Ah Long is a term for illegal loan sharks in Malaysia and Singapore. They lend money to people who are unable to obtain loans from banks or other legal sources. In Japan, these illegal loan sharks are called “TO-SAN” (TO=ten SAN=three) or “TO-GO” (TO=ten GO=five)), because the interest rates they charge are between 30 percent over…
For the Eighth Malaysia Plan, efforts with regard to science and technology (S&T) were focused on strengthening science capability and capacity to support productivity and improve competitiveness. In this regard, considering the increasingly challenging and competitive global environment, the Ninth Plan was designed to harness science, technology and innovation (STI) as a key driver in raising national capacity…
Global consumption of water is doubling every 20 years due to human population growth. If this trend persists, by 2025 the demand for fresh water will rise by 56 percent and as many as two-third of the world’s population will be living with serious water shortage. According to the Fortune Magazines, “water will be to…
WHAT are stem cells, embryonic stem cells and blastocysts? Why has the research on embryonic stem cells become a religious and political issue instead of a scientific issue? In the United States, many Christian groups (namely Catholic, Eastern Orthodox and the Fundamentalists) oppose embryonic stem cell research because they believe that a human blastocyst is…
THE Third National Agriculture Policy (1998-2010) focuses on agriculture programmes which emphasise agro-forestry, mixed farming, rehabilitation of marginal plants, recycling of organic waste, mulching, cover cropping, organic farming, composting and soil and water conservation. According to the Statistics Department’s Monthly Statistical Bulletin, the food bill increased from RM3.5bil in 1985 to RM11.3bil in 2000 and it…
THE issue highlighted by the media to quarantine people with HIV/AIDS has received many opinions from the public. Actually, the practice of quarantine or separation of the diseased from the healthy has been around for a long time. For example, rules existed for isolating lepers. Venice established the first formal system of quarantine, requiring ships…
THE issue of the development of the RM40mil marina project off Kampung Tekek in Tioman Island has caused public outcry. This project spans 127,000 square metres and is expected to include yacht docking areas, an administration building, water breakers and a cargo jetty. The jetty is expected to be 30m wide at the tip and…
WHAT is the brainchild programme? The programme, announced by the Government, is focused on two areas. One is to encourage overseas scientists to be in Malaysia physically, and two, to get them to work for us from abroad. A recent news report stated Malaysia’s ambition is to progress in biotechnology. The sub-sector of biotechnology is…
THE demand for products certified “halal”, prepared according to strict Muslim laws, goes beyond food and is extending into cosmetics. The halal list is set to grow in the coming years with Muslims making up more than one billion of the world’s population , which exceeds six billion. The arabic word “halal” means lawful. In…
SECARA sedar atau tidak, umat Islam masih jauh ketinggalan dalam pelbagai bidang. Bidang sains dan teknologi (S&T) pertahanan dikuasai oleh negara Barat. Negara Islam tidak mampu menandingi ciptaan mereka. Peralatan pertahanan kebanyakannya datang dari negara ini. Malah, teknologi yang dibeli dari Barat adalah yang kebanyakannya tidak dikehendaki lagi oleh negara itu dan hanya sesuai untuk…
