Physiological characteristics of elite and sub-elite badminton players

Abstract

The aims of this study were to establish the physical and physiological attributes of elite and sub-elite Malaysian male badminton players and to determine whether these attributes discriminate elite players from sub-elite players. Measurements and tests of basic anthropometry, explosive power, anaerobic recovery capacity, badminton-specific movement agility, maximum strength, and aerobic capacity were conducted on two occasions, separated by at least one day. The elite (n = 12) and sub-elite (n = 12) players' characteristics were, respectively: mean age 24.6 years (s = 3.7) and 20.5 years (s = 0.7); mass 73.2 kg (s = 7.6) and 62.7 kg (s = 4.2); stature 1.76 m (s = 0.07) and 1.71 m (s = 0.05); body fat 12.5% (s = 4.8) and 9.5% (s = 3.4); estimated VO_2max 56.9 ml · kg^?1 · min^?1 (s = 3.7) and 59.5 ml · kg^?1 · min^?1 (s = 5.2). The elite players had greater maximum absolute strength in one-repetition maximum bench press (P = 0.015) compared with the sub-elite players. There were significant differences in instantaneous lower body power estimated from vertical jump height between the elite and sub-elite groups (P < 0.01). However, there was no significant difference between groups in shuttle run tests and on-court badminton-specific movement agility tests. Our results show that elite Malaysian male badminton players are taller, heavier, and stronger than their sub-elite counterparts. The test battery, however, did not allow us to discriminate between the elite and sub-elite players, suggesting that at the elite level tactical knowledge, technical skills, and psychological readiness could be of greater importance.     

The English Translation of Arabic Puns in the Holy Quran

The pun is a tricky use of a word or phrase which has very different meanings that are closely interrelated, or of words with the same sound but different meanings. The Pun is a term with a dual meaning: “close” using obvious reference, and “far” using obscure reference. The hidden is usually meant. The close meaning is the sooner that comes to the listener’s mind. However, the speaker targets at the far one yet use the close to hide it. Translating the Quran text always raises several serious challenges in translation; these challenges are due to the different translations of puns and the misinterpretations between the intended meanings of a pun with their basic concepts, which could result in a certain amount of ambiguity. The study examines the Quranic corpus and its three versions of English translations. The study utilizes the typology of Delabastita?s for horizontal puns, Nida’s techniques of dynamic and formal equivalent and Newmark’s translation methods. This research attempts to investigate the semantic meaning of puns in the Quran translation and to define the translation techniques applied in translating the Quranic puns from Arabic into English.     

Peranan bahasa dalam kebudayaan

Bahawa “bahasa” dalam pengertian orang-orang Melayu tidaklah semata-mata bersifat lingual (yang hanya menjadi alat komunikasi antara dua pihak pengguna bahasa sahaja); tetapi bahasa itu adalah lebih kultural (yang menjadi pengilham dan pendorong manusia ke tahap lebih baik dalam hidupnya; sekaligus mempertinggi kebudayaan manusia itu).     

Broadcast diamond channel: Transmission strategies and bounds

This paper proposes a new multiuser communication model in which a source with broadcast capabilities wants to transmit two different messages to two different destinations in the case that no direct links between the source and its destinations. In this channel model, two parallel half-duplex relays are used to extend the transmission. For this communication model, an outer bound to the achievable capacity is initially derived. Then, two distinctive transmission schemes are characterized such that the source can transmit to the two destinations. In each scheme, the transmission is split into two phases. Specifically, in the first phase, the source can broadcast different messages to the two relays. Then, in the second phase, the two relays can forward the source’s signals into their destinations. Based on the transmission on each scheme, the achievable rate region is characterized. Further, we derive the optimal duration of each phase. The theoretical analyses are followed by many numerical examples that compare between the different transmission techniques and also show the points at which the capacity is achieved.     

An integrated, multiparametric flow cytometry chip using "microfluidic drifting" based three-dimensional hydrodynamic focusing

In this work, we demonstrate an integrated, single-layer, miniature flow cytometry device that is capable of multi-parametric particle analysis. The device integrates both particle focusing and detection components on-chip, including a "microfluidic drifting" based three-dimensional (3D) hydrodynamic focusing component and a series of optical fibers integrated into the microfluidic architecture to facilitate on-chip detection. With this design, multiple optical signals (i.e., forward scatter, side scatter, and fluorescence) from individual particles can be simultaneously detected. Experimental results indicate that the performance of our flow cytometry chip is comparable to its bulky, expensive desktop counterpart. The integration of on-chip 3D particle focusing with on-chip multi-parametric optical detection in a single-layer, mass-producible microfluidic device presents a major step towards low-cost flow cytometry chips for point-of-care clinical diagnostics.     

Bread wheat varieties as influenced by different nitrogen levels

INTRODUCTION Dera Ismail Khan lies in Pakistan’s arid zone (71.07° longitude, 31.57° latitude and 500 m above sea level). This zone is in the extreme south of (NWFP) Pakistan at the bank of the River Indus. Dera Ismail Khan is bounded by Sulaiman Range to the West, the Indus River on the East, Marwat and Bhit- tani Ranges on the North and Vehowa Nala (Punjab) on the South. Besides certain local variability the area is comprised of four basic divisions viz mountains, a series …     

Probabilistic fuzzy logic controller for uncertain nonlinear systems

This paper proposes a probabilistic fuzzy proportional - integral (PFPI) controller for controlling uncertain nonlinear systems. Firstly, the probabilistic fuzzy logic system (PFLS) improves the capability of the ordinary fuzzy logic system (FLS) to overcome various uncertainties in the controlled dynamical systems by integrating the probability method into the fuzzy logic system. Moreover, the input/output relationship for the proposed PFPI controller is derived. The resulting structure is equivalent to nonlinear PI controller and the equivalent gains for the proposed PFPI controller are a nonlinear function of input variables. These gains are changed as the input variables changed. The sufficient conditions for the proposed PFPI controller, which achieve the bounded-input bounded-output (BIBO) stability are obtained based on the small gain theorem. Finally, the obtained results indicate that the PFPI controller is able to reduce the effect of the system uncertainties compared with the fuzzy PI (FPI) controller.     

Teacher-center and school-based models of collegiality and professional development: Case studies of the teachers’ resource center and the Aga Khan school system in Karachi, Pakistan

Based on two recent teacher development efforts in Pakistan, this chapter examines efforts to promote teacher collegiality within these initiatives. The chapter first describes relevant contextual differences among schools in Karachi and summarizes the history of the two projects within this context. It then analyzes similarities and differences across these two projects in how they dealt with collegiality and professional development. While participants in both projects made progress in ameliorating extreme forms of teacher isolation and authoritarian relationships, they also discovered that balancing increased collegiality within a hierarchy of responsibilities and rewards is a difficult and elusive goal.