Why stop animal testing

Vingroup said recently it is no longer the parent company of GeneStory without mentioning how much stake it sold. The country’s biggest private company established GeneStory in March this year with a charter capital of VND102.3 billion (US$4.4 million), of which it accounted for 99 percent. According to GeneStory’s website, its CEO is Nguyen Duc Long, who is also the chief technology officer of the Vingroup Big Data Institute. It aims to provide "fast and comprehensive genetic testing services based on a large Vietnamese dataset, exclusively for Vietnamese people." It charges VND6.45-9.75 million ($278-420) for a test. … [Read more...] about Vingroup divests stake in genetic testing company

Beautiful Vietnam , a collection of anime drawings depicting well-known Vietnamese landmarks by artist Nguyen Quang Thinh, has captivated netizens across the country thanks to its creative take on various landmarks. As anime, a specific genre of Japanese animation derived from manga comics, grows in popularity on the world stage, more and more artists from around the globe are producing works in the style. Thinh is one of these artists, and the detail in his anime-inspired depictions of notable Vietnamese landmarks is stunning netizens from across the country. An anime depiction of Linh Quy Phap An Pagoda by Vietnamese artist Nguyen Quang Thinh. Photo: Supplied Throughout his nine years as a creative professional, Thinh has wondered what an animated Vietnam would look like. Seven years ago, he decided to find out. His first piece was a sketch of Linh Quy Phap An Pagoda, commonly known as the 'Gate of Heaven.' He shared the drawing with a design group on … [Read more...] about Artist wows netizens with anime illustrations of Vietnam’s famous landmarks

Cat Linh - Ha Dong metro train Specifically, the metro train abruptly stopped at 10 a.m. on May 23 while it was on the way heading to Cat Linh station, making passengers concerned. Right after dozens of seconds, the train re-operated to arrive Cat Linh station. It was reported that the incident was caused by operation regulations. As the regulations, the metro train will operate in automatic driving mode. However, under the rainy condition along with the slipped-rail line, the metro train system will automatically stop at inappropriate terminal and be switched to manual mode. The time for switching takes dozens of seconds. Earlier, at night of December 7, 2021, the Cat Linh - Ha Dong metro train had also stopped suddenly for 30 minutes. The representative of Hanoi Metro explained that it was a sudden drill that the Department of Transport of Hanoi imposed during the operation and exploitation. By staff writers- Translated by Huyen Huong … [Read more...] about Cat Linh – Ha Dong metro train stopped abruptly due to rain

Cat Linh - Ha Dong metro train Specifically, the metro train abruptly stopped at 10 a.m. on May 23 while it was on the way heading to Cat Linh station, making passengers concerned. Right after dozens of seconds, the train re-operated to arrive Cat Linh station. It was reported that the incident was caused by operation regulations. As the regulations, the metro train will operate in automatic driving mode. However, under the rainy condition along with the slipped-rail line, the metro train system will automatically stop at inappropriate terminal and be switched to manual mode. The time for switching takes dozens of seconds. Earlier, at night of December 7, 2021, the Cat Linh - Ha Dong metro train had also stopped suddenly for 30 minutes. The representative of Hanoi Metro explained that it was a sudden drill that the Department of Transport of Hanoi imposed during the operation and exploitation. By staff writers- Translated by Huyen Huong … [Read more...] about Cat Linh – Ha Dong metro train stops abruptly due to rain

Residents wearing face masks walk on streets in Bangkok, Thailand. (Photo: VNA) Bangkok (VNA) – Thailand will allow nightclubs and karaoke bars to resume regular hours starting next month, ending most of its remaining pandemic restriction s as daily infection declines, according to the Centre for COVID-19 Situation Administration (CCSA). Entertainment venues such as bars, pubs, karaoke clubs and other services may open until midnight after June, but these facilities should take a universal preventive approach, the CCSA said in an announcement on May 20. It said that their staff must have received booster shots and taken antigen tests every seven days. Starting on June 1, Thailand will also drop a requirement for unvaccinated travelers to quarantine. They will have to either take a test on arrival or show a negative COVID-19 test before departure. Thailand's nightlife is a major attraction for tourists, but most entertainment venues have been shut down or faced a … [Read more...] about Thailand to lift COVID-19 curbs on nightlife from June

