Effect of Different Mycorrhiza Treatments on Spore Counts in Oil Palm Topsoil

Mycorrhiza fungi are pivotal in oil palm cultivation, offering potential for enhanced growth and a reduced need for chemical fertilizers. However, the effectiveness of varying volumes and application timings of mycorrhiza remains an underexplored area. This gap, especially in the context of nursery-stage oil palm topsoil, challenges the advancement of sustainable cultivation practices. Addressing this, our study sought to evaluate the impact of different mycorrhiza volumes on spore counts in oil palm topsoil at nursery. Over a period of four months, we administered three levels of mycorrhiza treatments (0.5g, 1.0g, and 1.5g per plant) and conducted a thorough analysis using a 2-way ANOVA. The results revealed no statistically significant difference in spore counts due to varying mycorrhiza weights, as indicated by an F-value of 1.67 and a p-value of 0.209. However, the time factor, represented by different months, showed a significant impact on spore counts, with an F-value of 4.36 and a p-value of 0.014. Additionally, the interaction between mycorrhiza weight and month did not significantly influence spore counts, evidenced by an F-value of 0.31 and a p-value of 0.928. This study underscores the importance of temporal factors over mycorrhiza volume in oil palm nurseries and contributes valuable insights for optimizing sustainable cultivation practices

Comparative Analysis of Oil Content in Dura and Tenera Palm Fruit Varieties

The oil palm (Elaeis guineensis Jacq.) is a vital crop in global agriculture, known for its high oil production. Among the oil palm varieties, Dura and Tenera stand out as the most prominent fruit types. Despite the economic significance of the oil palm, there has been limited research aimed at thoroughly examining the components of oil content between Dura and Tenera fruits. It is crucial to comprehend how these fruit types affect oil content, particularly in terms of the percentage of oil to bunch (OTB%), percentage of oil to fruit (OTF%), and percentage of oil to dry mesocarp (%OTDM), as this knowledge is crucial in determining the quality of oil palm cultivation and ensuring sustainable oil production. This study seeks to bridge the existing knowledge gap by investigating the influence of different fruit types, Dura and Tenera, on %OTF, %OTB, and %OTDM. We have gathered a dataset of %OTF, %OTB, and %OTDM from oil palm plantations representing both Dura and Tenera fruit types. Our analysis reveals substantial differences in the percentages of %OTF, %OTB, and %OTDM between Dura and Tenera oil palm fruit types. Particularly noteworthy is the significant variation in the oil-to-fruit percentage, underscoring a marked distinction between Tenera and Dura palms, characterized by a p-value of 0.00 and a robust t-value of 11.56 by using the statistical examination. This finding aligns with the industry's perception of Tenera as a superior cultivar for oil yield, supported by its significantly higher oil accumulation within individual fruits

Comparative Analysis of Bunch Weight and Fruit-to-Bunch Ratio Between Dura and Tenera Oil Palm Varieties

Oil palm (Elaeis guineensis Jacq.), a vital crop in global agriculture known for its high oil yield, predominantly features two fruit types: Dura and Tenera. Despite their economic importance, there's a paucity of research on how these varieties differ in bunch weight and fruit-to-bunch ratio, key factors in optimizing oil palm cultivation and promoting sustainable practices. This study addresses this knowledge gap by examining the influence of Dura and Tenera fruit types on these parameters. We gathered data on bunch weight and fruit-to-bunch percentage from plantations cultivating both varieties. Our findings indicate Dura had a marginally higher mean bunch weight (18.88 kg) compared to Tenera (17.30 kg), and a similar trend was observed in the fruit-to-bunch ratio, with Dura at 73.29% and Tenera at 66.15%. These results suggest that the choice of fruit type should be a consideration in planting strategies. Further investigation is warranted into the genetic and environmental contributors to these observed disparities

Does The Smart Tourism Experience in Malaysia Increase Local Tourists' Happiness and Revisit Intentions?

