University Technology Malaysia Research Articles

IOT based noise pollution and water quality monitoring system

Presently, noise pollution has become a very big issue around the world. The adverse effects of this pollution include hearing impairment, negative social behaviour, annoyance, sleep disturbance and intelligibility to understand people’s speech. In learning context, noise can affect understanding and behaviour of people and places with high noise level are not suitable for learning and teaching process. Internet of Things (IoT) technology is one of the best choices to monitor the noise or sound intensity in the environment for the safety of human being. The aim of this paper is to deliver a development of an IoT based noise monitoring system comprises of a sound sensor, an IoT platform called Node MCU, LCD and LEDs. The system will provide a real-time alert if the noise exceeds the threshold noise limit set by Environmental Department of Health standard. Equipped with an Android application, the data from the sound sensor will be transferred into the cloud server and subsequently transferred into the app for display and to enable remote monitoring. A case study is carried out using the developed prototype to ascertain the noise comfort for University Technology Malaysia (UTM) students for studying or learning purpose. The sound level is measured for two different days during weekend and weekday. Based on Charted Institution of Building Service Engineers (CIBSE), 60dBA is the permissible ambient level and any readings that above 60dBA can interrupt speech intelligibility.

The Collaborative Effort and Efficiency of Inquiry-Based Learning

This study investigates the effect on the teacher's performance of collaborative effort and efficiency of inquiry-based learning. It also determines the impact of the mediating role of student performance. The research framework was constructed based on the unified technology acceptance and use of technology theory. A quantitative analysis was done with surveys to collect primary data from the teacher and lecturers of Malaysia. The researcher used a Likert scale of 7 to evaluate elements of the building. This study focuses on the top 10 public university students in Malaysia. The universities are University Malaya (UM), University Kembangan Malaysia, University Putra Malaysia (UPM), University Since Malaysia (USM), University Technology Malaysia (UTM), Universiti Utara Malaysia (UUM), International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM), University Technology Mara (UiTM), University Malaysia Perlis (UniMap), and University Tun Hossain (UTHM). Finally, researchers selected the total number of students, 368,881, which is the population of this study. Using systematic random sampling with an interval, researchers sent students an electronic link to respond to a Google Doc questionnaire. This is a unique study in the field of teacher performance that used a diverse and necessary variable known as teaching pedagogy. Therefore, it uniquely integrates leading pedagogy variables into teacher performance. The result of this study helps to meet the education qualification requirement (EQR), and the newly acquired knowledge from this study may help spur the development of the education sector. In addition, it may provide an extensive understanding of making government policies for educational institutions.

Implementation of Ground-Based Lightning Locating System Using Particle Swarm Optimization Algorithm for Lightning Mapping and Monitoring

Cloud-to-ground (CG) lightning is a natural phenomenon that poses significant threats to human safety, infrastructure, and equipment. The destructive impacts of lightning strikes on humans and their property have been a longstanding concern for both society and industry. Countries with high thunderstorm frequencies, such as Malaysia, experience significant fatalities and damage due to lightning strikes. To this end, a lightning locating system (LLS) was developed and deployed in a 400 km2 study area at the University Technology Malaysia (UTM), Johor, Malaysia for detecting cloud-to-ground lightning discharges. The study utilized a particle swarm optimization (PSO) algorithm as a mediator to identify the best location for a lightning strike. The algorithm was initiated with 30 particles, considering the outcomes of the MDF and TDOA techniques. The effectiveness of the PSO algorithm was found to be dependent on how the search process was arranged. The results of the detected lightning strikes by the PSO-based LLS were compared with an industrial lightning detection system installed in Malaysia. From the experimental data, the mean distance differences between the PSO-based LLS and the industrial LLS inside the study area was up to 573 m. Therefore, the proposed PSO-based LLS would be efficient and accurate to detect and map the lightning discharges occurring within the coverage area. This study is significant for researchers, insurance companies, and the public seeking to be informed about the impacts of lightning discharges.

