Downscaling over Vietnam using the stretched-grid CCAM: verification of the mean and interannual variability of rainfall

Rainfall over Vietnam is highly variable from north to south, due to the interaction of the monsoonal winds with the terrain. There is high rainfall from April to September, and little rainfall from October to March (except along the central Vietnam coast). In order to study the ability of the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation stretched-grid Conformal Cubic Atmospheric Model (CCAM) to capture the climatic and interannual variability of rainfall, downscaled simulations at approximately 20 km horizontal resolution over the region were produced for the period 1979–2001. A scale-selective digital filter was used to force the winds, temperature and sea-level pressure from the ERA-Interim reanalysis for length scales greater than about 700 km. For wind and temperature, the forcing is applied for pressure-sigma levels above about 0.9. ERA-Interim sea surface temperatures were used over the oceans. The simulations were primarily validated against the gridded Asian Precipitation Highly Resolved Observational Data Integration Toward Evaluation of the Water Resources rainfall dataset and station observations using standard statistical methods. It was found that CCAM reproduces well the amount and spatial variability of rainfall, with an area-averaged bias for the entire study domain of less than 1 mm day^?1; CCAM is also able to capture the rainfall pattern under different El Niño Southern Oscillation phases reasonably well for the dry season. For interannual variability, the simulation generally performed better for North and Central Vietnam than for South Vietnam, where rainfall variability was overestimated.     

Transformation of Fish Corrals in Nha Phu Lagoon,Vietnam: livelihood changes and implications

ABSTRACT

Coastal fisheries in Nha Phu lagoon, Vietnam, have encountered dramatic transformation in recent decades. Socio-economic and environmental impacts are examined through the case of fish corrals. The intensification and expansion of fish corrals has helped some households to enhance their income and livelihood assets. Technological and access-related changes associated with this transformation have also resulted in lower incomes, and even pushed poorer households into indebtedness by undermining their livelihood assets. The privatisation of common pool resources has also led to marginalisation of the poor, increasing inequality in access to natural resources and social differentiation, as not all households are able to benefit from the technological changes taking place, while access to natural resources is increasingly concentrated among the wealthier households who are driving this process. A range of measures are needed to alleviate poverty and promote more diverse sustainable livelihood development in fishing communities around the lagoon.     

Assessing the contribution of electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) and self-potential (SP) methods for a water well drilling program in fractured/karstified limestones

ERT and SP investigations were conducted in carbonate rocks of the Dinant Synclinorium (Walloon Region of Belgium) to find suitable locations for new water wells in zones with little hydrogeological data. Since boreholes information needed to be representative of the area, large fractured zones were searched for the drillings. Large ERT profiles (320 to 640 m) allowed us to image the resistivity distribution of the first 60 m of the subsurface and to detect and characterize (in terms of direction, width and depth) fractured zones expected to be less resistive. Data errors, depth of investigation (DOI) indexes and sensitivity models were analyzed in order to avoid a misinterpretation of the resulting images. Self-potential measurements were performed along electrical profiles to complement our electrical results. Some negative anomalies possibly related to preferential flow pathways were detected. A drilling campaign was conducted according to geophysical results. ‘Ground truth’ geological data as well as pumping tests information gave us a way to assess the contribution of geophysics to a drilling program. We noticed that all the wells placed in low resistivity zones associated with SP anomalies provide very high yields and inversely, wells drilled in resistive zones or outside SP anomalies are limited in terms of capacity. An apparent coupling coefficient between SP signals and differences in hydraulic heads was also estimated in order to image the water table.     

Phytoremediation of heavy metal‐contaminated water and sediment by Eleocharis acicularis

Phytoremediation is an environmental remediation technique that takes advantage of plant physiology and metabolism. The unique property of heavy metal hyperaccumulation by the macrophyte Eleocharis acicularis is of great significance in the phytoremediation of water and sediments contaminated by heavy metals at mine sites. In this study, a field cultivation experiment was performed to examine the applicability of E. acicularis to the remediation of water contaminated by heavy metals. The highest concentrations of heavy metals in the shoots of E. acicularis were 20 200 mg Cu/kg, 14 200 mg Zn/kg, 1740 mg As/kg, 894 mg Pb/kg, and 239 mg Cd/kg. The concentrations of Cu, Zn, As, Cd, and Pb in the shoots correlate with their concentrations in the soil in a log‐linear fashion. The bioconcentration factor for these elements decreases log‐linearly with increasing concentration in the soil. The results indicate the ability of E. acicularis to hyperaccumulate Cu, Zn, As, and Cd under natural conditions, making it a good candidate species for the phytoremediation of water contaminated by heavy metals.     

The international developmental state: The Japanese intellectual property system in Vietnam

This article explores the international implications of the developmental state model of Japanese capitalism. It does so by investigating the extension of Japanese intellectual property (IP) policy and practice in Vietnam. The escalating role of intellectual property within Japanese industrial policy is first framed according to Johnson’s developmental state thesis and extended in reference to the ‘flying geese’ model of regional development in East Asia. This latter approach anticipates Vietnam’s growing importance as a site for Japanese foreign direct investment and technology transfer. Interviews with key informants from both countries and analysis of policy documents provide evidence of the extra-territorial practices employed by Japanese companies, government agencies, and IP intermediaries in Vietnam. These accounts bring to light key developmental mechanisms, such as the packaging of IP internationalization within Japan’s official development assistance (ODA) and the overseas pro-bono work performed by IP intermediary associations in which the line between benevolence and self-interest is blurred. The paper concludes by interpreting these practices in accordance with the broader strategic imperatives of Japan in the region.     

