The Rise of the Hung Temple: Shifting Constructions of Place, Religion and Nation in Contemporary Vietnam

This thesis provides an ethnographic exploration of the Hung Temple in Phu Tho province, Vietnam. As a temple dedicated to the Hung Kings at a location that is promoted as a national heritage site, the Hung Temple provides the setting for different debates about ongoing cultural, political and religious transformations in contemporary Vietnam. I focus on the state-led construction of place and the associated efforts to foster nationalism, popular religiosity and a sense of shared identity amongst the Vietnamese. I especially emphasise the meanings that people produce about the Hung Temple as a historically significant location, an important work place and as a sacred site of national veneration to the ancestors that are now revered as deities. My framing of these issues is sensitive to the state’s shifting relationship to religion and to ancestor worship in a period of economic and political transition. I employ practice theory in particular to illuminate the understandings and connections that different facets of society have with the Hung Temple. The use of practice theory is important because it helps me identify how the state has constructed the Hung Temple as well as the potentially unanticipated ways that different people relate to the Hung Kings and the Temple. My approach includes attention to the ambitions of national rulers who construct an official narrative of the nation through their depiction of the Hung Temple’s significance. It also includes the relationship that temple priests, administrators, and bureaucrats have with the temple complex and its surrounding landscape. My practice theory approach additionally gives attention to the people who develop their own individual practices of worship to the Hung Kings and who come to see the Hung Kings as potent deities from whom they can receive the blessings and benefits that will help improve their lives. Finally, by focusing on moments of national celebration on the Hung Kings’ anniversary, I show how these different facets of society come together under the same purpose, but sometimes to different ends. In particular, I use the anniversary celebrations to underline how dynamic the relationships are that people develop with the Hung Kings and how these relationships are not entirely determined by the state’s framing of the Hung Kings. I also show how the people in attendance are not necessarily in harmony despite the state’s efforts to foster a codified, communal practice at the Temple. Through these explorations, the thesis highlights the discourses and actions of a number of social actors who participate in place-based practices at the Hung Temple. The text offers a strongly ethnographic and anthropological engagement with a prominent heritage site that adds to our understandings of the relationship between politics and religion, as well as to our understandings of how these domains impact upon the practices and identities of citizens. Ultimately, the thesis uses the case of the Hung Temple, and of the growing embrace of their ritual worship, as a way to add nuance to discussions of what it means to be Vietnamese in contemporary times.Thesis (Ph.D.) -- University of Adelaide, School of Social Sciences, 201

Some Factors Affecting The Intention Of Self-Studying Students Of An Giang University

Facing the trend of the 4th industrial revolution, the self-study capacity of students has a very important meaning in improving the quality of training. Therefore, the study aimed to evaluate the factors affecting the intention of self-study of An Giang University students. The study uses the Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA) and the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) on the basis of collecting data from 300 students studying the faculties of An Giang University. The study use methods of testing the reliability of scales by Cronbach’s Alpha coefficient, exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and multivariate regression analysis. Research results show that there are five factors that influence students' intention to self-study of students, such as: (1) Expectations for effort, (2) motivation for learning, (3) Perception of ease of use, (4) habits and (5) social influences. At the same time, this study provides some implications for management to help the school have strategies to support students' self-study to improve the quality of training to response the social needs

EFFECT OF SPENT MUSHROOM SUBSTRATE ON THE GROWTH AND YIELD OF THREE CULTIVARS OF MUSKMELONS (Cucumis melo)

Muskmelons are currently grown in several areas of Vietnam for domestic and international consumer markets. The fruit grows well in greenhouses in soil or soilless substrate such as coconut peat. Researchers in Vietnam are investigating the growth of muskmelons in a range of organic by-products. In this study, spent mushroom substrate was recycled for use as an organic substrate and to evaluate the growth, quality, and yield of three muskmelon varieties including RZ F1, PN 128, and TL3 in greenhouses over three months. The substrate was incubated for one month before use and contained 45% spent mushroom substrate, 30% manure, 7.7% rice husks, 1.5% phosphorus, 0.2% commercial Trichoderma (Tribac), 0.1% rice bran, 15% sand, and 0.5% micronutrients and water. Following incubation, the substrate had optimal pH for the growth of muskmelon and the concentration of nutrients and beneficial microorganisms had increased significantly. The growth of RZ F1 and TL3 cultivars was significantly better than PN 128 in terms of growth, fruit quality, and yield. Specifically, RZ F1 and TL3 species took 78 days and 75 days to complete their life cycle produced 1.76 kg and 1.62 kg of fruit, had a pericarp thickness of 4.0 cm, and possessed 14.20o Brix and 14.88o Brix of soluble solid content, respectively. These findings suggest that agricultural by-products, such as spent mushroom substrate, could be a valuable resource for the culture of muskmelons in Vietnam