Editorial: academic peer reviewers – The good, bad, and the ugly

Editorial: academic peer reviewers – The good, bad, and the ugly

Postgraduate Students‟ Perceptions toward StudentCentered Learning (SCL): A Study of Afghan Postgraduate Students at TESL- University Technology Malaysia

Afghanistan formal education has long been dominated by the traditional teaching method whereas students are likely to be passive. Therefore, this study aims to explore Afghan Post-graduate student’s perception toward StudentCentered Learning (SCL) approach in terms of the perceived benefits, satisfaction, and the challenges they confronting in their studies. The study was conducted among 38 Afghan students from University Technology Malaysia (UTM). Questionnaire and a semi-structure interview tools have been used to collect data from students. The data was analyzed using descriptive statistics and thematic analysis. The findings of the study indicated that students are very satisfied from SCL approach, at the same time is beneficial for their field of studies but at the l they were facing with problems at the beginning of their studies but after a short while they were adapted with the system. It is recommended that future studies should expand to cover all the students who are studying in Malaysia Universities.

Online P2P Internet Traffic Classification and Mitigation Based on Snort and ML

Peer to peer applications have modified the nature of internet traffic. It will consume high internet bandwidth and affect the performance of traditional traffic internet applications. Therefore, the management and monitoring activity of internet traffic is the important activities involved in the optimization. In order to detect and mitigate the P2P traffic, port, payload, and transport layer based methods were developed in the past. Nevertheless, the performances of these methods were not up to the expectation. Machine Learning (ML) is one of the promising methods to identify and mitigate the traffic of the Internet. However, the classification accuracy is inconsistent. The reason for the inconsistency is the relevant training datasets generation and feature selection. In this research, a technique based on signature-based and ML is proposed to develop a model for online P2P traffic detection and mitigation. The proposed work can be employed to evaluate the robustness of the online P2P machine learning classifier based on real network traffic traces containing flows labelled by SNORT tool and from special shared resources. Analysis and validation were carried out on traffic traces of University Technology Malaysia. The period of traffic was 2011 and 2013. The output of research is revealing that the proposed work has spent less computation time for classification. This method gives 99.7% accuracy which equals the classification performance attained for P2P using deep packet inspector. The findings show that classifying network traffic at the flow level can differentiate P2P over non-P2P (nP2P) with high confidence for online P2P mitigation.

Online P2P Internet Traffic Classification and Mitigation Based on Snort and ML

Peer to peer applications have modified the nature of internet traffic. It will consume high internet bandwidth and affect the performance of traditional traffic internet applications. Therefore, the management and monitoring activity of internet traffic is the important activities involved in the optimization. In order to detect and mitigate the P2P traffic, port, payload, and transport layer based methods were developed in the past. Nevertheless, the performances of these methods were not up to the expectation. Machine Learning (ML) is one of the promising methods to identify and mitigate the traffic of the Internet. However, the classification accuracy is inconsistent. The reason for the inconsistency is the relevant training datasets generation and feature selection. In this research, a technique based on signature-based and ML is proposed to develop a model for online P2P traffic detection and mitigation. The proposed work can be employed to evaluate the robustness of the online P2P machine learning classifier based on real network traffic traces containing flows labelled by SNORT tool and from special shared resources. Analysis and validation were carried out on traffic traces of University Technology Malaysia. The period of traffic was 2011 and 2013. The output of research is revealing that the proposed work has spent less computation time for classification. This method gives 99.7% accuracy which equals the classification performance attained for P2P using deep packet inspector. The findings show that classifying network traffic at the flow level can differentiate P2P over non-P2P (nP2P) with high confidence for online P2P mitigation.

Classifying Internet Traffic using An Efficient Classifier

The new development in the architecture of Internet has increased internet traffic. The introduction of Peer to Peer (P2P) applications are affecting the performance of traditional internet applications. Network optimization is used to monitor and manage the internet traffic and improve the performance of internet applications. The existing optimizations methods are not able to provide better management for networks. Machine learning (ML) is one of the familiar techniques to handle the internet traffic. It is used to identify and reduce the traffic. The lack of relevant datasets have reduced the performance of ML techniques in classification of internet traffic. The aim of the research is to develop a hybrid classifier to classify the internet traffic data and mitigate the traffic. The proposed method is deployed in the classification of traffic traces of University Technology Malaysia. The method has produced an accuracy of 98.3% with less computation time.

