Using wind turbines in high-rise buildings in the development of sustainable architecture (case study: Kish Island)

The increasing consumption of fossil fuels as limited sources of energy and its destructive effect on the environment has drawn many people attention to the use of renewable energy and in the meantime, taking advantage of the renewable energy of wind to produce clean and low-cost energy is one of the most common options throughout the world, however, due to the growing concentration of population and economic activity in contemporary cities and for increasing high-rise buildings in order to answer the problem cause irreparable damage to the environment which in order to protect the God-given natural resources, reducing environmental pollution and reducing energy consumption, using wind turbines for wind energy and converting it into mechanical and electrical energy are objectives of sustainable development plays a major role in the housing sector. Since the shallow waters of the Persian Gulf and coasts of this region are great places for installing wind turbines, in this regard, this study by studying documents and field studies to evaluate how the use of wind energy in high-rise buildings of these areas in order to maintain the environmental and energy efficiency leads to better planning for the construction of high-rise on Kish island in order to achieve the objectives of sustainable development.Keywords: Renewable Energy, Wind Energy, Wind Turbine, High-Rise Buildings, Kish Island, Sustainable Architectur

Molecular Identification and Sequencing of Mannose Binding Protein (MBP) Gene of Acanthamoeba palestinensis

"nBackground: Acanthamoeba keratitis develops by pathogenic Acanthamoeba such as A. pal­es­tinen­sis. Indeed this species is one of the known causative agents of amoebic keratitis in Iran. Mannose Binding Protein (MBP) is the main pathogenicity factors for developing this sight threatening disease. We aimed to characterize MBP gene in pathogenic Acanthamoeba isolates such as A. palestinensis."nMethods: This experimental research was performed in the School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran during 2007-2008.  A. palestinensis was grown on 2% non-nutrient agar overlaid with Escherichia coli. DNA extraction was performed using phenol-chloroform method. PCR reaction and amplification were done using specific primer pairs of MBP. The amplified fragment were purified and sequenced. Finally, the obtained fragment was deposited in the gene data bank."nResults: A 900 bp PCR-product was recovered after PCR reaction. Sequence analysis of the purified PCR product revealed a gene with 943 nucleotides. Homology analysis of the ob­tained sequence showed 81% similarity with the available MBP gene in the gene data bank. The fragment was deposited in the gene data bank under accession number EU678895"nConclusion: MBP is known as the most important factor in Acanthamoeba pathogenesis cas­cade. Therefore, characterization of this gene can aid in developing better therapeutic agents and even immunization of high-risk people

Trends in 5-, 10-, 20-, and 30-year survival rates of beta-thalassemia patients in Southern Iran, 1995-2016: A retrospective cohort study

Background: There is currently lack of knowledge about survival trend analysis of thalassemia patients. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to assess 5-, 10-, 20-, and 30-year survival of thalassemia patients over a 20- year time period. Methods: In this retrospective cohort study, we analysed the data of 982 beta-thalassemia patients in Iran. Birth cohort and traditional cohort analyses were used to obtain the 5-, 10-, 20-, and 30-year survival rates in various time intervals between 1995 and 2016. Results: Five and 10-year survival rates remained unchanged since 1995-2016. Overall, 20- and 30-year survival rates were lower in younger birth cohorts than older ones. A declining trend was found in 20-year survival rate from 1995 to 2000 for all and also for thalassemia major patients, but was stable from 2001 to 2016. In addition, there was a declining trend in 30-year survival rate from 1995 to 2008 for all and also for thalassemia major patients, but was an increased trend from 2009 to 2016. Conclusion: Over the past two decades and in recent birth cohorts, the 20- and 30-year survival rates has declined. In other words, declining survival trends in the birth cohorts may be associated with some different causes of mortality such as exposure to the toxic effects of iron over time and the occurrence of disease-related mortality

A light-front coupled-cluster method for the nonperturbative solution of quantum field theories

We propose a new method for the nonperturbative solution of quantum field theories and illustrate its use in the context of a light-front analog to the Greenberg--Schweber model. The method is based on light-front quantization and uses the exponential-operator technique of the many-body coupled-cluster method. The formulation produces an effective Hamiltonian eigenvalue problem in the valence Fock sector of the system of interest, combined with nonlinear integral equations to be solved for the functions that define the effective Hamiltonian. The method avoids the Fock-space truncations usually used in nonperturbative light-front Hamiltonian methods and, therefore, does not suffer from the spectator dependence, Fock-sector dependence, and uncanceled divergences caused by such truncations.Comment: 11 pages, 4 figures, RevTeX 4.1; expanded description of method and replaced QED with simpler model for illustratio

