Archives-December  

In corporate governance, the executive compensation appears to be the controversial issue among the stakeholders as well as the shareholders. This study is to find the relationship between executive compensation and the company performance, size and managerial controls in Sarawak. Using all 22 public listed companies in Sarawak, data in annual reports from 2004 to 2006 were gathered. The result showed that there is a weak positive relationship between executive compensation with the company performance (ROS) and size (sales), while no relationship was found between the executive compensation and the managerial control.

A diffusion absorption refrigeration system is a thermal powered refrigeration system. Any low grade heat source can be used to run an absorption refrigeration system. In most of engine and industry large amount of heat is rejected as exhaust gas which is at low temperature. One of the efficient methods to utilize this energy is to convert it into cooling load by means of an absorption system. In this work exhaust gas of IC engine is used to power a commercial absorption system integrated with phase change material (PCM). PCM helps to control the generator temperature and also act as a constant temperature source whenever there is a fluctuation in the temperature. Experiment was conducted on single cylinder four stroke diesel engine exhausts coupled to a commercial 40L absorption system. PCM helps to increase the overall COP of the absorption system

The use of internet banking as a way for banking transactions has been dispersed around the world due to improvements in various aspects of technology. Iran has not been the exception of this advancement and consequently the number of internet banking affaires seems to be increasing dramatically recently. The aim of this study is investigating the factors affecting internet banking adoption in Iran. For this purpose, the extended TAM model is conducted as a conceptual framework. To collect the data needed to implement this exploratory research 230 people, who have bank accounts in Tehran and are of different demographical backgrounds, were selected to complete a standardized structured questionnaire. The questions of the questionnaire utilized in this study have been written in a closed-ended structure and the questionnaires were sent by mail or done through self-completion. Data are analyzed using Structured Equation Modeling (SEM) to evaluate the strength of the hypothesized relations. The results were well matched with integrated TAM and perceived risk models and confirm its robustness in predicting customers' intention of internet banking adoption in Iran. The results showed that the behavioral intention to use internet banking is positively affected mainly by digital literacy, self-efficacy and variables of TAM model and negatively affected by perceived risk.

Fahr’s syndrome is a rare neurodegenerative disorder characterized by bilateral, symmetrical deposition of calcium in the basal ganglia, thalamus, cerebral cortex, dentate nucleus, cerebellum subcortical white matter, and hippocampus. It usually presents in the fourth or fifth decade with seizures and extra pyramidal symptoms initially and then gradually progressive cognitive impairment. It is mostly associated with a disorder of calcium and phosphate metabolism, but can also be due to infectious, metabolic, or genetic diseases. A 10 year old girl presented with history of recurrent seizures, headache, and tetany since the age of 6 years. On examination Chvostek and Trousseau signs were positive, bilateral cataract and papilledema were present. Laboratory tests showed ionic calcium of 0.47 mmol/L. Electrocardiography showed prolonged QT interval. Computed tomography scan of the brain showed bilateral symmetric calcification of lentiform nuclei and the subcortical fibers of fronto-parietal region. Final diagnosis of our case was fahr’s syndrome secondary to hypoparathyroidism based on further investigations. 

Optimization of formulation. Physical and In-vitro evaluation of optimized formulation for the release characteristics. Increase the chemical properties like dissolution study. Oral dispersible tablets have received ever-increasing demand during the last decade, and the field has become a rapidly growing area in the pharmaceutical industry. Upon introduction into the mouth, these tablets dissolve or disintegrate in the mouth in the presence of additional water for easy administration of active pharmaceutical ingredients. Optimized formula using polymer coating method exhibited 90% drug release at 15 minutes for model drug but dihydroartemisinin the release was found to be 79% at 15 minutes.

The Finite Elements Method (FEM) analysis is very helpful in solving a wide variety of engineering problems. An application of finite elements method ranges across many different fields of modern science and of the manufacturing industry. The various applications in aircraft, space, ship building, the electrical and computer industry as well as in the field of science such as material engineering, mechatronics, biochemistry and even medicine must be emphasized. FEA of simulation gives better, more accurate and wider results than experimental methods. One of the examples of FEA application is strain analysis of joints and assembly structures of vehicles of machineries. It allows the kind of stresses occurring in the vehicles and the location their occurrence to be determined. In this study, a methodology of sequentially simulating each step in the manufacturing process of an assembly is proposed. Each step of the proposed methodology is described, and a validation of the prediction capabilities is performed by making a comparison with a physically manufactured assembly. The work presented here demonstrates that by using virtual prototyping it is possible to predict the final shape of an assembled structure. The trial and error development process may be shortened by replacing most of the physical try out with finite element simulation of the manufacturing process. The automotive industry is constantly looking at ways and means of reducing costs and staying profitable while delivering on time. The common denominator in all these challenges is design. Companies investing in developing indigenous design and manufacturing technologies emerge successful in the world market and are able to sustain and innovate at a faster pace than the rest of the competition. This is possible on account of the following capabilities such as delivering products faster with up-front engineering design validation as a part of the product development process while compressing the cycle time, lean design by incorporating value engineering as a part of the design process ensuring evaluation of least cost alternatives before even the first prototype is developed and increasing reliability by design – an initiative that will eliminate hidden costs associated with product recall, re-design and/ or replacement of parts. Increasing functional complexity, predatory pricing, compulsive cost reduction commitments, aggressive deadlines, field failures, warranty costs and product recalls are all too familiar situations in the automotive sector. This leads to greater innovation, process automation, shorter development cycles, design for durability, reduced physical prototypes, improved quality and innovation.

