Academic self-efficacy is important for students which will help them to perform better in studies. This study aims to explore the level of academic self-efficacy among UNIMAS undergraduates based on gender, CGPA and trait emotional intelligence. The samples of study involved are 50 male and 50 female participants which consists of final year students from Faculty of Cognitive Sciences and Human Development. The academic self-efficacy of the students is measured using the questionnaire adopted from a study by Sachitra and Bandara (2017) and The Short Form (TEIQue-SF) Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire is used to measure the trait emotional intelligence of the undergraduates. The result was analyzed using descriptive analysis and inferential analysis; independent samples t-test, One-Way ANOVA and Pearson’s correlation. The results of the study have shown that female students have higher academic self-efficacy compared to male students. In addition, students who obtain a higher CGPA also have higher self-efficacy. There was also a small positive correlation between trait emotional intelligence and academic self-efficacy.
BACKGROUND: A retrospective study was undertaken to examine the hypothesis that esophoria is associated with higher amounts of myopia. METHODS: One hundred and forty-four subjects were selected from the files of optometry clinics at the Department of Optometry, National University of Malaysia, from the years 1995 to 1998 inclusive. These subjects were matched in terms of age group, sex, race and near phoria group. Near phorias were determined by Maddox wing technique and were classified into three groups: more than six prism dioptres exophoria, zero to six prism dioptres exophoria and any esophorias. RESULTS: One way analysis of variance revealed that there were significant differences in mean myopias between the three phoria groups (ANOVA, F(2,141) = 5.34, p < 0.01). Further analysis with the Student-Newman-Keuls test showed that the amount of myopia is significantly higher in the esophoric group than in the other two groups. CONCLUSIONS: The results support the hypothesis that near esophoria is associated with high myopia. This study suggests that near phoria might be an important factor in myopia development.
Harumanis is one of the main signatures of Perlis with regards to its delightful taste, pleasant aroma and expensive price. Harumanis authenticity and productivity had become the remarks among the farmers, entrepreneurs, consumers and plant breeders due to the existence of morphological characteristics variation among the fruits and high production cost. Assessment of Harumanis morphological characteristics of natural population and different tree ages may represent a possible source of important characteristics for development and breeding purposes of Harumanis. The aim of this study is to evaluate the morphological variation of Harumanis collected from different location in Perlis and tree age. A total of 150 Harumanis fruits from 50 trees with three different stages of development (young, middle-aged and old) were characterised using 11 traits; 10 quantitative and one qualitative morphological trait. The ANOVA analyses in combination with Dunn's pairwise and Kruskal-Wallis multiple comparison test able to point out the existence of environmental factor and age influence towards the significant different of identified morphological traits except for Total Soluble Solid (TSS) and pulp percentage. Five clusters of 50 Harumanis accessions reflect a grouping pattern which not according to neither geographical region nor age. The result of Principal Component Analysis (PCA) using the first two principal components (PCs) provided a good approximation of the data explaining 84.09% of the total variance which majorly contributed by parameters of weight, fruit dimensional characteristics, peel percentage and hue angle, h. Preliminary screening of important morphological characteristics which contribute to the phenotypic diversity of Harumanis is successfully achieved. The findings can be employed by the plant breeders and farmers for the establishment of standard grading of Harumanis and advancement of breeding crop of Harumanis in future.
