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Regular monitoring of bacteria, especially Escherichia coli, in wastewater is crucial to ensure the maintenance of public health. Amperometric detection proves to be a fast, sensitive and economically viable solution for E. coli enumeration. This paper reported a prototype amperometric sensor based on PANI-ZnO-NiO nanocomposite thin films prepared by sol–gel method and irradiated with gamma ray. The purpose of this study is to investigate the sensor performance of PANI-ZnO-NiO nanocomposite thin films to detect E. coli in water.

The films were varied with different compositions of ZnO and NiO by using the formula PANI-(ZnO)_1-x-(NiO)_x, with x = 0.2, 0.4, 0.6 and 0.8. PANI-ZnO-NiO nanocomposite thin films were characterized by using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) to study the crystallinity and surface morphology of the films. The sensor performance was conducted using the current–voltage (I-V) measurement by testing the films in clean water and E. coli solution.

XRD diffractograms show the peaks of ZnO (1 0 0) and NiO (1 0 2). AFM analysis shows the surface roughness, and the grain size of PANI-ZnO-NiO thin films decreases when the concentration ratios of NiO increased. I-V curves show the difference in current flow, where the current in E. coli solution is higher than the clean water.

PANI-(ZnO)_1-x-(NiO)_x nanocomposite thin film with the highest concentration of ZnO performed the highest sensitivity among the other concentrations, which can be used to indicate the presence of E. coli bacteria in water.

The purpose of this study was to isolate Whitemouth croaker protein by alkaline solubilization process and evaluate their nutritional quality to evaluate the bioavailability of essential amino acids.

The proximate composition, essential amino acid composition, in vitro digestibility, apparent bioavailability, chemical score of amino acids and SDS-PAGE were determined for the isolated croaker proteins.

The isolated protein showed a high level of protein 92.21 percent and low amount of lipids 0.57 percent. The protein is rich in lysine and leucine, 108.73 and 96.75 mg/g protein, respectively. The protein isolate had high digestibility, 94.32 percent, which indicates proper utilization of this protein source, while the tryptophan had lower bioavailability (12.58 mg amino acid/mg protein). The high chemical scores were found for the amino acids lysine, methionine+cysteine (6.79 and 5.14). SDS-PAGE of proteins extracted showed appearance of the heavy chain of myosin (220 kDa), actin (50 kDa) and other fractions, with molecular weight between 20 and 50 kDa, such as troponin I, C and T.

The products obtained from croaker muscle can be incorporated as a high value supplements in human diets. The isolated protein exhibited a high content of essential amino acids and digestibility, indicating that the protein has a high nutritional quality.

The purpose of this paper was to determine the nutritional quality of the surimi and kamaboko obtained from mechanically separated chicken meat and evaluate the bioavailability of essential amino acids found in these products.

The mechanically separated chicken meat (MSCM) was characterized by the proximate composition, and the surimi and kamaboko were characterized by in vitro digestibility, determination of chemical score of amino acids and apparent bioavailability.

The MSCM contains 68.1 ± 0.5, 12.9 ± 0.24, 18.5 ± 0.28 and 0.6 ± 0.06 per cent moisture, protein, lipids and ash, respectively. The moisture of the MSCM (surimi) was 80.45 ± 0.15 per cent, and the protein was 10.04 ± 0.21 per cent. The highest digestibility was found for the kamaboko (92.27 per cent) which was heat-treated and the lowest was for surimi (90.82 per cent). Histidine is a limiting amino acid. In this study, the surimi showed 84.69 per cent and the kamaboko presented 81.31 per cent of the minimum requirement for adults. In relation to the apparent bioavailability, there was a decrease of surimi to kamaboko of 2.52 per cent of the limiting amino acid histidine. The surimi and the kamaboko presented 76.94 and 75 per cent of the minimum requirement for adults, respectively.

The application of the surimi technology in the production of a surimi-like material from mechanically deboned chicken meat provides a new approach toward increasing its value and utilization, e.g. for the development of meat-based products and analogs, as alternative protein sources, the surimi and the kamaboko exhibited a high content of essential amino acids, indicating that the protein has a relatively high nutritional quality.

