mohammad alavi

Estimating crop evapotranspiration (ETc) in arid and semi-arid areas can be difficult due to the dynamic nature of this process across both time and space. In addition, obtaining on-site measurements for this variable can be very time-consuming and costly. This study aimed to develop a framework that accurately estimates the sugarcane crop evapotranspiration on a spatio-temporal scale. This was achieved using four machine learning (ML) algorithms (MLR, CART, SVR, and GBRT) combined with remote sensing (RS) data and meteorological variables. Also, to reduce the dependence on several meteorological parameters in conventional ETc equations, the performance of eight different experimental temperature-based methods and four modified Hargreaves & Samani equations was evaluated compared to the standard FAO-Penman-Monteith method. For this purpose, weather data were collected from Hakim Farabi Sugarcane Agro-Industrial meteorological station for three years (2018-2021). Nine combinations of input variables (RS data and meteorological variables) were designed based on the IGR method and then evaluated by the ML algorithms. The results showed that the highest accuracy of ML algorithms based on R2, RMSE, and MAE statistics was obtained in CART (0.99, 0.41, and 0.18) and GBRT algorithms (0.99, 0.65, and 0.26), respectively. Regarding temperature-based methods, Ivanov’s equation had the best performance with an R2 of 0.91, while Baier and Robertson’s equation had the weakest performance with an R2 of 0.78 when estimating ETc. Overall, the combination of RS and ML algorithms effectively produced more precise and reliable ETc values on both temporal and spatial scales.

Skin wounds are frequently encountered in heifers because of management practices that use bloody interventions, or owing to lesions caused by unsound installations or fights for establishment of herd hierarchy and lead to the development of myiasis with potential economic losses. Plants derived extracts increase healing and tissue regeneration through multiple connected mechanisms and have synergistic effect on the overall wound healing efficiency. Thyme and common thistle active compounds derived extracts have significant effects for proper wound remedy. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of common thistle and thyme derived extracts on Holstein heifer’s cutaneous skin lesions by second intention.

Experimental:

 The twenty Holstein heifers by average age, 15 months and average weight of 250±50 kg were selected to evaluate cutaneous lesions healing after treatment with common thistle and thyme derived extracts. Experimental wound excision model in heifers was created by means of a skin punch of 2cm diameter. The heifers were topically treated for 17 days with a saline control or decoctions of mixed with common thistle and thyme derived extracts with carboxymethyl cellulose. The centripetal retraction, clinical, and histological aspects of the wounds were observed until complete healing.

The phototherapeutics agent presents in thyme improved cicatrization of cutaneous lesions in cattle skin during the first days of treatment. The treatments were beneficial to the reparation process. The phytotherapeutics agent present in thyme and common thistle derived extracts exhibited positive effects in the inflammatory phase and on the reparation process. The herbal extract exhibited a positive effect on the macroscopic aspect of cutaneous lesions in cattle only during the first treatment days.

Recommended applications/industries:

 Both thyme and common thistle extracts improved fibroplasia. Phytotherapeutic activity of thyme was the most superior, and they may be used in topical treatment of cutaneous lesions in Holstein heifers.

Asthma is one of the most prevalent chronic respiratory diseases which has become more prevalent over the past three decades. Seroflo and Seretide are inhalers that contain fluticasone (an anti-inflammatory corticosteroid) and salmeterol (a long-acting bronchodilator). This study aimed to compare the effects of Seroflo and Seretide nasal sprays on spirometry criteria and clinical symptoms in pediatric patients with moderate to severe asthma.

A retrospective study was performed using the medical records of 42 patients aged 6-15 years with a history of moderate-to-severe persistent asthma who were treated with Seroflo (group A)and Seretide (group B) inhalers in Shahid Motahari Hospital (affiliated with Urmia University of Medical Sciences). Data, including age, gender, clinical symptoms (coughs and shortness of breath), and spirometry variables were documented in pre-made checklists. Data analysis was carried out in SPSS V22.

Changes in PEF and FEV1 (parameters of treatment responses) were statistically significant in both groups (P<0.05), but no significant differences were observed in these parameters between the two groups (P>0.05). In this study, treatment with Seroflo caused more significant relief in clinical symptoms, including coughs, intermittent shortness of breath, daily attacks, and wheezing compared to Seretide after one and three months of treatment (P<0.05).

