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Fulltext The Rajakumar Movement

Harris N P

Malays Fam Physician, 2009;4(1):6-7.

Note by TCL: The Rajakumar Movement is the Wonca Asia Pacific Region Working Party for Young and Future Family Doctors. It was named in honour of Dr M K Rajakumar.
Comparative analysis of realistic CT-scan and simplified human airway models in airflow simulation

Johari NH, Osman K, Helmi NH, Abdul Kadir MA

Comput Methods Biomech Biomed Engin, 2015;18(1):48-56.
PMID: 23521065 DOI: 10.1080/10255842.2013.776548

Efforts to model the human upper respiratory system have undergone many phases. Geometrical proximity to the realistic shape has been the subject of many research projects. In this study, three different geometries of the trachea and main bronchus were modelled, which were reconstructed from computed tomography (CT) scan images. The geometrical variations were named realistic, simplified and oversimplified. Realistic refers to the lifelike image taken from digital imaging and communications in medicine format CT scan images, simplified refers to the reconstructed image based on natural images without realistic details pertaining to the rough surfaces, and oversimplified describes the straight wall geometry of the airway. The characteristics of steady state flows with different flow rates were investigated, simulating three varied physical activities and passing through each model. The results agree with previous studies where simplified models are sufficient for providing comparable results for airflow in human airways. This work further suggests that, under most exercise conditions, the idealised oversimplified model is not favourable for simulating either airflow regimes or airflow with particle depositions. However, in terms of immediate analysis for the prediction of abnormalities of various dimensions of human airways, the oversimplified techniques may be used.
Is thin in everywhere?: A cross-cultural comparison of a subsection of Tripartite Influence Model in Australia and Malaysia

Shagar PS, Donovan CL, Loxton N, Boddy J, Harris N

Appetite, 2019 03 01;134:59-68.
PMID: 30586595 DOI: 10.1016/j.appet.2018.12.025

Despite growing research investigating prevalence rates of BD among Malaysian women, there has been limited research conducted in Malaysia with respect to factors contributing to its development and consequences. This study tested a subsection of the Tripartite Influence Model, investigating whether sociocultural influences (family, peers, media) lead to thin ideal internalization, which in turn lead to body dissatisfaction (BD) and subsequently restrained eating and bulimic behaviours in both Australian and Malaysian women. Participants were 421 Australian and 399 Malaysian female emerging adults aged between 18 and 25 years, (M = 20.76; SD = 2.86) who completed questionnaires assessing sociocultural influences, thin ideal internalization, body dissatisfaction, restrained eating and bulimic behaviours. The model, largely supported in both cultures, had two points of difference. For Malaysian but not Australian women, family influence was significantly linked with internalization of the thin ideal. Although BD was significantly linked with restrained eating as predicted for Australian women (albeit rather weakly), it was not significantly linked with restrained eating for Malaysian women. The striking similarity of results across both cultures, suggests that Western body ideals, with their corresponding negative sequelae, have infiltrated the collectivist and developing nation of Malaysia.
Fulltext Does culture moderate the relationship between body dissatisfaction and quality of life? A comparative study of Australian and Malaysian emerging adults

Santhira Shagar P, Donovan CL, Boddy J, Tapp C, Harris N

Health Psychol Open, 2021 05 30;8(1):20551029211018378.
PMID: 34104460 DOI: 10.1177/20551029211018378

Investigating moderating effects of culture between body dissatisfaction (BD) and quality of life (QoL) is paramount, as BD affects psychosocial functioning. Participants include 866 females (18-25) years old from Australia (n = 464) M (20.88) SD (3.38) and Malaysia (n = 402) M (20.63) SD (2.05). Higher levels of BD predicted lower levels of QoL across all four domains. BD had the strongest effect on psychological QoL for both cultures. Culture moderated the relationship between BD and: (i) physical QoL and (ii) environmental QoL. The adverse impact of BD on all domains of QoL, highlights the importance of BD as a public health problem.
Pregnancy and Dumping Syndrome post-bariatric surgery: a case report

