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Despite the increasing adaption of automated text analysis in communication studies, its strengths and weaknesses in framing analysis are so far unknown. Fewer efforts have been made to automatic detection of networked frames. Drawing on the recent developments in this field, we harness a comparative exploration, using Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA) and a human-driven qualitative coding process on three different samples. Samples were comprised of a dataset of 4,165,177 million tweets collected from Iranian Twittersphere during the Coronavirus crisis, from 21 January, 2020 to 29 April, 2020. Findings showed that while LDA is reliable in identifying the most prominent networked frames, it misses to detects less dominant frames. Our investigation also confirmed that LDA works better on larger datasets and lexical semantics. Finally, we argued that LDA could give us some primary intuitions, but qualitative interpretations are indispensable for understanding the deeper layers of meaning.

Although critical views of language education have redefined teacher roles, teachers' understanding of their own position within the ideological contestations surrounding language teaching is not widely investigated. This narrative study explores the perspectives of three Iranian English language teachers on the sociocultural roles and responsibilities that they may assume for themselves and examines how such perspectives are shaped. In extensive multi-session narrative interviews, the participants shared their stories of becoming a teacher, starting from their retrospection on teacher roles during their language learning. Our narrative analysis depicts their different trajectories of shaping conceptions of language teachers' sociocultural roles in three stages: as a language learner, as a student teacher, and as a beginner teacher. On this basis, their narrative accounts of becoming English teachers appear to indicate that critical sociocultural views still play a marginal role in actual teacher preparation processes and the field needs to further embrace critical approaches to language teacher education aimed at raising English language teachers' awareness of their sociocultural responsibility. Moreover, our participants' narratives illustrate that understanding the genesis of language teachers' teaching philosophies requires a wide perspective of their long-term background of learning (to teach) the language.

This research set to examine the impacts of collaborative learning (CL), scaffolding instruction, and self-assessment on reading anxiety, reading motivation, and reading comprehension of Iranian EFL learners. Based on Preliminary English Test (PET) results, a sample of 58 students was chosen to represent the study's sample subject out of a total of 71 participants. Running a convenience sampling technique, two equal groups (the control and experimental) were chosen at random from among them. Afterward, both groups completed pretests to gauge their reading motivation, anxiety, and comprehension. Two groups were then treated with a variety of treatments. Learners in the experimental group got scaffolding instruction, self-assessment, and CL as treatment, whereas the control group received typical instructor-based teaching and assessment. Later, both groups took the post-test for reading anxiety, reading comprehension, and reading motivation after the treatment. According to the one-way ANCOVA analysis, the post-test results for the two groups were different. Based on the data analysis, the experimental group outdid the control group in reading anxiety, reading motivation, and reading comprehension. It was concluded that Iranian EFL learners were able to develop both their reading comprehension and reading motivation while experiencing less reading anxiety thanks to CL, self-assessment, and scaffolding instruction. Finally, the conclusions, implications, limitations, and suggestions for further studies were provided.

This study aimed to examine the impacts of computerized dynamic assessment (C-DA) and rater-mediated assessment on the test anxiety, writing performance, and oral proficiency of Iranian EFL learners. Based on Preliminary English Test (PET) results, a sample of 64 intermediate participants was chosen from 93 students. Running a convenience sampling technique, target test-takers were randomly divided into the experimental groups (C-DA) and control (rater mediated assessment). Following that, both groups had pretests for oral and written skills. The Science Anxiety Scale (SAS) was also used to gauge their level of anxiety prior to treatment. The experimental group's participants then received C-DA. Rater-mediated assessment, on the other hand, was given to the control group. Both groups took the post-test for writing performance, oral proficiency, and test anxiety at the conclusion of the treatment. According to the one-way ANCOVA analysis, the post-test results for the two groups were different. Based on the results, the experimental group outdid the control group on the oral proficiency, writing performance, and test anxiety post-tests. Iranian EFL learners were able to improve both their written and oral skills while experiencing less test anxiety thanks to C-DA. Finally, the conclusions, the implications, the limitations, and the suggestions for further studies were provided.

