Convergence analysis of a Crank-Nicolson Galerkin method for an inverse source problem for parabolic equations with boundary observations

This work is devoted to an inverse problem of identifying a source term depending on both spatial and time variables in a parabolic equation from single Cauchy data on a part of the boundary. A Crank-Nicolson Galerkin method is applied to the least squares functional with an quadratic stabilizing penalty term. The convergence of finite dimensional regularized approximations to the sought source as measurement noise levels and mesh sizes approach to zero with an appropriate regularization parameter is proved. Moreover, under a suitable source condition, an error bound and corresponding convergence rates are proved. Finally, several numerical experiments are presented to illustrate the theoretical findings.Comment: Inverse source problem, Tikhonov regularization, Crank-Nicolson Galerkin method, Source condition, Convergence rates, Ill-posedness, Parabolic proble

Spatial Variation of Rare Earth Elements (REEs) in Agricultural Soils Collected from Different Geographical Regions in Vietnam

Rare earth elements (REEs) exist commonly in minerals, such as carbonates, silicates, fluorides, and phosphates. REEs are also found in coals, animals, algae, and plants which were proven to increase the growth, development, yield, and quality of crops. In the present study, a preliminary assessment of REEs contents in soils collected from different areas in Vietnam was performed using the methods of Fe(OH)3 and Mg(OH)2 co-precipitation to exclude interferences from the sample matrix before analyzing REEs on ICP-MS system. The contents of REEs (mg kg-1) were in descending of Ce > Nd > La > Pr > Sm > Gd > Dy > Tb > Er > Yb > Lu. The light REEs contents were always higher than the heavy REEs, accounting for more than 70% of the total contents. In addition, the REEs also differed in total contents between areas. The contents of REEs were as follows Northwest > Northeast > Central Highland > Southeast. These differences could be related to influences during the natural weathering processes for soil formation and human activities such as mining and cultivation via fertilizers

Smart Textile-Driven Soft Spine Exosuit for Lifting Tasks in Industrial Applications

Work related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs) are often caused by repetitive lifting, making them a significant concern in occupational health. Although wearable assist devices have become the norm for mitigating the risk of back pain, most spinal assist devices still possess a partially rigid structure that impacts the user comfort and flexibility. This paper addresses this issue by presenting a smart textile actuated spine assistance robotic exosuit (SARE), which can conform to the back seamlessly without impeding the user movement and is incredibly lightweight. The SARE can assist the human erector spinae to complete any action with virtually infinite degrees of freedom. To detect the strain on the spine and to control the smart textile automatically, a soft knitting sensor which utilizes fluid pressure as sensing element is used. The new device is validated experimentally with human subjects where it reduces peak electromyography (EMG) signals of lumbar erector spinae by around 32 percent in loaded and around 22 percent in unloaded conditions. Moreover, the integrated EMG decreased by around 24.2 percent under loaded condition and around 23.6 percent under unloaded condition. In summary, the artificial muscle wearable device represents an anatomical solution to reduce the risk of muscle strain, metabolic energy cost and back pain associated with repetitive lifting tasks.Comment: 6 pages, 7 figure

Microscopic Observation Drug Susceptibility Assay (MODS) for Early Diagnosis of Tuberculosis in Children

MODS is a novel liquid culture based technique that has been shown to be effective and rapid for early diagnosis of tuberculosis (TB). We evaluated the MODS assay for diagnosis of TB in children in Viet Nam. 217 consecutive samples including sputum (n = 132), gastric fluid (n = 50), CSF (n = 32) and pleural fluid (n = 3) collected from 96 children with suspected TB, were tested by smear, MODS and MGIT. When test results were aggregated by patient, the sensitivity and specificity of smear, MGIT and MODS against “clinical diagnosis” (confirmed and probable groups) as the gold standard were 28.2% and 100%, 42.3% and 100%, 39.7% and 94.4%, respectively. The sensitivity of MGIT and MODS was not significantly different in this analysis (P = 0.5), but MGIT was more sensitive than MODS when analysed on the sample level using a marginal model (P = 0.03). The median time to detection of MODS and MGIT were 8 days and 13 days, respectively, and the time to detection was significantly shorter for MODS in samples where both tests were positive (P<0.001). An analysis of time-dependent sensitivity showed that the detection rates were significantly higher for MODS than for MGIT by day 7 or day 14 (P<0.001 and P = 0.04), respectively. MODS is a rapid and sensitive alternative method for the isolation of M.tuberculosis from children