This study suggested that Seroflo and Seretide inhalers improved the spirometry indices to a similar degree, but treatment with Seroflo relieved the patients’ clinical symptoms more than Seretide.

The importance and role of human resources in achieving the goals of organizations has caused many efforts to be made in the last few decades in common management to design employee empowerment models, despite the need for the existence of empowerment models derived from the teachings of the Holy Quran. As well as the many discussions and conversations that have taken place in this field among seminary and university theorists, unfortunately, there is still less attention paid to how to train and empower human resources and the factors that affect the Quranic fruitfulness. The purpose of the present research; presenting and explaining the model of factors affecting the empowerment of human resources from the perspective of the Quran means extracting its concepts and components from the teachings of the Holy Quran. This goal has been pursued using the research method “Data-based Theory”. Therefore, the data of the present research; based on this method, were coded in three stages (open, central and selective coding). The research findings were the identification of 254 concepts, 24 components and 3 dimensions. The findings of the research indicate the achievement of a model of empowerment, which has three factors (individual, organizational and environmental) effective on the empowerment of human resources, individual factors; including tact and foresight; diligence and perseverance; knowledge and skills, etc., organizational factors include: meritocracy; delegation of authority and respect and appreciation, etc., environmental factors include: organizational culture and values; the existence of behavioral patterns; the economic status of the organization; The cultural-social situation of the organization and the political-security situation of the organization

Writing is thought as the most complicated skill in second language acquisition; therefore, L2 researchers have always been in pursuit of discovering an effective approach to improve it. One of the most debated ways is feedback which has a key role in improving the quality of writing. Much of the previous research on feedback has focused on analyzing different types of feedback and their effect on the learners’ writings and few studies have examined the effectiveness of computer feedback. Therefore, the present study was conducted to 1) determine what aspects of students’ writings receive computer feedback, 2) examine the difference in the effect of computer-generatedfeedback (CBF) and Teacher-based feedback (TBF) on improving the students’ writing quality and 3) compare the differences in Depth of Processing (DOP) in processing computer and teacher feedback. The results indicated that content, style and organization of their essays received feedback from the teacher and the computer. Teacher feedback was more effective in terms of its impact on improving the quality of the writing of the students than computer-generatedfeedback and it resulted in deeper processing of lexical items, whereas computer-generated feedback invoked medium processing on grammar.

Due to low efficiency of fertilizer use, nitrogen fertilizers result in environmental problems. Therefore, use of soil amendments such as zeolite becomes important. The aims of this study were to investigate the influence of size (mm and μm) and usage (20 and 60 grams per kilogram of soil) of natural zeolite of clinoptilolite (Cp) and surfactant-modified zeolite (SMZ) on soil nitrate and ammonium leaching and on wheat plant performance using soil columns and applying wastewater for irrigation at Greenhouse of Isfahan University of Technology in 2015-2016. The experiment was factorial with completely randomized design with three replications for each treatment. The results showed that these amendments simultaneously improved wheat plant growth and increased the amount of nitrogen uptake by plants. So that, the concentration of nitrogen of the grain and nitrogen harvested by the plant in Cp receptor columns were significantly (1.45 and 2.49%) higher than SMZ receptor columns. Also, with the increasing level of modifier usage, the amount of nitrate-nitrogen in the output decreased significantly (at 5% level). Still, the type of modifier had no significant effect on the amount of leached nitrogen.

This study aimed to compare the preventive effect of local infiltration of magnesium sulfate and bupivacaine on postoperative pain in lumbar fusion surgery under general anesthesia.

In a double-blind clinical trial study, 60 candidates for lumbar fusion surgery during 2018-19 in Alzahra hospital, Isfahan, Iran, were randomly divided into three groups. In the first group, magnesium sulfate, in the second group, bupivacaine, and in the third group, normal saline was infiltrated at surgery site. The severity of the pain, the amount of morphine received, and hemodynamic data were recorded and compared before and after operation, immediately after surgery, every 15 minutes until the end of recovery, and 1, 2, 6, 12, 18, and 24 hours after recovery.

