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The objective of this paper is to develop a framework on e-learning acceptance among agricultural extension agents in Malaysian agricultural sector. E-learning is viewed as a solution in response to the increasing need for learning and training. This paper will review past literatures for the relevant factors that influence behavioral intention for e-learning acceptance as well as the relevant behavioral theories that provide the foundation for developing research framework to illustrate the relationship between the factors and behavioral intention for e-learning acceptance. The outcome of this research is the proposed framework that demonstrates the relationship between the factors and behavioral intention for e-learning acceptance. Understanding the determinants of e-learning acceptance will lead to the development of more effective and meaningful e-learning services. The research outcome will help to increase the interest to use e-learning, improve the policies and infrastructure, widen the availability and increase user engagement. Investigating the ability of the behavioral theory in predicting e-learning acceptance in agricultural setting will be useful for comparison in the future studies in different settings.

The objective of this paper is to develop a framework on e-learning acceptance among agricultural extension agents in Malaysian agricultural sector. E-learning is viewed as a solution in response to the increasing need for learning and training. This paper will review past literatures for the relevant factors that influence behavioral intention for e-learning acceptance as well as the relevant behavioral theories that provide the foundation for developing research framework to illustrate the relationship between the factors and behavioral intention for e-learning acceptance. The outcome of this research is the proposed framework that demonstrates the relationship between the factors and behavioral intention for e-learning acceptance. Understanding the determinants of e-learning acceptance will lead to the development of more effective and meaningful e-learning services. The research outcome will help to increase the interest to use e-learning, improve the policies and infrastructure, widen the availability and increase user engagement. Investigating the ability of the behavioral theory in predicting e-learning acceptance in agricultural setting will be useful for comparison in the future studies in different settings. Keywords: Acceptance, Agriculture, E-learning, Extension Agent JEL Classifications: Q13, D83

Animals of the same species exhibit similar behaviours that are advantageously adapted to their body and environment. These behaviours are shaped at the species level by selection pressures over evolutionary timescales. Yet, it remains unclear how these common behavioural adaptations emerge from the idiosyncratic neural circuitry of each individual. The overall organization of neural circuits is preserved across individuals 1 because of their common evolutionarily specified developmental programme 2-4 . Such organization at the circuit level may constrain neural activity 5-8 , leading to low-dimensional latent dynamics across the neural population 9-11 . Accordingly, here we suggested that the shared circuit-level constraints within a species would lead to suitably preserved latent dynamics across individuals. We analysed recordings of neural populations from monkey and mouse motor cortex to demonstrate that neural dynamics in individuals from the same species are surprisingly preserved when they perform similar behaviour. Neural population dynamics were also preserved when animals consciously planned future movements without overt behaviour 12 and enabled the decoding of planned and ongoing movement across different individuals. Furthermore, we found that preserved neural dynamics extend beyond cortical regions to the dorsal striatum, an evolutionarily older structure 13,14 . Finally, we used neural network models to demonstrate that behavioural similarity is necessary but not sufficient for this preservation. We posit that these emergent dynamics result from evolutionary constraints on brain development and thus reflect fundamental properties of the neural basis of behaviour., (© 2023. The Author(s).)

The scale morphology of nine Mullidae taxa consisting of three genera and nine species from the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman was described and compared using light and scanning electron microscopy from four different body regions. The general scale type in the studied mullid species was ctenoid except in the head region of Mulloidichthys vanicolensis and Parupeneus margaritatus, which had cycloid scales. The scales demonstrated a large focus with the central or centro-posterior position. The large variations of scale morphology were observed for the scales from different body regions of a single species. The shape of focus was in five types with the round type being the most common. In the scales of most examined species, there were 5-6 radii present in the anterior field. No radii exist in the lateral and posterior fields, and the radii orientation was parallel in all the studied species. The rostral margin of scales represented five types among the studied species; waved (M. vanicolensis), smooth in (P. rubescens), dentate (Upeneus doriae), scalloped (U. vittatus), and fluted (U. tragula). The lepidont shape varied among the species from blunt to flat, pointed, tiny, sharp, pointed, triangle, short, and long. The results also showed that the relative scale size has a desirable contribution to separate the examined genera. The scale morphological-based tree was largely consistent with the known systematics of the studied fishes. It was concluded that variation of scale characters has probably taxonomic and even phylogenetic information in both species and genus levels in the studied mullid fishes. However, variation of scale morphology between body regions, as shown in this study, suggests that scale characters should be used cautiously for taxonomic studies of these fishes., (© 2021 Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