Harmonic eccentric indices were proposed analogously to Harmonic indices already known and used for many years. We defined Harmonic eccentric index as HEI (G)= ?_(uv?E (G))?2/(e_u+e_v ) .In his paper we have calculated Harmonic eccentric index for some particular chains which are fused with different types of fusing namely ?-type fusing,?-type fusing and ?-type fusing . In future we will on various Eccentric indices with the Hexagonal chain.

Phenytoin stimulates connective tissue growth, while honey has been used in treating various wounds and ulcers. This study evaluates 2% phenytoin ointment and honey on excisional wound healing process in experimental albino rats in comparison to 5% Betadine ointment. Method: Wistar albino rats were divided into four groups (n=6). Excisional round full thickness skin wounds of diameter 15 mm were created on back of anaesthetized animals. Medications were applied topically twice daily up to 20 days. Group A – untreated (control), Group B – 5% betadine ointment, Group C - 2% phenytoin oinment and Group D received honey. Wound healing was measured on Days 0, 4, 8, 12, 16 and 20. Number of days taken for complete epithelisation of wound was noted. Statistical analysis was done using ANOVA followed by Tukey-Kramer test and p<0.05 was considered significant. Result: 5% Betadine, 2% phenytoin ointment and honey hastens healing and reduces time taken for complete epithelisation of excisional wound when compared to negative control (p<0.05). 2% phenytoin and honey were superior to 5% betadine. Conclusion: Both 2% phenytoin oinment and honey may be considered for wound healing but their role in healing of infected wound needs to be explored further.

In this paper, Smart Card based Online Health Care System with low cost Audio and Video Facilities have been discussed. For providing a good quality of treatment to the patients in the hospital, it is required to automate and integrate the hospitals of country via internet. After registration, patient will get a smart card with 10 digits unique registration number/ PatientID with personal information in the hospital. All the doctor prescriptions, test reports (blood, urine etc), images (MRI, CT-Scan, ECG etc.) will be stored in the databases of the hospital server (local server) as per the PatientID. All the local servers of hospitals are connected with one centralized server and time to time all the patient data from the local hospital server will be transferred to main centralized server. Patient information, doctor information and hospital information etc. can be retrieved from any hospital of any patient as per the PatientID. There may be a situation where patient is present in a rural hospital where sufficient expert doctors are not available. In such situations, doctor present in the remote hospital may need to contact an expert to take his advice for better treatment of the patient. In this work, a Graphical User Interface for low cost Videoconferencing System for Online Health Care System is also discussed, specifically to support consultations among remotely placed Patients, rural health workers and specialists in the urban cities and provide a secure access to remote patient records. A low-cost web-based Videoconferencing System using Open Source Technologies such as Red5 etc. has been developed. We have used live video/audio, text chat and video recording/archiving tools and features for the same. Online Health Care System application has been developed as front end in DOT NET [4] and back end in SQL Server. SQL Server tuning & other features are implemented for fast retrieval of patient data while designing the application of Health Care System.

Objective: To investigate the role of hepatitis C virus (HCV) core protein expression, as indicated by the presence of HCV core protein in serum, in the diagnosis and pathogenesis of HCV infection. Methods: A total number of 432 patients with various liver diseases including acute and chronic/end stage liver diseases were analysed for HCV-related markers comprising anti-HCV, HCV-RNA and HCV-core. Results: HCV-core protein was found to be a better serum marker compared to anti-HCV and HCV-RNA for the diagnosis of HCV-infection in chronic liver diseases. HCV-core protein in serum shows a low prevalence in patients with acute infection. To explore the possibility of core-expression in liver pathology via its impact on oxidative stress and steatotic changes, we studied the sera level of lipids, lipoproteins, apoproteins and anti-oxidant levels in relation to HCV-core protein in serum. The analysis of data could not demonstrate any significant change in the level of these metabolites with presence or absence of HCV-core protein. This was explained as HCV-core expression having insignificant role in inducement of oxidative stress and development of steatosis to cause liver damage. This study also describes the varied prevalence of different HCV-genotypes in relation to HCV-core protein in these patients, thus, explaining that HCV-genotypes have little role in expression of HCV-core. Conclusion: Serum HCV-core protein has important role in the diagnosis of HCV infection. However, we could not observe any significant relation between HCV-core expression and liver steatosis, oxidative stress or HCV-genotypes in liver diseases.