An Evaluation of Primary School Year 6 (KSSR) English Textbook

This study investigates the effectiveness of Malaysian Primary School Year 6 (KSSR) English textbook to determine the extent to which the textbook conforms to the universal characteristics of ESL/EFL textbooks. A modified version of Alamri’s (2008) English as Foreign Language (EFL) textbook evaluation checklist developed by Akef and Moosavi (2014) was distributed along with the textbook to 12 TESL postgraduate students and 18 primary school English Language teachers currently studying at University Technology Malaysia (UTM) for evaluation. The data collected from this study was analysed using descriptive statistical technique which is a quantitative method. The findings highlight some of the weaknesses of the textbook in compliance to the universal characteristics of ELT textbooks. These include lack of supplementary materials and teachers’ dissatisfaction towards language contents and language skills elements. The findings from this study can provide significant feedback for teachers, textbook designers, curriculum developers and policy makers to place more emphasis on textbook evaluation when developing textbooks.

Path loss model for indoor emergency stairwell environment at millimeter wave band for 5G network

The unused millimeter-wave (mmWave) spectrum offers a superb opportunity to increase mobile broadband capacity due to the enormous amount of available bandwidth. Different candidate operating frequencies for 5G wireless networks are available at the mmWave band. For 5G wireless networks, the emergency case is one of the applications. This paper presents the outcome of indoor emergency stairwell measurement campaigns for 5G system at 26 GHz, 28 GHz, 32 GHz, and 38 GHz, which were conducted at the University Technology Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. To effectively evaluate the performance of 5G wireless systems in these different bands, single- and multifrequency path loss models are proposed for this environment. This paper proposes a new path loss model based on a new physical anchor point referred to as physical-anchor stair (PAS) path loss model. In a single-frequency large-scale case study, the PAS and the floating intercept (FI) path loss model are investigated at the 20 GHz and 30 GHz bands. Moreover, this study is extended to cover the multifrequency path such as the alpha, beta, and gamma model and the close-in free space path loss model with frequency weight (CIF) model. The CIF model is developed in this paper. The proposed PAS model shows high accuracy (physically based model) and less complexity compared with the studied models. Results show that the path loss exponent values vary between 6.6 and 7.9 for all measured frequencies using the proposed PAS model and between 9.1 and 10.9 using the FI model.

Women Transformational Leadership

This research survey was done in relation to my studies at University Technology Malaysia (UTM) specialising in Management and Administration in Education. The main aim and objective of my study is to critically analyse women transformational leadership issues in the Government Sectors and Non-governmental Organisations (NGOs), as well the chances of women to be appointed as District Officer and Assistant District Officer in the State Administration of Sabah. Thirty (30) Sabahan women leaders are randomly selected as respondents from the five (5) Organisations in the Government Sector and (5) five NGOs for this study. The survey questionnaires were distributed to the targeted respondents to find out their needs and expectations, if any, for their views, opinions and recommendations on how to improve women opportunities for career advancement within their respective organisations and workplace in Sabah.

マレーシア工科大学,高専予備教育センター,政府派遣高専留学生への物理教育 : 物理概念形成と思考力向上を目指した新たな授業取組み

マレーシア工科大学,高専予備教育センター,政府派遣高専留学生への物理教育 : 物理概念形成と思考力向上を目指した新たな授業取組み

Effective Design and Planning Specification of Low Impact Development Practices Using Water Management Analysis Module (WMAM): Case of Malaysia

Developers are increasingly looking for the best management practices to reduce the risk of floods in rapidly growing urban areas. Low impact development (LID) is regarded as one of the most suitable solutions for urban stormwater management and thus the U.S. EPA’s (Environmental Protection Agency) SWMM5.1 (Storm Water Management Model) added the hydrological simulation function for LID structures in 2009. However, SWMM5.1 cannot consider the optimal or best physical specifications of LID design and planning fitted to a study area, nor can it instantly derive the best combination for multiple LID designs and plans. Therefore, in this study, a web-based decision support system (DSS) for the EPA’s SWMM 5.1, referred to as the Water Management Analysis Module (WMAM) is used to decide the most effective specifications of design and planning parameters for LID structure. This study was carried out over an urban catchment of University Technology Malaysia campus located in Johor, Malaysia. The hydrologic cycles with and without LID were simulated using EPA SWMM5.1. The sensitivity analysis and multiple scenario analysis were performed using WMAM. As a result, the effective specification of LID design parameters indicates that peak flow is reduced to 20.95% and 17.5% for two sub-catchments, S1 (highest by area) and S6 (lowest by area) by installing an LID structure. Thus, this study provides a tool for the best solution for what values for physical parameters will be the best for a specified LID type and what capacities can achieve the particular objectives using WMAM.