Feminist Perspectives on Disaster, Pandemics, and Intimate Partner Violence

The COVID-19 pandemic brought international awareness to the likelihood of increased abuse of those in abusive intimate partner relationships because of the forced confinement with their abusers (Bettinger-Lopez and Bro, A double pandemic: domestic violence in the age of COVID 19, Council on Foreign Relations. https://www.cfr.org/in-brief/double-pandemic-domestic-violence-age-covid-19, 2020). While this awareness was much discussed, assistance to survivors of abuse was limited because survivors often could not reach out for help, nor could advocates wishing to offer assistance safely reach in to advise them (Taub, A new Covid-19 crisis: domestic abuse rises worldwide. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/06/world/coronavirus-domestic-violence.html, 2020). The ever-present influence of the abuser prevented or limited the delivery of effective aid in many cases (Taub, A new Covid-19 crisis: domestic abuse rises worldwide. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/06/world/coronavirus-domestic-violence.html, 2020). But this was not the first disaster to place those experiencing intimate partner abuse at greater risk. Other disasters have in various ways increased women’s safety risks both during and after crisis. Other crises routinely resulted in increased abuse of survivors in intimate partner relationships including sexual and other assault by intimate partners (Rao 2020; Sohrabizadeh Prehosp Disaster Med, 31(4):407–412. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27212204, 2016). This chapter briefly identifies some forms of abuse experienced by women outside of the home during times of crisis and their connection to intimate partner abuse. Then, the impact of COVID-19 on intimate partner survivors will be explored and some of their experiences described. Gaps and flaws in nations’ approaches to gender violence are often highlighted during and after disasters. Lack of planning to protect survivors of intimate partner violence and other highly vulnerable populations during crises was exacerbated by the additional dangers brought by COVID-19. Primarily, the heightened dangers resulted from stay-at-home orders, which made services for abused partners more difficult to obtain and highlighted the possibility of unintended consequences resulting from policies designed to protect the public as a whole (Godin 2020). This chapter concludes by considering what has been lacking in strategic disaster planning, including what lessons have been learned thus far through the COVID-19 experience. Recommendations for effective disaster planning to protect survivors of intimate partner abuse, while also protecting other vulnerable populations, are suggested. This information is presented with the caution that as of this writing the global pandemic continues to limit access to hard data. Long-term analysis of the implications of the pandemic on Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) survivors awaits the passage of time

Inflammatory Markers Associated With Subclinical Coronary Artery Disease: The Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study.

BackgroundDespite evidence for higher risk of coronary artery disease among HIV+ individuals, the underlying mechanisms are not well understood. We investigated associations of inflammatory markers with subclinical coronary artery disease in 923 participants of the Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study (575 HIV+ and 348 HIV- men) who underwent noncontrast computed tomography scans for coronary artery calcification, the majority (n=692) also undergoing coronary computed tomography angiography.Methods and resultsOutcomes included presence and extent of coronary artery calcification, plus computed tomography angiography analysis of presence, composition, and extent of coronary plaques and severity of coronary stenosis. HIV+ men had significantly higher levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6), intercellular adhesion molecule-1, C-reactive protein, and soluble-tumor necrosis factor-α receptor (sTNFαR) I and II (all P<0.01) and a higher prevalence of noncalcified plaque (63% versus 54%, P=0.02) on computed tomography angiography. Among HIV+ men, for every SD increase in log-interleukin-6 and log intercellular adhesion molecule-1, there was a 30% and 60% increase, respectively, in the prevalence of coronary stenosis ≥50% (all P<0.05). Similarly, sTNFαR I and II in HIV+ participants were associated with an increase in prevalence of coronary stenosis ≥70% (P<0.05). Higher levels of interleukin-6, sTNFαR I, and sTNFαR II were also associated with greater coronary artery calcification score in HIV+ men (P<0.01).ConclusionsHigher inflammatory marker levels are associated with greater prevalence of coronary stenosis in HIV+ men. Our findings underscore the need for further study to elucidate the relationships of inflammatory pathways with coronary artery disease in HIV+ individuals

Pion radiative weak decays in nonlocal chiral quark models

We analyze the radiative pion decay pi+ -> e+ nu_e gamma within nonlocal chiral quark models that include wave function renormalization. In this framework we calculate the vector and axial-vector form factors FV and FA at q^2=0 --where q^2 is the (e+ \nu_e) squared invariant mass-- and the slope a of FV(q^2) at q^2 -> 0. The calculations are carried out considering different nonlocal form factors, in particular those taken from lattice QCD evaluations, showing a reasonable agreement with the corresponding experimental data. The comparison of our results with those obtained in the (local) NJL model and the relation of FV and a with the form factor in pi^0 -> gamma* gamma decays are discussed.Comment: 14 pages, 1 figure, minor changes in text introduce

Follow-up CMR in a case of Loeffler endocarditis

The typical finding of hypereosinophilic syndrome (Eosinophilic myocarditis) in the delayed enhancement (DE) cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) is the �double V� sign, which includes (a) normal myocardium, (b) thickened enhanced endomyocardial layer, and (c) overlying apical thrombus. Corticosteroids may result in significant improvement of myocardial involvement. © 2020 The Authors. Clinical Case Reports published by John Wiley & Sons Lt

Cardiac magnetic resonance findings in coronavirus disease 2019

A subgroup of COVID-19 patients with cardiac magnetic resonance imaging evidence of myocardial inflammation may exhibit subendocardial fibrosis, compatible with myocardial infarction, while epicardial coronary arteries are normal. © 2021 The Authors. Clinical Case Reports published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd