bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Poisonous plants part 1
Authors: Bates Nicola
Published: July 2018

Plants are all around us in our homes, gardens, parks and waste ground. Although many are generally of low risk, some are particularly hazardous. Plant poisoning can be seasonal, with exposures to some flowers occurring in the spring, fruits and berries in the autumn and certain plants only around Christmas. It is important not to rely on common names as these can be misleading; a single common name may refer to one or more plant species. In the first of two articles the mechanism of toxicity, clinical effects and treatment of poisonings involving cycads, Dracaena spp., and plants containing cardiac glycosides, insoluble oxalates, Amaryllicaceae alkaloids and grayanotoxins are discussed. A list of plants of low toxicity is also provided, although ingestion of any plant material can cause gastrointestinal signs in cats and dogs.
Perioperative management during ovariohysterectomy for pyometra with concurrent diabetic ketoacidosis in a dog
Authors: Trimble Toby , Bell Andrew
Published: July 2018

A 10-year-old female Jack Russell Terrier weighing 7.1 kg, with diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA), was presented for anaesthesia to undergo ovariohysterectomy. The dog had been medically managed for treatment of DKA for 5 days, but had a persistent metabolic acidosis with a negative base deficit, hyperketonaemia, and hyperglycaemia. The dog was treated with sodium bicarbonate prior to induction of general anaesthesia, to achieve acute correction of metabolic acidosis. Maintenance of mean arterial blood pressure was challenging, due to hypotension resulting from mechanical ventilation. Administration of a crystalloid bolus (10 ml/kg) intravenously (IV) increased mean arterial blood pressure, but this intervention was delayed and could have been administered at an earlier time in the anaesthetic. Quantitative assessment of pulse pressure variation would have been advantageous for this case, and could have guided earlier administration of an IV crystalloid bolus in a proactive approach to treatment of hypotension. Acidaemia poses challenges to maintenance of normotension, due to adverse effects on the cardiovascular system.
Prostatic adenocarcinoma in a rabbit: a case report
Authors: Saunders Richard , Bowlt-Blacklock Kelly , Fews Debra
Published: July 2018

A 1.98 kg, 9-year-old pet rabbit was presented after an 11-month period of intermittent haematuria and recent weight loss. A soft tissue mass was palpable in the caudal abdomen; ultrasonography and an exploratory laparotomy were performed to investigate. Following successful removal of the mass, microscopic examination identified the mass as a prostatic adenocarcinoma. The patient was euthanased due to its poor prognosis and poor return to normal gastrointestinal function postoperatively.
Generation pup
Authors: Murray Jane
Published: July 2018

Dogs Trust is working with the University of Bristol to set up and launch a birth cohort study for dogs, similar to the ‘Children of the 90s’ study. This study has the potential to reveal factors affecting the development of a large number of diseases affecting dogs. Veterinary surgeons can assist by encouraging their puppy-owning clients to sign up to the project.
A fresh start
Authors: Russell Meredith Jones
Published: July 2018

Why one setting in Liverpool is being praised for its food provision. By Meredith Jones Russell
Contraception following pregnancy: FAQs
Authors: Robinson Carol Marilyn Ann
Published: July 2018

Practice nurses may be at the frontline of delivering contraception to women following pregnancy. Carol Marilyn Ann Robinson provides the answers to some frequently asked questions in clinical practice

The aim of this paper is to address questions frequently asked by practice nurses, midwives and health visitors during contraception training programmes in relation to the provision of contraception to women following childbirth, abortion, miscarriage or ectopic pregnancy. In order to formulate evidence-based answers to the questions electronic sources were routinely searched including clinical guidance from the Faculty of Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare; the World Health Organization publications; UK Medical Eligibility Recommendations for Contraceptive Use; the Cochrane library; and Medline, as well as manufacturers' Summaries of Product Characteristics.
Polypharmacy in older people: The need for deprescribing
Authors: Kaufman Gerri
Published: July 2018

As Gerri Kaufman explains, practice nurses play a key role in supporting older people with long-term conditions who may benefit from deprescribing

Multimorbidity, the existence of two or more long-term conditions, and polypharmacy, the use of multiple medicines, are common in older people. Polypharmacy is classed as either appropriate or problematic. Altered pharmacokinetics (how the body handles a drug), and pharmacodynamics (how drugs work in the body), coupled with polypharmacy have the potential to increase the risk of adverse drug events in older people. Adverse drug events include drug-to-drug interactions and adverse drug reactions. It remains unclear whether interventions such as medication reviews, the use of risk screening tools and computerised decision support, implemented to improve appropriate polypharmacy, result in clinically significant improvements. There is growing evidence of the benefits and safety of deprescribing in polypharmacy, which strengthens the case for greater integration of the process into clinical practice. Nurses in general practice play a key role in supporting older patients with long-term conditions and multimorbidity, and therefore have a role to play in deprescribing decisions, and in supporting patients to make such decisions.
The role of technology-enabled care in high-quality patient care
Authors: Johnson Kellie , Johnstone Heather , McGougan Teresa
Published: July 2018

