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The boom of the 4.0 industrial revolution and the Covid-19 pandemic have changed the teaching and learning process, where digital learning environments have become increasingly necessary and convenient. The application of game-based learning (GBL) provides many benefits, such as helping to improve the quality of the mathematics teaching and learning process. This paper describes digital GBL with the application of Learning Analytics (LA) in a primary school and how the LA approach can enhance learning with GBL. GBL allows students to have more practice in their learning, while LA allows the data on teaching and learning materials to be recorded. The recorded data allows the teachers to systematically analyze them to keep track of students' learning performance. The use of LA is also useful to researchers and game designers. This paper has also proven the importance of the cognitive load theory and its application in GBL. It allows the use of GBL-based application to present learning information to cater to students' cognitive needs. This study involved sixty-four students from a rural primary school who participated in a 10-week GBL-based intervention. The results show that digital GBL helped increase the students' achievement in mathematics. Moreover, the LA process could be used as a mathematics achievement prediction model. In this regard, data on login frequency, duration of use, and the score to predict could be used to predict the intervention's impact on mathematics achievements. The study concludes by discussing the findings and their implications towards GBL and LA-based research and practice in mathematics teaching and learning.

One of the most significant global challenges for humans is environmental pollution. The technology to control this problem is the utilization of semiconductors as photocatalysts. In the current study, iron-doped titania nanotubes (Fe/TiNTs) with increased photocatalytic effect were synthesized via a modified hydrothermal method. The products were characterized by X-ray powder diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), gas adsorption, electron spin resonance (ESR) and UV–Vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS). TEM results indicated that Fe/TiNTs have a tubular and uniform structure with an average outer diameter of 23–48 nm and length of 10–15 µm. ESR and DRS revealed that Fe3+ ions were successfully introduced into the TiNT structure by replacing Ti4+ ions. An enhanced light absorption in the range of 400–600 nm additionally indicated successful doping. The band gap was narrowed as iron wt% was increased. The photocatalytic activity was evaluated by the degradation of methyl orange (MO) in the presence of Fe/TiNTs and TiTNs by monitoring the degradation of MO under UV light irradiation. An acceleration on the hydration of Portland cement was observed in the presence of 2.0 wt% Fe/TiNTs. Fe/TiNTs can be used as a nanomaterial in cement-based building materials to provide self-cleaning properties to the surface of concrete even in indoor environments.

Environmental pollution is one of the most serious and global problems for humans. Photocatalysis is a promising technology to control environmental pollution via the utilization of semiconductor materials as a photocatalyst. In this study, iron-doped TiO2 nanotubes (Fe/TiNTs) with an increased photocatalytic effect at longer wavelengths compared to undoped TiNTs were used, and the effect on the early hydration and mechanical properties of the main clinker phase tricalcium silicate (C3S) was investigated for the first time. Prior to the incorporation of nanotubes into C3S, it was treated with a supersaturated Ca(OH)2 solution. The addition of 1 and 2 wt.% of Fe/TiNTs into the C3S system significantly accelerated the course of hydration. The degree of hydration for the hydration products after 8 h, 1 d and 7 d have improved. The enhancement of compressive strength after 7 d, 14 d and 28 d were observed compared to normal TiO2 nanotubes (TiNTs). Treating Fe/TiNTs with a supersaturated Ca(OH)2 solution revealed a stronger interaction between Ca2+-ions and nanotubes. Fe/TNTs were synthesized via a modified hydrothermal process. The study shows that Fe/TiNTs can be used as a nanomaterial in cement-based building materials due to their enhanced interaction with the system.