THE ROLE OF COMMERCIAL STREETS AS A CHANNEL OF MOVEMENT IN RELATING TO THE SENSE OF PLACE.

20Jan 2017 THE ROLE OF COMMERCIAL STREETS AS A CHANNEL OF MOVEMENT IN RELATING TO THE SENSE OF PLACE Musaab Sami Al-Obeidy and Shuhana Shamsuddin. Assistant Lecturer, Department of Architectural Engineering - Cihan University, Sulaimaniya. Professor, Department of Civil Engineering (Built Environment) - University Technology Malaysia.

Reviewer Acknowledgements for International Business Research, Vol. 10, No. 2

International Business Research wishes to acknowledge the following individuals for their assistance with peer review of manuscripts for this issue. Their help and contributions in maintaining the quality of the journal are greatly appreciated.International Business Research is recruiting reviewers for the journal. If you are interested in becoming a reviewer, we welcome you to join us. Please find the application form and details at http://recruitment.ccsenet.org and e-mail the completed application form to ibr@ccsenet.org.Reviewers for Volume 10, Number 2 Ahmad Mahmoud Ahmad Zamil, King Saud University RCC, JordanAlireza Athari, Eastern Mediterranean University, IranAmran Awang, Head of Entrepreneurship Center, MalaysiaAshford C Chea, Benedict College, USABadar Nadeem Ashraf, East China Jiao Tong University, ChinaBenjamin James Inyang, University of Calabar, NigeriaBrian Sheehan, Thaksin University, AustraliaBruno Marsigalia, University of Casino and Southern Lazio, ItalyCristian Marian Barbu, “ARTIFEX” University, RomaniaFrancesco Ciampi, Florence University, ItalyGiuseppe Granata, University of Cassino and Southen Lazio, ItalyGiuseppe Russo, University of Cassino and Southern Lazio, ItalyHanna Trojanowska, Siedlce University, PolandHerald Monis, Milagres College, IndiaHuijian Dong, Pacific University, USAIvo De Loo, Nyenrode Business University, The NetherlandsIwona Gorzeń-Mitka, Czestochowa University of Technology, PolandJanusz Wielki, University of Business in Wroclaw, PolandL. Leo Franklin, Bharathidasn University, IndiaMansour Esmaeil Zaei, Panjab University, IndiaMarcelino José Jorge, Evandro Chagas Clinical Research Institute of Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, BrazilMaryam Ebrahimi, Azad University, IranMichaela Maria Schaffhauser-Linzatti, University of Vienna, AustriaMihaela Simionescu, Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies, RomanianModar Abdullatif, Middle East University, JordanMohamed Abdel Rahman Salih, Taibah University, Saudi ArabiaMohsen Malekalketab Khiabani, University Technology Malaysia, MalaysiaMongi Arfaoui, University of Monastir, TunisiaPascal Stiefenhofer, University of Brighton, UKProsper Senyo Koto, Dalhousie University, CanadaRadoslav Jankal, University of Zilina, SlovakiaRafiuddin Ahmed, James Cook University, AustraliaSang-Bing Tsai, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, ChinaTu Anh Phan, CanTho University, Viet Nam

Green Building and Environment Sustainability: A Retrofit of Chemical Engineering Pilot Plant Building Universiti Teknologi Malaysia [UTM

Objectives: To assessing an existing building for retrofitting towards improving its environmental performance and energy efficiency. Methods/Statistical Analysis: A walkthrough assessment and evaluation of a Chemical Engineering Pilot Plant Building facility in University Technology Malaysia, was carried out. In addition, an interview session with the building facility manager was conducted alongside the building evaluation. Findings: The building fall short of the standards required for green and energy efficient building rating. However, retrofitting could be possible towards improving its environmental performance. Applications/Improvement: The result of a possible retrofit of the Chemical Engineering Pilot Plant Building facility using solar PV panels would provide about 41% savings in the building’s annual energy consumption.

