Antecedents of the responsible acquisition of computers behaviour: Integrating the theory of planned behaviour with the value-belief-norm theory and the habits variable.

The responsible behaviour of consumers that purchase green computers is a form of sustainable consumption, as green computers use less energy resulting in less CO2 emissions and the use of fewer toxic metals and materials during their production. The research question is how to encourage such behaviour. Although prior research has provided some answers by investigating the antecedents of the behaviour, it has done so through a piecemeal approach from the angles of the theory of planned behaviour (TPB), the value-belief-norm (VBN) theory, and habits.

Application of the sustainable system-of-systems approach and econometric analysis to address China's decarbonisation problem.

The Sustainable system-of-systems (SSoS) approach, complemented with econometric analysis was used to address China's decarbonisation problem, i.e. selecting fossil fuel consumption sources to be reduced in various regions to meet CO reduction targets with minimal effect on population and economic growth.

Encouraging gender-inclusive acceptance of multipurpose national-identity smart cards.

Purpose: Gender-inclusive adoption of multipurpose national-identity smart cards (MNIS) is important to ensure gender equality, particularly in accessing public services offered by the card e.g. identity verification, healthcare, transit, banking, driving license, passport, etc.

Behavioural modification framework to address wastage in household electricity consumption.

Household electricity wastage poses a sustainability issue. Ergonomic interventions that prevent wastage through technological innovations are expensive and complex, making consumers unwilling to adopt them. The study aimed to investigate the motivations and impediments in avoiding electricity wastage.

Human factors for a sustainable future.

Current human activities are seriously eroding the ability of natural and social systems to cope. Clearly we cannot continue along our current path without seriously damaging our own ability to survive as a species. This problem is usually framed as one of sustainability.

Towards a new paradigm: Activity level balanced sustainability reporting.

Technoeconomic paradigms based economic growth theories suggest that waves of technological innovations drove the economic growth of advanced economies. Widespread economic degradation and pollution is an unintended consequence of such growth. Tackling environmental and social issues at firm levels would help us to overcome such issues at macro-levels.

A sustainable system of systems approach: a new HFE paradigm.

Unlabelled: Sustainability issues such as natural resource depletion, pollution and poor working conditions have no geographical boundaries in our interconnected world. To address these issues requires a paradigm shift within human factors and ergonomics (HFE), to think beyond a bounded, linear model understanding towards a broader systems framework. For this reason, we introduce a sustainable system of systems model that integrates the current hierarchical conceptualisation of possible interventions (i.

Effects of two ergonomic improvements in brazing coils of air-handler units.

The research aims to address the physically loading task and quality and productivity problems in the brazing of coils of air-handler units. Eight operators participated in two intervention studies conducted in a factory in Malaysia to compare the status quo brazing with (1) the use of a new twin-brazing torch that replaced the single-brazing gun and (2) brazing in a sitting position. The outcome measures are related to quality, productivity, monetary costs, body postures and symptoms.

Increased work pace is unprofitable: a beef-cutting case study.

The beef industry worldwide is showing a trend towards increased cutting pace aimed at higher profits. However, prior research in the duck meat industry suggested that a higher cutting pace reduced quality and yield, leading to losses. This study aimed to test this hypothesis by investigating the effects of varying beef-cutting paces on yield, quality and economy.

Ergonomics issues in national identity card for homeland security.

Ever since the 9/11 terrorist attack, many countries are considering the use of smart national identity card (SNIC) which has the ability to identify terrorists due to its biometric verification function. However, there are many ergonomics issues in the use of SNIC, e.g.

An ergonomics study of a semiconductors factory in an IDC for improvement in occupational health and safety.

The study aimed to conduct an ergonomic intervention on a conventional line (CL) in a semiconductor factory in Malaysia, an industrially developing country (IDC), to improve workers' occupational health and safety (OHS). Low-cost and simple (LCS) ergonomics methods were used (suitable for IDCs), e.g.