Assessing regional wall motion abnormalities (RWMA) in the myocardium may provide early diagnosis and treat chronic remodeling in STEMI patients. We assessed RWMA in 217 subjects with anterior STEMI admitted to Era University Hospital in Lucknow, UP, India. Besides abnormalities in the LAD territory, sub-sets of patients exhibited diffuse regional myocardial dysfunction. Interestingly, variations in serum electrolytes, specifically sodium and potassium, significantly affected the distribution and frequency of RWMA. Notably, RWMA occurred in the basal septum, apical septum, apex, and lateral wall in the anterior STEMI group. Additionally, the rate of regional dysfunction varied with serum urea and creatinine levels. This suggests that anterior STEMI can manifest myocardial abnormalities beyond the LAD territory. These findings indicate that ST-segment elevation might not be specific, possibly influenced by electrolyte changes affecting cardiac rhythm. Therefore, diagnosing and correcting region-specific wall motion abnormalities and electrolyte imbalances may improve outcomes in STEMI patients.

Phishing attacks have become a perilous threat in recent years, which has led to numerous studies to determine the classification technique that best detects these attacks. Several studies have made comparisons using only specific datasets and techniques without including the most crucial aspect, which is the performance evaluation of data changes. Hence, classification techniques cannot be generalized if they only use specific datasets and techniques. Therefore, this research determined the performance of classification techniques on changing data through a subset of schemes in a dataset. It was conducted using unbalanced and balanced phishing datasets, as well as subset schemes in ratios of 90:10, 80:20, 70:30, and 60:40. The thirteen most recent classification techniques used in preliminary phishing studies were compared and evaluated against ten performance measures. The results showed that the proposed schemes successfully uncover the maximum and minimum performance obtained by a classification technique. These comparisons can provide deeper insights into phishing classification techniques than related research.

The present study was carried out to evaluate the effects of different rates of macronutrients as a foliar spray on the growth performance, yield, and nutrient content of sweet corn grown in the Rengam soil series. The treatments consisted of five rates of macronutrients as a foliar fertilizer at 0, 25, 50, 75, and 100 % NPK. Foliar NPK was applied 25 and 50 days after sowing to the sweet corn seedlings. The results showed that fresh cob weight, cob number, flowering, and dry matter yield of sweet corn significantly increased at the rate of 75%, and 100% of NPK foliar fertilizers. The macro and micronutrient concentrations in ear leaf, mature leaves, stem, cob, and flowers of 75 and 100% NPK treated corn were significantly increased over the control plants. The macronutrient content in the whole plant was also significantly higher at 75% and 100% NPK treatments. Fe and Mn contents in the whole plant were also the highest in 75% and 100% NPK treatments. Macronutrient concentration in ear leaf and whole corn plants significantly correlated with the fresh cob yield of corn. It is concluded that foliar application of N, P, and K macronutrients (75 to 100% NPK) enhanced the yield and quality of sweet corn.

INTRODUCTION: This manuscript aims to provide a synopsis of the current situation surrounding noise exposure at work and the risk of noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) in Malaysia. NIHL is an occupational illness that affects most many people and can be prevented in many countries in the world. The production and agriculture businesses and the extraction of natural resources and urban traffic all contribute to ambient noise levels. Working in a noisy environment is the main occupational risk factor for adult-onset hearing loss. In this study, we investigate the prevalence of NIHL across different industries, as well as research publication trends on NIHL. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Conducted thorough several online databases, like Science Direct, Web of Science, and Google Scholar, for related research that had already been published. The review phases were carried out according to the recommendations laid out by the preferred reporting items for systematic reviews. A set of criteria was developed for selecting relevant studies. RESULTS: The prevalence of NIHL among workers in Malaysia, varies across different industries and has been reported to range from 5.0% to 82.6%. NIHL has multiple contributing factors, including noise intensity, long-term exposure to daily noise, hearing protection devices and age. A review of these studies found varying percentages of individuals affected by each contributing factor. CONCLUSION: Occupational NIHL is a preventable health risk for workers across industries. Employers must adopt engineering and administrative controls (education and training) and provide personal hearing protectors to protect workers from noise. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cardiac arrhythmia is a leading cause of cardiovascular disease, with a high fatality rate worldwide. The timely diagnosis of cardiac arrhythmias, determined by irregular and fast heart rate, may help lower the risk of strokes. Electrocardiogram signals have been widely used to identify arrhythmias due to their non-invasive approach. However, the manual process is error-prone and time-consuming. A better alternative is to utilize deep learning models for early automatic identification of cardiac arrhythmia, thereby enhancing diagnosis and treatment. In this article, a novel deep learning model, combining convolutional neural network and bi-directional long short-term memory, is proposed for arrhythmia classification. Specifically, the classification comprises five different classes: non-ectopic (N), supraventricular ectopic (S), ventricular ectopic (V), fusion (F), and unknown (Q) beats. The proposed model is trained, validated, and tested using MIT-BIH and St-Petersburg data sets separately. Also, the performance was measured in terms of precision, accuracy, recall, specificity, and f1-score. The results show that the proposed model achieves training, validation, and testing accuracies of 100%, 98%, and 98%, respectively with the MIT-BIH data set. Lower accuracies were shown for the St-Petersburg data set. The performance of the proposed model based on the MIT-BIH data set is also compared with the performance of existing models based on the MIT-BIH data set.