The mean pain severity was not significantly different in the preoperative groups at 12, 18, and 24 hours after the test; but, at 2, 6, and 8 hours after the operation, the pain severity was significantly less in magnesium sulfate group compared to the other two groups. The median morphine obtained in 24 hours after surgery was significantly less, and the first time to receive morphine was in magnesium sulfate group more in magnesium sulfate group compared to the other two groups.

It seems that infusion of magnesium sulfate at the site of fusion surgery has been associated with prolongation of the first time to receive morphine by patients, reducing the amount of morphine received, and pain intensity up to 24 hours after surgery.

Bleeding during surgery is one of the most common surgical complications. In this study, we decided to determine the effect of Tranexamic Acid (TA) in reducing blood loss in patients undergoing spinal surgeries.

In this clinical trial, 100 patients undergoing spinal surgeries were randomly divided into two groups. One group received TA and the other was selected as the control group. Patients in the treatment group received 1 gram of intravenous TA and another 250 milligram intravenously, one hour after the beginning of the surgery. Bleeding during the surgery, in the first 24 hours and the first 48 hours were recorded separately. The need for transfusion and its volume, as well as the hospital stay length were compared in the two groups. 

Bleeding during surgery in TA group was significantly lower than that in the control group (433 ml vs. 522 ml respectively, P=0.009). Also, during the first 24 hours after surgery, bleeding in TA group was significantly less than that in the control group (P=0.011). During the second 24 hours after surgery, bleeding was similar between the two groups (P=0.112). The values of hemoglobin in both groups slowly decreased and the trend of decrease was not significantly different between them (P=0.154).

In spinal surgeries, TA administration in the beginning of the process reduces surgical bleeding during surgery and in the first 24 hours after surgery. Considering the possible complications, TA administration is suggested for patients with hemoglobin less than 12 g/dl. Future studies are needed to conclude the advantages and disadvantages of TA administration in spinal surgeries.

This study aimed to compare the effect of Clexane injection with bondage and bondage only in the prevention of deep vein thrombosis in patients undergoing instrumented spinal surgery. In a clinical trial study, 300 patients under instrumented spinal surgery were selected and randomly divided into two equal groups. In the first group, bondage was used with injection of 1 mg/kg Clexane daily until patient’s ambulatory, and in the second group, bondage was used only. All patients were followed up for 14 days, and the incidence of deep vein thrombosis was determined and compared between the two groups. Findings: 4 patients suffered from deep vein thrombosis, 3 of them (2.0%) were in the control group and 1 (0.7%) in the treatment group (bondage and Clexane); but the incidence of deep vein thrombosis was not significantly different between the two groups (P = 0.620). The mean volume of bleeding was significantly higher in patients receiving Clexane (203.4 ± 8.3 ml) than control groups (163.0 ± 7.7 ml) (P < 0.001). There was no significant difference between the two groups of bondage alone and bondage and Clexane in preventing deep vein thrombosis. On the other hand, there is still no study to prove the definitive effect of this drug in preventing deep vein thrombosis and thromboembolism. Therefore, more studies are recommended to be done with larger sample sizes in order to determine the effect of Clexane in preventing deep vein thrombosis

Due to shortage of water, use of wastewater for irrigation is becoming more important. Also, using natural and non-toxic materials that increase fertilizer application efficiency and decrease nitrate leaching has gained increasing attention. The aims of this study were to investigate the effect of two sizes for particles, i.e. 1-1.68 mm and 53-63 μm, and two application rates (20 and 60 grams per kilogram of soil) of natural zeolite of clinoptilolite (Cp) and surfactant-modified zeolite (SMZ) on soil nitrate and ammonium leaching and wheat plant performance under irrigation by treated urban wastewater. The experiment was conducted in 2015-16 growing season. The experimental soils were placed in Polyethylene columns with 11 cm inner diameter and 65 cm height. The treatments were factorial combination of the variables in completely randomized design with three replications. The results showed that the total amount of released NO3-N from columns modified by SMZ and CP were 32% and 21% lower as compared to the control treatment. Also, these amendments improved wheat plant growth. There was no significant effect on nitrate leaching due to the particle size of the two soil amendments. CP and SMZ amendments are eco-friendly materials and results of the study showed that they were effective in controlling soil nitrate leaching and improving wheat plant growth.

Of paramount importance in the study of cognitive diagnostic assessment (CDA) is the absence of tests developed for small-scale diagnostic purposes. Currently, much of the research carried out has been mainly on large-scale tests, e.g., TOEFL, MELAB, IELTS, etc. Even so, formative language assessment with a focus on informing instruction and engaging in identification of student’s strengths and weaknesses to guide instruction has not been conducted in the Iranian English language learning context. In an attempt to respond to the call for developing diagnostic tests, this study explored developing a cognitive diagnostic reading comprehension test for CDA purposes. To achieve this, initially, a list of reading attributes was prepared based on the literature and then the attributes were used to construct 20 reading comprehension items. Then seven content raters were asked to identify the attributes of each item of the test. To obtain quantitative data for Q-matrix construction, the test battery was administered to 1986 students of a General English Language Course at the University of Tehran, Iran. In addition, 13 students were recruited to participate in think-aloud verbal protocols. On the basis of the overall agreement of the content raters’ judgements concerning the choices of attributes and results of think-aloud verbal protocol analysis, a Q-matrix that specified the relationships between test items and target attributes was developed. Finally, to examine the CDA of the test, the Fusion Model, a type of cognitive diagnostic model (CDM), was used for diagnosing the participant's strengths and weaknesses. Results suggest that nine major reading attributes are involved in these reading comprehension test items. The results obtained from such cognitive diagnostic analyses could be beneficial for both teachers and curriculum developers to prepare instructional materials that target specific weaknesses and inform them of the more problematic areas to focus on in class in order to plan for better instruction.

When constructing a test, an initial decision is choosing an appropriate item response format which can be classified as selected or constructed. In large-scale tests where time and finance are of concern, the use of response chosen known as multiple-choice items is quite widespread. This study aimed at investigating the impact of response format on the performance of structure tests. Concurrent common item equating design was used to compare multiple-choice items with their constructed response stem-equivalent in a test of grammar. The Rasch model was employed to compare item difficulties, fit statistics, ability estimates and reliabilities of the two tests. Two independent sample t-tests were also conducted to investigate whether the differences among the item difficulty estimates and ability estimates of the two tests were statistically significant. A statistically significant difference was observed in item difficulties. However, no significant difference was detected between the ability estimates, fit statistics, and reliabilities of the two tests.

 Dill “Anethum graveolens” is an annual medical plantin the celery family “Apiaceae”. It is the sole species of the genus “Anethum”.The health advantages of dill seed include its ability to increasedigestive health, as well as providingrelief from insomnia, hiccups, diarrhea, dysentery, menstrual disorders, respiratory disorders, and cancer. This experiment aimed to determine the effects of using different levels of Dill seeds on performance, some blood biochemical parameters and intestinal microbial population in Ross 308 broiler chicks.  300 one-day-old male broiler chickswere divided into the four treatments with six replicates and 15 birds each as randomized design. The treatments contained basal diet with no Dill seeds kept as control, and200,400 and 600 gof Dill seedsper each ton of diets respectively. The live bodyweightsgain, feed intake and feed conversion ratio of birdswere calculated weekly. At the end of the experimentfour male birdsform each replicates were slaughtered and dressing percentage were calculated. In addition, some carcass traits and chick’s visceral partwere weighed separately as percentage of carcass and some organs weight. Data indicated that using Dill seeds increased feed intake (FI) in treatmentscompared to control.Alsobody weight (BW) (g/d) and Pre-slaughter weight (g) were higher in groups that werefed by dill seedscompared to the control. Additionally, therewere significant differences (p<0.05) for feed conversation ratio (FCR) among treatments. In conclusion, increasing levels of Dill seeds improved performance and some blood biochemical parametersof broilers chicks.

Driving violations among motorcyclists is one of the main issues in traffic incidence. Research shows that their insecure driving plays an important role in driving accidents.

