Using fuzzy inference system to predict Pb (II) removal from aqueous solutions by magnetic Fe3O4/H2SO4-activated Myrtus Communis leaves carbon nanocomposite

In this research study, a magnetic nanocomposite consisting of the Fe3O4 nanoparticles immobilized on Myrtus Communis-derived activated carbon (MM-AC) was synthesized and then, characterized by FE-SEM and FT-IR analytical methods. The results showed that the sizes of the Fe3O4 nanoparticles were about 54¿nm, and the changes in the intensities of the major peaks were associated with the binding process. The adsorption efficiency of the MM-AC was evaluated for Pb (II) removal from aqueous solutions. The effective parameters such as pH, adsorbent dosage, contact time and initial metal ion concentration were optimized to reach maximum Pb (II) removal efficiency (%). The equilibrium amount of Pb (II) adsorbed onto the MM-AC suggested that the removal of Pb (II) followed Langmuir model. The kinetic studies on the removal of Pb (II) revealed that the adsorption process obeyed pseudo-second-order kinetic model. The maximum Pb (II) removal efficiency by the MM-AC was obtained at pH¿=¿5. The adsorption capacity of Pb (II) onto the MM-AC changed from 88.65 to 480.90¿mg/g by increasing the initial concentration of Pb (II) in the range of 100–400¿mg/L. The comparison of maximum monolayer adsorption capacity of the MM-AC with other adsorbents reported in the literatures for removal of Pb (II) indicated that the MM-AC had better removal efficiency. In order to predict Pb (II) removal efficiency, a methodology based on fuzzy inference system (FIS) including multiple inputs and one output was developed. Four input variables namely pH, contact time (min), adsorbent dosage (g), and initial concentration of Pb (II) were fuzzified using an artificial intelligence-based approach. A Mamdani-type of fuzzy inference system was applied to implement a total of 18 rules in IF-THEN format along with a fuzzy subset consisting of a combination of Triangular and Trapezoidal membership functions in eight levels. The max-min method was employed as fuzzy inference operator, while defuzzification process was conducted using the center of gravity (COG, centroid) method. The achieved coefficient of determination value (R2>¿0.99) confirmed the excellent accuracy of fuzzy logic model as a trustworthy prediction tool for Pb (II) removal efficiency. The overall results suggested that the developed material can be employed as an efficient adsorbent for Pb (II) removal from polluted aqueous solutions on a full-scale operation.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

Reflections from Indigenous Psychology on Emotional Disorders: A Qualitative Study from Iran

AbstractIntroduction: Depression and Anxiety literature in Iran is suffering from the lack of culture/indigenous studies in assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of emotional disorders especially in Azeri ethnic zone, and still there is no comprehensive research on how Azeri speaking individuals percept and experience depression and anxiety. Current study is carried out in order to identify depression and anxiety dimensions in Azeri ethnic group with emphasis on dimensional classification of emotional disorders.Methods: In a cross sectional qualitative design, 32 informants from Azeri ethnicity (14 patients, 13 lay people, and 5 professionals) participated in the study from September 2013 till December 2014. Individual in-depth interviews had been conducted with regard to highlighted themes of explanations, reporting the experiences and perceptions of the participants from emotional disorders. Data were analyzed through content analysis technique.Results: Primary results indicated that 11 main theme categories identified in Azeri ethnic group which are dimensional constructs related to emotional disorders: Avoidance, Dysfunction, Arousality, Disorganized Personality, Repetition, Somatization, Problematic Behavior, Maladaptive Cognition, Awareness, Positive, and Negative Emotionality.Discussions: In the same line with related researches in the field, Somatization had the highest frequency of symptom report by participants. However, current evidences are not supporting the hypothesis of "Somatizing" depression and anxiety in non-western people including Iran, and perhaps other psychological processes are involved in somatic symptom report. Theoretical advantages and implications of the study in the framework of clinical and indigenous studies are discussed. Keywords: Depression, Anxiety, Emotional Disorders, Azeri Ethnic Group, Cultural Dimensions, Qualitative Stud

