Search results for: Iranian manager

Authors: Bahman Gorjian

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The notorious COVID-19 is known as an illness that is caused by a novel coronavirus. Since its breakthrough, most governments have decided to temporarily close educational institutions in an attempt to reduce the spread of this disease. Distance education in Iran, like other countries, started from the beginning of the pandemic and caused the closure of schools and universities as an immediate response to control the spread of the virus. The present study followed two aims: First, to investigate if Iraqi M.A students majoring in TEFL who have been studying in Iranian universities during the pandemic believe that COVID-19 had negative/positive effects on their educational achievement; and second, to find how frequently these Iraqi M.A students have experienced psychological problems (e.g., anxiety, numbness, nightmares, nervousness) during the COVID-19. The participants were both male and female students who were admitted for M.A. TEFL courses at 4 Iranian Universities (Abadan Brach, Ahvaz Branch, Science and Research Branch, and Shiraz Branch of Islamic Azad University) for the winter academic term of 2020. The start of their classes coincided with the global outbreak of COVID-19. They were invited to take part in the present study through snowball sampling and were asked to provide their views on two questionnaires. The instruments used for gathering the data were the educational achievement questionnaire and self-rating anxiety scale. The results of the analysis suggested that the participants believed in the negative effects of COVID-19 on their education; the results also suggested COVID-19 affected participants’ psychological states. The discussed findings may have implications for international students and experts interested in the online education system.

Keywords: COVID-19, distance education, Iraqi M.A. students, teaching English as a foreign language, educational impacts, psychological impacts

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Authors: Chan Hui-Ya, Ding Shin-Tan

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Background and Aim: The discharge planning is considered helpful to reduce the hospital length of stay and readmission rate, and then increased satisfaction with healthcare for patients and professionals. In order to decrease the waiting time of long-term care and boost the care quality of patients after discharge from the hospital, the Ministry of Health and Welfare department in Taiwan initiates a program “discharge planning connects with long-term care 2.0 services” in 2017. The purpose of this study is to investigate the outcome of the pilot of this program in a medical center. Methods: By purpose sampling, the study chose five wards in a medical center as pilot units. The researchers compared the beds of service, the numbers of cases which were transferred to the long-term care center and transferred rates per month between the pilot units and the other units, and analyze the basic data, the long-term care service needs and the approval service items of cases transfer to the long-term care center in pilot units. Results: From June to September 2017, a total of 92 referrals were made, and 51 patients were enrolled into the pilot program. There is a significant difference of transferring rate between the pilot units and the other units (χ = 702.6683, p < 0.001). Only 20 cases (39.2% success rate) were approved to accept the parts of service items of long-term care in the pilot units. The most approval item was respite care service (n = 13; 65%), while it was third at needs ranking of service lists during linking services process. Among the reasons of patients who cancelled the request, 38.71% reasons were related to the services which could not match the patients’ needs and expectation. Conclusion: The results indicate there is a requirement to modify the long-term care services to fit the needs of cases. The researchers suggest estimating the potential cases by screening data from hospital informatics systems and to hire more case manager according the service time of potential cases. Meanwhile, the strategies shortened the assessment scale and authorized hospital case managers to approve some items of long-term care should be considered.

Keywords: discharge planning, long-term care, case manager, patient care

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Authors: Paria Tajabor, Azin Azarbani

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The purpose of this research study is exploring two kind of semantic repositories with regards to various factors to find the best approaches that an artificial manager can use to produce ontology in a system based on their interaction, association and research. To this end, as the best way to evaluate each system and comparing with others is analysis, several benchmarking over these two repositories were examined. These two semantic repositories: OWLIM and AllegroGraph will be the main core of this study. The general objective of this study is to be able to create an efficient and cost-effective manner reports which is required to support decision making in any large enterprise.

Keywords: OWLIM, allegrograph, RDF, reasoning, semantic repository, semantic-web, SPARQL, ontology, query

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Authors: Roya Kelishadi, Mostafa Amini-Rarani, Mostafa Qorbani

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Introduction: As a health-related behavior, physical activity (PA) has an unequal distribution relating to individual's socioeconomic status. This study aimed to assess socioeconomic inequality in PA among Iranian students and their parents at national level and according to socioeconomic status (SES) of the living regions. Method: This study was conducted as part of a national surveillance program conducted among 14400 Iranian students and their parents. Non-linear principal component analysis was used to construct the households' socioeconomic status, and the concentration index approach was applied to measure inequality in father, mother, and student’s PA. Results: The data of 13313 students and their parents were complete for the current study. At national level and SES regions, students had more PA than their parents (except in the lowest SES region), and fathers have more PA than mothers. The lowest means of mother and student's PA were find in the highest SES region. At national level, the concentration indices of father and mother’s PA were -0.050 (95 % CI: -0.067 ~ -0.030) and -0.028 (95% CI: -0.044 ~ -0.012), respectively; indicating pro-poor inequality and, the CI value of student PA was nearly equal to zero (P > 0.05). At SES regions, father and mother's PA were more concentrated in the poor, except for lower middle region. Regional concentration indices for students reveal that inequality not statistically significant at all regions. Conclusion: This study suggests that reliable evidence that comparing different aspects of inequality of PA, based on socioeconomic status and residence areas of students and their parents, could be used for better planning for health promotion programs. Moreover, given the average of mother's and student’s PA in the richer regions were low, it can be suggested that richer focused-PA planning may further increase the level of PA across higher SES and, consequently, reduce inequality in PA. These findings can be applied in the health system services.

