Evaluating Wildlife–Vehicle Collision Hotspots Using Kernel-Based Estimation: a Focus on the Endangered Asiatic Cheetah in Central Iran

The transportation networks within and adjacent to protected areas degrade natural habitats and contribute to a higher risk of mortality through roadkill. Following years of unplanned and unsustainable road network development in Iran, the protected areas of significant biodiversity value have suffered from such phenomenon. Yazd Province, one of Iran’s important biodiversity reservoirs for large mammals, especially the Asiatic cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus venaticus), has witnessed a noticeable rate of road expansion along with an associated anthropogenic development. A large percentage (7 out of 50–70) of Asiatic cheetahs has been lost due to vehicle collisions in the region over the last decade. In this study, we employed a well-known spatially-explicit algorithm for density-based calculation of collision locations, adopting kernel density estimation method. We evaluated the location of 31 wildlife–vehicle collisions (WVCs) from 2007 to 2011, including 12 Persian gazelle (Gazella subgutturosa), 6 Asiatic cheetah, 5 striped hyena (Hyaena hyaena), 5 golden jackal (Canis aureus), 2 caracal (Caracal caracal), and 1 gray wolf (Canis lupus). Our results detected 4 hotspots of vehicle collisions in the Kalmand-Bahadoran Protected Area. The findings of this study could be employed to protect the populations of the Asiatic cheetah and other threatened species in this area. Potential mitigation strategies proposed include: wildlife warning sign usage, increasing public awareness, traffic devices to reduce vehicle speed in dangerous areas, utilization of warning lights for drivers, and improved crossing structures

Sign Gradient Descent Algorithms for Kinetostatic Protein Folding

This paper proposes a sign gradient descent (SGD) algorithm for predicting the three-dimensional folded protein molecule structures under the kinetostatic compliance method (KCM). In the KCM framework, which can be used to simulate the range of motion of peptide-based nanorobots/nanomachines, protein molecules are modeled as a large number of rigid nano-linkages that form a kinematic mechanism under motion constraints imposed by chemical bonds while folding under the kinetostatic effect of nonlinear interatomic force fields. In a departure from the conventional successive kinetostatic fold compliance framework, the proposed SGD-based iterative algorithm in this paper results in convergence to the local minima of the free energy of protein molecules corresponding to their final folded conformations in a faster and more robust manner. KCMbased folding dynamics simulations of the backbone chains of protein molecules demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm.Comment: 6 pages, Accepted in 2023 International Conference on Manipulation, Automation and Robotics at Small Scales (MARSS 2023

Integrated quadratic assignment and continuous facility layout problem

In this paper, an integrated layout model has been considered to incorporate intra and inter-department layout. In the proposed model, the arrangement of facilities within the departments is obtained through the QAP and from the other side the continuous layout problem is implemented to find the position and orientation of rectangular shape departments on the planar area. First, a modified version of QAP with fewer binary variables is presented. Afterward the integrated model is formulated based on the developed QAP. In order to evaluate material handling cost precisely, the actual position of machines within the departments (instead of center of departments) is considered. Moreover, other design factors such as aisle distance, single or multi row intra-department layout and orientation of departments have been considered. The mathematical model is formulated as mixed-integer programming (MIP) to minimize total material handling cost. Also due to the complexity of integrated model a heuristic method has been developed to solve large scale problems in a reasonable computational time. Finally, several illustrative numerical examples are selected from the literature to test the model and evaluate the heuristic

Modeling, identification and active vibration control of a funnel-shaped structure used in MRI throat

The purpose of this paper is designing an optimal controller for vibration suppression of a funnel-shaped smart structure with distributed piezoelectric actuators and sensors applicable in Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) system. This can help sensitive human beings from vibration and acoustic noise syndrome. Also, the vibration suppression in this structure prevents the test results to be damaged, which is an important issue in medical tests. For this aim, the problem of the vibration control for the funnel-shaped inlet structure of the MRI tomography is stated and the structure is described, first. Then the task of the structure modeling is tackled applying the FEM approach. Identification of the dynamic frequency response of the desired funnel is performed using the modal-based identification method and the state space model is obtained. Then, the control design for the structure is considered using LQG control method. Complete design and control development procedure is implemented in order to reduce the vibration magnitude of a funnel-shaped shell. Finally, the performance of the designed controllers in both frequency domain and time domain are compared with the open loop systems and results are discussed

SETTLE DISPUTE METHODS IN DOMESTIC AND INTERNATIONAL MARITIME TRANSPORTATION

Abstract. The rapid economic growth of Iran in the middle of the last century on the one hand and the large number of maritime trade exchanges between Iran and other countries on the other hand led to the Iranian legislator ratified the regulations on maritime transport, therefore, the Iranian Marine Law was approved in 1964. Although today, due to rapid industrial progress, most of the domestic and international transportation is carried out through air and land; the movement of passengers by sea, especially in short trips or sea voyages, is still a major contributor to domestic and international transport. Now, one of the questions that arises is that in the event of a dispute how it is resolved, which we will discuss in this study (both at the domestic and international levels).Keywords: Contract, transport, carrier, convention, arbitration

Evaluation of salivary immunoglobulin A level in thalassemic patients with periodontitis in comparison with thalassemic patients with healthy periodontium

BACKGROUND AND AIM: This study was conducted to evaluate salivary immunoglobulin A (IgA) level in thalassemic patients with periodontitis in comparison to thalassemic patients with healthy periodontium. METHODS: Seventy-five patients were included in this study and were divided into three groups, group A: 25 major thalassemic patients with mild to moderate periodontitis, group B: 25 thalassemic patients with healthy periodontium, and group C: 25 systemically healthy people with normal periodontium. To measure salivary IgA levels, stimulated saliva was collected and analyzed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The data were analyzed by t-test, ANOVA, and chi-square. RESULTS: Salivary IgA was significantly different in major thalassemia patients with periodontitis (69 μm/ml) in comparison to major thalassemia patients with healthy periodontium (81 μm/ml) (P < 0.05). The highest level of salivary IgA was observed in the systemically healthy people with normal periodontium (88 μm/ml). CONCLUSION: The levels of salivary IgA were decreased in major thalassemia patients with periodontitis and healthy periodontium in comparison to systemically healthy people with normal periodontium. KEYWORDS: Major Thalassemia; Periodontitis; Immunoglobulin

Low-contrast Pattern-reversal Visual Evoked Potential in Different Spatial Frequencies

Purpose: To evaluate the pattern-reversal visual evoked potential (PRVEP) in lowcontrast, spatial frequencies in time, frequency, and time-frequency domains. Methods: PRVEP was performed in 31 normal eyes, according to the International Society of Electrophysiology of Vision (ISCEV) protocol. Test stimuli had checkerboard of 5% contrast with spatial frequencies of 1, 2, and 4 cycles per degree (cpd). For each VEP waveform, the time domain (TD) analysis, Fast Fourier Transform(FFT), and discrete wavelet transform (DWT) were performed using MATLAB software. The VEP component changes as a function of spatial frequency (SF) were compared among time, frequency, and time–frequency dimensions. Results: As a consequence of increased SF, a significant attenuation of the P100 amplitude and prolongation of P100 latency were seen, while there was no significant difference in frequency components. In the wavelet domain, an increase in SF at a contrast level of 5% enhanced DWT coefficients. However, this increase had no meaningful effect on the 7P descriptor. Conclusion: At a low contrast level of 5%, SF-dependent changes in PRVEP parameters can be better identified with the TD and DWT approaches compared to the Fourier approach. However, specific visual processing may be seen with the wavelet transform

A Novel Multi-Criteria Decision-Making Framework in Electrical Utilities Based on Gray Number Approach

Given the current trend of reviving the power system, which is considered by competitive markets, the privatization of the power system is forcing them to develop the necessary decision-making policies from a technical and economic point of view to improve their asset management practices. Reliability-centered maintenance is an efficient process to consider these two important aspects, i.e. technical and economic ones when performing maintenance optimization. This paper proposes a new technique to solve the actual stochastic Multi-Criteria Decision-Making (MCDM) problems with uncertain weight information using a combination of Stochastic Multi-Criteria Acceptability Analysis (SMAA) and Elimination Et Choice Translating Reality (ELECTREIII) methods combined with gray system theory. In maintenance planning, gray system theory is used to determine the specific types of power system components that should receive the most attention. Then, the optimal maintenance strategy of every critical component is determined by recognizing the lowest costs associated with various strategies. The suggested framework demonstrates its relevance and efficacy for actual asset management optimizations in electric power systems, as demonstrated in the IEEE 14-bus test system.© 2022 the Authors. Published by IEEE. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 License. For more information, see https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/fi=vertaisarvioitu|en=peerReviewed

A New Approach for Long-Term Stability Estimation Based on Voltage Profile Assessment for a Power Grid

Load flow solutions refer to the steady-state stability of power systems and have a crucial role in the design and planning of slow-changing elements; e.g., in online tab changing actions, automatic generation control, over-excitation limiters and the power recovery characteristics of a load. Therefore, the purpose of this work was to show the connectivity between load flow analysis and long-term voltage stability using a generator model by introducing a novel voltage stability assessment based on the multi-machine dynamic model along with the load flow study for a power grid. The Euclidean distance (ED) was used to introduce a new voltage stability index based on the voltage phasor profile for real-time monitoring purposes. The effects of reactive power compensation, in addition to load-generation patterns and network topology changes in the system behavior, could be seen clearly on the voltage profiles of the buses. Thus, the increased values for the EDs of the buses’ voltage amplitudes—from 0 to around 1.5 (p.u.)—implied that the system was approaching the voltage collapse point, corresponding to the Jacobian matrix singularity of the load flow equation. Moreover, the weakest load bus with respect to any system change was also identified. Indeed, the criticality of any network interruption was in direct proportion to this voltage stability index. The proposed method was validated using the IEEE 118-bus test system.© 2023 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).fi=vertaisarvioitu|en=peerReviewed

The effect of earnings management on liquidity criteria and lack of liquidity stock

Liquidity criteria that investors in making portfolio investments are involved. Among the factors that could affect liquidity, earnings management. Earnings management can accrual-based earnings management aspects and management of real benefit to be evaluated; Therefore, the aim of this study is to estimate the accrual-based earnings management and gain real management and its effects on liquidity of companies listed on the Stock Exchange in Tehran. The sample consisted of 78 companies for the period 2008 to 2012. We used multivariate regression model based on panel data is performed. Our results show that research hypotheses are tested between accrual-based earnings management positive and significant relationship with the lack of liquidity, and the liquidity and significant negative relationship. As well as the actual management of non-profit with a positive and significant relationship between stock liquidity, and the liquidity is insignificant and there is a negative relationship