Browsing by Type "Doctoral Theses"

This is a multimodal genre analysis study of Malaysia Regional E-Travel Guidebooks (MRTGs) by adapting the frameworks of Bhatia (2004) and Kress and van Leeuwen (1996, 2006). The analysis focused on examining the rhetorical structure, communicative purposes, linguistic features, professional practices, and visual components present in MRTGs. The analysis is done to understand how this genre-which successfully helped Tourism Malaysia to improve its tourism industry- is built up and written. To accomplish the study's objectives, a combination of textual analysis and semi-structured interviews was employed, utilizing specialized software tools such as Atlas.ti and Sketchengine. The study revealed that MRTGs exhibit a distinct structure comprising ten core moves (Headline, Introducing the Country, Urging Action, Targeting the Market, Trivia, Justifying the Destination, Endorsement, Related Info, Service Info, and Closing Info). Notably, the findings highlight the strategic deployment of linguistic features to capture the readers' attention, promote the featured destinations, motivate action, and furnish pertinent information about Malaysia. MRTGs adeptly employ a synergy of informational value, salience, and framing to offer travellers a comprehensive and captivating informational resource. Additionally, the visual elements employed in MRTGs effectively convey meaning and engage readers with the featured destinations. Crucially, the findings show that professionals within Tourism Malaysia believe that MRTGs are essential for attracting and assisting travellers, and ensuring visitor satisfaction, with a focus on transitioning to online platforms and continuous improvement. This study provides multifaceted insights that extend beyond the specific context of MRTGs, contributing significantly to the domains of genre analysis, professional communication, digital marketing, visual communication, and destination marketing. Additionally, it elucidates practical implications for professionals in the tourism industry, enhancing their comprehension of the art of crafting compelling and effective promotional materials with regards to English for Tourism.

This study proposes a sustainable personal financing model, the Qarḍ Ḥasan via Cash Waqf (QHCW) model, as a proactive solution to mitigate future economic crises. Grounded in the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB), it assesses the model’s acceptance by examining respondents’ knowledge, objectives, and perception within the B40 and M40 income groups, who are often excluded from conventional financial services during downturns. The model establishes a structured, interest-free fund sustained through Shari’ah-compliant investments, incorporating standard operating procedures (SOPs) from the Prophetic tradition to encourage reciprocal contributions upon repayment. Following the Dinc Framework, the QHCW fund relies on initial contributions from unaffected individuals, permitting withdrawals only after securing these deposits. Public donations remain open, with all funds allocated to low-risk, Shari’ah -compliant ventures to ensure sustainability and cover administrative costs. A mixed-method research design integrates quantitative survey data from snowball sampling with qualitative insights from open-ended respondent feedback and practitioner interviews, offering a comprehensive evaluation of feasibility, acceptance, and implementation readiness. Empirical findings confirm the QHCW model’s viability, with no Shari’ah compliance concerns identified. As an ethical alternative to interest-based banking, the model provides a sustainable financial safety net, particularly in times of crisis. The study also raises an urgent ethical concern: financial institutions, despite their mandate for economic stability, continue to impose interest during crises, deepening financial hardship. This contradiction underscores the necessity of ethical, interest-free mechanisms. The QHCW model is ready for implementation, presenting a viable, Shari’ah -compliant intervention to strengthen Malaysia’s financial resilience, enhance social welfare, and ensure economic stability in future crises. It offers actionable insights for policymakers, industry stakeholders, and Islamic financial institutions.

Information Not Available.

This study aims to develop a hierarchical model to identify and rank the challenges faced by conventional and Islamic banks in Bangladesh in providing quality service, along with their corresponding critical success factors (CSFs). Few studies have systematically analysed the challenges and practical solutions for these banks. In this study, specific objectives include: 1. Identifying challenges faced in prioritisation by conventional and Islamic banks. 2. Ascertaining CSFs for each challenge. 3. Ranking the challenges and CSFs. 4. Developing a hierarchical model to enhance the Bangladeshi banking sector's effectiveness. Using an exploratory sequential mixed-method design, qualitative data were collected from 14 experts from conventional banks and 15 from Islamic banks, followed by a survey of 120 respondents for prioritisation. Data for both stages were purposely accumulated from internal and external stakeholders of Bangladeshi conventional and Islamic banking sectors, ranging from relevant personnel. Six challenges were identified for conventional banks: ‘global financial crisis,’ ‘lack of governance,’ ‘liquidity crisis,’ ‘export-import remittance,’ ‘insufficient banking technology development,’ and ‘employees’ insufficient banking knowledge.’ For Islamic banks, the challenges included ‘lack of governance,’ ‘lack of capital market,’ ‘liquidity crisis,’ ‘lack of Islamic products,’ and ‘employees’ insufficient Islamic banking knowledge.’ The Analytic Hierarchy Process ranked ‘employees’ insufficient banking knowledge’ as the top challenge and ‘reward based on performance’ as the key CSF for conventional banks. For Islamic banks, the most crucial challenge was ‘lack of capital market,’ with ‘ensuring uniformity in Islamic banking practices’ as the main CSF. By addressing these challenges and CSFs, banks can achieve a sustainable competitive advantage, enhancing operational performance and service quality. The developed hierarchical model aims to improve both the competitiveness of banks and the broader economic development of Bangladesh.