Keywords: concentration index, health system services, physical activity, socioeconomic inequality

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Authors: Florence Matsveru

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The 21st-century church in Africa is faced with a myriad of challenges, which need attention. One of those challenges is pastoral ministry to congregants in high positions. This paper is based on a Ph.D. study entitled, ‘Wellbeing and work performance of Christians in managerial positions: A Namibian case study’ conducted between 2015 and 2018. The study was conducted with 32 purposively selected Christians working in managerial positions in Ohangwena Region, Namibia. The study employed a mixed-methods approach, i.e., both qualitative (to get participants’ feelings and perceptions) and quantitative (to get proportions of the experiences and perceptions). The research process involved a questionnaire survey and interviews. The study revealed that Christians in managerial positions have both common and unique experiences in three spheres: the workplace, the family and the church. The experiences lead to physical, emotional, psychological, social and spiritual needs. The findings also showed that some of the expectations placed upon Christians in managerial positions in the church may be unrealistic, while at the same time this group of congregants want to use their work experiences for the benefit of the church. A worrying finding was that pastors are generally not well-trained for ministry to congregants in high positions. Since these were perceptions of the participants (some of whom were also pastors), the researcher went further to do a short internet survey of the curricula of a number of theological colleges in Southern Africa. This survey did not show any ‘manager-sensitive’ modules in the surveyed colleges. Theological education for pastors, especially in African theological institutions, seems to ignore the unique needs of congregants in high positions. This paper argues that the needs of Christians in high positions should be considered in pastoral care and that theological education is key in equipping pastors with the necessary knowledge and skills. This paper is, therefore, a call to theological institutions to include ministry to people in high positions in their curricula. Pastors who are already beyond theological school may find it helpful to attend or hold workshops that focus on congregants in high positions so that this kind of 'sheep' will find good pasture in the church. A paper of this nature helps to strengthen pastoral ministry and to enhance the relevance of theological education.

Keywords: Christian managers, theological curricula, pastoral care, African

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Authors: Shahram Nowrouzieh, Abbas Rezaei Asl, Mohamad Ali Jafari

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Cotton, as a strategic crop, plays an important role in providing human food and clothing need, because of its oil, protein, and fiber. Iran has been one of the largest cotton producers in the world in the past, but unfortunately, for economic reasons, its production is reduced now. One of the ways to reduce the cost of cotton production is to expand the mechanization of cotton harvesting. Iranian farmers do not accept the function of cotton harvesters. One reason for this lack of acceptance of cotton harvesting machines is the number of field losses on these machines. So, the majority of cotton fields are harvested by hand. Although the correct setting of the harvesting machine is very important in the cotton losses, the morphological properties of the cotton plant also affect the performance of cotton harvesters. In this study, the effect of some cotton morphological properties such as the height of the cotton plant, number, and length of sympodial and monopodial branches, boll dimensions, boll weight, number of carpels and bracts angle were evaluated on the performance of cotton picker. In this research, the efficiency of John Deere 9920 spindle Cotton picker is investigated on five different Iranian cotton cultivars. The results indicate that there was a significant difference between the five cultivars in terms of machine harvest efficiency. Golestan cultivar showed the best cotton harvester performance with an average of 87.6% of total harvestable seed cotton and Khorshid cultivar had the least cotton harvester performance. The principal component analysis showed that, at 50.76% probability, the cotton picker efficiency is affected by the bracts angle positively and by boll dimensions, the number of carpels and the height of cotton plants negatively. The seed cotton remains (in the plant and on the ground) after harvester in PCA scatter plot were in the same zone with boll dimensions and several carpels.

Keywords: cotton, bract, harvester, carpel

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Authors: Khlif Hamadi

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The principal aim of our research is to analyze the impact of the adoption of e-management approach on the performance of Tunisian firms. The method of structural equation was adopted to conduct our exploratory and confirmatory analysis. The results arising from the questionnaire sent to 155 E-managers affirm that the adoption of e-management approach influences the performance of Tunisian firms. The results of the questionnaire show that e-management favors the deployment of ICT usage and contributes enormously to the performance of the modern enterprise. The theoretical and practical implications of the study, as well as directions for future research, are discussed.

Keywords: e-management, ICT Deployment, organizational performance, e-manager

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Authors: Behnoush Moghiminia, Jesus Anaya Diaz

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The current study attempts to present the relationship between the structure development and Patkaneh as one of the Iranian geometric patterns and parametric algorithms by introducing two practical methods. While having a structural function, Patkaneh is also used as an ornamental element. It can be helpful in the scientific and practical review of Patkaneh. The current study aims to use Patkaneh as a parametric form generator based on the algorithm. The current paper attempts to express how can a more complete algorithm of this covering be obtained based on the parametric study and analysis of a sample of a Patkaneh and also investigate the relationship between the development of the geometrical pattern of Patkaneh as a structural-decorative element of Iranian architecture and digital design. In this regard, to achieve the research purposes, researchers investigated the oldest type of Patkaneh in the architecture history of Iran, such as the Northern Entrance Patkaneh of Oshtorjan Jame’ Mosque. An accurate investigation was done on the history of the background to answer the questions. Then, by investigating the structural behavior of Patkaneh, the decorative or structural-decorative role of Patkaneh was investigated to eliminate the ambiguity. Then, the geometrical structure of Patkaneh was analyzed by introducing two practical methods. The first method is based on the constituent units of Patkaneh (Square and diamond) and investigating the interactive relationships between them in 2D and 3D. This method is appropriate for cases where there are rational and regular geometrical relationships. The second method is based on the separation of the floors and the investigation of their interrelation. It is practical when the constituent units are not geometrically regular and have numerous diversity. Finally, the parametric form algorithm of these methods was codified.

Keywords: geometric properties, parametric design, Patkaneh, structural analysis

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Authors: Mohammad Hadi Khorashadi Zadeh ‎

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An entrepreneur is a manager or the owner of the commercial company that creates resources and money by risking and initiative. The Netpreneur is the capability to run an online business. It needs only the Connectivity. An Entrepreneur, as long as he has a service which the market demands can set up a feasible and viable trade with his Intellectual Capital as the principle input and the Connectivity Infrastructure as the only physical input. The internet is possibly the most significant revolution in science and technology that our generation could fantasize or imagine. It has introduced in various benefits to the society, culture, economics and politics. The entrepreneur is a premium member in the community. She/he provides services to the society and community including employment.

