Factors Influencing the Effectiveness of Web-Based Learning in Selected Iranian Public Universities

The development of learning in the society has always been a topic of concern for most countries. In Iran, discussions for its improvement focus primarily on the role of Information Communication Technology (ICT) on the existing educational systems. Traditional education criteria are no longer sufficient and suitable to cope with the changes that have been brought by ICT. Web-based learning is one of the new changes in Iranian educational systems. Although the role of web-based learning in supporting ICT integration is comprehended as critical, to date there are lack of scientific studies about its effectiveness in Iranian public universities. This study is to understand this information gap through comprehensive sources of data on web-based computer courses in Iran. The specific objectives of this study were to identify the socio-demographic and academic profiles of students, their perceived effectiveness of web-based learning, its relationship with a number of independent variables, and to determine learning factors that may influence the effectiveness of web-based learning. The study was primarily quantitative in nature and employed descriptive correlational research designs to collect data on students who were taking web-based computer courses at Iranian public universities during the first semester of 2008/09 (N=1500). The web questionnaire was used to obtain the required data and the number of valid responses was 482. The results of this study indicated that the average age of the respondents was about 26 years. Half of the students preferred to communicate via e-mail and about 57% of them preferred to download their course contents from files with the .swf extension (Flash Player files). Further, 80% of them indicated that they participated in the web-based courses because they could learn at their own pace and it could fit into their busy schedules. Some 49% of these students had jobs. On average, they spent about four hours a week to study using computers. However, the instructors suggested that for a three-credit computer course, at least six hours must be spent on the computer a week. In addition, 55% of the students perceived that the web-based computer courses were moderately effective. Further analysis showed that the percentage of second year students or above (Level 2) who perceived the web-based computer courses to be effective was higher than the first or second year students doing Level 1

An Analysis of Thermal Comfort Perception in Cal Poly’s Math & Science Building

Since Americans, on average, spend approximately 90% of their time indoors according to the EPA, it is crucial to provide room occupants with the best, most comfortable, and healthiest possible environment, which is known as Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ). This thesis aims to identify how we can provide comfortable learning environments to improve student success. To determine the best possible environment for occupants, a model of the Math & Science Building was developed, validated, and modified using DesignBuilder. In addition, we compared thermal comfort surveys to actual measured conditions for some classrooms. Analysis indicates that students prefer a cooler thermal environment rather than a warmer thermal environment and that the Fanger PMV model is not as accurate as anticipated for predicting thermal comfort. Ventilation strategies could be modified to improve the indoor conditions, especially during exam times and in the afternoon when CO2 is shown to be at the highest concentration

Design and demonstration of integrated micro-electro-mechanical relay circuits for VLSI applications

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, 2013.Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.Includes bibliographical references (p. 115-121).Complementary-Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor (CMOS) feature size scaling has resulted in significant improvements in the performance and energy efficiency of integrated circuits in the past 4 decades. However, in the last decade and for technology nodes below 90 nm, the scaling of threshold and supply voltages has slowed, as a result of subthreshold leakage, and power density has increased with each new technology node. This has forced a move toward multi-core architectures, but the energy efficiency benefits of parallelism are limited by the sub-thresahold leakage and the minimum energy point for a given function. Avoiding this roadblock requires an alternative device with more ideal switching characteristics. One promising class of such devices is the electro-statically actuated micro-electro-mechanical (MEM) relay which offers zero leakage current and abrupt turn-on behavior. Although a MEM relay is inherently slower than a CMOS transistor due to the mechanical movement, we have developed circuit design methodologies to mitigate this problem at the system level. This thesis explores such design optimization techniques and investigates the viability of MEM relays as an alternative switching technology for very-large scale integration (VLSI) applications. In the first part of this thesis, the feasibility of MEM relays for power management applications is discussed. Due to their negligibly low leakage, in certain applications, chips utilizing power gates built with MEM relays can achieve lower total energy than those built with CMOS transistors. A simple comparative analysis is presented and provides design guidelines and energy savings estimates as a function of technology parameters, and quantifies the further benefits of scaled relay designs. We also demonstrate a relay chip successfully power-gating a CMOS chip, and show a relay-based pulse generator suitable for self-timed operation. Going beyond power-gating applications, this work also describes circuit techniques and trade-offs for logic design with MEM-relays, focusing on multipliers which are commonly known as the most complex arithmetic units in a digital system. These techniques leverage the large disparity between mechanical and electrical time-constants of a relay, partitioning the logic into large, complex gates to minimize the effect of mechanical delay and improve circuit performance. At the component design level, innovations in compressor unit design minimize the required number of relays for each block and facilitate component cascading with no delay penalty. We analyze the area/energy/delay trade-offs vs. CMOS designs, for typical bit-widths, and show that scaled relays offer 10-20x lower energy per operation for moderate throughputs (<10-100MOPS). In addition to this analysis, we demonstrate the functionality of some of the most complex MEM relay circuits reported to date. Finally, considering the importance of signal generation and transmission in VLSI systems, this thesis presents MEM relay-based I/O units, focusing on design and demonstration of digital to analog converters (DAC). It also explores the concept of faster-than-mechanical-delay signal transmission.by Hossein Fariborzi.Ph.D

