Keusahawanan sering dianggap sebagai subjek yang lebih cenderung kepada pelajar dalam bidang perniagaan tetapi tidak untuk pelajar yang mempunyai pelbagai kemahiran yang terlibat dalam bidang teknikal. Namun, ini adalah satu tanggapan yang tidak seharusnya wujud kerana Malaysia seharusnya perlu mengenal pasti kesedaran keusahawanan dalam bidang teknikal. Pada masa kini, kesedaran keusahawanan dalam bidang teknikal tertentu adalah kurang lantaran program keusahawanan lazimnya lebih tertumpu kepada pelajar InstitusiPengajian Tinggi (IPT). Misalnya, Pembangunan Keusahawanan Bumiputera adalah lebih tertumpu kepada golongan siswazah IPT, belia dan wanita. Dasar Pembangunan Keusahawanan IPT juga diperkenalkan agar modal insan dengan daya pemikiran, atribut dan nilai keusahawanan dalam kalangan IPT tempatan dapat dilahirkan. Tujuan kajian ini dijalankan adalah untuk mengenal pasti tahap kesedaran keusahawanan dalam kalangan pelajar Institut Latihan Perindustrian (ILP) di Terengganu berhubung dengan faktor keusahawanan dari aspek individu usahawan yang berbeza serta struktur dan persekitaran perniagaan. Seterusnya, mengkaji hubungan antara kesedaran keusahawanan dengan pembolehubah tidak bersandar lain yang berkait dengan kajian seperti ciri keusahawanan dan cabaran keusahawanan. Kaedah kuantitatif telah digunakan dan borang soal selidik diedarkan kepada 280 orang pelajar. Hasil analisis regresi berganda menunjukkan bahawa cabaran keusahawanan merangkumi sikap dan minat, kemahiran keusahawanan serta pendidikan dan pengetahuan keusahawanan merupakan elemen paling signifikan yang mempengaruhi kesedaran keusahawanan dalam kalangan pelajar berkemahiran diILP untuk menjadi seorang usahawan. Oleh itu, adalah sangat penting bagi kerajaan Malaysiauntuk memberi perhatian terhadap cabaran yang dihadapi oleh para pelajar ini dan mengambil tindakan terhadap segala kemungkinan yang boleh mempengaruhi atau memberi kesan kepada minat pelajar terhadap keusahawanan pada masa akan datang.
In this study, dynamic vulcanization process was used to improve the thermal properties of calcium carbonate filled composites. The composites were prepared using a Z-blade mixer at 180oC and rotor speed 50rpm. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) techniques were used to analyze the thermal properties of the composites. The vulcanized and unvulcanized PP/EPDM composites were filled by CaCO3 at 0, 10, 20, 30, and 40 %wt. Meanwhile, thermogravimetric analysis indicates that the total weight loss of PP/EPDM/CaCO3 composites decreased with increasing filler loading. Dynamic vulcanized composites have higher thermal stability, while the crystallinity of PP/EPDM/CaCO3 composites were increased as compared to unvulcanized composites. Therefore, the thermal properties were improved by the presence of
dynamic vulcanization process.
A chemical modifier (acrylic acid) was used to improve the thermal properties of polypropylene/ ethylene propylene diene terpolymer/calcium carbonate (PP/EPDM/CaCO3) composites. Treated
and untreated PP/EPDM composites were filled by CaCO3 at 0, 20 and 40% wt. The composites
were prepared using Z-blade mixer machine at 180oC and 50 rpm of rotor speed. Thermogravimetric
analysis (TGA) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) methods were used to analyze the thermal properties of the composites. Thermogravimetric analysis indicated that the total weight loss of PP/EPDM/CaCO3 composites decreased with the increasing filler loading for the treated and untreated composites. Meanwhile, the presence of acrylic acid was found to have increased the thermal stability and crystallinity of PP/EPDM/CaCO3
.
BACKGROUND: Acute life threatening presentations of thyroid disease are uncommon. The aim of this study was to review our experience of emergency thyroid surgery with regard to the incidence, management and outcome to this approach.
METHODS: Forty patients who underwent emergency thyroid surgery from December 1998 to December 2007 were prospectively accrued in this study. There were 30 female and 10 male patients. The mean age was 63.8 years (range, 33-83 years). All patients had total thyroidectomy, except one patient who only had a right hemithyroidectomy for a dominant right multinodular goiter. Eight of the patients had been intubated before referring to our centre.
RESULTS: The mean weight of specimen was 219 g (range, 32-800 g). A histopathology report confirmed 16 patients had multinodular goiters, eight patients had papillary thyroid carcinomas, seven patients had anaplastic cancers, four patients had follicular thyroid carcinomas, two patients had thyroid lymphoma, one patient had medullary carcinoma, one patient had sarcoma and one patient had thyroid abscess. A total of 28 patients were discharged well postoperatively.
CONCLUSION: Acute life threatening presentations of thyroid disease are uncommon. However, early recognition of these problems is crucial and may life saving. Emergency thyroidectomy is important to release the critically obstructed airways. Nonetheless it is associated with higher risk of surgery and complication rate then any elective thyroid surgery.
ABSTRACT
Academic achievement may be influenced by catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT)
polymorphism. A common functional polymorphism of COMT, the rs4680 is consistently being
involved in the modulation of dopaminergic pathway and prefrontal cortex function which may
predominantly affect cognitive functions. A total of 197 female participants were recruited in this
study. The score of student’s grade point average (GPA) from the latest previous semester was
used as the measurement of academic achievement. The COMT polymorphism was genotyped
using tetra primer allele specific polymerase chain reaction. The findings indicated that there
were 8 (4.1 %), 72 (36.5 %), and 117 (59.4 %) participants harbouring Met/Met, Met/Val, and
Val/Val genotype for COMT polymorphism respectively. All the genotype distributions of
COMT polymorphism were consistent with Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium (χ2 = 0.495, p > 0.05).
The one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) result demonstrated that participants bearing
Met/Met genotype had a better achievement in GPA as compared to the other COMT genotypes
(p = 0.001). These findings support evidence that the affective role of COMT polymorphism
might overwhelm cognitive abilities in measures of academic achievement like GPA.