General Extenders in Persian Discourse: Frequency and Grammatical Distribution

This study tries to investigate the frequency and grammatical distribution of general extenders in Persian. The analysis is based on a corpus of informal conversations. On some occasions, a comparison will also be made with the corpus of informal English compiled and analyzed by Overstreet (1999, 2005). The results of this study lay bare the fact that Persian speakers use adjunctive general extenders more frequently than disjunctive ones. It will also be demonstrated that Persian speakers use general extenders both at clause final and clause-internal positions. Finally, Persian general extenders will be examined with reference to their grammatical agreement requirements.Keywords: Discourse marker; frequency; general extender; grammatical distribution; Persia

Facile Preparation of Drug-Loaded Tristearin Encapsulated Superparamagnetic Iron Oxide Nanoparticles Using Coaxial Electrospray Processing

The file attached to this record is the author's final peer reviewed version. The Publisher's final version can be found by following the DOI link

Design and Evaluation of Face Mask Filtration: Mechanisms, Formulas, and Fluid Dynamics Simulations

The global adoption of face masks as a preventive measure against the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus (COVID-19) has spurred extensive research into their filtration efficacy. This study begins by elucidating various mechanisms of particle penetration and comparing filtration efficiency formulas with experimental data from prior studies. This is compared to the filtration efficiency experimental measurement developed in our previous study. Moreover, it delves into fluid dynamics simulations to examine different turbulent airflow models. Specifically, it contrasts the airflow velocity distribution of the k-ω and k-ε turbulent flow models with that of a quadrant-based average velocity model developed within this research. Furthermore, the study conducts fluid dynamic simulations to assess airflow profiles for six distinct medical and non-medical face masks. The results underscore substantial disparities among the simulations, emphasising the criticality of employing accurate fluid dynamics models for evaluating airflow patterns during diverse respiratory activities such as breathing, coughing, or sneezing, thereby enhancing environmental health in the realm of infectious disease prevention

Filtering Efficiency and Design Properties of Medical- and Non-Medical-Grade Face Masks: A Multiscale Modeling Approach

Approved medical face masks have been shown to prevent the spread of respiratory droplets associated with coronavirus transmission in specific settings. The primary goal of this study was to develop a new strategy to assess the filtering and transmissibility properties of medical- and non-medical-grade face masks. In this study, we designed and assessed the filtering efficiency of particles through six different masks with a diverse set of fabrics, textures (woven and non-woven), fiber diameters, and porosity. The filtering and transmissibility properties of face mask layers individually and in combination have been assessed using mathematical analyses and new experimental data. The latter provided velocity profiles and filtration efficiencies for which the data were shown to be predictable. The filtration efficacy and pressure drop across each fabric have been tested using an aerosol particle spray and scanning electron microscopy. To assess clinical significance, the temperature and humidity of the masks were tested on a group of healthy volunteers spanning various age ranges (9–79 years old), utilizing an embedded temperature sensor disc. Also, a mask filter model was developed using fluid dynamic simulations (Solidworks Flow) to evaluate the aerodynamic dispersion of respiratory droplets. Overall, the FFP2 and FFP3 masks demonstrated the highest filtration efficiencies, each exceeding 90%, a feature of multi-layered masks that is consistent with simulations demonstrating higher filtering efficiencies for small particles (<5 µm). The velocity and temperature simulations of all six masks revealed a low air velocity (~1 m/s) inside the mask and a temperature variation of approximately 3 °C during the breathing cycle

About his friend, how good she is, and this and that : general extenders in native Persian and non-native English discourse

The present study sets out to investigate the structures and functions of general extenders (GEs) in native Persian and non-native English discourse. The data include two corpora of informal conversations collected by the participants themselves (circa 20 h). Both native and non-native corpora show that GEs are in the process of becoming more flexible with regard to their position. The Persian corpus was found to contain two unique GEs (‘vae vae vae’ and ‘vae in vae un’), that seemed to be directly transferred to English by the non-native speaker group (‘and and and’ and ‘and this and that’). The data further shows that, unlike in English, Persian GEs are not used to provide an intensifying effect in soliciting agreement. The non-native English corpus does not feature this function either. The findings also indicate that EFL learners do not tend to use the GE ‘and stuff’ to establish solidarity. Besides, the present study shows how Persian GEs can be used to fulfill the two unique functions of expressing outrage and arousing curiosity. In the former case, which is also found in the non-native English corpus, speakers echo the word they find offensive and add the GE ‘jahaerci’, and in the latter case, they lengthen the GE ‘vaeina’. Finally, it is argued that first language norms influence the use of GEs by non-native speakers.19 page(s

Ideological Aspects of Translating News Headlines from English to Persian

Le présent article qui est rédigé à la lumière de l’approche sociocognitive de Teun van Dijk, tente d’examiner quelques-unes des dimensions idéologiques de la traduction des titres dans la presse d’actualité de l’anglais en persan. Un certain nombre de titres parallèles en anglais et en persan ont été sélectionnés pour une analyse comparative et contrastive, avec notamment pour objectif de mettre en évidence différents outils idéologiques impliqués dans le processus de la traduction des titres. L’analyse qualitative des données modèles suggère que la polarisation des caractéristiques de « nous » contre « eux » est généralement influencée par l’approbation ou la désapprobation des traducteurs ou producteurs des textes d’actualité « cibles » du contenu idéologique de la une des journaux en question, et qui est représentée par le maintien, la modification ou la suppression d’éléments des textes sources dans les textes cibles. Ces stratégies de traduction se servent généralement d’expressions linguistiques (tant au niveau lexical que grammatical) ou d’éléments non linguistiques (tels que des images, des photos et des dessins).Drawing on Teun van Dijk’s socio-cognitive approach, the present paper attempts to investigate certain ideological aspects of news headlining in an English-Persian translation context. A number of parallel news headlines have been chosen for contrastive analysis, with a view to highlighting the different ideological apparatuses involved in the process of translation of news headlines. A qualitative analysis of the sample data suggests that the polarization of us and them is generally influenced by translators’/target news producers’ (dis)approval of the ideological content of the source headlines in question, and is represented through maintaining, manipulating or excluding original headlines in the target news stories. These translation strategies are typically realized through the purposeful application of linguistic expressions (both at lexical and grammatical levels) or non-linguistic elements (such as images, photos and graphic drawings)