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  1. Fulltext EpiNet as a way of involving more physicians and patients in epilepsy research: Validation study and accreditation process
    Bergin PS, Beghi E, Sadleir LG, Brockington A, Tripathi M, Richardson MP, et al.
    Epilepsia Open, 2017 Mar;2(1):20-31.
    PMID: 29750210 DOI: 10.1002/epi4.12033
    Objective: EpiNet was established to encourage epilepsy research. EpiNet is used for multicenter cohort studies and investigator-led trials. Physicians must be accredited to recruit patients into trials. Here, we describe the accreditation process for the EpiNet-First trials.

    Methods: Physicians with an interest in epilepsy were invited to assess 30 case scenarios to determine the following: whether patients have epilepsy; the nature of the seizures (generalized, focal); and the etiology. Information was presented in two steps for 23 cases. The EpiNet steering committee determined that 21 cases had epilepsy. The steering committee determined by consensus which responses were acceptable for each case. We chose a subset of 18 cases to accredit investigators for the EpiNet-First trials. We initially focused on 12 cases; to be accredited, investigators could not diagnose epilepsy in any case that the steering committee determined did not have epilepsy. If investigators were not accredited after assessing 12 cases, 6 further cases were considered. When assessing the 18 cases, investigators could be accredited if they diagnosed one of six nonepilepsy patients as having possible epilepsy but could make no other false-positive errors and could make only one error regarding seizure classification.

    Results: Between December 2013 and December 2014, 189 physicians assessed the 30 cases. Agreement with the steering committee regarding the diagnosis at step 1 ranged from 47% to 100%, and improved when information regarding tests was provided at step 2. One hundred five of the 189 physicians (55%) were accredited for the EpiNet-First trials. The kappa value for diagnosis of epilepsy across all 30 cases for accredited physicians was 0.70.

    Significance: We have established criteria for accrediting physicians using EpiNet. New investigators can be accredited by assessing 18 case scenarios. We encourage physicians with an interest in epilepsy to become EpiNet-accredited and to participate in these investigator-led clinical trials.
    Matched MeSH terms: Research Personnel
  2. Fulltext Challenges faced and lessons learned A multi-component prospective memory training program for Malaysian older adults
    Farzin A, Ibrahim R, Madon Z, Basri H
    Dement Neuropsychol, 2018 7 11;12(2):189-195.
    PMID: 29988335 DOI: 10.1590/1980-57642018dn12-020012
    The surrounding circumstances and environments of Malaysian older adults could make conducting interventions (mainly in terms of clinical or randomized controlled trials) a challenge. Working with older adults and facing cultural issues could be challenging.

    Objective: This paper illustrates a significant perspective of some of the challenges faced while conducting a randomized controlled trial exploring the impact of a multi-component intervention that included strategy- and process-based prospective memory (PM) training among Malaysian older adults.

    Methods: The current study was a randomized controlled trial (RCT) and therefore the challenges were presented in accordance with the CONSORT statement style.

    Results: A discussion on how these issues were addressed is provided.

    Conclusion: Some suggestions were presented to help researchers plan and create interventions for similar studies and to support a practical method of addressing all related challenges.

