Improving organizational performance is the main objective of any organization. Six
Sigma is one of the most important approaches to improve performance and sustain
competitive advantage. This article reviewed the literature related to organizational
performance and explains the potential impact of Six Sigma and innovation culture on
organizational performance. Given that previous studies have reported inconclusive
results, this paper tries to establish a mechanism to explain the role of Six Sigma in
improving organizational performance. Therefore, based on the theoretical foundation
and comprehensive review of previous literature, a research framework is proposed.
This proposed framework is grounded in the implementation of Six Sigma projects; it
also establishes that innovation culture can help organizations to achieve success in a
turbulent business environment.
Blood donation is important for lives saving and the need is unceasing. However, the shortage of blood supply
is a common issue. While the public is the main source of blood donation, it is unknown whether they are
aware about it. This study was carried out to determine the public's knowledge, perceptions and barriers
towards blood donation. Atotal of 384 male and female respondents were conveniently selected to participate
in this study. Data was collected through self-administered questionnaire and analyzed with SPSS software
version 22.0. Most of the respondents (60.9%) had never donated blood but their knowledge towards blood
donation was high (79.9%). Some misconceptions were indicated among respondents. Afraid of the needle
prick, pain or discomfort were the top barriers among non-donors respondents (45.3%). The majority of the
respondents believed that blood donation is a practice or selfless concern for the well-being of others (98.7%).
A significant relationship was indicated between age and level of education with status of blood donation
(p
This research explores the possibility of using fluorescence technique to detect the presence of volatile organic compounds based on a single sensing material. The material used was TiO2 nanoparticles coated with porphyrin dye. The TiO2 nanoparticles colloid is in a sol-gel form synthesized from titanium (IV) ethoxide in ethanol with addition of kalium chloride (KCl) as stabilizer. TiO2 nanoparticles were then coated with porphyrin dye, Manganase (III) 5,10,15,20 tetra (4-pyridyl)-21H, 23H porphine chloride tetrakis (metachloride). The coated nanoparticles were deposited on quartz substrate using self-assembly through dip coating technique. The sensing properties of the thin film toward volatile organic compounds; ethanol, acetone, cyclohexane and 2-propanol were studied using luminescence spectrometer. It was found that the thin film produced different emission spectra peaks for different volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Hence, it eases chemical identification process and potentially be use as fluorescence gas sensor.
Introduction: Internet addiction is an increasingly worrying phenomena affecting people globally especially the youths. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of internet addiction among undergraduate students in a Malaysian public university and its associated factors. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study involving 322 undergraduate students, identified through cluster sampling was conducted using a pretested, self-administered questionnaire. The questionnaire includes socio-demography, use of information technology gadgets and internet usage. Internet Addiction test (IAT) was used to identify internet addiction. Data was analysed using SPSS version 22. Results: From 322 respondents, 25 (7.8%) were categorised as addictive internet users, while 182 (56.5%) were problematic internet users. The commonest online activity includes social networking (86.6%), entertainment (77.3%) and educational purposes (77.0%). From multivariate analysis, problematic and addictive internet use was significantly more common among male students (AOR=2.47, 95% CI [1.43, 4.26]), those who received study loan (AOR=1.93, 95% CI [1.10, 3.39]) and other types of funding (AOR=3.95, 95% CI [1.59, 9.80]) compared to those on scholarships, and those who spent between four to ten hours a day accessing the Internet (AOR=2.43, 95% CI [1.13, 5.23]) compared to those using the Internet for two hours or less a day. Conclusion: The prevalence of problematic and addictive internet use among respondents were higher compared to previous researches among Malaysian adolescents. It is recommended that an awareness programme on responsible use of the internet be conducted to prevent students from becoming addicted which may impact negatively on their educational performance and social life.