Purpose of the study: The objective of this study was to investigate the flexural strengths of five commercially available tooth-coloured restorative materials – Alpha-Dent (composite resin, Dental Technologies Inc.), Solare Anterior (composite resin, GC), F2000 (polyacid-modified composite resin, 3M), Beautifil (giomer, Shofu) and Fuji II LC (resin- modified glass ionomer cement, GC] using the ISO 4049 specifications. Materials and Method: Ten specimens of (25±0.2)mm x (2±0.1)mm x (2±0.1)mm from each material were prepared at 22-23ºC using a customized metal mould. After light polymerization, the specimens were stored in distilled water at 37ºC for 24 hours. The specimens were subsequently blotted dry, measured and subjected to flexural testing using an Instron Universal Testing Machine with a crosshead speed of 0.5mm/min. The flexural strengths were calculated from the maximum load exerted on the specimens. Data were analysed using one way ANOVA and scheffe’s post-hoc multiple comparison tests at a significance level of 0.05.Results: The results showed that the mean flexural strengths of Beautifil, Solare Anterior and Alpha-Dent were above 80 MPa and those of F2000 and Fuji II LC were below 80 MPa. The results of one-way ANOVA and Scheffe’s post-host tests demonstrated that Beautifil had significantly higher mean flexural strength compared to Fuji II LC, F2000 and Alpha-Dent (P
The impact strength of a newly developed experimental polyurethane-based polymer which is derived from palm oil (Experimental PU) was compared with denture polymers; heat-cured and self cured polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) and ® Eclipse , light-activated urethane dimethacrylate prosthetic resin system. Ten specimens were ® prepared using heat-cured PMMA (Meliodent Heat Cure, Heraeus Kulzer, Germany), self cured PMMA ® (Meliodent Rapid Repair, Heraeus Kulzer, ® Germany), Eclipse baseplate resin (Dentsply, USA) and Experimental PU material. Specimens were prepared following manu- facturer’s instructions except for the Experimental PU material where it was prepared in bulk and sectioned to the desired dimension, 64 x 6 x 4 mm. A ‘V’ notch of approximately 0.8mm in depth was machine cut across the 6mm width. Prior to the Charpy type impact test, specimens were soaked in a water bath for 50 hours at 37ºC. ® Eclipse baseplate resin showed the highest 2 impact strength (2.73 kJ/m ±0.54) followed by ® 2 Meliodent Rapid Repair (2.50kJ/m ±0.65), ® 2 Meliodent Heat Cure (1.96kJ/m ±0.42) and 2 Experimental PU (1.04kJ/m ±0.29). One-way ANOVA showed significant interaction between materials (p
Objectives: The objectives of the study were to assess: i) the staining susceptibility of composite resins, ii) the ability of whitening toothpastes in removing stains from composite resins.
Materials and Methods: Thirty specimens from each composite resins: Filtek Z350 (3M ESPE), Filtek Z250 (3M ESPE) and Beautifil (Shofu Inc.) were fabricated. After polishing, specimens were immersed in coffee for 3 days. Specimens were then brushed twice a day for 2 weeks using Colgate Total (Colgate-Palmolive, control group), Colgate Advanced Whitening (Colgate- Palmolive, test group) and Darlie All Shiny White (Hawley & Hazel Chemical Co., test group). Colour changes (?E*) were measured using Spectrophotometer at baseline, after coffee immersion and after brushing. Results were statistically analyzed using one way ANOVA and Tukey’s test.
Results: There was significant difference in terms of colour changes for Filtek Z350, Filtek Z250 and Beautifil after coffee immersion (P0.05).
Conclusions: Filtek Z350 was able to resist staining by coffee better than Filtek Z250 and Beautifil. The whitening toothpastes did not offer added advantage in terms of ability to remove stains compared to ordinary toothpaste.
Interprofesion learning (IPL) occurs when students from two or more different professionals study with and learn about different professions. IPL is believed to enhance the collaboration level within the different profession after graduated. The objective of this research is to compare perception levels among the respondents coming from eleven different professions including Medical, Nursing, Dentistry, Pharmacy, Occupational Therapy, Dietetics, Audiology, Speech Science, Physiotherapy, Optometry and Diagnostic Imaging & Radiotherapy. Each respondent were selected randomly representing each year of study for each profession. They were required to fill up the survey form provided. 330 survey forms were returned instead of 367 distributed copies or 90% from overall surveys. Using one-way ANOVA analysis, all professions indicate same level of perception in knowledge subscale (p = 0.11), the practice of teamwork and cooperation (p = 0.23) and various methods to start the IPL (p = 0.61). However, for professional identity scales and interprofession educational preparation the value was (p < 0.05). Post-hoc Turkey test, indicated Physiotherapy students had a higher average score (M = 4.35 ± 0.54) compared to Speech Science (M = 3.75 ± 0.59) in professional identity subscale whereas in students preparation subscale for interprofession education, only Physiotherapy students had higher score (M = 4.15 ± 0.82) in comparison to Diagnostic Imaging & Radiotherapy (M = 3.25 ± 0.83). Besides, independent T test showed the students were in favour of having IPL in early year of education with the average score (M = 3.53 ± 1.029) for year one and year two compared to year three to five (M = 3.34 ± 1.089). The result form this research shows that the students have a positive perception towards IPL based on the average values not more than 3.0.