    Matched MeSH terms: Research Personnel
  3. Fulltext Swiftlets and edible bird’s nest industry in Asia
    Looi, Qi Hao, Abdul Rahman Omar
    The Pertanika Journal of Scholarly Research Reviews, 2016;2(1):32-48.
    MyJurnal
    Swiftlet
    s
    are small insectivorous birds which breed throughout Southeast Asia and
    the South Pacific.
    Among many swiftle
    t species, only a few are notable to produce edible bird’s
    nest
    s
    (EBN) from the secreted saliva during breeding seasons.
    The taxonomy of swiftlet
    s
    remains one of the most controversial in the avian species due to the high similarity in
    morphological charac
    teristics among the species. Over the last few decades, researchers have
    studied the taxonomy of swiftlet
    s
    based on the morphological
    trade
    , behavior, and genetic
    traits
    .
    However, despite all the efforts,
    the
    swiftlet taxonomy remains unsolved.
    The
    EBN is one of
    the
    most expensive animal products
    and frequently being referred
    to
    as the “
    Caviar of the East
    ”.
    The
    EBN market value varies from
    US
    $1000.00 to
    US
    $10,000.00 per kilogram depend
    ing
    on
    its grade, shape, type and origin.
    Hence, bird’s nest harve
    sting is considered a lucrative industry
    in many countries in Southeast Asia.
    However,
    the
    industry faced several challenges over the
    decades such as the authenticity of the EBN, the quality assurance and the depletion of swiftlet
    population. Furthermore,
    there is limited scientific evidence regarding EBN’s medical benefits
    as
    claimed by manufacturers. This paper reviews the taxonomy of swiftlet
    s
    , its morphological
    characteristics, the challenges currently encountered by the industry, and finally the
    compos
    ition and medical benefits of EBN.
    Matched MeSH terms: Research Personnel
  4. Fulltext New smoothed location models integrated with PCA and two types of MCA for handling large number of mixed continuous and binary variables
    Hamid, H., Ngu, P.A.H., Alipiah, F.M.
    Pertanika Journal of Science & Technology, 2018;26(1):247-260.
    MyJurnal
    The issue of classifying objects into groups when measured variables in an experiment are mixed has attracted the attention of statisticians. The Smoothed Location Model (SLM) appears to be a popular classification method to handle data containing both continuous and binary variables simultaneously. However, SLM is infeasible for a large number of binary variables due to the occurrence of numerous empty cells. Therefore, this study aims to construct new SLMs by integrating SLM with two variable extraction techniques, Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and two types of Multiple Correspondence Analysis (MCA) in order to reduce the large number of mixed variables, primarily the binary ones. The performance of the newly constructed models, namely the SLM+PCA+Indicator MCA and SLM+PCA+Burt MCA are examined based on misclassification rate. Results from simulation studies for a sample size of n=60 show that the SLM+PCA+Indicator MCA model provides perfect classification when the sizes of binary variables (b) are 5 and 10. For b=20, the SLM+PCA+Indicator MCA model produces misclassification rates of 0.3833, 0.6667 and 0.3221 for n=60, n=120 and n=180, respectively. Meanwhile, the SLM+PCA+Burt MCA model provides a perfect classification when the sizes of the binary variables are 5, 10, 15 and 20 and yields a small misclassification rate as 0.0167 when b=25. Investigations into real dataset demonstrate that both of the newly constructed models yield low misclassification rates with 0.3066 and 0.2336 respectively, in which the SLM+PCA+Burt MCA model performed the best among all the classification methods compared. The findings reveal that the two new models of SLM integrated with two variable extraction techniques can be good alternative methods for classification purposes in handling mixed variable problems, mainly when dealing with large binary variables.
    Matched MeSH terms: Research Personnel
  5. Graphene/transition metal dichalcogenides hybrid supercapacitor electrode: status, challenges, and perspectives
    Seman RNAR, Azam MA, Ani MH
    Nanotechnology, 2018 Dec 14;29(50):502001.
    PMID: 30248022 DOI: 10.1088/1361-6528/aae3da
    Supercapacitors, based on fast ion transportation, are among the most promising energy storage solutions that can deliver fast charging-discharging within seconds and exhibit excellent cycling stability. The development of a good electrode material is one of the key factors in enhancing supercapacitor performance. Graphene (G), an allotrope of carbon that consists of a single layer of carbon atoms arranged in a hexagonal lattice, elicits research attention among scientists in the field of energy storage due to its remarkable properties, such as outstanding electrical conductivity, good chemical stability, and excellent mechanical behavior. Furthermore, numerous studies focus on 2D materials that are analogous to graphene as electrode supercapacitors, including transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs). Recently, scientists and researchers are exploring TMDs because of the distinct features that make 2D TMDs highly attractive for capacitive energy storage. This study provides an overview of the structure, properties, synthesis methods, and electrochemical performance of G/TMD supercapacitors. Furthermore, the combination of G and TMDs to develop a hybrid structure may increase their energy density by introducing an asymmetric supercapacitor system. We will also discuss the future prospect of this system in the energy field.
