Malaysian Rubber Board

Sewage water and sludge provide a viable option to meet crop water and nutrient demands in the face of rising climatic stress. Thus, a 2-year field study (2018 and 2019) was conducted to evaluate the effect of sewage water and sludge on soil properties and the growth response of green chili. The experiment comprised nine treatment combinations involving three types of irrigation water: normal water (I 1 ), treated sewage water (I 2 ), untreated sewage water (I 3 ) along with three soil amendments: farmyard manure (FYM) at 25 t ha −1 (SA 1 ), sewage sludge at 25 t ha −1 (SA 2 ), and a mix of sewage sludge at 12.5 t ha −1 + FYM at 12.5 t ha −1 (SA 3 ). Soil-available nutrient status of N, P, and K increased by ˜10%–15%, ˜14%–20%, and ˜13%–18%, respectively, in I 3 and SA 2 . Sewage water and sludge application further improved soil microbial populations, which included actinomycetes, fungi, and bacteria. Concurrently, multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) demonstrated a positive influence of irrigation and soil amendments on soil properties. Across both study years, I 3 and SA 2 recorded a higher mean green chili yield, with an improvement of approximately 25% over I 1 and SA 1 . Hence, the findings reveal the feasibility of harnessing sewage water resources as sustainable inputs, advancing both resource efficiency and short-term agricultural sustainability in the region.

Artykuł omawia sposób przedstawiania męskości i męskich praktyk cielesnych w polskich czasopismach lifestylowych dla mężczyzn w posttransformacyjnym trzydziestoleciu (1990–2020). Analizy bazują na materiale empirycznym z projektu „Praktyki kulturowe związane z ciałem w życiu codziennym czterech pokoleń polskich mężczyzn. Analiza socjologiczna” Narodowego Centrum Nauki i są ukierunkowane m.in. na weryfikację obserwacji poczynionej przez Susan Bordo, według której męskiemu wizerunkowi niezmiennie towarzyszy kontekst sprawowania władzy i posiadania pieniędzy, wymóg bycia silnym fizycznie, szeroko rozumiana umiejętność ujarzmiania oraz stosowania przemocy. Proces jakościowej analizy treści obejmował 31 tytułów czasopism dla mężczyzn i skupiał się na trzech kategoriach analitycznych: typach wizerunków męskości promowanych w czasopismach, sposobach przedstawiania męskiego ciała oraz narracjach wokół ciała, odnoszących się do praktyk pielęgnacyjnych, zdrowotnych, estetycznych i tożsamościowych. Analizy wykazały, że czasopisma lifestylowe dla mężczyzn po 1989 roku odegrały istotną rolę w kształtowaniu wzorców męskości, oferując modele tożsamości oparte na estetyce ciała i sukcesie, lecz zakorzenione w tradycyjnych, hegemonicznych normach. Nowoczesne praktyki cielesne zostały w nich przedefiniowane jako „męskie” dzięki retoryce siły, bólu i dominacji, co pozwoliło na ich integrację bez naruszenia konserwatywnego porządku płci. Pomimo pozornej otwartości na nowe formy męskości czasopisma reprodukują opresyjne wzorce, podporządkowując ciało mężczyzny konsumpcyjnej logice, co pozwala wnioskować, że obserwacje Bordo pozostają aktualne.

The Earth is being pushed towards its ecological limits by the increasing pressure of human daily activities and the escalating threat of climate change, necessitating substantial global action to safeguard the sustainability of a habitable environment. The aim of this integrative review is to highlight the role of microbial synthetic biology (MicSynBio) in evolving a bio-based economy tackling life threatening challenges, including pollution, food security, energy demands, synthetic materials, infectious diseases, and climate change. It further indicates the developing trends, emerging innovations, technological integrations, and the challenges involved, while emphasizing the capability of MicSynBio in bringing sustainable changes. In our review, we consolidate discoveries from multidisciplinary studies, highlighting the transformative skills of MicSynBio in mimicking and enhancing natural systems for environmentally friendly solutions. By directing the transition towards a bio-based economy, synthetic biology (SynBio) demonstrates immense potential in transforming waste intensive industrial recycling into green processes. SynBio contribution to pollution reduction (e.g. the use of bacterial species with genetically engineered luminescence genes in real-time pollutants examining), improved agriculture practices, bioenergy production (e.g. the utilization of engineered algae or heterotrophic microbes for direct biofuel production or biomass conversion), green synthesis of biomaterials, and drugs (e.g. engineering Aspergillus oryzae, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, and Escherichia coli to enhance scalability and sustainability of pharmaceuticals and bio-based materials), is specified by tangible case studies, (refer to supplementary materials Fig. S1 for graphical abstract). Furthermore, we address the safety concerns and legislative strategies needed for the responsible implementation of MicSynBio innovations in tackling climate change. Realizing the full potential of MicSynBio requires effective safety and ethical considerations and strong collaborations among academics, specialists, policymakers, and industry leaders.

