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A radiation shield consists of borated polyethylene (7 % wt of boron) and lead was used for the HPGe detector in Isfahan MNSR's PGNAA facility in order to remove scattered neutrons and gamma rays, respectively. Therefore, the boron peak in gamma spectroscopy is related to both resources in the sample and in the shield, and it has caused a challenge in determination of boron concentration in the samples. In this research, various methods have been investigated to remove the effect of boron in the shield of the detector. For this purpose, Monte Carlo simulations of radiation transportation have been used. The results showed that by covering the detector shield using a cadmium sheet can greatly (99.32 %) reduce the height of the boron peak in prompt gamma spectrum recorded in the detector that come from the shield. The experiments have been done to validate the results obtained from the simulations.

The study of stochastic problems is very important and there is an increasing demand for investigating the behavior of a number of sophisticated dynamical systems in different areas of science as well as in engineering and finance. In this paper, we present a method which is based on the collocation method (CM) and the operational matrix method (OMM) by using Hosoya polynomials (HPs). This mixed-method helps us to convert the stochastic problems into a system of algebraic equations to access a solution of such problems. One of the most important advantages of this method is the simulation of the noise terms at the collocation points. Finally, two types of the VO–SADEs are simulated and tested via the proposed technique to confirm the superiority and accuracy.

The ability of remote sensing (RS) in irrigation scheduling has been accepted in the world due to the collection of data on a large scale and the determination of water stress indicators with greater speed and less cost. Crop Water Stress Index (CWSI) and Water Deficit Index (WDI) are components of the most recognized water stress indices. Despite the accuracy and precision of the CWSI index that has been proven in plant irrigation scheduling, the lack of complete density of vegetation, especially in the early stages of growth, is one of the most important defects of using this method in crop irrigation scheduling. While estimating the water deficit index using remote sensing technology does not have these limitations. An experiment was performed in the crop year 98-99 in the city of Karaj to check the accuracy of this index. The amount of WDI and CWSI in a wheat field with optimized irrigation management was determined and compared and evaluated using statistical parameters. The results showed that the coefficient of explanation between these two indicators in the months of April, May, and June is 0.77, 0.85, and 0.71, respectively.

In this article, the corrosion behavior of stainless steel (SS304) and carbon steel (St37) has been studied using immersion and potentiodynamic polarization methods in the presence of Shewanella RCRI7 bacteria. The results show that the corrosion behavior of SS304 and St37 is affected by passivation and biofilm formation. Based on the results of the immersion test, the corrosion behavior of SS304 has been much affected by passivation and the alloying elements (Cr, Ni, Mn, and Mo) so that the corrosion rate of SS304 decreased by 30% in presence of Shewanella RCRI7 bacteria at the first and fourth day of immersion. The corrosion rate in St37 has been decreased by 38% and 79% on the first and fourth day of immersion respectively, which indicates the impact of the biofilm on corrosion behavior. Potentiodynamic polarization tests show that cathodic reactions are affected by Shewanella RCRI7 bacteria and consequently the corrosion potential (Ecorr) is shifted to more negative potentials (from-360mV to -560mV for SS304 and from -610mV to -690mV for St37).

The irrigation schedule of crops is the most effective way to increase agricultural water use efficiency. In irrigation planning, determining the irrigation time is more important and difficult than determining the depth of irrigation water. Among all methods of determining the irrigation time of crops, the methods which used plants are more accurate than other methods. In this study, the wheat water stress index has been used which is based on the air vapor pressure deficit and the difference between vegetation and air temperature (Tc-Ta). First of all, the diagram and the relationship between the top and bottom baselines were extracted, then the water stress index of wheat was drawn in the Karaj region. Secondly, to determine the optimal water stress index of wheat, four treatments including I1: 30% of maximum allowable depletion of moisture, I2: 45% of maximum allowable depletion of moisture, I3: 60% of maximum allowable depletion of moisture, I4: 75% of maximum allowable depletion of moisture were performed in four replications. The amount of water stress index of each treatment was calculated during the season separately, and the CWSI of the treatment with the highest water use efficiency was used to determine the irrigation time of wheat. The results showed that the relationship between the upper and lower baseline for wheat in the Karaj region is Tc-Ta = 3.6 0c and Tc-Ta = -0.27VPD - 2.64, respectively. The treatment of 45% of maximum allowable depletion of moisture had the highest water use efficiency and the optimal water stress index for wheat was obtained at 0.36 in the Karaj region.

The study of nonlinear oscillators is an important topic in the development of the theory of dynamical systems. In this research, a nonlinear fractional model is introduced, which is called the fractional Van der Pol model. This modified model is derived using the Caputo–Fabrizio operator. Achieving the solution of this model is not easy. Therefore, in this research, an efficient algorithm for solving this fractional model is evaluated. This algorithm is supported by the three-step Adams–Bashforth process. A significant feature of this research is the graphical presentation of achieving limit cycles for various parameters.

