RELATIONSHIPS OF TEMPERATURE AND HUMIDITY TO THE BIODEGRADATION OF PETROLEUM HYDROCARBONS IN SOILS

This work focused on monitoring CO2production, microbial growth and residual hydrocarbon concentration during bioremediation experiments performed on laboratory soil microcosms. A natural soil was artificially contaminated with hexadecane and adjusted with inorganic nutrients to stimulate biodegradation. Microbial growth, CO2production and residual hexadecane were periodically monitored at different soil water contents ranging from 0.15 to 0.25 g water g_1 of dry soil and at different temperatures ranging from 20 to 25oC. Results showed that the humidity has a greater effect on microbial activity and contaminant degradation than the temperature. The study established the experimental regression equation of temperature and humidity to the hexadecane mineralization rate, an important parameter in assessing the ability to convert organic carbon into inorganic carbon. The difference between the results of the hexadecane mineralization rate obtained from the experiment and calculated from the regression equation is not too high, from 2% to 20%

Chemoenzymatic Synthesis of Chiral Alcohols Relevant to Pharmaceutical Industry

1. From 1987 on, statins have been introduced to the market as cholesterol lowering agents and have, ever since, settled their position as one of the most prescribed drugs for the treatment of cardiovascular diseases. Recent studies have revealed that beyond their lipid lowering properties, statins are also associated with a plethora of biological and pharmacological effects, e. g. anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressive properties. Novel, potent statins that feature structural diversity are therefore highly desirable for further research. Concomitantly, improved synthesis strategies towards easier access to the challenging chiral key motif are furthermore in great demand. Following trending biocatalytic approaches, this work introduces an efficient, green, and facile route for the production of simple statins by employing a novel 2-deoxyribose-5-phosphate aldoldase (DERA) in a sequential aldol addition manner and a novel alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) for the subsequent regioselective oxidation process. Ultimately, the inhibitory activities of the obtained statins towards HMG-CoA-reductase were assessed and confirmed. 2. Expanding the scope of biocatalysts towards non-natural substrates, by employing novel, engineered, clean, and highly selective enzymes, can offer new and attractive opportunities for the substitution of multi-step chemical pathways for the manufacturing of pharmaceutically relevant intermediates. In this context, ketoreductases are the most commonly employed enzymes in industrial pharmaceutical synthesis. By implementing a highly sensitive, high-throughput assay strategy, the (R)-selective ketoreductase from Lactobacillus brevis (LbKRED) was redesigned towards tolerating a series of non-natural, bulky substrates, including a precursor to the antithrombotic agent ticagrelor

A design of soft-gauge for elevator vibration analysis based on low-cost accelerometer MMA7361L and LabVIEW

This paper presents a design of soft-gauge using the low-cost triple-axis accelerometer MMA7361L and LabVIEW software for the purpose of elevator vibration analysis with accuracy according to national standards. The 3-dimensional vibration signals measured and collected respectively by MMA7361L and NI USB6009 are fed into a soft-gauge programmed on LabVIEW to filter, then the fast Fourier transform (FFT) is applied to determine the power spectral density (PSD) and spectrogram of vibrations of filtered vibration signals. The soft-gauge also allows real-time 3-dimensional vibration data to be recorded, this data is used for analyzing later by another professional data software. Practical test results applied for the elevator of the DONGA Plaza building show quite good vibration analysis. Class 1.5 accuracy of the soft-gauge can be obtained by experimental test. This is a fairly cost-effective and inexpensive application that can be made in conditions with limited funds that cannot afford expensive accelerometers in the training of vibration measurement and analysis in high schools and vocational schools in developing countries, like Vietnam

Survey on Vietnamese teachers’ perspectives and perceived support during COVID-19

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused unprecedented damage to the educational system worldwide. Besides the measurable economic impacts in the short-term and long-term, there is intangible destruction within educational institutions. In particular, teachers – the most critical intellectual resources of any schools – have to face various types of financial, physical, and mental struggles due to COVID-19. To capture the current context of more than one million Vietnamese teachers during COVID-19, we distributed an e- survey to more than 2,500 randomly selected teachers from two major teacher communities on Facebook from 6th to 11th April 2020. From over 373 responses, we excluded the observations which violated our cross-check questions and retained 294 observations for further analysis. This dataset includes: (i) Demographics of participants; (ii) Teachers' perspectives regarding the operation of teaching activities during the pandemic; (iii) Teachers' received support from their schools, government bodies, other stakeholders such as teacher unions, and parents' associations; and (iv) teachers' evaluation of school readiness toward digital transformation. Further, the dataset was supplemented with an additional question on the teachers' primary source of professional development activities during the pandemic

A Bibliometrics study on homework from 1977 to 2020

Homework effectiveness has long been a controversial issue for many educators, schools, and parents. Many researchers have tried to prove that homework is not just a nuisance we all have to face throughout the years but really can build character and good for students, like teachers and parents typically say. This bibliometrics review studied 429 documents related to homework in education from the Clarivate Web of Science from 1977 to 2020. This study aims to record the volume, growth pattern of homework literature and identify critical authors, publications, and topics of this knowledge base. The review found that the homework literature has grown remarkably over the past 43 years, with the most cited authors are from the US, Germany, and Portugal. Using co-citation, co-occurrence and bibliographic coupling analysis from the VOSviewer program, this research also indicated significant results and suggestions for future research. The findings showed that homework literature increased gradually in volume, with the most publications originated in the USA, and critical authors were Cooper, Xu, and Trautwein. Additionally, five common research topics were illustrated, namely the effect of homework and its measurement, homework environment, homework tasks and feedback, family involvement in homework, and time and effort