    Matched MeSH terms: Research Personnel
  6. Fulltext External factor of relapse among male drug addicts in Cure and Care Service Centre, Kuala Pilah
    Muhd Dhamir Audi Azizul, Azlina Mohd Khir, Wan Munira Wan Jaafar
    Malaysian Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities, 2018;3(2):159-168.
    MyJurnal
    Relapse is a common phenomenon among former addicts who has undergone a preventive and rehabilitation treatment program. Relaps is a condition of using drugs more than one times after stopping them for a certain period of time depending on one's resistance to a drug withdrawal syndrome. There are various factors that affect the former drug addicts became relaps. Hence, the focus of this study is to explain the external factors of relaps among adult male drug addicts in Cure and Care Service Centre, Kuala Pilah, Negeri Sembilan. This study is a qualitative research that has been using a phenomenology approach using face-to-face interviews and further observation among eight drug addicts who are undergoing rehabilitation programs at CCSC Kuala Pilah. Sample selection was done through purposive sampling techniques and data were analyzed using thematic analysis through an inductive approach that focused on coding to obtain some key themes. The result of the study indicates the external factors such as family, peer and environmental factors play a great role in influencing of relapse. In conclusion, these identified factors illustrate the external influences that cause drug addicts to relapse. Therefore, the researcher proposes a post-rehabilitation module or program done by the responsible agencies after the addicts completed the rehabilitation program as guidance for them to the right direction for efficient recovery.
    Matched MeSH terms: Research Personnel
  7. Fulltext Language structure in Kelantan's flood situation from the perspective of Speech Act
    Aswadi Mohamad, Zaitul Azma Zainon Hamzah
    Malaysian Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities, 2018;3(3):17-25.
    MyJurnal
    This article focuses in structure of language within the village society in Manik Urai Kelantan during
    the flood situation. The research was specifically to identify the structure of Speech Act use by the rural
    community to give information about flood. Besides, this research observes the application of
    linguistics methodology during flood situation using Speech Act Theory which is the categorization of
    Speech Act by Searle (1969). This theory was choose for the ability to detail linguistic's differences
    based on the structure of Speech Act categories such as representatives, directives, commissives,
    expresives and declaratives. For the purpose of the research, a video about flood situation was choose
    and transcribe to observe the the structure of speech act within the village society in the flood situation.
    The result of the research shows all Speech Act have their structure. The beneficial of this research is as
    a guideline and reference for the readers and language researchers especially those who were active
    participant of volunteer field.
    Matched MeSH terms: Research Personnel
  8. Fulltext Introduction to metodology framework in research study: a case study
    Ang, Kean Hua
    Malaysian Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities, 2016;1(1):17-23.
    MyJurnal
    This Methodology framework in research study smoothing the process of collecting data. Research
    study is categorized into qualitative and quantitative research. Qualitative research refer to a studies
    require careful observation, while quantitative research refers to a studies involve in statistics.
    Qualitative and quantitative research study can be determined through primary and secondary data.
    Primary data is defined as data that comes from original or the first source, while secondary data is
    defined as data that has been collected by other researchers. Primary data can be categorized into
    active and passive. Active primary data can be divided into direct interview (through face to face
    between researcher and respondents) and interviewed indirectly (e.g. by phone, mail, technology),
    while passive primary data involve with structured and secret characteristic, structured and open
    characteristic, unstructured and secret characteristic, unstructured and open characteristic. Secondary
    data involves with writing (journals, books, magazines, past records, reports and documents, internet, theses, short stories, newspaper), as well as vision and hearing (speeches, movies and videos, songs,
    stories). Even secondary data has its advantages and disadvantages, but both secondary and primary
    data are depend on each other in solving the society problems through the achievement of the