The Performance of Bilingual and Monolingual Children on Working Memory Tasks

Objectives: The purpose of this research was to explore the possible differences in the working memory of monolingual (Persian) and bilingual (Persian-Baluchi) children. We wanted to examine if there is a statistically significant relationship between working memory and bilingualism. Methods: Four working memory (WM) tests, assessing three WM components, were administered to 140 second grade school students, of whom 70 were monolinguals (35 girls and 35 boys) and 70 were bilinguals (35 girls and 35 boys). The tests used are the following: Forward Digit Span Test, Backward Digit Span Test, Non Word Repetition Test, Maze Memory Test. The results of the two groups were analyzed with multi-group confirmatory factor analysis, aiming to find out any differences in the working memory function of bilingual and monolingual children, and to determine which group has an advantage. Results: The multi-group confirmatory factor analysis was used to measure various WM factors across the two language groups. The findings showed that there were significant language effects on Forward and Backward Digit Span and Non Word Repetition Task (p‹0.001), and no significant language effects on Maze Memory (p›0.001). Discussion: This study revealed that bilingual children had a better WM, which holds processes and updates information over short periods of time, than monolingual children

Genomic analysis of indigenous goats in Southwest Asia reveals evidence of ancient adaptive introgression related to desert climate

Understanding how evolutionary pressures related to climate change have shaped the current genetic background of domestic animals is a fundamental pursuit of biology. Here, we generated whole-genome sequencing data from native goat populations in Iraq and Pakistan. Combined with previously published data on modern, ancient (Late Neolithic to Medieval periods), and wild Capra species worldwide, we explored the genetic population structure, ancestry components, and signatures of natural positive selection in native goat populations in Southwest Asia (SWA). Results revealed that the genetic structure of SWA goats was deeply influenced by gene flow from the eastern Mediterranean during the Chalcolithic period, which may reflect adaptation to gradual warming and aridity in the region. Furthermore, comparative genomic analysis revealed adaptive introgression of the KITLG locus from the Nubian ibex (C. nubiana) into African and SWA goats. The frequency of the selected allele at this locus was significantly higher among goat populations located near northeastern Africa. These results provide new insights into the genetic composition and history of goat populations in the SWA region

A sheep pangenome reveals the spectrum of structural variations and their effects on tail phenotypes

Structural variations (SVs) are a major contributor to genetic diversity and phenotypic variations, but their prevalence and functions in domestic animals are largely unexplored. Here we generated high-quality genome assemblies for 15 individuals from genetically diverse sheep breeds using Pacific Biosciences (PacBio) high-fidelity sequencing, discovering 130.3 Mb nonreference sequences, from which 588 genes were annotated. A total of 149,158 biallelic insertions/deletions, 6531 divergent alleles, and 14,707 multiallelic variations with precise breakpoints were discovered. The SV spectrum is characterized by an excess of derived insertions compared to deletions (94,422 vs. 33,571), suggesting recent active LINE expansions in sheep. Nearly half of the SVs display low to moderate linkage disequilibrium with surrounding single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and most SVs cannot be tagged by SNP probes from the widely used ovine 50K SNP chip. We identified 865 population-stratified SVs including 122 SVs possibly derived in the domestication process among 690 individuals from sheep breeds worldwide. A novel 168-bp insertion in the 5' untranslated region (5' UTR) of HOXB13 is found at high frequency in long-tailed sheep. Further genome-wide association study and gene expression analyses suggest that this mutation is causative for the long-tail trait. In summary, we have developed a panel of high-quality de novo assemblies and present a catalog of structural variations in sheep. Our data capture abundant candidate functional variations that were previously unexplored and provide a fundamental resource for understanding trait biology in sheep

Fracture mechanism simulation of inhomogeneous anisotropic rocks by extended finite element method