The 90-minute closing ceremony of the 31st Southeast Asian Games ís a warm farewell from the host country to regional friends. SEA Games 31 officially came to a close at the My Dinh Indoor Athletics Arena in Nam Tu Liem District, Hanoi on May 23. Participants in the ceremony are Vietnam's Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Nguyen Van Hung, Hanoi Mayor Chu Ngoc Anh and the Deputy Prime Minister of Cambodia, H.E Samdech Pichey Sena Tea Banh, among others. While the opening ceremony featured mass performances and spectacular visual effects, the closing is a more cozy and friendly kind of event, with the motto “Coming together to shine”. Vietnamese singers perform a medley of songs about Hanoi with the performances of 100 dancers, kicking off the closing ceremony of the 31st SEA Games. On the stage is a parade of cyclos while in the background are the … [Read more...] about SEA Games 31 closing ceremony: the warmest and dearest farewell from Vietnam

Tran Duc Phan, head of the Vietnamese sports delegation at SEA Games 31, said Monday that the most impressive thing about the event this year was the support of the people. "Stadiums were chock-full of people. Many stadiums couldn’t allow more people in as they were overloaded. There were matches at the Thien Truong Stadium in Nam Dinh where so many people showed up even for foreign matches that they had to stop letting people in. We were very surprised to see so many people coming. Sport has truly become a part of the Vietnamese people’s life," he said at a press meet. He also commented on the "surprising" fact that while Vietnam only aimed to get 140 gold medals, they won 205, breaking the previous record of 194 held by Indonesia in 1997. "Many athletes shone when they entered the Games... Vietnam’s advantage was to be able to fight on our own turf, backed with our audience. Many fans came to watch and cheer on the athletes, including parents and family members from faraway … [Read more...] about People’s support X-factor in Vietnam’s SEA Games success

Retail prices of petrol in Vietnam rose by nearly VND700 to more than VND30,000/litre on May 23, setting a new record in the domestic petrol market. Vietnam's petrol prices rise to an all-time high over almost 10 years. Illustrative photo by Dantri The latest price adjustments unveiled by the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) and the Ministry of Finance saw common petrol RON95-III reach VND30,657 per litre, marking a VND669 increase compared to the previous adjustments 12 days ago. Similarly, petrol E5RON92 also rose VND674 to be capped at VND29,633 per litre. Meanwhile, diesel was traded at VND25,553 per litre, representing a decline of VND1,097. The price of kerosene stood at VND24,450 per litre, down nearly VND763, and mazut was also adjusted down by VND962 to VND20,598 per kg. Following the latest price changes, the two ministries decided to stop using the petrol price stabilisation fund to subsidise prices of E5RON92 and RON95. However, they … [Read more...] about Retail petrol prices keep rising, set new record

Shrimp-rice fields grown to organic standards in Bac Lieu Province. — VNA/VNS Bac Lieu (VNS/VNA) - The Mekong Delta province of Bac Lieu is expanding the use of organic fertilisers in rice cultivation to improve farmer’s incomes and protect the environment. In the last winter-spring rice crop, Phuoc Long district’s Bureau of Agriculture and Rural Development launched a pilot programme for increasing the use of organic fertilisers and reducing the use of chemicals on a total area of 110ha, with 60 farmers involved. Pham Van Cau, one of the farmers, said: “The prices of inputs, especially fertilisers, have shot up, and so the use of organic fertilisers helps farmers reduce costs while rice plants still have high yields and quality.” He grew 2ha of Dai Thom 8, a speciality rice variety, and got nearly 10 tonnes per hectare, and earned more than 300 million VND (13,000 USD), he said. Organic fertilisers cost less than chemical fertilisers, and farmers in fact can … [Read more...] about Bac Lieu expands growing rice to organic standards

Traveling duo Dang Duc Tuan and Vo Minh Tan planted more than 500 trees during their 110-day journey through all 63 cities and provinces in Vietnam, hoping their seedlings will help a new culture of environmental awareness take root across the country. Travel lovers in Vietnam often talk about cross-country motorbike journeys, but few have time to make the trip. When COVID-19 brought the country to a standstill earlier this year, Tuan and Tan, both 29 years old, decided to take a break from their office jobs in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam and Phnom Penh, Cambodia, respectively, to make the life-changing trip. Hoping to share their mantra – 'If you love Vietnam, love its environment, too' – the two men launched A Little Vietnam, their personal initiative to spread public awareness of responsible tourism. Tan and Tuan came up with the idea for a cross-country environmental awareness journey after social media users praised a video they made in Dak Lak Province, in which … [Read more...] about Traveling duo plant hope for ‘greener’ Vietnam