The Effects of AI-Enhanced Task-Based Language Teaching on Tenth Graders’ English-Speaking Skills: A Study at a High School

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The integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) into English language teaching has created more opportunities for students to help them enhance their English-speaking skills. The study aimed to investigate the effects of AI-enhanced Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT) on the English-speaking skills of tenth graders and to explore their perceptions of AI-supported task-based speaking activities at a high school in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. A quasi-experimental design was employed involving 79 tenth graders from two classes. The experimental group (n = 40) received AI-enhanced TBLT, while the control group (n = 39) received the standard TBLT throughout a 12-week intervention. A quantitative method was used to collect the data from pre- and post-speaking tests, while qualitative data were collected through a questionnaire and semi-structured interviews. Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. Qualitative data were examined via content analysis. The findings revealed that the experimental group demonstrated greater development in their speaking performance than the control group. Students also expressed their positive and negative perceptions of AI-enhanced task-based speaking activities when they utilized their AI tools in speaking activities. The findings suggested that the integration of AI tools into the TBLT method could enhance students’ English-speaking skills and promote positive learning experiences, despite some challenges in Vietnamese high schools.

Neutron Economy and the Thorium Fuel Cycle in Thorium Molten Salt Reactors: A Systematic Review

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This study investigates neutron economy and the thorium fuel cycle within Thorium Molten Salt Reactors to evaluate their potential for sustainable nuclear energy production. Using a Systematic Literature Review (SLR) methodology, this study synthesized recent research published between 2020 and 2026, while also using selected foundational sources from 1960 onward for core nuclear-theory parameters. Data were analyzed using a qualitative and comparative approach, focusing on thorium-232 conversion pathways, uranium-233 production mechanisms, and neutronic performance parameters. The findings indicate that U-233 is a superior fissile fuel for the thorium cycle, exhibiting a high neutron reproduction factor of 2.28 for thermal neutrons and 2.50 for fast neutrons, which supports efficient fuel breeding. The thorium cycle offers significant environmental and security benefits, including a substantial reduction in long-lived transuranic actinides and enhanced proliferation resistance due to the presence of uranium-232, which emits high-energy gamma radiation. Furthermore, TMSR technology provides inherent safety through a negative temperature coefficient and the ability for online fuel processing to remove gaseous fission products.
Unlike previous review studies, this research integrates neutron economy, U-233 purity, breeding ratio, salt chemistry, and reactor safety into a unified conceptual framework, providing a comprehensive analytical perspective for the evaluation of thorium molten salt reactors. The study concludes that while the thorium-uranium cycle is a highly effective alternative for improving neutron efficiency and long-term sustainability, successful commercial deployment depends on achieving U-233 purity levels of approximately 85%. Additionally, further research is required to address remaining challenges in structural materials, salt redox chemistry control, and fuel reprocessing.

Financial Ratios and Corporate Governance as Determinants of Financial Distress Probability: Evidence from Indonesian Manufacturing Firms

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This study aims to examine the effects of financial ratios and corporate governance on the probability of financial distress among manufacturing companies listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange during the 2020–2025 period. Financial ratios are represented by profitability, liquidity, leverage, and activity ratios, while corporate governance is proxied by the proportion of independent commissioners. This study employed a quantitative research approach using secondary data obtained from the annual financial statements of manufacturing companies listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange. The sample consisted of 900 firm-year observations selected through purposive sampling. Data were analyzed using binary logistic regression to estimate the probability of financial distress. Prior to hypothesis testing, the model was evaluated through multicollinearity testing, overall model fit, Hosmer–Lemeshow goodness-of-fit test, classification accuracy, receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis, and the Nagelkerke R-square coefficient. The results reveal that profitability, measured by Return on Assets (ROA), and activity ratio, measured by Total Asset Turnover (TATO), have a significant negative effect on the probability of financial distress, indicating that firms with higher profitability and more efficient asset utilization are less likely to experience financial distress. Conversely, leverage, measured by the Debt-to-Equity Ratio (DER), has a significant positive effect, suggesting that greater reliance on debt financing increases the likelihood of financial distress. In contrast, liquidity, measured by the Current Ratio (CR), and corporate governance, proxied by the proportion of independent commissioners, do not have a statistically significant effect on financial distress. The findings highlight that profitability, leverage, and asset utilization are key determinants of financial distress, whereas short-term liquidity and board independence are insufficient to explain financial distress among Indonesian manufacturing firms. These findings provide valuable insights for corporate managers, investors, creditors, and policymakers in identifying early warning indicators of financial distress and strengthening corporate financial sustainability.