Keywords: entrepreneur, Netpreneur, intellectual capital, infrastructure

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Authors: Susanne Gustafsson

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Life-history research is an extraordinarily fruitful method to use for social analysis and gendered health analysis in particular. Its potential is illustrated through a case study drawn from a Swedish project. It reveals an old type of masculinity that faces difficulties when carrying out two sets of demands simultaneously, as a worker/manager and as a father/husband. The paper illuminates the historical transformation of masculinity and the consequences of this for health. We draw on the idea of the “changing faces of masculinity” to explore the dynamism and complexity of gendered health. An empirical case is used for its illustrative abilities. Jan, a middle-level manager and father employed in the energy sector in urban Sweden is the subject of this paper. Jan’s story is one of 32 semi-structured interviews included in an extended study focusing on well-being at work. The results reveal a face of masculinity conceived of in middle-level management as tacitly linked to the neoliberal doctrine. Over a couple of decades, the idea of “flexibility” was turned into a valuable characteristic that everyone was supposed to strive for. This resulted in increased workloads. Quite a few employees, and managers, in particular, find themselves working both day and night. This may explain why not having enough time to spend with children and family members is a recurring theme in the data. Can this way of doing be linked to masculinity and health? The first author’s research has revealed that the use of gender in health science is not sufficiently or critically questioned. This lack of critical questioning is a serious problem, especially since ways of doing gender affect health. We suggest that gender reproduction and gender transformation are interconnected, regardless of how they affect health. They are recognized as two sides of the same phenomenon, and minor movements in one direction or the other become crucial for understanding its relation to health. More or less, at the same time, as Jan’s masculinity was reproduced in response to workplace practices, Jan’s family position was transformed—not totally but by a degree or two, and these degrees became significant for the family’s health and well-being. By moving back and forth between varied events in Jan’s biographical history and his sociohistorical life span, it becomes possible to show that in a time of gender transformations, power relations can be renegotiated, leading to consequences for health.

Keywords: changing faces of masculinity, gendered health, life-history research method, subverter

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Authors: Sepideh Nikounejad, Mostafa Ghaderi, Nematollah Azizi, Per-Olof Thang, Mohamad Reza Neyestani

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From an educational perspective, an effective and efficient relationship between university and industry can be considered as an important means by which not only both sides are improved but also it brings many advantages and benefits for both parties. It means more specifically, mutual collaboration between universities and industry can not only reduce youth unemployment, but it can improve the quality of teaching and learning in higher education settings while providing more qualified people to industrial enterprises. Indeed the lack of effective interaction between Iranian universities and industry has confronted the country and created many challenges include in increasing number of unskillful and unemployed graduates. However, in order to suggest appropriate practical strategies, it is very important to see how this issue has been tackled by Swedish universities, which have had a good background in this collaboration and how they are connected to the industry in particular and labour market in general. The research aims to study and compare the mechanisms, processes, and policies of the current model in the relationships between university and industry in Iran and Sweden. As a qualitative study, grounded theory was applied. Data were collected via semi-structured interviews. Participants were selected purposefully and by the snowball sampling method. The findings indicate that despite reported needs from both sides for close collaborations between universities and industries in Iran, current policies and practices, including internship, laboratory, and financial support, need to be revised critically. However, in light of our findings on the Swedish policies and practices for linking universities and industries, some practical strategies will be suggested for the Iranian higher education context. In conclusion, cooperation models between universities and industries in Iran and Sweden will be described.

Keywords: cooperation, higher education, industry, comparative

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Authors: R. Edward Minchin Jr.

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The U.S. Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) Every Day Counts Program (EDC) has resulted in state DOTs putting evermore emphasis on speeding up the delivery of highway and bridge construction projects for use by the driving public. This has resulted in an increase in the use of alternative construction delivery systems such as design-build (D-B), construction manager at-risk (CMR) or construction manager/general contractor (CM/GC), and adding alternative technical concepts (ATCs) to traditional design-bid-build (DBB) contracts. ATCs have exhibited great potential for delivering substantial benefits like cost savings, increased constructability, and quicker project delivery. Previous research has found that knowledge of project constructability was lacking in state Department of Transportation (DOT) planning, programming, and environmental staffs. Many agencies have therefore relied on a set of ‘acceptable’ design solutions over the years of working with their local resource agencies. The result is that the permitting process for several government agencies has become increasingly restrictive with the result that the DOTs and their industry partners lose the ability to innovate after a permit is approved. The intent of this paper is to report on the research team’s progress in this ongoing effort furnish the United States government with a uniform set of guidelines for the application of constructability reviews during all phases of project development and delivery. The research uses surveys and interviews to determine which states have implemented formal programs to ensure that the constructor is furnished with a set of contract documents that affords said constructor with the best possible opportunity to successfully construct the project with the highest quality standards, within the contract duration and without exceeding the construction budget. Once these states are identified, workshops are held all over the nation, resulting in the team learning the best current practices and giving the team the ability to recommend new practices that will improve the process. The plan is for the FHWA to encourage or require state DOTs to use these practices on all federally funded highway and bridge construction projects. The project deliverable is a Guidebook for FHWA to use in disseminating the recommended practices to the states.

