The Relationship between Users Cognitive Style and Information Seeking Behavior among Postgraduate Engineering Students

AbstractAn important issue that absorbs many attentions is studying the users’ required information and their pattern of dynamic interaction with online search. The aim of this study is to identify the relationship between users’ cognitive style and information seeking. It is to enhance the quality of information presentation and users’ interactions in the Web by adapting their preferences and specific needs. This paper specifically focuses on the use of the Internet by postgraduate engineering students. The sample of this study consists of 50 postgraduate engineering students from the Faculty of Computer Science and Information System in Universiti Teknologi Malaysia. The findings of this study reveal the linear relationship between users’ cognitive styles and information seeking

Imbalances in T Cell-Related Transcription Factors Among Patients with Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis

Objectives: Imbalances in effector T cell functioning have been associated with a number of autoimmune diseases, including Hashimoto’s thyroiditis (HT). Differentiation of effector T helper (Th) 1, Th2, Th17 and regulatory T cell (Treg) lymphocytes is regulated by transcription factors, including Th1-specific T box (T-bet), GATA binding protein-3 (GATA3), retinoid-related orphan receptor (ROR)-α and forkhead box P3 (FOXP3). This study aimed to investigate Th1/Th2, Th1/Treg, Th2/Treg and Th17/Treg balances at the level of these transcription factors. Methods: This study took place between October 2015 and August 2016. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells were collected from a control group of 40 healthy women recruited from the Zahedan University of Medical Sciences, Zahedan, Iran, and a patient group of 40 women with HT referred to the Hazrat Ali Asghar Hospital, Zahedan. Total ribonucleic acid extraction was performed and the gene expression of transcription factors was quantitated using a real-time polymerase chain reaction technique. Results: Expression of T-bet and GATA3 was significantly elevated, while FOXP3 expression was significantly diminished among HT patients in comparison with the controls (P = 0.03, 0.01 and 0.05, respectively). Expression of RORα was higher among HT patients, although this difference was not significant (P = 0.15). Expression of T-bet/FOXP3, GATA3/FOXP3 and RORα/FOXP3 ratios were increased among HT patients in comparison with the controls (P <0.02, <0.01 and <0.01, respectively). Conclusion: These results indicate that HT patients have imbalances in Th1/Treg, Th2/Treg and Th17/Treg lymphocytes at the level of the transcription factors, deviating towards Th1, Th2 and Th17 cells. Correction of these imbalances may therefore be therapeutic

The Effect of Iranian Advanced EFL Learners’ Knowledge of Collocation on Their Writing Ability

It is widely acknowledged that collocations are one of the most important concerns in EFL classes and materials. The significance of second language learners possessing some knowledge of collocations is now widely recognized. Also, collocations play significant role in second language learning, especially at the intermediate and advanced levels. The present study intended to investigate Ike influence of knowledge of collocation on writing ability of advanced EFL learners. Eighty Iranian advanced students participated in this study and their writings ability was analyzed to determine the collocations they produced. The participants' productive collocational knowledge was measured by free-writing tests: three topics were given to them to choose one of topics and write a composition. Their receptive collocational knowledge was measured by a multiple-choice test. Results of the study indicated that knowledge of collocation have not positive effect on production of collocation in free writing by EFL learners but it has positive effect on comprehension of collocation by EFL learners and there is a significant relationship between the receptive knowledge and productive knowledge of collocations.

Effect of Myo-inositol and N-acetyl-L-cysteine on processed human spermatozoa for use in modern methods of fertility treatment

Background and aims: Today, the prevalence of structural and functional disorders of sperm and subsequently the possibility of occurrence of autism, spontaneous abortion, and infertility has increased dramatically. This study aimed to investigate the potential effects of myo-inositol and N-acetyl-L-cysteine (NAC) on the improvement of processed spermatozoa indices. Methods: In this study, 63 patients with male factor infertility were studied in Hazrat Zahra Infertility Center of Shahrekord. To do liquefaction, the semen sample was incubated at 37°C for 20 minutes. The Density Gradient Centrifugation protocol was used to process sperm. The processed sperm samples were incubated at 37°C for 20 minutes in four groups of control, myo-inositol (2 mg/mL), NAC antioxidant (10 Mm/L) and myo-inositol+NAC. All biological parameters of sperm were evaluated using Makler slide, SQA-V sperm analyzer gold version 2.48, TUNEL assay, and Toluidine blue staining. Results: In the present study, 63 men aged 22-58 years with infertility complaints were studied. The NAC group and the myo-inositol group exhibited significantly higher motility in comparison with the control group (P 0.05). Conclusion: NAC and myo-inositol were able to improve certain indices such as sperm motility and integrity; therefore, the quality of sperm could be improved by these drugs to treat infertility. Keywords: Myo-inositol, N-acetyl-L-cysteine, Infertility treatment, Biological parameters of sperm, IVF, ICS