    objectives or hyphotheses in a research study.
    Matched MeSH terms: Research Personnel
  9. Recent advances in biorefinery of astaxanthin from Haematococcus pluvialis
    Khoo KS, Lee SY, Ooi CW, Fu X, Miao X, Ling TC, et al.
    Bioresour Technol, 2019 Sep;288:121606.
    PMID: 31178260 DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2019.121606
    Haematococcus pluvialis is one of the most abundant sources of natural astaxanthin as compared to others microorganism. Therefore, it is important to understand the biorefinery of astaxanthin from H. pluvialis, starting from the cultivation stage to the downstream processing of astaxanthin. The present review begins with an introduction of cellular morphologies and life cycle of H. pluvialis from green vegetative motile stage to red non-motile haematocyst stage. Subsequently, the conventional biorefinery methods (e.g., mechanical disruption, solvent extraction, direct extraction using vegetable oils, and enhanced solvent extraction) and recent advanced biorefinery techniques (e.g., supercritical CO2 extraction, magnetic-assisted extraction, ionic liquids extraction, and supramolecular solvent extraction) were presented and evaluated. Moreover, future prospect and challenges were highlighted to provide a useful guide for future development of biorefinery of astaxanthin from H. pluvialis. The review aims to serve as a present knowledge for researchers dealing with the bioproduction of astaxanthin from H. pluvialis.
    Matched MeSH terms: Research Personnel
  10. Fulltext Angular velocity and elevation angle: the proposed human model scalable tracking model using linear regression
    Yong CY, Sudirman R, Chew KM
    Sains Malaysiana, 2015;44(12):1661-1669.
    A scalable tracking human model was proposed for recognizing human jogging and walking activities. The model aims to detect and track a particular subject by using wearable sensor. Data collected are in accelerometer readings in three axes and gyroscope readings in three axes. The development of proposed human model is based on the moderating effects on human movements. Two moderators were proposed as the moderating factors of human motion and they are angular velocity and elevation angle. Linear regression is used to investigate the relationship among inputs, moderators and outputs of the model. The result of this study showed that the angular velocity and elevation angle moderators are affecting the relation of research output. Acceleration in x-axis (Ax) and angular velocity in y-axis (Gy) are the two main components in directing
    a motion. Classification between jogging and walking motions was done by measuring the magnitude of angular velocity and elevation angle. Jogging motion was classified and identified with larger angular velocity and elevation angle. The two proposed hypotheses were supported and proved by research output. The result is expected to be beneficial and able to assist researcher in investigating human motions.
    Matched MeSH terms: Research Personnel
  11. Fulltext Development of Ultrahigh Permeance Hollow Fiber Membranes via Simple Surface Coating for CO2/CH4 Separation
    Said N, Wong KC, Lau WJ, Khoo YS, Yeong YF, Othman NH, et al.
    Molecules, 2022 Dec 01;27(23).
    PMID: 36500475 DOI: 10.3390/molecules27238381
    Most researchers focused on developing highly selective membranes for CO2/CH4 separation, but their developed membranes often suffered from low permeance. In this present work, we aimed to develop an ultrahigh permeance membrane using a simple coating technique to overcome the trade-off between membrane permeance and selectivity. A commercial silicone membrane with superior permeance but low CO2/CH4 selectivity (in the range of 2-3) was selected as the host for surface modification. Our results revealed that out of the three silane agents tested, only tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) improved the control membrane's permeance and selectivity. This can be due to its short structural chain and better compatibility with the silicone substrate. Further investigation revealed that higher CO2 permeance and selectivity could be attained by coating the membrane with two layers of TEOS. The surface integrity of the TEOS-coated membrane was further improved when an additional polyether block amide (Pebax) layer was established atop the TEOS layer. This additional layer sealed the pin holes of the TEOS layer and enhanced the resultant membrane's performance, achieving CO2/CH4 selectivity of ~19 at CO2 permeance of ~2.3 × 105 barrer. This performance placed our developed membrane to surpass the 2008 Robeson Upper Boundary.
    Matched MeSH terms: Research Personnel
  12. Fulltext Waste heat recovery research - a systematic bibliometric analysis (1991 to 2020)
    Kuah CT, Koh QY, Rajoo S, Wong KY
    Environ Sci Pollut Res Int, 2023 Jun;30(28):72074-72100.
    PMID: 35716302 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-022-21377-6
