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The present study investigated the effect of computer- and mobile-mediated shadowing on Iranian impulsive and reflective English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners' speaking ability. To collect the data, 100 intermediate participants, whose proficiency level was measured by administering Oxford Quick Placement Test (OQPT), took the pretest of speaking. A personality type questionnaire was also used to detect the learners' impulsivity or reflectivity. There were four experimental groups including 1) computer (Prezi) + shadowing + impulsive learners; 2) computer (Prezi) + shadowing + reflective learners; 3) mobile (WhatsApp) + shadowing +impulsive learners; and 4) mobile (WhatsApp) + shadowing + reflective learners. Then, the posttest was administered. After the descriptive and inferential analyses of the pre- and posttests, significant improvement was observed among the four experimental groups' speaking ability. However, reflective learners were shown to outperform the impulsive learners in both computer and mobile-mediated shadowing groups. The results can be beneficial to English language learners, teachers, teacher trainers, as well as material developers.

This study aimed to investigate the effects of audio podcast retelling vs. corpus-based vocabulary learning on vocabulary knowledge development of Iranian English language learners. To conduct the study, 60 homogenous students were selected as the participants. They were divided randomly into three groups, two experimental groups and one control group, each consisted of 20 students. The participants then took part in the pretest. The first experimental group was treated via teaching vocabulary through podcasts, and the second one was treated via teaching vocabulary through corpus examples. Finally, all the participants took part in the posttest. The results of the data analysis showed that the participants in the corpus-based learning group significantly outperformed the participants in the podcast group. The results of this study could be

Abstract Atmospheric oxygen levels are traditionally viewed to have been relatively stable throughout Earth’s history with several-step increases. Emerging evidence, however, suggests extremely dynamic atmospheric oxygen levels through large swaths of Earth’s history. Here, we provide a new perspective on atmospheric oxygen evolution using a dynamical analysis to explore the relative importance of previously proposed feedbacks on the global oxygen and carbon cycles. Our results from a stochastic analysis of oxygen mass balance in this framework suggest there are multiple steady states for atmospheric oxygen, but only three stable states. One stable state under anoxic conditions (

Dental practices such as oral, periodontal and endodontic surgeries cause damages to"nthe intraoral tissues, so having knowledge of the dental procedures that necessiciate endocarditis prophylaxis"nis of high importance."nPurpose: The aim of the present study was to determine the knowledge level of dental senior students in"nTehran dental faculties about endocarditis,"nMaterials and Methods: In this cross- sectional descriptive- analytic study, 253 senior students of four"ndentistry faculties in Tehran took part as follows: Tehran University: 71 students (M:42, F:29), Shahid"nBeheshti University: 74 students (M:40, F:34), Shahed University: 35 students (M:35, F:38), Azad University:"n73 students (M:35, F:38). The questionnaire used in this research consisted of three parts as follows: part one:"ninformation on cardiac diseases, part two: dental procedures requiring endocarditis prophylaxis, part three:"nantibiotic diet in endocarditis prophylaxis. Sex and place of education of the students were also studied in"ndetail. For statistical analysis, Chi-square test was used."nResults: On the basis of the sex, the correct answers of the female respondents of different universities were"nranked as: Azad University: 72.5%, Tehran University: 71.1%, Shahid Beheshti: 57%, ShahedUniversity:"n55.7%. In the same way, the male respondents were reported as: Tehran Universitys: 71.6%, Azad University:"n66.2%, Shahed University: 57.3%, Shahid Behesti University: 52.1%, On the basis of the place of education,"nthe following results were reported: Tehran University students managed to answer 71.3% , Azad University,"nShahed University and Shahid Beheshti University students could answer 69.5%, 56.5% and 54.6%,"nrespectively. All these differences were statistically significant, indicating that first ranked students have more"ninformation than the students of other schools."nConclusion: It is recommended to develop more practical training programme in dental schools on cardiac"ndiseases, dental procedures requiring endocarditis prophylaxis and antibiotic diets.