Keywords: Interprofesional learning; Student’s perception; Profession; Collaboration
Dabai or Canarium odontophyllum Miq., from the family Burseraceae, is an important indigenous fruit to Borneo Island. However, it is a highly perishable fruit with short shelf life. Postharvest technology such as modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) can be used to maintain highly perishable fresh fruit quality and increase its shelf life. There is not much work has been carried out to study effect of MAP on dabai fruit. Therefore, this study was conducted to determine the effect of four different types packaging methods on the postharvest quality of dabai fruits. Total of 240 fruit were used for each replication and the experiment was repeated thrice. Fruit were divided equally into four groups with each group packed in low-density polyethylene plastic bag, low-density polyethylene plastic bags lined with tissue paper, low-density polyethylene plastic bag with vacuumed and control (unwrapped). The fruit were then stored in a cold room of 10°C for 8 days. The fruits were analyzed for peel and flesh colour (L*, C* and hue angle), CO2 and C2H4 production, weight loss, firmness, soluble solids concentration (SSC), titratable acidity (TA) and pH at every two days interval. Data were analyzed using analysis of variance and means was separated using Duncan’s multiple range tests. The use of MAP retained peel colour (L*, C* and hue angle values), flesh colour (L*values), SSC and TA of dabai fruit. The CO2 production in MAP fruit was significant lower than control. Although vacuum packed showed lowest weight loss, flesh discolouration, soggy texture and foul sour odour developed during 8 days of storage. Neither packing dabai fruit in low-density polyethylene plastic bag nor bag lined with tissue paper retained better fruit quality. Thus, it is recommended packing dabai fruit in low-density polyethylene plastic bag is sufficient to retain fruit quality during 8 days of storage at 10oC.
The purpose of the study was to examine the effect of the agility ladder drills in improving the dynamic balance ability of school children. Eighteen primary school male participants were assigned randomly into an experimental and control group respectively. The experimental group practiced the agility ladder drill activities for four weeks (three time a week) after school whereas the control group adhered to their normal daily routine without any intervention. Pre and post tests on dynamic balance were administered using the Star Excursion Balance Test (SEBT). Statistical analyses using 2 group vs 3 tests ANOVA with repeated measures on the second factor showed no main effects between groups and tests. However, there was a significant interaction between group and test. The experimental group improved their dynamic balance score from pre- to post-test compared to the control group although no significant improvements were observed in the retention test. Agility ladder drills provide an additional approach to improve the dynamic balance of young children.
The optimisation of fresh fruit bunch (FFB) sterilisation process was studied using different degree of FFB ripeness (i.e. under-ripe, ripe, overripe) and loose fruits. This study was carried out with the application of Response Surface Methodology (RSM), based on the interrelation between process temperature (X1; 100 to 120oC) and time (X2; 20 to 80 min) used for FFB sterilisation process on Free Fatty Acid, FFA (Y1,underripe FFB; Y2,ripe FFB; Y3,Overripe FFB; and Y4,loose fruits). Thirteen experimental runs were conducted per degree of ripeness using laboratory scale steriliser with varying sterilisation temperature and time, as generated by Central Composite Rotatable Design (CCRD). Raw experimental data trend showed substantial FFA increment with the increment of FFB maturity. Four polynomial models were found appropriate to predict the responses within experimental regions. Analysis regarding factor influences on each response was performed using Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) and graphical analysis. For under-ripe and ripe FFB, the temperature exerted higher and significant (p
Fried and baked banana-based snacks are popular in South East Asia and banana chip is popular in
other countries, such as India, Indonesia, China, African countries, etc; these snacks may contain acrylamide in concentration which may be of concern due to its toxicity. This study was carried out to determine acrylamide concentration in popular banana based snacks in Malaysia using a modified method of gas chromatographymass spectrometry. The limit of detection and limit of quantitation of the modified method are 5 and 15 μg/kg, respectively. Acrylamide concentration of five types of Malaysian popular fried and baked banana based snacks from different local markets ranged from 74.0 to 7468.8 μg/ kg for banana fritter (pisang goreng), 28.9 to 243.7μg/kg for banana chips (kerepek pisang), 160.7 to 500.4 μg/kg for sweet banana chips (kerepek pisang manis), not detected to 154.4 μg/kg for banana cake (kek pisang) and 31.7 to 609.1 μg/kg for banana balls (cekodok pisang). Analysis of variance showed a significant difference (P
The study aimed to evaluate the quality of the hybrid
layer form by three different adhesive systems. Class V
cavities were prepared on the buccal surface of fourty
extracted human premolars. The prepared teeth were
randomly assigned into four groups according to the
adhesive system and application mode. The systems
were: Optibond S (OS, total-etch); Optibond Versa (OV,
two-bottles, self-etch); Single Bond Universal (SBU,
one-bottle, self-etch) and Single Bond Universal with
etchant (SBU + etchant). All cavities were restored with
composite (Filtek Z350XT). The samples were sectioned,
polished and pretreated to remove minerals, protein
and water prior to SEM evaluation. From the images,
thickness of the hybrid layers was measured. Present of
resin tags and adaptation failure were also recorded. The
data obtained were analyzed using ANOVA, Dunnett’s
T3, Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney tests. OS group
showed the highest average hybrid layer thickness (4.34
µm), followed by SBU + etchant (3.06 µm), OV (1.91 µm)
and SBU (0.95 µm). Both adhesive and cohesive failures
were observed in SBU group. Present of prominent resin
tags were seen in both OS and OV groups. In conclusion,
all the investigated adhesive systems were able to perform
distinguishable actions as shown in micro-morphological
alteration and hybrid layer thickness. Two-bottles, selfetch
adhesive (OV) was proven to produce negligible
adaptation failure compared to other adhesive systems in
the present study. Combined all-in-one adhesive (SBU)
was found to render a superior bonding performance in
total-etch mode comparing to self-etch mode.