Evaluation of microscopic observation drug susceptibility assay for diagnosis of multidrug-resistant Tuberculosis in Viet Nam

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Early diagnosis of tuberculosis (TB) and multidrug resistant tuberculosis (MDR TB) is important for the elimination of TB. We evaluated the microscopic observation drug susceptibility (MODS) assay as a direct rapid drug susceptibility testing (DST) method for MDR-TB screening in sputum samples</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>All adult TB suspects, who were newly presenting to Pham Ngoc Thach Hospital from August to November 2008 were enrolled into the study. Processed sputum samples were used for DST by MODS (DST-MODS) (Rifampicin (RIF) 1 μg/ml and Isoniazid (INH) 0.4 μg/ml), MGIT culture (Mycobacterial Growth Indicator Tube) and Lowenstein Jensen (LJ) culture. Cultures positive by either MGIT or LJ were used for proportional DST (DST-LJ) (RIF 40 μg/ml and INH 0.2 μg/ml). DST profiles on MODS and LJ were compared. Discrepant results were resolved by multiplex allele specific PCR (MAS-PCR).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Seven hundred and nine TB suspects/samples were enrolled into the study, of which 300 samples with DST profiles available from both MODS and DST-LJ were analyzed. Cording in MODS was unable to correctly identify 3 Mycobacteria Other Than Tuberculosis (MOTT) isolates, resulting in 3 false positive TB diagnoses. None of these isolates were identified as MDR-TB by MODS. The sensitivity and specificity of MODS were 72.6% (95%CI: 59.8, 83.1) and 97.9% (95%CI: 95.2, 99.3), respectively for detection of INH resistant isolates, 72.7% (95%CI: 30.9, 93.7) and 99.7% (95%CI: 98.1, 99.9), respectively for detecting RIF resistant isolates and 77.8% (95%CI: 39.9, 97.1) and 99.7% (95%CI: 98.1, 99.9), respectively for detecting MDR isolates. The positive and negative predictive values (PPV and NPV) of DST-MODS were 87.5% (95%CI: 47.3, 99.6) and 99.3% (95%CI: 97.5, 99.9) for detection of MDR isolates; and the agreement between MODS and DST-LJ was 99.0% (kappa: 0.8, <it>P </it>< 0.001) for MDR diagnosis. The low sensitivity of MODS for drug resistance detection was probably due to low bacterial load samples and the high INH concentration (0.4 μg/ml). The low PPV of DST-MODS may be due to the low MDR-TB rate in the study population (3.8%). The turnaround time of DST-MODS was 9 days and 53 days for DST-LJ.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The DST-MODS technique is rapid with low contamination rates. However, the sensitivity of DST-MODS for detection of INH and RIF resistance in this study was lower than reported from other settings.</p

Dynamiques des éléments traces métalliques dans un estuaire tropical à mangroves (Can Gio, Vietnam)