Penghasilan CGTase daripada Bacillus sp. G1 berjaya ditingkatkan dengan menggunakan sistem kultur selanjar mengatasi penghasilan daripada kultur kelompok. Aktiviti CGTase tertinggi yang didapati dalam kultur kelompok ialah 28.1 U/ml. Kajian kultur selanjar difokuskan kepada masa kemasukan medium segar yang berbeza (12, 24 dan 48 jam ), kadar pencairan ditetapkan pada 0.03 per jam. Hasil menunjukkan masa memulakan pam medium segar tidak memberi perubahan yang signifikan terhadap aktiviti CGTase (25.7, 26.3 dan 26.1 U/ml masing-masing) dan produktiviti CGTase (0.77, 0.79 dan 0.78 U/ml/j masing-masing) pada keadaan mantap tetapi produktiviti CGTase (0.77 U/ml/j) akan lebih tinggi berbanding produktiviti kultur kelompok apabila masa di antara larian kultur kelompok diambil kira. Malah peningkatan berpotensi ditingkatkan lagi dengan memulakan pam medium segar lebih awal daripada 12 jam dan juga dengan meningkatkan kadar pencairan.
The use of natural fibres obtained from plants and trees as reinforcing materials has attracted many researchers to widen their applications. Natural fibres are low cost, low density, have high specific properties, biodegradable and non-abrasive. Oil palm fibre (OPF) can be obtained directly from natural resource, it is cheap and also has advantages due to its renewable nature, low cost, and easy availability. In this study, the mechanical performances of single oil palm fibre are measured and evaluated. The diameter of OPF was in the range from 250 to 610 μm while moisture content was between 2.2 to 9.5%. The average tensile properties obtained were tensile strength, 71 MPa, Young’s modulus, 1703 MPa and elongation at break, 11%.
Kajian ini meliputi penyediaan simen kalsium fosfat yang terdiri daripada campuran serbuk brushit (DCPD) dan hidroksiapatit (HA) yang dihasilkan secara sintesis dalam makmal. Larutan penimbal digunakan sebagai fasa cecair dan dicampurkan dengan campuran serbuk DCPD dan HA bagi menghasilkan simen tulang secara in situ dengan nisbah cecair kepada serbuk (L/P) antara 0.26 – 0.36 mL g-1. Sodium alginat dan protein soya ditambahkan ke dalam simen kalsium fosfat dan dikaji kesannya terhadap simen yang dihasilkan. Keputusan kajian menunjukkan simen kalsium fosfat dapat dihasilkan pada nisbah L/P 0.32 mL g-1 dengan penambahan 1%bt sodium alginat dan 1%bt protein soya dengan kebolehsuntikan yang maksimum (100%) dan tempoh pengerasan selama 26 min. Penambahan protein soya juga telah meningkatkan kekuatan mampatan simen tulang daripada 2.90 MPa (tanpa protein) kepada 3.98 MPa pada 1.5%bt protein. Simen kalsium fosfat-protein soya yang dihasilkan juga menunjukkan sifat kebioaktifan. Pertumbuhan apatit berlaku pada hari ke-3 selepas rendaman di dalam larutan simulasi badan (SBF) dan membesar dengan perlanjutan tempoh rendaman.
Kajian ini telah dijalankan untuk menyiasat kelakuan pasir penyambung turapan blok konkrit saling mengunci pada jarak sambungan dan kecerunan yang berbeza. Model di makmal yang berukuran 1.2×0.6 (m2) telah dibina dan blok konkrit daripada jenis quadpave yang bersaiz 200×100×60 (mm3) telah digunakan sebagai lapisan atas. Jarak sambungan yang digunakan adalah 2, 4 dan 6 mm dengan kecerunannya adalah 0, 5, 10 dan 15%. Uji kaji tarik keluar dijalankan untuk setiap keadaan. Hasil kajian menunjukkan jarak sambungan 2 mm adalah jarak sambungan yang paling sesuai untuk gunakan pada jalan yang bercerun. Semakin besar jarak sambungan, semakin menurun sifat penguncian antara blok konkrit. Ini berlaku di mana daya yang diperlukan untuk menarik blok keluar semakin mengecil apabila jarak sambungan semakin lebar. Kehadiran air dalam kuantiti yang sedikit menyebabkan pasir pengisi menjadi lebih mampat tetapi apabila air terlalu banyak, hakisan akan berlaku. Kajian ini mencadangkan kecerunan maksimum penggunaan turapan blok konkrit saling mengunci adalah sehingga 10% untuk mengelakkan hakisan pasir pada penyambung dan juga penurunan sifat penguncian antara blok konkrit.