    Human usage of non-renewable energy resources has caused many environmental issues, which include air pollution, global warming, and climate irregularities. To counter these issues, researchers have been seeking after alternative renewable energy sources and ways to manage energy more efficiently. This is where energy recovery technologies such as waste heat recovery (WHR) come into play. WHR is a form of waste to energy conversion. Waste heat can be captured and converted into usable energy instead of dumping it into the environment. In the more recent years, the WHR research field has gained great attention in the scientific community as well as in some energy-intensive industries. This article presents a bibliometric overview of the academic research on WHR over the span of 30 years from 1991 to 2020. A total of 5682 documents from Web of Science (WoS) have been retrieved and analyzed using various bibliometric methods, including performance analysis and network analysis. The analyses were performed on different actors in the field, i.e., funding agencies, journals, authors, organizations, and countries. In addition, several network mappings were done based on co-citation, co-authorship, and co-occurrences of keywords analyses. The research identified the most productive and influential actors in the field, established and emergent research topics, as well as the interrelations and collaboration patterns between different actors. The findings can be a robust roadmap for further research in this field.
    Matched MeSH terms: Research Personnel
  13. Fulltext Plant Disease Detection and Classification: A Systematic Literature Review
    Ramanjot, Mittal U, Wadhawan A, Singla J, Jhanjhi NZ, Ghoniem RM, et al.
    Sensors (Basel), 2023 May 15;23(10).
    PMID: 37430683 DOI: 10.3390/s23104769
    A significant majority of the population in India makes their living through agriculture. Different illnesses that develop due to changing weather patterns and are caused by pathogenic organisms impact the yields of diverse plant species. The present article analyzed some of the existing techniques in terms of data sources, pre-processing techniques, feature extraction techniques, data augmentation techniques, models utilized for detecting and classifying diseases that affect the plant, how the quality of images was enhanced, how overfitting of the model was reduced, and accuracy. The research papers for this study were selected using various keywords from peer-reviewed publications from various databases published between 2010 and 2022. A total of 182 papers were identified and reviewed for their direct relevance to plant disease detection and classification, of which 75 papers were selected for this review after exclusion based on the title, abstract, conclusion, and full text. Researchers will find this work to be a useful resource in recognizing the potential of various existing techniques through data-driven approaches while identifying plant diseases by enhancing system performance and accuracy.
    Matched MeSH terms: Research Personnel
  14. Malaysia can't thrive while it excludes minority talent
    Phang IY
    Nature, 2005 Sep 15;437(7057):318.
    PMID: 16163325
    Matched MeSH terms: Research Personnel/education*; Research Personnel/standards
  15. Research Ethics: Researchers Consider How Best to Prevent Misconduct in Research in Malaysian Higher Learning Institutions Through Ethics Education
    Olesen AP, Amin L, Mahadi Z
    Sci Eng Ethics, 2019 08;25(4):1111-1124.
    PMID: 29717467 DOI: 10.1007/s11948-018-0054-0
    The purpose of this study is to encourage and highlight discussion on how to improve the teaching of research ethics in institutions of higher education in Malaysia. Drawing on semi-structured interviews with 21 academics in a research-intensive university in Malaysia, interviewees agreed on the importance of emphasizing the subject of research ethics among students, as well as academics or researchers. This study reveals that participants felt that there is an urgent need to improve the current awareness and knowledge of issues related to misconduct in research among students and academics. The results of this study indicate a need for better teaching on the subject of research ethics in order to prevent misconduct in research. Finally, it concludes with suggestions that there should be a clear definition of research misconduct, to include consequences when engaging in misconduct; a separate research ethics syllabus for pure and social sciences should be conducted; research ethics should be implemented as a core subject, and there should be an early intervention and continuous learning of research ethics, with an emphasis on ethics training.
    Matched MeSH terms: Research Personnel/education*; Research Personnel/ethics*
  16. Fulltext Academic dishonesty among academics in Malaysia: a comparison between healthcare and non-healthcare academics
    Tiong JJL, Kho HL, Mai CW, Lau HL, Hasan SS
    BMC Med Educ, 2018 Jul 17;18(1):168.
    PMID: 30016945 DOI: 10.1186/s12909-018-1274-3
    BACKGROUND: This study was carried out to gauge the prevalence of academic dishonesty among academics in Malaysian universities. A direct comparison was made between academics of healthcare and non-healthcare courses to note the difference in the level of academic integrity between the two groups. In addition, the predisposing factors and implications of academic dishonesty, as well as the different measures perceived to be effective at curbing this problem were also investigated.