Mangroves are considered as efficient barriers between land and sea, being sinks for trace metals and protecting coastal water from pollutions. However this ability may depend on sediment characteristics and hydrology. The fate of trace metal is complex due to various biogeochemical processes across the intertidal zone. Because of their toxicity to mangrove biodiversity and also to human health, the trace metal cycling is a serious question addressed by many scientists during the last few decades and nowadays. In contrast to the rest of the world, trace metal distribution in Viet Nam’s mangrove forest has received little attention. The aim of this research was to characterize some trace metals dynamics in the Can Gio mangrove, which is located in the Southern Viet Nam, being situated at the edge of a densely populated megacity – Ho Chi Minh City (i.e. almost 10 million inhabitants) and the South China Sea. Along the Can Gio estuary, trace metals, which mainly originated from upstream lateritic soils, were transported mostly associated with suspended solids, mainly oxihydroxides forms. After being deposited in mangrove sediments, the oxihydroxides were dissolved by bacteria during organic matter decay processes under suboxic condition, releasing trace metals in pore-waters. The enrichment of mangrove derived-OM from the mudflat to the Rhizophora stand played a key role in controlling diagenetic processes. Dissolved metals were then reprecipitated with new bearing phases such as organometallic complexes, suphides, carbonate etc. depending on the redox condition and on metal characteristics. Furthermore, part of these dissolved metals were available for biota uptake or export to tidal creek by pore-water seepage. Consequently, this PhD thesis also demonstrated that mangrove ecosystems can be sources of trace metals for adjacent ecosystems.Les mangroves sont considérées comme des filtres efficaces entre la terre et la mer, étant des puits pour les métaux traces et protégeant les eaux côtières des pollutions. Cependant, cette capacité peut dépendre des caractéristiques des sols de mangrove et de l’hydrologie. Le devenir des éléments traces métalliques dans les mangroves est complexe en raison de divers processus biogéochimiques qui s’y déroulent. En raison de leur toxicité pour la biodiversité des mangroves et pour la santé humaine, le cycle des métaux traces est une question sérieuse abordée par de nombreux scientifiques au cours des dernières décennies et de nos jours. Contrairement au reste du monde, la distribution des métaux traces dans la mangrove du Viet Nam a reçu peu d’attention. L’objectif de cette thèse était de caractériser la dynamique des métaux traces dans la mangrove de Can Gio, située au sud du Vietnam, à la limite d’une mégapole densément peuplée – Hô Chi Minh-Ville (près de 10 millions d’habitants) et de la mer de Chine méridionale. Le long de l’estuaire du Can Gio, les métaux traces, principalement issus des sols latéritiques se développant en amont, ont été principalement transportés avec des matières en suspension, notamment des oxihydroxydes. Après avoir été déposés dans les mangroves, les oxihydroxydes sont dissous par des bactéries au cours des processus de décomposition de la matière organique en conditions suboxiques, libérant des métaux traces dans les eaux interstitielles. L’enrichissement des sols de mangrove en matière organique joue un rôle clé dans les processus diagénétiques. Les métaux dissous peuvent reprécipiter avec de nouvelles phases porteuses telles que des complexes organométalliques, des sulfures, des carbonates, etc., en fonction des conditions redox du sol et des caractéristiques de l’élément. De plus, une partie de ces métaux dissous est biodisponible et peut être transférée vers la végétation ou la faune des mangroves, une partie peut également être exportée vers les creeks. Par conséquent, cette thèse a démontré que les écosystèmes de mangrove peuvent être des sources de métaux traces pour les écosystèmes adjacents

Trace metals dynamics in a tropical mangrove-dominated estuary (Can Gio, Viet Nam)

Les mangroves sont considérées comme des filtres efficaces entre la terre et la mer, étant des puits pour les métaux traces et protégeant les eaux côtières des pollutions. Cependant, cette capacité peut dépendre des caractéristiques des sols de mangrove et de l’hydrologie. Le devenir des éléments traces métalliques dans les mangroves est complexe en raison de divers processus biogéochimiques qui s’y déroulent. En raison de leur toxicité pour la biodiversité des mangroves et pour la santé humaine, le cycle des métaux traces est une question sérieuse abordée par de nombreux scientifiques au cours des dernières décennies et de nos jours. Contrairement au reste du monde, la distribution des métaux traces dans la mangrove du Viet Nam a reçu peu d’attention. L’objectif de cette thèse était de caractériser la dynamique des métaux traces dans la mangrove de Can Gio, située au sud du Vietnam, à la limite d’une mégapole densément peuplée – Hô Chi Minh-Ville (près de 10 millions d’habitants) et de la mer de Chine méridionale. Le long de l’estuaire du Can Gio, les métaux traces, principalement issus des sols latéritiques se développant en amont, ont été principalement transportés avec des matières en suspension, notamment des oxihydroxydes. Après avoir été déposés dans les mangroves, les oxihydroxydes sont dissous par des bactéries au cours des processus de décomposition de la matière organique en conditions suboxiques, libérant des métaux traces dans les eaux interstitielles. L’enrichissement des sols de mangrove en matière organique joue un rôle clé dans les processus diagénétiques. Les métaux dissous peuvent reprécipiter avec de nouvelles phases porteuses telles que des complexes organométalliques, des sulfures, des carbonates, etc., en fonction des conditions redox du sol et des caractéristiques de l’élément. De plus, une partie de ces métaux dissous est biodisponible et peut être transférée vers la végétation ou la faune des mangroves, une partie peut également être exportée vers les creeks. Par conséquent, cette thèse a démontré que les écosystèmes de mangrove peuvent être des sources de métaux traces pour les écosystèmes adjacents.Mangroves are considered as efficient barriers between land and sea, being sinks for trace metals and protecting coastal water from pollutions. However this ability may depend on sediment characteristics and hydrology. The fate of trace metal is complex due to various biogeochemical processes across the intertidal zone. Because of their toxicity to mangrove biodiversity and also to human health, the trace metal cycling is a serious question addressed by many scientists during the last few decades and nowadays. In contrast to the rest of the world, trace metal distribution in Viet Nam’s mangrove forest has received little attention. The aim of this research was to characterize some trace metals dynamics in the Can Gio mangrove, which is located in the Southern Viet Nam, being situated at the edge of a densely populated megacity – Ho Chi Minh City (i.e. almost 10 million inhabitants) and the South China Sea. Along the Can Gio estuary, trace metals, which mainly originated from upstream lateritic soils, were transported mostly associated with suspended solids, mainly oxihydroxides forms. After being deposited in mangrove sediments, the oxihydroxides were dissolved by bacteria during organic matter decay processes under suboxic condition, releasing trace metals in pore-waters. The enrichment of mangrove derived-OM from the mudflat to the Rhizophora stand played a key role in controlling diagenetic processes. Dissolved metals were then reprecipitated with new bearing phases such as organometallic complexes, suphides, carbonate etc. depending on the redox condition and on metal characteristics. Furthermore, part of these dissolved metals were available for biota uptake or export to tidal creek by pore-water seepage. Consequently, this PhD thesis also demonstrated that mangrove ecosystems can be sources of trace metals for adjacent ecosystems