In this study, the effects of benzoylation treatment on SPF were discussed. Five different parameters of SPF were compared, which were untreated, NaOH-pretreated, and benzoyl-treated SPF at 10, 15, and 20 minutes soaking time. The physical properties showed that chemical treatment had caused decolouration of SPF, which 20 minutes soaking time showed the brightest brownish colour, while the untreated had the darkest black colour. Significant reduction in diameter was found on benzoyl-treated at 15 minutes compared to untreated SPF at 344.35 μm and 480.33 μm respectively. The diameter reduction was supported by images from scanning electron microscopy (SEM), which impurities were observed on the surface of untreated SPF compared to rough surface of benzoyl-treated SPF. Significant increment in tensile strength was found for all treated SPF compared to untreated SPF with the highest tensile strength of 173.99 MPa showed by benzoyl-treated SPF in 15 minutes. Analysis on the thermal properties showed that all treated SPF had lower degradation temperature due to the removal of impurities and moisture during chemical treatment. In general, different soaking time did not affect significantly on the thermal properties of fibres. The change in elemental groups of SPF was not observed before and after the treatment disregards different soaking time for benzoylation treatment. Pertaining the analyses conducted on all the properties of SPF in the current study, it can be suggested that 15 minutes soaking time for benzoylation treatment exhibited the best properties of SPF to be used as reinforcement in composites.

Abstract The wax apple or jambu madu, is a non-climacteric tropical fruit from Myrtaceae family and widely cultivated in South East Asia. The limited availability of good quality seedlings of wax apple is the main problem to development of flourish it’s market share in the current fruit industry. Therefore, in order to produce good quality planting materials, a study aimed at optimizing propagation and adventitious rooting technique and survivability of wax apple air layer was conducted. In this study, four different levels of Indole-3-Butyric Acid (IBA) concentration (0, 1000, 1500 and 2000 mg L-1) and three rooting media (sphagnum moss, vermicompost and garden soil) were applied after removal of bark (phloem) on the shoot to determine the effect on rooting and survivability of the wax apple air layer under field conditions. The results showed that the wax apple shoots treated with 2000 mg L-1 IBA produced the significantly higher number of roots, increased length of root, diameter of branch, length of branch, number of leaf and leaf area of air layers. In addition, the highest chlorophyll content and stomatal aperture were recorded in 2000 mg L-1 IBA treatment compared to other treatments including control. Vermicompost medium was better than garden soil and sphagnum moss in respect of rooting and survivability of air layers. The results showed that the combination of 2000 mg L-1 IBA and vermicompost as rooting media give the best combination to root initiation, root number, root length and survival rate (100%) of wax apple air layers. From this study, it can be concluded that 2000 mg L-1 IBA and vermicompost treatment enhance the root initiation, early establishment and survivability of wax apple air layered under field conditions.

