Text-To-Speech à base de HMM (Hidden Markov Model) pour le vietnamien : modélisation de la segmentation prosodique, la conception du corpus, la conception du système, et l’évaluation perceptive

The thesis objective is to design and build a high quality Hidden Markov Model (HMM-)based Text-To-Speech (TTS) system for Vietnamese – a tonal language. The system is called VTED (Vietnamese TExt-tospeech Development system). In view of the great importance of lexical tones, a “tonophone” – an allophone in tonal context – was proposed as a new speech unit in our TTS system. A new training corpus, VDTS (Vietnamese Di-Tonophone Speech corpus), was designed for 100% coverage of di-phones in tonal contexts (i.e. di-tonophones) using the greedy algorithm from a huge raw text. A total of about 4,000 sentences of VDTS were recorded and pre-processed as a training corpus of VTED.In the HMM-based speech synthesis, although pause duration can be modeled as a phoneme, the appearanceof pauses cannot be predicted by HMMs. Lower phrasing levels above words may not be completely modeled with basic features. This research aimed at automatic prosodic phrasing for Vietnamese TTS using durational clues alone as it appeared too difficult to disentangle intonation from lexical tones. Syntactic blocks, i.e. syntactic phrases with a bounded number of syllables (n), were proposed for predicting final lengthening (n = 6) and pause appearance (n = 10). Improvements for final lengthening were done by some strategies of grouping single syntactic blocks. The quality of the predictive J48-decision-tree model for pause appearance using syntactic blocks combining with syntactic link and POS (Part-Of-Speech) features reached F-score of 81.4% Precision=87.6%, Recall=75.9%), much better than that of the model with only POS (F-score=43.6%)or syntactic link (F-score=52.6%) alone.The architecture of the system was proposed on the basis of the core architecture of HTS with an extension of a Natural Language Processing part for Vietnamese. Pause appearance was predicted by the proposed model. Contextual feature set included phone identity features, locational features, tone-related features, and prosodic features (i.e. POS, final lengthening, break levels). Mary TTS was chosen as a platform for implementing VTED. In the MOS (Mean Opinion Score) test, the first VTED, trained with the old corpus and basic features, was rather good, 0.81 (on a 5 point MOS scale) higher than the previous system – HoaSung (using the non-uniform unit selection with the same training corpus); but still 1.2-1.5 point lower than the natural speech. The quality of the final VTED, trained with the new corpus and prosodic phrasing model, progressed by about 1.04 compared to the first VTED, and its gap with the natural speech was much lessened. In the tone intelligibility test, the final VTED received a high correct rate of 95.4%, only 2.6% lower than the natural speech, and 18% higher than the initial one. The error rate of the first VTED in the intelligibility test with the Latin square design was about 6-12% higher than the natural speech depending on syllable, tone or phone levels. The final one diverged about only 0.4-1.4% from the natural speech.L’objectif de cette thèse est de concevoir et de construire, un système Text-To-Speech (TTS) haute qualité à base de HMM (Hidden Markov Model) pour le vietnamien, une langue tonale. Le système est appelé VTED (Vietnamese TExt-to-speech Development system). Au vu de la grande importance de tons lexicaux, un tonophone” – un allophones dans un contexte tonal – a été proposé comme nouvelle unité de la parole dans notre système de TTS. Un nouveau corpus d’entraînement, VDTS (Vietnamese Di-Tonophone Speech corpus), a été conçu à partir d’un grand texte brut pour une couverture de 100% de di-phones tonalisés (di-tonophones) en utilisant l’algorithme glouton. Un total d’environ 4000 phrases ont été enregistrées et pré-traitées comme corpus d’apprentissage de VTED.Dans la synthèse de la parole sur la base de HMM, bien que la durée de pause puisse être modélisée comme un phonème, l’apparition de pauses ne peut pas être prédite par HMM. Les niveaux de phrasé ne peuvent pas être complètement modélisés avec des caractéristiques de base. Cette recherche vise à obtenir un découpage automatique en groupes intonatifs au moyen des seuls indices de durée. Des blocs syntaxiques constitués de phrases syntaxiques avec un nombre borné de syllabes (n), ont été proposés pour prévoir allongement final (n = 6) et pause apparente (n = 10). Des améliorations pour allongement final ont été effectuées par des stratégies de regroupement des blocs syntaxiques simples. La qualité du modèle prédictive J48-arbre-décision pour l’apparence de pause à l’aide de blocs syntaxiques, combinée avec lien syntaxique et POS (Part-Of-Speech) dispose atteint un F-score de 81,4 % (Précision = 87,6 %, Recall = 75,9 %), beaucoup mieux que le modèle avec seulement POS (F-score=43,6%) ou un lien syntaxique (F-score=52,6%).L’architecture du système a été proposée sur la base de l’architecture HTS avec une extension d’une partie traitement du langage naturel pour le Vietnamien. L’apparence de pause a été prédit par le modèle proposé. Les caractéristiques contextuelles incluent les caractéristiques d’identité de “tonophones”, les caractéristiques de localisation, les caractéristiques liées à la tonalité, et les caractéristiques prosodiques (POS, allongement final, niveaux de rupture). Mary TTS a été choisi comme plateforme pour la mise en oeuvre de VTED. Dans le test MOS (Mean Opinion Score), le premier VTED, appris avec les anciens corpus et des fonctions de base, était plutôt bonne, 0,81 (sur une échelle MOS 5 points) plus élevé que le précédent système – HoaSung (lequel utilise la sélection de l’unité non-uniforme avec le même corpus) ; mais toujours 1,2-1,5 point de moins que le discours naturel. La qualité finale de VTED, avec le nouveau corpus et le modèle de phrasé prosodique, progresse d’environ 1,04 par rapport au premier VTED, et son écart avec le langage naturel a été nettement réduit. Dans le test d’intelligibilité, le VTED final a reçu un bon taux élevé de 95,4%, seulement 2,6% de moins que le discours naturel, et 18% plus élevé que le premier. Le taux d’erreur du premier VTED dans le test d’intelligibilité générale avec le carré latin test d’environ 6-12% plus élevé que le langage naturel selon des niveaux de syllabe, de ton ou par phonème. Le résultat final ne s’écarte de la parole naturelle que de 0,4-1,4%

