Iranian Intermediate EFL Learners' Vocabulary Inferencing Strategies: A Qualitative Study

The present qualitative and interpretative study aims to investigate Iranian EFL learners' L2 vocabulary strategies. The distribution of strategy types and what factors contribute to the success of the inferencing strategies are the two main purposes of the study. Using think-aloud procedures with 15 Iranian EFL learners, the present study explored L2 learners' inferencing strategies and the relationship with their success. Sixteen types of inferential strategies were revealed to be employed by the participants and two types of inferences were identified: successful and less successful inferences. The results of the study are discussed in the light of the similar studies and the suggestions for future research are made. The study has a number of pedagogical implications for L2 research and practice, L2 teachers, syllabus designers, and educational psychology

Diversificação de símile no estilo e estrutura de Gilani 'diwan A'li (suprema corte)

Simile has always been the subject of attention by poets and writers and it has a unique place. The uniqueness of this beautiful art attracts the imaginative element of poetry and readership, and the owners of style and writers that can't be easily remove this elegant and functional instrument. Poets and peoples use their efforts to bring their writings with a variety of similes. A poet is capable that use these imaginative designs in the most beautiful way. In this article, we examine the types of simile in the poem of Gilani Supreme Court. The provided table helps the reader to understand hidden sides of the poet's thoughts. Among the used similes, topic is the praise, Image is around subjects. A'li used composite, sensory, wisdom simile and the supposed syntax has the highest repetition among the poet's poetry. A'li used simile more than any other instrument in his poem.El símil siempre ha sido el tema de atención de poetas y escritores y tiene un lugar único. La singularidad de este bello arte atrae el elemento imaginativo de la poesía y los lectores, y los propietarios de estilo y escritores que no pueden eliminar fácilmente este instrumento elegante y funcional. Los poetas y los pueblos usan sus esfuerzos para llevar sus escritos con una variedad de símiles. Un poeta es capaz de utilizar estos diseños imaginativos de la manera más bella. En este artículo, examinamos los tipos de símil en el poema de la Corte Suprema de Gilani. La tabla proporcionada ayuda al lector a comprender los lados ocultos de los pensamientos del poeta. Entre los símiles usados, el tema es el elogio, la imagen está alrededor de los sujetos. A'li utilizó un símil compuesto, sensorial, de sabiduría y la supuesta sintaxis tiene la mayor repetición entre la poesía del poeta. A'li usó símil más que cualquier otro instrumento en su poema.Simile sempre foi objeto de atenção de poetas e escritores e tem um lugar único. A singularidade desta bela arte atrai o elemento imaginativo de poesia e leitura, e os donos de estilo e escritores que não podem facilmente remover este instrumento elegante e funcional. Poetas e povos usam seus esforços para trazer seus escritos com uma variedade de símiles. Um poeta é capaz de usar esses desenhos imaginativos da maneira mais bonita. Neste artigo, examinamos os tipos de símile no poema da Suprema Corte de Gilani.  A tabela fornecida ajuda o leitor a entender os lados ocultos dos pensamentos do poeta. Entre os símiles usados, tópico é o elogio, Imag em é em torno de assuntos. A'li usou compósitos, sensorial, simile de sabedoria e a suposta sintaxe tem a mais alta repetição entre a poesia do poeta. A'li usou símile mais do que qualquer outro instrumento em seu poema

Implementation of Agriculture Wastes in Different Construction Applications

Due to the growing population and increasing demand for more construction, much attention has been paid to environmental issues and the devastating effects of overgrowth in nature. Many challenges, including the 2030 challenge, have united developed countries to come together for a better and cleaner future. Canada is one of the allies in this challenge. In recent years, many alternatives to the main components of concrete have been introduced, which is known as one of the most widely used building materials. The use of waste in concrete as a substitute for main natural components (such as aggregates and sand) is one of the most popular methods to reduce environmental pollution by construction during these years. The use of tires, electronic components and agricultural waste are among the uses of waste as an alternative to concrete. Due to its ecofriendly natural, low cost and easy access, agricultural waste has received more attention than others. Several agricultural wastes such as hemp, coconut shells, and others were utilized successfully in producing agro-concrete. However, the limited availability of in-service data and stability of agro-concrete in the agricultural environment, which is very aggressive, is halting its acceptance in the construction industry. Therefore, this dissertation focused on examining the potential of using agro-waste in different construction applications. Effects of various factors including shape, replacement rate and physical properties of used agriculture wastes, type of binding materials, and exposure conditions on mechanical performance were evaluated. Also, a special type of concrete, known as Controlled low strength materials (CLSM), was tested as a potential hosting for high amounts of agro-wastes. Two types of CLSM were evaluated: a cement-based CLSM (i.e. with ordinary Portland cement) and zero-cement CLSM (i.e. with alkali-activated binder). Results showed the high potential of implementing agro-wastes in various construction applications, including agro-concrete, controlled low strength concrete for filling applications and zero-emission materials (i.e. zero cement).Moreover, alkali-activated CLSM showed a greater potential to incorporate a high amount of agro-wastes than that of cement-based CLSM. The research results represent a crucial point in getting these materials as acceptable as construction materials. Also, it will allow the agriculture industry to effectively recycle/reuse the agro-waste, along with converting it to a valuable product. This will have a measurable impact on the Canadian specifications for concrete for farm and livestock buildings