Abstract Cadmium (Cd) is one of non-essential heavy metals which is released into environment naturally or anthropogenically. It is highly persistent toxic metals that are exceptionally distressing industrial and agriculture activities by contaminating soil, water and food. Its long-duration endurance in soil and water results in accumulation and uptake into plants, leading to the food chain. This becomes a serious global problem threatening humans and animals as food chain components. Living organisms, especially humans, are exposed to Cd through plants as one of the main vegetative food sources. This review paper is concentrated on the symptoms of the plants affected by Cd toxicity. The absorption of Cd triggers several seen and unseen symptoms by polluted plants such as stunted growth, chlorosis, necrosis and wilting. Apart from that, factors that affect the uptake and translocation of Cd in plants are elaborated to understand the mechanism that contributes to its accumulation. By insight of Cd accumulation, this review also discussed the phytoremediation techniques-phytoextraction, phytostimulation, phytostabilization, phytovolatization and rhizofiltration in bioremediating the Cd.

Convective is a fundamental mechanism in heat transfer analysis. Convective heat transport refers to the transfer of heat from one stage to another. In order to produce the preferred output, it is critical to understand the properties of fluid flow. In this study, mixed convection flow is considered, which is defined as a situation where the forces of pressure and buoyancy interact. The goal of this endeavor is to scrutinize the numerical solution of Brinkman-viscoelastic fluid for mixed convection transport over a horizontal circular cylinder as one of the bluff body geometry. Using the necessary similarity transformation, the governing equations were converted into a less complicated form and numerically solved using Keller-box procedure. The influence of mixed convection, Brinkman and viscoelastic parameters towards the fluid velocity and temperature together with skin friction and heat transfer coefficient is analyzed and demonstrated in graphs and tables. This study has revealed that the distribution of fluid velocity, skin friction and heat transfer coefficient had strengthened due to rising values of mixed convection parameter and declined by virtue of increasing viscoelastic and Brinkman parameters. The temperature profile, on the other hand, clearly demonstrates the increasing trend as the Brinkman and viscoelastic parameter increase and declines because of mixed convection. The results show that all of the significant parameters in this investigation affluence the fluid flow characteristics. The provided theoretical results will develop a thorough understanding on boundary layer issues and will be used as a reference for future research or validation.

One of the most significant global challenges for humans is environmental pollution. The technology to control this problem is the utilization of semiconductors as photocatalysts. In the current study, iron-doped titania nanotubes (Fe/TiNTs) with increased photocatalytic effect were synthesized via a modified hydrothermal method. The products were characterized by X-ray powder diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), gas adsorption, electron spin resonance (ESR) and UV–Vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS). TEM results indicated that Fe/TiNTs have a tubular and uniform structure with an average outer diameter of 23–48 nm and length of 10–15 µm. ESR and DRS revealed that Fe3+ ions were successfully introduced into the TiNT structure by replacing Ti4+ ions. An enhanced light absorption in the range of 400–600 nm additionally indicated successful doping. The band gap was narrowed as iron wt% was increased. The photocatalytic activity was evaluated by the degradation of methyl orange (MO) in the presence of Fe/TiNTs and TiTNs by monitoring the degradation of MO under UV light irradiation. An acceleration on the hydration of Portland cement was observed in the presence of 2.0 wt% Fe/TiNTs. Fe/TiNTs can be used as a nanomaterial in cement-based building materials to provide self-cleaning properties to the surface of concrete even in indoor environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