The present study utilizes the theory of planned behavior and the normative view to investigate some of the social factors and attitudes of motorcyclists' driving violations. This research is a survey that interviewed 473 motorcyclists over 18 years of age using a multi-stage cluster sampling method.

The results showed that the tendencies of abusive behavior, subjective norm and perceived behavioral control (behavioral sense of control) had a significant effect on the intent and purpose of motorcyclists for driving violations. The effect of behavioral intent, procedural justice, and the sense of obligation to comply with traffic laws is also high on driving violations. In sum, the results of regression analysis show that the variables of behavioral intention and behavioral control feelings related to the theory of planned behavior and the variables of procedural justice and the sense of necessity in following the traffic rules related to the normative view of 35% of the changes in driving offenses by motorcyclists are explained.

The prevailing pattern of classroom interaction is a tripartite exchange structure known as IRF (teacher initiation, student response, teacher follow-up/feedback; Sinclair & Coulthard, 1975). Although it has its own contributions to classroom discourse, it has been criticized on several grounds, particularly for affording minimum learner participation opportunities (Kasper, 2001). An alternative practice has been promoting learner initiation and agency through moving out-of-IRF. However, when the form of interaction is teacher-fronted, IRF becomes the centerpiece and moving out of it tends to be difficult. This paper aims at exploring first what learners need to take initiatives and exercise agency in teacher-fronted interaction, and second how teachers can play a facilitative role in this process. Conversation analytic study of an EFL teacher’s naturally-occurring interaction with learners during a homework review activity demonstrates how the teacher’s extended wait-time practice affords a learner the interactional space needed to initiate a question and voice her locus of trouble. Moreover, the teacher's consistent extended wait-time practice after the learner’s initiation functions as an invitation bid for other learners to orient to the trouble and successfully negotiate it in their learner-learner interaction. Extracts of this study portray learners’ management to drive their own learning.

Prompt diagnosis and treatment of latent tuberculosis (TB) infection (LTBI) are needed to control TB. The aim of the study was to compare the performance of Quanti FERON-TB test (QFT) with conventional TST for the diagnosis of LTBI.
In this analytical - comparison study, we enrolled 87 nurses working in teaching hospitals in Ahvaz. All study subjects were tested by TST. TST results were interpreted as positive if induration was more than 10 mm. If the level of QFT after stimulation was equal or greater than 0.35 IU/ml, test was considered as positive. Data were analyzed with SPSS program. QFT results compared with induration in TST and its relation to all variables were investigated.
The rate of LTB diagnosis by TST and QFT was 31% and 35.6%, respectively. There was no significant difference between TST and QFT in LTB diagnosis (P=0.62). Among the 56 subjects who were TST- negative, 14 cases (approximately 25%) were QFT- positive and 42 (75%) were QFT- negative. Among the 31 cases (35.6%) that had TST- positive, 13 (42%) were QFT-positive and 18 (58%) were QFT- negative. The overall percent agreement was 63.2% (k=0.139, P=0.69), discordance %=15.9-20.7, sensitivity= 41.5% and specificity=75.5%.
Diagnostic value of QFT is similar to TST, when there is strong clinical and epidemiological evidence of LTB in a nurse with negative TST, adding QFT to diagnostic evaluation is associated with increased rate of LTB diagnosis.

Although infectious diseases are the most common sources for the fever of unknown origin (FUO), but the spectrum of infectious diseases is changing overtime. The purpose of the study was to define the clinical spectrum and changing the pattern of FUO. This existing data based study was undertaken from 2007 to 2011. One hundred-six patients fulfilling the modified criteria for FUO referred in a teaching hospital in Ahvaz were enrolled for analysis. The data extracted from the patient''s medical files and etiologic agents caused FUO to be assessed. Infections were the most common cause of FUO in 48.4% of the patients. Among the infections, the most important causes of FUO were represented by extra-pulmonary tuberculosis 15 (31.9%), osteomyelitis 10 (21.3%) and abdominal abscesses 6 (12.8%). The pattern of FUO in the region is thought to be changed to extra pulmonary TB and osteomyelitis. Tuberculosis is still the leading cause of FUO in our region.

