Auditory memory function in expert chess players

Background: Chess is a game that involves many aspects of high level cognition such as memory, attention, focus and problem solving. Long term practice of chess can improve cognition performances and behavioral skills. Auditory memory, as a kind of memory, can be influenced by strengthening processes following long term chess playing like other behavioral skills because of common processing pathways in the brain. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the auditory memory function of expert chess players using the Persian version of dichotic auditory-verbal memory test. Methods: The Persian version of dichotic auditory-verbal memory test was performed for 30 expert chess players aged 20-35 years and 30 non chess players who were matched by different conditions; the participants in both groups were randomly selected. The performance of the two groups was compared by independent samples t-test using SPSS version 21. Results: The mean score of dichotic auditory-verbal memory test between the two groups, expert chess players and non-chess players, revealed a significant difference (p = 0.001). The difference between the ears scores for expert chess players (p = 0.023) and non-chess players (p = 0.013) was significant. Gender had no effect on the test results. Conclusion: Auditory memory function in expert chess players was significantly better compared to non-chess players. It seems that increased auditory memory function is related to strengthening cognitive performances due to playing chess for a long time

Uncertainty Analysis in Predicting Ecological Impacts of Management Scenarios in the Chehl-Chai Watershed, Gorganrood River Basin

Implementing watershed management without considering all aspects may lead to instability, exacerbating unfavorable conditions. Adopting an integrated management approach is necessary for any watershed system. An important consideration in decision making and planning process is to quantify ecological impacts of management using landscape ecology framework. In this regard, uncertainty quantification is of great significance. This paper presents the concept of uncertainty and also the implication of uncertainty analysis for landscape ecology structure indices and also for weights assigned to the indices in a Multi-Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) technique in the Chehel-Chai Watershed. This watershed with an area of 256 km2 is located in the east of Golestan Province and in the upstream of the Gorganrood River Basin. The watershed is one of the most affected areas due to the land use change in the north of Iran. That is why it was chosen as the study the area. Based on the analysis, the highest and lowest uncertainty levels were identified for Edge Density (ED) and Riparian Proportion Index (RPI), respectively. In addition, the uncertainty analysis suggests that the weight assigned to Weighted Land Cover Area Index (WLCAI) has the highest uncertainty while the weight assigned to ED shows the lowest uncertainty. It is necessary to identify and quantify uncertainty so that more accurate and applicable inferences from research findings can be drawn

Investigating the Land Cover Changes in Mazandaran Province Using Landscape Ecology’s Metrics Between 1984 - 2010

Land cover has rapidly changed due to the relatively high population density, high rate of seasonal and permanent migrants, favorable conditions of natural and cultural, frequency of industrial units, coastal border and harbour and great rate of construction in the mazandaran province in recent years. Land cover changes are led to fragmentation, perforation, dissection, shirinkage, attrition and coalescence in the landscape, which each of them has important concept in the landscape ecology science. In this study, after preparing land cover maps, landscape metrics were extracted then Principal component analysis (PCA) were used in order to selection appropriate metrics for Mazandaran landscape changes analysis during 1984 and 2010. Finally five metric including Class Area (CA), Number of Patches (NP), Largest Patch Index (LPI), Perimeter-Area Fractal Dimension (PAFRAC) and Shannon Diversity Index (SHDI) were selected as the appropriate metrics. The results show an increase in the extent of residential, agricultural, pasture, roads covers (7387, 54655, 88986, 4768 ha, respectively) and sharp decline in forests (162,867 ha). Such that, LPI of forest cover decreased in the Neka, Savadkooh, Sari and Tonekabon cities 17.5, 13.8, 8.6 and 4.9 respectively, during the study period and matrix change were observed from forest to pasture and agriculture in Ramsar and Behshahr cites. More changes have been happened due to digestion forest of patches to anthropogenic covers especially integration of agricultural land

Exploring management objectives and ecosystem service trade-offs in a semi-arid rangeland basin in southeast Iran

Ecosystem services are increasingly being included as rangeland management objectives along with grazing, restoration, and conservation. These often conflicting objectives can interact and result in tradeoffs where managing for one ecosystem service (ES) can result in the detriment of another. However, there is scarce information for rangeland systems of central Asia. This study aims to assess tradeoffs interactions between different ES in a semi-arid watershed in Iran with centuries of grazing history. We use field data, the Integrated Valuation of Ecosystem Services model, and spatial analyses to explore the interaction and spatial distribution of rangeland health and its effects on: forage production, water yield, carbon stock, soil retention, and soil formation. We summarized ESs into two bundles: 1. forage production and carbon storage and 2. water yield, soil retention and soil formation. Rangeland health across the study area's three different physiographic regions was determined and ES interaction groups mapped. A classification system of win-win (W-W), win-lose (W-L) and lose-lose (L-L) interactions under current management regimes was also developed using field data and statistical analyses. Findings show a W-L interaction among ESs in the mid-watershed region. Although this region provided the most forage and carbon storage; grazing management practices need to consider the sustainable provision of water yield, soil retention and soil formation. Interaction classes were however W-W in upstream regions where conservation objectives were a priority. Downstream, interaction classes were L-L due to overgrazing and urbanization; thus, restoration and improved management need prioritization. Understanding the spatial distribution of ES interactions can help managers plan for and balance resources with their sustainable supply. © 2018 Elsevier Lt

Exploring management objectives and ecosystem service trade-offs in a semi-arid rangeland basin in southeast Iran

Ecosystem services are increasingly being included as rangeland management objectives along with grazing, restoration, and conservation. These often conflicting objectives can interact and result in tradeoffs where managing for one ecosystem service (ES) can result in the detriment of another. However, there is scarce information for rangeland systems of central Asia. This study aims to assess tradeoffs interactions between different ES in a semi-arid watershed in Iran with centuries of grazing history. We use field data, the Integrated Valuation of Ecosystem Services model, and spatial analyses to explore the interaction and spatial distribution of rangeland health and its effects on: forage production, water yield, carbon stock, soil retention, and soil formation. We summarized ESs into two bundles: 1. forage production and carbon storage and 2. water yield, soil retention and soil formation. Rangeland health across the study area's three different physiographic regions was determined and ES interaction groups mapped. A classification system of win-win (W-W), win-lose (W-L) and lose-lose (L-L) interactions under current management regimes was also developed using field data and statistical analyses. Findings show a W-L interaction among ESs in the mid-watershed region. Although this region provided the most forage and carbon storage; grazing management practices need to consider the sustainable provision of water yield, soil retention and soil formation. Interaction classes were however W-W in upstream regions where conservation objectives were a priority. Downstream, interaction classes were L-L due to overgrazing and urbanization; thus, restoration and improved management need prioritization. Understanding the spatial distribution of ES interactions can help managers plan for and balance resources with their sustainable supply. © 2018 Elsevier Lt

Non-point Source Pollution Modeling Using Geographic Information System (GIS) for Representing Best Management Practices (BMP) in the Gorganrood Watershed

The most important pollutants that cause water pollution are nitrogen and phosphorus from agricultural runoff called Non-Point Source Pollution (NPS). To solve this problem, management practices known as BMPs or Best Management Practices are applied. One of the common methods for Non-Point Source Pollution prediction is modeling. By modeling, efficiency of many practices can be tested before application. In this study, land use changes were studied from the years 1984 till 2010 that showed an increase in agricultural lands from 516908.52 to 630737.19 ha and expansion of cities from 5237.87 to 15487.59 ha and roads from 9666.07 to 11430.24 ha. Using L-THIA model (from nonpoint source pollution models) for both land use categories, the amount of pollutant and the volume of runoff were calculated that showed high growth. Then, the seventh sub-basin was recognized as a critical zone in terms of pollution among the sub-basins. In the end, land use change was considered as a BMP using Multi-Criteria Evaluation (MCE) based on which a more suitable land use map was produced. After producing the new land use map, L-THIA model was run again and the result of the model was compared to the actual land use to show the effect of this BMP. Runoff volume decreased from 367.5 to 308.6 M3/ha and nitrogen in runoff was reduced from 3.26 to 1.58 mg/L and water BOD from 3.61 to 2.13 mg/L. Other pollutants also showed high reduction. In the end, land use change is confirmed as an effective BMP for Non-Point Source Pollution reduction

Application of Multivariate Statistical Techniques to Assess Seasonal Variation in Water Quality Parameters in Gorganrood Watershed, Iran

Nonpoint source (NPS) pollution is a major surface water contaminant commonly caused by agricultural runoff. The purpose of this study was to assess seasonal variation in water quality parameters in Gorganrood watershed (Golestan Province, Iran). It also tried to clarify the effects of agricultural practices and NPS pollution on them. Water quality parameters including potassium, sodium, pH, water flow rate, total dissolved solids (TDS), electrical conductivity (EC), hardness, sulfate, bicarbonate, chlorine, magnesium, and calcium ions during 1966-2010 were evaluated using multivariate statistical techniques. Multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was implemented to determine the significance of differences between mean seasonal values. Discriminant analysis (DA) was also carried out to identify correlations between seasons and the water quality parameters. Parameters of water quality index were measured through principal component analysis (PCA) and factor analysis (FA). Based on the results of statistical tests, climate (freezing, weathering and rainfall) and human activities such as agriculture had crucial effects on water quality. The most important parameters in differentiation between seasons in descending order were potassium, pH, carbonic acid, calcium, and magnesium. According to load factor analysis, chlorine, calcium, and potassium were the most important parameters in spring and summer, indicating the application of fertilizers (especially potassium chloride fertilizer) and existence of NPS pollution during these seasons. In the next stage, the months during which crops had excessive water requirements were detected using CROPWAT software. Almost all water requirements of the area’s major crops, i.e. cotton, rice, soya, wheat, and oat, happen in the late spring until mid/late summer. According to our findings, agricultural practices had a great impact on water pollution. Results of analysis with CROPWAT software also confirmed this conclusion

Assessment of Vegetation Density and Soil Macrofauna Relationship in Riparian Forest of Karkhe River for the Determination of Rivers Buffer Zone

The spatial distribution of soil organisms is influenced by the plant cover, thus resulting in a horizontal mosaic of areas subjected to gradients of nutrient availability and microclimatic conditions.This study was conducted to investigate the spatial variability of soil macrofauna in relation to vegetation density in the riparian forest landscape of Karkhe. The vegetation density was determined by calculating the NDVI index. Soil macrofauna were sampled using 200 sampling points along parallel transects (perpendicular to the river). The maximum distance between samples was 0.5 km. Soil macrofauna were extracted from 50 cm×50 cm×25 cm soil monolith by the hand-sorting procedure. Abundance, diversity (Shannon H’ index), richness (Menhinick index) and evenness (Sheldon index) were calculated. Soil macrofauna and NDVI data were analyzed using geostatistics (variogram) in order to describe and quantify the spatial continuity. The variograms were spherical, revealing the presence of spatial autocorrelation. The range of influence was 1724 m for abundance, 1326 m for diversity, 1825 m for richness, 1450 for evenness and 1977 m for NDVI. The kriging maps showed that the NDVI Index and soil macrofauna had spatial variability. The spatial pattern of soil macrofauna abundance and biodiversity were similar to the spatial pattern of vegetation density as shown in the correlation