It is essential that the NHS drives improvement in technology to improve patient care. This article discusses how practice nurses can play their part

Using technology-enabled care to deliver high-quality patient care aligns to the triple aim of Leading Change, Adding Value: better outcomes, better experiences for people and better use of resources. This article focuses on the need to support practice nurses in becoming digitally proficient and explores shared learning from an innovative project that enables nurses to become digital champions.
RESEARCH ROUNDUP
Authors: Winter George
Published: July 2018

George Winter provides an overview of recently published articles that may be of interest to practice nurses. Should you wish to look at any of the papers in more detail, a full reference is provided.
Chiming with the past
Authors: Hart Karen
Published: July 2018

In June, Newham school children and professional musicians brought the sound of music to the Tower of London as part of the annual ‘Music at the Tower’ event.
Missed Monteggia fracture dislocations treated by open reduction of the radial head
Authors: Eamsobhana P. , Chalayon O. , Kaewpornsawan K. , Ariyawatkul T.
Published: July 2018

Aims

Delayed diagnosis is a well-known complication of a Monteggia fracture-dislocation. If left untreated, the dislocated radial head later becomes symptomatic. The purposes of this study were firstly, to evaluate the clinical and radiological results of open reduction of the radial head and secondly, to identify the factors that may affect the outcome of this procedure.

Materials and Methods

This retrospective study evaluated 30 children with a chronic Monteggia lesion. There were 18 boys and 12 girls with a mean age of 7.4 years (4 to 13) at the time of open reduction. The mean interval to surgery, after the initial fracture, was 23.4 months (6 to 120). Clinical grading used a Kim modified elbow score: radiological outcome was recorded. The effect of the patient’s age, gender, duration from initial injury, Bado classification, and annular ligament reconstruction were analyzed. The mean follow-up was 42.2 months (15 to 20).

Results

The Kim elbow scores evaluated at the last clinic visit were excellent in 23 patients, good in three, fair in two, and poor in two. A majority of the patients were found to have significant improvement of elbow flexion (p < 0.001). Six met the criteria of a fair radiological outcome; four of these were operated on more than 24 months after the initial injury, and three had surgery after the age of 11. Univariate analysis failed to find any factor that was significantly associated with a fair or poor outcome.

Conclusion

Good clinical and radiological outcomes can be expected in most patients. Osteoarthritic changes were associated with age > 11 years and/or a delay of treatment of > 24 months. However, no statistically significant factor could be identified which correlated with an unfavourable outcome. Cite this article: Bone Joint J 2018;100-B:1117–24.
Increased postoperative glucose variability is associated with adverse outcomes following orthopaedic surgery
Authors: Shohat N. , Foltz C. , Restrepo C. , Goswami K. , Tan T. , Parvizi J.
Published: July 2018

Aims

The aim of this study was to examine the association between postoperative glycaemic variability and adverse outcomes following orthopaedic surgery.

Patients and Methods

This retrospective study analyzed data on 12 978 patients (1361 with two operations) who underwent orthopaedic surgery at a single institution between 2001 and 2017. Patients with a minimum of either two postoperative measurements of blood glucose levels per day, or more than three measurements overall, were included in the study. Glycaemic variability was assessed using a coefficient of variation (CV). The length of stay (LOS), in-hospital complications, and 90-day readmission and mortality rates were examined. Data were analyzed with linear and generalized linear mixed models for linear and binary outcomes, adjusting for various covariates.

Results

The cohort included 14 339 admissions, of which 3302 (23.0%) involved diabetic patients. Patients with CV values in the upper tertile were twice as likely to have an in-hospital complication compared with patients in the lowest tertile (19.4% versus 9.0%, p < 0.001), and almost five times more likely to die compared with those in the lowest tertile (2.8% versus 0.6%, p < 0.001). Results of the adjusted analyses indicated that the mean LOS was 1.28 days longer in the highest versus the lowest CV tertile (p < 0.001), and the odds of an in-hospital complication and 90-day mortality in the highest CV tertile were respectively 1.91 (p < 0.001) and 2.10 (p = 0.001) times larger than the odds of these events in the lowest CV tertile. These associations were significant even for non-diabetic patients. After adjusting for hypoglycaemia, the relationships remained significant, except that the CV tertile no longer predicted mortality in diabetics.

