An investigation of tourists' destination image, satisfaction and destination loyalty: Batu Ferringghi Beach, Penang

This study compares local and international tourists regarding to their perception towards destination image, overall satisfaction and destination loyalty with their visit(s) to Batu Ferringhi Beach, Penang.This research was also conducted to examine the relationship between destination images, tourist satisfaction and destination loyalty towards Batu Ferringghi.The data were collected from 254 local and international tourists at Batu Ferringhi Beach from August to September 2013 by using convenience sampling technique.Local and international tourists differed in their views of Batu Ferringghi in the aspect of safety, cleanliness, scenic and tourists‘ satisfaction.Both groups would revisit Batu Ferringghi and recommend Batu Ferringhito others.Regression analysis revealed that three destination image including safety, cleanliness and scenic has a direct effect on tourists‘ satisfaction and destination loyalty and tourists‘ satisfaction has a direct effect on destination loyalty

CP and Lepton-Number Violation in GUT Neutrino Models with Abelian Flavour Symmetries

We study the possible magnitudes of CP and lepton-number-violating quantities in specific GUT models of massive neutrinos with different Abelian flavour groups, taking into account experimental constraints and requiring successful leptogenesis. We discuss SU(5) and flipped SU(5) models that are consistent with the present data on neutrino mixing and upper limits on the violations of charged-lepton flavours and explore their predictions for the CP-violating oscillation and Majorana phases. In particular, we discuss string-derived flipped SU(5) models with selection rules that modify the GUT structure and provide additional constraints on the operators, which are able to account for the magnitudes of some of the coefficients that are often set as arbitrary parameters in generic Abelian models.Comment: 30 pages, 6 figure

Microcraters in aluminum foils exposed by Stardust

We will present preliminary results on the nature and size frequency distribution of microcraters that formed in aluminum foils during the flyby of comet Wild 2 by the Stardust spacecraft

Familial aggregation and heritability of type 1 diabetes mellitus and coaggregation of chronic diseases in affected families

Purpose: To estimate the extent of familial aggregation of type 1 diabetes (T1D) and coaggregation of related chronic diseases and assess the relative contribution of environmental and genetic factors on the risks. Patients and methods: This population-based study used the Taiwan National Health Insurance database to reconstruct family structure and identify people with T1D and other chronic diseases between 1999 and 2015. Relative risks (RRs) for T1D and other chronic diseases and heritability of T1D were estimated. Heritability was estimated using the polygenic liability model. Results: Validation of family structure found the positive predictive value to be 98.7% for maternal links and 98.6% for paternal links. Having an affected twin, first-degree relative, or spouse was associated with an adjusted RR (95% CI) of 553.66 (427.59-716.89), 32.49 (28.66-36.84), and 2.17 (0.31-15.40) for T1D, respectively. Based on the polygenic liability model, heritability, shared and non-shared contributions to T1D, and variances were 66.50%, 10.86%, and 22.64%, respectively. A family history of T1D was associated with an RR (95% CI) of 1.51 (1.20-1.89) for rheumatoid arthritis, 1.66 (1.21-2.26) for Sjogren's syndrome, 1.48 (1.09-2.01) for systemic lupus erythematosus, 1.24 (1.14-1.35) for simple goiter, 1.16 (1.04-1.31) for non-toxic nodular goiter, 1.61 (1.49-1.74) for thyrotoxicosis, 1.78 (1.57-2.01) for acquired hypothyroidism, 1.66 (1.40-1.98) for thyroiditis, and 1.15 (0.97-1.37) for epilepsy. Conclusion: These data highlight the importance of the genetic contribution to T1D and confirm the coaggregation of autoimmune and metabolic diseases with T1D