Abstract The presence of microplastics in aquatic environments has raised concerns about their abundance and potential hazards to aquatic organisms. This review provides insight into the problem that may be of alarm for freshwater fish. Plastic pollution is not confined to marine ecosystems; freshwater also comprises plastic bits, as the most of plastic fragments enter oceans via rivers. Microplastics (MPs) can be consumed by fish and accumulated due to their size and poor biodegradability. Furthermore, it has the potential to enter the food chain and cause health problems. Evidence of MPs s ingestion has been reported in >150 fish species from both freshwater and marine systems. However, microplastic quantification and toxicity in freshwater ecosystems have been underestimated, ignored, and not reported as much as compared to the marine ecosystem. However, their abundance, influence, and toxicity in freshwater biota are not less than in marine ecosystems. The interaction of MPs with freshwater fish, as well as the risk of human consumption, remains a mystery. Nevertheless, our knowledge of the impacts of MPs on freshwater fish is still very limited. This study detailed the status of the toxicity of MPs in freshwater fish. This review will add to our understanding of the ecotoxicology of microplastics on freshwater fish and give subsequent research directions.

This work adopts to the time-fractional Klein–Gordon equation (FKGE) in the Caputo sense. We present a new technique using the clique polynomial as basis function for the operational matrices to obtain solution of time-FKGE. The key advantage of this technique is converting the time-FKGE to algebraic equations, which can be simply solved the problem under study. For the approximation of a bivariate function using the clique polynomial, an error bound is given. Numerical results derived using the proposed technique are compared with the exact solution. The results show that the proposed technique is very user friendly for solving the time-FKGE and accurate.

Abstract In this research, we study a general class of variable order integro-differential equations (VO-IDEs). We propose a numerical scheme based on the shifted fifth-kind Chebyshev polynomials (SFKCPs). First, in this scheme, we expand the unknown function and its derivatives in terms of the SFKCPs. To carry out the proposed scheme, we calculate the operational matrices depending on the SFKCPs to find an approximate solution of the original problem. These matrices, together with the collocation points, are used to transform the original problem to form a system of linear or nonlinear algebraic equations. We discuss the convergence of the method and then give an estimation of the error. We end by solving numerical tests, which show the high accuracy of our results.

Introduction: In hydrological studies, time series are observed as continuous or discrete. Groundwater level and rainfall can be considered as discrete time series. The most common way to measure the dependence between two variables in a discrete time series is to calculate the Pearson correlation coefficient (r). Pearson correlation test is a parametric test that quantitatively measures the linear relationship between variables. This coefficient is essentially a dimensionless index that describes the relationship between two variables numerically. The groundwater level is more or less influenced by rainfall, and this influence may be delayed for a variety of reasons. The process of comparing two time series in different time steps is called cross-correlation. In the cross-correlation analysis, the time-dependent relationship between the dependent and the independent variables is analyzed by computing the coefficients of cross-correlation for various time lags. Results are plotted on a graph called a cross-correlogram.Mashhad-Chenaran aquifer with an area of about 2527 km2 is the most important aquifer in Khorasan Razavi province. Unfortunately, so far in the Mashhad-Chenaran aquifer, the recharge lag time has not been calculated due to the very complex geological and hydrogeological conditions of the aquifer. In this study, an attempt has been made to calculate the groundwater recharge lag time.Materials and Methods: In this study, 15 years (Sep. 2001 to Sep. 2016) data of monthly depth to water-table and rainfall have been used . There is 74 active observation well in Mashhad-Chenaran aquifer. Out of 74 wells, 31 well were selected based on geological and hydrogeological conditions. To calculate the rainfall at the observation wells, the daily rainfall data from rain gauge and evaporation stations (25 rain gauge stations and 9 evaporator stations) have been used. First, the cumulative daily rainfall at each station for one month (from 15 months to 15 months later) was calculated. Then, a monthly rainfall raster was prepared using ArcGIS.Finally, the rainfall at the observation well was extracted from the raster file.Results and Discussion: The correlation coefficient between the groundwater level and rainfall was calculated for the 31 wells at two confidence levels (α = 0.05 and α = 0.1). The lag time was calculated based on the highest correlation coefficient for the two confidence levels. Results showed that the cross-correlation coefficient varied from at least 0.129 in the Tanglshour-Morgh Pardak observation well (very weak) to 0.495 in the Kalateh Sheikhha observation well (moderate). The coefficients of cross-correlation for various time lags were plotted on the cross-correlogram. In cross-correlogram, the month zero was equivalent to October and the month 11 was equivalent to September of the next year. It was observed that the trend of correlation coefficient followed the two specific patterns. In the first group, the water table usually reacts to rainfall after the second month. Then, the correlation coefficient gradually increased. The correlation coefficient reached its maximum in the fourth and fifth months and then decreased with a gentle slope. From the seventh month to the eleventh month the correlation coefficient has become negative. Although there was a significant relationship during these months, there was no cause-and-effect relationship between changes in the water table and rainfall. In the second group, the relationship between the groundwater level and rainfall was not significant at the 95% confidence level. This group includes Doghai observation wells, Qarachah, Shurcheh, Mochenan, Yekehlengeh, Chamgard, Ghahghahe, Tangleshour - Morgh Pardak, and Shorcheh. Changes in the correlation coefficient of these wells were very irregular and the relationship between rainfall and water table changes was probably influenced by other factors. The map of lag time showed that the spatial variations of the lag time completely followed the pattern of the Iso-depth map. In general, the lag time was a function of the depth to the water-table in the Mashhad-Chenaran aquifer. With increasing water depth, the lag time also increased. A closer look at the map showed that in the northern and southern margins of the first hydrogeological unit, the lag time was more than its center. In the northern and southern hydrogeological units, the lag time showed the greatest compliance with the groundwater depth. The amount of lag time from the northern margin of the aquifer to the south gradually increased and finally reached its maximum value in the Akhlamad, Torqabeh-Shandiz.Conclusion: As discussed previously, the groundwater level was influenced by rainfall, and this influence may be delayed for a variety of reasons. In this study, the groundwater response to rainfall has been estimated from 31 observation wells by cross-correlation method in a period of 15 years (Sep. 2001 to Sep. 2016). The correlation test results showed that after about 2 to 3 months, the effect of rainfall was gradually observed on the groundwater level and the correlation coefficient at the confidence level α = 0.05 and α = 0.1 for 77 % and 97% of wells became meaningful, respectively. The minimum lag time was 2 months and the maximum was 7 months. In general, the estimated lag time was well matched to the groundwater depth and fully followed the Iso-depth map pattern. The amount of groundwater recharge throughout the Mashhad-Chenaran aquifer was mainly controlled by the unsaturated area properties such as thickness, material, etc. Changes in groundwater depth were the major factor affecting the lag time. It seems that with the start of rainfall in late October, groundwater recharge in most wells begin in mid-autumn and continues until late spring. Most of the groundwater recharge takes place in late winter. In summer, rainfall has a very small role in groundwater recharge. In this period, the uncontrolled extraction of water from the aquifer and consequently a sharp and continuous drop in groundwater level plays a major role in water table fluctuations.

Abstract Environmental contamination with heavy metals is a threat to the organisms due to their toxicity, persistence and bioaccumulation in food chains. The study was aimed to assess cadmium (Cd) effect on calcium (Ca) level in bones of a freshwater fish Channa gachua. 42 fish individuals were kept into six (6) aquaria; labelled aq.0, 1, 2, 3,4 and 5 in the laboratory for treatment. Aq.0 was control group and aq.1, 2,3,4,5 were experimental with treatment solution of Cd 0, 0.1ppm, 0.5ppm, 1ppm, 2.5ppm and 5ppm respectively for three months. After exposure, bones tissue were examined for Cd accumulation and Ca concentration. Highest accumulation of Cd were recorded in aq.5 mean 46.86 ± 0.46 mgkg-1 .and lowest in the control group with mean 0.61 ± 0.06 mgkg-1. The order of Cd bioaccumulation in bones were aq.5 > aq.4 >aq.3 > aq.2 > aq.1 > aq.0. Highest concentration of Ca were noted in aq.0 (Control group) mean 7888.06 ± 4827.22 mgkg-1 and lowest were 1132.36 ± 203.73 mgkg-1 in aq.5 (at 5.0 ppm). Generally a pattern of decreasing Ca level were observed with each rise of Cd bioaccumulation aq.0 > aq.1 > aq.2 > aq.3 > aq.4 > aq.5. Current study indicated that Cd accumulation have substantial effect on Ca level in bones and hence on skeleton system. Strict rules must be implemented by government to control metals pollution and exploitations of biota.

This paper demonstrates an enhancement of power quality in grid integrated systems with the help of the proposed control strategy for voltage source converter based active power filters. The Shunt Active Power filters (SAPF) are extensively utilized in modern grid integrated systems to diminish the power quality concerns associated with it. The SAPF is one of the various power filters, which has better dynamic performance. The SAPF requires an accurate control strategy that provides robust performance under source and loads unbalance conditions. The proposed control scheme is responsible for generating the gate signals to activate the operation of Voltage Source Converter (VSC) based Active Power Filter. Thus, the performance of mitigation of harmonics of source current principally depends on the adopted algorithm. The present paper represents a performance study of a control scheme to mitigate power quality issues in the grid integrated system. The proposed system is modelled and simulated in MATLAB-Simulink in Simpower system block set.

Abstract The current paper is about the investigation of a new integral transform introduced recently by Jafari. Specifically, we explore the applicability of this integral transform on Atangana–Baleanu derivative and the associated fractional integral. It is shown that by applying specific conditions on this integral transform, other integral transforms are deduced. We provide examples to reinforce the applicability of this new integral transform.

Abstract In this paper, a Lie symmetry method is used for the nonlinear generalized Camassa–Holm equation and as a result reduction of the order and computing the conservation laws are presented. Furthermore, μ-symmetry and μ-conservation laws of the generalized Camassa–Holm equation are obtained.

Background: Zataria multiflora Boiss. (Avishan-e Shirazi), as an Iranian endemic plant, belongs to the Lamiaceae family and may be used as a food preservative. This study aimed to detect potential genotoxic effects of Z. multiflora extract. Methods: Hydro-alcoholic extract of Z. multiflora was prepared. Human B lymphocytes were treated with 1% extract within 3 and 24 h. Sterile Phosphate Buffered Saline (PBS) and cisplatin were used as negative and positive controls, respectively. DNA damage profiles were examined using comet assay (Single Cell Gel Electrophoresis). Data were statistically analyzed by SPSS software v. 21. Results: No statistically significant (p=0.071) DNA damage was observed in B lymphocytes treated with either Z. multiflora extract or PBS after 3 and 24 h. However, there was a statistically significant difference (p=0.0001) between DNA damage in B lymphocytes that treated with cisplatin and Z. multiflora after 3 and 24 h. Conclusion: The comet assay used in the current study showed that Z. multiflora had no genotoxic effect. DOI: 10.18502/jfqhc.8.1.5463

Abstract The main aim presented in this article is to provide an efficient transferred Legendre pseudospectral method for solving pantograph delay differential equations. At the first step, we transform the problem into a continuous-time optimization problem and then utilize a transferred Legendre pseudospectral method to discretize the problem. By solving this discrete problem, we can attain the pointwise and continuous estimated solutions for the major pantograph delay differential equation. The convergence of method has been considered. Also, numerical experiments are described to show the performance and precision of the presented technique. Moreover, the obtained results are compared with those from other techniques.

This paper investigates the role of fractional calculus in data fitting. We show that while the Caputo and Atangana-Baleanu fractional derivatives can be applied successfully in data fitting, this might not be true for the conformable derivative. The conformable derivative results in an unnecessarily complicated differential equation that warrants the use of numerical methods, thus compromises the quality of the solutions in data fitting.

The manuscript details a numerical method for solving a system of fractional differential equations (SFDEs) based on the Caputo fractional derivative by the Ritz method. To use this method, we transform the SFDEs into an optimization problem and obtain the system of nonlinear algebraic equations. Using polynomials of basis functions, we approximate solutions and obtain the coefficients of polynomial expansions by solving the system of nonlinear equations. We debate the convergence analysis of the proposed technique. Some numerical examples are included to assert the theoretical results and the performance of the numerical approximation.

This paper deals with approximating the time fractional Tricomi-type model in the sense of the Caputo derivative. The model is often adopted for describing the anomalous process of nearly sonic speed gas dynamics. The temporal semi-discretization is computed via a finite difference algorithm, while the spatial discretization is obtained using the local radial basis function in a finite difference mode. The local collocation method approximates the differential operators using a weighted sum of the function values over a local collection of nodes (named stencil) through a radial basis function expansion. This technique considers merely the discretization nodes of each subdomain around the collocation node. This leads to sparse systems and tackles the ill-conditioning produced of global collocation. The theoretical convergence and stability analyses of the proposed time semi-discrete scheme are proved by means of the discrete energy method. Numerical results confirm the accuracy and efficiency of the new approach.

The Androctonus crassicuda is the most diverse scorpion species in the family of Buthidae, which is endemic to Khuzestan province, Iran. Investigation of the relationship of species by means of a molecular study of specimens is one of the new approaches due to the limitations of the morphological approaches. In the current study, the analysis was based on 32 morphological characteristics of A. crassicuda native to southwest Iran. Moreover, the DNA sequencing of two mitochondrial markers, namely cytochrome oxidase subunit I and 12sRNA loci was performed, and the phylogenetic tree was constructed using maximum likelihood method with 1000 replications using MEGA software (version 7). Based on the results of the phylogenetic tree, A. crassicuda was classified into a monophyletic group. However, the genetic diversity of this species populations was not significant (0.001). The highest and lowest genetic distance of A. crassicuda was compared with the reports obtained in Urmia and west Azerbaijan, Iran. There was a clear divergence between the A. crassicuda isolated from northern and southern areas of Iran. This study showed the importance of geographical and climate features of the region and genetic distance among the populations. The phylogenetic analysis of Androctonus species from other regions showed the highest and lowest genetic distance with A. gonneti (Morocco) and A. amoreuxi (Portugal), respectively. The comparison of the morphological characteristics and morphometric results revealed that metasoma characteristics are important in the identification of A. crassicuda. The results of the analysis of the morphometric values of A. crassicuda were mainly compatible with the phylogenetic trees and supported the traditional morphological classification, thereby presenting a clearly definition of the genera of Androctonus species.

This paper develops the solution of the two-dimensional time fractional evolution model using finite difference scheme derived from radial basis function (RBF-FD) method. In this discretization process, a finite difference formula is implemented to discrete the temporal variable, while the local RBF-FD formulation is utilized to approximate the spatial variable. The pattern of data distribution in the local support domain is assumed as having a fixed number of nodes. The local RBF-FD is based on the local support domain that leads to a sparsity system and also avoids the ill-conditioning problem caused by global collocation method. The stability and convergence of time-discrete approach in H1-norm are discussed by means of the energy method. Numerical results illustrate the proposed method and demonstrate that it provides accurate solutions on regular and irregular computational domains.