FACTOR ANALYSIS OF MOTORCYCLE CRASHES IN MALAYSIA

This research paper focused on factor analysis of motorcycle crashes in Malaysia. Statistics have shown that Malaysia has the highest road fatality risk (per 100,000 populations) among the ASEAN countries and more than 50% of the road accident fatalities involve motorcyclists. The research literature has shown that key factors that significantly involve in the motorcycles crashes are human factors, road and vehicle conditions and environment factors. The purpose of this research is to analyse the driving attitude, behaviour and habits of Malaysian motorcyclists especially the young students. For this purpose, a research survey (N=210) has been conducted in University Technology Malaysia (UTM) in order to perceive road user perception on key factors that contribute to motorcycle crashes in Malaysia among the young students. The results show that the highest factor that contributes to the motorcycle crashes in Malaysia is the human behavior factor, follow by road and vehicle and lastly the environment factor. Human attitude on the road is the main factor that causes a motorcycle crash. Impatience, careless, selfish and dangerous driving make driver involve an accident. Evidence recommendations are suggested to reduce the number motorcycle crash in Malaysia. Implementation of these recommendations can be helpful to reduce the number of accidents and changing the attitude of young driver.

FACTOR ANALYSIS OF MOTORCYCLE CRASHES IN MALAYSIA

This research paper focused on factor analysis of motorcycle crashes in Malaysia. Statistics have shown that Malaysia has the highest road fatality risk (per 100,000 populations) among the ASEAN countries and more than 50% of the road accident fatalities involve motorcyclists. The research literature has shown that key factors that significantly involve in the motorcycles crashes are human factors, road and vehicle conditions and environment factors. The purpose of this research is to analyse the driving attitude, behaviour and habits of Malaysian motorcyclists especially the young students. For this purpose, a research survey (N=210) has been conducted in University Technology Malaysia (UTM) in order to perceive road user perception on key factors that contribute to motorcycle crashes in Malaysia among the young students. The results show that the highest factor that contributes to the motorcycle crashes in Malaysia is the human behavior factor, follow by road and vehicle and lastly the environment factor. Human attitude on the road is the main factor that causes a motorcycle crash. Impatience, careless, selfish and dangerous driving make driver involve an accident. Evidence recommendations are suggested to reduce the number motorcycle crash in Malaysia. Implementation of these recommendations can be helpful to reduce the number of accidents and changing the attitude of young driver.

ANALYSING THE CRITICAL ROLE OF SKETCHES IN THE VISUAL TRANSFORMATION OF ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN

Through sketches, designers can seek and create more desirable and sustainable forms by transforming previous images through various techniques like visual additions, deletion, and modifications. Transformative skills in the form of freehand sketches appear to induce creative, explorative, open-ended environments that are conductive in dealing with the ill-structured nature of design activities. This study compares sketching and design transformative skills (DTS) between 3rd and 5th year architectural students as measured throughout the discernible levels of diagrammatic, preliminary, refinement, and detail designing. Fourteen architecture students from the University Technology Malaysia (UTM) were observed, with seven respondents each from the third and fifth year student cohorts. The objective of the observation was to capture and analyze the students’ sketches as they design a gallery within the stipulated two-hour period. The research instrument included a set including an HD video camera, drawing instruments, and a brief outline of the design tasks. The Mann-Whitney test was used to determine if there were differences in design transformation activities between third and fifth year students throughout the period of observation. The results reveal significant differences in vertical move transformation between third and fifth year students within the preliminary, refinement, and detail phases of designing.

Effectiveness ofEichhornia crassipesin nutrient removal from domestic wastewater based on its optimal growth rate

AbstractWater hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes) was used to determine their efficiency in treating domestic wastewater. The wastewater sample was collected from the stabilization pond located at the University Technology Malaysia, and was determined for different parameters like pH, chemical oxygen demand (COD), phosphate (), nitrate (), ammonical nitrogen (NH3), total organic carbon (TOC), and biomass growth rate. A batch system fabrication was set up which contained 1 kg of fresh plant (E. crassipes) and the experiment was run for 21 d in order to correlate nutrient uptake and biomass growth rate. All the parameters were determined according to APHA standard and compared with Interim National Water Quality Standards, Malaysia (INWQS).The phytoremediation treatment of wastewater with water hyacinth showed pH ranging in between 5.3 and 6.3. Moreover, a considerable percentage of reduction was observed in most of the parameters used which included COD, TOC, and NH3, when compared to the INWQS standard. The c...