INTRODUCTION: In every country, an adequate and reliable blood supply can be assured by a stable base of regular, voluntary, and unpaid blood donors. However, with the strike of COVID-19 around the world, fewer donors have come forward to donate blood since the government's movement control order. Therefore, to ensure the blood supply is always sufficient, this study discussed the Malaysians' motivation and intention to donate blood during the COVID-19. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The structural focus group discussion was conducted among nine informants. The informants are classified into four groups, which are non, first-time, regular, and lapsed (repeated/occasional) blood donors. RESULTS: It indicated that the regular and lapsed group of blood donors were motivated by the satisfaction of donating blood. Meanwhile, first-time donors are motivated to donate blood because of extrinsic rewards. However, the donors attested that the movement control order restricted their movement to go to the blood transfusion center. On the other hand, the non-donor group admitted that they do intend to donate blood. Still, several factors such as work commitment, location, and fear of being infected by COVID-19, hold them from doing so. CONCLUSIONS: These findings will serve as insights for future blood donation disruption remediation, especially during unexpected situations, as well as the success of the Malaysian blood campaign. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Videogrammetry is a technique to generate point clouds by using video frame sequences. It is a branch of photogrammetry that offers an attractive capabilities and make it an interesting choice for a 3D data acquisition. However, different camera input and specification will produce different quality of point cloud. Thus, it is the aim of this study to investigate the quality of point cloud that is produced from various camera input and specification. Several devices are using in this study such as Iphone 5s, Iphone 7+, Iphone X, Digital camera of Casio Exilim EX-ZR1000 and Nikon D7000 DSLR. For each device, different camera with different resolution and frame per second (fps) are used for video recording. The videos are processed using EyesCloud3D by eCapture. EyesCloud3D is a platform that receive input such as videos and images to generate point clouds. 3D model is constructed based on generated point clouds. The total number of point clouds produced is analyzed to determine which camera input and specification produce a good 3D model. Besides that, factor of generating number of point clouds is analyzed. Finally, each camera resolution and fps is suggested for certain applications based on generated number of point cloud.

3D city model is a representation of urban area in digital format that contains building and other information. The current approaches are using photogrammetry and laser scanning to develop 3D city model. However, these techniques are time consuming and quite costly. Besides that, laser scanning and photogrammetry need professional skills and expertise to handle hardware and tools. In this study, videogrammetry is proposed as a technique to develop 3D city model. This technique uses video frame sequences to generate point cloud. Videos are processed using EyesCloud3D by eCapture. EyesCloud3D allows user to upload raw data of video format to generate point clouds. There are five main phases in this study to generate 3D city model which are calibration, video recording, point cloud extraction, 3D modeling and 3D city model representation. In this study, 3D city model with Level of Detail 2 is produced. Simple query is performed from the database to retrieve the attributes of the 3D city model.

This study focuses on the development of mobile application for complaints in gated and guarded housing areas. This community area is equipped with fences and controlled by the guard. This community is managed by an organization that has been paid to manage the assets, facilities and security in the residential areas. Currently, the existing complaint management medium is by using text messages and WhatsApp. Due to this, it is difficult for the management to review the complaints and this makes the process of managing complaints time consuming. Furthermore, the residents are not well-informed of the current status of the complaints. This application development involves the use of cross platforms for Android and iOS. The application uses location based services (LBS) to find out the complaint address of the user. The data sent are stored in an integrated database with the developed application. This application is tested on site to study its effectiveness. Based on the survey, the results showed that the application is useful in managing resident complaints.

In recent years, 3D model for indoor spaces have become highly demanded in the development of technology. Many approaches to 3D visualisation and modelling especially for indoor environment was developed such as laser scanner, photogrammetry, computer vision, image and many more. However, most of the technique relies on the experience of the operator to get the best result. Besides that, the equipment is quite expensive and time-consuming in terms of processing. This paper focuses on the data acquisition and visualisation of a 3D model for an indoor space by using a depth sensor. In this study, EyesMap3D Pro by Ecapture is used to collect 3D data of the indoor spaces. The EyesMap3D Pro depth sensor is able to generate 3D point clouds in high speed and high mobility due to the portability and light weight of the device. However, more attention must be paid on data acquisition, data processing, visualizing, and evaluation of the depth sensor data. Hence, this paper will discuss the data processing from extracting features from 3D point clouds to 3D indoor models. Afterwards, the evaluation on the 3D models is made to ensure the suitability in indoor model and indoor mapping application. In this study, the 3D model was exported to 3D GIS-ready format for displaying and storing more information of the indoor spaces.