Large and Almost Maximal Neutrino Mixing within the Type II See-Saw Mechanism

Within the type II see-saw mechanism the light neutrino mass matrix is given by a sum of a direct (or triplet) mass term and the conventional (type I) see-saw term. Both versions of the see-saw mechanism explain naturally small neutrino masses, but the type II scenario offers interesting additional possibilities to explain large or almost maximal or vanishing mixings which are discussed in this paper. We first introduce ``type II enhancement'' of neutrino mixing, where moderate cancellations between the two terms can lead to large neutrino mixing even if all individual mass matrices and terms generate small mixing. However, nearly maximal or vanishing mixings are not naturally explained in this way, unless there is a certain initial structure (symmetry) which enforces certain elements of the matrices to be identical or related in a special way. We therefore assume that the leading structure of the neutrino mass matrix is the triplet term and corresponds to zero U_{e3} and maximal theta_{23}. Small but necessary corrections are generated by the conventional see-saw term. Then we assume that one of the two terms corresponds to an extreme mixing scenario, such as bimaximal or tri-bimaximal mixing. Deviations from this scheme are introduced by the second term. One can mimic Quark-Lepton Complementarity in this way. Finally, we note that the neutrino mass matrix for tri-bimaximal mixing can be -- depending on the mass hierarchy -- written as a sum of two terms with simple structure. Their origin could be the two terms of type II see-saw.Comment: 25 pages. Comments and references added, to appear in JHE

Revisiting Bimaximal Neutrino Mixing in a Model with S4 Discrete Symmetry

In view of the fact that the data on neutrino mixing are still compatible with a situation where Bimaximal mixing is valid in first approximation and it is then corrected by terms of order of the Cabibbo angle, arising from the diagonalization of the charged lepton masses, we construct a model based on the discrete group S4 where those properties are naturally realized. The model is supersymmetric in 4-dimensions and the complete flavour group is S4 x Z4 x U(1)_FN, which also allows to reproduce the hierarchy of the charged lepton spectrum. The only fine tuning needed in the model is to reproduce the small observed value of r, the ratio between the neutrino mass squared differences. Once the relevant parameters are set to accommodate r then the spectrum of light neutrinos shows a moderate normal hierarchy and is compatible, within large ambiguities, with the constraints from leptogenesis as an explanation of the baryon asymmetry in the Universe.Comment: 30 pages, 5 figures; added reference

Fine-Scale Mapping of the 5q11.2 Breast Cancer Locus Reveals at Least Three Independent Risk Variants Regulating MAP3K1

Peer reviewe

Processing optimization and characterization of gelatin from catfish (Clarias gariepinus) skin

The extraction of catfish (Clarias gariepinus) skin gelatin was optimized by using response surface methodology (RSM) employing a central composite design (CCD). RSM with 3-factors, 5-levels CCD was carried out for the optimization. The independent variables were suggested which include NaOH concentration (0.07-0.23 mol/L), acetic acid concentration (0.04-0.14 mol/L) and extraction temperature (40-80°C) with the percentage of hydroxyproline recovery (Y) as dependant variable. A maximum Y of 65.32% for gelatin processing was obtained using a combination of 0.13 mol/L NaOH and 0.09 mol/L acetic acid for 1 h, followed by a hot-water extraction at 64.92°C for 3 h. The results indicated a high protein content (88.46 g/100 g) in the extracted gelatin with a viscosity of 3.45 mPa.s, 286.71 g gel strength and 173 residues per 1000 residues of imino acids (proline and hydroxyproline). Furthermore, the gelatin from catfish also showed a relatively good instrumental texture quality according to texture profile analysis (TPA)

Study of theory and phenomenology of some classes of family symmetry and unification models

We review and compare theoretically and phenomenologically a number of possible family symmetries, which when combined with unification, could be important in explaining quark, lepton and neutrino masses and mixings, providing new results in several cases. Theoretical possibilities include abelian or non-abelian, symmetric or non symmetric Yukawa matrices, Grand Unification or not. Our main focus is on anomaly-free U(1) family symmetry combined with SU(5) unification, although we also discuss other possibilities. We provide a detailed phenomenological fit of the fermion masses and mixings for several examples, and discuss the supersymmetric flavour issues in such theories, including a detailed analysis of lepton flavour violation. We show that it is not possible to quantitatively and decisively discriminate between these different theoretical possibilities at the present time

Exceptional supersymmetric standard models with non-abelian discrete family symmetry

We introduce a non-Abelian discrete ?27 family symmetry into the recently proposed classes of Exceptional Supersymmetric Standard Model (E6SSM) based on a broken E6 Grand Unified Theory (GUT) in order to solve the flavour problem in these models and in particular to account for tri-bimaximal neutrino mixing. We consider both the minimal version of the model (the ME6SSM) with gauge coupling unification at the string scale and the E6SSM broken via the Pati-Salam chain with gauge coupling unification at the conventional GUT scale. In both models there are low energy exotic colour triplets with couplings suppressed by the symmetries of the model, including the family symmetry. This leads to suppressed proton decay and long lived TeV mass colour triplet states with striking signatures at the LHC