Glaucoma is an ocular disease that results progressive damage of the retinal nerve fibre layer which result to irreversible visual deterioration. Glaucoma impact on the brain is not conclusive. Even the magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) findings in the visual pathway areas shown incoherent findings. This study aimed to investigate and measure the concentration of metabolites in the lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN) and visual cortex (VC) of subjects with glaucoma using MRS. The MRS measurement using a single-voxel spectroscopy (SVS) was performed using 1.5 Tesla MRI, on healthy young adults, healthy older adults, mild glaucoma, and severe glaucoma. A standardised volume of interest of 13mm x 13mm x 13mm was placed in the region of LGN and VC. Five metabolites were extracted and quantified from raw spectra using the AMARES (Advanced Method for Accurate, Robust, and Efficient Spectral Fitting) method within the Java-based magnetic resonance user interface (jMRUI). The quantification process yields amplitudes in arbitrary units of N-acetyl aspartate (NAA), glutamate-glutamine (Glx), creatine (Cr), choline (Cho), and Myo-Inositol (mI). Two consecutive scans were performed on each LGN and VC from both brain hemispheres of young healthy adults. The repeatability of MRS measurement in the LGN and VC were analysed. The LGN and VC of young healthy subjects and healthy elderly subjects were scanned. The metabolites were compared between groups. The metabolites in the LGN of healthy elderly subjects, participants with mild glaucoma and severe glaucoma were compared. The metabolites in the VC of healthy elderly subjects, participants with mild glaucoma and severe glaucoma were compared. The metabolites concentration in the LGN and VC showed no significant differences between consecutive scan (p>0.05). Analysis showed good agreement and small variability between the consecutive MRS measurements (bias in LGN: -0.46 to 1.17; bias in VC: -0.61 to -0.22). Healthy older adults have lower levels of NAA and higher levels of Glx, Cr, and Cho in the LGN compared to healthy young adults (p<0.05). In the VC, healthy older adults have higher levels of Cr, Cho and mI compared to healthy young adults (p<0.05). Severe glaucoma group has higher level of NAA (65.03±14.66; Tukey HSD, p=0.03) and lower level of Cho (14.09±5.07; Games-Howell, p=0.016) in the LGN compared to healthy group. Glx (604.93±93.55; Games-Howell, p=0.031) level in the VC was lower in severe glaucoma compared to healthy group while Cho/Cr (0.030±0.06; Tukey HSD, p=0.031) level in the VC was lower in severe glaucoma group compared to mild glaucoma group. The single voxel MRS using 1.5 Tesla MRI is repeatable in determining metabolites concentration in the LGN and VC. Age affects the NAA, Glx, Cr and Cho concentrations in the LGN, and Cr, Cho and mI concentrations in the VC. Metabolites analysis should consider aging into factor. Glaucoma may cause shift in the NAA and Cho concentration amplitudes and ratio in the LGN. Glaucoma may cause shift in the Glx and Cho/Cr concentration amplitudes and ratio in the VC. Further research in this area may help elucidate the underlying mechanisms of glaucoma and potentially aid in the development of novel diagnostic or therapeutic approaches.

This study aims to demonstrate the existence of compacton matter waves in binary mixtures of Bose-Einstein condensates trapped in deep optical lattices under periodic time modulation of the interspecies nonlinear interaction, described by coupled discrete nonlinear Schrödinger (DNLS) equations, in the presence of spin-orbit coupling (SOC). Averaging the coupled DNLS equations leads to a rescaling of SOC parameter that involves the density imbalance of the two components, which gives rise to density-dependent SOC parameter that strongly influence the existence and stability of compactons. The stability of compactons is investigated by linear stability analysis and direct numerical integrations of the coupled DNLS equations. Two types of SOC interactions are considered: intraspecies and interspecies SOC. In the case of intraspecies SOC, the SOC term restricts the parameter ranges for the existence of stable stationary compactons with one-, two- and three-site structures. However, it also provides a more stringent signature of their occurrence. In particular, compactons should appear when the intraspecies interactions and the number of atoms in the two components are perfectly balance or nearly balanced. In the case of interspecies SOC, similar parameter ranges restrictions are observed, however the existence of compactons is limited to only of one-site and next-nearest-neighbour two-site profiles. Notably, the linear stability analysis requires a more refined gain definition to reveal that there exists a critical point for the gain in which instability occurs if exceeded. Furthermore, the number of atoms in the two components does not necessarily to be balanced for compactons to appear. Therefore, in contrast to the intraspecies SOC case, the interspecies SOC compactons cannot be suggested as a tool for indirect measurements of the number of atoms and/or the interactions between the species.

Lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries are an excellent energy source for electric vehicles due to their extraordinary features, such as lower mass density, high energy density and long service life. The use of Li-ion batteries in electric vehicles is becoming extensive in the modern world. During battery charging and usage, internal heat is continuously generated due to increased thermal resistance. If the heat produced is not removed correctly, it will get stored and increase the cell temperature. Such an extreme temperature directly affects the life cycle, effectiveness, dependability, and battery safety problems. Hence cooling mechanism is necessary to have a good life and reliability on the battery system. The main objective of this analysis is to perform the thermal analysis of the Li-ion battery pack considering conjugate conduction-convection boundary conditions at the pack and coolant interface. This analysis is performed numerically by solving the relevant governing equations using the finite volume method. The conduction, Navier-Stokes, and energy equations are solved iteratively. The numerical study is carried for the battery pack cooled with five categories of coolants. Five categories of coolants are passed over the heat-generating battery packs to extract the heat and keep the temperature within the limit. Different kinds of gases, conventional oils, thermal oils, nanofluids, and liquid metals, are adopted as coolants. In each category of coolant, five types of fluids are selected to obtain the lowest maximum temperature. The flow Reynolds number (Re), heat generation (Qgen), and conductivity ratio (Cr) are the parameters considered for each fluid to analyze the temperature distribution in the battery pack and its maximum temperature in detail. The average Nusselt number (Nuavg) analysis indicates the heat removal from the battery pack cooled by flowing fluid is carried out considering coupled heat transfer conditions at the pack and coolant interface. The Pr of the coolants varies in the range of 0.0208 to 511.5 (25 coolants), and Cr for each coolant category has its own upper and lower limit are used. The major findings of the conjugate analysis conducted reveals that the temperature distribution is non-uniform at the top and bottom of the battery. The maximum temperature of the battery pack is located at the top portion of the battery where the electrodes are placed. The temperature of the pack is low at the bottom surface due to direct contact with the coolant which comes in contact as fresh. The regions with high and low temperatures at the top and bottom of the battery pack produce uneven thermal stress, which later can cause the failure of the battery. Hence, choosing an appropriate range of thermal conductivity ratios that balances the solid and the fluid field to get better battery system performance results is required. The maximum temperature of the pack is significantly reduced by the Re and Cr of the coolants. While Qgen in the battery causes an increase in temperature above critical limits. For temperature reduction below the critical threshold requires use of nanofluids at moderate Re and any Cr is suitable. The flow of gas coolants over the battery pack causes a less decrease in maximum temperature due to their lower thermal conductivity. The Cr of all coolants except gases causes a higher difference in maximum temperature at all Re. Thermal oils, nanofluids, and liquid metals provide maximum temperature in the same range of 0.62 to 0.54. In contrast, gases have nearly the same effect at different values of Re and Cr. Pr of oils and liquid metals show more influence than the gases and nanofluids. However, the Pr of coolants shows lower effects at different heat generations inside the battery pack. Conversely, by increasing the Cr of coolants, the Pr shows a promising variation in maximum temperature. The Nuavg is found to be unaffected by Qgen due to the velocity profile remaining the same at any heat generation term. Whereas the flow Re changes the velocity distribution significantly which impacts Nuavg severely for different coolants. The analysis also revealed that Cr and Qgen have no role in improving Nuavg while Pr and Re vary significantly in each step. Moreover, Nuavg is found to increase with Re continuously irrespective of any Cr and Qgen. While, for oils with an increase in Pr and Re, Nuavg was found to reduce significantly. Nanofluids are found to be more effective in improving heat transfer from the battery pack when cooled by flowing nano-coolants over it.

This study examines the complex interplay between social and political identity formation among Muslim minorities in Laos and northern Thailand, two regions with distinct socio-political contexts. These diverse communities, comprising descendants of immigrants from Southwest China and South Asia, as well as indigenous hill tribe converts, offer a unique perspective on the integration of minorities. Over the course of six years, extensive fieldwork including interviews, focus groups, and site surveys generated rich qualitative data on these understudied populations. While acknowledging limitations in accessing precise demographic data, this research provides valuable insights into their lived experiences, challenges, and evolving identities. The study pursues two primary objectives: 1) investigating social identity construction and 2) analysing political identities and relationships with the states. The research reveals a complex interplay of internal factors (ethnicity, religious practice, political regime, demographic policies) and external factors (socio-economic opportunities and media influence) that shape identity formation. Specifically, it examines how diverse ethnic origins contribute to varied expressions of Islam and analyses the impact of Laos's single-party system and Thailand's constitutional monarchy on Muslim political participation and religious freedom. Furthermore, it examines how the Ummah concept fosters unity alongside internal variations in jurisprudence. The research also investigates how socio-economic opportunities and media exposure particularly cross-border influences affect integration and perceptions. Finally, it compares and contrasts Muslim political engagement in Laos (limited yet evolving) with that of northern Thai Muslims (greater rights and active participation). This research provides a foundational understanding of Muslim minority communities in Laos and northern Thailand, serving as a valuable resource for future researchers and those interested in these often-overlooked populations. Keywords: Social Identity, Political Identity, Political Participation, Minority