Plasma electrolyte oxidation (PEO) is a surface treatment method with high dependency on the process parameters. This paper focuses on maximizing the corrosion resistance of PEO coatings applied on Mg–5Zn–0.4Ca (ZX504) alloy by optimizing the process parameters. For this purpose, the Taguchi method based on L18 orthogonal array with mixed level design was used for optimization and determining effective parameters. Main process factors including electrolyte concentration, current density, frequency and duty cycle were considered at different levels. The corrosion resistance, as the performance indicator, was obtained using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy technique. Surface characteristics were also evaluated using SEM (scanning electron microscopy), EDS (energy dispersive spectroscopy), profilometer and contact angle goniometer. The statistical analysis showed that the optimum condition could be obtained at a current density of 200 mA/cm2, frequency of 500 Hz and at a duty cycle of 30%, in an electrolyte containing 15 g/L Na3PO4•12H2O and 10 g/L KF.

The Quadratic Assignment Problem (QAP) is one of the problems of combinatorial optimization belonging to the NP-hard problems’ class and has a wide application in the placement of facilities. Thus far, many efforts have been made to solve this problem and countless algorithms have been developed to achieve the optimal solutions; one of which is the Simulated Annealing (SA) algorithm. This paper aims at finding a suitable layout for the facilities of an industrial workshop by using a Developed Simulated Annealing (DSA) method.

In this paper, we present a mathematical model of brain tumor. This model is an extension of a simple two-dimensional mathematical model of glioma growth and diffusion which is derived from fractional operator in terms of Caputo which is called the fractional Burgess equations (FBEs). To obtain a solution for this model, a numerical technique is presented which is based on operational matrix. First, we assume the solution of the problem under the study is as an expansion of the Bernoulli polynomials. Then with combination of the operational matrix based on the Bernoulli polynomials and collocation method, the problem under the study is changed to a system of nonlinear algebraic equations. Finally, the proposed technique is simulated and tested on three types of the FBEs to confirm the superiority and accuracy.

In this paper, the population dynamics model including the predator-prey problem and the logistic equation are generalized by using fractional operator in term of Caputo-Fabrizio derivative (CF-derivative). The models under study include of fractional Lotka-Volterra model (FLVM), fractional predator-prey model (FPPM) and fractional logistic model of population growth (FLM-PG) with variable coefficients. After that a numerical scheme is presented to obtain numerical solutions of these fractional models. These solutions are made using three-step Adams-Bashforth scheme. To show the efficiency and the accuracy of the present scheme, a few examples are evaluated. The numerical simulations of the results are depicted the accuracy of the present scheme.

Hydatidosis is an important zoonosis caused by a parasitic tapeworm, namely Echinococcus granulosus. This infection is distributed worldwide and affects the health as well as economic loss in both humans and animals. In most cases, the disease needs chemotherapy with or without surgery. Conventional drugs have some major problems, including drug complications, harmful side effects, and also progressive resistance. According to the importance of biological productions as alternative medicine, a large number of studies confirmed that whole venom and many peptide ingredients of the scorpion venom have various different medical benefits, including antimicrobial properties, due to the mechanism of blocking gated ion channel. In this study, the venom peptides of Mesobuthus eupeus scorpionwere purified using gel filtration chromatography and subsequently ion exchange chromatography, followed by the determination of the molecular weights of the proteins by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) procedure. After collecting the hydatid cysts fluids from the liver of infected sheep, protoscolices were derived, washed, and encountered to the whole venom as well as eight different fractions of toxin 30, 60, 120, and 240 min after the exposure. In the next step, the viability of protoscolices was determined by eosin staining. The obtained results revealed that a venom fraction under 10 kDa killed all protoscolices after 30 min. Moreover, it was found that the scolicidal activity of fractions increases according to the time of exposure. As a result, it can be concluded that M. epeus venom peptides under its LD50 (1/2 LD50) can properly and quickly destroy the protoscolices of hydatid cysts at the level of applied concentrations and such components are good alternatives to treat hydatidosis.

In this work, a general class of pantograph type nonlinear fractional integro-differential equations (PT-FIDEs) with non-singular and non-local kernel is considered. A numerical scheme based on the orthogonal basis functions including the shifted Legendre polynomials (SLPs) is proposed. First, we expand the unknown function and its derivatives in terms of the SLPs with unknown coefficients. Then, we present several theorems based on the SLPs for the help to achieve the approximate solution of the problem under study. Finally, by utilizing these theorems together with the collocation points, the main problem is transformed to a system of linear or nonlinear algebraic equations, which can be simply solved. An investigation for error estimate is discussed. The accuracy and efficiency of the proposed scheme are reported by four illustrative examples.

Oak acorn contains high levels of tannins which have capacity to form complexes with proteins and consequently reduce their availability and as a result it could reduce colostrum quality and immunoglobulin (Ig) synthesis. Thus, the aim of this experiment was to investigate the effects of dietary oak (Quercus persica) acorn (OA) level during the last 60 days of pregnancy on colostrum composition and plasma metabolites and IgG level of goats and their kids. In all, 24 multiparous pregnant goats (41.7±2.3 kg BW) were assigned into one of the three experimental diets consisted of control diet (without OA) and diets containing 20% (OA20) or 40% (OA40) OA on dry matter basis. Goats fed OA40 had lower BW change compared with other groups (P⩽0.05). Kids birth weight was not affected by experimental diets (P>0.05). Goats fed OA containing diets had lower plasma glucose, triglyceride and Fe concentrations compared with those fed the control diet (P0.05), whereas kids born from goats fed OA containing diets had lower plasma IgG level compared with the control diet (P

