614 research outputs found
GERAmI: Improving the delivery of health care in geriatric residences
No full textThis article presents an agent-based intelligent environment (GERAmI- Geriatric Ambient Intelligence) developed for facilitating health care in geriatric residences. GERAmI integrates multiagent systems with RFID, Wi-Fi technologies and handheld devices. The core of GERAmI is GerAg (Geriatric Agent for monitoring alzheimer patients), an autonomous deliberative casebased planner agent designed to plan the nurses ’ working time dynamically, to maintain the standard working reports about the nurses ’ activities, and to guarantee that the patients assigned to the nurses are given the right care. The agent operates in wireless devices and is integrated with complementary agents into a multi-agent system, named GR-MAS (Geriatric Residence Multi-Agent System), capable of interacting with the environment. A description of GerAg, its relationship with the complementary agents, and preliminary results of the multi-agent system prototype in a real environment are presented. 1
Efficient block designs for comparing dual with single treatments.
No full textExperiments in blocks having two treatment factors are considered in which a particular treatment must be excluded. The work is motivated by medical trials of two drugs in which a double placebo cannot be administered on ethical grounds. The contrasts of interest compare the effects of having both treatment factor at non-zero labelled levels with the effects of having only one treatment factor at a non-zero labelled level. For nx2 experiments, a class of designs containing highly efficient members is identified and a lower bound on the efficiencies of designs in this class is derived. Tables of efficient designs are provided
Iran\u27s Strategic Culture: Implications for Nuclear Policy
No full textThis book chapter, published in Crossing Nuclear Thresholds: Leveraging Sociocultural Insights into Nuclear Decisionmaking (Palgrave Macmillan, 2018), assesses the principal drivers of Iran\u27s strategic culture and their broader implications for the country\u27s nuclear decisionmaking processes in light of the 2015 nuclear agreement—the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA)—between Iran and the P5+1. Explaining the great civilization lens through which Iran sees itself as a peer with global superpowers, Nima Gerami discusses aspects of the Iranian nuclear narrative which fuel its sense of entitlement to advanced nuclear fuel cycle technologies. Gerami argues that, even if the JCPOA remains intact, the question of Iran\u27s nuclear intent will grow increasingly important over the next decade. Affirming the salience of cultural context in assessing nuclear intent, Gerami emphasizes the primacy of Iranian cultural factors in decisionmaking. He explores these factors through the lens of the so-called Cultural Topography Analytical Framework, offering insights concerning leverage points the United States might apply in its engagements with Iran.https://digitalcommons.ndu.edu/wmdcenter-books/1005/thumbnail.jp
GERAKAN AYO MENGAJI’ (GERAMI) DI KOTA JAMBI: AGENSI DAN IDENTITAS KEAGAMAAN PEREMPUAN
No full textThis dissertation examines the Qur’anic movement and the
active mobility of urban Muslim women, taking the case of ‘Gerakan
Ayo Mengaji’ (GERAMI) in Jambi City. GERAMI is a movement that
promotes Al-Qur’an learning based in mosques within the community,
particularly among women (mothers). While most pengajian groups
position women in a receptive role as recipients of knowledge,
GERAMI emphasizes active participation, contribution, and social
mobility of women in the public sphere. Given the relatively limited
focus of studies on women's religious movements on personal piety,
this dissertation offers a broader perspective by exploring the diverse
expressions of women in the Al-Qur'an movement, which does not
make individual piety its main focus. This dissertation seeks to answer
the questions about the background and development of GERAMI in
relation to women’s activism, and the process of women's agency in
relation to their efforts to claim public space. It also explains their
reason for using Qur’anic tradition as a tool to shape their religious
identity.
Employing ethnographic methods, this dissertation aims to
understand the dynamics of women’s activism in the context of the
emergence and development of GERAMI in Jambi City. Research
data were collected through observation and participation in activities
at preparatory classes, mosques, and other informal activities; as well
as interviews with 19 informants, including initiators, volunteers, and
supporting informants. Supporting data were obtained from the
collection of photo documentation, membership archives, and social
media content. The data were then analysed in depth using the
concepts of piety agency and Muslim subjectivity as a theoretical
framework.