Selective Iron Suppression through Sulfation, Oxidative Calcination, and pH-Controlled Atmospheric Leaching of a Ferruginous Oxidized Copper Ore

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Iron-rich oxidized copper ores are challenging to treat by atmospheric leaching because iron oxides and oxyhydroxides may consume acid and increase impurity loading in the pregnant leach solution. This study evaluated a three-stage route comprising sulfuric-acid sulfation, oxidative calcination, and pH-controlled atmospheric leaching, with the primary objective of minimizing net Fe transfer rather than maximizing Cu extraction. Six distinct operating conditions were investigated using a ferruginous oxidized copper ore from northern Bahia, Brazil, containing 19.6 wt.% Fe, 5.37 wt.% Al, 1.47 wt.% Mg, 0.524 wt.% Mn, and 1.05 wt.% Cu. Commercial sulfuric-acid solution additions during sulfation ranged from 9.75 to 99.69 kg solution/t dry ore. The sulfated products were calcined through staged temperatures from approximately 250 to 700 °C over 6 h and subsequently leached at approximately 90 °C for 180 min, with final solution pH values of 2.33–2.77. Reconciled Fe transfer remained between 0.026% and 0.340%, corresponding to Fe suppression of 99.66–99.97%. By contrast, Mg, Mn, and Al transfers ranged from 6.39% to 29.78%, 38.14% to 59.98%, and 6.95% to 16.28%, respectively, confirming that Fe suppression did not result from a general inhibition of mineral dissolution. The measured Fe transfers corresponded to calculated stoichiometric acid equivalents of only 0.13–1.76 kg H₂SO₄/t ore, compared with an upper-bound requirement of 516.34 kg H₂SO₄/t ore for complete conversion and dissolution of feed Fe as Fe(III) sulfate. The response is consistent with initial formation of ferric sulfate, basic ferric sulfate, or related Fe-bearing sulfate intermediates, followed by thermal destabilization to poorly soluble Fe(III)-oxide-bearing phases and release of sulfur oxides. Released SO₃ may have promoted sulfate redistribution to neighboring reactive metal–oxygen sites, while controlled-pH leaching was consistent with an additional aqueous Fe-rejection barrier through limited Fe-oxide attack and Fe(III) hydrolysis or reprecipitation. Mg behaved as a persistent sulfate sink, Mn showed redox-sensitive transfer, and Al exhibited intermediate behavior. The route therefore selectively decoupled the large Fe inventory from the final aqueous products. Direct-leaching controls and stage-resolved mineralogical, sulfur-speciation, and off-gas analyses are required to quantify actual acid savings and confirm the proposed mechanism.

Stakeholder Salience and Contested Governance in a Sacred Heritage Tourism: Evidence from Sultan Suriansyah Tomb Complex, Indonesia

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The Sultan Suriansyah Tomb Complex is a well-known religious tourist attraction and cultural heritage site in the city of Banjarmasin, rich in the historical significance of the Banjar Sultanate. However, the mausoleum faces a crisis stemming from a conflict over management between the descendants of the sultan and the local community. Therefore, this study aims to analyze stakeholder involvement in its management. This study employs a descriptive qualitative approach, with data collected through observation, literature review, and in-depth interviews with key informants. The data was then analyzed using NVivo 12 for Windows to identify the typology of the stakeholders. The results indicate that the government level falls under the “definitive stakeholder” typology, the descendants’ group and the local community fall under the “dormant stakeholder” typology, and the City’s Cultural Heritage Expert Team (TACB) falls under the “discretionary stakeholder” typology. However, although the government level holds the highest typology, it cannot make final decisions, so management appears to proceed independently without collaboration among actors. In fact, the City Cultural Heritage Expert Team (TACB) is not involved in making final decisions regarding the management of the Sultan Suriansyah Tomb Complex. Thus, management conflicts do not arise from the absence of stakeholders, but rather from an unbalanced distribution of power, legitimacy, and urgency.

Research Skills and Degree Completion Efficiency: A Diagnosis of the Obstacles to Graduation by Thesis

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The expansion in the number of options for obtaining a professional degree at Mexican universities has not translated into an improvement in students’ scientific output. On the contrary, indicators show a gradual decline in the choice of the thesis over standardized examinations, amid an ongoing debate about the usefulness of degree-qualifying projects given the lengthening of graduation times and the delayed entry into the labor market. This article analyzes the socioeconomic, personal, pedagogical, and methodological problems that students of the Bachelor’s program in Communication and Media at the Universidad Autónoma de Nayarit (UAN) face when developing their thesis. Using a quantitative approach and a descriptive cross-sectional design, a questionnaire was administered to a sample of 78 eighth-semester students. The results reveal a contradiction: although the curriculum includes five consecutive research courses, 71.7% of the student body prefers to graduate through the EGEL-CENEVAL examination because they regard it as a faster process. Meanwhile, the 17.8% who consider writing a thesis face long working hours (91%), a lack of accessible advising (73.1%), and a theory-based form of teaching that does not translate into practical scientific-writing skills. It is concluded that the lag stems from factors related to pedagogical and institutional support; therefore, restructuring the research courses into production-workshop formats is proposed.

