This study aimed to investigate the chemical compositions of the leaf essential oils of Magnolia villosa (Miq.) H. Keng. and M. maingayi King. growing in Malaysia. The leaf essential oils were obtained by hydrodistillation and fully characterized by gas chromatography and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Analysis of M. villosa and M. maingayi leaf essential oils resulted in 96.4% and 98.7% of the total essential oil, respectively. The main components of M. villosa leaf essential oil were ?-caryophyllene (32.8%) and ?-humulene (8.8%), while in M. maingayi leaf essential oil gave ?-elemene (27.4%), ?-caryophyllene (16.4%), and (E)-nerolidol (14.4%). Anticholinesterase inhibitory activity was also evaluated using acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) inhibitory assays. M. villosa leaf essential oil revealed a moderate inhibitory effect on AChE (percentage inhibition, I%: 62.5%) and BChE (I%: 74.8%) at a concentration of 1,000 ?g/mL. In conclusion, the leaf esse.....

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The main objective of this study is to investigate the factors that affect the Malaysian industrial production sector (IPS) by using the ARDL bounds testing methodology. The analysis is conducted by applying the time series data for the 19702020 period. From the ARDL results, all variables significantly influence Malaysian IPS in different manners for both periods; long and short runs, except the financial development (FD) variable, which insignificantly in-fluences IPS. This final result was verified by the ECM estimate, indicating the presence of long-and short-run relationships between IPS and its factors. Although the FD sector does not directly play a significant factor in stimulating Malaysian IPS growth, policymakers must revise their policies to enhance the role of the financial and banking sector in strengthening the IPS performance in the country. This revision can be done by running good financial services to fund and motivate investors to construct new IPS schemes and then .....

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In this paper, we surveyed recent publications on topic modeling and analyzed the forms of visualizations and tools used. Expectedly, this information will help Natural Language Processing (NLP) researchers to make better decisions about which types of visualization are appropriate for them and which tools can help them. This could also spark further development of existing visualizations or the emergence of new visualizations if a gap is present. Topic modeling is an NLP technique used to identify topics hidden in a collection of documents. Visualizing these topics permits a faster understanding of the underlying subject matter in terms of its domain. This survey covered publications from 2017 to early 2022. The PRISMA methodology was used to review the publications. One hundred articles were collected, and 42 were found eligible for this study after filtration. Two research questions were formulated. The first question asks, "What are the different forms of visualizations used to dis.....

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The synergy between linguistics and ethnomusicology has long been recognized as a fertile ground for interdisciplinary research. In the context of 21st century education, educators need to merge disciplines in order to make students more appealing to industries. Thus, both disciplines need to engage in a variety of studies that highlight the ways in which language and music are intertwined in cultural expression. The aim of this article is to discuss the role of language in music-making, the relationship between linguistic and musical structures, the use of language in music analysis, the issues related to the impact of linguistic diversity on musical expression, and the application of ethnomusicology and linguistics in language and ethnomusicology classrooms. Additionally, this article matches the findings with related theories and highlights the importance of cross-disciplinary collaboration in advancing our understanding of the complex interplay between language and music. This arti.....

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This study aims to examine the effectiveness of the STEMDISLEARN module on students critical thinking skills in the DE Course. This research design employed a quasi-experimental non-equivalent pre-test and post-test group. The samples amounted to 123 students, consisting of 64 students in the experimental group and 59 students in the control group. The experimental group used the learning treatment with the STEMDISLEARN module, while the control group employed conventional learning. Meanwhile, the t-test was used as the data analysis technique. Results showed that the two groups had no difference in the average scores of their critical thinking skills before treatment. After treatment, however, there was a difference in the average pre-test and post-test scores between the experimental and control groups.The average post-test scores for critical thinking skills in each group were better than the pre-test scores. However, the increase in the average scores for the experimental group was.....

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In this paper, a type of Zika virus model with immigration is considered. Additionally based on the risk of infected immigrants, we propose a control measure of screening for immigrants and a three-measure control model of combined mosquito prevention and killing. The existence and stability of the equilibrium in the Zika virus model are analyzed. The necessary conditions for the existence of the optimal solution are given using Pontryagins maximum principle. We focused on testing screening of the immigrating population to ensure a reduction in the transmission of the virus. Models have demonstrated that in combination with routine mosquito control measures and the appropriate use of mosquitoicides, the transmission of Zika virus in the population can be effectively reduced. 2023 the Author(s), licensee AIMS Press...

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In common practice of al-Quran memorization, Tahfiz students spend up to eight hours daily to memorize al-Quran. Many things can happen within those eight hours, affecting their learning experience and performance. This research paper was conducted to investigate the design factors and to suggest a model of potential assistive technology for memorizing al-Quran among Tahfiz students. Qualitative method of case study was used. Two well-experienced teachers were interviewed through focus group discussion. Verbatim transcript of the interview was transcribed and keywords were identified. To analyse the data, the researchers identified themes for further exploration. The results were validated by two experienced inter-raters. The findings indicated nine themes that were classified into three categories: (1) Factors before memorizing al-Quran, (2) Factors during memorizing al-Quran, and (3) Factors after memorizing al-Quran. The research finding suggests the assistive technology that can be.....

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In accordance with the theory of informal institutions, culture exerts a crucial influence on the enactment of corporate social responsibility. Based on the two core variables of Chinese traditional culture and corporate environmental responsibility, we designed a panel data model to investigate the impact of Chinese traditional culture on corporate environmental responsibility and its heterogeneity. The findings indicate the following: 1) Chinese traditional culture can promote the performance of corporate environmental responsibility. 2) Chinese traditional culture has a heterogeneous influence on the environmental responsibility of enterprises that depends on the ownership difference of enterprises; that is, the influence of traditional culture on the environmental responsibility of state-owned enterprises is stronger than that of non-state-owned enterprises. 3) Chinese traditional culture has a heterogeneous influence on the environmental responsibility of enterprises according to .....

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The genus Piper is among the most important genera in the Piperaceae family, consisting of over 2000 species and widely distributed globally, mainly in the Southeast Asian region. It is known for several medicinally and economically important species that have been used throughout their native range. Piper species have great diversity in the worlds tropical regions and are represented mainly by aromatic shrubs and trees with significant production of essential oils. Essential oils are largely consumed as they are beneficial to humans as natural remedies and have been known for years to find usefulness in foods, drugs, and cosmetics. In recent years, studies on the essential oils of the Malaysian Piper species have been progressing, and many of them have reported interesting pharmacological activities. This review attempts to summarize information on the essential oils from Malaysian Piper species concerning their medicinal uses, chemical composition, and bioactivities. Information on t.....

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This study investigates predictive causality between stock prices and exchange rates over the period of January 2005 to May 2020 in Malaysia, Singapore, China, and USA. The methodology applied in this study allows for structural changes during the global financial crisis, as past studies have shown that tests can be biased towards non-rejection if structural breaks are not accounted for. Thence, Gregory and Hansen cointegration and Granger causality tests are implemented in this study. Results revealed that unidirectional Granger causality relations are established in Malaysia, the US, and Singapore. However, signs for causal effects differ even though two markets have the same unidirectional Granger causality relation. Additionally, stock prices and exchange rates are found to be cointegrated in the US and Singapore. Meanwhile, there is no causal effect between stock prices and the exchange rate in China, for both the short-run and long-run periods. Copyright 2023 Inderscience Enterpr.....

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