Effect Of Promotion On Customers’ Trust Organic Food In The Mekong Delta

The customer’s trust is seen as a key for the survival to any enterprises wanting to maintain sustainably in the competitive market at present time. Enterprises need to experience ceaseless efforts to gain their customer’s trust. In addition, the quality of the product, there are many other factors contributing to build and strengthen the trust of consumers. This study is to determine factors of marketing activities which have impacts on the trust of organic food in The Mekong Delta. The study was conducted with two promotion tools (advertisement and PR), surveyed 300 subjects in the Mekong Delta region, Vietnam. Descriptive statistics, EFA analysis and MLR regression analysis were used to find the advertisement and PR’s impact on the customer’s trust. The analysis results showed, form of public relations, the usefulness of public relations activities, the quality of information from public relations activities have great impacts on customers’ trust. This means that when the customer feels good about the above-mentioned factors, the higher the trust they have on the product. Based on the results, the author proposed solutions to gain greater trusts from customers. For instance, it is necessary to have a careful study on target customers’ psychology, preferences and habits when they approach advertising media and their perceptions of the frequency of advertising. The enterprises need to provide advertising information in a full and honest manner. They should develop PR programs that focus on usefulness for the target audience and the community

Effects of hormone and fertilizers on early flower induction of Dendrobium anosmum hybrid seedlings under ex vitro condition

Early flowering of new orchids is important to save time for selecting valuable flowers and artificial induction of flowering is a critical consideration in the orchid production industry. In this study, a new Dendrobium anosmum hybrid was generated by cross-breeding between D. anosmum ‘Chau Nhu’ and D. anosmum ‘Di Linh’. The ancestors and hybrid seedlings from in-vitro culture were trained in the net house and their growth and flowering were evaluated under ex vivo conditions with specific fertilizers and hormones. The results suggest that the hybrid plants grew better than their parents in terms of stem height, stem diameter, and leaf number. Growth hormones were applied to stimulate early flowering in matured hybrids and it was discovered that ‘Keiki pro’, a commercial hormone product, produced the best results, with a flowering rate of 66.67% after two applications. Hybrid flowers varied in width from 36.36% (3.0-6.0 cm) to 63.64 % (more than 6.0 cm) from ancestral width in medium-sized and large-sized flowers, respectively. Also, the hybrid flower colours was mostly a combination of pink/violet (75C) and purple/pink (68A), which is different from their parents. Importantly, the dorsal sepal, petal colours, and shape of hybrid flowers varied significantly among individual hybrids, between hybrids and their progenitors. Some mutations in the lips and columns of the novel hybrid flowers were also visualized. Hence, the D. anosmum hybrid seedlings successfully induced flowers after a year of culture under optimal hormones and fertilizers conditions. The results can serve as a critical reference for the early flowering of the orchid seedlings

Ownership Concentration and Accounting Conservatism: The Moderating Role of Board Independence

The purpose of this study is to examine the moderating effect of board independence on the relationship between ownership concentration and accounting conservatism. Using fixed-effect regressions for a sample of 165 Vietnamese listed companies from 2007 to 2017, the results revealed that the proportion of outstanding shares owned by the largest shareholder is negatively associated with accounting conservatism and board independence plays a moderating role in this relationship. Our results are robust after applying alternative measures of the largest ownership and correcting for potential endogeneity using fixed-effects regression with instrumental variables. Overall, our evidence shows that firms with concentrated ownership should keep a high non-executive ratio to maintain accounting conservatism. In other words, increasing the number of non-executive directors on boards in firms with a substantial proportion of shares held by the largest shareholder is likely to strengthen the information environment, giving financial reporting more credibility.JEL Classification: G30; G32. Doi: 10.28991/ESJ-2023-07-01-07 Full Text: PD