With the increase in urbanization, the surface of earth and its climate are changing. These changes resulted in more frequent floodingand storm inundation in urban areas. The challenges of flooding can be addressed through several computational procedures. Due to its numerous advantages, accessible web services can be chosen as a proper format for determining the storm inundation. Web services have facilitated the integration and interactivity of the web applications. Such services made the interaction between machines more feasible. Web services enable the heterogeneous software systems to communicate with each other. A Web Processing Service (WPS) makes it possible to process spatial data with different formats. In this study, we developed a WPS to automatically calculate the amount of storm inundation caused by rainfall in urban areas. The method we used for calculating the storm inundation is based on a simplified hydrologic model which estimates the final status of inundation. The simulation process and water transfer between subcatchments are carried out respectively, without user’s interference. The implementation of processing functions in a form of processing web services gives the capability to reuse the services and apply them in other services. As a result, it would avoid creating the duplicate resources.

Giardia duodenalis is globally recognized as an important zoonotic intestinal protozoan parasite. So far, eight assemblages of G. duodenalis (A-H) have been identified. Substantial evidence suggests the zoonotic potential of assemblages A, B, and E in livestock. In this study, the genotype of Giardia duodenalis isolates was genetically identified by determining the sequence of ssu-rRNA gene and performing polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) on glutamate dehydrogenase gene of the parasite in Arabian horses from Ahvaz, located in southwest of Iran. The results revealed that assemblages AI and E (livestock-associated G. duodenalis) were present in horse isolates. Also, based on the findings, prevalence of G. duodenalis infection among horses was estimated at 35.7%. The results indicated that G. duodenalis is highly prevalent among Arabian horses, posing a zoonotic risk for giardiasis in Ahvaz, Iran.

Analyzing the process of land use and cover changes during long periods of time and predicting the future changes is highly important and useful for the land use managers. In this study, the land use maps in the Ardabil plain in north-west part of Iran for four periods (1989, 1998, 2009 and 2013) are extracted and analyzed through remote sensing technique, using the land-sat satellite images. Then, the future land use changes are simulated for 2030 using integrated CA-Markov model according to the scenario of continuing current management process. The results show that in the period between 1989 and 2009, i.e. since two-thirds of the plain was declared restricted till all of it was declared thus, the study area has experienced a total of about 58645.08 ha changes. After the whole plain was restricted (since 2009 till 2014), the changes have been estimated to be 22466.88 ha. The prediction also indicates that the changes will equal 8908.83 ha by 2030. Agricultural lands and human-built environment constitute the majority of changes and are increasing continuously. The obtained Kappa values for the model accuracy assessment (higher than 0.8) indicated the model's capability to predict future Land use/cover changes in the study area. Thus, analyzing Land use and cover changes trends from past to near future using CA-Markov model can play a significant role in land use policy making, planning, and managing of the restricted plains especially in the proposed study area.

In this article, Homotopy analysis method is successfully used to find the approximate solution of fractional order Van der Pol equation. The fractional derivative is described in the Caputo sense.The numerical computations of convergence control parameters for the acceleration of convergence of approximate series solution are obtained by the analysis of minimization of error for different particular cases and the results are depicted through graphs. The salient feature of the article is the graphical presentation of achieving limit cycles for different parameters.

Management of agricultural practices plays a vital role in reducing the use of limited water resources in arid and semi-arid regions which could result in their sustainability. In this research, the role of managing agriculture in sustaining flow of Zayandeh-rud was studied by calculation of rice water requirement (actual evapotranspiration) in paddy fields of Zarrin-shahr by using method of FAO-56 and comparing the results assuming a shift in cropping pattern from rice to other crops. Rice water requirement was estimated at 1485 mm and the volume of water required for irrigation of paddy fields with area of about 6630 Hectare was estimated at 77 MCM. Volume of irrigated waterwas also evaluated by water balance method, confirmed the reliability of FAO-56 method. The results show that, replacing rice or wheat-rice cropping pattern with some possible crops such as bean, maize, walnut, apple and grape decreases irrigation requirements about 27, 15, 24, 29 and 40 MCM, respectively. Generalizing results for the total paddy fields in Isfahan Province with estimated area of about 20000 Hectare will result in an increase of about 3.4 to 9.1 m3/s in Zayandeh-rud discharge during critical months of June to October, when the river flow highly decreases, causing sustainable flow of the river through the year.

Shape and size of sensitive volume are the most important parameters to model electronic devices for calculation of the SEU rate from space radiations. So far different models have been proposed for estimation of the sensitive volume. In this work, results of three models including RPP, Tetrahedral and Nested in calculation of sensitive volume have been compared with experimental result for AT60142 SRAM. GEANT4 as a Monte Carlo code has been used to calculate energy loss and energy straggling of ions with considering metallization and oxide layers. Comparisons between Monte Carlo and experimental results shows that RPP model estimates the SEU cross section with a large deviation in whole LET range, tetrahedral has good response in low LET's but don't follow experimental result for high LET particles and nested sensitive volume produce acceptable results for whole of LET range.