Conclusion

These results indicate that higher glycaemic variability is associated with longer LOS and in-hospital complications. Glycaemic variability also predicted death, although that primarily held for non-diabetic patients in the highest CV tertile following orthopaedic surgery. Prospective studies should examine whether ensuring low postoperative glycaemic variability may reduce complication rates and mortality. Cite this article: Bone Joint J 2018;100-B:1125–32.
A SYMBOLIC KNOWLEDGE OF NUMBERS: A WINDOW INTO THE EARLY UNDERSTANDING OF NUMERIC STRUCTURE
Authors: Vasilyeva Marina , Weber Lindsey , Crawford Lauren , Veraksa Aleksander
Published: July 2018

INTRODUCTION. Accumulating evidence, primarily from English-speaking children, indicates that acquisition of multi-digit numbers begins prior to formal math instruction. The present study replicated this phenomenon in a novel cultural/linguistic context and extended the current knowledge of early symbolic numeric development. METHOD. The study involved a sample of Russian preschoolers who took part in two testing sessions. In one session, children completed symbolic numeric tasks: writing and reading of multi-digit numbers. In another session, they completed a non-verbal intelligence task. Children’s performance on the two numeric tasks was compared, controlling for their general intelligence level. RESULTS. Russian preschoolers found the reading task more challenging than the corresponding writing task. In particular, when reading numbers that included two or three digits, children were more likely to make conceptual errors that revealed the difficulty of understanding the hierarchical structure of multi-digit numbers. In contrast, the frequency of errors in which the structure of the multi-digit number was preserved (for example, substituting one of the digits) was similar across the writing and reading tasks. DISCUSSION. Consistent with prior work, preschoolers in the present study revealed a partial knowledge of multi-digit numbers that emerges prior to formal instruction and is likely based on informal learning. The relative difficulty of the reading task -compared to the writing task- suggests that at the early stages of learning symbolic numbers children may require additional cues about numeric structure, which may be provided by spoken number names. The written numerals do not provide linguistic cues about numeric structure, making the reading task more challenging. Implications of these findings for early educational practice are discussed.
Ideology and the virtual city: Social critique and conformity in video game power fantasies
Authors: Bailes Jon
Published: July 2018

This article analyses three video games based in modern urban settings, Saints Row IV, Grand Theft Auto V and No More Heroes, to consider how they convey different ideological responses to modern consumer societies in their structural and narrative elements. Using Marxist and psychoanalytic concepts, I consider how expectations surrounding work, leisure, property and relationships create antagonisms that individuals must reconcile with life experience. I then show how the three games exemplify different forms of ideology, in the shape of ‘power fantasies’ that manifest these antagonisms and attempt to resolve them. Throughout the article, I reference social theorists such as Fredric Jameson, Slavoj Žižek and Herbert Marcuse to define the ‘neo-liberal’ cultural background from which these ideologies emerge, and outline their features. Such perspectives help evaluate the games as cultural products of today’s neo-liberalized social order, which, I argue, struggle to interrogate systemic issues, but nonetheless contain hints of deeper social critique.
‘What is my Call of Duty?’: Exploring the importance of player experience in a first-person shooter video game
Authors: Krcmar Marina , McGloin Rory , Scott Li Shu
Published: July 2018

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between previous gameplay experience and game responses and perceptions, such as guilt and stress, as well as in-game behaviour. Based on a dual-processing approach, we expected more experienced players to process games using a more effortful, system 2 type processing; whereas, less experienced players would process the game using the more automatic system 1 type processing. Further, we expected these differences in processing to be related to differences in guilt, stress and in-game outcomes. Consistent with these predictions we found that more experienced game players perceived game characters as less anthropomorphic and experienced less stress from shooting at in-game characters. In addition, perceiving game characters as more anthropomorphic was related to increased feelings of guilt after gameplay as well as an increase in stress resulting from shooting at in-game characters. Stress was negatively related to lower overall bullet counts and increased feelings of guilt. Results are discussed in terms of a dual-processing approach to video gameplay.
Book Review
Authors: Falkenberg Saffyre
Published: July 2018

(En)coding identity: The politics of representation in video games

Gaming Representation: Race, Gender, and Sexuality in Video Games, Jennifer Malkowski and TreaAndrea M. Russworm (eds) (2017)

Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press, 260 pp.,

ISBN: 9780253025739, p/bk, $38.00 (USD)
The poster session as fusing theory and practice in art and design education: Exhibiting an occluded genre
Authors: Thomas Peter , Lees-Maffei Grace
Published: July 2018

While the academic poster has been used extensively in the sciences, its particular pertinence in art and design education remains unrecognized. Posters (outputs) and the poster sessions that accompany them (processes) form an ‘occluded genre’ in design education. The secondary literature about academic posters is typically ‘how-to’ rather than pedagogical analysis. We identify the benefits of using posters in design education, whether as formats for ‘regenring’ the conventional contextual studies essay or as iterations towards essay work that draw on the skills students are developing in their design briefs, thereby bridging theory and practice, and accommodating diversity. Based on our pedagogical research in the United Kingdom and the Netherlands, this article reflects on how students respond to the benefits of the poster, and the poster session, and provides teachers with a clear rationale for their increased use in design education.
Case Study 3: Games and Board Games
Authors: Burns Tom , Sinfield Sandra , Abegglen Sandra
Published: July 2018

This is Case Study 3 of 5, as introduced in ‘Regenring academic writing’ on pp. 181–90, which includes an overview of the context for all five pieces.
Time to ditch the traditional essay!
Authors: Walker James
Published: July 2018