This research identifies several main findings. First, the
establishment of GERAMI as a Qur’anic movement demonstrates that
the emergence of a religious movement is not always related to the
collectivity of agents and religious authority. The movement was initiated by a single urban Muslim woman without formal religious
education background. Nonetheless, the success of this movement is
supported by the significant capital possessed by this woman, such as
economic, cultural, and social capital. Second, as a response to the
identity crisis, GERAMI provides an alternative space for urban
Muslim women who face domestic obstacles in accessing public space
amidst the urban modernity. Active participation in the movement not
only facilitates their transition from domestic to public religious roles,
but also serves as a strategic mechanism for gaining and articulating
agency. In this context, individual capabilities and modalities
influence the articulation of individual agency within the Qur’anic
movement. Third, by choosing the Qur’anic movement, women can
create a space to express and shape their religious identity as ideal
Muslims - which they understand as a balance between the worldly
and the hereafter. Beyond accessibility and affordability, the
theological status of the Al-Qur’an as a sacred text crucially
establishes it as a central symbol of individual piety expression and
the shaping of their religious identity. Consequently, GERAMI serves
as a strategy for women in balancing social aspirations in the public
space with obedience to religious teachings. This movement presents
a dual arena of expression for women, namely public participation as
well as the articulation of pious agency as the formation of their
religious identity
Molecular identification and phytochemical screening of endophytic fungi isolated from Lithospermum officinale L. roots: A new source of shikonin
No full textMollaei, Saeed, Khanehbarndaz, Omid, Gerami-Khashal, Zahra, Ebadi, Mostafa (2019): Molecular identification and phytochemical screening of endophytic fungi isolated from Lithospermum officinale L. roots: A new source of shikonin. Phytochemistry 168: 1-7, DOI: 10.1016/j.phytochem.2019.112116, URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.phytochem.2019.11211
Design methodology for backhaul and distribution networks using TV white spaces
No full textSince the FCC’s approval of unlicensed use of TV white spaces, the issue of how to use these white spaces has led to innovative technologies such as cognitive radios as well as a variety of spectrum policy proposals. There have been proposals to devise alternate rules for spectrum usage citing the overly conservative restrictions on secondary transmissions to protect incumbents. In this thesis, instead, we propose to utilize white spaces for a backhaul network for internet traffic based on existing restrictions. Using the available white spaces and backhaul traffic demands in New Jersey as a case study, we evaluate the feasibility of such backhauling and present a methodology that can be used for other areas as well. Using a basic design involving fixed towers and directional antennas, our results show that the TV white spaces can be an effective medium for radio backhaul as an alternative to the costly laying of optical fiber. Although the most recent FCC ruling does not mandate protection of wireless microphones, we show that meeting the more stringent earlier FCC requirements on sensing and avoiding harm to wireless microphones would have only a minor impact on capacity. Finally, we study the aggregating of multiple data traffic flows at the nodes and show that, with proper engineering, multiple flows have but a slight effect on the need for optical fiber.M.S.Includes bibliographical referencesby Cyrus Geram
Supplemental Material - Is ultrafiltration volume a predictor of postoperative acute kidney injury in patients undergoing cardiopulmonary bypass?