This study investigates the effects of three Collaborative Reasoning (CR) strategies including pre-trained CR, scripted CR, and pre-trained + scripted (mixed) CR on the argumentative decision-making skills of primary school students. Forty-six school students were requested to write a reflective essay on a social-moral issue, and after participating in a six-week story-based CR with three different conditions, they were asked to write their reflective essay. A follow-up test was conducted two weeks later. The results showed that students in the pre-trained CR condition performed better than students in the scripted CR condition with regard to acquiring and transferring decision-making skills. However, compared to students in the mixed CR condition, the performance of the students in the pre-trained condition was lower for acquiring and transferring decision-making skills. In terms of learning satisfaction, students with the mixed CR condition declared higher learning satisfaction compared to students in the other two conditions. We discuss these results and provide agenda for future research and practice.

This study investigated the continuous influence of applying formative assessment on EFL (English as a foreign language) learners' anxiety and listening efficacy. The participants, divided into an experimental and a control group, were 60 Iranian EFL learners in an English-language institute. This study thus highlights the pedagogical implications of assessment in EFL classrooms. Therefore, this report investigated the effect of formative testing used by teachers on students' achievement in EFL classes and its effect on reducing anxiety and improvement of listening efficacy. All in all, our hypothesis was that providing learners with formative testing during the instruction will have a beneficial impact on their improvement and learning. The sample consisted of one experimental and one control group. The data collected were analyzed by using t-test. The results revealed that there was a significant difference in the level of achievement of the treatment group in the intended matters (anxiety and listening efficacy in comparison to the control group in the summative test due to taking advantage of formative assessment).

The present study investigated the relationship between language learning strategy use, learning styles, gender, and second language (L2) achievement of Iranian English for academic purposes (EAP) learners. To this end, 120 Iranian EAP learners majoring in various fields of humanities including political sciences, psychology, economics and law participated in the study by completing Oxford's (1990) "Strategy Inventory for Language Learning" (SILL), and an adapted version of the "Perceptual Learning Style Preference Questionnaire" (PLSPQ) originally developed by Reid (1987). The results obtained from three separate Pearson product moment correlations indicated that there was a significant positive correlation between (a) language learning strategy use and L2 achievement; (b) learning styles and L2 achievement; and (c) learning styles and strategy use by Iranian EAP learners. Moreover, the results of multiple regression analysis demonstrated that both learning styles and language learning strategy use were significant predictors of the participants' L2 achievement; however, learning styles were found to be a stronger predictor. Also, the findings of two separate multiple regression analyses indicated that among the components of learning styles and language learning strategies, visual learning style and cognitive strategy use were stronger predictors of L2 achievement respectively. In addition, the results of an independent samples t-test showed cognitive and metacognitive strategies were the most frequently used strategy groups by females and males respectively. The results of another independent samples ttest indicated that group and visual learning styles were the most preferred types adopted by the female and male learners respectively.