Keywords: alternative construction delivery, alternative technical concepts, constructability, construction design plans

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Authors: M. Dezyani, R. Ezzati bbelvirdi, M. Shakerian, H. Mirzaei

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Sodium Hexametaphosphate (SHMP) is commonly used as an Emulsifying Salt (ES) in process cheese, although rarely as the sole ES. It appears that no published studies exist on the effect of SHMP concentration on the properties of process cheese when pH is kept constant; pH is well known to affect process cheese functionality. The detailed interactions between the added phosphate, Casein (CN), and indigenous Ca phosphate are poorly understood. We studied the effect of the concentration of SHMP (0.25-2.75%) and holding time (0-20 min) on the textural and Rheological properties of pasteurized process Cheddar cheese using a central composite rotatable design. All cheeses were adjusted to pH 5.6. The meltability of process cheese (as indicated by the decrease in loss tangent parameter from small amplitude oscillatory rheology, degree of flow, and melt area from the Schreiber test) decreased with an increase in the concentration of SHMP. Holding time also led to a slight reduction in meltability. Hardness of process cheese increased as the concentration of SHMP increased. Acid-base titration curves indicated that the buffering peak at pH 4.8, which is attributable to residual colloidal Ca phosphate, was shifted to lower pH values with increasing concentration of SHMP. The insoluble Ca and total and insoluble P contents increased as concentration of SHMP increased. The proportion of insoluble P as a percentage of total (indigenous and added) P decreased with an increase in ES concentration because of some of the (added) SHMP formed soluble salts. The results of this study suggest that SHMP chelated the residual colloidal Ca phosphate content and dispersed CN; the newly formed Ca-phosphate complex remained trapped within the process cheese matrix, probably by cross-linking CN. Increasing the concentration of SHMP helped to improve fat emulsification and CN dispersion during cooking, both of which probably helped to reinforce the structure of process cheese.

Keywords: Iranian processed cheese, emulsifying salt, rheology, texture

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Authors: Somayeh Abedian, Pirhossein Kolivand, Hamid Reza Lornejad, Amin Karampour, Ebrahim Keshavarz Safari

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For emergency and relief service providers such as pre-hospital emergencies, quick arrival at the scene of an accident or any EMS mission is one of the most important requirements of effective service delivery. Response time (the interval between the time of the call and the time of arrival on scene) is a critical factor in determining the quality of pre-hospital Emergency Medical Services (EMS). This is especially important for heart attack, stroke, or accident patients. Location-based e-services can be broadly defined as any service that provides information pertinent to the current location of an active mobile handset or precise address of landline phone call at a specific time window, regardless of the underlying delivery technology used to convey the information. According to research, one of the effective methods of meeting this goal is determining the location of the caller via the cooperation of landline and mobile phone operators in the country. The follow-up of the Communications Regulatory Authority (CRA) organization has resulted in the receipt of two separate secured electronic web services. Thus, to ensure human privacy, a secure technical architecture was required for launching the services in the pre-hospital EMS information management system. In addition, to quicken medics’ arrival at the patient's bedside, rescue vehicles should make use of an intelligent transportation system to estimate road traffic using a GPS-based mobile navigation system independent of the Internet. This paper seeks to illustrate the architecture of the practical national model used by the Iranian EMS organization.

Keywords: response time, geographic location inquiry service (GLIS), location-based service (LBS), emergency medical services information system (EMSIS)

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Authors: Shirin Sadat Ahmadi

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The number of people, particularly university students, migrating from Iran and applying for American and European universities has been rising during recent years. Different people may have various reasons and goals for migration, but one of the common issues among all these people is the cultural challenges they experience when living in the adopted society. Immigrants usually confront obstacles during the Intercultural transition and adaption process. Different variables such as age, religion, gender, education, knowing the spoken language in destination country, financial condition, interactions with natives, and using social media can affect the cultural challenges people face after migration and how they conquer issues appearing due to intercultural differences and conflicts. In this research we have interviewed a sample consisted of 15 Iranian students living and studying abroad found by using snowball sampling technique via video call to realize what cultural challenges they have experienced in the new society, how the mentioned variables above eased these challenges or made them harder and what approaches and solutions they adopted to adjust themselves to the new society and its cultural dimensions. Based on John Berry's acculturation theory of migrant-host relationship, we have classified these 15 people in five different categories: Assimilation, Separation, Marginalization, and Integration. In addition we have considered Y.Y. Kim's communication-based theory of cross-cultural adaption to explain how communications helped migrant populations in adaption process. Based on the findings of this study, 12 of 15 interviewed members of the study used the integration strategy to adapt to the new cultural environment, 3 of them used the assimilation strategy, and none of them used marginalization or separation strategies. Communicating with natives, knowing the language, and education were the factors that helped all the interviewed members of the sample to overcome the difficulties of intercultural transition.

Keywords: acculturation, culture, intercultural transition, migration

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Authors: Mohammad Hossein Badamchi

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In Iran as well as other developing countries instituting innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystems by government around the universities is the new imported fashion of modernization and development in the 21st century. In recent decade various statesmen, policy makers, university administrations, economists and development theorists are emphasizing excitingly about the new “start-ups” which are going to solve all economic problems and backwardness of the country. However, critical study of modernization practices in Iran implies that this new trend is suffering from conventional deficiency of modernization planning in 20th century. This article is going to depict the misunderstandings of a situation which we can name “Pseudo-innovation in a closed society” by presenting these 12 paradoxes of this new system, actually happening in Iran: (1) Innovation without freedom? Fiction of innovation in a patriarchal state (2) Entrepreneurship without free market? Fiction of entrepreneurship in a rentier-state. (3) Ecosystem or a state-glasshouse? Is it possible to make and plan an innovation? (4) Innovation; epistemic or practical? How academic innovation could happen abstractly out of context? (5) Risk and Lucre: innovation to protect power and property?! (6) Silicon-valley mirage: what is in common between American-Iranian polity? (7) Information or Communication? ICT startups to restrict the internet (8) The elite paradox: new proletariat of private sector, new governmental clerk or a new path of brain drain? (9) Innovation or commercialization? Revisiting Schumpeterian creative destruction (10) The friendship of Jungle and fire: paradox of public science and market (11) Innovation and revolution: top-down or bottom-up paradox in an Iranian experience (12) Technology instead of civil society: ultimate result of innovation in a closed society. Through explaining these paradoxes we can gradually penetrate the real rationality of Pseudo-innovation ecosystem in a closed society, which can be understood as new-Neopatriarchy reconstruction of traditional patriarchal politics, economy and culture in Iran.

Keywords: innovation, critical sociology, modernisation, Iran, closed society

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Authors: Mahdi Shaghaghi, Amir Ghaebi, Fariba Ahmadi

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Purpose: The main purpose of the present research is to analyze the knowledge creation environment at a Iranian University (Alzahra University) as a typical University in Iran, using a combination of the i-System and Ba models. This study is necessary for understanding the determinants of knowledge creation at Alzahra University as a typical University in Iran. Methodology: To carry out the present research, which is an applied study in terms of purpose, a descriptive survey method was used. In this study, a combination of the i-System and Ba models has been used to analyze the knowledge creation environment at Alzahra University. i-System consists of 5 constructs including intervention (input), intelligence (process), involvement (process), imagination (process), and integration (output). The Ba environment has three pillars, namely the infrastructure, the agent, and the information. The integration of these two models resulted in 11 constructs which were as follows: intervention (input), infrastructure-intelligence, agent-intelligence, information-intelligence (process); infrastructure-involvement, agent-involvement, information-involvement (process); infrastructure-imagination, agent-imagination, information-imagination (process); and integration (output). These 11 constructs were incorporated into a 52-statement questionnaire and the validity and reliability of the questionnaire were examined and confirmed. The statistical population included the faculty members of Alzahra University (344 people). A total of 181 participants were selected through the stratified random sampling technique. The descriptive statistics, binomial test, regression analysis, and structural equation modeling (SEM) methods were also utilized to analyze the data. Findings: The research findings indicated that among the 11 research constructs, the levels of intervention, information-intelligence, infrastructure-involvement, and agent-imagination constructs were average and not acceptable. The levels of infrastructure-intelligence and information-imagination constructs ranged from average to low. The levels of agent-intelligence and information-involvement constructs were also completely average. The level of infrastructure-imagination construct was average to high and thus was considered acceptable. The levels of agent-involvement and integration constructs were above average and were in a highly acceptable condition. Furthermore, the regression analysis results indicated that only two constructs, viz. the information-imagination and agent-involvement constructs, positively and significantly correlate with the integration construct. The results of the structural equation modeling also revealed that the intervention, intelligence, and involvement constructs are related to the integration construct with the complete mediation of imagination. Discussion and conclusion: The present research suggests that knowledge creation at Alzahra University relatively complies with the combination of the i-System and Ba models. Unlike this model, the intervention, intelligence, and involvement constructs are not directly related to the integration construct and this seems to have three implications: 1) the information sources are not frequently used to assess and identify the research biases; 2) problem finding is probably of less concern at the end of studies and at the time of assessment and validation; 3) the involvement of others has a smaller role in the summarization, assessment, and validation of the research.

Keywords: i-System, Ba model , knowledge creation , knowledge management, knowledge creation environment, Iranian Universities

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Authors: Majid Dashtgerd, Eisa Moradi Afrapoli

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The “Yemen War” is one of the longest wars of the recent century, which was launched on 26 March 2015 after the Saudi Arabia-led alliance's military intervention in Yemen. The war began with the aim of fighting Yemen's Houthis and preventing Iranian influence in the region, and Saudi leaders expected a quick victory; However, the “Yemen War” lasted about seven years and is still going on (May 2022), and Saudi Arabia has not been able to achieve its strategic objectives. This study seeks to examine some of the most important reasons for Saudi Arabia's protracted war and failure in Yemen.

Keywords: Saudi Arabia, yemen war, houthis, Iran

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Authors: Sahar Javadi-Novashnagh, Mohammad Moradi-Shahrbabak, Mostafa Sadeghi, Katarzyna Ropka-Molik, Hossein Moradi-Shahrbabak, Maria Consuelo Mura

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The objective of this study was to investigate two single nucleotide polymorphisms located in exon 2 (g.939A > G) and intron 3 (g.4349A > G) of fatty acid binding protein 3 (FABP3) gene in two Iranian sheep breeds, Lori-Bakhtiari and Zel, using polymerase chain reaction -restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) approach. The association of the polymorphisms with growth traits and blood parameters was also examined. Results revealed a g.939A > G SNP (single nucleotide polymorphism) in the exon 2 exhibiting three genotypes: AA, AG, and GG. Statistical analysis indicated that this polymorphism significantly influenced blood triglyceride (P < 0.05) and cholesterol (P < 0.08) levels as well as weaning weight (P < 0.05). Animals with AG genotype had the highest blood triglyceride level and weaning weight while the highest amount of blood cholesterol was observed in animals with GG genotype. On the other hand, no significant effect was observed on birth and fat-tail weight traits. The intron 3 (g.4349A > G) was monomorphic across the studied samples. Lori-Bakhtiari breed showed significantly higher blood triglyceride and cholesterol levels, as also birth and weaning weight compared to Zel breed (P < 0.01). Considering that the literature is bereft of any report on the association study between FABP3 SNPs and sheep growth traits and blood parameters, our findings suggest that the investigated polymorphism might be one of the main genetic factors affecting growth and physiological traits in sheep.

Keywords: FABP3 gene, fatness, weaning weight, blood triglyceride, cholesterol, Zel, Lori-Bakhtiari

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Authors: Mahnaz Motamedi, Mohammad Shahbazi, Shahrzad Rahimi-Naghani, Mehrdad Salehi

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Introduction and Aim: This study assessed sexual behaviours among men and women aged 15 to 49 years in Tehran. Material and Methods: This was a cross-sectional study conducted on 755 men and women aged 15 to 49 years who were residents of Tehran. To select the participants, a multistage, cluster, random sampling method was used and included different regions of Tehran. The data were collected using the WHO-endorsed Questionnaire of Sexual and Reproductive Health. Descriptive, bivariate, and multivariate analyses were conducted using SPSS version 20. Sexual and reproductive health (SRH) behaviours was a scale variable that was constructed from items of six sections: sexual experiences, characteristics of the first sexual partner, characteristics of the first intercourse, next sexual contact and the consequences of the first sexual contact, homosexual experiences and the causes of sexual abstinence. Results: The mean age at the time of sexual intercourse with penetration (vaginal, anal) was 19.88 in men and 21.82 in women. Multivariate analysis using linear regression showed that by controlling for other variables, gender had a significant relationship with having sexual experience, mean age of first sexual intercourse, and being multi-partner. Thus, women with sexual experience were 0.158 units less than men. The mean age of first intercourse in women was 1.57 units higher than men and being a multi-partner in women was 0.247 less than men (P < 0.001). Sexual experience in very religious and relatively religious individuals was 0.332 and 0.218 units less than those for whom religion did not matter (P < 0.001). 25.6% of men and 40.7% of women who did not have sexual experience at the time of the study stated that their reason for abstinence was their unwillingness to have sex (P < 0.05). 35.9% of men and 16.5% of women stated that the reason for abstinence was not providing a suitable opportunity (P < 0.001). 4.7% of men and 1.7% of women had sexual attraction to the same sex. The difference between men and women was significant (P < 0.001). Conclusion: Sexual relation is also present in singles and younger groups and is not limited to married or final marriage candidates. Therefore, more evaluation should be done in national research and interventions for sexual and reproductive health services should be done at the macro level of policy making.

Keywords: sexual behaviours, Iranian men and women, Iran, cross-sectional study

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Authors: Iman Shabanzadeh

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In terms of its geopolitical position, Iran has been one of the main centers of migration movements in the world in recent decades. However, the policy makers' lack of preparation in completing the cycle of social integration of these immigrants, especially the second and third generation, has caused these people to always be prone to leave the country and immigrate to developed and industrialized countries. In this research, the issue of integration of immigrants in Iran from the perspective of four indicators, "Identity Documents", "Access to Banking Services", "Access to Health and Treatment Services" and "Obtaining a Driver's License" will be analyzed. The research method is descriptive-analytical. To collect information, library and document sources in the field of laws and regulations related to immigrants' rights in Iran, semi-structured interviews with experts have been used. The investigations of this study show that none of the residence documents of immigrants in Iran guarantee the full enjoyment of basic citizenship rights for them. In fact, the function of many of these identity documents, such as the census card, educational support card, etc., is only to prevent crossing the border, and none of them guarantee the basic rights of citizenship. Therefore, for many immigrants, the difference between legality and illegality is only in the risk of crossing the border, and this has led to the spread of the habit of illegal presence for them. Despite this, it seems that there is no clear and coherent policy framework around the issue of foreign immigrants in the country. This policy incoherence can be clearly seen in the diversity and plurality of identity and legal documents of the citizens present in the country and the policy maker's lack of planning to integrate and organize the identity of this huge group. Examining the differences and socioeconomic inequalities between immigrants and the native Iranian population shows that immigrants have been poorly integrated into the structures of Iranian society from an economic and social point of view.

Keywords: immigrants, social integration, citizen services, structural inequality

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Authors: Mitra Saberi, Saeideh Fakhari, Amir Karam, Ali Ahmadabadi

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Geomorphology is the scientific study of the characteristics of form and shape of the Earth's surface. The existence of types of landforms and their variation is mainly controlled by changes in the shape and position of land and topography. In fact, the interest and application of fractal issues in geomorphology is due to the fact that many geomorphic landforms have fractal structures and their formation and transformation can be explained by mathematical relations. The purpose of this study is to identify and analyze the fractal behavior of landforms of macro geomorphologic regions of Iran, as well as studying and analyzing topographic and landform characteristics based on fractal relationships. In this study, using the Iranian digital elevation model in the form of slopes, coefficients of deposition and alluvial fan, the fractal dimensions of the curves were calculated through the box counting method. The morphometric characteristics of the landforms and their fractal dimension were then calculated for 4criteria (height, slope, profile curvature and planimetric curvature) and indices (maximum, Average, standard deviation) using ArcMap software separately. After investigating their correlation with fractal dimension, two-way regression analysis was performed and the relationship between fractal dimension and morphometric characteristics of landforms was investigated. The results show that the fractal dimension in different pixels size of 30, 90 and 200m, topographic curves of different landform units of Iran including mountain, hill, plateau, plain of Iran, from1.06in alluvial fans to1.17in The mountains are different. Generally, for all pixels of different sizes, the fractal dimension is reduced from mountain to plain. The fractal dimension with the slope criterion and the standard deviation index has the highest correlation coefficient, with the curvature of the profile and the mean index has the lowest correlation coefficient, and as the pixels become larger, the correlation coefficient between the indices and the fractal dimension decreases.

Keywords: box counting method, fractal dimension, geomorphology, Iran, landform

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Authors: Farnaz Nazem

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Iranian architects had creative ways for constructing the buildings in each climate. Some of these architectural elements were made under the ground. Shovadan is one of these underground spaces in hot- humid regions in Dezfoul and Shoushtar city that had special functions and characteristics. In this paper some subjects such as the history of Shovadan, its elements and effective factors in the formation of Shovadan in Dezfool city are discussed.

Keywords: architecture, dezfoul city, Shovadan, south west of Iran

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Authors: P. Saravanan, A. Vasumathi

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Strategic Human Resource Management (SHRM) plays a vital role in formulating the policies and strategies for the company, in order to fulfill the employee’s requirement and to perform the job efficiently within the organisation. Human Resource Management (HRM) functions helps in attracting and motivating the talented workforce for the organisation and by increasing the performance of an individual, will result in achieving the defined goals and objectives for the company. HRM function plays an important role in managing the workers within organisation through a formal communication channel. Since HR functions acts as a mediatory role in between the employee as well as the employers within the organisation that helps in improving the efficacy and skills of the individuals employed within the company. HR manager acts as a change agent, enabling and driving the change management program with respect to business HR functions and its future requirements of the company. Due to change in the business environment, the focus of HR manager is shifting from administrative/personal functions in to a strategic business HR function. HR managers plays a strategic role in managing various HR functions such as recruitment and selection, human resource information system, manpower planning, performance management, conflict management, employee engagement, compensation management, policy formation and retention strategies followed within the industry. Major challenges faced by HR managers at work place are managing the level of engagement for the talented resources within the organisation, reducing the conflicts at workplace, mapping the talented resources through succession planning process, building the effective appraisal process and performance management system and mapping the compensation based on the skills and experience possed by the employee within the company. The authors conducted a study for the sample size of 75 HR managers from an Indian IT company through systematic sampling method. This study identifies that the female employees are facing lesser conflict than the male employees against their managers within the organisation and also the study determines the impact of demographic profile on strategic HRM practices and its challenges faced by HR managers in IT firm, India.

Keywords: strategic human resource management, change agent, employee engagement, performance management, succession planning and conflict management

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Authors: Abdolrasoul Daneshjoo

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The purpose of this research was to study the effect of aerobic exercises with 75% heart beats on the amount of urea, uric acid and creatine in blood of Iranian soccer national U-23 players. 27 players were selected according to the following demographic specifications: age: 21.4±1.60 years old; weight: 68±9.4 kg; height: 174.2±8.6 cm. Urea, uric acid and creatine in blood are considered as dependent variations where as 40 minutes running on a track with maximum 75% heart beats are independent variations. Heart beat and blood pressure in rest time, age, height, and weight are considered as the controlled variations. Maximum heart beats are recorded under maximum exercises (8 minutes and 150-250 watt energy) on ergo meter. Then, in order to determine independent variations, 75% maximum heart beats are considered for each player. Blood is taken twice (before and after determining independence variation). Moreover, the players are given a few instructions to be fulfilled 24 hours before the main exercises. Laboratory analysis method for blood urea sample is deacetyl ammoniom, for uric acid Karvy test and for creatine pyric acid. 'T' formula is applied for analyzing statistical data in dependent groups with degree of freedom 7 (d.f=7) urea and uric acid contain P>0.01 and P>0.05 for creatine. 1. Aerobic exercise can effect on the concentration of urea of blood as well as uric acid and creatine in blood serum and increase the amount of them. 2. Urea of blood serum increases from 26.75±2.59 to 28.9±2.67 (25%) with 40 minutes running and 75% heart beat. 3. Aerobic exercise causes uric acid increase 12.5% from 5.7±0.52 (before exercise) to 6.1±0.71 (after exercise). Creatine of blood serum increases from 1.36±0.27 (before exercise) to 1.85±0.49 (after exercise). We came to this result that during aerobic exercise catabolism of protein substrate increases. Moreover, augmentation of urea, uric acid and creatine in blood serum as metabolic poisons causes disorder in kidney. Also, tendons and joints are affected by these poisons. Appropriate diet and exercise can prevent production of these poisons resulted from heavy exercise.

Keywords: aerobic exercise, urea, uric acid, creatine, blood, soccer national players

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Authors: A. Hidalgo, A. Desportes, E. Bonin, A. Kadaoui, T. Bouaricha

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Present paper is concerned with portfolio management with Black-Litterman (B-L) model. Considered stocks are exclusively limited to large companies stocks on US market. Results obtained by application of the model are presented. From analysis of collected Dow Jones stock data, remarkable explicit analytical expression of optimal B-L parameter τ, which scales dispersion of normal distribution of assets mean return, is proposed in terms of standard deviation of covariance matrix. Implementation has been developed in Matlab environment to split optimization in Markovitz sense from specific elements related to B-L representation.

Keywords: Black-Litterman, Markowitz, market data, portfolio manager opinion

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Authors: Abdolamir Allameh, Seyyed Mortaza Haghgoo, Adnan Khosravi, Esmaeil Mortaz, Mihan Pourabdollah-Toutkaboni, Sharareh Seifi

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Non-Small Cell Lung Carcinoma (NSCLC) is associated with a number of gene mutations in epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR). The prognostic significance of mutations in exons 19 and 21, together with serum levels of EGFR, amphiregulin (AR), and Transforming Growth Factor-alpha (TGF-α) are implicated in diagnosis and treatment. The aim of this study was to examine the relationship of EGFR mutations in selected exons with the expression of relevant ligands in sera samples of NSCLC patients. For this, a group of NSCLC patients (n=98) referred to the hospital for lung surgery with a mean age of 59±10.5 were enrolled (M/F: 75/23). Blood specimen was collected from each patient. Besides, formalin fixed paraffin embedded tissues were processed for DNA extraction. Gene mutations in exons 19 and 21 were detected by direct sequencing, following DNA amplification which was done by PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction). Also, serum levels of EGFR, AR, and TGF-α were measured by ELISA. The results of our study show that EGFR mutations were present in 37% of Iranian NSCLC patients. The most frequently identified mutations were deletions in exon 19 (72.2%) and substitutions in exon 21 (27.8%). The most frequently identified alteration, which is considered as a rare mutation, was the E872K mutation in exon 21, which was found in 90% (9 out of 10) cases. EGFR mutation detected in exon 21 was significantly (P<0.05) correlated with the levels of its ligands, EGFR and TGF-α in serum samples. Furthermore, it was found that increased serum AR (>3pg/ml) and TGF-α (>10.5 pg/ml) were associated with shorter overall survival (P<0.05). The results clearly showed a close relationship between EGFR mutations and serum EGFR and serum TGF-α. Increased serum EGFR was associated with TGF-α and AR and linked to poor prognosis of NSCLC. These findings are implicated in clinical decision-making related to EGFR-Tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs).