Reflections about fostering moral and spiritual qualities are the key point of view when considering the essence of religious beliefs in the theories about moral foundations. As a part of the spiritual values aimed at instructing human beings, mainly Muslims, tawakkul (trust in God) and tawhid (belief to God) are to be enhanced to situate the core religious foundation as the basic element for life at individual and social levels in the Muslim communities. This paper aims to critically examine tawakkul and tawhid to strengthening divine values as a foundation of self-regulation in religiosity.

This paper aims to critically examine tawakkul and tawhid to strengthening divine values as a foundation of self-regulation in religiosity. The literature review from referred journals was conducted using keywords on divine values, self-regulation in religiosity and tawakkul and tawhid. In order to obtain such literature, the critical analysis was conducted by organising substantive keywords. Then, extraction of data with deep literature analysis was carried out to interpret the findings. The key elements were analysed and synthesised into a new interpretation, conceptualisation and modelling of conceptualising tawakkul and tawhid concerns for sustainability of divine values for self-regulation in religiosity.

The finding reveals that the significance of conceptualising tawakkul and tawhid refers to as sustainability of divine involvement, as an emotionally religious commitment and as a consciously held religious discipline. Primarily, as the religious principle founded on a basic element transferred into individual and social levels, Islamic insights from tawakkul and tawhid offer valuable considerations for the understanding and amelioration of development by contributing a model that bases the “mental” and “spiritual” elements on a religious foundation, as an ultimate component for faith, a religious commitment and a belief in an authoritarian God to foster moral and spiritual qualities amidst the society.

Regulating tawakkul and tawhid to enhance dynamically constructive system for moral personality through critical examination as a foundation for religious-based self-regulation offers valuable considerations for the understanding and amelioration of development. Critical examination of tawakkul and tawhid as a foundation for religious self-regulation is considerably engaged to enhance the understanding and amelioration of development. It does so by contributing a model that bases mental and spiritual elements on a religious foundation, as an ultimate component for faith, religious commitment and belief in an authoritarian God to foster moral and spiritual qualities among human beings.

Evaluating the implementation of environmental management plans (EMPs) in highway construction projects is essential to avoid climate change. Public evaluations can help ensure that the EMP is implemented correctly and efficiently. To allow public evaluation of EMP implementations, this study aims to investigate performance indicators (PIs) for assessing EMP implementation in highway construction projects. To that end, the study objectives are to compare the critical PIs between environment auditors (EAs) and environment officers (EOs) and among the main project stakeholders (i.e. clients, contractors and consultants), create components for the critical PIs and assess the efficiency of the components.

The paper identified 39 PIs from interviews with environmental professionals and a systematic literature review. Then a questionnaire survey was developed based on the PIs and sent to EAs and EOs. The data were analyzed via mean score ranking, normalization, agreement analysis, factor analysis and fuzzy synthetic evaluation (FSE).

The analyses revealed 21 critical PIs for assessing EMP implementation in highway construction projects. Also, the critical PIs can be grouped into four components: ecological, pollution, public safety and ecological. Finally, the overall importance of the critical PIs from the FSE is between important and very important.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this paper is the first-of-its-kind study on the critical PIs for assessing EMP implementation in highway construction projects.

The purpose of this paper is to identify the factors influencing intention of Muslim Filipinos to give zakat on employment income.

The study used the extended theory of planned behaviour – an extension of the theory of reasoned action – to investigate the factors influencing intention to give zakat. The theory introduces six variables (i.e. attitude, perceived behavioural control, injunctive norm, descriptive norm, moral norm and past behaviour) in predicting the intention to give zakat. Totally, 450 questionnaires were distributed to the respondents in a Muslim-majority area (i.e. Marawi City), and 384 cases were deemed usable. The data have been analysed using multiple regression analysis.

This paper finds that attitude, descriptive norm and moral norm have a positive relationship with the intention to give zakat. Meanwhile, perceived behavioural control, injunctive norm and past behaviour are found to have insignificant influence over intention. However overall, the study supports the extension of the theory of planned behaviour which accounts for 53 per cent of the variance in intention.

This paper provides new insights on factors influencing the intention to give zakat on a non-Muslim majority country setting where no zakat institution operates. This paper also used the extended theory of planned behaviour on zakat compliance literature.