This research aims to solve some problems related to blockchain peer-to-peer energy trading, which are purchased energy under consumption and transaction authentication and demand response control, which still rely on centralized schemes. The purpose of this thesis is to control and authenticate a fully Decentralized pay-per-use energy trading platform. It presents a blockchain-based peer-to-peer (P2P) energy trading platform where prosumers can trade energy autonomously and without interference from a central authority. Multiple prosumers can collaborate on energy generation to form a single supplier. Customers' electricity consumption is monitored via a smart meter connected to an IoT node connected to a private blockchain network. Smart contracts invoked on the blockchain enable autonomous trading interactions between parties and govern the behaviour of accounts within the Ethereum state. The decentralized P2P trading platform uses autonomous usage-based billing and energy routing monitored by a smart contract. A Deep Learning-based Gated Recurrent Unit (GRU) model predicts future consumption based on past data collected on the blockchain. The predictions are then used to set Time of Use (TOU) ranges using the K-means cluster. The data used to train the GRU model is shared among all parties within the network, making the predictions transparent and verifiable. By implementing K-Mean clustering in a smart contract on the blockchain, the set of TOU is independent and unchallengeable, To ensure the validity of the data uploaded to the blockchain, a consensus algorithm is proposed to detect fraudulent nodes, along with a Proof of Location (POL) to ensure that the data is uploaded by the expected nodes. To address the conflict of interest between prosumers and distribution system operators (DSOs) in decentralized P2P energy trading platforms, where prosumers seek to maximize their profit on the one hand, while DSOs seek optimal power flow (OPF) on the other hand, a novel fully decentralized architecture is proposed for an OPF-based demand response management system that uses smart contracts to force generators into compliance without the need for a central authority or hardware. The study details the proposed platform architecture, operation, and implementation. The results are presented mainly in terms of gas consumption of smart contracts and transaction latency for different loads. The work presented in the thesis is relevant in the sense that we have attempted to address a popular and important contemporary research issue related to blockchain technology. The research work holds great potential for industrial use. In the future era of renewable energy, decentralization of energy trading is a necessity for the future society.

This study investigates the critical success factors for intention to family takaful adoption in Malaysia. The research explores the direct relationships among performance expectancy, effort expectancy, price value, hedonic motivation, social influence, facilitating conditions, and habits concerning the behavioral intention to engage in family takaful in Malaysia. Additionally, the study examines the inverse relationship between behavioral intention and trust. A total of 389 respondents were surveyed using a convenience sampling technique and quantitative methods. Hypothesis testing employed Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) to assess the relationships between variables. The findings indicate that Muslim behavioral intention to participate in family takaful in Malaysia is significantly influenced by performance expectancy, effort expectancy, facilitating conditions, hedonic motivation, and price value. Moreover, the association between family takaful participation and behavioral intention is mediated by trust. Trust influences the behavioral intention to participate in family takaful. However, habit and social influence do not significantly affect the behavioral intention to engage in family takaful in Malaysia. This study introduces an extended UTAUT2 model, untested in the context of family takaful, contributing to Islamic financial product marketing and consumer behavior.

Despite having the biggest Muslim population in the world, the amount of Zakat funds collected by Zakat institutions has been far from its expectation. Zakat, one of the Islamic philanthropic tools, has the potential to eradicate poverty. Effective handling of Zakat is essential for the country. Even though paying Zakat is mandatory for every Muslim, not all Zakat payers who pay it do so through Zakat institutions. One of the reasons for this is the lack of trust that Zakat payers have in Zakat institutions. However, blockchain technology, known for its transparency and immutability, can be leveraged to boost trust in Zakat institutions. This research aims to investigate the issues and challenges faced by BAZNAS (Badan Amil Zakat Nasional) in North Sumatera in collecting and distributing Zakat, as well as identify the determinants of Zakat payers’ attitudes towards trust in Zakat institutions. The study also seeks to explore the impact of these determinants on trust in BAZNAS, North Sumatera, and the potential mediating effect of blockchain technology in this relationship. Both quantitative and qualitative methods were used to gather the data. Qualitative data were collected through semi-structured interviews with the top management of BAZNAS in North Sumatera, while quantitative data were collected from 301 Zakat payers using a cross-sectional design and questionnaire method. The collected data were analysed by Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) techniques using AMOS 24 and SPSS 26. The results of the survey showed that the collection of Zakat in BAZNAS, North Sumatera, is negatively affected by misunderstandings about the Zakat concept, conflicting opinions of religious leaders, and inadequate efforts to educate people about Zakat. Challenges in Zakat distribution include the lack of comprehensive information about Zakat recipients and difficulties in verifying their eligibility. The use of blockchain technology could improve the collection and distribution of Zakat, but it requires appropriate infrastructure and well-trained personnel. From the quantitative data of this study, the determinants of Zakat payers' attitudes towards enhancing trust are reputation, satisfaction of Zakat distribution, service quality, and disclosure practices. These determinants were found to have a statistically significant positive impact on trust in Zakat institutions. Furthermore, this study found that blockchain technology has a partial mediation effect on the relationship between attitude determinants and trust in Zakat institutions. Therefore, blockchain technology has the potential to improve trust in the institution by providing a more transparent and secure system for managing Zakat. This study contributes both theoretically and empirically to the use of blockchain technology to enhance trust in Zakat institutions. The study provides insightful recommendations and suggestions for Zakat institution managers and policymakers in Indonesia. Additionally, the study proposes areas for further research, presenting opportunities for expanding knowledge and understanding in this field.

