SELF-VS: Self-supervised Encoding Learning For Video Summarization

Despite its wide range of applications, video summarization is still held back by the scarcity of extensive datasets, largely due to the labor-intensive and costly nature of frame-level annotations. As a result, existing video summarization methods are prone to overfitting. To mitigate this challenge, we propose a novel self-supervised video representation learning method using knowledge distillation to pre-train a transformer encoder. Our method matches its semantic video representation, which is constructed with respect to frame importance scores, to a representation derived from a CNN trained on video classification. Empirical evaluations on correlation-based metrics, such as Kendall's $\tau$ and Spearman's $\rho$ demonstrate the superiority of our approach compared to existing state-of-the-art methods in assigning relative scores to the input frames.Comment: 9 pages, 5 figure

Geomorphosite assesment in Qeshm Geopark (Iran)

One of the new fields in geosciences and tourism studies is tourism geomorphology or geomorphotourism, which is based on recognition of geomorphosites or specific sites of geomorphology. The purpose of this research was to study the geomorphotourism of Qeshm Geopark. As the first geopark in Iran and in the Middle East, Qeshm Geopark is the final part of the Zagros Mountains. It has valuable geomorphotourism potential which should be studied for its conservation and use of its potential. The assessment method introduced by Kubalíková was used for assessing the geomorphotourism potential of Qeshm Geopark. Also, TCI index was used to assess climatic comfort for tourists. Seven important geomorphological and geological sites (Chahkuh Valley, Stars Valley, Namakdan, Dulab, Roof of the Qeshm, Tandis-ha valley and Korkorakuh) were selected as representatives from East to West of the Qeshm Geopark. The results indicated that Chahkuh Valley, Stars Valley, and Namakdanas well as Dulab, Roof of the Qeshm, Tandis-ha valley and Korkorakuh have the highest and lowest values based on Kubalíková geomorphosite assessment, respectively. The obtained results also demonstrated that winter is the best season for tourism in Qeshm Geopark

Molekularna karakterizacija i otpornost na antibiotike bakterije Clostridium perfringens izolirane iz trupova goveda i ovaca u klaonicama Shiraza u južnom Iranu

Clostridium perfringens type A food-borne poisoning is often caused by C. perfringens enterotoxin (CPE) encoded by chromosomal cpe. Contamination of meat with C. perfringens usually leads to food poisoning outbreaks. To find more information regarding the causative agent, we focused on the identification of type A containing cpe and netB genes in cattle and sheep carcasses slaughtered at Shiraz slaughterhouse and investigated the prevalence of antibiotic-resistant plasmid in isolated C. perfringens. 200 specimens were randomly collected by swabbing the whole outer and inner surface of the carcasses, and processed for selective culture on sulfadiazine polymyxin sulphate agar (SPS). The suspected colonies were further identified using species-specific primers as to confirm the presence of the cpa, cpe, netB and tetracycline and enrofloxacin gene resistance patterns. Our results demonstrated that out of 90 and 70 colonies of the positive cultures from cattle and sheep samples, respectively, 40% and 35.7% of the suspected colonies were identified as C. perfringens type A by PCR assay. Moreover, from those type A isolates, only 1 (2.7%) isolate was positive for both cpe and netB genes in the cattle carcasses. The MIC values also showed high tetracycline resistance patterns for cattle (45.8%) and sheep (92.3%) while all of the PCR positive C. perfringens type A isolates were susceptible to enrofloxacin. The high prevalence of C. perfringens in slaughtered animals with a high rate of resistance to tetracycline implies the need for caution in the use of antibiotic in food animals.Trovanje hranom uzrokovano bakterijom Clostridium perfringens tipa A često uzrokuje C. perfringens enterotoksin (CPE), kodiran kromosomskim cpe. Kontaminacija mesa s C. perfringens obično uzrokuje otrovanje hranom. Da bismo doznali više informacija o uzročniku, iz trupova goveda i ovaca zaklanih u klaonicama Shiraza, identificirali smo tip A koji sadržava gene cpe i netB. Osim toga, u izoliranim bakterijama C. perfringens utvrdili smo prevalenciju plazmida rezistentnih na antibiotike. Obriskom cijele vanjske i unutarnje površine nasumično odabranih trupova, prikupljeno je 200 uzoraka koji su obrađeni selektivnom kulturom na sulfadiazin-polimiksin sulfatnom agaru (SPS). Sumnjive kolonije dodatno su identificirane primjenom specifičnih početnica kako bi se potvrdila prisutnost gena cpa, cpe, netB te gena za otpornost na tetraciklin i enrofloksacin. Naši su rezultati pokazali da je PCR analizom od 90, odnosno 70 kolonija pozitivnih kultura iz uzoraka goveda i ovaca, njih 40 %, odnosno 35,7 % identificirano kao C. perfringens tipa A. Štoviše, iz izolata tipa A dobivenih od goveđih trupova, samo je jedan izolat (2,7 %) bio pozitivan i za gene cpe i za netB. MIC vrijednosti također su pokazale visoku razinu otpornosti na tetracikline kod goveda (45,8 %) i ovaca (92,3 %), dok su svi PCR pozitivni na C. perfringens tipa A bili osjetljivi na enrofloksacin. Visoka prevalencija bakterije C. perfringens kod zaklanih životinja zajedno s visokom stopom otpornosti na tetraciklin upućuje na potrebu za oprezom u primjeni antibiotika kod životinja koje služe za ljudsku hranu

Acute and subchronic toxicological evaluation of Echinophora platyloba DC (Apiaceae) total extract in Wistar rats

OBJECTIVE: Echinophora platyloba DC is a widely used herbal medicine and food seasoning in Iran. It is claimed to exert antimicrobial, antifungal, and antispasmodic effects. Despite the prevalent use of this plant as a food and medicine, there are no reports on its possible toxic effects. To evaluate the safety of E. platyloba, we tested its acute and sub-chronic toxicity in male and female Wistar rats. METHODS: Rats were orally treated with four different single doses of E. platyloba total extract and screened for signs of toxicity two weeks after administration. In the sub-chronic toxicity study, E. platyloba was administered for 45 days. Mortality, clinical signs, body weight changes, hematological and biochemical parameters, gross findings, organ weights, and histological markers were monitored during the study. RESULTS: We found no mortality and no abnormality in clinical signs, body weight, or necropsy findings in any of the animals in the acute study. The results of the subchronic study showed no significant difference in hematological parameters in either sex. There was a significant increase in lactate dehydrogenase in the female groups. A significant increase in the relative lung weight of female rats was noted at 500 mg/kg. Histopathological examinations revealed intra-alveolar hemorrhage in the male rats (500 mg/kg). In the females, congestion of the alveolar capillaries (at 500 mg/kg) and liver bridging necrosis (at 200 mg/kg) were significantly increased. CONCLUSION: The no observed adverse effect level of E. platyloba was determined to be 200 and 50 mg/kg for male and female rats, respectively

Evaluation of antioxidant and cytoprotective activities of Artemisia ciniformis extracts on PC12 cells

Objective(s): In the current study antioxidant capacities of five different extracts of Artemisia ciniformis aerial parts were evaluated by cell-free methods. Then seven fractions of the potent extract were selected and their antioxidant capacity was assayed by cell free and cell based methods. Materials andMethods: Antioxidant ability was measured using the: 2, 2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging test, β-carotene bleaching (BCB) method and ferrous ion chelating (FIC) assay. Total phenolic contents (TPC) of all the samples also were determined. The cytoprotective effect of fractions was evaluated by measuring the viability of cells after exposure to doxorubicin (DOX). The mechanism of action was studied by investigating caspase-3, mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP), the level of super-oxide dismutase (SOD) and intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS). Results: Hydroethanolic extract exhibited a notably higher antioxidant activity and phenolic content. Among the fractions (A to G) of hydroethanolic extract, the highest antioxidant capacity was observed in the Fraction E. Moreover, 24 hr pretreatment of PC12 cells with fractions B, C and D decreased DOX-induced cytotoxicity. In addition, pre-treatment of cells with fraction B resulted in significant decrease in generation of the reactive oxygen species (ROS) and increase in the activity of SOD. We were able to demonstrate remarkable reduction in the activity of caspase-3 and increase in MMP in PC12 cells following pretreatment with fraction B. Conclusion: Our observations indicated that the fraction B of A. ciniformis hydroetanolic extract possessed protective effect on oxidative stress and apoptosis induced by DOX in PC12 cells

Energy Flows Modeling and Economic Evaluation of Watermelon Production in Fars Province of Iran

This study aimed to evaluate the efficiency of energy consumption and economic analysis of different watermelon cultivation systems in Fars Province of Iran. Watermelon production systems were classified into five systems, namely, custom tillage (group 1), conservation tillage (group 2), traditional planting (group3), semi mechanized planting (group 4), and mechanized planting (group 5). Data were collected from 317 watermelon producers from different parts of the province through face to face interviews. Multi-Layer Perceptron artificial neural networks were used to model the energy flows of watermelon production. The results showed that the greatest energy consumption belonged to mechanized planting system with the value of 81317.72 MJha-1 and with the productivity of 0.61 kgha-1 and energy use efficiency of 1.17. Clustering function with three inputs (human resources, machines and diesel fuel) showed that the difference between groups 2 and 4 is more than the other groups. The least energy consumption belonged to the conservative agriculture as78163.86 MJha-1 and the energy productivity and energy use efficiency about 0.64 kgha-1 and 1.22, respectively. The results of energy modeling showed that an ANN model with 9-10-1 structure was determined to be optimal for energy flow modeling of this system. Generally, it was concluded that the artificial neural network models can be applicable to prognosticate the energy flows of watermelon production. From an economic point of view, the least net profit belonged to traditional planting with the value of 2618.14$, and the most net return belonged to mechanized planting with the value of 2752.88$/ha

