Dual Target Optimization of Two-Dimensional Truss Using Cost Efficiency and Structural Reliability Sufficiency

The main contribution of this study is to open a discussion regarding the structural optimization associated with the cost efficiency and structural reliability sufficiency consideration. To do so, several various optimization approaches are investigated to deliberate both cost and reliability concerns. Particularly, particle swarm optimization is highlighted as a reliable optimization approach. Accordingly, an illustrative example is rendered to compare the feasibility of the considered optimization approaches. The feasibility of the investigated approaches is evaluated using the cost and reliability analysis. For the considered example, it was observed that the PSO optimization algorithm has multiple advantages such as easy realization, fast convergence, and promising performance in nonlinear performance optimization. The PSO optimization algorithm can be successfully applied in various fields of civil engineering. This popularity is due to the understandable performance of the PSO as well as its simplicity. In this paper, first, the literature on the subject has been described by two-dimensional truss analysis using the finite element method and optimized using the PSO particle swarm algorithm. A comparison of the results with this reference indicates the accuracy of this particle swarm algorithm in truss optimization. Indeed, this study ignites two main insights in structural optimizations assessment. The first illustration is related to how to establish a framework for structural system reliability analysis associated with the different degrees of indeterminacies. And the second illustration is related to making a decision problem concerning the structural optimization while both cost and reliability metric are two main parameters for the construction point of the view

Evaluation of an electronic nose system for characterization of pomegranate varieties

The electronic nose (e-nose) would simulate the human sense (smell) to identify and realize the complex aromas by employing a chemical sensors array. One of the most common sensors used in electronic nose systems are metal oxide semiconductor (MOS) sensors. In this research, a low cost e-nose system based on six metal oxide semi-conductor (MOS) sensors as a non-destructive instrument for recognition pomegranate varieties is investigated. Principal component analysis (PCA) and linear discriminant analysis (LDA) techniques are used for this purpose. The proposed e-nose has a capability of demonstrating a clear difference in aroma fingerprint of pomegranate by PCA and LDA analysis. Using LDA analysis, it is possible to identify and to categorize the difference between pomegranate varieties, and based on the results, the classification accuracy of 95.2% was obtained. Sensor array capabilities for classification of pomegranate varieties using loading analysis were investigated too. Results showed high ability of e-nose for distinguishing between the varieties of pomegranates

Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry Analysis of Agricultural Residues using Indigenous Laccase producing Fungi (Albifimbria viridis) as Herbicides

Background and Objective: Discarded as wastes, parts of the agricultural products can be used for feed productivity as well as management of animal feed production. Production of various products is possible using appropriate processing. The objective of the present study was to use laccase of Albifimbria viridis in degradation of agricultural residues and to produce compounds with herbicide properties. Material and Methods: The fungi were isolated from agricultural soils. The isolates were identified using morphological detection and PCR amplification of the internal transcribed spacer. Supernatants were collected from semi-solid cultures and laccase activity was assessed using 2,2′-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) substrate. This was carried out using n-hexane and degradation of the agricultural residues was investigated using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Results and Conclusion: Growth of the fungal isolate in culture media with tannic acid was studied using scanning electron microscopy. In total, the isolate produced 50 U ml-1 laccase. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry analyses revealed production of oxime, methoxy-phenyl and 2-cyclopenten-1-one for tannic acids, o-guaiacol, tetradecane, hexadecane, octadecane, octadecanoic acid, hexadecanoic acid and benzene, 1,3-bis(1,1-dimethylethyl) for sorghum seeds and 2-acetyl-5-methylfuran, phenol, 2-methoxy and benzene, 1,2-dimethoxy for wheat straw during fungal growth (0.73 mg ml-1). Results have shown that the laccase enzyme produced from Albifimbria viridis native strain is capable of hydrolytic cleavage of chemical pollutants from agricultural wastes for herbicide bioremediation. Conflict of interest: The authors declare no conflict of interest

A new Bi– level production-routing-inventory model for a medicine supply chain under uncertainty

This research presents a new bi-level bi-objective production-routing-inventory model for a medi-cine supply chain. In this case, the production is executed by multi-separated producers in a multi-production line for different kinds of medicines which will be saved in stores for delivering to cus-tomers. The capacitated vehicle routing problem is considered in designing a distribution system from stores to customers. The goal of this model is to make a suitable trade-off between the customer satisfaction and the budget cost. This problem has been formulated in a bi-level form where the first objective function is the minimization of the budget during the scheduled time and the second one is the minimization of the shortage amount associated with the lost sale of medicine demands delivering to drug stores. Uncertainty is considered as a nature of the main parameters of the problem. Then the robust approach was used to handle the associated uncertainty of related parameters and the resulted problem is solved by Benders decomposition algorithm. The results indi-cate that the model make an improvement in medicine supply chain

Predictive Value of Risk Factors for Chronic Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura in Patients with Acute Type of Disease