The vast majority of rock masses is anisotropic due to factors such as layering, unequal in-situ stresses, joint sets, and discontinuities. Meanwhile, given the frequently asymmetric distribution of pores, grain sizes or different mineralogical compounds in different locations, they are often classified as inhomogeneous materials. In such materials, stress intensity factors (SIFs) at the crack tip, which control the initiation of failure, strongly depend on mechanical properties of the material near that area. On the other hand, crack propagation trajectories highly depend on the orthotropic properties of the rock mass. In this study, the SIFs are calculated by means of anisotropic crack tip enrichments and an interaction integral are developed for inhomogeneous materials with the help of the extended finite element method (XFEM). We also use the T-stress within the crack tip fields to develop a new criterion to estimate the crack initiation angles and propagation in rock masses. To verify and validate the proposed approach, the results are compared with experimental test results and those reported in the literature. It is found that the ratio of elastic moduli, shear stiffnesses, and material orientation angles have a significant impact on the SIFs. However, the rate of change in material properties is found to have a moderate effect on these factors and a more pronounced effect on the failure force. The results highlight the potential of the proposed formulation in the estimation of SIFs and crack propagation paths in inhomogeneous anisotropic materials

The effects of non-nutritive sucking and pre-feeding oral stimulation on time to achieve independent oral feeding for preterm infants

Background: The survival rates of preterm infants has increased over the last years, but oral feeding difficulties are the most common problems encountered by them Objectives: This study aimed at comparing the effects of non-nutritive sucking (NNS) and pre-feeding oral stimulation on feeding skills, length of hospital stay and weight gain of 26-32 weeks gestational age preterm infants in NICU, to determine the more effective intervention. Patients and Methods: Thirty-two preterm infants were assigned randomly into three groups. One intervention group received pre-feeding oral stimulation program and the other received non-nutritive sucking stimulation, while the control group received a sham intervention. Gestational age of infants was calculated during 1, 4 and 8 oral feeding and discharge time from NICU. The infants� weights were measured weekly from birth and at discharge time. Results: Mean gestational age on 8 time oral feeding per day, in 3 groups was not significant (P = 0.282). Although NNS and pre-feeding oral stimulation groups has fulfilled this criterion 7.55 and 6.07 days sooner than the control group, respectively (a result which is of great clinical and economic importance), but the difference did not reach statistical significance. Weight gaining at discharge time in NNS group was significantly higher than control and pre-feeding oral stimulation groups (P < 0.05). Conclusions: This study revealed that pre-feeding oral stimulation and NNS programs both were effective on oral feeding skills and weight gaining of the immature newborns. Yet, it seems that NNS program was more effective than pre-feeding oral stimulation on weight gaining. © 2015, Growth & Development Research Center

The Performance of Bilingual and Monolingual Children on Working Memory Tasks

Objectives: The purpose of this research was to explore the possible differences in the working memory of monolingual (Persian) and bilingual&nbsp; (Persian-Baluchi) children. We wanted to examine if there is a statistically significant relationship between working memory and bilingualism. Methods: Four working memory (WM) tests, assessing three WM components, were administered to 140 second grade school students, of whom 70 were&nbsp; monolinguals (35 girls and 35 boys) and 70 were bilinguals (35 girls and 35 boys). The tests used are the following: Forward Digit Span Test, Backward Digit Span Test, Non Word Repetition Test, Maze Memory Test. The results of the two groups were analyzed with multi-group confirmatory factor analysis, aiming to find out any differences in the working memory function of bilingual and monolingual children, and to determine which group has an advantage. Results: The multi-group confirmatory factor analysis was used to measure various WM factors across the two language groups. The findings showed that there were significant language effects on Forward and Backward Digit Span and Non Word Repetition Task (P0.001). Discussion: This study revealed that bilingual children had a better WM, which holds processes and updates information over short periods of time, than monolingual children