The composite PAN fibers which incorporated with CNTs and Titania were prepared by mean of wet spinning. These fibers were then pre-oxidized with microwave heating in an air atmosphere. A combination of characterizations was carried out to study the impact of nanoparticles fillers on the properties of as-spun fibers and their performance during the microwave pre-oxidation. The addition of an equal amount of fillers made obvious changes in the chemical and crystalline structure, consequently improves the strength, and this could lower the capability to creep over a wide range of temperatures in the subsequent processes. FTIR and NMR analyses results of the pre-oxidized fibers exhibited clear changes in the PAN structure, where the dehydrogenation reaction and the degree of cyclization were investigated. Additional confirmation of the occurrence of cyclization reaction was achieved by XRD and thermal analysis. According to the TGA results, the pre-oxidized CNT1/ Ti-PAN fibers exhibit greater thermal stability suggesting high carbon content and good quality could result in the dependent carbon fibers.

Environmental pollution remains a considerable health risk source all over the world; however, hazards are usually higher in developing countries. Iraq has long been suffering from the problem of pollution and how to treat pollution. Photocatalytic degradation has turned out to be most productive process for dye degradation. In this investigation, Rhodamine B (RhB), dye has been selected for degradation under visible light illumination. To address this issue, we fabricate erbium trioxide nanoparticles (Er2O3/NPs). Erbium trioxide nanoparticles are prepared and utilized for photo-catalytic degradation. The characterization of Er2O3/NPs is described and confirmed by utilizing of XRD (X-ray diffraction) and SEM (Scanning Electron Microscopy). The average size of Er2O3 nanoparticles is observed to be 16.00 nm. Er2O3/NPs is investigated for its ability of photo-catalytic degradation through certain selected parameters such as concentration and time. The methodological results show that the synthesized Er2O3/NPs is a good photo-catalytic for Rhodamine degradation.

Prevalent usage of mobile devices among consumers has been well recognized and this is especially imperative among young adult consumers. The mobile phone became the gateway of their communication, media consumption, retail transaction, education, and (virtual) social life. However, there is little empirical research explaining the dynamics behind the psychological underpinning of young adult consumers, specifically Generation Y, to understand their usages and dependency on mobile phones. This study, therefore, aims to unveil antecedents and consequences of Gen Y consumers’ mobile phone dependency from a media psychological perspective. We developed a conceptual model based on theory of self-monitoring (Snyder 1974, 1987), extended self-concept (Belk, 1988), and media dependency theory (Ball-Rokeach & Defluer, 1976). Four hundred ninety-eight students in the U.S. provided usable responses to our pencil-and-paper survey. Causal modeling analysis results demonstrated that both ability to modify one’s behavior and sensitivity to cues for social appropriate behavior dimensions of the self-monitoring tendency positively predicted one’s level of fashion involvement, which in turn positively predicted his/her mobile phone dependency. Individual’s mobile phone dependency, fashion involvement and self-monitoring’s ability dimension exhibited positive and direct impact on one’s perception of the salience of mobile phone case product attributes. Based on the findings, we provided pragmatic and theoretical implications for the industry and academia.

Fatigue is not a trivial issue and needs much attention. On the other hand, fatigue among seafarers could lead to accidents at sea due to their inability and ineffectiveness in carrying out their work. Some were caused by sleepiness and lack of vigour, which, could not only affect their safety but compromising on other seafarers as well. In this study, factors that cause fatigue among seafarers were examined analytically and their quantitative priorities were determined using Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) method. Additionally, the Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) is used to identify the best alternatives in minimizing fatigue among seafarers. For this, data is collected through interview involving those working in academic and maritime industry with more than 5 years of experiences in dealing with seafarers. The AHP result shows that fitness is the main cause that could affect fatigue on seafarers’ reliability. Besides, TOPSIS result shows that a well-maintained shipboard is the best way in sustaining seafarers’ energy. In sum, fatigue among seafarers could influence on safety and may lead towards precarious health issue over a long-term.

Halal transportations will ensure that the Halal status of the products will be preserved. Halal certification is believed to increase the operation cost for the transport providers, which reflect the price paid by customers who choose to buy products transported by Halal transportation. Hence, it is worthwhile to investigate the willingness of Muslim consumers to pay extra for the Halal transportation cost. The study aims to identify factors influencing Muslim consumers’ attitude towards their willingness to pay for Halal transportation. Using the stimulus-organism-response model, attitude which represents the organism factor will be treated as a mediator for variables representing the stimulus factors and the variable for the response. On the other hand, the study will also examine the effect of knowledge as a moderating factor. The data was collected from Muslim consumers in Kuala Lumpur. Applying the purposive sampling method with a self-administered survey, 202 respondents agreed to participate in the study. The findings revealed that awareness and perceived behavioural control are a stimulus towards attitude, and attitude is a significant organism on willingness to pay. The study also found that attitude mediates the relationship between awareness and perceived behavioural control towards the willingness to pay for Halal transportation. Additionally, the knowledge has a moderating effect of the relationship between attitude and the willingness to pay. The findings of the study are not only beneficial for the Muslim community in Malaysia, but also the Muslims around the world.

Background: Cervical dysfunction is a common pathomechanical marker in individuals with forward head posture (FHP). To overcome the limitations of the isometric chin-tuck (ICT) exercise, dynamic neuromuscular stabilization (DNS), which emphasizes an entire spinal chain exercise, has recently shown promising clinical results. Objects: Purpose of this study was to compare the immediate effects between ICT and DNS techniques. Methods: 43 young subjects (mean age, 24.0±5.0 years) were recruited. Group of subjects with FHP were measured under baseline, ICT, and DNS conditions. Outcome measures included sitting height, longus colli (LC) and sternocleidomastoid (SCM) muscle thickness and LC/SCM thickness ratio. One-way repeated measures ANOVA was used to compare the continuous dependent variables among FHP, ICT, and DNS conditions at p<.016. Results: Both ICT and DNS exercise conditions yielded significantly increased LC muscle thickness, LC/SCM thickness ratio and sitting height than did FHP condition (p<.0001, respectively). Sitting height was significantly greater in DNS exercise than in the ICT exercise (p<.0001). Conclusion: The present results demonstrated that sitting height was greater in the DNS exercise than in the ICT exercise, as well as both corrective postural training exercises were effective on LC/SCM muscle balance ratio when compared with the baseline FHP condition. Therefore, it is considered that DNS exercise can be the recommended exercise for people with FHP.