Entrepreneurship Network and Microfinance

Banks and financial intermediaries, as the highways of financing and absorption of savings, are considered as the key players in promotion of welfare level in each society. In Iran, due to structural deficiencies and international sanctions, a revision of banking industry seems very essential. More specifically, via balancing of financial intermediaries (based on the notion of “resilient economy’s five-year vision coined by the supreme leader of Islamic Revolution in Iran), banks could be used as a tool for economic promotion as well as one of the basic means of resilient economy. This study introduces the structure of the banking industry in Iran and demonstrates its deficiencies. In this respect, a plan for the structure of financial intermediaries is suggested for three purposes: facilitation of financing, reduction of transaction costs, and enhancement of the welfare level in society. In this regard, a structure based on the entrepreneurial networks through utilizing of measurement, consultancy, and monitoring systems is planned in this study. Furthermore, this study seeks to reduce the credit default risk through increasing of the micro-insurance share to the traditional systems of the financing

Comparison of hybrid regression and multivariate regression in the regional flood frequency analysis: A case study in Khorasan Razavi province

Background: Magnitude, rate and frequency of the stochastic and unexpected events are of great significance and importance in hydrology. Nowadays, for economic planning of the projects, the use of analytical methods of unexpected events in hydrology is unavoidable. The aim of this study was to compare hybrid regression and multivariate regression to estimate flood peak discharge in the province of Khorasan Razavi and in the selected water measured stations. Methods: For this purpose, 19 hydrometric stations were selected and analyzed. In the first step, the rate of peak discharge was estimated with different return periods and by selecting the best regional distribution (lognormal distribution type ΠΙ). In the next step, independent and important variables including area, mean annual rainfall, the average height of the watershed and its slope were determined using functional analysis and using SPSS software version 22. Then, two hydrologically homogeneous regions were determined by homogeneity test using cluster analysis, and accordingly, two models were presented for the whole area and also for homogeneous areas. To compare and evaluate the accuracy and efficiency of the estimated models, the rates of discharges were estimated and compared with observational rates using three control watersheds. To compare models, it was used from the average absolute values of the relative error index. Results: It was revealed that the hybrid method was more accurate than the multivariate regression method in the return period of 50 years and provides better results of flood discharges for the area. Homogenous areas had a higher coefficient of determination (R2) and lower relative standard error (RSE) compared to the whole area. It was also revealed that with increase of return period, the rates of R2 decreased but the rates of relative standard error increased. Conclusion: The accuracy of multivariate regression and hybrid methods was the same in the 25-year return period. In the present study, the importance and necessity of homogenous areas compared with the model of the whole area are completely evident. Keywords: Floods, Regression analysis, Khorasan Razavi province, Statistical distributions, Hybrid regressio

Minus salt goat skin preservation: Extreme chloride reduction in tannery wastewater

Content: Animal skins, a byproduct of the meat industry is the basic raw materials for the tanning industry. Just after flaying, animal skins have to preserve protecting it from microbiological destruction. Globally, sodium chloride is mostly used as popular preserving agents for the animal skins. It preserves the skin by its dehydrating ability. Nevertheless, sodium chloride is cost-effective, available, and easy to apply but the method suffers greatly in terms of environmental context. To reduce the pollution load, especially chloride in soaking operation several works have been carried out to preserve animal skins with various agents. This study is intended to preserve the goat skin with Sphagneticola trilobata leaf paste without sodium chloride for reducing the chloride in the soaking liquor. The plant has antimicrobial activity, widely distributed tropical and subtropical regions. The anticipated preservation method was assessed monitoring different parameters e.g., shrinkage temperature, hair slip, putrefaction, odour, moisture content, extractable nitrogen, and bacterial count on fresh (raw), 1st, 4th, 7th, 14th, 21st and 28th day in comparison to the conventional wet salting method. The physical properties of the processed leathers e.g., tensile strength, percentage of elongation, and ball burst of the crust leathers were fulfilled the required values. The chemical parameters like chloride, total dissolved solids (TDS), biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), and chemical oxygen demand (COD) of soaking liquor were investigated. The proposed preservation method was reduced pollution loads: chloride, TDS, BOD, and COD in soaking operation by 98.04%, 92.9%, 90.2% and 85.5%, respectively. The scanning electron microscope (SEM) photographs of both the present and conventional preservation methods processed crust leathers revealed similar texture and quality to each other. The anticipated preservation method could be a sustainable option to preserve goat skin, which could reduce the pollution loads during leather processing. Take-Away: 1. Sphagneticola trilobata leaf paste preserved goat skin up to 28 days 2. Reduction of chloride and TDS were 98.04% and 92.9% in soaking liquor 3. Lessening of BOD and COD were 90.2% and 85.5% in soaking liquo

3-(4-Ethoxy­benzo­yl)propionic acid

The title compound, C12H14O4, is an important inter­mediate in the synthesis of biologically active heterocyclic compounds. In the crystal structure, inter­molecular O—H⋯O and C—H⋯O hydrogen bonds link the mol­ecules. There are also C—H⋯π contacts between the benzene ring and the methyl­ene groups