    METHODS: A cross-sectional study design with mixed qualitative and quantitative approaches was employed and data collection was carried out primarily using self-administered questionnaire.

    RESULTS: Approximately half (52.5%, n = 74) of all respondents (n = 141) reported having personally encountered at least one case of academic dishonesty involving their peers. The results also revealed the significantly higher prevalence of various forms of academic misconduct among healthcare academics compared to their non-healthcare counterparts. Although respondents were generally conscious of the negative implications associated with academic dishonesty, more than half of all cases of misconduct were not reported due to the indifferent attitude among academics. Low levels of self-discipline and integrity were found to be the major factors leading to academic misdeeds and respondents opined that university managements should be more proactive in addressing this issue.

    CONCLUSIONS: The outcome of this study should serve as a clarion call for all relevant stakeholders to start making immediate amends in order to improve the current state of affairs in academia.

    Matched MeSH terms: Research Personnel/psychology; Research Personnel/statistics & numerical data*
  17. Responding to the call of home
    Dolgin E
    Nature, 2019 02;566(7742):143-145.
    PMID: 30723358 DOI: 10.1038/d41586-019-00448-8
    Matched MeSH terms: Research Personnel/psychology; Research Personnel/supply & distribution*
  18. Fulltext A review of HIV/AIDS research in Malaysia
    Koh KC
    Med J Malaysia, 2014 Aug;69 Suppl A:68-81.
    PMID: 25417954 MyJurnal
    Two hundred fifty seven articles related to HIV/AIDS were found in a search through a database dedicated to indexing all original data relevant to medicine published in Malaysia between the years 2000-2013. One hundred seventy one articles were selected and reviewed on the basis of clinical relevance and future research implications. This review of literature has been divided into six sections, namely, epidemiology, risk behaviour, clinical features and opportunistic infections, management, diagnosis and discussion. Wherever possible, the reviewed articles have been presented in a chronological order to provide a historical perspective to the reader as many of the results of earlier publications, which are common knowledge now, were relatively unknown then. Since the early days of the HIV epidemic in Malaysia, there have been rapid advances in the understanding and the management of the epidemic in Malaysia based on the insights derived from the results of these research. These insights are invaluable tools for policy makers, advocators, healthcare providers, researchers and everyone and anyone who are involved in the care of individuals with HIV/AIDS. Attempts have been made to identify gaps in certain research areas with the hope of providing directions for future research in HIV/AIDS in Malaysia.
    Matched MeSH terms: Research Personnel
  19. Fulltext Luminescent measurement systems for the investigation of a scramjet inlet-isolator
    Idris AC, Saad MR, Zare-Behtash H, Kontis K
    Sensors (Basel), 2014;14(4):6606-32.
    PMID: 24721773 DOI: 10.3390/s140406606
    Scramjets have become a main focus of study for many researchers, due to their application as propulsive devices in hypersonic flight. This entails a detailed understanding of the fluid mechanics involved to be able to design and operate these engines with maximum efficiency even at their off-design conditions. It is the objective of the present cold-flow investigation to study and analyse experimentally the mechanics of the fluid structures encountered within a generic scramjet inlet at M = 5. Traditionally, researchers have to rely on stream-thrust analysis, which requires the complex setup of a mass flow meter, a force balance and a heat transducer in order to measure inlet-isolator performance. Alternatively, the pitot rake could be positioned at inlet-isolator exit plane, but this method is intrusive to the flow, and the number of pitot tubes is limited by the model size constraint. Thus, this urgent need for a better flow diagnostics method is addressed in this paper. Pressure-sensitive paint (PSP) has been applied to investigate the flow characteristics on the compression ramp, isolator surface and isolator sidewall. Numerous shock-shock interactions, corner and shoulder separation regions, as well as shock trains were captured by the luminescent system. The performance of the scramjet inlet-isolator has been shown to improve when operated in a modest angle of attack.
    Matched MeSH terms: Research Personnel
  20. Analysis of geometric moments as features for firearm identification
    Md Ghani NA, Liong CY, Jemain AA
    Forensic Sci Int, 2010 May 20;198(1-3):143-9.
    PMID: 20211535 DOI: 10.1016/j.forsciint.2010.02.011
    The task of identifying firearms from forensic ballistics specimens is exacting in crime investigation since the last two decades. Every firearm, regardless of its size, make and model, has its own unique 'fingerprint'. These fingerprints transfer when a firearm is fired to the fired bullet and cartridge case. The components that are involved in producing these unique characteristics are the firing chamber, breech face, firing pin, ejector, extractor and the rifling of the barrel. These unique characteristics are the critical features in identifying firearms. It allows investigators to decide on which particular firearm that has fired the bullet. Traditionally the comparison of ballistic evidence has been a tedious and time-consuming process requiring highly skilled examiners. Therefore, the main objective of this study is the extraction and identification of suitable features from firing pin impression of cartridge case images for firearm recognition. Some previous studies have shown that firing pin impression of cartridge case is one of the most important characteristics used for identifying an individual firearm. In this study, data are gathered using 747 cartridge case images captured from five different pistols of type 9mm Parabellum Vektor SP1, made in South Africa. All the images of the cartridge cases are then segmented into three regions, forming three different set of images, i.e. firing pin impression image, centre of firing pin impression image and ring of firing pin impression image. Then geometric moments up to the sixth order were generated from each part of the images to form a set of numerical features. These 48 features were found to be significantly different using the MANOVA test. This high dimension of features is then reduced into only 11 significant features using correlation analysis. Classification results using cross-validation under discriminant analysis show that 96.7% of the images were classified correctly. These results demonstrate the value of geometric moments technique for producing a set of numerical features, based on which the identification of firearms are made.
    Matched MeSH terms: Research Personnel
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