Edawati DE, Abigail J, Mardiana K, Ming-Cheng C, Harris NS

Med J Malaysia, 2017 04;72(2):133-134.
PMID: 28473681 MyJurnal

This case report discusses dumping syndrome in the postbariatric mother. Diagnostically a challenge, the symptoms of postprandial hypoglycaemia mimic common early gestation complaints and may go undiagnosed, thus requiring a high index of suspicion. As weight-loss surgery gains traction, it is pertinent to note at booking and followups. The pregnancy is at-risk and multidisciplinary team management is central. The mainstay of management remains diet modification. There have been case reports of successful medical treatment of dumping syndrome in pregnancy with good maternal and fetal outcomes. However, more data is needed regarding the usage of these medical treatments in pregnancy.
Mind the gap: reconciling tropical forest carbon flux estimates from earth observation and national reporting requires transparency

Heinrich V, House J, Gibbs DA, Harris N, Herold M, Grassi G, et al.

Carbon Balance Manag, 2023 Nov 20;18(1):22.
PMID: 37982938 DOI: 10.1186/s13021-023-00240-2

BACKGROUND: The application of different approaches calculating the anthropogenic carbon net flux from land, leads to estimates that vary considerably. One reason for these variations is the extent to which approaches consider forest land to be "managed" by humans, and thus contributing to the net anthropogenic flux. Global Earth Observation (EO) datasets characterising spatio-temporal changes in land cover and carbon stocks provide an independent and consistent approach to estimate forest carbon fluxes. These can be compared against results reported in National Greenhouse Gas Inventories (NGHGIs) to support accurate and timely measuring, reporting and verification (MRV). Using Brazil as a primary case study, with additional analysis in Indonesia and Malaysia, we compare a Global EO-based dataset of forest carbon fluxes to results reported in NGHGIs.
RESULTS: Between 2001 and 2020, the EO-derived estimates of all forest-related emissions and removals indicate that Brazil was a net sink of carbon (- 0.2 GtCO2yr-1), while Brazil's NGHGI reported a net carbon source (+ 0.8 GtCO2yr-1). After adjusting the EO estimate to use the Brazilian NGHGI definition of managed forest and other assumptions used in the inventory's methodology, the EO net flux became a source of + 0.6 GtCO2yr-1, comparable to the NGHGI. Remaining discrepancies are due largely to differing carbon removal factors and forest types applied in the two datasets. In Indonesia, the EO and NGHGI net flux estimates were similar (+ 0.6 GtCO2 yr-1), but in Malaysia, they differed in both magnitude and sign (NGHGI: -0.2 GtCO2 yr-1; Global EO: + 0.2 GtCO2 yr-1). Spatially explicit datasets on forest types were not publicly available for analysis from either NGHGI, limiting the possibility of detailed adjustments.
CONCLUSIONS: By adjusting the EO dataset to improve comparability with carbon fluxes estimated for managed forests in the Brazilian NGHGI, initially diverging estimates were largely reconciled and remaining differences can be explained. Despite limited spatial data available for Indonesia and Malaysia, our comparison indicated specific aspects where differing approaches may explain divergence, including uncertainties and inaccuracies. Our study highlights the importance of enhanced transparency, as set out by the Paris Agreement, to enable alignment between different approaches for independent measuring and verification.
Fulltext The impact of local surface changes in Borneo on atmospheric composition at wider spatial scales: coastal processes, land-use change and air quality

Pyle JA, Warwick NJ, Harris NR, Abas MR, Archibald AT, Ashfold MJ, et al.

Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci, 2011 Nov 27;366(1582):3210-24.
PMID: 22006963 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2011.0060

We present results from the OP3 campaign in Sabah during 2008 that allow us to study the impact of local emission changes over Borneo on atmospheric composition at the regional and wider scale. OP3 constituent data provide an important constraint on model performance. Treatment of boundary layer processes is highlighted as an important area of model uncertainty. Model studies of land-use change confirm earlier work, indicating that further changes to intensive oil palm agriculture in South East Asia, and the tropics in general, could have important impacts on air quality, with the biggest factor being the concomitant changes in NO(x) emissions. With the model scenarios used here, local increases in ozone of around 50 per cent could occur. We also report measurements of short-lived brominated compounds around Sabah suggesting that oceanic (and, especially, coastal) emission sources dominate locally. The concentration of bromine in short-lived halocarbons measured at the surface during OP3 amounted to about 7 ppt, setting an upper limit on the amount of these species that can reach the lower stratosphere.