Keywords: lung cancer, Iranian patients, epidermal growth factor, mutation, prognosis

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Authors: Mohammad Afkhami, Saeid Reza Ameli Ranani

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Since the bitcoin invention in 2008, blockchain technology surpassed so many innovations that the pioneer networks such as Ethereum are adaptable to host a decentral bunch of information containing pictures, audio, video, domains, etc., or even a metaverse versatile avatar. Transformation of tangible goods into virtual assets, known as AR-utility of luxury products, and the intermixture of reality and virtuality organized a worldwide, semi-regulated, and decentralized marketplace for digital goods. Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are doing a great help to artists worldwide, sharing diverse cultural outlooks by setting up a remote cross-cultural corporation potential and, at the same time, metamorphosizing the middleman role and ceasing the necessity of having a SWIFT-connected bank account. Under critical sanctions, a group of artists in Tehran did not take for granted such an opportunity to show off their artworks undisturbed, offering an introspective attitude, exerting Iranian motifs while intermingling westernized symbols. The cryptocurrency market has already acquired allocation, and interest in the global domain, paving the way for a flourishing enthusiasm among entrepreneurs who have been preoccupied with high-tech start-ups before. In a project found by Iranian female artists, we decipher the ups and downs of the new cyberculture and the environment it provides to fairly promote the artwork and obstacles it put forward in the way of interested entrepreneurs as we get through the details of starting up an NFT collection. An in-depth interview and empirical encounters with diverse Social Network Sites (SNS) and the strategies that other successful projects deploy to sell their artworks in an international and, at the same time, an anonymous market is the main focus, which shapes the paper fieldwork perspective. In conclusion, we discuss strategies for promoting an NFT project.

Keywords: NFT, metaverse, intercultural, art, illustration, start-up, entrepreneurship

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Authors: Rasouli Divkalaee Zeinab, Kalteh Safa, Roudbari Aliakbar

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Introduction: Medical waste can lead to the generation and transmission of many infectious and contagious diseases due to the presence of pathogenic agents, thereby necessitating the need for special management to collect, decontaminate, and finally dispose of such products. This study aimed to design a centralized health care (medical) waste management program for the cities of Semnan, Mahdishahr, and Shahmirzad. Methods: This descriptive-analytical study was conducted for six months in the cities of Semnan, Mahdishahr, and Shahmirzad. In this study, the quantitative and qualitative characteristics of the generated wastes were determined by taking samples from all medical waste production centers. Then, the equipment, devices, and machines required for separate collection of the waste from the production centers and for their subsequent decontamination were estimated. Next, the investment costs, current costs, and working capital required for collection, decontamination, and final disposal of the wastes were determined. Finally, the payment for proper waste management of each category of medical waste-producing centers was determined. Results: 1021 kilograms of medical waste are produced daily in the cities of Semnan, Mahdishahr, and Shahmirzad. It was estimated that a 1000-liter autoclave, a machine for collecting medical waste, four 60-liter bins, four 120-liter bins, and four 1200-liter bins were required for implementing the study plan. Also, the estimated total annual medical waste management costs for Semnan City were determined (23,283,903,720 Iranian Rials). Conclusion: The study results showed that establishing a proper management system for medical wastes generated in the three studied cities will cost between 334,280 and 1,253,715 Iranian Rials in fees for the medical centers. The findings of this study provided comprehensive data regarding medical wastes from the generation point to the landfill site, which is vital for the government and the private sector.

Keywords: clinics, decontamination, management, medical waste

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Authors: Şenol Yanar, Sinan Çeli̇kbi̇lek, Mehmet Bayansalduz, Yusuf Can

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Managerial competence defines as the skills that managers in managerial positions have in relation to managerial responsibilities and managerial duties. Today's organizations, which are in a competitive environment, have the desire to work with effective managers in order to be more advantageous position than the other organizations they are competing with. In today's organizations, self-efficacy and collective competence belief that determine managerial competencies of managers to assume managerial responsibility are of special importance. In this framework, the aim of this study is to examine the effects of sports managers' perceptions of self-efficacy and collective competence in managerial competence perceptions. In the study, it has also been analyzed if there is a significant difference between self-efficacy, collective competence and managerial competence levels of sports managers in terms of their gender, age, duty status, year of service and level of education. 248 sports managers, who work at the department of sports service’s central and field organization at least as a chief in the manager position, have been chosen with random sampling method and they have voluntarily participated in the study. In the study, the self-efficacy scale which was developed by Schwarzer, R. & Jerusalem, M. (1995), collective competence scale developed by Goddard, Hoy and Woolfolk-Hoy (2000) and managerial competence scale developed by Cetinkaya (2009) have been used as a data collection tool. The questionnaire form used as a data collection tool in the study includes a personal information form consisting of 5 questions; questioning gender, age, duty status, years of service and level of education. In the study, Pearson Correlation Analysis has been used for defining the correlation among self-efficacy, collective competence belief, and managerial competence levels in sports managers and regression analysis have been used to define the affect of self-efficacy and collective competence belief on the perception of managerial competence. T-test for binary grouping and ANOVA analysis have been used for more than binary groups in order to determine if there is any significant difference in the level of self-efficacy, collective and managerial competence in terms of the participants’ duty status, year of service and level of education. According to the research results, it has been found that there is a positive correlation between sports managers' self-efficacy, collective competence beliefs, and managerial competence levels. According to the results of the regression analysis, it is understood that the managers’ perception of self-efficacy and collective competence belief significantly defines the perception of managerial competence. Also, the results show that there is no significant difference in self-efficacy, collective competence, and level of managerial competence of sports managers in terms of duty status, year of service and level of education.

Keywords: sports manager, self-efficacy, collective competence, managerial competence

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