The Role of the Hero in Creating Epic Content in Ferdowsi's "Rustam and Esfandiar" Story

The actions and thoughts of the hero of the epic represent the aspirations and characteristics of a nation. For this reason, recognizing the characteristics of the epic hero is especially important in realizing his role in creating epic content, because the epic poet tries to emphasize the effective elements in creating the epic content by using the "heroic insight". In this research, which is done analytically-descriptively and with the aim of examining the role of "hero" in creating epic content, an attempt is made to rely on the story of "Rostam and Esfandiar", the characteristics of two unique heroes/hero of Shahnameh, namely "Rostam". (the hero of the world and the national epic of Iran) and "Esfandiar" (the hero – the Iranian prince of invulnerability) to be introduced and analyzed as the hero's influential vision in forming repetitive epic themes in Shahnameh. According to the findings of this study, the most prominent characteristics, thoughts, and actions of the two main heroes of the story "Rostam and Esfandiar", which led to the formation of the most epic story of Shahnameh are: the popularity and nationality of the hero, having a superficial character and signs of godliness, the importance of the race, the need to preserve the name and protect the sanctity of the free, the use of special weapons, the need for knowledge

Recurrent cannabis-induced catatonia: a case report and comprehensive systematic literature review

BackgroundCatatonia presents itself as a complex neuropsychiatric syndrome, giving rise to various motor, speech, and behavioral challenges. It is noteworthy that approximately 10% of psychiatric hospital admissions can be attributed to this condition. It is imperative to note that cannabis-induced catatonia, while infrequent, has been linked to the use of marijuana. This connection has the potential to disrupt neurotransmitter systems, necessitating further research for a comprehensive understanding and effective treatment, particularly given the evolving trends in cannabis use. In this context, we shall delve into a unique case of recurrent cannabis-induced catatonia.Case presentationA 23-year-old gentleman, who has previously struggled with substance use disorder, experienced the emergence of mutism, social isolation, and a fixed gaze subsequent to his use of cannabis. Remarkably, despite the absence of hallucinations, he exhibited recurrent episodes of catatonia. These episodes were effectively addressed through a combination of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) and lorazepam administration. Notably, when the lorazepam dosage was gradually reduced to below 2 mg per day, the catatonic symptoms resurfaced; however, they promptly abated upon reinstating the medication. The diagnosis of cannabis-induced catatonia was established, and its management primarily involved a therapeutic approach encompassing ECT and lorazepam. It is pertinent to underscore that this catatonic condition can be directly linked to the individual’s cannabis usage.ConclusionThe connection between cannabis and catatonia is intricate and not entirely comprehended. Although cannabis possesses therapeutic advantages, it can paradoxically trigger catatonia in certain individuals. Multiple factors, such as genetics, cannabinoids, and neurotransmitter systems, contribute to this intricacy, underscoring the necessity for additional research

Evaluation of Cytotoxicity, Cell Cycle, and Apoptosis Induction of Methyl Thiosemicarbazone Complex with Copper on K562 Cell Line

Background & Aims:  Chronic human myeloid leukemia (CML) is caused by mutations and changes in stem cells. This study aimed to investigate the toxicity, apoptosis, and cell cycle of thiosemicarbazone complex with copper on the human chronic myelogenous K562 leukemia cell line. Materials & Methods:  After culturing the human K562 cell line, it was exposed to the combination of methyl thiosemicarbazone complex with copper in different concentrations and durations. Trypan blue dye exclusion test and MTT were used to determine cell viability and cell growth inhibition. The occurrence of apoptosis was examined by dual acridine orange/ethidium bromide (AO/EB) fluorescent staining and fluorescence microscopy, cell cycle analysis, and dual PI/AnnexinV staining using flow cytometry. Results:  The data obtained from the present study showed morphological changes resulting from apoptosis and cell cycle arrest in Sub G1 in the presence of phosphatidylserine in the outer leaflet of the cell membrane due to treatment with thiosemicarbazone compound. It also decreased the biological growth of the K562 cell line in a concentration-/ and time-dependent manner. Conclusion:  effective at low concentrations and short duration of action, this compound can be a suitable candidate for future pharmacological studies on treating CML