The smart city concept may aid in improving the city management, enhance the efficiency and thus increase the effectiveness of the city, where it is mainly focused on both information and technologies. This concept appears to be applicable for a smaller area such as university campus. Based on this idea, this research tries to implement the 3D smart campus for Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM). This is an initial research towards a real implementation of 3D smart campus and conceivably 3D smart cities. This research focuses on the development of UTM smart campus by using 3D city modelling. The QGIS software was used to develop the 3D models. Then, the 3D model is viewed in a web browser for better 3D visualization and navigation. Furthermore, the results show that the 3D developed models for UTM smart campus can be a reliable platform to manage the spatial query and viewing the attributes of UTM campus buildings and facilities. This can be seen beneficial to the physical future development of the UTM campus area.

الملخص: أهداف البحث: تهدف هذه الدراسة للتحقق في تأثير عسل توالانج، وزيت السمك الغني- بحمض الدوكوساهيكسانويك ومزيجهم على تركيز الستوكينات المسببة للالتهابات في دماغ الفئرآن بعد التعرض لإجهاد مزمن. طرق البحث: تم تقسيم خمسين فأرا ذكرا من نوع سبراغ داولي إلى ٥ مجموعات؛ (١) التحكم، و(٢) المتعرضين للإجهاد، و(٣) المتعرضين للإجهاد وعولجوا بعسل توالانج (١جم⁄ كجم من وزن الجسم مرتين يوميا عبر التزجيج عن طريق الفم)، و(٤) المتعرضين للإجهاد وعولجوا بزيت السمك الغني بحمض الدوكوساهيكسانويك (٤٥٠ مجم⁄ كجم من وزن الجسم مرتين يوميا عبر التزجيج عن طريق الفم) و(٥) المتعرضين للإجهاد وعولجوا بمزيج من عسل توالانج وزيت السمك الغني بحمض الدوكوساهيكسانويك. يتكون نظام الإجهاد المزمن من مزيج إجهاد ضبط النفس واختبار إجهاد السباحة لمدة ٢٨ يوما. وتم قياس الستوكينات المسببة للالتهابات المحددة في تجانس الدماغ (عامل نخر الورم ألفا، وانترلوكين ٦، وانترفيرون جاما) باستخدام تقنية اليزا. النتائج: تركيز عامل نخر الورم ألفا، وانترلوكين ٦، وانترفيرون جاما في تجانس الدماغ في مجموعة حمض الدوكوساهيكسانويك، ومجموعة عسل توالانج ومزيج المجموعتين حمض الدوكوساهيكسانويك + عسل توالانج كانت أقل بكثير عند مقارنتها لمجموعتي التحكم والإجهاد ولكن ليس بين مجموعات العلاج. الاستنتاجات: استهلاك زيت السمك الغني- بحمض الدوكوساهيكسانويك وعسل توالانج يمكن أن يكون فعال في خفض الستوكينات المسببة للالتهابات في دماغ الفئرآن تحت حالة الإجهاد المزمن. ولكن، استهلاك هذه العوامل معا لا يعطي فائدة إضافية عن أخذها بشكل منفصل. Abstract: Objectives: The aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of Tualang honey (TH), DHA-rich fish oil, and their combination on the concentrations of selected pro-inflammatory cytokines in rat brains following exposure to chronic stress. Methods: Fifty male Sprague–Dawley rats were divided into (i) control, (ii) stress-exposed, (iii) stress-exposed and treated with TH (1 g/kg body weight twice daily via oral gavage), (iv) stress-exposed and treated with DHA-rich fish oil (450 mg/kg body weight twice daily via oral gavage), and (v) stress-exposed and treated with a combination of TH and DHA-rich fish oil. The chronic stress regimen consisted of a combination of restraint stress and a swim stress test for 28 days. The concentrations of selected pro-inflammatory cytokines in brain homogenates (TNF-α, IL6, and IFN-γ) were measured by ELISA. Results: The concentrations of TNF-α, IL6, and IFN-γ in brain homogenates from the DHA, TH, and TH + DHA-treated groups were significantly lower compared to the control and stress-only-exposed groups (p

