ASSESSMENT OF THE HEALTH AND ECOLOGICAL RISKS CAUSED BY FUNGICIDES IN CHRYSANTHEMUM CULTIVATION BY ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT QUOTIENT

This study uses the Environmental Impact Quotient (EIQ) to assess the health and ecological risks caused by fungicides used in chrysanthemum cultivation upstream of Xuan Huong Lake, Da Lat city. Survey results reveal that 134 farmers use 21 fungicides with 18 active ingredients on a total area of 35.2 hectares. In all, 18 fungicides with an EIQ at the level of “unlikely to be hazardous” (EIQ < 25) are used on about 95% of the acreage, and 3 fungicides with an EIQ of “slightly hazardous” (25 < EIQ < 50) are used on the rest of the area. The Field Use EIQ of fungicide was rated very low in only 8.2% of the survey area and moderate in 48%. Areas with high and very high ratings account for 3% and 41%, respectively. Using fungicides according to the instructions can reduce the Field Use EIQ values in cultivated areas by 38% and return areas with high and moderate ratings to a low rating. Therefore, it is necessary to instruct farmers on the safe use of fungicides and to recommend those with low EIQ values for chrysanthemum cultivation

ASSESSMENT OF THE HEALTH AND ECOLOGICAL RISKS CAUSED BY FUNGICIDES IN CHRYSANTHEMUM CULTIVATION BY ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT QUOTIENT

This study uses the Environmental Impact Quotient (EIQ) to assess the health and ecological risks caused by fungicides used in chrysanthemum cultivation upstream of Xuan Huong Lake, Da Lat city. Survey results reveal that 134 farmers use 21 fungicides with 18 active ingredients on a total area of 35.2 hectares. In all, 18 fungicides with an EIQ at the level of “unlikely to be hazardous” (EIQ < 25) are used on about 95% of the acreage, and 3 fungicides with an EIQ of “slightly hazardous” (25 < EIQ < 50) are used on the rest of the area. The Field Use EIQ of fungicide was rated very low in only 8.2% of the survey area and moderate in 48%. Areas with high and very high ratings account for 3% and 41%, respectively. Using fungicides according to the instructions can reduce the Field Use EIQ values in cultivated areas by 38% and return areas with high and moderate ratings to a low rating. Therefore, it is necessary to instruct farmers on the safe use of fungicides and to recommend those with low EIQ values for chrysanthemum cultivation

Occurrence, Toxicity and Adsorptive Removal of the Chloramphenicol Antibiotic in Water: A Review

Chloramphenicol is a broad-spectrum bacterial antibiotic used against conjunctivitis, meningitis, plague, cholera, and typhoid fever. As a consequence, chloramphenicol ends up polluting the aquatic environment, wastewater treatment plants, and hospital wastewaters, thus disrupting ecosystems and inducing microbial resistance. Here, we review the occurrence, toxicity, and removal of chloramphenicol with emphasis on adsorption techniques. We present the adsorption performance of adsorbents such as biochar, activated carbon, porous carbon, metal-organic framework, composites, zeolites, minerals, molecularly imprinted polymers, and multi-walled carbon nanotubes. The effect of dose, pH, temperature, initial concentration, and contact time is discussed. Adsorption is controlled by π-π interactions, donor-acceptor interactions, hydrogen bonding, and electrostatic interactions. We also discuss isotherms, kinetics, thermodynamic data, selection of eluents, desorption efficiency, and regeneration of adsorbents. Porous carbon-based adsorbents exhibit excellent adsorption capacities of 500-1240 mg

Formation, Antimicrobial Activity, and Biomedical Performance of Plant-Based Nanoparticles: A Review

Because many engineered nanoparticles are toxic, there is a need for methods to fabricate safe nanoparticles such as plant-based nanoparticles. Indeed, plant extracts contain flavonoids, amino acids, proteins, polysaccharides, enzymes, polyphenols, steroids, and reducing sugars that facilitate the reduction, formation, and stabilization of nanoparticles. Moreover, synthesizing nanoparticles from plant extracts is fast, safe, and cost-effective because it does not consume much energy, and non-toxic derivatives are generated. These nanoparticles have diverse and unique properties of interest for applications in many fields. Here, we review the synthesis of metal/metal oxide nanoparticles with plant extracts. These nanoparticles display antibacterial, antifungal, anticancer, and antioxidant properties. Plant-based nanoparticles are also useful for medical diagnosis and drug delivery

Optimization for continuous overflow proteolytic hydrolysis of spent brewer’s yeast by using proteases