community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) is a life-threatening disease in patients with diabetes mellitus (DM). DM is associated with an increased susceptibility to infection and increased morbidity and mortality. The aim of the present study was to provide information on clinical, laboratory and radiological characteristics and the outcome of CAP in patients with DM. Subjects and During a two years period (2009-2010), we studied the clinical, laboratory and radiological characteristics, the spectrum of causative agents and the outcomes of 264 cases of CAP. Data derived from 42 patients with DM were analyzed and compared with data obtained from the remaining CAP patients. Patients with DM were significantly older (P=0.02) and were more frequently associated with other co morbid conditions such as cardiac failure and hypertension (P<0.0001). Fever (P<0.0001) and dyspnea (P=0.03) were more frequent in DM patients. Lobar consolidation, bilateral infiltration and plural effusion were the most common imaging findings in chest radiography. Pleural effusion (P=0.002) and lobar consolidation ((P=0.02) were more frequently found in DM patients. By contrast, the incidence of the main etiologic agents such as S.pneumoniae (P<0.0001`) and K. pneumoniae (P=0.001) among DM patients showed significant differences in relation to the remaining patients. In the subgroup of patients with DM, mortality was significantly higher than no-diabetics (P=0.03). In patients with CAP, DM is associated with a different clinical, laboratory and radiological characteristics, and with higher rate of cardiovascular complication such as congestive heart failure and hypertension, increasing the rate of mortality

Introduction and Today methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and methicillin-resistant coagulase negative Staphylococci (MRCNS) are frequent causes of nosocomial infection. Extensive burn injuries, extended hospitalization and inappropriate antibiotic therapy have been identified as risk factors for MRSA and MRCNS carriage and infection. The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of methicillin resistance among clinical isolates of Staphylococci taken from burn patients using four separated methods and also determination of susceptibility pattern to amikacin, ciprofloxacin, vancomycin, carbenicillin and gentamicin. A total of 185 clinical staphylococcal isolates from wound and blood specimens were evaluated for susceptibility to oxacillin using oxacillin and cefoxitin disk diffusion method, agar screening containing 6 microgram oxacillin /ml, oxacillin E test and polymerase chain reaction for predicting mecA gene. The results showed that 27.8% of wound and blood specimens were infected by Staphylococci and among these 60% were identified as methicillin resistant. We found no significant differences between the results of PCR assay and conventional disk diffusion method by oxacillin and cefoxitin disk, however the results of cefoxitin disk was more significant than oxacillin and gave better results. Both of the sensitivity and specificity value were similar (99%, 100%) for E test and agar screen test. Furthermore in E test for detection of minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC), more than 93% of MRSA and 15% of MRCNS isolates had MIC value more than 256µg/ml. We also determined a significant difference pattern between methicillin resistant and methicillin susceptible Staphylococci to five antimicrobial agents. In conclusion, our results showed that the prevalence of methicillin resistant Staphylococci in our center was very high and cefoxitin disk test is reliable alternation for detection of methicillin resistant Staphylococci.

In order to improve the aesthetics and functional quality of restorations, the combined amalgam-composite restorations have been introduced. The aim of this study was to compare different reinforcement methods, in weakened buccal walls of premolar teeth.

In this in vitro study, 70 similar and intact premolar teeth were used. The specimens were divided into seven groups of ten. In six groups, the three reinforcing materials composite (A), Compoglass F (B) and glass ionomer (C) with two

I: buccal and distal wall reinforcement. II: buccal, distal and pulpal floor reinforcement was used. In the seventh group (D), the Scotchbond M.P.P adhesive as a control group was applied. Then specimens were restored conventionally with amalgam and submitted to 500 thermal cycles (5°C-55°C). The specimens were loaded through Instron testing machine at a crosshead speed of 1 mm/min with angle of 45 degree. Statistical analyzes of ANOVA, Duncan and chi- square tests were used to analyse fracture strength, location and type of fracture.

The highest strength was detected in group with composite reinforcement on buccal and distal walls and pulpal floor. The highest failure mode was adhesion type and observed in composite reinforcement and control group. The highest cohesive and mixed failure mode was respectively observed in Compoglass and glass ionomer groups.

This study showed that composite resin was the best material for reinforcement of weakened walls with favourable aesthetic property.