3-D Laser Shaping of Ceramic and Ceramic Composite Materials

A versatile, automated, laser-based system, capable of producing complex threedimensional shapes of ceramic and ceramic composite materials, through either controlled layer ablation or solid freeform fabrication, is currently under development. The system comprises a 1.2 kW C021aser, positioning system, beam scanner, non-contacting positioning sensor, beam conditioner and CAD/CAM system. This paper reports progress in relating machine parameters (scan rate, feed, beam power and polarization) to process measurables (material removal rate and surface roughness), and demonstrates the potential for rapid prototyping and direct manufacturing of: (a) rotationally symmetric components based on ablative ceramics such as Si3N4 and (b) graphite fuel cell plenumsMechanical Engineerin

Association between Red Cell Distribution Width and Mortality in Pediatric Patients Admitted to Intensive Care Units

Background: Red cell distribution width (RDW) is a routine laboratory measure that could be used as a predictor of mortality in critically ill patients. Identification of patients at risk for mortality early in the course of PICU admission is an important step in improving the outcome. We aimed to assess the use of RDW as an early biomarker for outcome in pediatric critical illnesses. Methods: A retrospective study by extracting administrative and laboratory data from patients admitted to PICU of an academic pediatric teaching hospital was accomplished. After exclusion of 64 patients according to our exclusion criteria, 304 pediatric patients with PICU admissions over the 6 months of study period were included in the study. Results: The mean RDW for all patients was 14.9%±2.5%. PICU mortality was 13.3%. The rate of mortality in the quartile of RDW>15.7% was 20.1%. Elevated RDW was associated with longer duration of PICU admission (P<0.001). Tracheal intubation and ventilator support was needed in 34.2% of the patients. This was also correlated with elevated RDW (P=0.043). Conclusion: We observed that higher RDW was strongly linked to higher mortality risk in pediatric patients admitted in PICU. Higher RDW was associated with longer duration of PICU admission

Evaluation of Microbial Resistance Pattern in Children with Urinary Tract Infection in Bushehr between 2017 and 2018

Background and Aim: Urinary tract infection is one of the most common childhood illnesses that can lead to complications such as hypertension and kidney failure. The aim of this study was to evaluate microbial resistance and sensitivity and to determine the relationship between urinary tract abnormalities and prior antibiotic use with microbial resistance. Methods: This is a descriptive-analytic study on 90 patients with a positive urine culture. Urine culture samples were taken using one of the sampling methods (midstream clean catch, catheterization, urine bag, suprapubic aspiration) and ultrasonography was requested for all patients to evaluate urinary system abnormalities. Also, a history of prior antibiotic use was asked and recorded. Results: Of all patients, 55.6% showed E.coli and 44.4% showed other bacteria in urine culture. 97.7% of patients' cultures were sensitive to imipenem, 82.2% to nitrofurantoin, and 77.8% to cefixime. 65% of patients' cultures showed resistance to nalidixic acid, 56.7% to co-trimoxazole, and 38.9% to ceftriaxone. There was a significant relationship between cefixime and amikacin antibiotic resistance with abnormal ultrasound and there was a significant relationship between antibiotic resistance to cefixime, ceftriaxone, co-trimoxazole, and duration of prior antibiotic use (p-value &lt;0.05). Conclusion: The most common pathogen in UTI was E.coli. The highest sensitivity was to imipenem, nitrofurantoin, and cefixime, and the highest resistance was to nalidixic acid, co-trimoxazole, and ceftriaxone. There was a relationship between urinary tract abnormalities and prior antibiotic use with microbial resistance, so it is suggested to use kidney ultrasound in all patients with urinary tract infection