Objectives: Reading impairments are the most prevalent problem at school. It is vital to have a valid and reliable test to assess the student's reading skills. This study aims to develop the KHANA test as a valid and reliable test to evaluate reading skills in Persian-speaking students and study the accuracy, rate, and reading comprehension in different grades and genders Methods: This study included 87 students from second to seventh grade (75 typically developing students [TDS] and 12 students with reading impairments [SRI]). First, two preliminary parallel forms of student books, A and B, were prepared, both including 12 reading passages organized based on increasing difficulty as the student moved from one passage to the next. All the passages contain five comprehension questions. Then, the content and face validity, descriptive statistics, construct validity, and reliability, including test re-test, inter-rater, and the correlation between passages A and B were measured. Results: Based on the results, all the passages and questions were valid. The passages can make significant differences in reading skills between different grades, while gender differences are limited. However, according to the test re-test analysis, the inter-rater reliability, and the correlation between the two passages, KHANA is a reliable tool and can discriminate SRI from TDS. Discussion: According to the results, KHANA seems a valid and reliable test to assess reading skills in Persian-speaking students from second to seventh grade. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Internet of Things (IOT) has led to ground-breaking changes in the healthcare industry as a promising technological solution. Yet, despite its many benefits, its application has always proven to be challenging. Hence, the purpose of this study was to identify the challenges of using the IoT with the proposing a model for implementing internet of things in Iranian hospitals. This study was performed in three phases. In the first phase, the challenges of using the IoT were identified. In the second phase, the challenges of using the internet of things in Iranian hospitals (according to experts) were confirmed during the completion of a two-round Delphi. In the last phase, a novel model for implementing the IoT in Iranian hospitals was proposed. The model consisted of six groups, namely privacy and security, big data, hardware, network, software, and organizational-cultural and environmental issues. Out of the 78 identified challenges, 46 were approved by experts as essential elements for providing IoT model in Iranian hospitals. The highest and lowest averages were related to the subgroups "Failure to provide regular IoT rules and programs by governments" and "Absence of single, integrated and efficient platforms with high data transfer capacity and fast processing", respectively. The final model for implementing IoT in Iranian hospitals was designed and presented using Edraw Max10.0.4+Portable software. Providing this model can provide a sufficient basis, information and knowledge for policymakers, government authorities and managers of organizations to use the IoT in hospitals of Iran and other countries. The proposed model can also improve special capabilities in system design; reduce failure in the initial design of IoT projects, and save time and money. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Objective: Patients who receive cochlear implants (CIs) constitutes a significant population in Iran. This population needs regular monitor on long-term outcomes, educational placement and quality of life. Currently, there is no national or regional registry on the long term outcomes of CI users in Iran. The present study aims to introduce the design and implementation of a national patient-outcomes registry on CI recipients for Iran. This Iranian CI registry (ICIR) provides an integrated framework for data collection and sharing, scientific communication and collaboration in CI research. Methods: The national ICIR is a prospective patient-outcomes registry for patients who are implanted in one of Iranian centers. The registry is based on an integrated database that utilizes a secure web-based platform to collect response data from clinicians and patient's proxy via electronic case report forms (e-CRFs) at predefined intervals. The CI candidates are evaluated with a set of standardized and non-standardized questionnaires prior to initial device activation (as baseline variables) and at three-monthly interval follow-up intervals up to 24 months and annually thereafter. Results: The software application of the ICIR registry is designed in a user-friendly graphical interface with different entry fields. The collected data are categorized into four subsets including personal information, clinical data, surgery data and commission results. The main parameters include audiometric performance of patient, device use, patient comorbidities, device use, quality of life and health-related utilities, across different types of CI devices from different manufacturers. Conclusion: The ICIR database could be used by the increasingly growing network of CI centers in Iran. Clinicians, academic and industrial researchers as well as healthcare policy makers could use this database to develop more effective CI devices and better management of the recipients as well as to develop national guidelines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and objective: Chronic otitis media (COM) is a common condition characterized by the perforation of the tympanic membrane and inflammation of the mucosal lining the hollow space in the middle ear and airy spaces of the temporal bone for at least 2-6 week. This study was carried out to find out the status of the middle ear ossicles in patients with COM and to correlate their status with clinical parameters. Methods: This retrospective clinical study was conducted on 107 COM patients (52 males and 55 females; age range: 18 to 75 years) submitted to surgery in the Otology Clinic at Imam Khomeini Hospital, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Iran. Initially, a comprehensive case-history was obtained from patients and their hearing thresholds were recorded. Then, ossicles status and their junction condition were evaluated intraoperatively. Results: The malleus was found intact in 70 (65.42%), absent in 10 (9.34), and eroded in 27 (25.24%) patients. Our results revealed that the incus was intact in 33 (30.84%), eroded in 55 (51.41%) and absent in 19 (17.75%) subjects. Stapes was found intact in 54 (50.46%) cases and eroded in 53 (49.54%) cases. The mean Pure Tone Average (PTA) and Air-Bone Gap (ABG) comparisons in "intact" and "discontinuous" ossicular chain groups was not significant (Independent sample t-test, p>0.05). Conclusion: Our results demonstrated that incus was the most susceptible middle ear ossicle to erosion in COM, whereas the malleus was the most resistant ossicle. Furthermore, ABG and PTA values cannot be considered as a potential preoperative predictor for ossicular chain status. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Objective: Age of cochlear implantation (CI) is an important factor for restoring normal auditory processing and different language skills so that early diagnosis of hearing loss significantly influences the rate of developmental skills in these children. The present study aimed to investigate different factors affecting the age of hearing loss diagnosis and CI in children with hearing loss. Methods: This was a descriptive cross-sectional trial conducted on the children with hearing loss that underwent CI (n=252) in the Khuzestan Cochlear Implant center, Ahvaz, Iran during 2012 to 2015. The demographic data of children and parents, age of diagnosis, application of hearing aid, and rehabilitation therapy were collected through a questionnaire during the regular visits of the patients. The data were analyzed using statistical package SPSS (Windows, version 18).The normality of data and homogeneity of variances were evaluated through Kolmogorov-Smirnov and Leven tests, respectively. Then, T-test was used to evaluate the statistically significance of the difference and Pearson correlation coefficient to determine the relationship between the quantitative variables. Results: The mean age of diagnosis was 10.7 months (range 0.1 to 60 months). Of 252 patients, 131 (52%) were male and 121 (48%) were female (p=0.98) and 123 patients (50.2%) had a positive family history of hearing loss or deafness (p<0.0001). In addition, 17 patients (6.9%) had a favorable economic status, while 96 (38.9%) had a moderate and 134 (53.2%) a low economic status. Interestingly, 78.8% of the deaf children were from parents of consanguineous marriages, and 12.2% from non-consanguineous unions. Of the six studied variables, only family history and family relationship variables showed significant relationship with age of diagnosis of hearing loss. Conclusion: Providing comprehensive basic information and increased awareness may help all parents, even those with low socioeconomic status and educational level, to detect hearing loss in their newborns as early as possible. This approach could prevent the consequent adverse effects of hearing loss on psychological, social, and social dimensions as well as on educational achievement in childhood. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The tea plant [Camellia sinensis (L.) O. Kuntze] is one of the most significant commercial crops in Iran. Symptomatic leaves including chlorina on the edge of the leaf, and multiple necrotic ring blotches on mature leaves from different tea gardens were observed in northern Iran. RT-PCR analysis and transmission electron microscopy observations were applied to characterize the causal agent of tea leaf discoloration. Sequence analyses of the fragments revealed that all the samples were infected with tea plant necrotic ring blotch virus (TPNRBV). To our knowledge this is the first report of TPNRBV in Iran and the second in the world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The increasing number of cancer patients, together with the side effects of current chemical treatments have encouraged the exploration of the potential of Iranian medicinal plants as a rich source of anticancer compounds. In the current review, 114 medicinal plant species grown in Iran were selected and their major constituents, animal or cell targets, as well as possible anticancer mechanisms, were ascertained through searching pertinent keywords in the Scientific Information Database (SID), IranMedex, PubMed, Medline, Google Scholar, Science Direct, Web of Knowledge and Scopus databases. Of the 114 species (with more emphasis on Asteraceae, Lamiaceae and Fabaceae as major plant families in Iran) that were reviewed, some were endemic plants of Iran, with others found in other countries. Besides valuable and well-known anticancer plants such as Taxus baccata and Catharanthus roseus, other species were included. Several compounds of these plants, such as organo-sulfur compounds, terpenoids, polyphenols, alkaloids, saponins, phenylethanoids, coumarins and polysaccharides have been proposed to exhibit anticancer effects. In general, apoptosis, cytotoxicity, cell cycle arrest, mitochondrial suppression, reductiob of DNA damage, vital enzyme inhibition and/or blocking angiogenesis were considered as the proposed mechanisms for the anticancer potential of the studied plants. Investigating the bioactive anticancer components of Iranian medicinal plants, especially the endemic species, seems to be beneficial for achieving novel potential anticancer drugs that are better equipped to fight cancer. [Display omitted] • Besides well-known plants, there are numerous endemic species with anticancer potentials in Iran • The anticancer effects are mostly due to organo-sulfur compounds, terpenoids, polyphenols and alkaloids. • Inducing apoptosis, cell cycle arrest, oxidative stress, enzymes' inhibition and blocking angiogenesis are the main anticancer activities. • Investigating Iranian medicinal plants can be useful for achieving new active anticancer medication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the measures which used to calculate the scholarly collaboration of countries and organizations is co-authorship. Co-authorship is a process in which two or more authors/researchers collaborate with each other to create a joint work via collaboration channels and methods. Although many studies have been considered individual or domain co-authorships, but the organizational aspect of this type of collaboration has attracted less attention. Therefore, the aim of this study is to draw the organizational co-authorships among Iranian medical universities and to analyze the role of proximity and Matthew effect in this collaboration. Thus, 32 medical universities were selected based on a list prepared by the Iranian Ministry of Health and Medical Education (MHME), and the co-authored articles of these universities were extracted from Web of Science (WoS) database for the period 1990 to 2011. Findings show that top and first-rank universities in Iran such as Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, and Shiraz University of Medical Sciences tend to collaborate more with universities like themselves. This confirms the Matthew effect in scholarly collaborations of top and first-rank universities. Besides, the proximity rule has an important role in the formation of scholarly collaboration in surveyed universities. Some suggestions made to improve this kind of organizational collaboration in Iranian universities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many abnormal α-chain hemoglobins (Hbs) are caused by single nucleotide mutations in α1- or α2-goblin genes. One of these Hbs is Hb Q-Iran which is resulted from a point mutation at codon 75 of the α1-globin gene (Asp→His). The identification of Hb Q-Iran was observed in two members of a family from the Central Province of Iran. In this study, Globin chain analysis on high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and DNA sequencing were applied. An unusual Hb variant, like HbS on alkaline pH electrophoresis was identified from samples of a father and his son from Arak city in the Central Province of Iran. The variant was further characterized by globin chain analysis and DNA sequencing methods. Globin chain analysis revealed an unknown globin chain peak after α-globin chain peak with a different retention time from βs-globin chain, as the control in both samples. Genetic analysis led to the identification of an unknown Hb variant, Hb Q-Iran. Globin chain analysis showed the presence of an unknown globin chain, and likewise DNA sequencing revealed HbQ-Iran. In other words, Globin chain analysis procedure could preliminarily detect an unknown globin chain.