Dataset of Vietnamese students’ intention in respect of study abroad before and during COVID-19 pandemic

The Covid-19 Pandemic had completely disrupted the worldwide educational system. Many schools chose the online delivery mode for students in case learning losses incurred during social distance decree. However, as to these students who are currently in the study abroad planning stages, reached an intention crossroads, whether standing for certain unchanging decisions in study abroad destinations or changing swiftly due to the unexpected policies in quarantine. This case opened to interpretation, which was based on our e-survey since 3 May to 13 May 2020 with 397 responses covering a range of Vietnamese students. In this dataset, we focused on (i) Students’ Demographics; (ii) The previous intention of students to study abroad before and during the Covid-19 ravaged and (iii) Their intention afterwards

IMPROVEMENT OF CO2 PURIFYING SYSTEM BY PHOTOCATALYST FOR APPLICATION IN MICROALGAE CULTURE TECHNOLOGY

By reactive grinding method Vanadium-doped rutile TiO2 nanoparticle material was obtained with an average particle size of 20‐40nm, the Brunauer–Emmet–Teller (BET) specific surface area about 20 m2g−1 and it absorbed strongly in the UV region and increased at the visible wavelength of 430 – 570 nm. This study focused on the improvement of exhaust gas treatment from coal-fired flue gas of the traditional adsorption-catalysis system (Modular System for Treating Flue Gas - MSTFG) by using the V2O5/TiO2 Rutile as photocatalyst. The results showed that integrating both catalytic systems mentioned above increased the gas treatment efficiency: CO from 77 % to over 98 %, NOx from 50 % to 93 %, SO2 was absent as opposed to the input gas component. Also it showed that V2O5/TiO2 Rutile integrated with MSTFG has got high efficiency of CO treatment, also secured the high obtained CO2 concentration as a valuable carbon source for microagal mass culture as well as saving energy and simplifying devices

Incidence of dengue and chikungunya viruses in mosquitoes and human patients in border provinces of Vietnam

Background: Dengue virus remains a major threat in Vietnam, while chikungunya virus is expected to become one. Surveillance was conducted from 2012 to 2014 in Vietnam to assess the presence of dengue and chikungunya viruses in patients hospitalized with acute fever in five Vietnam provinces neighboring Lao PDR and Cambodia. Surveillance was extended to mosquitoes present in the vicinity of the patients' households. Results: A total 558 human serum samples were collected along with 1104 adult mosquitoes and 12,041 larvae from 2250 households. Dengue virus was found in 17 (3%) human serum samples and in 9 (0.8%) adult mosquitoes. Chikungunya virus was detected in 2 adult mosquitoes (0.18%) while no chikungunya virus was detected in humans. Differing densities of mosquito populations were found, with the highest in the Long An Province border with Cambodia. Long An Province also displayed the lowest rate of infection, despite a very high Breteau Index, high human population density and presence of the main cross border road system. The highest incidence was found in Dac Nong Province, where the Breteau and Container indices were the second lowest. Dengue virus was detected in five Aedes albopictus, three Aedes aegypti and one Culex vishnui. Chikungunya virus was detected in two Ae. aegypti. All infected mosquitoes belonged to haplotypes described in other parts of the world and a number of novel haplotypes were found among uninfected mosquitoes. Conclusions: Dengue is considered to be regularly introduced to Vietnam from Cambodia, mostly through human movement. The data reported here provides a complementary picture. Due to intensive international trade, long-distance transportation of mosquito populations may play a role in the regular importation of dengue in Vietnam through Ho Chi Minh City. It is important to decipher the movement of mosquitoes in Vietnam, not only at the Lao PDR and Cambodia borders but also through international trade routes. Mosquito surveillance programs should address and follow mosquito populations instead of mosquito species

Village Baseline Study: Site Analysis Report for Tra Hat Village, Vinh Loi, Bac Lieu, Viet Nam (VNM 03)

This report presents data collected from the Village Baseline Study conducted on 2-4 October 2014 at the Tra Hat village, Vinh Loi district, Bac Lieu, Vietnam. Data were collected through focus group discussions and participatory resource mapping with community members in the village. The Village Baseline Study is part of the baseline activities conducted under the CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture, and Food Security (CCAFS) in South East Asia. The purpose is to collect data for indicators that will allow site comparability and monitoring to assess changes in terms of food security and natural resource management across time. Results show that the men and women in Tra Hat village consider farmland, rivers and canals as important natural resources. The quality, however, of land, water and wildlife habitats has declined in the last decade along with the improvement of farming techniques and intensive use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides. Infrastructures such as roads, internal canals, hospitals, schools, water supply station and electricity transformer station have improved. The future is envisioned to have improved internal canals in farmlands and a developed irrigation system, dykes and sluices to support high agriculture production. Home garden diversification was also believed to enhance food security and improve livelihood resilience. To turn the vision into reality, the community expects support from the different organizations working in the area considering current impacts of salinity intrusion and sea level rise, the need interventions of CCAFS and its partners. Strengthening the irrigation system, improving local rice variety, and introducing modern farming techniques taking into account negative impacts of climate change are major recommendation for future intervention