The traditional essay has long established itself as a stable and reliable assessment within higher education. However, it reinforces an uneven power balance whereby the tutor passes judgement on a student’s written work according to a set of criteria. Drawing on the work of Fiona English, I have experimented with a ‘visual essay’ assessment as this affords students more opportunities to express their knowledge. They write this from the perspective of a literary figure, so that they are able to have a more emotional relationship with the text they are studying. To demonstrate this process I put forward my argument from the perspective of Arthur Seaton, the anti-hero of Alan Sillitoe’s Saturday Night and Sunday Morning.
Outing RTP: Writing to be read
Authors: Francis Pat
Published: July 2018

Research: Theory and Practice (RTP) is a new unit, offered as an alternative to the dissertation in the final year of the Fashion Media & Promotion honours degree at the University for the Creative Arts at Rochester. It is a 30-credit unit, introduced in the latter part of year 2, taught through workshops and tutorials in the autumn term of year 3 and submitted in January. The final submission consists of an article (as if for a specific publication) or an essay with a specified readership, plus a research book that documents all areas of primary and secondary research, the journey and reflections on the whole experience, in the context of final-year studies. This article is a reflective report on the first outing of this unit, giving details of its intention by focusing particularly on readership; development of appropriate, and therefore different, writing voices; and the processes of construction of an article, as well as referring to the strands of research that were undertaken. The emphasis is on the students’ journeys made through research and reflection and some of the unforeseen outcomes that were created.
Visual Soundbites Postcards: Getting students to regenre essay-writing advice
Authors: Head Emma , Gröppel-Wegener Alke
Published: July 2018

A tale of two parts, this ‘article’ presents a series of artefacts, the Visual Soundbites Postcards created by Alke Gröppel-Wegener in 2015, as well as a reflection on how these artefacts have been used as teaching resources/inspirations by Emma Head.
Educação Poética: Um Programa para o 1.º Ciclo do Ensino Básico
Authors: Ribeiro João Manuel , Festas Isabel , Damião Maria Helena
Published: July 2018

Admitindo que o valor educativo da poesia decorre da resposta que as características específicas deste texto desencadeiam nos leitores – a literariedade –, defende-se uma abordagem pedagógica que incida na promoção dos três níveis dessa resposta: foregrounding, desfamiliarização e transformação de conceitos e sentimentos. Assim, foi elaborado um programa com o objetivo de promover esta resposta. Através de um design quase-experimental, foramcriadas três condições, em que participaram 9 professores e 158 alunos do 4.º ano de escolaridade. Os resultados apontam para a superioridade do grupo que participou no programa, relativamente à transformação de conceitos e sentimentos. Os alunos que leram os textos mas que não seguiram o programa não apresentaram qualquer melhoria relativamente a um grupo a quem apenas foi recomendado que respeitasse as orientações curriculares, o que indicia que a mera exposição à poesia não é suficiente para desencadear a resposta adequada.
ETNOGRAFIA E TURISMO: Um Estudo das Percepções e Sentimentos de Crianças Residentes na Ilha Do Mel – PR
Authors: Piola Felipe Ganancin , Andrade Daniele de Castro Gonçalves de , Kushano Elizabete Sayuri
Published: July 2018

A etnografia é uma metodologia associada às investigações antropológicas, utilizada como estratégia de registro de informações coletadas no trabalho de campo. A etnografia vem sendo descoberta como uma abordagem teórica que amplia a compreensão da dinâmica da atividade nos estudos do turismo. Para os estudos com crianças e suas infâncias a abordagem etnográfica implica na aceitação, por parte das crianças em participar do estudo e do pesquisador em compreender as singularidades do universo infantil. Nesse sentido, o presente trabalho teve como objetivo principal analisar a percepção de crianças sobre o turismo. Para tanto, utilizou-se de pesquisa qualitativa, na qual foi adotada aplicação de questionários como instrumento de coleta de dados. Os resultados apontaram que as crianças possuem opiniões importantes em relação ao fenômeno turístico.
TURISMO DE NEGÓCIOS E EVENTOS: Caracterização da 41ª FIMEC e a Expectativa de Consumo e Percepção de Qualidade dos visitantes
Authors: Júnior Sinval Pereira , Beltrão Leila Maria Vasquez , Stoll Carolina Braghirolli
Published: July 2018