No full textSupplemental Material for Investigating urban canyons, façade albedo, and pedestrian thermal comfort using microclimate model calculations by Hamid Gerami, Javad Sajedianfard, Bahram Ghasemzadeh, and Maryam AnsariLari in Perfusion.</p
The Qur’anic Movement Gerakan Ayo Mengaji (Gerami) in Jambi: An Intersectional Analysis of Women, Gender, and Class
No full textThis article demonstrates that women’s experiences within religious movements are diverse and multifaceted, shaped by a complex interplay of social factors. By investigating ‘Gerakan Ayo Mengaji’ (GERAMI) as Quranic movement in Jambi City, it applies an intersectional lens to examine how gender and class dynamics influence Muslim women’s experiences within the movement, such as their space, roles, and performance. Drawing on in-depth interviews, participant observation, and the movement’s archival materials, the study analyzes the identities and activism of GERAMI’s women members. The findings suggest that the intersectionality of gender identities enables the movement to function not only as a source of Muslim women’s identity formation but also as a means of reinforcing or contesting gendered social structures. The intersection of various forms of individual capital significantly shapes members’ roles and performances within the movement, thereby constructing internal hierarchies. The article argues that the convergence of diverse social identities within a Qur’anic movement can inadvertently produce hierarchical power dynamics, leading to the emergence of new gendered public spaces and class structures within the movement itself.[Artikel ini menunjukkan bahwa pengalaman perempuan dalam gerakan keagamaan bersifat beragam dan memiliki banyak sisi, yang dibentuk oleh interaksi kompleks faktor-faktor sosial. Dengan mengkaji ‘Gerakan Ayo Mengaji’ (GERAMI) sebagai gerakan Al-Quran di Kota Jambi, penelitian ini menggunakan lensa interseksional untuk menganalisis bagaimana dinamika gender dan kelas memengaruhi pengalaman perempuan Muslim dalam gerakan tersebut, termasuk ruang, peran, dan aktivitas mereka. Menggunakan wawancara mendalam, pengamatan partisipatif, dan bahan arsip gerakan, studi ini menganalisis identitas dan aktivisme anggota perempuan GERAMI. Temuan menunjukkan bahwa interseksionalitas identitas gender memungkinkan gerakan ini berfungsi tidak hanya sebagai sumber pembentukan identitas perempuan Muslim, tetapi juga sebagai sarana untuk memperkuat atau menantang struktur sosial yang berorientasi gender. Selain itu, persilangan berbagai bentuk modal individu secara signifikan membentuk peran dan kinerja anggota dalam gerakan, sehingga membentuk hierarki internal. Pada akhirnya, artikel ini berargumen bahwa konvergensi identitas sosial yang beragam dalam gerakan Qur’anik dapat secara tidak sengaja menghasilkan dinamika kekuasaan hierarkis, yang mengakibatkan munculnya ruang publik berjenis kelamin baru dan struktur kelas di dalam gerakan itu sendiri.
Female Genital Schistosomiasis: A Neglected among the Neglected Tropical Diseases
No full textSchistosomiasis is a neglected parasitic disease linked to water, posing a global public health concern with a significant burden in sub-Saharan Africa. It is transmitted by Schistosoma spp., causing both acute and chronic effects affecting the urogenital or the hepato-intestinal system. Through granuloma formation, chronic schistosomiasis weakens host immunity, heightening susceptibility to coinfections. Notably, female genital schistosomiasis (FGS), a disregarded gynecological condition, adversely affects girls' and women's reproductive health and increases vulnerability to HIV. This review explores the intricate interplay between schistosomiasis and HIV, considering their geographical overlap. We delve into the clinical features of this coinfection, underlying mutual influences on transmission, diagnostic challenges, and therapeutic approaches. Understanding the dynamics of FGS and HIV coinfection is pivotal for integrated healthcare strategies in regions with co-endemicity, aiming to mitigate the impact of the two infections on vulnerable populations
Developing a risk breakdown matrix for onshore wind farm projects using fuzzy case-based reasoning
No full textAs worldwide goals for sustainable development expand, numerous countries are investing in renewable energy projects, particularly onshore and offshore wind farm projects, which have low adverse environmental impacts. Since onshore wind farm projects are novel types of energy infrastructure projects in many countries worldwide, the literature lacks a comprehensive list of risks that affect such projects. The first goal of this paper is to fill the research gap by identifying the work-package–level risks that affect onshore wind farm construction projects and developing a risk breakdown matrix suitable to these projects. However, the application of existing risk identification techniques in these projects is usually hindered by the lack of comprehensive research in the literature, scarcity of historical data, and high cost of acquiring expert knowledge. Consequently, the second goal of this paper is developing a new risk identification technique based on case-based reasoning and fuzzy logic suitable to onshore wind farm projects. The case-based reasoning component enables the identification of risks associated with a given type of construction project based on its similarities to the other types of projects. Moreover, the application of fuzzy logic in the proposed technique allows users to assess the similarities between different types of projects using linguistic variables, and it facilitates the capture of partial similarities between the different types of construction projects. In addition to the novel risk identification technique, this paper presents a risk breakdown matrix of onshore wind farm projects representing 169 risk factors, which are mapped to 11 construction work packages of onshore wind farm projects to improve the risk management process for these projects. The results of this paper and the proposed risk identification technique are compared with conventional techniques, confirming that the proposed technique is suitable to novel types of construction projects like onshore wind farms
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