Thousands of surgical procedures are performed daily to repair or replace tissue damaged by disease or trauma, with scaffolds playing a critical role in supporting bone regeneration. However, the clinical application of a scaffold remains challenging, particularly in the treatment of periodontal disease, where bone loss and microbial infection significantly impede the healing process. Tissue engineering aims to overcome these limitations by developing biodegradable scaffolds that not only support tissue regrowth but also deliver therapeutic agents to the defect site. These scaffolds act as temporary templates that guide regeneration while simultaneously preventing infection. Recent advances in nano-assisted drug delivery have enabled localised and sustained drug release, thereby reducing systemic side effects and minimising the risk of antibiotic resistance. This study aimed to develop a biodegradable collagen–chitosan scaffold loaded with metronidazole nanoparticles (CCMNP) for periodontal bone regeneration. The scaffold was fabricated by blending chitosan and collagen at a 70:30 ratio, with MNP incorporated at various concentrations (0–40% w/v). Physical crosslinking was achieved using dehydrothermal treatment. Characterisation of the scaffolds was conducted using field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) to assess morphology, pore structure, and pore size. In vitro studies were conducted to assess antibacterial activity, biocompatibility, and cell adhesion. Antibacterial efficacy was tested against Porphyromonas gingivalis and Fusobacterium nucleatum using the disc diffusion method. Biocompatibility was evaluated using the 3-(4,5- dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay with human gingival fibroblasts (HGF-1), and cell adhesion was visualised using FESEM. Based on the in vitro results, the scaffold exhibiting the optimal characteristic was selected for in vivo evaluation. The selected scaffold was implanted into critical-size calvarial bone defects in a rat model. Bone regeneration was assessed after a four-week healing period using histological staining and morphometric analysis. The findings revealed that the 30% w/v MNP-loaded scaffold exhibited desirable physical characteristics, including appropriate pore size and controlled biodegradability. It showed a significant inhibitory effect against the tested periodontal pathogens and promoted the proliferation, viability, and adhesion of HGF-1 cells. In vivo analysis demonstrated enhanced new bone formation at the defect site compared to controls, confirming the scaffold’s regenerative potential. In conclusion, the CC scaffold loaded with 30% w/v MNP demonstrated promising results for periodontal bone regeneration. It offers a targeted, dual action approach by combining antimicrobial protection with structural support for tissue healing. This strategy provides an alternative to conventional systemic antibiotic therapies and contributes to the advancement of scaffold-based regenerative techniques in tissue engineering and dental medicine.

Background: The indigenous Malay Muslim minority in Singapore is disproportionately affected by psychosocial stressors linked to structural inequalities in employment and economic stability. Epidemiological data show that 1 in 6 Malays and Indians, compared to 1 in 8 Chinese, experience poorer mental health. Among Malays, culturally rooted spiritual attributions of mental illness may contribute to delayed help-seeking and lower engagement with conventional psychological interventions. Addressing the need for culturally sensitive interventions, this study has three primary aims: (1) to develop the Islamic Psychology of Self (IPS) module, enabling Asatizah (Islamic religious teachers) to collaborate with mental health practitioners using Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT), a therapy that combines aspects of cognitive behavioural therapy with mindfulness that instils compassion, acceptance and non-judgement; (2a) to investigate the effectiveness of MBCT integrated with the Islamic Psychology of Self (MBCT-IPS) in alleviating psychological distress, improving mental wellbeing, and enhancing self-compassion among Singaporean Malay Muslims; (2b) to assess the appropriateness, acceptability, and feasibility of the intervention; and (3) to explore participants' qualitative experiences with the intervention. Methods: The study was conducted in three phases. Phase 1 involved the development of the IPS module based on the Dharuriyyatil-Khams (Five Basic Essentials) of human needs and Ilmun-Nafs (Knowledge of the Self). Phases 2 and 3 utilised a sequential mixed-method explanatory design. In Phase 2, 80 Malay Muslim participants were randomly assigned to one of three arms: the experimental MBCT-IPS, conventional MBCT, or counselling. Primary outcomes were measured using the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS-21). Secondary outcomes included the Positive Mental Health Instrument (PMHI-19), the Self-Compassion Scale–Short Form (SCS-SF12), and post-intervention measures of Acceptability, Appropriateness, and Feasibility (AIM, IAM, FIM). Assessments were conducted at baseline, mid-intervention, post-intervention, and one-month and three-month follow-ups. Analyses used a General Linear Model with intention-to-treat (ITT) and per-protocol (PP) approaches. Phase 3 involved thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews with participants who completed therapy. Results: In Phase 1, the IPS module demonstrated strong expert-rated content validity (I-CVI=0.924) and was successfully pilot-tested with 12 participants. In Phase 2, all three interventions—MBCT, MBCT-IPS, and counselling—led to significant improvements across all outcome measures over time. Comparing mean scores, MBCT-IPS was found to be more effective in reducing DASS-21 depressive symptoms compared to counselling and MBCT based on both ITT and PP analyses. Counselling showed consistent reduction in DASS-21 anxiety symptoms in ITT analysis, outperforming both MBCT and MBCT-IPS, whereas MBCT-IPS demonstrated greater reductions in the PP analysis. MBCT more effective in reducing DASS-21 stress symptoms than both MBCT-IPS and counselling, in both ITT and PP analyses. Counselling showed greater improvements in PMHI-19 compared to MBCT-IPS and MBCT across ITT and PP analyses. For SCS-SF12, ITT analysis revealed that MBCT-IPS was more effective than counselling and MBCT, while PP analysis indicated counselling was more effective than both MBCT-IPS and MBCT. Notably, therapy attrition was highest (61.25%) where therapists were non-Muslims. In Phase 3, participants who completed therapy reported positive experiences, particularly favouring Islamic psychotherapy as culturally relevant, emotionally meaningful, and spiritually aligned with their values. Conclusion: This study underscores the importance of culturally adapted interventions in addressing mental health disparities among minority populations. Findings highlight the potential of integrating Islamic concepts into therapy and fostering collaboration between mental health professionals and Asatizah to enhance treatment acceptability, cultural relevance, and psychological outcomes for Malay Muslims in Singapore.