Novo Hamburgo/RS é o principal cluster do setor coureiro-calçadista do Brasil e sedia a segunda maior feira de calçados do mundo: a FIMEC (Feira Internacional de Couros, Produtos Químicos, Componentes, Máquinas e Equipamentos para Calçados e Curtumes). O evento atrai milhares de visitantes, com forte movimento na cadeia de serviços e infraestrutura turística. O presente artigo tem como objetivo principal caracterizar a importância da 41ª FIMEC/2017 como evento de negócios, em suas conexões com os ramos econômicos de apoio ao turismo e a percepção dos visitantes sobre a qualidade da organização, estrutura e serviços oferecidos pelo evento. Para tal realizou-se uma pesquisa de abordagem quali-quantitativa, que resultou na aplicação de 106 questionários, visando obter dados acerca do perfil do visitante, sua capacidade real e potencial de consumo turístico e sua avaliação no que se refere à qualidade das instalações e serviços da feira a partir de uma escala de cinco níveis. Na avaliação geral, o grau de satisfação dos visitantes foi elevado, já que 91,4% dos entrevistados consideraram o evento excelente ou muito bom. Contudo, alguns itens demandam melhorias, como os serviços de comunicação/telefonia e sanitários. Com os resultados, busca-se fornecer subsídios para o aperfeiçoamento das edições subsequentes do evento.
ENTRE ENCONTROS E (DES) ENCONTROS: A Sustentabilidade de um Roteiro Turístico na Reserva Indígena de Dourados /MS.
Authors: Souza Algemiro de , Eichenberg Fábio Orlando
Published: July 2018

O presente artigo teve como objetivo principal discutir a viabilidade técnica, social e econômica, de um roteiro sustentável de turismo em terra indígena nos limites da Reserva Indígena de Dourados. A metodologia utilizada foi a pesquisa bibliográfica e aplicação de questionário aos visitantes, comunidade local, lideranças indígenas e também agências de viagens e turismo da cidade. Os resultados sugeriram a viabilidade da proposta de roteiro turístico e a preocupação de evidenciar a Reserva Indígena de Dourados no tocante a seus costumes, crenças e riquezas dentro da lógica indigenista/comunitária e não puramente economicista/capitalista do turismo tradicional.
The thickness of the epicardial fat is the "visit card" of metabolic syndrome
Authors: Drapkina Oxana M. , Shepel Ruslan N. , Deeva Tatiana A.
Published: July 2018

Aims. On the basis of echocardiography to evaluate the thickness of epicardial fat (TEF) in patients with metabolic syndrome (MS) and to establish a connection with the main indicators of laboratory and instrumental methods of research.

Materials and methods. The study included 76 patients, 43 patients with MS and 33 without MS. The average age of patients in the MS group at the time of inclusion in the study was 62.710.3 years in the control group (without MS) 6014.7 years. All patients underwent a comprehensive examination that included the collection of complaints, study of history, physical examination, anthropometric measurements, laboratory (including the study of the levels of caspase 8, leptin in blood plasma enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay using kits Platinum ELISA) and instrumental examination (echocardiography, ultrasound examination of organs of small pelvis). TEF was determined using transthoracic echocardiography on the machine Acuson Sequoia 512.

Results. According transthoracic echocardiography was significantly higher in the group of patients with MS and was 4.671.7 mm, as compared to 2.661.15 mm in the control group (p0.001). Identified moderate and strong correlation between TEF and weight of the patients, waist circumference, ratio of waist circumference to hip circumference, body mass index, glucose levels in the blood plasma, the presence of diabetes mellitus type 2, ultrasonic signs of steatosis of the liver and pancreas, increased aminotransferases, the level of caspase-8 concentration in plasma leptin. Patients the MS group with increased TEF increases the risk of developing hypertension, ischemic heart disease, left ventricular hypertrophy, diastolic dysfunction of the left ventricle type 2, level of caspase-8 and concentration in plasma leptin.

Conclusion. Based on the obtained data, the measurement of TEF is justified in patients with MS in everyday clinical practice. The correlations between the TEF and the clinical and metabolic parameters of the CVD and MS make it possible to consider the TEF as a new marker of the risk of developing MS and cardiovascular diseases.
Operational dashboard: Accelerator for shop floor workers
Authors: M. M. Yusof E , S. Othman M , M. Yusof R.
Published: July 2018

Executing job tasks faster is essential for employees working in the operation section of manufacturing organizations nowadays in order to achieve target profit and gain customer satisfaction. Thus, having a tool to assist them in performing their work faster is necessary. Existing IT system does exist to supply the data they need. However, the entire process is invisible because there is no real-time information available. This causes delay in decisions that they need to make for the operation of the section. To address these issues, this paper presents the Operational Dashboard (OD) for the workers in the operation section of the manufacturing firm. The workers’ needs were first identified to ensure that a right dashboard is being constructed, which is the OD. The OD system was then implemented in the manufacturing firm following the users’ requirements. The implementation of the OD had shown its effectiveness in shortening the time of the data analysis by the employees in the section. This eventually led to improvement in the decision making process in such a way that the process was done faster as compared to the previous practice.
A review of thermoelectric ZnO nanostructured ceramics for energy recovery
Authors: M A Mohammed , Sudin Izman , Mohd Noor Alias , Rajoo Srithar , M B Uday , H. Obayes Noor , Firdaus Omar Muhammad
Published: July 2018