Formation of H2 and CH4 by weathering of olivine at temperatures between 30 and 70°C

Hydrocarbons such as CH4 are known to be formed through the Fischer-Tropsch or Sabatier type reactions in hydrothermal systems usually at temperatures above 100°C. Weathering of olivine is sometimes suggested to account for abiotic formation of CH4 through its redox lowering and water splitting properties. Knowledge about the CH4 and H2 formation processes at low temperatures is important for the research about the origin and cause of early Earth and Martian CH4 and for CO2 sequestration. We have conducted a series of low temperature, long-term weathering experiments in which we have tested the CH4 and H2 formation potential of forsteritic olivine.The results show low temperature CH4 production that is probably influenced by chromite and magnetite as catalysts. Extensive analyses of a potential CH4 source trapped in the crystal structure of the olivine showed no signs of incorporated CH4. Also, the available sources of organic carbon were not enough to support the total amount of CH4 detected in our experiments. There was also a linear relationship between silica release into solution and the net CH4 accumulation into the incubation bottle headspaces suggesting that CH4 formation under these conditions could be a qualitative indicator of olivine dissolution.It is likely that minerals such as magnetite, chromite and other metal-rich minerals found on the olivine surface catalyze the formation of CH4, because of the low temperature of the system. This may expand the range of environments plausible for abiotic CH4 formation both on Earth and on other terrestrial bodies.     

Sea urchin development in a global change hotspot, potential for southerly migration of thermotolerant propagules

The distribution of the sea urchin Heliocidaris erythrogramma coincides with the southeast Australia global change hot spot where marine ecosystems are warming significantly due to changes in ocean circulation. To address questions on future vulnerabilities, the thermotolerance of the planktonic life phase of H. erythrogramma was investigated in the climate and regionally relevant setting of projected near-future (2100) ocean warming. Experimental treatments ranged from 18 to 26 °C, with 26 °C representing +3-4 °C above recent ambient sea-surface temperatures. Developmental success across all stages (gastrula, 24 h; larva, 72 h; juvenile, 120 h) decreased with increasing temperature. Development was tolerant to a +1-2 °C increase above ambient, but significant deleterious effects were evident at +3-4 °C. However, larvae that developed through the early bottleneck of normal development at 26 °C metamorphosed successfully. The inverse relationship between temperature and planktonic larval duration (PLD) was seen in a 25% decrease in the PLD of H. erythrogramma at 24 and 26^oC. Ocean warming may be advantageous to a subset of larvae through early settlement and reduction of the vulnerable planktonic period. This positive effect of temperature may help buffer the negative effects of ocean warming. In parallel studies with progeny derived from northern (Coffs Harbour) and southern (Sydney) H. erythrogramma, northern embryos had significantly higher thermotolerance. This provides the possibility that H. erythrogramma populations might keep up with a warming world through poleward migration of thermotolerant propagules, facilitated by the strong southward flow of the East Australian Current. It is uncertain whether H. erythrogramma populations at the northern range of this species, with no source of immigrants, will have the capacity to persist in a warm ocean. Due to its extensive latitudinal distribution, its potential developmental thermotolerance and independence of its lecithotrophic larvae from exogenous food and the need to make a functional skeleton, H. erythrogramma may be particularly robust to ocean change.     

水电项目对越南硒圣河地区社会经济发展及环境保护的影响

硒圣河是湄公河的主要分支之一,其集水区地形条件和水资源量均对水电开发十分有利。此外,无论从物种多样性还是生物量来看,硒圣河水生生物资源非常丰富。鱼类是当地人们的重要食物来源,粗略估计鱼类物种数量可能在200-300种之间,目前具有详细记录的鱼类大约为120种。截至目前,从越南境内硒圣河上游至越-柬边界总共开发了6个水电项目,兴建了一座4A级硒圣调蓄水库。流经柬埔寨的硒圣河部分,依据发展规划将兴建3座水电站,即硒圣5号电站（硒圣1号电站以下）、硒圣3号电站、硒圣2号电站。硒圣河水电项目对区域（越南和柬埔寨）社会经济的影响体现在：为地处偏远和困难的集水区创造了新的能源资源,改善了交通系统和农村地区的生活条件。与此同时,这些水电项目也对该区域自然环境产生了重大影响。例如,改变了下游流动机理变化,导致下游河道淤积,对沿河生态系统也产生了一定影响。     

A coupled damage–plasticity model for concrete based on thermodynamic principles: Part I: model formulation and parameter identification

The development of a coupled damage‐plasticity constitutive model for concrete is presented. Emphasis is put on thermodynamic admissibility, rigour and consistency both in the formulation of the model, and in the identification of model parameters based on experimental tests. The key feature of the thermodynamic framework used in this study is that all behaviour of the model can be derived from two specified energy potentials, following procedures established beforehand. Based on this framework, a constitutive model featuring full coupling between damage and plasticity in both tension and compression is developed. Tensile and compressive responses of the material are captured using two separate damage criteria, and a yield criterion with a multiple hardening rule. A crucial part of this study is the identification of model parameters, with these all being shown to be identifiable and computable based on standard tests on concrete. Behaviour of the model is assessed against experimental data on concrete. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

SOME PRELIMINARY RESULTS FROM STUDY OF CRUSTAL DEFORMATION IN VIETNAM

1　IntroductionOneofthemaintasksinstudyinggeodynamicprocessisevaluatingtherateofearthcrustmove ments.Normally ,themethodsforstudyingearthcrustmovementareestablishedonthebasisoftheobjectofstudyandtherequirementsfortheresultstobeobtainedasfollows.1 )Tostudythemovingprocessofcrustplatesinalargeareaandwithinacertaintectonicperiod ,geologicmethodsareusuallyused .2 )Geodeticmeasurementsarecarriedoutinanareacoveringfromsomekm2 totensofkm2 andal lowtodeterminethedisplacementoftheearthcrustwithinaperio…