Performance of export-oriented small and medium-sized manufacturing enterprises in Viet Nam

The study recommends the formulation of policies that support the development of business linkages and networking, and which promote subcontracting arrangements between small and large enterprises or between domestic firms and foreign investment enterprises. It is also necessary to support and facilitate the direct involvement of SMMEs in exporting or indirectly through large manufacturing enterprises.Export-oriented, SME,SMME, Viet Nam

Trajectory Tracking Control Design for Dual-Arm Robots Using Dynamic Surface Controller

This paper presents a dynamic surface controller (DSC) for dual-arm robots (DAR) tracking desired trajectories. The DSC algorithm is based on backstepping technique and multiple sliding surface control principle, but with an important addition. In the design of DSC, low-pass filters are included which prevent the complexity in computing due to the “explosion of terms”, i.e. the number of terms in the control law rapidly gets out of hand. Therefore, a controller constructed from this algorithm is simulated on a four degrees of freedom (DOF) dual-arm robot with a complex kinetic dynamic model. Moreover, the stability of the control system is proved by using Lyapunov theory. The simulation results show the effectiveness of the controller which provide precise tracking performance of the manipulator

EFFECTS OF COD/TN RATIO AND LOADING RATES ON PERFORMANCE OF MODIFIED SBRs IN SIMULTANEOUS REMOVAL OF ORGANIC MATTER AND NITROGEN FROM RUBBER LATEX PROCESSING WASTEWATER

Two modified sequencing batch reactors (SBRs) specially configured to consist of both oxic and anoxic zones, and be operated with only a single simultaneous oxic/anoxic phase in each treatment batch were tested to evaluate their applicability in treatment of rubber latex processing (RLP) wastewater. The former, R1 was operated with constant aeration, whereas the latter, R2 was operated with air flow varied from lower rate in the early period of the reaction phase to higher rate in the later one. Effects of the chemical oxygen demand (COD) to total nitrogen (TN) ratio and their loading rates on performance of the modified SBRs in simultaneous removal of organic matter and nitrogen from RLP wastewater were investigated. It was observed that performance of the two reactors in removal of COD and ammonium nitrogen was similar, and did not remarkably change when varying COD/TN ratio, as well as COD and TN loading rates in the ranges of 3.4 – 6.0 gCOD/gN, 0.8 – 1.7 kgCOD×m-3×d-1 and 0.15 – 0.34 kgN×m-3×d-1, respectively. The average COD removal efficiencies were over 95%. Ammonium nitrogen was almost completely eliminated in both reactors with effluent concentrations lower than 1.0 mg/L. Nevertheless, TN removal efficiencies of both reactors were significantly increased with increasing the COD/TN ratio from 3.4 to 6.0, and slightly decreased when increasing the TN loading rate from 0.15 to 0.34 kgN×m-3×d-1. The most effective COD/TN ratios were in the range of 5 – 6, at which the maximal TN removal efficiencies of R1 and R2 were 92% and 97%, respectively

Hemorrhagic Meningioma With Symptom of Convulsion: A Rare Presentation of Parietal Meningioma

Meningioma is the most common, extra-axial, non-glial intracranial tumor with an incidence of 2.3-5.5/100 000, accounting for 20%-30% of all primary brain tumor diagnoses in adults. Meningiomas associated with intratumoral hemorrhage are very rare occurring in 0.5%-2.4%. of individuals. Herein, we report a rare case of hemorrhagic meningioma with the symptom of convulsion. The case was a 68-year-old woman admitted to the hospital with severe headache and convulsions. Computed tomography revealed an increase in heterogeneous lesion measuring 4 × 3 × 2.5 cm at the right parietal lobe. Brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) showed a grossly stable homogeneously enhancing extra-axial mass measuring 43 × 33 × 28 mm, small calcified peripheral, intratumoral hemorrhage. Histopathology showed a multi-celled meningioma with bleeding areas (WHO grade I)

Associations of Underlying Health Conditions With Anxiety and Depression Among Outpatients: Modification Effects of Suspected COVID-19 Symptoms, Health-Related and Preventive Behaviors

Objectives: We explored the association of underlying health conditions (UHC) with depression and anxiety, and examined the modification effects of suspected COVID-19 symptoms (S-COVID-19-S), health-related behaviors (HB), and preventive behaviors (PB).Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on 8,291 outpatients aged 18–85 years, in 18 hospitals and health centers across Vietnam from 14th February to May 31, 2020. We collected the data regarding participant's characteristics, UHC, HB, PB, depression, and anxiety.Results: People with UHC had higher odds of depression (OR = 2.11; p < 0.001) and anxiety (OR = 2.86; p < 0.001) than those without UHC. The odds of depression and anxiety were significantly higher for those with UHC and S-COVID-19-S (p < 0.001); and were significantly lower for those had UHC and interacted with “unchanged/more” physical activity (p < 0.001), or “unchanged/more” drinking (p < 0.001 for only anxiety), or “unchanged/healthier” eating (p < 0.001), and high PB score (p < 0.001), as compared to those without UHC and without S-COVID-19-S, “never/stopped/less” physical activity, drinking, “less healthy” eating, and low PB score, respectively.Conclusion: S-COVID-19-S worsen psychological health in patients with UHC. Physical activity, drinking, healthier eating, and high PB score were protective factors

Safety and efficacy of fluoxetine on functional outcome after acute stroke (AFFINITY): a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial

Background Trials of fluoxetine for recovery after stroke report conflicting results. The Assessment oF FluoxetINe In sTroke recoverY (AFFINITY) trial aimed to show if daily oral fluoxetine for 6 months after stroke improves functional outcome in an ethnically diverse population. Methods AFFINITY was a randomised, parallel-group, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial done in 43 hospital stroke units in Australia (n=29), New Zealand (four), and Vietnam (ten). Eligible patients were adults (aged ≥18 years) with a clinical diagnosis of acute stroke in the previous 2–15 days, brain imaging consistent with ischaemic or haemorrhagic stroke, and a persisting neurological deficit that produced a modified Rankin Scale (mRS) score of 1 or more. Patients were randomly assigned 1:1 via a web-based system using a minimisation algorithm to once daily, oral fluoxetine 20 mg capsules or matching placebo for 6 months. Patients, carers, investigators, and outcome assessors were masked to the treatment allocation. The primary outcome was functional status, measured by the mRS, at 6 months. The primary analysis was an ordinal logistic regression of the mRS at 6 months, adjusted for minimisation variables. Primary and safety analyses were done according to the patient's treatment allocation. The trial is registered with the Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry, ACTRN12611000774921. Findings Between Jan 11, 2013, and June 30, 2019, 1280 patients were recruited in Australia (n=532), New Zealand (n=42), and Vietnam (n=706), of whom 642 were randomly assigned to fluoxetine and 638 were randomly assigned to placebo. Mean duration of trial treatment was 167 days (SD 48·1). At 6 months, mRS data were available in 624 (97%) patients in the fluoxetine group and 632 (99%) in the placebo group. The distribution of mRS categories was similar in the fluoxetine and placebo groups (adjusted common odds ratio 0·94, 95% CI 0·76–1·15; p=0·53). Compared with patients in the placebo group, patients in the fluoxetine group had more falls (20 [3%] vs seven [1%]; p=0·018), bone fractures (19 [3%] vs six [1%]; p=0·014), and epileptic seizures (ten [2%] vs two [<1%]; p=0·038) at 6 months. Interpretation Oral fluoxetine 20 mg daily for 6 months after acute stroke did not improve functional outcome and increased the risk of falls, bone fractures, and epileptic seizures. These results do not support the use of fluoxetine to improve functional outcome after stroke

The money market of Viet Nam : structure and challenges

In early 2008, Viet Nam capital market experienced a dramatic shrinkage and the country’s economic downturn started after the past 5 years of impressive GDP growth. The boom of Viet Nam stock market in 2006-2007 attracted both local and foreign investors’ enormous participation till the day the stock market bubble busted, and then the credit market is frozen. The firmness and efficiency of the Viet Nam financial system are questioned, especially the money market, whose function is to ensure the effective supply and channeling of money and the liquidity for the financial market. To the best of our knowledge, there is no published research that took a broad view of the money market of Viet Nam in full scale. So as to answer the question raised earlier, this paper fully focused on the Viet Nam money market with the belief that challenges are huge and tough but there are means for the country to overcome and the thorough transformation of the financial market still waits. Our research made use of available secondary data and focused on the Viet Nam money market in the period 2000-2008. After obtaining comprehensive background information of money market1, we dedicated the first part of our research on analyzing the current condition of Vietnam money market. Then, a detailed analysis was performed on various factors that may exert effect on VNMM to answer the question “Why is Vietnam money market underdeveloped?”. After indentifying and analyzing the challenges, suggestions were provided for Viet Nam to overcome such obstacles. At this critical time, such detailed research can help enhance the knowledge of participants in the Vietnam money market and stress the importance of promoting the market.BUSINES

Assessment of Flood Extremes Using Downscaled CMIP5 High-Resolution Ensemble Projections of Near-Term Climate for the Upper Thu Bon Catchment in Vietnam

Exploring potential floods is both essential and critical to making informed decisions for adaptation options at a river basin scale. The present study investigates changes in flood extremes in the future using downscaled CMIP5 (Coupled Model Intercomparison Project&#8212;Phase 5) high-resolution ensemble projections of near-term climate for the Upper Thu Bon catchment in Vietnam. Model bias correction techniques are utilized to improve the daily rainfall simulated by the multi-model climate experiments. The corrected rainfall is then used to drive a calibrated supper-tank model for runoff simulations. The flood extremes are analyzed based on the Gumbel extreme value distribution and simulation of design hydrograph methods. Results show that the former method indicates almost no changes in the flood extremes in the future compared to the baseline climate. However, the later method explores increases (approximately 20%) in the peaks of very extreme events in the future climate, especially, the flood peak of a 50-year return period tends to exceed the flood peak of a 100-year return period of the baseline climate. Meanwhile, the peaks of shorter return period floods (e.g., 10-year) are projected with a very slight change. Model physical parameterization schemes and spatial resolution seem to cause larger uncertainties; while different model runs show less sensitivity to the future projections

Assessment of climate change impact on river flow regimes in The Red River Delta, Vietnam – A case study of the Nhue-Day River Basin

Global warming has caused dramatic changes in regional climate variability, particularly regarding fluctuations in temperature and rainfall. Thus, it is predicted that river flow regimes will be altered accordingly. The purpose of this paper is to present the results of modeling such changes by simulating discharge using the HEC-HMS model. The precipitation was projected using super-high resolution multiple climate models (20 km resolution) with newly updated emission scenarios as the input for the HEC-HMS model for flow analysis at the Red River Basin in the northern area of Vietnam. The findings showed that climate change impact on the river flow regimes tend towards a decrease in the dry season and a longer duration of flood flow. A slight runoff reduction is simulated for November while a considerable runoff increase is modeled for July and August amounting to 30% and 25%, respectively. The discharge scenarios serve as a basis for water managers to develop suitable adaptation methods and responses on the river basin scale