The thermoelectric devices have the ability to convert heat energy into electrical energy without required moving components, having good reliability however their performance depends on material selections. The advances in the development of thermoelectric materials have highlighted to increase the technology’s energy efficiency and waste heat recovery potential at elevated temperatures. The fabrication of these thermoelectric materials depends on the type of these materials and the properties using to evaluate these kind of materials such as thermopower (Seebeck effect), electrical and thermal conductivities. Ceramic thermoelectric materials have attracted increased attention as an alternative approach to traditional thermoelectric materials.  From these important thermoelectric ceramic materials that can be a candidate for n-type is ZnO doping, which have excellent thermal and chemical stability, as they are promising for high temperature power generator. This review is an effort to study the thermoelectric properties and elements doping related with zinc oxide nano-ceramic materials. Effective ZnO dopants and doping strategies to achieve high electrical and thermal conductivities and high carrier concentration are highlighted in this review to enable the advanced zinc oxide applications in thermoelectric power generation.
A state-of-the-art study of cloud manufacturing
Authors: Hatema Noor , Yusof Yusri , Zuhra A. Kadir Aini , M A Mohammed
Published: July 2018

There is a considerable industrial standard transfer. This will drive to the adaptable usage of various globally shared, emerging within the manufacturing field by Combining advanced manufacturing models such as the Internet of things, cloud computing, service-oriented technologies, big data, and recently Cloud Manufacturing. Cloud manufacturing a program is a combined program that empowers manufacturers to distribute sources contribute manufacturing services and including supports compatible cooperation. Economically significantources, such as the manufacture of software tools, importance, knowledge, and manufacturing capacity, and material, then become available to supposed users on a global basis, the principal benefits and difficulties of achieving cloud manufacturing are analyzed. the key New technologies for manufacturing model, is cloud manufacturing, cloud manufacturing aims to achieve full participation, free of charge, And easy for utilization of various sources and manufacturing abilities in the form of manufacturing setting. This paper contributes an overview of the cloud manufacturing.
A brief review of grey fuzzy logic technique research progression from 2010 to 2016
Authors: Yacob Suhaila , Amran Md Ali Mohd , Ahsan Qumrul , Arifin Nurulhuda , Ali Rafidah
Published: July 2018

Grey fuzzy logic method is a new artificial intelligent method that   can make significant improvement in the performance characteristics of the process. In the present study an attempt has been made to provide a brief understanding of the advancement of the Grey Fuzzy Logic from 2010 to 2016. The first half of this paper presents the publication trend of Grey Fuzzy Logic. The remaining of this paper briefly explains the contribution of the individual publication related to Grey Fuzzy Logic. It is believed that this paper will greatly benefit the reader who needs a bird-eyes view of the Grey Fuzzy Logic ’s publications trend.
The Relationship between Knowledge for Customer and Service Quality on Customer Satisfaction: A Study on UniKL MITEC Student Services
Authors: Firdaus Adrutdin Khairul , Ali Azlan , Hassan Sallaudin , Jaafar Jimisiah , Syafiqah A Rahim Nur , Imran Qureshi Muhammad
Published: July 2018

Knowledge for customer roles (KC) in student services is essentially very much important since the linkage of knowledge creation, sharing, dissemination and acquisition would be the value created for the customers. One of the important elements of customer knowledge (CK) is knowledge for customer roles (KC) and it reflects on how the process of knowledge transfer and exchange are conducted for the benefits of customer satisfaction (CS). This study aims to discuss on the relationship of knowledge for customer roles (KC) and service quality dimensions (SQ) on customer satisfaction (CS) in student services environment. In depth study on the customer knowledge (CK) dimension will be conducted in order to identify the level of knowledge of customers on student services and how the process of knowledge transfer and exchange are taking place. The study of service quality dimensions (SQ) in the student services is also conducted in order to identify the element of knowledge transfer and exchange that resides in the service quality RATER dimensions and how it relates to the knowledge for customer roles (KC) and customer satisfaction (CS). In conclusion, the construct of knowledge for customer roles (KC) relationship with the service quality dimensions (SQ) and customer satisfaction (CS) is critically assessed and the empirical studies are to be examined so as to assess on the obtained relationships.
Six Sigma Analyze Phase for New Product Development Prototype Process Improvement
Authors: Sabri Mohamad Zin Mohd , Rahman Mahmood Ab , Hasrulnizzam Wan Mahmood Wan , Rahim Fadhlur
Published: July 2018

Many manufacturing companies focus on the innovative product. Prototyping process plays a very important role for innovative product because prototype helps the company to test the functionality and stability of a product. The popularity of the product on the market also can be done by using prototype to determine the customer interest on the product. This study is conducted at research and development department of a stationeries products company. The purpose of this study is to reduce the total duration of prototyping process by using Six Sigma phase. This article focusing on analyse phase of this study where the cause and effect diagram, failure mode and effect analysis and pareto chart were used to determine the major causes of the problem. Once the major causes were identified, a solution plan was proposed in Improve phase. Results and findings for this analyze phase explaining about top level process overview to visualize the whole research and development structure interaction with prototyping process and how cause and effect diagram being further elaborate focusing on poor prototyping process visibility and process duration too long.
Prifacounter: The innovation of traffic counter application for android OS
Authors: J. Romadhona Prima , Chasanah Faizul
Published: July 2018