Fresh frozen plasma (FFP) is prepared within 8-10 hours after collection to ensure preservation of coagulation factors however, adherence to this time is a challenge. Extended processing time is an option to overcome it. This study was done to evaluate haemostatic proteins after extended time. Methods: Blood collected from a mobile donation centre was divided into three (3) groups before processed into plasma. Group 1 (n=42) was prepared within 8 hours post collection. Group 2 (n=42) was prepared after overnight and stored at room temperature. Group 3 (n=42) was prepared after overnight but stored at 2-6⁰C. Plasma haemostatic proteins were measured in all groups and mean activity of each level was compared using One-way ANOVA. Results: There was no reduction in all the haemostatic proteins in plasma prepared from overnight storage (Groups 2 and 3) compared to Group 1 except for Factors VIII and V whilst PT was not significantly prolonged. aPTT was significantly prolonged in both Groups 2 and 3 compared to Group 1. There were 25.7% and 35.2% reduction of Factor VIII levels in Groups 2 and 3 respectively, however levels were above 60%. There is 8.7% reduction in Factor V level but the mean factor activity was above 90%. Comparing Groups 2 and 3, there was no significant difference in activity of all haemostatic proteins. Conclusions: Haemostatic proteins are preserved in plasma prepared from blood stored overnight. Prolongation of the APTT is reflected by reduction in Factor VIII activity but still within the normal reference range.
Introduction: The Five-Factor Nonverbal Personality Questionnaire (FF-NPQ) is a non-verbal personality inventory consisting of illustrations of different social situations, designed to measure five broad factors underlying the Big-Five model of personality. This study aimed to prove the validity of the FF-NPQ in Malaysia. Methods: The FF-NPQ instruction and the answer option were translated to the Malay language, which is the main language spoken in Malaysia. A total of 153 university students aged 18–30 years from Universiti Sains Malaysia were involved in this study. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), composite reliability and intraclass correlation (ICC) were applied to show evidence of validity by internal structure. Results: CFA indicated that only 26 out of 60 items remained in the final model while maintaining the five personality factors. Each factor had a good composite reliability value of 0.68–0.77. The ICC values from the test-retest analysis ranged from 0.65 to 0.75. Conclusion: Overall, the shortened Malay Version of the FF -NPQ (five-factor, 26 items) exhibited acceptable evidence of validity in Malaysia.
The physical properties and structural stability of the Quad Flat No-Leads (QFN) package with different gamma radiation doses have been investigated. The packages were irradiated with Co-60 gamma radiation with varying doses of 5 Gy, 50 Gy, 500 Gy, 5 kGy and 50 kGy with operating dose of 2.54 kGylh at room temperature. The infinite focus microscope (IFM) was used to measure the dimensional change and slantinglwarpage behaviour, while the 3D CT Scan X-ray machine was used to determine the occurrence of deflection on a wire in package due to exposure. It is believed that radiation effect on ceramic filler in the epoxy mold compound (EMC) plays an important role to induce the defects and resulted in swelling of the package. The slantinglwarpage behaviour is believed to be caused by the swelling behaviour of ceramic filler and further induced structural stability. The induced stress on the EMC structural after the dimensional change and slantinglwarpage failure leads to the occurrence of wire sweep. The finding suggests that defect production in swelled ceramic filler leads to the occurrence of dimensional and structure instability.