Narcissism, self-esteem, communication apprehension, and need for affiliation: difference between social networking site users and non-users

Nowadays, people are increasingly using social networking sites to initiate and maintain friendships, obtain social support and gather data. Personal traits could potentially drive people to join social networking sites as well as indulge in other related behaviors. This study aims to examine whether people with the need for affiliation, narcissism, self- esteem and communication apprehension are more likely to join social networking sites. Data for the current study were collected using convenience sampling; the sample consisted of undergraduate students studying at three private universities in Tehran, Iran. We used IBM SPSS 20 to run logistic regression statistics to test the research hypotheses developed for this study based on the responses from 284 respondents. The results of this study reveal that self-esteem, communication apprehension and the need for affiliation are significant predictors for social networking site usage while narcissism is not

Evaluation of Methyl Red and Lactate as a Mediator and a Simple Carbon Source on Electrochemical Performance of Urmia lake Sediment Microbial Fuel Cell

Introduction: The energy crisis is an urgent issue due to the increased consumption of fossil fuels. Therefor alternative energy sources are, of critical importance. Sediment Microbial fuel cells (SMFCs) are more important among other renewable energy sources in which chemical energy in organic compounds is converted to electrical energy due to proper bacteria (exoelectrogens) catalytic activity. Materials and methods: In this study, one liter glassy reactor was used, half of it was filled with Urmia lake sediment, where microbial consortium are present, as anodic part and upper half was filled with lake water as cathodic part. Copper wires attached to graphite electrodes 4×4 cm² (choice electrode) and via an external resistance 2/2 kΩ two sections related to each other. Electrochemical performance was evaluated by a digital voltimeter. The effectiveness of methyl red as mediator and lactate after determination of optimum concentration which is added every 15 days was evaluated. All fuel cells were studied for over 45 days of experiment. Results: The results demonstrated the mediator SMFC with power density of 7/54 mW/m² has a distinct difference with mediator-less SMFC with power density of 0.46 mW/m². The recorded power density of SMFC with lactate and mediator was 4/44 ± 1/44 mW/m². Discussion and conclusion: Sediment microbial consortia degrade available organic compounds and transfer to the anode electrode by using synthetic mediators. The results showed, in addition to external synthetic mediator, methyl red increases fuel cell electrochemical performance. While it was expected that fuel cell performs well in the presence of mediator and external carbon source, we witnessed better electrochemical performance in the absence of lactate

Conflict of Law rules Analysis on Security Interests of Patent Rights and Trade Marks

Patent rights and Trade Marks are potentially substantial assets to invest in various fields of developing industries. Article 1(d) Foreign Investment Promotion and Protection Act ratified by Iranian parliament in 2002 refer to those rights that could be the subject of foreign investment agreements in Iran. The question is that if there was an international factor in a security contract of a patent right, what conflict of law rule within the framework of well-known methods could achieve a definitive and, predictable solution. It seems that if there is not neither a mutual agreement nor the most closely connecting factor financially is other than the one referred to the Article 968 of Iranian Civil Code, merely recourse to the legal methods to resolve conflict of laws could be problematic. As a governing law on security interests in patent rights, this article attempts to propose a method of the conflict of law rule corresponded to fundamental features of intellectual property rights by referring to the classical rules of conflict of laws, fundamental economic features of security interests in intellectual property rights and recent international approaches, particularly, the UNCITRAL legislative guide of secured transactions

Estética de las imágenes en una selección de sermones de Nahjul-Balagha con énfasis en la traducción del Descriptor Desconocido

Nahj al-Balagha is a valuable book that cannot be found after the Word of God and the Word of Allah (PBUH). In this article, a descriptive-analytic written in the form of a library and a script, according to all the Nahj al-Balagh the mechanism for a detailed understanding of Nahj al-Balaghah is the mastery of valuable knowledge such as rhetoric science (meanings, expressions, and verbs). The purpose of writing this article is to present such areas of Amir Al-Momenin’s rhetoric in the translation of the Unknown Descriptor, which some of its scholar’s attribute to Allameh Helli. Of course, none of the writers and researchers have made a definitive document, so their speeches are beyond speculation. It has been proved in this paper that Nahj al-Balaghah has, in addition to its eloquence, a rich and profound meaning that is tied to the nature of man and originates from the revelation.Nahj al-Balagha es un libro valioso que no se puede encontrar después de la Palabra de Dios y la Palabra de Allah (PBUH). En este artículo, un análisis descriptivo-escrito en forma de biblioteca y guión, según todos los Nahj al-Balagh. El mecanismo para una comprensión detallada de Nahj al-Balaghah es el dominio de conocimientos valiosos como la ciencia retórica (significados, expresiones y verbos). El propósito de escribir este artículo es presentar tales áreas de la retórica de Amir Al-Momenin en la traducción del Descriptor Desconocido, que algunos de sus eruditos atribuyen a Allameh Helli. Por supuesto, ninguno de los escritores e investigadores ha hecho un documento definitivo, por lo que sus discursos están más allá de la especulación. Se ha demostrado en este documento que Nahj al-Balaghah tiene, además de su elocuencia, un significado rico y profundo que está vinculado a la naturaleza del hombre y se origina en la revelación

Pride in technology-based health interventions: A double-edged sword

his is the peer reviewed version of the following article: Manika, D., Gregory‐Smith, D. and Antonetti, P. (2017), Pride in Technology‐Based Health Interventions: A Double‐Edged Sword. Psychol. Mark., 34: 410-427., which has been published in final form at https://doi.org/10.1002/mar.20997. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Use of Self-Archived Versions

Integrating health-related factors in the technological acceptance model for predicting health-related Internet use

Today, people use the Internet to satisfy health-related information and communication needs. Women are dominant Internet users in terms of health purposes. In Malaysia, Internet use for health management has become increasingly significant due to the increase in the incidence of chronic diseases, in particular among urban women, and their desire to stay healthy. Past studies adopted technology acceptance model (TAM) and health belief model (HBM) independently to explain Internet use for health-related purposes. TAM explains technology-related factors for Internet use whereas HBM purely explains health-related Internet use from a health perspective. While both TAM and HBM have their own merits, independently they lack the ability to explain the cognition and the related mechanisms in which individuals use Internet for health purpose. The main objective of this study is to develop an integrated model of health-related Internet use based on the health belief model (HBM) and the technology acceptance model (TAM). This study specifically aims to examine the influence of perceived health risk and health consciousness on health-related Internet use based on the HBM. Drawing upon the TAM it also tests the mediating effects of perceived usefulness of Internet for health information and attitude towards Internet for health purposes on the relationship between health-related factors, namely perceive health risk and health consciousness, and health-related Internet use. Data obtained for the current study were collected using proportionate sampling and the sample consisted of non-academic female staffs working at the Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM). A total of 293 respondents were selected for this study and Partial Least Squares-Structural Equation Modeling was used to test the research hypotheses developed for this study. The results of this study revealed that perceived health risk and health consciousness have a positive influence on health-related Internet use. Additionally, perceived usefulness of Internet was influenced by perceived health risk and health consciousness. Perceived ease of Internet use and perceived usefulness also showed the positive impact on attitude towards the Internet use for health information which in turn had a positive effect on health-related Internet use. Moreover, perceived usefulness of Internet and attitude towards the Internet use for health-related purposes partially mediated the influence of health consciousness on health-related Internet use while the effect of perceived health risk on health-related Internet use was fully mediated by perceived usefulness of Internet and attitude. These results suggested the central role of perceived usefulness of and attitude towards Internet for health purpose for women who were health conscious and who perceived their health to be at risk. The integrated model proposed and tested in this study shows that HBM when combined with TAM is able to predict the Internet use for health purpose. For women who subjectively evaluate their health as vulnerable to diseases and are concerned about their health, cognition beliefs in and positive affective feelings about Internet come into play in the use of Internet for health-related purposes. Furthermore, engaging in health-related Internet use is a proactive behavior rather than a reactive behavior, suggesting the significant mediating role of the TAM dimensions in using the Internet for health management

Understanding Equity in Intermittent Water Supplies: A Distributed Pressure-dependent Demand Model

Intermittent Water Supplies (IWSs), providing water for less than 24 hours a day, are associated with demanding management, extra costs, low water quality, and inequity. In this study, a new distributed pressure-dependent demand model is developed to measure volumetric equity using two metrics: volumetric equity and the Gini coefficient. The model consists of a reservoir and a pipe with a slot along the crown of the pipe acting as an unrestricted orifice. A residential pipe and an equivalent pipe, representing a network regardless of its structural details, were analyzed under different steady, pressure deficient scenarios to explore the opportunities to improve equity. The results suggest that overdesigning IWSs with larger pipes and feeding the system from multiple points near high-density settlements improve equity. Accordingly, hilly areas should be supplied with higher pressure and pipes near the reservoir should be prioritized for leakage inspection and reduction.M.A.S