Goatfishes (Teleostei, Mullidae) are a group of mainly coastal fishes that form an important part of food chains, and also have commercial value. In the marine waters of Iran, they are found in the Persian Gulf and Oman Sea (Gulf of Oman). This study evaluated whether otolith morphology can be used to distinguish of species and genera, and also to interpret whether otoliths of the same species differ among two studied marine systems. To do this objective, the otolith morphology of ten species belonging to three genera were analyzed by SEM photography and shape analysis. Among the morphometric variables, relative rostrum length was found to be the most important otolith variable for discriminating Mulloidichthys (RRL = 32.29 ± 0.59) and Parupeneus (RRL = 37.39 ± 1.10), while rectangularity (RE x ) was the most important shape index for discriminating Mulloidichthys (RE x = 0.99 ± 1.94) from Parupeneus (RE x = 0.77 ± 1.21). By considering otolith morphology, Upeneus showed a better separation than the two other genera. The otoliths of Upeneus are diagnosed by short dorsal length (RDL = 69.35 ± 1.51), higher rostrum height (RRH = 53.63 ± 1.99), short rostrum (RRL = 31.12 ± 1.99), and antirostrum lengths (RanL = 12.38 ± 1.51). The most diverged phenotype within the genus Parupeneus was found for the otoliths of P. rubescens , and the most diverged phenotype within the genus Upeneus was found for the otoliths of U. sundaicus . The otoliths of the same species did not demonstrate large variation between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman. This study provides additional morphological evidence for the separation of goatfishes at the species and genus levels. We also underline that the slight observed differences between the otoliths of two marine systems are mainly caused by the ecological differences known between these two main systems.

The dorsal striatum (dS) has been implicated in storing procedural memories and controlling movement kinematics. Since procedural memories are expressed through movements, the exact nature of the dS function has proven difficult to delineate. Here, we challenged rats in complementary locomotion-based tasks designed to alleviate this confound. Surprisingly, dS lesions did not impair the rats' ability to remember the procedure for the successful completion of motor routines. However, the speed and initiation of the reward-oriented phase of the routines were irreversibly altered by the dS lesion. Further behavioral analyses, combined with modeling in the optimal control framework, indicated that these kinematic alterations were well explained by an increased sensitivity to effort. Our work provides evidence supporting a primary role of the dS in modulating the kinematics of reward-oriented actions, a function that may be related to the optimization of the energetic costs of moving., Competing Interests: Declaration of Interests The authors declare no competing interests., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

How animals adapt their behavior according to regular time intervals between events is not well understood, especially when intervals last several seconds. One possibility is that animals use disembodied internal neuronal representations of time to decide when to initiate a given action at the end of an interval. However, animals rarely remain immobile during time intervals but tend to perform stereotyped behaviors, raising the possibility that motor routines improve timing accuracy. To test this possibility, we used a task in which rats, freely moving on a motorized treadmill, could obtain a reward if they approached it after a fixed interval. Most animals took advantage of the treadmill length and its moving direction to develop, by trial-and-error, the same motor routine whose execution resulted in the precise timing of their reward approaches. Noticeably, when proficient animals did not follow this routine, their temporal accuracy decreased. Then, naïve animals were trained in modified versions of the task designed to prevent the development of this routine. Compared to rats trained in the first protocol, these animals didn't reach a comparable level of timing accuracy. Altogether, our results indicate that timing accuracy in rats is improved when the environment affords cues that animals can incorporate into motor routines., Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing interest.