Physical variations of races can be characterized by anthropometric indices. However, anthropological findings indicate not only that each racial group has its own standards but within the same race, each subgroup had its own standards. Some anthropometric studies were carried out on Iranian population but they are not enough. In this cross-sectional research 1695 native 7- 12-years-old children from Arak (Central Iran) were investigated. Some of the physical variables such as head length, width and circumference, facial length and width were measured. Cephalic and facial indices based on these variables were evaluated. The results showed that the dominant type of cephalic index was the mesocephalic one, while the dolicocephalic type was less frequent. The dominant type of facial index was the euryprosopic one, the less frequent type the hyperleptoprosopic one. Between males and females no statistically significant differences in the distribution of these indices could be observed. The types of head and face of the Arak children differ somewhat from those observed in populations from other parts of Iran as well as from those of neighboring countries. These differences indicate the importance of the physical standards of the Arak children as a Fars subgroup of Caucasians.

The present study aimed at differentiating rare types of heterozygous beta-thalassemia (thal) with normal Hb A(2) values from alpha-thal in Iranian carriers by globin chain synthesis in addition to other hematological parameters. Our study groups consisted of 51 normal subjects, 24 heterozygous beta- thalassemic subjects with high Hb A(2), 62 alpha-thal-2 subjects, 34 alpha-thal-1 subjects, six Hb H disease thalassemic subjects, 14 silent beta-thal subjects with normal Hb A(2) values, five deltabeta-thal subjects and two subjects with an association of alpha- and deltabeta-thal (total = 198). Analysis of globin chains was performed by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The results showed that the alpha/beta ratio averages were close to the ones in the published literature, but with a greater standard deviation and a wider range. Globin chain synthesis (GCS) could be valuable in differentiating between microcytosis produced by silent beta-thal (heterozygous beta-thal with a normal Hb A(2) level) and that caused by alpha-thal. Since the complex genotype/phenotype relationship can lead to diagnostic difficulties, GCS cannot be used as the only diagnostic tool for thalassemia carrier detection. Therefore, a combination of different tests for each patient is required.