A green, inexpensive and efficient organocatalyzed procedure for aqueous aldol condensations

A facile and general procedure is presented for diethylamine-catalyzed double crossed aldol condensation of cyclic ketones with various aromatic aldehydes under aqueous conditions. Excellent yields of 3,5-bisarylmethylidenes of homocyclic and heterocyclic ketones are achieved in a one-pot procedure. Furthermore, the methodology is efficiently applied to the synthesis of chalcones from their corresponding methyl ketones. In the majority of the cases studied, products precipitate from the reaction mixtures and the medium is recycled in subsequent several reactions without significant loss of activity

Application of the Theory of Planned Behaviour to predict Iranian students' intention to purchase organic food

Many studies have attempted to measure the relative importance of environmental concerns by comparing organic farming with conventional agriculture. However, there have been concerns that the factors which motivate consumers to purchase organic foods are not properly known. This study investigated students' behavioural intentions with regard to purchasing organic food in Iran. The Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) was used for the investigation, as it is one of the most widely used theories for investigating the relationship between attitude and action. Results indicated that the students' attitude was the main predictor of their intention to purchase organic foods. Interestingly, this research showed that both perceived behavioural control and subjective norms were not significant predictors of intention. Furthermore, adding moral norm and self-identity as the additional constructs to the TPB model significantly increased the explanatory power of the standard model. From the practical point of view, the present study provides a justification for using attitude, self-identity and moral norm dimensions in policy and decision making that intend to encourge students to purchase organic foods

Learner Autonomy research- Oman

The purpose of this study was to explore EFL teachers' perceptions of learner autonomy (LA), their actual practices and the challenges and factors affecting promoting learner autonomy at secondary schools in Oman. The study also investigated if there is any association between teachers' general beliefs about promoting LA and their academic level, gender and years of experience. The data collection instruments included a teachers’ perceptions questionnaire, classroom observation data, and interview with teachers. Frequency counts, ordinal regression analysis and grounded theory were used to analyse the quantitative and qualitative data. The results revealed that although EFL teachers at Omani secondary schools practice some strategies that promote learner autonomy, these practices are not intentionally and exclusively implemented for promoting LA. Moreover, the results showed some discrepancies between teachers’ beliefs about promoting learner autonomy and their actual practices due to some constraints and challenges that affect this process. These challenges involve the intensive English curriculum, teachers being overloaded with numerous school tasks besides teaching, learners' limited exposure to English outside classroom and teachers' limited background in the concept, principles, and practices of learner autonomy. No significant association was found between the teachers' general beliefs about learner autonomy and their particulars.THIS DATASET IS ARCHIVED AT DANS/EASY, BUT NOT ACCESSIBLE HERE. TO VIEW A LIST OF FILES AND ACCESS THE FILES IN THIS DATASET CLICK ON THE DOI-LINK ABOV

Investigating Stockmen’s Intention and Behavior regarding Animal Welfare at Dairy Cooperative in Sirjan Township

The aim of this research was to investigate the stockmen’s intention and behavior toward animal welfare in Sirjan Township. The sample was selected through simple random sampling. A survey of stockmen’s (N= 144) was undertaken in Sirjan Township, Kerman province. The reliability and validity of the instrument were examined and approved, and then data was collected. The results of this study revealed that independent variables predicted nearly 0.46 and 0.39 variance of the stockmen’s intentions and behavior regarding animal welfare respectively. Moreover, outcome expectation was the most important variable in predicting the stockmen’s intentions and behavior regarding animal welfare.  Finally, due to the positive effect of stockmen’s attitude on their intention, findings suggested that, by demonstrating educational films, using posters and visiting superlative dairy farms, it was possible to improve their attitude regarding their animal welfare. According to the impact of stockmen’s understanding of self-efficacy on achieving animal welfare, the study also suggested to simplify different aspects of animal welfare from perceptions of stockmen in order to see animal caring as easy. In this respect, Jihad-e-Keshavarzi organization and animal cooperation are two active institutes which can make this possible by providing different facilities and other possibilities for their members

Investigating the effect of moral norm and self-identity on the intention toward water conservation among Iranian young adults

This study aimed to investigate young adults’ intention regarding water conservation in Iran. To achieve this goal, we applied a modified theory of planned behavior, with moral norm and self-identity being two additional determinants of intention and behavior. A face-to-face survey (N = 428) was undertaken in two universities, in south-western Iran. The reliability and validity of the instruments were examined and approved. Data were analyzed using structural equation modeling. The key findings were that self-identity, moral norm, attitude, and perceived behavioral control were all significant in determining intention, while subjective norm was not a significant predictor of intention. The findings of this study provided preliminary support for the theory of planned behavior and an extended model being used as an effective framework for examining water conservation among Iranian citizens. In addition, we found that self-identity and moral norm can capture a significant proportion of the variation in intention regarding water conservation

SHORT INVESTIGATION ABOUT DEVELOPMENT OF STRENGTH MORTAR CONTAINING PALM OIL FUEL ASH (POFA) AND PULVERIZE FUEL ASH (PFA)

The Thirteenth East Asia-Pacific Conference on Structural Engineering and Construction (EASEC-13), September 11-13, 2013, Sapporo, Japan

Predicting farmers' water conservation goals and behavior in Iran: A test of social cognitive theory

Lack of water constrains the economic development of all countries in arid and semi-arid areas and is forecast to become an even greater problem in the near future. Given the complexity of the water scarcity problem, an emerging drought in Iran (the worst in 30 year) has become an increasingly important issue, making more sustainable water management a necessity. Government bodies involved in water resource management mainly concentrate on increasing water supply, while approaches to decreasing water demand receive less attention. Iranian water users have been slow to implement voluntary water conservation. Encouraging voluntary action requires an understanding of existing behaviors, and of how behavioral changes can be made. In this context, a study was carried out to identify the most prominent drivers of, and impediments to, water conservation, using social cognitive theory. A sample of 360 farmers living in western parts of Iran was selected through a multi-stage, stratified, random sampling method. Findings revealed that farmers' intention to conserve water was predicted mainly by outcome expectancy and self-efficacy. Moreover, self-efficacy was the most important determinant to farmers' actual behavior in conserving water