PHÁT TRIỂN DU LỊCH CHĂM SÓC SỨC KHỎE TẠI TỈNH THỪA THIÊN HUẾ: GÓC NHÌN TỪ KHÁCH DU LỊCH

Wellness tourism has been around for a long time, and in the context of the pandemic, it has emerged as a new global tourism trend. Vietnam in general, and Thua Thien Hue in particular, have a lot of promise, but there aren't any specific products or services to help boost wellness tourism. Based on liturature review, the study focuses on estimating the necessity of wellness services/activities that should be available in Hue based on six major groups of: (1) physical; (2) mind and body; (3) spiritual and self-connected; (4) personal growth; (5) nature-oriented; and (6) social activities. Using a questionnaire survey method with 200 tourists who are knowledgeable about wellness, a number of activities such as visiting natural landscapes, cycling, walking, spending time experiencing with family/friends, reading books, spending time for yourself, bathing in hot springs... were rated as highly necessary. Simultaneously, the results demonstrate that different groups of tourists have varied perspectives based on demographic criterion. Some orientations and proposals for developing wellness tourism products in Thua Thien Hue province are offered through 6 main solutions on primary groups of activities.Du lịch chăm sóc sức khỏe đã xuất hiện từ lâu và trong bối cảnh dịch bệnh đã trở thành một xu hướng mới của du lịch thế giới. Việt Nam nói chung và Thừa Thiên Huế nói riêng có rất nhiều tiềm năng nhưng chưa có sản phẩm dịch vụ cụ thể để phát triển du lịch chăm sóc sức khỏe. Dựa trên tổng quan lý thuyết, nghiên cứu tập trung xác định mức độ cần thiết của các dịch vụ/ hoạt động CSSK nên có ở Huế trên cơ sở 6 nhóm hoạt động chính về: (1) thể chất; (2) tâm trí và cơ thể; (3) tâm linh và kết nối bản thân; (4) cảm xúc cá nhân; (5) thiên nhiên và (6) xã hội. Sử dụng phương pháp điều tra bằng bảng hỏi với 200 khách du lịch có hiểu biết về chăm sóc sức khỏe, một số hoạt động được đánh giá ở mức độ cần thiết cao như: tham quan các cảnh quan thiên nhiên, đạp xe, đi bộ, dành thời gian trải nghiệm cùng gia đình/bạn bè, đọc sách, dành thời gian cho bản thân, tắm suối khoáng nóng… Đồng thời, kết quả cũng cho thấy sự khác biệt trong ý kiến đánh giá của các nhóm du khách theo một số đặc điểm nhân khẩu học. Từ đó, bài viết đề xuất 6 nhóm giải pháp về phát triển sản phẩm du lịch chăm sóc sức khỏe tại tỉnh Thừa Thiên Huế

Approximation solution for steel concrete beam accounting high-order shear deformation using trigonometric-series

Steel concrete beams have a reasonable structure in terms of using material and high load carrying capacity. This paper deals with an approximate solution based on a trigonometric series for the static of steel concrete beams. The displacement field is based on the higher-order theory using Reddy’s hypothesis. The governing equations are derived from variation principles. An approximate solution based on the representation of displacement fields by trigonometric series is developed to solve the static problem of steel concrete beams. In order to verify the accuracy of the present approximate solution, numerical results are compared with those of exact solutions using classical beam theory. The displacements and nominal stress distributions in the depth direction are obtained with various high of beams. The present approximate approach can accurately predict the displacements and stresses of steel concrete beams

Approximation solution for steel concrete beam accounting high-order shear deformation using trigonometric-series

Steel concrete beams have a reasonable structure in terms of using material and high load carrying capacity. This paper deals with an approximate solution based on a trigonometric series for the static of steel concrete beams. The displacement field is based on the higher-order theory using Reddy’s hypothesis. The governing equations are derived from variation principles. An approximate solution based on the representation of displacement fields by trigonometric series is developed to solve the static problem of steel concrete beams. In order to verify the accuracy of the present approximate solution, numerical results are compared with those of exact solutions using classical beam theory. The displacements and nominal stress distributions in the depth direction are obtained with various high of beams. The present approximate approach can accurately predict the displacements and stresses of steel concrete beams

The influence of human genetic variation on early transcriptional responses and protective immunity following immunization with Rotarix vaccine in infants in Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam : a study protocol for an open single-arm interventional trial [awaiting peer review]

Background: Rotavirus (RoV) remains the leading cause of acute gastroenteritis in infants and children aged under five years in both high- and low-middle-income countries (LMICs). In LMICs, RoV infections are associated with substantial mortality. Two RoV vaccines (Rotarix and Rotateq) are widely available for use in infants, both of which have been shown to be highly efficacious in Europe and North America. However, for unknown reasons, these RoV vaccines have markedly lower efficacy in LMICs. We hypothesize that poor RoV vaccine efficacy across in certain regions may be associated with genetic heritability or gene expression in the human host. Methods/design: We designed an open-label single-arm interventional trial with the Rotarix RoV vaccine to identify genetic and transcriptomic markers associated with generating a protective immune response against RoV. Overall, 1,000 infants will be recruited prior to Expanded Program on Immunization (EPI) vaccinations at two months of age and vaccinated with oral Rotarix vaccine at two and three months, after which the infants will be followed-up for diarrheal disease until 18 months of age. Blood sampling for genetics, transcriptomics, and immunological analysis will be conducted before each Rotarix vaccination, 2-3 days post-vaccination, and at each follow-up visit (i.e. 6, 12 and 18 months of age). Stool samples will be collected during each diarrheal episode to identify RoV infection. The primary outcome will be Rotarix vaccine failure events (i.e. symptomatic RoV infection despite vaccination), secondary outcomes will be antibody responses and genotypic characterization of the infection virus in Rotarix failure events. Discussion: This study will be the largest and best powered study of its kind to be conducted to date in infants, and will be critical for our understanding of RoV immunity, human genetics in the Vietnam population, and mechanisms determining RoV vaccine-mediated protection. Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov, ID: NCT03587389. Registered on 16 July 2018