Space radiation environment has concerned about proper performance of electronic systems and equipment used in the space due to a variety of space radiations. The radiation hardening techniques are required to all parts of the system in such environment. Therefore careful studies should be done on the mechanism of radiation damage in these systems. Shielding is one of radiation hardening technique. The radiation effects on electronic components can be done using radiation simulating softwares. In this work, displacement damage, vacancies and ionization values in silicon and gallium arsenide with layers of metal as a shield have been calculated using TRIM software. The results showed that the more thickness and more elements with high atomic number of shield made more resistance to radiation. Thus, damage in electronic devices would be less. Also, the damages resulted from the incident beam of helium ions is much higher than that of hydrogen ions.

When the electronic components are exposed to neutron irradiation, electrical properties change by interaction of neutrons in these parts such as capacitance, reverse bias current, the minority carrier lifetime, etc. These changes are very important, so that may impair the performance of the device and disable it. So the measurement of the damage by neutrons in these parts is necessary. One of the most important parameters for expressing the damage to electronic components is a constant, α that is the inverse current of the damage.The constant (α) is the slope of the reverse current curve versus the radiation flux. The aim of this work is measurement of the damage reverse current of constant α for diodes 1N4007, BYV27 and BYV95 in various voltages and temperatures.These diodes have been irradiated at the Tehran Research Reactor by fission neutron spectrum.The results are in good agreement with the theoretical relations.

In this paper, nonlinear Klein-Gordon equation with quadratic term is solved by means of an analytic technique, namely the Homotopy analysis method (HAM).Comparisons are made between the Adomian decomposition method (ADM), the exact solution and homotopy analysis method. The results reveal that the proposed method is very effective and simple.

In this paper, nonlinear Klein-Gordon equation with quadratic term is solved by means of an analytic technique, namely the Homotopy analysis method (HAM).Comparisons are made between the Adomian decomposition method (ADM), the exact solution and homotopy analysis method. The results reveal that the proposed method is very effective and simple.

Nowadays, environment-sensitive smart drug delivery systems have found diverse applications in pharmaceutical science and technology. These systems can respond to the environment stimuli such as temperature, pressure, pH, light, electrical and magnetical fields and etc. They can release the proper amount of drug in human body. Among these systems, special attention and much research works have been devoted to temperature responsive systems. Smart polymeric materials and hydrogels are widely used in production of temperature responsive systems. The temperatureresponsive polymeric materials and their based smart drug delivery systems are not just responsive to temperature, as other stimuli may induce them as well. Therefore, in practical cases, their performances may be disordered and the drug release may not occur in an anticipated manner. Furthermore, the mathematical relations of drug release in these systems are very complicated. Therefore, in this work, a novel temperature responsive smart drug deliverysystem is introduced in which the drug release would only be a function of temperature and its mathematical relations are also considerably simple. This system is composed of three individual layers. The modeling of this systemis performed by analyzing the heat and mass transfer equations at pseudo-steady state and the effects of system parameters on the performance of the system are investigated. The obtained results show that the performance of the system is drastically related to the types of materials of the system and also their physical and chemical properties. By using the obtained results in this work, we can design the temperature responsive smart drug delivery systems and optimize their performance in practical cases.

Background:The aim of this study was to investigate the modelling of different processes that could account for the link between psychopathology,cognitive social and demographic risk factors and enacting assault by husband. Method: This article reports a test using data on 230 males who participated in a family violence survey study.The sample was selected by a multiclustral sampling method from 4 different randomized regions of Tehran. All participants completed Conflict Tactic Scales, Personal and Relationship Profile, Marital Attitude Survey Questionnaire, Symptoms Checklist Inventory, Social and Demographic Measure. Logistics regression was used to estimate spouse abuse model for men. Results: The findings were consistent with the theoretical model.The path from social- demographic,cognitive and psychopathological risk factors to enacting spouse abuse was demonstrated.Conclusion:The implications of the findings for understanding spouse assaults,cognitive, psychopathological,social and demographic differences in male population are discussed.

Solution heat treatment followed by Quench and return is one of the important processes in the production of cast aluminum aluminum castings and significantly improves the microscopic structure and mechanical properties and changes the temperature of the fuzzy evolution in these alloys. In the present study, the effect of heat treatment on aluminum fatigue of cast bronze containing 11-10% aluminum, 4% nickel, 4% iron and 3% manganese was investigated. After production, the alloy has been subjected to thermal maintenance at temperatures of ◦700, 750, 800, 850 and 900 ، C for 20-30 minutes, quench in water, and finally return to ◦C600 ساعت C for 2 hours. The results of this study showed that aluminum casting bricks have a much higher fatigue rate than non-thermal cast aluminum alloys, and the highest fatigue level as well as hardness is obtained at ◦850 عملیات C. . The structure of the microscope and the images of the electron microscope obtained from the refractive surface of the cast and heat-treated specimens also confirm this.