BackgroundLimbic-predominant age-related TDP-43 encephalopathy neuropathologic change (LATE-NC) is a clinicopathological construct proposed to facilitate studying TDP-43 pathology in older individuals.ObjectiveOur aim was to describe clinical and cognitive characteristics of LATE-NC without Alzheimer's disease neuropathologic change (ADNC) and Lewy body (LB) and to compare this with ADNC and primary age related tauopathy (PART).MethodsIn 364 autopsies of the oldest old of The 90+ Study, we identified those with LATE-NC without ADNC and LB. Control groups were participants with ADNC and PART.ResultsOf 31% of participants who had LATE-NC, only 5 (1.4%) had LATE-NC without ADNC and LB, all of whom had tau. These participants had a gradual and progressive cognitive decline. Four (80%) had dementia at death, a rate that was higher than ADNC (50%) and PART (21.7%). Mean duration of cognitive impairment was twice as long in LATE-NC without ADNC and LB (6.2 years) compared to ADNC (2.9 years) and PART (3 years). LATE-NC without ADNC and LB group had a higher prevalence of syncope, depression, and extrapyramidal signs than the ADNC and PART groups.ConclusionsDespite the high prevalence of LATE-NC, LATE-NC without ADNC and LB was rare in this large oldest-old cohort, highlighting the very high prevalence of multiple pathologic changes in the oldest old. Slowly progressive cognitive decline, ubiquitous memory impairment, history of syncope and depression, and extrapyramidal signs were prominent features among our LATE-NC without ADNC and LB group.

The present study investigated the effect of computer- and mobile-mediated shadowing on Iranian impulsive and reflective English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners' speaking ability. To collect the data, 100 intermediate participants, whose proficiency level was measured by administering Oxford Quick Placement Test (OQPT), took the pretest of speaking. A personality type questionnaire was also used to detect the learners' impulsivity or reflectivity. There were four experimental groups including 1) computer (Prezi) + shadowing + impulsive learners; 2) computer (Prezi) + shadowing + reflective learners; 3) mobile (WhatsApp) + shadowing + impulsive learners; and 4) mobile (WhatsApp) + shadowing + reflective learners. Then, the posttest was administered. After the descriptive and inferential analyses of the pre- and posttests, significant improvement was observed among the four experimental groups' speaking ability. However, reflective learners were shown to outperform the impulsive learners in both computer and mobile-mediated shadowing groups. The results can be beneficial to English language learners, teachers, teacher trainers, as well as material developers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study has been an attempt to investigate the impact of cooperative tasks on the lexical development of Iranian intermediate EFL learners. Sixty male and female students, who had scored homogeneously in a teacher-made proficiency test, participated in this study. Both the control and the experimental groups participated in a multiple-choice pre-test of vocabulary. After undergoing a course of eight sessions, through which the experimental group was taught through the use of cooperative tasks and the control group through the use of traditional techniques, both groups took part in a vocabulary post-test. The data analysis revealed a significant difference between the performances of the two groups, with the experimental group outperforming the other.

Minimizing anthropogenic climate disruption in the coming century will likely require carbon dioxide removal (CDR) from Earth’s atmosphere in addition to deep and rapid cuts to greenhouse gas emissions. Ocean alkalinity enhancement—the modification of surface ocean chemistry to drive marine uptake of atmospheric CO _2 —is seen as a potentially significant component of ocean-based CDR portfolios. However, there has been limited mechanistic exploration of the large-scale CDR potential of mineral-based ocean alkalinity enhancement, potential bottlenecks in alkalinity release, and the biophysical impacts of alkaline mineral feedstocks on marine ecology and the marine biological carbon pump. Here we a series of biogeochemical models to evaluate the gross CDR potential and environmental impacts of ocean alkalinity enhancement using solid mineral feedstocks. We find that natural alkalinity sources—basalt and olivine—lead to very low CDR efficiency while strongly perturbing marine food quality and fecal pellet production by marine zooplankton. Artificial alkalinity sources—the synthetic metal oxides MgO and CaO—are potentially capable of significant CDR with reduced environmental impact, but their deployment at scale faces major challenges associated with substrate limitation and process CO _2 emissions during feedstock production. Taken together, our results highlight distinct challenges for ocean alkalinity enhancement as a CDR strategy and indicate that mineral-based ocean alkalinity enhancement should be pursued with caution.