Crude rubber seed oil is a potential source for biofuel production. However it contains undesirable impurities such as peroxides and high oxidative components that not only affect the oil stability, colour and shelf-life but promote insoluble gums formation with time that could cause deposition in the combustion engines. Therefore to overcome these problems the crude rubber seed oil is refined by undergoing degumming and bleaching process. The effect of bleaching earth dosage (15-40 wt %), phosphoric acid dosage (0.5-1.0 wt %) and reaction time (20-40 min) were studied over the reduction of the peroxide value in a refined crude rubber seed oil. The analysis of variance shows that bleaching earth dosage was the most influencing factor followed by reaction time and phosphoric acid dosage. A minimum peroxide value of 0.1 milliequivalents/gram was achieved under optimized conditions of 40 wt % of bleaching earth dosage, 1.0 wt % of phosphoric acid dosage and 20 min of reaction time using Response Surface Methodology design.
This study on anthropometrics of Primary School children from grade 1 to 5 in Peninsular Malaysia involves 2310 students aged seven to eleven years old. The objectives were to analyze the differentiation of anthropometrics between children of grades 1 to 5 and grouping them to suitable levels in which they are appropriate to propose chair dimensions. A multi-stage sampling method was used, and rural and urban areas were also included in providing anthropometric database that represents the whole Peninsular Malaysia population. There were six dimensions measured in this study, which are sitting shoulder, sitting subscapular height, sitting elbow height, hip width, buttock-popliteal length and popliteal height. All the measurements were chosen to represent dimensions needed to construct ergonomic school chair. From the results, ANOVA showed p-values of
Endodontically treated teeth are generally weaker than sound teeth. The study objective was to compare the fracture resistance of endodontically treated teeth restored with different restorative techniques. Fifty extracted human maxillary central incisors of similar size were divided into five groups of 10 teeth. Group 1 was left intact as the control group. Other groups (Groups 2, 3, 4 and 5) were all endodontically treated followed by restorations using different restorative techniques; light cured composite resin (CR), CR and crown, post and CR, and post-CR core and crown respectively. The specimens were loaded in a universal testing machine with a static force at a crosshead speed of 0.5mm/min at 135 ° to the long axis of the root until failure. The means and the standard deviations of the maximum load at failure for groups 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 were 1259.11N (379.12N), 578.63N (196.70N), 667.13N (298.72N), 1247.65N (294.48N) and 623.60N (193.75N) respectively. The results of one-way ANOVA showed statistically significant differences existed among the groups tested (p
In a clinical controlled trial involving repeated measures of continuous outcomes such as quality of life, distress, pain, activity level at baseline and after treatment, the possibilities of analyzing these outcomes can be numerous with quite varied findings. This paper examined four methods of statistical analysis using data from an outcome study of a clinical controlled trial to contrast the statistical power on those with baseline adjustment. In this study, data from a CCT with women with breast cancer were utilized. The experiment (n=67) and control (n=74) were about equal ratio. Four method of analysis were utilized, two using ANOVA for repeated measures and two using ANCOVA. The multivariate between subjects of the combined dependents variables and the univariate between subjects test were examined to make a judgement of the statistical power of each method. The results showed that ANCOVA has the highest statistical power. ANOVA using raw data is the least power and is the worst method with no evidence of an intervention effect even when the treatment by time interaction is statistically significant. In conclusion, ANOVA using raw data is the worst method with the least power whilst ANCOVA using baseline as covariate has the highest statistical power to detect a treatment effect other than method. The second best method as shown in this study was in using change scores of the repeated measures.