Predicting higher order mutation score based on machine learning

ABSTRACTIn software testing, the quality of the test suite plays a very important role for not only the effectiveness of the testing but also the quality assurance of software. Mutation testing is considered as the usable, automatic and very effective technique in detecting mistakes of the set of test cases such as missing test cases, redundant test cases···  However, when using the mutation testing technique in practice, the generation of a large number of mutants has led to very high computational costs. This raises the question of whether we can reliably and accurately predict this mutation score without running mutants or not. If we can do this, it will save a lot of time and effort but still ensure the effectiveness of mutation testing. In this paper, we propose the approach using machine learning to perform mutation score cross-prediction for software which are new and completely different from the software used to generate test data (mutants) in model training and testing. The experimental results have shown that our proposed approach has achieved the positive results and is highly feasible. Thus, we believe that the approach can be applied to significantly reduce the cost of mutation testing

Trấu, than hoạt tính, THAN HOẠT TÍNH TỪ VỎ TRẤU: TỔNG HỢP, ĐẶC TRƯNG VÀ ỨNG DỤNG TRONG HẤP PHỤ Cr(III) VÀ Pb(II) TỪ DUNG DỊCH NƯỚC

In this work, we prepared activated carbon (AC) from rice husks using chemical activation with NaOH and combined with ultrasound. The resulting product was analyzed with thermogravimetry (TGA), X-Ray Diffractometry (XRD), scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), and energy-dispersive X-ray (EDX) techniques. The nitrogen adsorption-desorption was used for determining the material’s surface area (Brunauer – Emmett – Teller, BET). The material possesses an amorphous carbon structure, and the pyrolysis occurs at around 450 °C. The ACs exhibit a well-developed porous structure with different pore sizes, and the maximum surface area of about 1673 m2·g–1 was obtained from the sample prepared over 30 min with ultrasound (AC30). Langmuir isotherm models were applied to describe the adsorption isotherm of Cr(III) and Pb(II) on AC30. AC30 is a promising adsorbent for removing metal ions with a maximum adsorption capacity of 23.1 mg·g–1 for Cr(III) and 41.5 mg·g–1 for Pb(II).Trong nghiên cứu này, chúng tôi đã điều chế than hoạt tính (AC) từ vỏ trấu bằng phương pháp hoạt hoá hoá học với NaOH và kết hợp với siêu âm. Sản phẩm được phân tích bằng phân tích nhiệt trọng lượng (TGA), nhiễu xạ tia X (XRD), hiển vi điện tử quét (SEM) và quang phổ phân tán năng lượng tia X (EDX). Quá trình hấp phụ – giải hấp phụ được sử dụng để xác định diện tích bề mặt (Brunauer – Emmett – Teller, BET). Vật liệu có cấu trúc carbon vô định hình; quá trình nhiệt phân vỏ trấu (than hoá) diễn ra ở khoảng 450 °C; vật liệu có cấu trúc xốp phát triển tốt với kích thước lỗ khác nhau; diện tích bề mặt tối đa khoảng 1673 m2·g–1 thu được từ mẫu kích hoạt bằng siêu âm trong 30 phút (AC30). Mô hình đẳng nhiệt Langmuir đã được áp dụng để mô tả đường đẳng nhiệt hấp phụ của các ion kim loại bằng AC30. Kết quả cho thấy AC30 là một chất hấp phụ tiềm năng để loại bỏ Cr(III) và Pb(II) từ dung dịch nước. Khả năng hấp phụ tối đa là 23,1 mg·g–1 đối với Cr(III) và 41,5 mg·g–1 đối với Pb(II)