new challenges for the design and management of intelligent buildings and led to the use of models which offer more flexibility to better cope with various uncertainties. In contrast with the early modelling techniques, model approaches adopted in neural networks, expert systems, fuzzy logic and genetic models provide a promising method to accommodate these complications as intelligent buildings now need integrated technologies which involve solving complex, multi-objective and integrated decision problems

Past, present and future mathematical models for buildings (ii)

This article is the second part of a review of the historical evolution of mathematical models applied in the development of building technology. The first part described the current state of the art and contrasted various models with regard to the applications to conventional buildings and intelligent buildings. It concluded that mathematical techniques adopted in neural networks, expert systems, fuzzy logic and genetic models, that can be used to address model uncertainty, are well suited for modelling intelligent buildings. Despite the progress, the possible future development of intelligent buildings based on the current trends implies some potential limitations of these models. This paper attempts to uncover the fundamental limitations inherent in these models and provides some insights into future modelling directions, with special focus on the techniques of semiotics and chaos. Finally, by demonstrating an example of an intelligent building system with the mathematical models that have been developed for such a system, this review addresses the influences of mathematical models as a potential aid in developing intelligent buildings and perhaps even more advanced buildings for the future

Weather correlates of Campylobacter prevalence in broilers at slaughter under tropical conditions in Sri Lanka.

Campylobacter is the primary agent of human bacterial gastroenteritis worldwide. In contrast to temperate zones, weather effects on Campylobacter prevalence in broilers under tropical conditions are under-researched. We examined the association between weather and Campylobacter prevalence in slaughtered broilers in Sri Lanka, a tropical country with weather variations led by monsoons. Each month (October 2009-July 2011), 20-30 broiler batches referring to two semi-automated slaughterhouses from five Sri Lankan provinces were tested for Campylobacter contamination and analysed in relation to temperature, humidity and rainfall. Overall prevalence was 63.8% (95% CI 59.6-67.9%, n = 542), peaking in September-November. Each 1 °C increase in monthly mean temperature up to 26 °C increased Campylobacter-positive batches by 16.4% (95% CI 0.4-35.1%). For each 10 mm increase in monthly total rainfall up to 300 mm, Campylobacter-positive batches increased significantly by 0.8% (0.1-1.5%) at 1-month lag. For each 1% increase in relative humidity up to 80% at 1- and 2-month lags, Campylobacter-positive batches increased of respectively 4.2% (1.9-6.7%) and 4.0% (1.5-6.5), and decreased by 3.6% (2.6-4.6%) and 4.0% (2.6-5.4%) for unit increases above 80%. These results suggest that even in tropical countries without marked seasons, there are weather effects possibly reflecting Campylobacter potential to colonise its preferred host and/or survive in the environment

Weather correlates of Campylobacter prevalence in broilers at slaughter under tropical conditions in Sri Lanka

Campylobacter is the primary agent of human bacterial gastroenteritis worldwide. In contrast to temperate zones, weather effects on Campylobacter prevalence in broilers under tropical conditions are under-researched. We examined the association between weather and Campylobacter prevalence in slaughtered broilers in Sri Lanka, a tropical country with weather variations led by monsoons. Each month (October 2009-July 2011), 20-30 broiler batches referring to two semi-automated slaughterhouses from five Sri Lankan provinces were tested for Campylobacter contamination and analysed in relation to temperature, humidity and rainfall. Overall prevalence was 63.8% (95% CI 59.6-67.9%, n = 542), peaking in September-November. Each 1 °C increase in monthly mean temperature up to 26 °C increased Campylobacter-positive batches by 16.4% (95% CI 0.4-35.1%). For each 10 mm increase in monthly total rainfall up to 300 mm, Campylobacter-positive batches increased significantly by 0.8% (0.1-1.5%) at 1-month lag. For each 1% increase in relative humidity up to 80% at 1- and 2-month lags, Campylobacter-positive batches increased of respectively 4.2% (1.9-6.7%) and 4.0% (1.5-6.5), and decreased by 3.6% (2.6-4.6%) and 4.0% (2.6-5.4%) for unit increases above 80%. These results suggest that even in tropical countries without marked seasons, there are weather effects possibly reflecting Campylobacter potential to colonise its preferred host and/or survive in the environment