Monoclinic modification of 1,2-bis­(diphenyl­seleno­phosphino­yl)ethane

The complete mol­ecule of the title compound, C26H24P2Se2, is generated by crystallographic 2-fold symmetry, with the rotation axis bisecting the central C—C bond. The dihedral angle between the terminal aromatic rings is 74.1 (1)°

The Effect of Family Empowerment Model on Quality of Life in Children with Epilepsy in South of Iran, 2018: A Randomized Controlled Clinical Trial

Abstract Objectives:Epilepsy is a chronic disease of the nervous system that significantly affects the performance and behavior of children. Epileptic children are at greater risk of cognitive and behavioral disorders than healthy children. Various factors associated with this disease affect the patients’ family. Materials & Methods:The present study is a randomized controlled clinical trial conducted to evaluate the effect of family empowerment on quality of life of epileptic children referred to the desired centers (Bessat Clinic affiliated to Kerman University of Medical Sciences and Imam Reza Clinic of Shiraz) in two experimental and control groups. 80 parents of these children were selected and studied, if they met the inclusion criteria of study. In this study, Quality of Life in Childhood Epilepsy Questionnaire (QOLCE) was used. It is completed by parents of these children. Results:The age of the studied children was 4 to 8 yrs. According to these results, there was a statistically significant difference between the two groups in the level of changes in all dimensions, so that the mean score of quality of life in different factors increased in the experimental group compared to the control group (P <0.05 in all dimensions). Conclusion:Implementing the family-centered care plan by care providers, based on patient-family support relationships, identifying their strengths and weaknesses, prioritizing the services provided, and an effective interaction with the health team increase the family and staff satisfaction, reduce the costs, and improve the outcome of the disease. &nbsp

Optimizing the coefficients of the particle swarm optimization algorithm to solve the problem of economic dispatching to reduce the emission of environmental pollutants

Environmental issues due to the emission of pollutants produced by fossil fuel power plants have recently become an important issue. In this study, the coefficients of particle swarm optimization (PSO) algorithm to solve the problem of economic dispatching to reduce the emission of environmental pollutants were obtained. According to Clerk method, personal learning coefficient was equal to 1.4962, global learning coefficient was equal to 1.4962 and inertia coefficient was equal to 0.73. Also, the penalty coefficient according to the Co evolution particle swarm (CPSO) optimization algorithm was 15.8. As a result, optimization of coefficients by Taguchi method, it showed that the optimal value of personal learning coefficient is equal to 1.5, global learning coefficient is equal to 1.5, inertia coefficient is equal to 0.70 and penalty coefficient is equal to 15, in this case the amount emission of environmental pollutants were reduced by 6.5% compared to the coefficients determined by Clerk and 1.2% compared to the coefficients determined by the Co evolution particle swarm (CPSO) optimization algorithm

Bushehr Elderly Health (BEH) Programme, phase I (cardiovascular system)

Purpose: The main objective of the Bushehr Elderly Health Programme, in its first phase, is to investigate the prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors and their association with major adverse cardiovascular events. Participants: Between March 2013 and October 2014, a total of 3000 men and women aged ≥60 years, residing in Bushehr, Iran, participated in this prospective cohort study ( participation rate=90.2%). Findings to date: Baseline data on risk factors, including demographic and socioeconomic status, smoking and medical history, were collected through a modified WHO MONICA questionnaire. Vital signs and anthropometric measures, including systolic and diastolic blood pressure, weight, height, and waist and hip circumference, were also measured. 12-lead electrocardiography and echocardiography were conducted on all participants, and total of 10 cc venous blood was taken, and sera was separated and stored at –80°C for possible future use. Preliminary data analyses showed a noticeably higher prevalence of risk factors among older women compared to that in men. Future plans: Risk factor assessments will be repeated every 5 years, and the participants will be followed during the study to measure the occurrence of major adverse cardiac events. Moreover, the second phase, which includes investigation of bone health and cognition in the elderly, was started in September 2015. Data are available at the Persian Gulf Biomedical Research Institute, Bushehr University of Medical Sciences, Bushehr, Iran, for any collaboratio