Estimation and forecast of groundwater recharge and capacity of aquifer are essential issues in water resources investigation. In the current research, groundwater recharge, recharge coefficient and effective rainfall were determined through a case study using empirical methods applicable to the tropical zones. The related climatological data between January 2000 and December 2010 were collected in Selangor, Malaysia. The results showed that groundwater recharge was326.39 mm per year, effective precipitation was 1807.97 mm per year and recharge coefficient was 18% for the study area. In summary, the precipitation converted to recharge, surface runoff and evapotranspiration are 12, 32 and 56% of rainfall, respectively. Correlation between climatic parameters and groundwater recharge showed positive and negative relationships. The highest correlation was found between precipitation and recharge. Linear multiple regressions between
recharge and measured climatologic data proved significant relationship between recharge and rainfall and wind speed. It was also proven that the proposed model provided an accurate estimation for similar projects.
In Malaysia, chest radiograph is a part of compulsory investigations during routine medical examination. Majority of these chest radiographs are interpreted by medical officers at the outpatient clinic. This study was to determine the concordance of chest radiograph interpretations between medical officers and radiologist. Medical officers' report of routine chest radiographs at the outpatient clinic Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia over a 6-month period were compared to that of a radiologist. Of 408 chest radiographs reported, the concordance of interpretation between medical officers and radiologist was 93.6% (382 of 408). Medical officers correctly interpret 98.2% (378/385) of normal chest radiograph compared to 17.4% of abnormal chest radiographs (4/23). Therefore, routine chest radiograph interpretations of normal radiographs by medical officers were generally accurate. However, they were weak in interpreting abnormal chest radiographs. Medical officers need to be trained on detecting abnormalities on chest X-ray since most routine chest X-ray reporting is done based on their interpretation.
Study site: outpatient clinic Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia
Mining is one of the anthropogenic activities that can negatively affect the environment especially the waterways. Discharges from mining activities are usually in acidic state and containing elevated concentrations of metals. The exposure to these contaminants may cause several harmful effects not only to aquatic organisms but also to human health. The Whole Effluent Toxicity (WET) test was applied to evaluate the toxic effects of tin mining effluents to aquatic organisms. An acute toxicity test with zebrafish (Danio rerio) was conducted where fish was exposed to 3.13%, 6.25%, 12.5%, 25% and 50% effluent for 96 hours under static renewal test system. Effects of effluent exposure were determined using endpoints with mortality of median lethal concentration (LC50) value. Results indicated that the LC50 value of zebrafish when exposed, was 14.21% effluent. The physicochemical properties of the effluent were also evaluated in order to assess the cause-effect relationships of the effluent. The low pH values of the mine effluent might be the main reason contributing to the fish mortality. This approach provides additional information of tin mining effect on freshwater fishes as well as to human health.
Sistem hidrazin hidrat/hidrogen peroksida (HH/H2
O2
) digunakan untuk menjana sumber hidrogen bagi tujuan
penghidrogenan getah asli cecair (LNR) melalui penghasilan diimida. Spesies diimida yang terhasil akan membekalkan
sumber hidrogen kepada ikatan karbon ganda dua dalam rantai polimer LNR. Getah asli cecair terhidrogen (HLNR)
yang terhasil menunjukkan ciri lebih tahan suhu berbanding LNR. Suhu degradasi HLNR didapati meningkat pada 435°C
berbanding LNR iaitu pada 381°C. HLNR seterusnya dijadikan pengserasi dalam penghasilan adunan polimer polistirena/
getah asli, PS/NR/HLNR (60/35/5). Kekuatan regangan dan impak PS/NR masing-masing meningkat sebanyak 70.7% dan
149.6% setelah HLNR ditambah sebagai pengserasi dalam adunan. Beberapa pemerhatian morfologi melalui mikroskop
optik dan SEM turut menyokong kesan penyerasian adunan PS/NR dengan HLNR.