We investigated modulation of the recall time in a motivated forgetting (MF) paradigm and the neural manifestation of it through event related potential (ERP) analysis. We studied whether compared to failed attempts in suppression, partial success can potentiate control mechanisms and this might manifest, neurally as modulation of ERP components related to conscious recollection, and behaviorally as delayed recall of learnt items. We employed a modified version of the Think\No-Think paradigm with dominant number of No-Think words (cued to forget). We defined a forgetting index as FI = Final Recall Time-Initial Recall Time. The MF trials were separated into three conditions according to their corresponding FI; Forget, Delayed Recall, and Recall conditions. The findings revealed significant late ERP effects in terms of a late parietal positivity (LPP), modulated by the item condition, that appeared to reflect the consequence of conscious suppression on actual retrieval of stored memory. Over the same topographic location, FI was negatively correlated with the LPP amplitude, demonstrating the consequence of inhibition processing during MF in modulating the recall time. The negative correlation between LPP and FI provides evidence that increased recall time due to MF is also related to reduced activity, probably in the hippocampal-parietal network, corresponding to recollection of suppressed memories., (Copyright © 2019. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

Memories selectively benefit from sleep. In addition to the importance of the consolidation of relevant memories, the capacity to forget unwanted memories is also crucial. We investigated the effect of suppressing unwanted memories on electroencephalography activity of subsequent sleep using a motivated forgetting (MF) paradigm as compared with a control non-forgetting task. Subjects were randomly assigned to nap or no-nap groups. We used a modified version of the think/no-think paradigm with dominant number of no-think words cued to be forgotten and included only subjects capable of suppressing unwanted memories by performing an initial subject inclusion experiment. In both groups and conditions, the performance of the subjects in recalling the word pairs learned in the beginning of the day was evaluated in a final recall test. We found that both nap and no-nap groups recalled significantly less no-think words in the MF condition compared to the control condition. Moreover, for the nap group, in the MF compared to the control condition, spindle power and density increased during stage 2 (S2) whereas they decreased during slow wave sleep (SWS). Interestingly, recall performance of no-think words was negatively correlated with spindle power during S2 whereas it was positively correlated with spindle power during SWS. These results indicate that sleep spindles are sensitive to the previous MF experiences and suggest a differential role of sleep spindles during S2 and SWS in memory processing during sleep., (© Sleep Research Society 2019. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Sleep Research Society. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Background: Hypertension is increasing rapidly in developing countries. Today, modern technologies are suggested as the tools used to enhance medication adherence. This study aimed to compare the effectiveness of short message service (SMS) to reminder cards with regard to medication adherence in patients with hypertension., Methods: The present study is a randomized controlled clinical trial. The subjects consisted of 123 patients with hypertension at the clinical-educational center of Sayyed-Al Shohada, Urmia, who met the study criteria. Selected based on the convenience method, the samples were randomly divided into three groups: the SMS group, the reminder-cards group, and the control group. The subjects in the SMS group were sent 6 text messages a week for three months, and the subjects in the reminder-cards group were trained in how and in what order to use their cards. Hill-Bone medication adherence scale was completed by all the participants before and three months after the intervention. Data analysis was performed in SPSS software, using one-way ANOVA. Hill-Bone medication adherence scale was completed by all the participants before and three months after the intervention. Data analysis was performed in SPSS software, using one-way ANOVA., Results: The results of ANOVA test demonstrated that the mean scores of medication adherence were statistically different among the three groups of control (46.63±2.99), SMS (57.70±2.75) and the reminder cards (57.51±2.69) after the intervention (P<0.001). However, after the intervention the means of the patients' medication adherence scores were not statistically different between the two groups trained via SMS and reminder cards (P>0.05)., Conclusion: The findings of the present research demonstrated that training and distance-monitoring via SMS and reminder cards promote medication adherence of patients. Therefore, healthcare teams and nurses are recommended to apply such training methods., Trial Registration Number: IRCT2015110917059N2.