In this research, the potential applicability of fullerene (C60), boron nitride cage (B12N12), and (Al/Si)-doped fullerene as an efficient sensing substance for the detection of dacarbazine (DAC) has been explored using density functional theory. The adsorption of DAC on nanocages surface was evaluated by using adsorption energy, quantum theory of atoms in molecule, natural bond orbital (NBO), and frontier molecular orbital (FMOs) analysis. The Al-doped BNNCs exhibit the greatest adsorption energy, while the C60 clusters have the least. B12N11Si and C60 cannot be suitable adsorbents for potential sensor due to the positive free energy. The DAC drug molecule prefers to be adsorbed on boron nitride cage with the aid of its carbonyl group and nitrogen head with an adsorption energy of about − 27.4171 and − 14.3520 kcal/mol, respectively. The large reduction of the HOMO–LUMO gaps of the B12N12 and AlB11N12 after the adsorption of drug reflects not only good selectivity but also easy recovery of the sensor, which suggests them as suitable sensors for DAC detection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The isotopic composition of sulfate in the rock record has been frequently used to track the changes in the Earth's surface environments. By considering isotopic fractionation imparted by microbial sulfate reduction (MSR) and thermochemical sulfate reduction (TSR), in this study, we aim to develop a holistic understanding of the mixed effects of MSR and TSR on δ34S signals in sulfate‐rich carbonate systems. We report the occurrence of various types of sulfur‐bearing components from the Cambrian‐Ordovician carbonate system in the Tarim Basin, NW China, coupled with a well‐established diagenesis framework for these rocks. Our results indicate that most of the sulfur‐bearing species possess δ34S values slightly lower than both the source sulfate and the sulfide generated by TSR, yet these sulfur‐bearing species have substantially higher δ34S values than sulfide that resulted from MSR. Hence, a combination of sulfides sourced from MSR and TSR can adequately explain the sulfur isotope data in the studied interval. Building upon this hypothesis, we developed a new sulfur diagenesis model in order to quantify the accumulated H2S from the combined effects of MSR and TSR. Our new model can be used to explain the origin of sulfur‐bearing species in many other deep burial carbonate systems, including the Sichuan Basin, China, and the Gulf of Mexico, USA. We propose that greater attention should be paid to isotopic modulation through mixed diagenetic processes in order to gain a better mechanistic understanding of the primary geochemistry signals (e.g., δ34S) in marine carbonates.

Introduction: Migraine is a common disorder which can be seen in approximately 18% of women. The highest prevalence of this disorder has been reported vastly in the women of age between 18 and 49, when they are in the menstrual period and this is supposed to be associated with the same. Aim: To study the menstrual disorders in women with and without migraine. Materials and Methods: A case-control study was conducted with total population of 175 women (Jan 2018-Feb 2019), diagnosed with migraine, using International Headache Society criteria. Age and sex-matched control group was included in the present study. A semi-structured questionnaire about migraine and migraine-related disabilities, menstrual and headache history was conducted. All results were evaluated by SPSS version 22.0 statistical software; Independent t-test and to investigate the relationship between quantitative variables, Spearman’s correlation coefficient was used. Results: In case group, 25.6% of women had menstrual cycle 38 days, which was significantly more than control group. The proportion of women with period lasting

The present investigation describes the evaluation of feasibility of MWCNT-Fe3O4 nanocomposite toward adsorptive removal of Co(II) and Pb(II) from aqueous solution in batch mode. The Fe3O4–MWCNT hybrid was prepared using a simple one-pot strategy via in situ growth of Fe3O4 magnetic nanoparticles onto the surface of the MWCNTs. The Fe3O4–MWCNT hybrid was characterized by X-ray diffractometry and Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FESEM). A Response Surface Methodology (RSM) with a Central Composite Design (CCD) was employed to evaluate the effects of solution pH, contact time, temperature, initial heavy metal concentration and adsorbent dosage on the removal efficiency of the heavy metals. Results of analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed that the initial metal concentration and absorbent dosage and their interaction effect were the most significant parameters for Co(II) ion removal. Adsorbent dosage, pH and initial metal concentration had significant influences on the removal efficiency of Pb(II) ions. The optimum pH, time, temperature, initial concentration of metals and adsorbent dosage were found to be 6.5,25 min, 40 °C, 35 mg/L, and 48.3 mg/50mL, respectively. Maximum removal of Pb(II) and Co(II) in optimum condition was 90.2 and 79.34% respectively. Results indicated that nanocomposite can be used as an effective adsorbent for effluent decontamination especially in Pb–Co bearing wastewaters. The equilibrium data were well fitted by the Langmuir model. The removal mechanism of metal ions followed adsorption and ion exchange processes.

This paper, based on the presented indices by the theory of smart growth of the city tries to assess the comprehensive plans in Iran and monitor the level of attunement of these documents (as the most important document of the city development by the view of smart growth). The method of research, is analytical – comparative, The method of research, is analytical – comparative, and based on the obtained inferential statistics from data analysis of three periods of comprehensive plans in Mashhad, and their integration with the evaluation method of multi-criteria and hierarchical AHP. The results show that among the four selected indicators, from the ten indicators of smart growth, the importance of "strong and direct development towards existing communities", According to the current conditions and needs of the urban population in Iran, is dramatically higher than the other indicators. As its reason, it can be referred to this case that by using development towards existing communities, it may achieve other components including preserving open lands, mixed use and compact construction. Also according to the coefficients of the importance of the reviewed indices, it was found that planning period of Mehrazan comprehensive planning, in the time period of 1970-1990, in total has been more consistent and aligned with the indices of the smart growth.