PREVENTION DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AND CHILD ABUSE - SITUATION AND SOLUTION

To contribute to improving the effectiveness of domestic violence prevention and control in particular and child abuse in general, within the scope of this article, we would like to present the current situation, solutions, and recommendations to strengthen public relations propaganda, dissemination, and education of laws, knowledge, and skills on domestic violence prevention and control in particular and child abuse in general; organization and operation of child protection service providers; support and intervention when children are at risk of being abused or abused

Stakeholder Involvement and the Attainment of SDGs at Local Tourism Destinations: A Case Study in Vietnam

This paper explores how the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) can be achieved at local tourism destinations through the collective efforts of stakeholders. A multiple-case study is conducted at Da Nang and Hue in Vietnam. These destinations experience a controversial concern between tourism development and natural/cultural preservation. A thematic analysis of qualitative data reveals the cooperation of various stakeholders to prevent the encroachment of tourism development in the natural environment in Da Nang or balance heritage preservation and tourism development in Hue. These collective efforts facilitate the achievement of the seventeen Sustainable Development Goal to attain various SDGs in each case. This research contributes to sustainability research by revealing the contribution and effects of collective actions in achieving the common goals related to the sustainable development of local destinations

The risks of radical climate activism and a proposal of a solidarity approach

In their recent paper, Vuong et al. (2024) suggest that activists should consider employing more strategic and constructive approaches to optimize their impact to avoid negative consequences. This involves carefully weighing the potential repercussions of their actions and focusing on engaging stakeholders collaboratively rather than adopting antagonistic tactics. Additionally, addressing these issues may require structural change, emphasizing the importance of a deliberate process rather than rushing it. They highlight the significance of adopting a solidarity approach, which involves collaboration among various stakeholders, including activists, governments, businesses, and citizens. This approach prioritizes education, promotes an eco-surplus culture based on pro-environmental values, and fosters collaboration to develop effective solutions while avoiding confrontational approaches

Hydrogen release and absorption in mixed anion lithium amide/lithium ternary nitride systems