A large amount of spent yeast as by-product is annually generated from brewing industry and it contains about 50-55% protein with good balance of amino acids. The hydrolysate produced from spent brewer’s yeast may be used in food application. The yield of proteolylic hydrolysis for spent brewer’s yeast and amino acid contents of hydrolysates depend on factors such as temperature, pH value, type of used enzyme and ratio enzyme/substrate, time. Besides, applied hydrolysing methods (batch-, or continuous method) has effected on degree of hydrolysis. With the purpose of how proteolytic hydrolysis having effects on the spent brewer’s yeast for food application in industrial scale, continuous overflow method was used in this study. Bitterness of hydrolysate and the yield of continuous overflow proteolytic hydrolysis process are the two interested factors for protein hydrolysis. In this report, it is dealt with determination for optimal conditions to obtain the highest yield of hydrolysis process and the lowest bitterness of hydrolysate. Response surface methodology (RSM) was used to determine optimal condition for continuous overflow proteolytic hydrolysis of spent brewer’s yeast. The optimal conditions for obtaining high degree of hydrolysis and low bitterness are determined as followings: ratio of enzyme mixture (alcalase 7.5 U/g and flavourzyme 10 U/g), pH at 7.5, hydrolysis temperature at 51oC and hydrolysis time of 9 hours. Under the optimal conditions, the yield of hydrolysis was 59.62% ± 0.027 and the bitterness equivalently with concentration of quinine was 7.86 ± 0.033 μmol /ml

A Design of Similar High-gain and Dual-band Frequency/Polarization Reconfigurable Antenna for ISM Band Applications

This paper proposes a frequency/polarization reconfigurable antenna (RA) incorporating with Frequency Selective Surface (FSS) to achieve dual-band and similar high-gain characteristics. The proposed RA-FSS design using 4 PIN Diodes can switch between circular polarization (CP) at 1.8 GHz and linear polarization at 2.45 GHz. The fabricated prototype shows good CP performance at 1.8 GHz while the measured peak broadside gains are about 7.2 dBi at 1.8 GHz and 8.5 dBi at 2.45 GHz when PIN diode ON and OFF, respectively

Bridging Cultures in Academia: The Role of Mindfulness in Enhancing Intercultural Communication and Social Capital among Scholars

Studies that comprehensively incorporate mindfulness therapies and the theory of intercultural communication into the investigation of social capital are lacking in the body of existing literature. This restricts our comprehension of how these important components interact and affect social relationships in academic communities as a whole. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to investigate how mindfulness practices affect cross-cultural communication and, in turn, build social capital in academic environments. A mixed method was adopted in the study. In the first stage, focused group interviews are employed in the first stage with seven groups of nine Australian alumni, for a total of 63 participants who have experience conducting research and teaching abroad or in multicultural settings. In the second stage, 149 alumni were surveyed, and Process Macro SPSS\u27s Hayes model was used to analyse the data. The results showed that those who practice mindfulness are more likely to approach cross-cultural encounters with a greater awareness of and respect for different points of view. According to the findings, mindfulness can be a potent instrument for boosting perception of the community, networking, trust and safety, scholarly participation, citizen power, life values and diverse perspectives among academics. Scholars who engage in mindfulness practices have the potential to cultivate closer ties within academic communities, which could result in joint research opportunities, information exchanges, and career assistance. This study might offer academics a fresh theoretical viewpoint that improves the conceptual frameworks for mindfulness practice for enhancing academic social capital via intercultural communication

PROBLEMS OF ENGLISH STUDIES STUDENTS ON LEARNING PHONOLOGY AND SUGGESTIONS, CAN THO UNIVERSITY, VIETNAM

The writers were concerned by the phonological challenges encountered by students of the Schools of Foreign Languages, Can Tho University. Foreign language majors are often difficult, and theory is quite tackled, which has caused many serious problems for students. This is no exception for students majoring in English Studies, at Can Tho University in the process of approaching the subject "Introduction to English Phonology". This study was conducted to clarify the phonological challenges that students at Can Tho University are facing, as well as suggest solutions to the problem of phonology learners. Using data from Google Questionnaire Forms, the research conducted an error analysis of 103 English majors who studied the subject. Based on the phonological problems, certain remedial activities were planned for the students, which helped improve their study process phonological problems considerably.   Article visualizations

Factors Affecting Successful Quality Assurance Implementation in Vietnamese Higher Education: A Qualitative Study

Quality assurance and accreditation was officially introduced into the higher education system in Vietnam over ten years ago. It is evident that quality assurance has resulted in positive impacts on university management, teaching, learning and research activities. This paper aims to explore factors that aid the successful implementation of higher education quality assurance and accreditation in Vietnam. Through semi-structured interviews with 32 participants, this study identified a number of factors that contributed to quality assurance processes, including awareness of the importance of quality assurance, better institutional manager leadership, support of university lecturers, staff, and students, and the vital responsibility of internal quality assurance staff. These confirm that internal stakeholders play an important role in undertaking quality assurance programmes and activities