Effects of Different Levels of DAP on Agronomical Characteristics and Yield of Mung bean

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Phosphorus deficiency is one of the main factors restricting mung bean (Vigna radiata L.) production in many parts of the world, including Afghanistan. Therefore, a field experiment was carried out in the 2025 growing season at the Research Farm of the Faculty of Agriculture, Kabul University, to determine the influence of different diammonium phosphate (DAP) fertilizer levels on mung bean growth and yield. The experiment was arranged in a randomized complete block design (RCBD) with three replications, consisting of four DAP rates: 0, 30, 60, and 90 kg ha⁻¹. The collected growth and yield data were analyzed using analysis of variance (ANOVA), and mean comparisons were performed using the Least Significant Difference (LSD) test at a 5% probability level. The application of DAP fertilizer significantly improved plant height, shoot dry matter, number of branches, pods per plant, pod length, seeds per pod, and 100-seed weight. However, leaf number, grain weight per square meter, seed yield, and harvest index did not show significant differences among fertilizer treatments, although higher values were generally observed compared with the control treatment. The maximum seed yield (870.83 kg ha⁻¹) was obtained from the application of 60 kg DAP ha⁻¹, while the highest performance for most growth and yield-related traits was recorded under 90 kg DAP ha⁻¹. The findings suggest that DAP fertilizer application enhances mung bean growth and yield performance under the environmental conditions of Kabul. Among the tested fertilizer levels, 60 kg DAP ha⁻¹ was found to be the most effective rate for achieving higher grain yield.

Vietnamese Non-English Majors’ Perceptions of the Impact of ChatGPT on Self-Directed Learning: A Study at a Public College

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ChatGPT has attracted considerable interest from educators and researchers in teaching English as a foreign language; however, there is not much empirical evidence about the effects of ChatGPT on EFL learners’ self-directed learning. The current study explores the impact of ChatGPT on self-directed learning among EFL learners in a Vietnamese public college. A mixed-methods research design was used. Both quantitative and qualitative data were collected through a questionnaire and semi-structured interviews through the participation of 144 non-English majors. Data were analyzed quantitatively through descriptive statistics and qualitatively through thematic analysis. Findings revealed that non-English majors mostly used ChatGPT for self-study, language practice, and answer verification. Furthermore, ChatGPT had a moderate positive effect on self-directed learning among participants, especially in terms of personal responsibility and self-regulation. However, ChatGPT’s role in promoting learner autonomy was rather insignificant. The findings imply that ChatGPT may be efficiently integrated into English learning, provided it is done alongside pedagogical guidance and critical assessment of ChatGPT responses by learners.

Poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) Production from Wastewater: Microbial Pathways, Production Strategies, and Sustainability Perspectives

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The increasing accumulation of petroleum-based plastic waste and wastewater has intensified the need for sustainable waste management and biodegradable alternatives. Poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) (P3HB), a microbial biopolymer, has emerged as a promising substitute for conventional plastics. This article reviews the potential of wastewater as a renewable substrate for P3HB production, with emphasis on microbial pathways, production strategies, and sustainability aspects. It discusses different wastewater sources, P3HB-producing microorganisms, metabolic engineering approaches, production processes, and polymer recovery techniques, highlighting the factors that influence productivity and product quality. The integration of P3HB production into biorefinery systems and its contribution to resource recovery, greenhouse gas mitigation, and the circular bioeconomy are also addressed. Overall, wastewater-based P3HB production represents a sustainable and economically attractive approach for biodegradable polymer production, although further technological advances are required to support large-scale industrial implementation.

German Hazardous Substances Law

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German hazardous substances law serves as a national supplement to the requirements of European hazardous substances legislation. Its specific provisions must be taken into account – alongside European rules – when distributing products within the Federal Republic of Germany. Key German regulatory instruments in this field include the German Chemicals Act, the Ordinance on the Prohibition of Chemicals, the Hazardous Substances Ordinance, and the Technical Rules for Hazardous Substances. Their essential contents are presented and discussed. The national legal hierarchy regarding hazardous substances and the enforcement and compliance monitoring carried out by various stakeholders are also addressed.