This study aims to design, fabricate, and study the performance of a thermal cell absorber attached to a flat plate absorber collector. Flat Plate Solar Collector (FPSC) is widely used in agricultural products for drying applications. An investigation into the effect of design parameters on FPSC has been carried out. Flat Plate Base-Thermal Cell Absorber (FPBTCA) has been designed and fabricated based on the design parameters experiment results which are; absorber base materials (AL), absorber base thickness (0.5 mm), the air gap distance between glass and absorber base (10 mm), the air gap distance between glass 1 and glass 2 (0.4 mm), double glass, glass thickness (2.0 mm), thermal cell thickness (1.0 mm) and material (SS). The experiment was performed using a solar simulator with solar radiation of 700 W/m2. The solar simulator is used as the artificial sun, which is exposed to solar radiation for 300 seconds and without solar radiation also for 300 seconds. The heat transfer rate of the collector (Q ̇) and efficiency of the collector shows that stainless steel 1.0 mm with aluminum base absorber has a higher value which is 412 kJ, 18.21 kW, and 47.08 %, respectively. The performance of the outlet temperature in the drying chamber of stainless steel with an aluminum absorber has a higher value of energy gain which is 116.08 J at 300 seconds. Evaluation under outdoor conditions revealed that the FPBTCA has a lower temperature discharge rate as compared to the FPSC. FPBTCA also shows the highest heat absorption (Q ̇), which is 96079.37 J on 4 March 2021, then FPSC, which is 49187.07 J. The highest efficiency for FPBTCA at 360 minutes is 30.24 %, and for FPSC is 21.81 %. The efficiency of FPBTCA is consistent while the solar radiation is decreased at 120 minutes and 180 minutes. Mathematical modelling analysis proved that the error for energy balance is below 5%. FPBTCA has been introduced to enhance the thermal performance and efficiency of solar thermal collector systems. It also has higher heat storage capabilities during solar radiation drops when the weather is cloudy.

Fossil fuels have been the main energy source worldwide, and they are facing serious depletion. Production of cokes from coals requires extensive energy and releases high amount of CO2 which leads to environmental deterioration. As one of alternatives to fossil fuels, oil palm empty fruit bunch (OPEFB) has been generated abundantly in Malaysia, but the utilization is still in a small scale due to the fact that this biomass contains more than 50% moisture, which makes it less efficient when it comes to solid biofuel production. This research presents a developed process to produce an upgraded value of OPEFB-derived biochar, namely carbon-infiltrated biochar, by integrating pyrolysis and tar decomposition processes using chemical vapor infiltration (CVI) method. In the first part of the study, OPEFB was heated slowly in an inert atmosphere to produce biochar before carbon deposition was carried out. The terminal temperature was 500°C with 10°C/min produced 78 mass% carbon content of biochar. Integrated fast pyrolysis-tar carbonization process done at 450°C with 60°C/min resulted in 5.2 mass% carbon increase. Crushing strength of these carbon-infiltrated biochar was also increased. In the second part, the biochar produced at the optimized temperature and heating rate was used as a substrate for tar decomposition to take place and for solid carbon to deposit on its pore surface. Tar source was OPEFB particles which were heated rapidly at heating rates of more than 100°C/min to produce a large amount of tar vapor containing high carbon yield. The CVI method causes tar decomposition into gases and solid carbon where the latter was loaded into porous biochar substrate to increase the carbon content and its calorific value so that it can be utilized as an alternative energy source. The product obtained was carbon-infiltrated biochar containing increased carbon content up to 6.1 mass % and consequently achieved an increased calorific value up to 26.0 MJ/kg – suitable to be used as an alternative energy source. The mechanism of carbon deposition within porous biochar was also discussed. The overall evaluation of the proposed system was carried out on the basis of its exergetic performance to confirm the advantages of the developed process system, and 41% of exergy loss was able to be achieved in comparison with the conventional system.