This study investigates the design and performance of a dual-band microstrip patch antenna utilizing a rubber substrate for RF energy harvesting applications. The antenna is designed to operate at 2.45 GHz and 5.8 GHz, catering to wireless communication and Internet of Things (IoT) systems. A slotintegrated structure was incorporated to enable dual-band operation while enhancing the reflection coefficient bandwidth and gain. Simulation results, conducted using CST Microwave Studio, demonstrated that the optimized design achieved reflection coefficient values below −10 dB at both frequency bands, with corresponding gain values of 3.41 dBi and 3.00 dBi, respectively. The use of a rubber substrate underscored the design's potential for flexibility, indicating its suitability for wearable and stretchable applications without significant loss in efficiency. These results contribute to the advancement of sustainable, flexible antenna solutions for next-generation communication technologies.

Monsoon floods in northern Malaysia pose severe risks to communities and infrastructure. Conventional runoff models often rely on empirical assumptions and fail to capture complex three-dimensional flow dynamics. This study aims to develop a more accurate predictive tool by combining physics-based simulation with data-driven learning. Using measured water levels and velocities, we applied a three-dimensional fluid flow model (governed by Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes equations) to simulate flood events at two river crossings (Sidam and Jeniang). A calibration factor was computed to align simulated and observed discharges. A neural network (long short-term memory, LSTM) was then trained on historical flow data to improve the prediction of discharge rates. Results show that the calibrated CFD model matched observations closely (coefficient of determination > 0.97) and reduced mean absolute error by 43%. Integrating the LSTM further improved accuracy, outperforming standard regression models. These findings demonstrate that coupled CFD machine learning models can robustly predict river discharge and support adaptive flood management in tropical basins.

Abstract Rubber mounts are widely used as a component to prevent structures from vibration damages associated with various sources that making lifespan at stake. Frequent change of rubber mount can be a waste yet the inspection for faulty rubber mount is impractical. Advancement in technology eases structural health monitoring (SHM) through sensors combined with deep learning (DL) approach. This paper aims to investigate application practicality of DL to detect level of cracks in rubber mounts through vibration signals. Neural network models based on Convolutional Neural Network (CNN), Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) and their combinations were developed. An experimental setup simulating bridge structure with rubber isolators supporting its base was created. Cracks were induced on the rubber mount to simulate failure conditions. 5Hz and 10Hz constant sine waves along with simulated bridge waveform from an actual bridge excitation were employed. Neural networks were applied with Bayesian approach via dropout layer to reduce overfitting and increase reliability. Results show the highest accuracy achieved by hybrid CNN-LSTM with 99.9% while CNN with 89.0% in the standard sine wave and bridge excitation scenario respectively. Overall, the study shown the practicality and capability of neural network as a SHM approach for crack detection of rubber mount.

Abstract Numerical simulations of an unsteady laminar lid-driven cavity Newtonian flow are executed to demonstrate the formation of eddies under different aspect ratios and steady-state criteria. A couple of nonlinear unsteady partial differential equations (PDEs) of Navier Stokes satisfying a set of boundary conditions is examined with both inclusions of no-slip and free-slip effects. Finite difference method (FDM) is employed to solve the vorticity-stream function using a self-developed Matlab® code embedded in a Graphical User Interface (GUI) to ease the cavity problem analysis by the end users. Four models are studied where Ansys Fluent® employing the Finite Element Method (FEM) is used to verify the present FDM steady-state results produced for the first model. It is observed that the value of stream function begins to drop and streamline distribution changes shape when e ≤ 10−5. Refrainment of merging of secondary eddies also happens when the free-slip boundary condition effect passes the threshold value. The Stretching effect with free-slip BC in the fourth model regulates the fluid dynamics to reach the entire cavity sufficiently with no room for eddy formation by increasing the slip length to an intense value. Free-slip simulates free surface applications in geophysical occurrences (river and glacier), spilling dynamics, ship hull designs, technologies of coating and fuel spraying/injection.