Introduction: Owing to the variety of materials and methods employed, comparison of the results and findings from bonding studies is difficult. Until recently, several types of teeth have been used in published research papers as a substrate in orthodontic bonding research including bovine incisors, fresh and rebonded human premolars. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to compare the shear bond strength of an adhesive bonded to different tooth surfaces (human premolar, bovine incisor and rebonded human premolar). Methods: Two groups of thirty premolar teeth and one group of bovine incisors had brackets attached in a standardized manner using Transbond XT (3M Unitek). The adhesive was cured using conventional halogen light and a specially designed tool to standardize the distance between the light curing tip and the adhesive. The debonding force was measured using Instron universal testing machine. ANOVA and Post Hoc Dunnett C test were performed to determine any significant difference among groups (p
Squash is an indoor game that is the second fastest racket sports if compared to badminton and tennis. Squash game puts a high demand on physical fitness of elite players which requires a quick development of high force, rapid changes of direction and fast reaction. The objective of this study was to develop the physical fitness profile of Malaysian junior state squash players. Sixty five 10 to 18 years old male Kelantan state squash players were tested with seven skill-related fitness tests. SPSS version 20.0 was used to analyze the data collected from the tests. A one-way ANOVA was used to detect statistical differences between groups. A posthoc test (LSD) was performed to determine differences in in the variables between groups. The data was collected for flexibility, speed, muscular endurance, power of upper and lower extremities, agility and cardiovascular endurance. There were significant differences in the mean speed, muscular endurance, agility, power of lower extremities, power of upper extremities, flexibility and predicted VO2 max between 13-15 and 16-18 years of age groups when compared to 10-12 years old players (p
Objectives: To evaluate the effect of light-cure devices and curing times on the shear bond strength (SBS) of orthodontic brackets.
Material and Methods: 60-extracted human premolars were divided into 6-groups of 10-teeth each and bonded with stainless-steel brackets by using 3M Unitek Transbond XT composite. Specimens were cured with halogen, LED and plasma arc lights with two different times for each. The specimens were subjected to shear force till debond with a crosshead speed of 1mm/min and tested after 5min. The stress was calculated and data were subjected to statistical analysis.
Results: one-way ANOVA and Dunnett T3 post hoc comparison test were used. There were no significant differences between the 6 groups (p < 0.05).
Conclusions: all curing light methods with loading force after 5 min achieved SBS more than the normal range; therefore, arch wire can be inserted at the same visit using any of tested curing light device or curing time.
The ability to produce performances at highest level under physically and emotionally demanding conditions underline the worth of a sportsperson. These stressful conditions places demands on the cognitive resources of the sportsperson; especially in anticipatory actions that require the allocation of cognitive resources. This study investigated the effects of cognitive stress on the temporal anticipation of a timing motor task. A repeated measures design was applied with two independent variables; cognitive stress and levels of difficulty, which included easy, intermediate and difficult. Study participants were 18 male and 18 female undergraduates of the Physical Education programme of Universiti Putra Malaysia. The experimental task involved performing a timing motor task across the three levels of difficulty, under two conditions as follows: (i) without cognitive stress, and (ii) under cognitive stress. Cognitive stress was induced via the continuous subtraction of two from a two-digit number. Participants performed the task individually and the sequence of the experimental task was counter-balanced. A two-way within subject ANOVA was
performed to ascertain the effects of cognitive stress on the temporal anticipation of the timing motor task. Data yielded significant difference in means for the stress main effect [Λ = .64, F (1.35) = 19.89, p < 0.05]; and the task main effect [Λ = .84, F (2, 34) = 3.35, p < 0.05]. Post hoc comparisons produced a significant difference in the means of the performance of the timing motor task at all three levels of difficulty. Data showed that cognitive stress had an effect on the temporal anticipation of the timing motor task. These results are explained from attentional and the neuromotor noise perspectives. It was concluded that the significant difference in the performance of the experimental task was due to the competition for intentional resources and the decrease of the signal to noise ratio due to cognitive stress.