The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly disrupted global supply chains, heightening consumer concerns regarding food safety and integrity. One critical area of interest is the halal poultry supply chain, particularly the maintenance of halal integrity from production to consumer purchase. Ensuring compliance with halal standards throughout the supply chain remains a key challenge, particularly during manufacturing and distribution. This study aims to address these concerns by identifying critical gaps in the halal poultry supply chain and proposing strategies to enhance its integrity. To examine the integrity of the halal poultry supply chain, this research employs document analysis and thematic analysis. Key regulatory documents analyzed include Manual Prosedur Pensijilan Halal Malaysia (Domestic) 2020 and MS1500:2019 Halal Food General Guidelines (Third Revision). Empirical data were gathered through in-depth interviews with three halal executives from leading halal poultry companies and five halal experts in Malaysia. The findings reveal several critical integrity dimensions purity, hygiene, quality, and safety as well as opportunities for improvement in halal poultry practices. A conceptual framework for integrity in the poultry supply chain, grounded in maq??id al-Shar??ah, is proposed. Thematic analysis of interview data highlights key factors influencing halal integrity, including government regulations and oversight, halal traceability and transparency, industry collaboration and best practices, and consumer confidence and education. While all three halal poultry companies demonstrated strong compliance with halal standards, particularly in animal welfare, slaughtering processes, and halal awareness training, variations in halal control points and monitoring systems were identified. These discrepancies underscore the need for stricter and more standardized oversight. Furthermore, the study finds that the five protections (?ar?riyy?t) of maq??id al-Shar??ah protection of religion, life, intellect, lineage, and wealth are highly relevant to the halal poultry industry. This research provides a comprehensive framework to ensure that poultry products bearing the halal certification genuinely uphold halal integrity. By addressing consumer and stakeholder concerns, the study enhances confidence in the halal poultry supply chain. The findings emphasize the necessity for collaboration among industry players, regulatory bodies, and consumers to safeguard halal integrity at every stage of the supply chain. The proposed strategies aim to strengthen consumer trust, support regulatory enhancements, and contribute to the long-term sustainability of the halal poultry industry in Malaysia and beyond.

The 4G network implements Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) as its multiplexing method. Using the said method, the network is expected to be able to cope with severe channel conditions without the use of complex equalization filters. However, very high Peak to Average Power Ratio (PAPR) and Out-of-Band (OOB) emissions are still being experienced where the system’s throughput and spectrum efficiency are significantly reduced. Maxis, one of the major telco operators in Malaysia, reported that they experienced a 33% in speed reduction for its 4G network throughout the year 2019. The currently dedicated spectrum for 4G is reaching its limits and there is a large as well as growing demand for wireless access and applications. The strategies for more intelligent use of the spectrum are urgently required. Thus, in this research, the overall objective is to assemble a new augmented multiplexing method and an enhanced spectrum management technique. The newly proposed multiplexing method for the future 5G is called the Filter Bank Multicarrier (FBMC) with a Lowpass Windowed Finite Impulse Response (FIR) filter (LWF-FBMC). The improved interference management procedure is identified as enhanced dynamic spectrum allocation (E-DSA) that incorporates a cooperative type of Game Theory (GT) called the Nash bargaining solution. These two proposed solutions are very much hoped to be able to maximize the throughput requirements of 5G. In addition, it is expected to address the interference mitigation aspects. This study utilized three types of Software Defined Radios (SDRs) for designing and analyzing the configurations. The SDRs used were the LabVIEW Communications System Design Suite (LV Comm), GNU Radio, and MATLAB software. For hardware implementation, the National Instrument’s Universal Software Radio Peripheral reconfigurable I/O (NI USRP RIO) was used. In the methodology, the construction of the newly proposed LWF-FBMC was done using the LV Comm. The power spectral density (PSD) analyses between OFDM and LWF-FBMC were carried out to compare their level of OOB emissions by analyzing their power spectral densities. In developing the E-DSA, the effectiveness of the DSA for 4G was first analyzed using GNU Radio. The algorithm was then enhanced to be E-DSA and tested in an urban 5G heterogeneous network scenario that involves both macrocell and microcell users. The simulated configurations were then integrated with the NI USRP RIO transceiver to compare their power spectral densities in real-time. For the results, it was shown that the LWF-FBMC can achieve higher spectral efficiency than the OFDM by 15.4%. The newly configured E-DSA scheme can improve the 5G network’s throughput by 104% when compared with the DSA for 4G network. The NI USRP RIO’s results also indicated that the spectral efficiency of LWF-FBMC is higher by 50% than that of OFDM. However, for the simulation-hardware integration part, only the multiplexing methods were compared without analyzing the effects of implementing E-DSA due to the limited time and resources. For future works, it is best to examine this as well. In conclusion, with these improvements, it can be said that both methods, the LWF-FBMC and the E-DSA can help in alleviating the interference for the up-and-coming 5G system.