In civil engineering, particularly in the field of traffic engineering, it was possible to measure traffic performance by way of surveying the traffic flow, velocity, and density. The current traffic survey is commonly conducted by surveyor who manually calculates the movement of mode of transportation using traffic counter and survey form. Such method was definitely way too costly and time consuming in rendering the traffic data. Therefore, this study aims was to create application design products for technology retrieval and vehicle traffic count calculations, as well as traffic behavior analysis. This research was used Research and Development (R & D) method. The data accuracy was maintained through check and control to make sure that the inputted data were precisely the same with the results of the display on the application. This application called PRIFACOUNTER that can be operated personally in android OS hand phone. On the basis of the research, it was revealed that some variables and steps in the application concept were definitely needed to determine traffic behavior consisting of traffic flow, capacity, and degree of saturation. Since anyone can use this application, it will reduce the time in order to analyze the traffic performance.
Preliminary Study on Consumer Attitude towards FinTech Products and Services in Malaysia
Authors: Tat Huei Cham , Suet Cheng Low , Chee Seong Lim , Aye Khin Aye , Ling Leh Bin Raymond
Published: July 2018

“FinTech” or a compound term of Financial Technology refers as a newly emerged industry that utilizes IT-centered technologies which aims to boost the efficiency of the financial ecosystem. Since its inception, FinTech has successfully established its presence in the global financial industry due to the benefits and advantages of the system. However, the research studies that highlight the importance of FinTech are scarce. Specifically, the study pertaining to the consumers’ attitude towards FinTech products and services in the context of Malaysia remains unexplored by most of the studies. This preliminary study proposed the extension of Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) to identify the potential factors that influence consumers’ intention to adopt FinTech products and services in Malaysia. This study reviewed the factors, namely the usefulness, ease of use, competitive advantage, perceived risk, and perceived cost that can potentially influence the attitude of customers towards the product and services of FinTech. This study also proposes the potential mediating effect of attitude towards using FinTech products and the intention to adopt FinTech. This study attempts to create new knowledge geared towards the behavior to utilize FinTech products in Malaysia.
Benefits and challenges of corporate social responsibility implementations: Evidence from manufacturing sector in Malaysia
Authors: Amira Hanim Azman Nur , Mustapha Mazlina
Published: July 2018

Prior studies posited that corporate social responsibility (CSR) by organizations indicates a continuum business commitment to act appropriately. CSR activities carried out would capture the issues, processes and values that companies must tackle to minimize harmful effects stemming from their activities and at the same time the company can create economic, social as well as environmental value for the society. However, not all companies would be motivated to carry out CSR activities. Thus, this study aims to examine the challenges that companies have to face in implementing CSR activities. In addition, the benefits derived from the activities are also discussed. Questionnaires were distributed to manufacturing companies registered with the Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers. The results of this research project suggest that respondent companies appear to apply stakeholder approach in implementation of their CSR activities, where they value their relationship with the stakeholders and are very concerned about the stakeholders’ perceptions on their companies. The CSR activities which they implement appear to serve as a bridge to tighten these relationships. On the other hand, the cost and complexity of implementation, and time consumed to implement are among the biggest challenges to the organizations in their implementation of CSR activities.
Improving Quality Control Process Through Value Stream Mapping
Authors: Fitri Ikatrinasari Zulfa , Kosasih Dan
Published: July 2018

PT. AEMI is one of the growing electronic component manufacturing company. By this time, Kaizen project has been run and managed to become a culture in PT AEMI. However, the project has not integrated, comprehensive and not yet has a long-term goals. Implementation of value stream mapping (VSM) in PT AEMI is expected to make Kaizen projects more focused and to produce increasing of the maximum efficiency. In addition, VSM Kaizen is believed to make the those programs more integrated, effective and comprehensive. This study aims to: (1) create a current state mapping in the Department of Quality Control PT. AEMI, (2) identify wastes in the Department of Quality Control PT.AEMI, (3) create a future state mapping at the Department of Quality Control PT. AEMI, (4) make a plan of improvement and analyzing the application. Stages of the study were as follows: (1) identification of work processes, (2) collect and analysis of work process time, (3) analysis of the current state mapping, (4) calculate of lead time and process time, (5) analysis of value added and non value-added activities, (6) analysis of wastes, (7) make a plan of future state mapping, (8) improvement design (improvement planning), (9) implementation of improvement, (10) analysis of the implementation of improvements. The results of this study are: 1) current state mapping at QC Department shows that the total lead time of 848 minutes where there is non-value added activity of 778 minutes. 2) identify waste on the handling process where the product movement from assembly to QC for 2 minutes, movement transactions from assembly to QC for 479 minutes and the waiting time at  inspection area for 727 minutes. 3) future state mapping at QC Department shows that the total lead time of 516.5 minutes where there is non-value added activity of 446.5 minutes. 4) the improvement to do is to change the lay out where final inspection is moved from QC to manufacturing so as to result in reduce of non-value added activity by 46%.
Brand Equity and Revisit Intention towards Food Truck Business
Authors: Mokhtar Rahayu , Othman Zulhan , Fadzil Ariffin Hashim
Published: July 2018

