Analyzing and Comparing the Effects of two Teaching Methods, Student-Centered Versus Teacher-Centered, on the Learning of Biostatistics at SBMU

Because of its widespread needs in different scientific fields, Statistics and Probability theory have gained great importance and medical students as well as students of other medically related disciplines including nursing need to use them especially in their research projects in undergraduate, graduate and postgraduate schools. This article deals with the question of finding the most effective way of teaching the necessary statistical skills to these students so that they can acquire more statistical knowledge and develop better problem solving and decision making strategies. This semi-experimental study has been carried out to compare the effect of teacher-centered and student-centered methods on nursing students’ learning of Biostatistics. The sample includes all the undergraduates of nursing School at SBMU (2006-2007). The sampling method used is convenience and includes 118 subjects. The teaching method is the dependent variable and the amount of material absorbed by the students, their age, marital status, type of housing, average of high school diploma, the grade average of the previous semester, number of family members and their prior experience are the independent variables. The grades of the students in the final exam, was taken as measure of amount of material absorbed by the students. The analysis was carried out using SPSS16 and the statistical tests used were t-test, ANOVA, and correlation test. The data revealed that the average of the students receiving student-based instruction was higher than the other students. However, no statistically significant difference was observed between the control and the experimental group in terms of the amount of teaching material learnt. The data also indicate that marital status, employment status, type of housing and prior experience all have statistically significant effect on the final grade, but none of them along with the teaching method exhibits a significant interaction with the final grade. Also the amount of material learnt by each student is almost directly correlated with his/her average of the previous semester (rp=0.402, p<0.001) and inversely weakly correlated with his/her age (rs=-0.220, p=0.017). Thus one can conclude that student-centered instruction is as effective as the teacher-centered instruction and other factors besides the method of instruction have a significant impact on the student’s learning.

A follow-up survey of graduates at Faculty of Paramedical Sciences of Shahid Beheshti Medical University (1997-2000) done to apply its results in educational planning and guidance of aptitudes

The Higher National Council of Medical Sciences Planning (HNCMSP) in Iran compile and approve educational programs by using expert academic staff, considering the country,s needs and studying the background of establishment of each major in other countries. Since the employment of graduates in occupations related to their majors is of utmost importance in educational planning, this survey has been done to investigate the graduates, employment and the factors affecting it, using a retrospective study.This survey is done on 120 graduates of Laboratory Sciences (LS), Medical Records (MR) and Radiology Technology (RT), at Paramedical Faculty of Shahid Beheshti Medical University (1997-2000).The subjects were randomly selected and given a questionnaire and the data was statistically analyzed using one-way ANOVA,Chi-Square, and Exact Fisher’s test (SPSS 15). 63.5 percent of the samples were females and the rest were males with an average age of 35.The coordination between their aptitude and major was highest (61%) in LS graduates, but lowest (21%) in MR graduates. Also the coordination between majors and interest was highest in LS graduates (48.4%).The results indicate that 6% of the subjects were post graduate students, 91% were employed and 9% were jobless.75% of them believed that their jobs were quite related to their majors and interest. They also mentioned the same factors for finding a suitable job (P=0.328).The results show that there is a direct relationship between the students, interest and aptitude on one hand, and their major and interest on the other. Moreover, because of the coordination between the majors and the country’s needs, the rate of unemployment has been found to be very low(9%).These findings can be helpful in reevaluation of educational planning, guidance of aptitudes towards the country’s economic priorities, and having a study of post graduation status.

Characterization of Mid-Infrared Intersubband Detectors for Astronomical Heterodyne Interferometry

One of the major challenges of mid-infrared astronomical heterodyne interferometry is its sensitivity limitations. Detectors capable of handling several 10 GHz bandwidths have been identified as key building blocks of future instruments. Intersubband detectors based on heterostructures have recently demonstrated their ability to provide such performances. In this work we characterize a Quantum Well Infrared Photodetector in terms of noise, dynamic range and bandwidth in a non-interferometric heterodyne set-up. We discuss the possibility to use them on astronomical systems to measure the beating between the local oscillator and the astronomical signal.Comment: 10 pages, 5 figures, SPIE Astronomical Telescopes + Instrumentation, 2022, Montr\'eal, Qu\'ebec, Canad

Analyzing the Lake Urmia restoration progress using ground-based and spaceborne observations

Lake Urmia, located in the North West of Iran, was once the most extensive permanent hypersaline lake in the world. Unsustainable water management in response to increasing demand together with climatic extremes have given rise to the lake's depletion during the last two decades. The Urmia Lake Restoration Program (ULRP) was established in 2013 and aims to restore the lake within a 10-year program. This study aims to monitor these restoration endeavours using spaceborne and ground-based observations. We analyzed the in-situ water level, the surface water extent, and the water volume of the lake. The water storage change of the Urmia Lake catchment is quantified using the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) and GRACE Follow-On satellite observations, which gives us a holistic view of hydrological components. Our analysis shows a positive trend of 14.5 cm/yr, 204 km2/yr, and 0.42 km3/yr in the time series of lake water level, lake water area, and water volume from 2015 to 2019 which indicates a short-lived stabilization of Lake Urmia. This has been achieved mainly due to an increase of 0.35 km3/yr in inflow from rivers to the lake, predominantly driven by anomalous precipitation events in 2016 and early 2019. However, the long-term trend from 2003 to 2019 still shows negative values of −22 cm/yr, −200 km2/yr, and −0.72 km3/yr for the water level, the surface area, and the water volume of the lake, respectively. The stabilization seems to be fragile however, since most of the increase in the water volume of the lake has spread over the large shallow southern region with high evaporation potential during hot seasons. Furthermore, due to the high correlation between the lake water level and precipitation, the recovery observed in 2016 and the first half of 2019 might not continue in case of a long drought period