The glutathione S-Transferase (GST) enzyme plays an important role in cellular detoxification. This multifunctional enzyme
is involved in Phase II detoxification pathways that protect cellular macromolecules from being attacked by harmful
compound. The study is an attempt to isolate glutathione transferase-expressing bacteria from the rhizospheric soil of
selected herbal plants. Screening showed nine positive isolates out of twelve bacterial samples from a large microbial
population in our soil collection. Crude extract from strain E1 which was isolated from Piper sarmentosum (Kadok)
showed the highest specific activity against 1-chloro-2, 4-dinitrobenzene substrates (5.78 × 10-06 µmol/min/mg). Based
on the carbon utilization of E1 assessed using Biolog system, the strain was identified as Comamonas testosterone E1.
Glutathione S-transferase purification using GST trap yielded two distinct subunits with molecular weights of 23 and 24
kDa as visualized on 1D SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The purified GST showed reactivity towards 1-chloro-2,
4-dinitrobenzene, 1, 2-dichloro-4-nitrobenzene and ethacrynic acid with specific activity of 0.264 ± 0.038 nmol/min/
mg and 0.056 ± 0.002 nmol/min/mg and 10.500 ± 3.130 nmol/min/mg, respectively. However, no activity was detected
against p-Nitrobenzyl chloride, Sulfobromophthalein, trans-4-phenyl-3-butene-2-one, hexa-2, 4- dienal, trans-hepta-2,
4-dienal and trans-oct-2-enal in the study.
Although the modern medicine has progressed for a long time, there are empirical studies shows the effectiveness of traditional and complementary treatments (TCT) in curing chronic diseases. In Malaysia, TCT is often related to the use of herbs and meditation that vary according to ethnicity. Each ethnic group has its own beliefs system in curing diseases. This study mainly aims to provide an overview on the perceptions of the effectiveness TCT in curing chronic diseases. The authors used electronic database to select 10 journal articles according to inclusion and exclusion criteria. Findings show the highest statistic among Sabah natives and followed by Malay ethnic on believing in the effectiveness of TCT. Price and encouragement from family and friends are the main influencing factors of taking TCT. We suggest that counsellors need to be aware of the TCT practices on particular culture in order to increase respect and trust in the helping relationships.
Emergency work with regular exposure to traumatic events may cause a large burden of mental health consequences. Among the first responders, firefighters are generally said to have a larger risk for PTSD as they involve directly and indirectly with critical incidents and traumatic events as part of their duties. This systematic review will determine the prevalence of PTSD and identify factors which associated to the PTSD among firefighters.
This paper presents the findings of a study to determine the effects of immediate built environment (mounting configuration) on output generated by photovoltaic (PV) module for building integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) and retrofitted PV systems under Malaysian climate. All the systems under study are gridconnected PV (GCPV) system. Eight GCPV systems used in this study; four for BIPV systems and the other four for retrofitted systems. Data for PV module temperature, ambient temperature, plane-of-array solar irradiance and AC power were logged at 5-min interval for all systems. The operating temperature were analysed as the temperature differential with respect to the ambient temperature. The mounting factor was established for both mounting configuration type.
Euphorbia tirucalli Linn. is traditionally used as medicine especially in the treatment of diseases
caused by bacterial pathogens. The objectives of the present study were to identify the bioactive
compounds in the stem of Euphorbia tirucalli Linn. using the gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GCMS)
analysis, and to investigate their potentials as an alternative for antimicrobial activity. Two-microliters
of dried powdered of Euphorbia tirucalli Linn. stem were mixed with methanol followed by injection into
splitless mode of GC-MS. Separation was achieved by Elite-5MS fused capillary column. The mass spectra
were compared with the spectra of known components stored in the NIST and WILEY databases for
compound identification. Forty-six chemical constituents were identified. The major constituents were
lanosta-8,24-dien-3-ol, (3β)- (13.60%), (23S)-ethylcholest-5-en-(3β)-ol (7.02%), linoleic acid (2.96%) and
viminalol (2.57%). Most of the active compounds present in the stem of Euphorbia tirucalli Linn. have
previously been shown to exhibit antimicrobial properties.