As a new phenomenon in Malaysia, food truck becomes popular among the entrepreneur and customer. Beside food, food truck also introduces branding for the marketing purpose. However, the influence of brand equity in food truck is still sparse. This study seeks to investigate the relationship between brand equity and customer revisit intention in the food truck business. The data will be collected via survey questionnaire and will distribute to the food truck customer in Klang Valley. The result obtained from this study will contribute to the knowledge in brand equity theory and the revisit intention of food truck customer as the consequence. It also an opportunity for food truck manager to improve understanding towards customer to succeed in the competitive environment.
The distribution and length size of corbicula fluminea (ETAK) in Sungai Pergau at Gunung Reng
Authors: Eh Rak Aweng , Fasihah Binti Ab Khalid Nur , Aisyah Syed Omar Sharifah
Published: July 2018

Corbicula fluminea (Bivalvia: Corbiculidae), locally known as “etak” which is the favorite freshwater clams in the Kelantan state. This study was conducted to study on Etak distribution in Sungai Pergau at Gunung Reng which is known as a recreational spot. As it is the favorite freshwater clam in the state, the data could be helpful in monitoring its presence and if in decline, remedial and replenishment could be introduced. The numbers, weight and the length measurement of C. fluminea were identified as C. fluminea parameters. In addition, water quality used (conductivity, pH, turbidity, salinity, temperature, DO and nitrate) and types of substrate were also studied to identify the habitat characteristics that affect the distribution of this species. As there was no documentation of distribution and density of C. fluminea in Sg. Kelantan, it would be difficult to compare the density and distribution of “etak” in the others river in Kelantan. In total 166 individuals of C. fluminea (77g) found at middle streams with 11-12.5mm in length. As the finding shows that, the distribution of C. fluminea at Gunung Reng was not affected by water quality. In this study shows that the most substrate ranged from 0.25mm and 0.71mm which represent sand (sand-coarse and sand-fine). It is believed that the smaller substrates help to trap more suspended materials as food for C. fluminea and the harvesting activities reduce the time for the clams to grow mature with a larger size in length.
Technology Capability Perception & Sustaining Competitive Advantage Challenge for Private Higher Institution: a Review of Literature
Authors: Hussain Suhaidah , Mad Lazim Halim , Azlan Taib Che
Published: July 2018

Private Institution of Higher Education Institutions (PvIHEs) in Malaysia is facing stiff competition from local and international institutions that offers various programmes.  The sustainability of PvIHEs is highly depending on several factors such as programmes offered, teaching and learning facilities, location, conducive environment, teaching staff and etc.  The focus of this paper was to review the literature review of sustaining competitive advantage factors for PvIHEs.  Furthermore in order to discover the technology capability perception of people on sustaining competitive advantage, an application of Theory of Planned Behaviour is applied.  The Theory of Planned Behaviour was used by various researchers in various setting.  The literature review of this study discloses the previous scholar on the related areas in sustaining competitive advantage, Theory of Planned Behavior and the perception of technology capability of a private higher education institution.
Identification of The Concept Selection Method for Product Design and Development in The Manufacturing Industry
Authors: Wei Chan Shiau , Zaman Izzuddin , Fauzi Ahmad Md , Yee Liew Check
Published: July 2018

Concept selection is the most critical aspect of the entire product development process. However, many industries are not aware of this, or they might not possess essential knowledge about concept selection. Thus, this study aims to identify the concept selection method used by a series of particular areas within the manufacturing industry. In this study, the researcher conducted interviews with six managers from various production areas in the manufacturing industry. Then, the obtained data were analyzed qualitatively. The concept selection methods used for product design and development in the manufacturing industry were found to be based on various factors, including orders received, building and evaluating prototypes, discussion among executives, market demand, trial and error and the market’s standard deviation. This study serves as a guideline to help managers to evaluate concepts in a more practical way.
Impact of Government Service Tax (GST) on Malaysian Takaful Industry: Issues and Challenges
Authors: Che Mohd Salleh Marhanum , Ainon Yussof Sheila , Irwani Abdulla Nurdiana
Published: July 2018

Malaysia is reputed to be a leader in the Takaful industry within the ASEAN region commanding a market share that exceeds 70 per cent of gross Takaful contribution. The industry however is not exempted from the recent implementation of the Malaysian Goods and Services Tax (GST) in April 2015. This study seeks to examine the specific Shari‘ah issues and challenges that may be triggered off by GST application on its operations. An inductive analysis will be undertaken on the relevant sources that justify GST implementation in Takaful, mainly guidelines provided by Customs Department, and also arguments from scholars on the likely contravention of Shari‘ah principles with the application of GST. This research will be significant as it will make an in-depth analysis of GST application whilst identifying the areas of non-compliances with Shari‘ah. Recommendations will be made for regulators to overcome the Shari‘ah issues and challenges that have emerged from its implementation.