Interrelations of vegetation growth and water scarcity in Iran revealed by satellite time series

Iran has experienced a drastic increase in water scarcity in the last decades. The main driver has been the substantial unsustainable water consumption of the agricultural sector. This study quantifies the spatiotemporal dynamics of Iran’s hydrometeorological water availability, land cover, and vegetation growth and evaluates their interrelations with a special focus on agricultural vegetation developments. It analyzes globally available reanalysis climate data and satellite time series data and products, allowing a country-wide investigation of recent 20+ years at detailed spatial and temporal scales. The results reveal a wide-spread agricultural expansion (27,000 km$^2$) and a significant cultivation intensification (48,000 km$^2$). At the same time, we observe a substantial decline in total water storage that is not represented by a decrease of meteorological water input, confirming an unsustainable use of groundwater mainly for agricultural irrigation. As consequence of water scarcity, we identify agricultural areas with a loss or reduction of vegetation growth (10,000 km$^2$), especially in irrigated agricultural areas under (hyper-)arid conditions. In Iran’s natural biomes, the results show declining trends in vegetation growth and land cover degradation from sparse vegetation to barren land in 40,000 km$^2$, mainly along the western plains and foothills of the Zagros Mountains, and at the same time wide-spread greening trends, particularly in regions of higher altitudes. Overall, the findings provide detailed insights in vegetation-related causes and consequences of Iran’s anthropogenic drought and can support sustainable management plans for Iran or other semi-arid regions worldwide, often facing similar conditions

Managing institutional fragmentation and time compression in post-disaster reconstruction - the case of Bam

Several studies have revealed the difficulties often found in defining stakeholders’ roles in post-disaster reconstruction projects. Insufficient and ill-timed collaboration are typically identified as the principal source of problems. Borrowing the concept of Institutional Fragmentation (IF) from the field of project management, this paper examines significant obstacles to collaboration and to sharing knowledge and experience in post-disaster reconstruction projects, revealing the causes and effects at four levels of fragmentation: the construction industry, project procurement, design and construction work. The case of the reconstruction program conducted after the 2003 earthquake in Bam (Iran), illustrates these different levels of fragmentation and their short and long-term impacts. Results show that three of the four levels of fragmentation caused unexpected outcomes during program implantation and afterwards; fragmentation increased the divergence between the many stakeholders with their interests and expectations, during and after their intervention. Conflict and confrontation between two controller organizations led to an excessive emphasis on technical requirements at the expense of heritage preservation. Results also explain how specific conditions after the disaster - such as lack of time coupled with socio-political pressures - increased fragmentation. Post-disaster reconstruction projects require systematic and comprehensive procurement to cover the interfaces that will enable tasks to be conducted effectively. The study proposes a conceptual approach to fragmentation that can help academics, practitioners, and decision-makers understand the origins and consequences of institutional fragmentation on the timely use of resources, and to develop governance structures and mechanisms that can help reduce it in post-disaster reconstruction initiatives

ADAPTATION STRATEGIES TO IMPACTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE AND VARIABILITY ON TEHRAN WATER SUPPLY IN 2021 : AN APPLICATION OF A DECISION SUPPORT SYSTEM (DSS) TO COMPARE ADAPTATION STRATEGIES

In this thesis, the decision analysis process of investigating the best optimal strategy for Tehran water management in 2021 is described. Such process is normally divided into four steps including: structuring the problem; identifying feasible strategies, their impact and uncertainty; quantifying preferences; and evaluation of countermeasures and sensitivity analysis. Here, in order to structure the problem, the characteristics of Tehran with respect to water issues and its history of water management are reviewed. The state of surface waters and ground waters and a description of Tehran plan for waste water treatment are given, the most significant constraints of Tehran water sector are classified and the challenges of climate change and variability are explained. The feasible adaptation strategies are designed subsequently based on that classification, data extracted from a survey and a number of interviews with water officials and managers and ordinary citizens in Tehran. Each strategy contains a series of separate measures with different weights. The phase of quantifying preferences and elucidating utility functions is conducted based on the data available from previous studies and also the current survey. The measures include: installing water saving devices, awareness raising to change citizens’ water consumption pattern, adding new sources of surface water, investing on waste water utilization, migration control and repairing water distribution network.Different combinations of these measures provide different possibilities for formulating adaptation strategies. We compare two more discussed adaptation strategies of the spectrum of strategies; one is inclined toward exploiting more water resources while the other one is more focused on demand management. The former is mainly supported by water officials and the latter advocated by water experts we interviewed. The criteria of comparison are social acceptability, economic feasibility, time-efficiency and environmental tenability. By considering the uncertainty attributed to the criteria weights, the WEB-HIPRE DSS analysis shows that the demand-oriented strategy is the optimal one in most cases, however, if time-efficiency and/or economic feasibility gain very high significance, the strategy of water officials wins over that of experts