In this work, reactions of either LiBH$_4$, ZnCl$_2$ or Zn$_3$N$_2$ with LiNH$_2$ have been studied. The presence of CoO significantly affected the products and hydrogen release on heating mixtures of χLiBH$_4$-γLiNH$_2$. The ratios of the l4$_1$/amd and the P2$_1$/c polymorphs of Li$_3$BN$_2$ in the products have been changed under different conditions studied. On addition of CoO, the temperature of hydrogen release from the χLiBH$_4$-γLiNH$_2$ systems was greatly reduced, starting from 100°C and peaking around 250°C, much lower than 240°C and 330°C without catalyst. Ball-milling helped to improve the amounts of hydrogen desorbed from 3–4 wt% up to ≥10 wt%. In the reactions of ZnCl$_2$ + nLiNH$_2$ (where $\textit n$ = 2–6), main products were LiCl, Zn$_3$N$_2$, and LiZnN. NH$_3$ was the main gas released from these reactions and the addition of LiH changed NH$_3$ into H$_2$, which was released around 90°C, much lower than in the absence of LiH. A mixture of LiZnN and LiCl obtained from this reaction was partly rehydrogenated to form Li$_2$NH and Zn. The reaction of Zn$_3$N$_2$ and LiNH$_2$ was found to produce pure LiZnN without LiCl. Neither pure LiZnN nor Zn$_3$N$_2$ could be hydrogenated under the conditions tried, but a mixture resulting from the reaction could react with H$_2$ to form LiNH$_2$ and Zn. The cyclability of the Li–Zn–N system showed an ability to release and take up gases under different pressure conditions. Mg-doping in LiZnN was examined to improve reversibility of the Li–Zn–N system but was not successful

Addressing Livestock Market Dynamics to Enhance Food Security: Insights from the Philippines

Policymakers can contribute to poverty reduction, economic growth, and sustainable development in rural areas by empowering farmers to overcome challenges and capitalize on opportunities. A resilient and sustainable livestock sector benefits both producers and consumers, ultimately enhancing food security and improving the overall welfare of rural communitie

The effect of bank capital to its performance: Evidences from Vietnamese commercial banking system

This study objects to analyse the effect of bank capital to banks’ probability of survival, market share and profitability, which are three main indicators of banks’ performance in Vietnamese commercial banking system during the period of 2011 – 2017. Following the methodology of Berger and Bouwman (2013), the regression model would be applied to examine the effects of bank capital ratio and other determinants banks’ profitability, market share and profitability, respectively. Accordingly, with annual panel data, the findings show the positive relationship of bank capital to its probability of survival and market share, especially during the crisis and post-crisis time, whereas this capital ratio affect detrimentally to banks’ probability in Vietnamese commercial banking system from 2011 to 2017. This results clarify the reason of several policies regulated by the State bank of Vietnam, which is not only fill the literature gap of Vietnamese banking system but also give confirmation about the importance of bank capital to banks’ performance. In addition, further regression related to bank size comparison and three channels through which capital may affect bank’s performance would be included for comparison purpose. Keywords: bank capital, probability of survival, market share, profitability, performance, Vietnam commercial banking system

Wastewater Management in Hanoi: The Possibility of Using a Soft Path Approach

Hanoi is known as the City of Lakes because there are some one hundred natural or manmade watercourses within its territory. However, in common with all of Vietnam, more than 60% of the city’s water resources derive from beyond the country’s borders. Much of that water is polluted, both within Hanoi and downstream because wastewater is discharged directly into the Nhue and Day rivers via the Nhat Tuu and Ba sewers, among other channels. International attempts to revive the To Lich River in the city, notorious for its black color and unwholesome smell, have proved to have only limited success. There is some scope for new materials to improve filtration effects and experiments in this area continue. Rapid urbanization in Hanoi has been intensified by the sudden decision to increase the city’s size so that it became comparable to the southern capital of Ho Chi Minh City. This has led to large areas of industrial land being incorporated into municipal water management systems. One possible means of relieving the pressure on these systems would be to employ approaches derived from the soft path of water management. To date, most scientific investigation of these issues depends almost entirely on technocratic approaches to water management issues and the attempt to force technical solutions to deal with social issues. Consequently, this paper investigates the possibility of understanding how Hanoi residents interact with current wastewater management approaches and how their needs might be better met in the future

Safer selection and use of pesticides: Integrating risk assessment, monitoring and management of pesticides

Crop Production/Industries,

ADSORPTION OF MERCURIC ION FROM AQUEOUS SOLUTIONS USING MODIFIED FLY ASH

In this study, fly ash was treated with NaOH solution (FAN) before modifying with (3-mercaptopropyl) triethoxysilane - MPTMS (FAMPS). By using FTIR, FESEM, XRD, EDX, and BET techniques, the change in structure, composition and morphology of FAN and FAMPS was evaluated. The FTIR spectra of FAN and FAMPS showed that there is no chemical reaction between the MPTMS and FAN. After modification, the FAMPS has a rough surface with composition difference from the FAN. Mercuric ion adsorption behavior as well as adsorptionisotherm models (Langmuir and Freundlich) of the FAN and FAMPS were also investigated and discussed. Thanks to FAN modification, the mercuric ion removal percent of the FAMPS was higher than that of the FAN. Owing to the adsorption data, Freundlich isotherm modelwas fitted for the mercuric ion adsorption process