Ergonomics improvements of the visual inspection process in a printed circuit assembly factory.

An ergonomics improvement study was conducted on the visual inspection process of a printed circuit assembly (PCA) factory. The process was studied through subjective assessment and direct observation. Three problems were identified: operators' eye problems, insufficient time for inspection and ineffective visual inspection.

Cost effectiveness of ergonomic redesign of electronic motherboard.

A case study to illustrate the cost effectiveness of ergonomic redesign of electronic motherboard was presented. The factory was running at a loss due to the high costs of rejects and poor quality and productivity. Subjective assessments and direct observations were made on the factory.

Ergonomic study on the manual component insertion lines for occupational health and safety improvements.

The study aimed at reducing the occupational health and safety problems faced by the manual component insertion operators. Subjective and objective assessments, and direct observations were made in the printed circuit assembly factory. Simple and low-cost ergonomic interventions were implemented, that is, repairing chairs, reducing high workloads, assigning operators to a maximum of 2 workstations, confining machines that emitted bad smell and much noise, and providing finger work aids.

Purification and characterization of recombinant malate synthase enzymes from Streptomyces coelicolor A3(2) and S. clavuligerus NRRL3585.

Malate synthases (MS) from Streptomyces coelicolor A3(2) and S. clavuligerus NRRL3585 were cloned by polymerase chain reaction into a glutathione S-transferase (GST) fusion expression vector and heterologously expressed in Escherichia coli. The fusion GST-MS construct improved the soluble expression of MS by approximately 10-fold compared to the soluble expression of nonfusion MS.

Prevalence of visual disorders in Chinese schoolchildren.

We performed a vision screening of 1883 Chinese schoolchildren from 4 schools around Kuala Lumpur in June 1990. The group contained 1083-males and 800 females. Visual acuity, refractive error, oculomotor balance, and axial length were measured.

Progression of myopia in different ethnic groups in Malaysia.

A cross-sectional study on a normal clinical myopic population reveals that there is a difference in the pattern of myopic progression between Malays and Chinese in Malaysia. It shows that while myopia in Malays stays relatively constant throughout 10 to 50 years of age, myopia in Chinese progresses rapidly from 10 to 20 years of age, after which it starts to show hyperopic shift, reaching a level of myopia similar to that of Malays at around 35 years of age. In view of the above finding it is postulated that the difference in myopia between the two races may be due to excessive accommodation in Chinese, causing a temporary increase in crystalline lens power and hence an increase in myopia.

Effects of long-term visual display terminal usage on visual functions.

Since their rapid introduction into the workplace visual display terminals (VDT's) have been the source of a number of studies aimed at detecting effects on office workers. The published studies have been either short-term or cross-sectional, with one exception. The results have shown varying degrees of relation but by not having a comparable control group all have been limited in their value.

The effects of long-term VDT usage on the nature and incidence of asthenopic symptoms.

An opportunity arose in 1985 to become involved in a transition of working practice from hard copy to VDT. Over a two-year period, 161 VDT users and 65 control subjects in the same office environment were regularly and routinely examined for symptoms of asthenopia. The analysis of data shows that there are no significant differences in type, number and frequency of the work-related symptoms between VDT users and non-VDT users.

Effects of short-term VDT usage on visual functions.

An on-site comparative study was carried out on the effects of video display terminal (VDT) and non-VDT work on visual functions in two working populations in the same office environment. Both continuous VDT usage in a training situation over a few days and intermittent VDT usage in a normal working situation were assessed and particular attention paid to their effects on the refractive error of different refractive groups and for different age populations. Other visual functions measured were visual acuity (VA), accommodation, and convergence.

Clinical evaluation of the Humphrey autorefractor.

A study is made of the accuracy and repeatability of the Humphrey autorefractor (HAR) objective refraction for different refractive groups as measured against subjective refraction. The value of the autofogging mechanism in objective refraction for different refractive groupings is assessed.