The purpose of this study is to understand the public value of the government of Kuwait using blockchain technology to develop the capabilities of smart cities.

Research was conducted in Kuwait, where the increased use of blockchain technology has been evidenced in both the private and public sectors. A total of seven IT managers were interviewed to gauge their responses to blockchain and its use in Kuwait ministries.

Blockchain technology offers many benefits for the development of smart cities in Kuwait. This is a statement that received almost mutual agreement amongst all the IT managers interviewed. However, as regards wider acceptance, the majority mentioned that a framework is necessary to better articulate the public value of using blockchain in smart cities in Kuwait.

This paper develops research hypotheses and a framework for articulating the public value of blockchain technology for smart cities in Kuwait.

This study aims to examine the performance indicators (PIs) for assessing environmental management plan (EMP) implementation in road construction projects. The specific objectives are to compare the key PIs between environment auditors and environment officers and among project stakeholders, develop components to categorize interrelated key PIs and evaluate the effectiveness of interrelated key PIs and components.

Thirty-nine PIs were identified through a systematic literature review and in-depth interviews with environmental professionals. Subsequently, a questionnaire survey was designed based on this list of PIs and distributed to industry professionals. Sixty-one responses were collected in Malaysia and analyzed using the mean score ranking, normalization, agreement analysis, overlap analysis, factor analysis and fuzzy synthetic evaluation.

The analyses identified 18 key PIs: soil erosion, dust appearance, spill of chemical substance, construction waste, clogged drainage, overflowed silt trap, oil/fuel spills, changes in the colour of bodies of water, excessive cut and fill, vegetation depletion, changes in the colour of the runoff water, landslide occurrence, slope failures, irregular flood, public safety, deforestation, open burning and increased of schedule waste. Also, the key PIs can be grouped and ranked into the following four components: geological, pollution, environmental changes and ecological. Finally, the overall importance of the key PIs is between important and very important.

This study is a pioneer in quantitively examining the key PIs for EMP implementation in road construction projects. Researchers, industry practitioners and policymakers can use the findings to develop strategies and tools to allow public monitoring of EMP implementation.

Significance of Knowledge The functional name of the Holy Quran is ‘huda’, the guiding light. It focuses divine light on each and every object separating thereby the right from the wrong' (al‐furqan). As this is accomplished by dint of knowledge (al‐ 'ilm). All these three guiding elements namely huda, furqan and ilm, are lined‐up by Allah, the Lord Providence (Rabb‐ulalamin), for earthly welfare (hasanah) and other‐worldly salvation (falah) of human beings. In Quranic context, knowledge, therefore, carries a great significance.

This paper aims to examine the effects of corporate governance and firm-specific characteristics on the incidence of financial restatement among Malaysian public listed firms.

The elements of corporate governance consist of board size, board independence, multiple directorships, audit committee expertise, external audit quality and executive compensation. Meanwhile, the firm-specific characteristics consist of firm age, firm performance, firm leverage and firm liquidity. The agency theory has been used to guide the study. This study used a matched-pair sample that consisted of a sample of 49 restatement firms and 98 non-restatement firms between the years 2011 and 2016. Univariate (t-test and Pearson correlation) and multivariate (logistic regression) statistical techniques were used to test the hypotheses.

The results show that there is a negative and significant relationship between executive compensation and firm performance, and the incidence of financial restatement. In addition, there is a positive and significant relationship between firm leverage and the incidence of financial restatement. However, the other corporate governance and firm-specific characteristic variables included in the study were found to be insignificant with the incidence of financial restatement. This paper provides evidence that some form of corporate governance mechanisms and firm-specific characteristics, particularly executive compensation, firm performance and firm leverage, may influence the direction and magnitude of the incidence of financial restatement. The findings indicate that optimal executive incentives may align management interests with those of shareholders. In addition, greater performance and lower leverage levels minimise firms’ financial pressure and debt covenant violation risk, which may reduce the management tendency to misstate the financial statement, and consequently, minimise the likelihood of financial restatement.

The main value of this paper is the effect of corporate governance and firm-specific characteristics on the likelihood of financial restatement in Malaysia. The findings of this study provide useful insights for regulators to improve and reconsider the current regulations on corporate governance mechanisms.