The accuracy of the predicted dynamic behaviour of an assembled structure using the frequency based substructuring (FBS) method is often found to be diverged from the experimental counterparts. The divergence which has become the paramount concern and major issue for structural dynamicists is because of the unreliable experimental FRF data of the interfaces of substructures, arising from the limited resources of appropriate excitation points and accelerometer attachments in the vicinity of the interfaces. This paper presents an alternative scheme for FRF measurement of the experimental FRF data of substructures. In this study, an assembled structure consisting of two substructures were used, namely substructure A (Finite element model) and substructure B (Experimental model). The FE model of substructure A was constructed by using 3D elements and the FRFs were derived via the FRF synthesis method. Specially customised bolts were used to allow the attachment of accelerometers and excitation to be made at the interfaces of substructure B, and the FRFs were measured by using impact testing. Both substructures A and B were then coupled by using the FBS method and the coupled FRF was validated with the measured FRF counterparts. This work revealed that the proposed scheme with specially customized bolts has led to a significant enhancement and improvement in the FBS predicted results.

Air quality on the east coast of Peninsular Malaysia is influenced by local anthropogenic and biogenic emissions as well as marine air masses from the South China Sea and aged emissions transported from highly polluted East Asian regions during the winter monsoon season. An atmospheric observation tower has been constructed on this coastline at the Bachok Marine Research Station. Daily PM2.5 samples were collected from the top of the observation tower over a 3-week period, and ion chromatography was used to make time-resolved measurements of major atmospheric ions present in aerosol. SO42- was found to be the most dominant ion present and on average made up 66 % of the total ion content. Predictions of aerosol pH were made using the ISORROPIA II thermodynamic model, and it was estimated that the aerosol was highly acidic, with pH values ranging from −0.97 to 1.12. A clear difference in aerosol composition was found between continental air masses originating from industrialised regions of East Asia and marine air masses predominantly influenced by the South China Sea. For example, elevated SO42- concentrations and increased Cl− depletion were observed when continental air masses that had passed over highly industrialised regions of East Asia arrived at the measurement site. Correlation analyses of the ionic species and assessment of ratios between different ions provided an insight into common sources and formation pathways of key atmospheric ions, such as SO42-, NH4+ and C2O42-. To our knowledge, time-resolved measurements of water-soluble ions in PM2.5 are virtually non-existent in rural locations on the east coast of Peninsular Malaysia. Overall this dataset contributes towards a better understanding of atmospheric composition in the Maritime Continent, a region of the tropics that is vulnerable to the effects of poor air quality, largely as a result of rapid industrialisation in East Asia.

This study was conducted to evaluate the potential effects of branch bending angle on the plant physiological characteristics, mineral nutrients accumulation and fruit quality of wax apple. Different treatments with five replicates each by Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) layouts were arranged in this study. All the treatments represent different branch angles which were at 5˚ (control), 20˚, 45˚, 65˚ and 85˚ from vertical axis. Leaf chlorophyll content (SPAD chlorophyll index) was significantly affected by different bending treatments at a budding stage, flowering, fruit development and after harvesting of wax apple. Total soluble solids (TSS) content in the leaves of bent branches increased significantly at before bud development, flowering, fruit ripening and after harvesting stages of wax apple trees. During fruit development and maturation stages, leaf TSS content was decreased in all bent branches. The results showed that 20˚ to 65˚ angle bent branches increase weight and firmness of fruit, fruit diameter and produced dark-coloured fruit compared to control. The results showed that 65˚ bent branches give the highest potassium (K+) and magnesium (Mg2+) content in the fruits. Higher sodium (Na+), iron (Fe2+) and calcium (Ca2+) content in fruits were found in 20˚ bent branches. There was a positive correlation between fruit TSS with Mg2+ (r = 0.70), with Na+ (r = 0.67) and with Ca2+ (0.57) content in the bent branches of wax apple. Fruit TSS content also positively correlated with firmness and peel colour of wax apple fruits. The number of fruit, fruit weight and fruit diameter of wax apple also positively correlated (weak) with leaves TSS content. It can be concluded that 20˚ to 65˚ branch bending angle are promising for enhancing plant physiology, fruit growth and quality of wax apple fruits.