Analyses of genetic diversity and desirable traits in sesame (Sesamum indicum L., Pedaliaceae): implication for breeding and conservation.

Sesame (Sesamum indicum L., Pedaliaceae) is a traditional oil crop cultivated in Vietnam and Cambodia. It is known as the king of oil seeds in Vietnam due to the high oil content (50-60%) in its seed. Yet, the insufficient genetic information regarding Vietnamese and Cambodian sesame populations is limiting the access to useful traits present among adapted landraces in this region. The purpose of this study was to characterize various sesame accessions to gain information that could help design strategies for future breeding program and conservation of this crop in the two countries. Morphological and molecular markers as well as oil content and quality analyses were employed to evaluate sesame accessions from different sources. High genetic variation was found among populations of sesame collected in Vietnam and Cambodia. The two type of markers, morphological and molecular, were both useful in analyzing the extent of genetic diversity in sesame and the result of these analyses will help to better understand the genetic diversity and relationship within and among populations. Overall, the sesame accessions included in the study showed a correlation with their geographical origins such that accessions from the same region tended to have higher genetic similarity as compared to those from different regions. However, when cluster analysis was applied to evaluate the genetic relationship, some sesame accessions were found not to be grouped based on geographical origins. This contrasting result could perhaps be a result from the exchange over time, of sesame germplasm, between farmers across the regions. The results from morphological and oil content analyses showed that several sesame accessions in Southern Vietnam and Cambodia displayed a good potential for high seed yield and oil content. Overall, the studies in this thesis provide important insights into the populations of sesame in Vietnam and Cambodia and constitute a set of useful background information that can be used as a basis for future breeding strategy and improvement of sesame in this region

Modeling the Currency Forward Risk Premium: Theory and Evidence

There is a huge literature on the existence of risk premia in the foreign exchange markets and its influence in explaining the divergence between the forward exchange rate and the subsequently realised spot exchange rate. In this paper, we seek to model directly the risk premium as a mean-reverting diffusion process. This is done by making use of the spot-forward price relationship and assuming a geometric Brownian process for the spot exchange rate. We are able to obtain a stochastic differential equation system for the spot exchange rate, the forward exchange rate and the risk premium which we estimate using Kalman filtering techniques. The model is then applied to the French Franc/USD and Japanese Yen/USD exchange rates from 1 January 1990 to 31 December 1998. For both currencies our main findings show (I) the persistence of substantial positive time variation in the forward risk premium and its alternating regimes; and (ii) the presence of a term structure of the forward risk premia.

ACTUAL SITUATION OF DEGREE OF MEETING SOCIAL NEEDS FOR PROFESSIONAL CAPACITY OF BACHELOR OF SPORTS MAJORING IN BASKETBALL AT BAC NINH SPORT UNIVERSITY, VIETNAM

Through interviews and sociological investigation, the study found out the actual situation of employment of basketball alumni at Bac Ninh Sport University, Vietnam. On that basis, 23 criteria were selected to ensure reliability to assess the actual situation of meeting social needs for professional capacity of human resources who are Bachelors of Sports majoring in Basketball at Bac Ninh Sport University, Vietnam.  Article visualizations

Pesticide Use and Management in the Mekong Delta and their Residues in Surface and Drinking Water

Pesticides are essential inputs in agricultural production to control target pests and thus to improve crop yields. Appropriate use and management of these chemicals and reduction of its negative influences on human health and the environment are global concerns. In the Mekong Delta, Vietnam, an area which contributes more than 90% to the country’s rice exports, pesticides have been increasingly applied since the so called Doi Moi (renovation). In this present study, two representative areas were selected to conduct different studies related to 1) pesticide use and management at household level, 2) resulting residue concentrations in surface water in fields and irrigation canals, 3) treatment practices of surface water for the purpose of drinking, and 4) pesticide concentrations in drinking water derived from surface water. One study area is characterized by intensive rice cultivation in Tam Nong District, Dong Thap Province, while the second area was selected as a representative for a peri-urban site mixed agricultural production pattern in Cai Rang District, Can Tho City. Surveys and monitoring campaign were carried out from August 2008 to August 2009. Survey results indicated that a majority of respondent farmers improperly used and managed pesticides. The study found that organochlorine and organophosphorus pesticides were less used while several pesticide groups such as pyrethroid, conazole, biopesticide and amide were being frequently applied. Half of investigated pesticides belong to moderately and slightly hazardous categories according to WHO hazard classification. 12 out of 15 studied pesticides (buprofezin, butachlor, cypermethrin, difenozonazole, α-endosulfan, β-endosulfan, endosulfan-sulfate, fenobucarb, fipronil, hexaconazole, isoprothiolane, pretilachlor, profenofos, propanil and propiconazole) were quantified in surface water in fields and irrigation canals, with average concentrations ranging from 0.02 to 3.34 μg/L and from 0.01 to 0.37 μg/L at the intensive rice cultivation and mixed agricultural production areas, respectively. Monitoring of pesticide residues in drinking water quantified seven out of 15 studied pesticides, with average concentrations ranging from 0.01 to 0.47 μg/L. The study also revealed that aluminium sulfate and boiling practice, frequently applied to treat surface water for drinking by respondent farmers, unfortunately could not remove the most of studied pesticides from drinking water. Consequently, as compared to European Commission guideline values for drinking water local people were exposed to several pesticides which might pose their health at risk. The present study provides and discusses possibly measures in order to improve pesticide management practices as well as to decrease pesticide inputs into water ecosystems and thus reduce the exposure of (rural) people to these potentially harmful chemicals