BACKGROUND: Immune thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) is an autoimmune disease in which autoantibodies react with platelet surface antigens and results in mild to severe thrombocytopenia due to decreased platelet count or inhibition of platelet production. Given the relatively high prevalence of ITP among children and the lack of standard diagnostic testing for the diagnosis of chronic disease, this study evaluated the predictive value of risk factors for chronic ITP in hospitalized patients. METHODS: This prospective cohort study was performed on 65 children with ITP who referred to Ali Asghar and Rasool Akram Hospitals in Tehran, Iran, during the years 2017 and 2018. Relationships between different risk factors, including age of diagnosis, gender, white cell count, primary platelet count, mean platelet volume (MPV), history and type of the previous patient infection, FCG gene mutation, and type of FCG mutation with a chronic disease incidence were investigated using multiple logistic regression model. RESULTS: Of 65 patients, 31 (47.69%) were male and 34 (52.31%) were female included in the study. Twenty-eight patients (43.08%) had acute ITP and 37 (56.92%) had chronic ITP. Frequency of FCG gene mutation in patients with chronic and acute type ITP was 16.36% and 7.27%, respectively (p = 0.51). No association was found between the history of the previous infection and its type with the chronic incidence of ITP. The multiple logistic regression model showed that three factors, including the absolute number of lymphocytes, age of diagnosis, and primary white blood cells (WBC) count were directly linked to chronic ITP. Furthermore, three factors of platelet, sex, and MPV were indirectly related to chronic ITP. In addition, the absolute number of lymphocytes, age of diagnosis and primary WBC count were significantly associated with chronic ITP. The receiver operating characteristic analysis showed that the cutoff rate of these factors was 0.31. Further analysis of these risk factors in comparison with the gold standard demonstrated that the diagnostic sensitivity and specificity of these risk factors for chronic ITP were 73.08% and their specificity was 88.57%, indicating the high importance and predictive power of these risk factors. CONCLUSIONS: According to the results of this study, for the first time in Iran, six risk factors, including the absolute number of lymphocytes, age at diagnosis, sex, MPV level, platelet level at time of diagnosis, and primary WBC count were considered as the most important risk factors affecting the incidence of chronic ITP. Of course, more comprehensive studies can definitely lead to more comprehensive models

Comparing the Efficacy and Safety of Dexmedetomidine-Lidocaine and Propofol-Fentanyl-Midazolam Combinations during Endoscopic Retrograde Cholangiopancreatography

Background and Aims: Propofol is commonly used for providing sedation in endoscopic retrograde cholangio-pancreatography (ERCP). It’s simple to use and effective but presents cardiovascular and respiratory adverse effects. Recently, dexmedetomidine has been tried but very little evidence exists to support its use. The aim of this study was to compare the efficacy and safety of combination of dexmedetomidine and lidocaine (DL) with the standard propofol-fentanyl (PF) regimen.Methods: After approval of the hospital ethics committee, 63 patients (18-60 years of age) were randomly divided into 2 groups. Thirty-one patients received a PF combination (group PF), and 32 patients received DL combination (group DL). The level of sedation was adjusted to achieve a Ramasy Sedation Scale (RSS) score of 3 (moderate sedation) in both groups of patients. Arterial pressure (MAP), heart rate (HR), and peripheral oxygen saturation (SpO2) during ERCP and recovery was continuously assessed.Results: The oxygen saturation (SpO2) showed high statistical significant differences between both groups throughout the procedure with stability in DL group (P<0.01). There was no statistical difference in HR and MAP between the two groups (P>0.05). Post-procedural recovery time was significantly shorter in PF group (15.97±3.27 min) compared with (19.38±5.64 min) DL group (p<0.01). PONV was 3.2% in PF group, while it was absent in DL group. No drug adverse effect or cardiovascular complications were observed in both groups.Conclusion: Dexmedetomidine and lidocaine combination as total intravenous anesthesia (TIVA) during ERCP not only did not reported any oxygen desaturation (SpO2<90%) but also showed better stability of oxygen saturation (SpO2) and less PONV when compared with propofol and fentanyl combination

The association of spiritual intelligence and job satisfaction with mental health among personnel in Shahrekord University of Medical sciences

زمینه و هدف: بسیاری از سازمان ها بر اهمیت کارکنان به عنوان مهم ترین دارایی خود تاکید دارند. پیشرفت و توسعه علم روانشناسی در دهه های اخیر به ویژه در حوزه سلامت، معنویت و رضایت مندی شغلی در بین کارکنان سازمانها، نقش مهم و اثربخشی را به دنبال داشته است. سلامت روان افراد در مجموعه های اداری باعث افزایش تمرکز، شادابی و توانایی آنها جهت انجام امور محوله می باشد. پژوهش حاضر با هدف بررسی رابطه هوش معنوی و رضایت شغلی با سلامت روان در کارکنان دانشگاه علوم پزشکی شهرکرد طراحی گردید. روش بررسی: در این مطالعه توصیفی-تحلیلی تعداد 364 نفر از کارکنان دانشگاه علوم پزشکی شهرکرد در سال 1392 به روش نمونه گیری تصادفی طبقه ای انتخاب شدند. پرسشنامه های هوش معنوی، رضایت شغلی و پرسشنامه سلامت عمومی (GHQ) در اختیار شرکت کنندگان قرار گرفت. داده ها جمع آوری و به کمک نرم افزاری آماری SPSS و بکارگیری آمار توصیفی و استنباطی تجزیه و تحیل گردیدند. یافته ها: نتایج نشان داد بین رضایت شغلی و سلامت روان از لحاظ آماری رابطه معنی دار و ضریب همبستگی مثبت وجود دارد ولی بین هوش معنوی و سلامت روان رابطه معنادار آماری وجود ندارد. نتایج حاکی از تاثیر هوش معنوی بر میزان رضایت شغلی کارکنان بود. نتیجه گیری: نظر به تاثیر هوش معنوی بر رضایت شغلی کارکنان دانشگاه علوم پزشکی شهرکرد و ارتباط رضایت شغلی با سلامت روان آنها. لذا تلاش همزمان کارکنان و مدیران در افزایش هوش معنوی موجب بهبود سلامت آنها و کارایی سیستم می شود. برگزاری برنامه های آموزشی و توجیهی با هدف ارتقاء معنویت و رضایت شغلی، برگزاری دوره های بازآموزی، ایجاد فضای سالم و ایمن به دور از فشارها و تنش ها، ارائه خدمات رفاهی، تفریحی و ورزشی جهت ارتقاء سلامت روان و رضایت مندی شغلی کارکنان توصیه می گردد