Since 2000, the shrimp industry expands at a fast rate in the coastal areas of the Mekong Delta, Vietnam. Shrimp farming is known for its negative impact on the coastal environment. However, other human interventions like agriculture and urbanization also deteriorate the coastal environment. The land cover changes between 1968 and 2003 were determined and analyzed for the Cai Nuoc district, Ca Mau Province, Vietnam, using photos from 1968, 1992 (aerial photographs), 1997/98 (Spot) and 2003 (Landsat). It was clear that the district underwent serious land cover changes: deforestation between 1968 and 1992, with a simultaneous increase in rice land; a rapid decline in rice acreage from 1997 onwards, and, simultaneously, a blitz-increase in shrimp farming area. The forest area declined by 75% between 1968 and 2003. About 40% of this loss could be attributed to shrimp farming, while the remaining 60% was attributed to needs for agricultural land. Still, at present, shrimp farming is the major source of mangrove loss in the district. In 1999 shrimp farms covered 6.374 ha, in 2000 they covered 61.049 ha of the Cai Nuoc area. The swap from rice cultivation to shrimp farming was most-probably driven by households' hopes for a higher income. It must be feared that the shrimp industry will have a negative impact on the environment (e.g. salinization) and on the livelihood of the district's households. In 1968 saline water covered 219.9 km 2 , in 1992, 1997/98 and 2003 the saline surface water area covered 92.4, 135.2 and 835.0 km 2 , respectively.

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New (1-x)Bi 0.5 na 0.5 tio 3 + xcafeo 3-δ solid solution compounds were fabricated using a sol-gel method. the cafeo 3-δ materials were mixed into host Bi 0.5 na 0.5 tio 3 materials to form a solid solution that exhibited similar crystal symmetry to those of Bi 0.5 na 0.5 tio 3 phases. The random distribution of Ca and fe cations in the Bi 0.5 na 0.5 tio 3 crystals resulted in a distorted structure. The optical band gaps decreased from 3.11 eV for the pure Bi 0.5 na 0.5 tio 3 samples to 2.34 eV for the 9 mol% CaFeO 3-δ -modified Bi 0.5 na 0.5 tio 3 samples. Moreover, the Bi 0.5 na 0.5 tio 3 samples exhibited weak photoluminescence because of the intrinsic defects and suppressed photoluminescence with increasing cafeo 3-δ concentration. Experimental and theoretical studies via density functional theory calculations showed that pure Bi 0.5 na 0.5 tio 3 exhibited intrinsic ferromagnetism, which is associated with the possible presence of Bi, Na, and Ti vacancies and Ti 3+ -defect states. Further studies showed that such an induced magnetism by intrinsic defects can also be enhanced effectively with CaFeO 3-δ addition. This study provides a basis for understanding the role of secondary phase as a solid solution in Bi 0.5 na 0.5 tio 3 to facilitate the development of lead-free ferroelectric materials.The integration of room-temperature ferromagnetic behavior in lead-free ferroelectric materials is a new research trend for the development of green functional materials in smart electronic devices 1,2 . PbTiO 3 -based compounds are one of the most commonly used ferroelectric materials in electronic devices 3 . Therefore, ferroelectric PbTiO 3 -based materials with improved magnetic properties have the potential for the fabrication of next-generation electronic devices.First, the self-organized ferromagnetism of pure ferroelectric PbTiO 3 materials was investigated. The experimental results showed that the weak ferromagnetism in undoped PbTiO 3 nanocrystalline at room temperature resulted from intrinsic defects in events such as O and Ti vacancies 4 . PbTiO 3 thin films also exhibited room-temperature ferromagnetism because of defects in the crystal quality of the film during growth 5 . Shimada et al. predicted that both O and Ti vacancies induce ferromagnetism but through different mechanisms. The ferromagnetism driven by O vacancies originated from the spin-polarized e g state of the nearest Ti atom, whereas that directed by Ti vacancies was attributed to the half-metallic p x state of the nearest O atom 6 . In addition, the ferroelectric property of PbTiO 3 materials at room temperature could be attributed to O vacancies formed on the surfaces, such as vacancies induced ferromagnetism due to local non-stoichiometry and orbital symmetry breaking 7 . Xu et al. conducted first-principle calculations and reported that the O vacancies that formed at the domain wall led to magnetism with a localized spin moment around the vacancies 8 . Second, the conversion of transition metals to ferroelectric PbTiO 3 materials was studied...

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ZnO-based varistor samples with a relatively high Sb2O3 to Bi2O3 ratio of 5 were fired at 1200 °C and found to have a high threshold voltage (VT) of 280 V/mm and a low energy-absorption capacity of 50 J/cm3. The introduction of rare-earth oxides (REO) increased the energy-absorption capacity of Pr6O11- and Nd2O3-doped samples to 110 J/cm3 while their threshold voltage (VT) remained slightly above 300 V/mm. Doping with Pr6O11 and Nd2O3 altered the formation of the spinel phase and significantly changed its particle size and distribution which, as a result, had a positive effect on the energy-absorption capacity of the REO-doped samples. Doping with small amounts of Pr6O11 and Nd2O3 appears to be promising for the preparation of ZnO-based varistors with a high breakdown voltage and a high energy absorption capacity.

In Ca Mau, Vietnam, farmers converted from rice to shrimp farming, while ignoring the degradation of the aquatic environment. We assessed the seasonal variations in organic pollution of the surface water and salt intrusion in one district and assessed the difference in chemical characteristics of the surface water of shrimp ponds and canals. Several variables reflecting salinity and organic pollution were measured in the wet and dry season. The results show that in the dry season salinity increased to 37.36-42.73 g l 21 and COD and suspended solids increased to a maximum of 268.7 mg l 21 and 1312.0 mg l 21 , respectively. In the wet season salinity values of 8.16 to 10.60 g l 21 were recorded, indicating that salinity could no longer be washed out completely in this season. It is concluded that salinity and suspended solids in the aquatic environment in the Cai Nuoc district are increased by shrimp monoculture, whereas organic pollution is contributed by human population pressure. Water Environ. Res., 78, 716 (2006).

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