Poverty Targeting and Impact of a Governmental Micro-credit Program in Vietnam

It is argued that without collateral the poor often face binding borrowing constraints in the formal credit market. This justifies a micro-credit program, which is operated by the Vietnam Bank for Social Policies to provide the poor with preferential credit. This paper examines poverty targeting and impact of the micro-credit program. It is found that the program is not very pro-poor in terms of targeting. Among the participants, the non-poor account for a larger proportion of loans. The non-poor also tend to receive larger amounts of credit compared to the poor. However, the program has positive impact on poverty reduction of the participants. This positive impact is found for all the three Foster-Greer-Thorbecke poverty measures.Micro-credit, poverty, poverty targeting, impact evaluation, instrumental variables, fixed-effect model

Co-simulation of self-adjusting fuzzy PI controller for the robot with two-axes system

This paper presents the co-simulation of the self-adjusting fuzzy PI controller to control a two-axes system. Each axis was driven by a permanent magnet linear synchronous motor (PMLSM). The position and speed controller used the fuzzy PI algorithm with parameters adjusted by a radial basis function neural network (RBFNN). The vector control was applied to the decoupled effect of the PMLSM. The field programmable gate array (FPGA) was used to control both axes of the system. The very high-speed integrated circuit-hardware description language (VHDL) was developed in the Quartus II software environment, provided by Altera, to analyze and synthesize designs. Firstly, the mathematical model of PMLSM and fuzzy PI was introduced. Secondly, the RBFNN adjusted the knowledge base of the fuzzy PI. Thirdly, the motion trajectory was introduced for testing the control algorithm. Fourthly, the implementation of the controller based on FPGA with the FSM method and the structure of co-simulation between Matlab/Simulink and ModelSim were set up. Finally, discussion about the results proved the effectiveness of the control system, determining the exact position and trajectory of the XY axis system. This research was successful in implementing a two-motor controller within one chip

DESIGN OF EXPERIMENTS MODEL FOR THE OPTIMIZATION OF SILK FIBROIN BASED NANOPARTICLES

Objective: Silk fibroin based nanoparticles have been utilized extensively in biomedical fields. Amongst many preparation methods, desolvation is a favorable one. However, this method yields nanoparticles with unpredictable parameters. Thus, this investigation aimed to systematically study the effects of three independent variables including fibroin concentration (% w/v, X1), volume ratio between fibroin solution and ethanol (X2), formulation time (h, X3) on three main responses, particle size (nm, Y1), polydispersity index (Y2), zeta potential (mV, Y3).Methods: Fibroin was extracted from degummed Bombyx mori silk. The fibroin calibration curve was constructed by UV-spectrophotometer at 276 nm. The nanoparticles were prepared using the desolvation method of aqueous fibroin solution in ethanol. Design Expert® software was used to design the model. The mean particle size, polydispersity index and zeta potential were determined using ZetaPALS®analyzer.Results: By using D-optimal design with the quadratic model, the results showed that all X1, X2, and X3 variables had significant impacts on the fibroin nanoparticles characteristics Y1, Y2, and Y3. The generated model was also validated and demonstrated to be solid and reliable. The obtained optimal nanoparticles possessed Y1 of 238.1 nm, Y2 of 0.12, and Y3of-21.78 mV, which were in agreement with the predicted values, 224.8 nm, 0.13 and-19.31 mV, respectively. The optimal actual and theoretical particle characteristics were correlated with a desirable value of R2 = 0.8770. Conclusion: The D-optimal design proved its effectiveness in the prediction and optimization of fibroin nanoparticle properties