Background and purpose: The range of medical services is so large that rendering services under the support of medical insurance is not possible for the insurance companies. Many of the patients need the supplemental insurance, specially when this type of insurance completes the general medical insurance. Clients' consent with the health service center is undeniable nowadays. This study was performed to determine the rate of working staff's consent at Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences of the supplemental insurance company in Sari.Materials and Methods: In a descriptive study, 120 out patients and hospitalized patients who had benefitted from the supplemental insurance for once company underwent the study.Data collected by questionnaire were confirmed on account of P validity to be used in the pilot study. Also, data were analyzed in descriptive method with SPSS software.Results: The obtained results were as follows; 63 (%52.5) were male, 79 subjects aged 30-49 years (65.8%), 63 had higher education (52.5%), 90 were married (75%). 54 (%45) subjects were hospitalized with cardiovascular disease and digestive problems. Also 72 subjects (%60) had the history of 3 days hospitalization. Sonography was the method of treatment (43%) that was used for %43 of them. Regarding the purpose of the study, many of the subjects under the study, (51.7%), were satisfied with the supplemental insurance company in terms of behavior, 64 subjects (%53.3) with insurance compancy's cooperation and finally 59 subjects (%49.2) were pleased with the organization's commitment to its responsibility.Conclusion: The X2 test showed that there is significant relationship among the age, education number of hospitalization, the reason of hospitalization, diagnostic procedures, and the rate of satisfactions p

Background and purpose: lack of information about anaesthisia and fear of post operation contiousness, pain, nausea and vomiting increases the patientsH anxiety. There are various reports about patiensH desire for preoperation information in Iran and other countries. However, there is no study related to anaesthesiologistsH view about patientsH needs before anaesthesia and operation in the literature.Materials and Methods: This descriptive (cross- sectional) study was done in 2005 on 110 anaesthesiologists working in hospitals of Mazandaran province. Questionnaire containing 4 questions about demographic and 18 questions related to anaesthesia was prepared. Attitude of the anaesthesiologists was divided into 5 categories based on Likert rating scale as follows: completely agreed, agreed, partially agreed, not agreed, completely not agreed. Chi-square test was used for the statistical analysis of the data.Results: Results of this study showed that the most positive attitude of anaesthesiologists about patient teaching was related to the proper explanation about duration of N.P.O before operation (%97.3). %52.7 of anaes the siologists were against giving explanation of the duration of N.P.O and post operation possible problems. In this regard no significant difference was observed between educational and non educational hospitals (P

This paper presents approximate analytical solutions for the fractional-order Brusselator system using the variational iteration method. The fractional derivatives are described in the Caputo sense. This method is based on the incorporation of the correction functional for the equation. Two examples are solved as illustrations, using symbolic computation. The numerical results show that the introduced approach is a promising tool for solving system of linear and nonlinear fractional differential equations.

The global initiative to eradicate poliomyelitis is focusing on a small number of countries in Africa (Angola, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan) and Asia (Afghanistan, Tajikistan), where progress has been hindered by armed conflict. In these countries the disintegration of health systems and difficulties of access are major obstacles to the immunization and surveillance strategies necessary for polio eradication. In such circumstances, eradication requires special endeavours, such as the negotiation of ceasefires and truces and the winning of increased direct involvement by communities. Transmission of poliovirus was interrupted during conflicts in Cambodia, Colombia, El Salvador, Peru, the Philippines, and Sri Lanka. Efforts to achieve eradication in areas of conflict have led to extra health benefits: equity in access to immunization, brought about because every child has to be reached; the revitalization and strengthening of routine immunization services through additional externally provided resources; and the establishment of disease surveillance systems. The goal of polio eradication by the end of 2000 remains attainable if supplementary immunization and surveillance can be accelerated in countries affected by conflict.

A modification of the variational iteration method (VIM) for solving systems of nonlinear fractional-order differential equations is proposed. The fractional derivatives are described in the Caputo sense. The solutions of fractional differential equations (FDE) obtained using the traditional variational iteration method give good approximations in the neighborhood of the initial position. The main advantage of the present method is that it can accelerate the convergence of the iterative approximate solutions relative to the approximate solutions obtained using the traditional variational iteration method. Illustrative examples are presented to show the validity of this modification.

An inverse problem for the diffusion operator on a finite interval with discontinuities conditions inside the interval is studied. We have shown that the potential function of the diffusion operator can be established uniquely by a set of values of eigenfunctions at the midpoint of the interval and one spectrum.

We have used the homotopy analysis method (HAM) to obtain solution of Davey-Stewartson equations of fractional order. The fractional derivative is described in the Caputo sense. The results obtained by this method have been compared with the exact solutions. Stability and convergence of the proposed approach is investigated. The effects of fractional derivatives for the systems under consideration are discussed. Furthermore, comparisons indicate that there is a very good agreement between the solutions of homotopy analysis method and the exact solutions in terms of accuracy.

In this paper, the homotopy analysis method (HAM) proposed by Liao is adopted for solving Davey–Stewartson (DS) equations which arise as higher dimensional generalizations of the nonlinear Schrödinger (NLS) equation. The results obtained by HAM have been compared with the exact solutions and homotopy perturbation method (HPM) to show the accuracy of the method. Comparisons indicate that there is a very good agreement between the HAM solutions and the exact solutions in terms of accuracy.

We will consider He's variational iteration method for solving fractional Riccati differential equation. This method is based on the use of Lagrange multipliers for identification of optimal value of a parameter in a functional. This technique provides a sequence of functions which converges to the exact solution of the problem. The present method performs extremely well in terms of efficiency and simplicity.