Galathea ternatensis De Man, 1902 and Raymunida iranica n. sp., are reported from the Iranian coast as the first records of squat lobster species from the Persian Gulf. The new species morphologically resembles R. cagnetei Macpherson & Machordom, 2000, but is unique in the genus in having a small spine near the base of each supraocular spine and a spine ventral to the second branchial marginal spine of the carapace.

Purpose: To determine the effects of guided imagery techniques with tape and perceived happy memory on people with chronic tension-type headache (CTTH)., Methods: Sixty people with CTTH completed the demographic questionnaire and headache diary 1 week before the treatment, that is, for 3 weeks during the treatment and 1 week immediately after that. The people were randomly assigned into one of three different treatment groups: a Guided imagery (GI) with tape group (n = 20), a GI with perceived happy memory group (n = 20) and a control group (n = 20). In addition to individualized headache therapy, subjects listened to a guided imagery audiocassette tape or imagined the happiest personal memory three times per week for 3 weeks. It should be noted that 20 control subjects received individualized therapy without guided imagery., Results: The guided imagery groups both tape and perceived happy memory had significantly more improvement than the controls in three of the outcome measures; headache intensity, headache frequency and headache duration. There were no other significant differences between the guided imagery groups (tape and perceived happy memory) at any time point., Conclusions: Guided imagery is an effective, available and affordable nonpharmacological therapy either with tape or with perceived happy memory for the management of the CTTH., (© 2011 The Authors. Scandinavian Journal of Caring Sciences © 2011 Nordic College of Caring Science.)

It has been reported that latex and extracts of different species of Ficus are cytotoxic to some human cancerous cell lines. In this study, cytotoxicity of fruit and leaf extracts as well as the latex of Ficuscarica L. on HeLa cell line were evaluated. ethanolic extracts of leaves and fruits were prepared through percolation and ethyl acetate and dichloromethane extracts were prepared by reflux method. Cytotoxic effects of these extracts and latex against HeLa cell line were then examined. Briefly, He Lacells were seeded at 2 × 10(4) cells/mL in 96-well plates. After 24 h incubation at 37(°)C, the cells were treated with different concentrations of the extracts or latex. The viability of the cells was determined by the reduction of 3-(4, 5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2, 5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide (MTT) from formazan following 48 h incubation and the absorbance was measured at 540 nm using an ELISA plate reader. The results indicated that the latex and different extracts of Ficus carica could reduce the viability of the He Lacells at concentrations as low as 2 µg/mL in a dose dependent manner. The approximate IC50 values of the ethanolic, ethyl acetate and dichloromethane extracts of the leaves and fruits were 10, 19, 12 µg/mL and 12, 12, 11.5 µg/mL, respectively. The IC50 for the latex was about 17 µg/mL.

The Aspergillus nidulans homologue of Neurospora crassa cot-1, cotA, encoding a member of the NDR protein kinase family, has been cloned and expressed under the control of the conditional alcA promoter. Depletion of CotA by repression of the alcA promoter led to a severe growth defect accompanied by loss of polarity. Germlings show greatly enlarged volume of the spores and hyphae, accompanied by an increase in number of nuclei per compartment, though the nucleus/volume ratio is not significantly altered. The depleted CotA phenotype was not suppressed by a nuclear migration mutation nudA2. Double mutants showed an additive, defective phenotype, unlike the suppression of the cot-1 ts mutation by ropy mutations seen in N. crassa, suggesting a different relationship between nuclear migration and the cot signalling pathway in A. nidulans. A functional CotA-GFP fusion protein was found in punctate regions of fluorescence similar to the distribution reported for human NDR2, and as a cap at the hyphal tip.