Nowadays, the term "smart" has become popular in reflecting technological advancements in social and economic improvement, as well as knowledge and information exchange. The advent of smart technology has empowered everything to be more connected, informed, and conveniently involved with clients, especially in the global tourism industry. Malaysia, on the other hand, has less research on the use of smart tourism since it is still in the early stages of development, and tourism locations are still seeking their own rhythm to thrive. In addition, there is a lack of a specific framework, numerous global-scale crises with negative impacts on tourist arrivals and the environment, and poor digitalization, which has resulted in a drop-off in tourist experiences and tourism development. This study was carried out to investigate whether local tourists are satisfied with the smart tourism technology experience in Malaysia and to explore whether smart tourism technology has a positive effect on tourists’ happiness. An online questionnaire was created using Google Form, distributed through WhatsApp, Telegram, Facebook, Instagram from May 1, 2021, to August 1, 2021, and completed by 529 participants. The results suggested the majority (> 90%) of local tourists in Malaysia found difficulty searching for information about the local attractions in each state of Malaysia during travel, which caused a greater decline in their excitement to do local traveling. With reliable centralized mobile apps that exist for all tourism sectors in Malaysia, research finding showed that it could increase tourist’s revisit intention and happiness, which consequently boosts the revenue of the economy. &nbsp

BASELINE ASSESSMENT OF STREAM MACROINVERTEBRATE COMMUNITIES AND SEDIMENT NUTRIENT CONTENT IN PANTI FOREST RESERVE, MALAYSIA: IMPLICATIONS FOR BIODIVERSITY AND ECOSYSTEM FUNCTION

Protected regions, such as Malaysia's Panti Forest Reserve (PFR), play a vital role in preserving freshwater biodiversity. However, the absence of baseline data on stream macroinvertebrates and sediment nutrient contents presents a significant challenge. This study, conducted from August 21-24, 2022, as part of the Panti Expedition organized by the Johor State Forestry Department, aimed to investigate the current nutrient flows and stream macroinvertebrates in PFR, providing preliminary assessments. Utilizing kick and grab sampling techniques, we collected stream macroinvertebrates and benthic sediments along the entire upstream-to-downstream gradient of Pelepah Kiri and Gunung Muntahak. Our findings revealed a diverse assemblage of 385 macroinvertebrates from 28 distinct families, with notable abundance observed in Baetidae (14.0%), Simuliidae (10.6%), and Hydropsychidae (10.6%). The analysis of overall taxonomic composition indicated a Jaccard index similarity of 0.64, suggesting overlapping communities between the two sites. Predators were significantly more abundant in Pelepah Kiri, while collectors were more abundant in Gunung Muntahak. The expedition trails exhibited varying levels of moisture content (ranging from 17.2% to 31.3%), total organic carbon content (≤ 0.4%), and total nitrogen levels (ranging from 1,330 mg/kg to 3,180 mg/kg), while phosphorus loading remained undetectable due to low concentration levels. Nutrient analyses indicated no significant impact of total nitrogen on macroinvertebrate family richness, abundance, and diversity. The study's biological metrics demonstrated good stream quality, with taxa richness ranging from 21 to 20 and EPT taxa richness ranging from 6 to 10. These results highlight the diverse freshwater macroinvertebrate communities in PFR, suggesting the maintenance of favorable water quality for biodiversity preservation. Overall, this study provides critical baseline data for future conservation management strategies in PFR, contributing to our understanding of the intricate connections between nutrient dynamics and stream macroinvertebrates in protected area

End to End Text to Speech Synthesis for Malay Language using Tacotron and Tacotron 2

Text-to-speech (TTS) technology is becoming increasingly popular in various fields such as education and business. However, the advancement of TTS technology for Malay language is slower compared to other language especially English language. The rise of artificial intelligence (AI) technology has sparked TTS technology into a new dimension. An end-to-end (E2E) TTS system that generates speech directly from text input is one of the latest AI technologies for TTS and implementing this E2E method into Malay language will help to expand the TTS technology for Malay language. This study involves the development and comparison of two end-to-end TTS models for the Malay language, namely Tacotron and Tacotron 2. Both models were trained using a Malay corpus consisting of text and speech and evaluated the synthesized speech using Mean Opinion Scores (MOS) for naturalness and intelligibility. The results show that Tacotron outperformed Tacotron 2 in terms of naturalness and intelligibility, with both models falling short of human speech quality. Improving TTS technology for Malay can encourage its use in a wider range of contexts