In the era of digital communication, Islamic visuals (i.e. images) have become a vital element of dakwah in social media. However, these visuals’ capability to communicate meaningful messages remains a critical concern. This study explores the Islamic visual elaboration process on Instagram amongst Indonesian young adults, and the meaning-making experience amongst the audience regarding those visuals. This research looks into the experiences of the audience, which currently are not accounted for in existing studies that focus more on the quantitative measures to assess dakwah. Based on the information-processing theories of the Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM) and Relevance Theory, this study examined user-related aspects (prior knowledge) and content-related aspects (visual appeals and quality of the dakwah message) that influence the audience’s level of elaboration when viewing the images. The research objectives of this study include understanding the role of prior knowledge, identifying relevant visual appeals, determining relevant dakwah messages, and exploring the outcomes of elaboration. This study used a qualitative methodology involving semi-structured in-depth interviews with 30 Indonesian young adults who are active Instagram users and followers of Islamic accounts. The findings revealed that elaboration was influenced by various sources of knowledge such as life experiences and religious education. The visual elements of Instagram dakwah, such as the use of proportioned colours, balanced text-to-image ratio and the use of familiar imagery, assisted in effective elaboration of the dakwah message. Relevant dakwah topics and the strength of the message, which were based on authentic Islamic sources, also play crucial roles in the elaboration process. This study concludes that effective elaboration of dakwah content not only promotes positive attitudinal changes but also leads to prominent behavioural changes amongst young adults. Keywords: Digital Dakwah, Elaboration Likelihood Model, Indonesian Young Adults, Instagram, Islamic Visuals, Relevance Theory, Religious Communication, Social Media.

The Adalet ve Kalkunma Partisi (AKP) in Turkey, or better known as the Justice and Development Party, has been accused of Islamising society through its conservative policies that overlap with discourses originating from the Islamic faith. At the same time, the AKP government has maintained that it abides by Turkish secularism. By using discursive analysis as its theoretical framework, this research identifies and analyses the extent to which the AKP’s discursive strategy has changed over the years to discover whether the party truly has a hidden agenda or if the shifts serve as strategies to win votes. For this research, the thesis uses both qualitative and quantitative methods. By gathering data from primary sources such as official documents and newspaper articles, a document analysis was done to gather the frequency of specific terms appearing in these documents. Furthermore, secondary sources from articles were collected and analysed using process tracing to find out the reasons for the rising religious discourse. Finally, statistical analysis was done by applying the Pearson Correlation to test the relationship between religious discourse and political dominance. The thesis highlights how while the party has actively rearticulated religious discourse since 2002, there is a shift in religious discourse in which it has become more specific with imminent policy ramifications. The changes observed are related to the perceived threats faced by the party, with Islamic discourse rising and depleting with the amount of challenges it faces by other institutions within Turkey. As a result, the AKP cannot be said to be a party that had always intended to turn Turkey into a religious country. The strategies undertaken by the party in the last 13 years (2002-2015) showed that the shifts in discourse were to manage the support it received by conservative Turks, rather than as an upfront to the secular establishment.

Schizophrenia is a chronic and disabling mental illness with unknown cause and incompletely understood pathogenesis. Evidence from genome-wide association studies (GWAS) and experimental studies had suggested the role of two immune related proteins, the complement C4, coded partly by the C4A gene, and the CUB and Sushi Multiple Domains 1 (CSMD1). However, there was no available report on the association between schizophrenia and DNA methylation of the C4A and CSMD1 genes. Such study is important because DNA methylation is a modifiable factor that can affect candidate genes’ expression and therefore explain the genetic-environment interaction in schizophrenia’s pathogenesis. Both genes also have copy number variation (CNV) which can influence gene expression. This study aims to compare the DNA methylation level and the copy number of C4A and CSMD1 genes between schizophrenia patients and healthy controls, and to evaluate their relationship with schizophrenia psychopathology. A total of 183 schizophrenia patients and 212 healthy controls were included in this comparative cross-sectional study. DNA methylation levels and gene copy number were determined from peripheral blood samples using MethyLightTM analysis and droplet digital polymerase chain reaction (ddPCR) respectively. C4 plasma levels was measured using immunoturbidimetry. Psychopathological data of patients were measured using the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) and the Personal and Social Performance (PSP) scale. Plasma C4 levels were found to be significantly higher in schizophrenia patients compared to controls (p < 0.001). While C4A DNA methylation levels and copy number were both positively correlated with plasma C4 levels (p < 0.001), there was no significant difference in the two variables between patients and controls. The DNA methylation levels of CSMD1 were significantly lower in schizophrenia patients compared to healthy controls (p = 0.001), but its copy number did not differ significantly between the groups. C4A deletion and higher CSMD1 DNA methylation levels were also associated with lesser positive symptom severity (p = 0.027). In multivariate analysis, both CSMD1 DNA methylation levels and plasma C4 levels were significant predictors for schizophrenia. Overall, the results suggested the potential involvement of DNA methylation of C4A and CSMD1 in schizophrenia pathophysiology, particularly in pathways relevant to the positive symptoms. Since DNA methylation may be reversed, this could be a useful target in for the development of new treatment in the future. Further studies are required to identify the underlying mechanism for these findings.