Mitigating coherent loss in superconducting circuits using molecular self-assembled monolayers

In planar superconducting circuits, decoherence due to materials imperfections, especially two-level-system (TLS) defects at different interfaces, is a primary hurdle for advancing quantum computing and sensing applications. Traditional methods for mitigating TLS loss, such as etching oxide layers at metal and substrate interfaces, have proven to be inadequate due to the persistent challenge of oxide regrowth. In this work, we introduce a novel approach that employs molecular self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) to chemically bind at different interfaces of superconducting circuits. This technique is specifically tested here on coplanar waveguide (CPW) resonators, in which this method not only impedes oxide regrowth after surface etching but can also tailors the dielectric properties at different resonators interfaces. The deployment of SAMs results in a consistent improvement in the measured quality factors across multiple resonators, surpassing those with only oxide-etched resonators. The efficiency of our approach i3s supported by microwave measurements of multiple devices conducted at millikelvin temperatures and correlated with detailed X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) characterizations of SAM-passivated resonators. The compatibility of SAMs materials with the established fabrication techniques offers a promising route to improve the performance of superconducting quantum devices

A note on the convergence of the Zakharov-Kuznetsov equation by homotopy analysis method

Abstract. In this paper, the convergence of Zakharov-Kuznetsov (ZK) equation by homotopy analysis method (HAM) is investigated. A theorem is proved to guarantee the convergence of HAM and to find the series solution of this equation via a reliable algorithm

Multilayer Ferromagnetic Spintronic Devices for Neuromorphic Computing Applications

Spintronics has gone through substantial progress due to its applications in energy-efficient memory, logic and unconventional computing paradigms. Multilayer ferromagnetic thin films are extensively studied for understanding the domain wall and skyrmion dynamics. However, most of these studies are confined to the materials and domain wall/skyrmion physics. In this paper, we present the experimental and micromagnetic realization of a multilayer ferromagnetic spintronic device for neuromorphic computing applications. The device exhibits multilevel resistance states and the number of resistance states increases with lowering temperature. This is supported by the multilevel magnetization behavior observed in the micromagnetic simulations. Furthermore, the evolution of resistance states with spin-orbit torque is also explored in experiments and simulations. Using the multi-level resistance states of the device, we propose its applications as a synaptic device in hardware neural networks and study the linearity performance of the synaptic devices. The neural network based on these devices is trained and tested on the MNIST dataset using a supervised learning algorithm. The devices at the chip level achieve 90\% accuracy. Thus, proving its applications in neuromorphic computing. Furthermore, we lastly discuss the possible application of the device in cryogenic memory electronics for quantum computers

Analyzing, Prioritizing, and Presenting the Model of Core Competencies of Education Managers

Today, with the advent of science and technology, societies are moving towards becoming complex and specialized; therefore, knowledge should be considered the basis of development and social welfare of countries. Meanwhile, the role of managers of educational and research centers of universities who have management skills is very important. The present study was conducted with the aim of studying the role of three managerial skills in designing the competency model of education managers of Khorasan Razavi Islamic Azad University branches. This research is applied in terms of its objective and exploratory-mixed in terms of its methodology (qualitative-quantitative). The statistical population of the research in the qualitative part included university experts with related expertise, who were included in the study through targeted sampling. The data collection method was library and measurement tools were a semi-structured interview in the qualitative part and a researcher-made questionnaire in the quantitative part, the questions of which were taken from the data obtained from the interview. In the quantitative part, the statistical population included 951 employees of Khorasan Razavi Islamic Azad University branches, of which 274 were selected randomly. The findings showed that 75% of the competence of education managers of Khorasan Razavi Islamic Azad University branches depends on the dimensions of management skills, namely the three technical, human, and perceptual dimensions. These dimensions can explain and predict the competence of education managers, who have seven dimensions as follows: individual characteristics, organizational factors, entrepreneurial competence, business competence, leadership, decision-making, and cooperation. Also, it was suggested that Islamic Azad University should act step by step and gradually according to a road map and long-term strategic plan in order to realize these concepts. To this end, it is necessary to formulate an operational plan and adopt a paradigmatic approach with a local and regional perspective