Perceptions of the Beach Users: A Case Study of the Coastal Areas of North Cyprus Towards Establishment of a Carrying Capacity

Within the main elements of economic sustainability, socio-cultural sustainability, and environmental sustainability, the criteria of \u27carrying capacity’ have ben emphasized through residents’ perception analysis to explore practical methods towards the application and implementation of such criteria. As data analysis revealed, the main tourist resources in the case of North Cyprus –the coast and the beach- have a certain capacity to sustain the impact and pressure of tourism. Despite the significance of the indigenous environment and with respect to the residents’ perception of optimum carrying capacity levels, this issue has not been given a due consideration. This has resulted in a process of coastal development which bypasses any measure ore application of a standard to harmonize the degree of physical development and the capacity of the beach. The main objective of this paper is to establish the concept of ‘carrying capacity’ as the means to achieve the reconciliation of environmental impacts with tourism development. The study concludes that, if carrying capacity measurement and its implementation are not incorporated into the planning decision as a clear policy, there will be grave negative consequences for those resources attracting visitors

Effects of endurance exercise and estrogen supplementation on the proliferation of satellite cells

Abstract Animal and human studies indicated that overtension and stress release inflammatory substances and growth factors that are produced following exercise, which leads to satellite cell activation and proliferation. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of an 8-week endurance exercise and estrogen supplementation on the proliferation of satellite cells in rats. Seventy-six rats were selected and randomly divided into two equal groups, ovariectomized and intact groups. Both groups were randomly divided into four subgroups as follows: endurance exercise, estrogen supplementation, estrogen supplementation with endurance exercise, and control. Then, the endurance exercise group and estrogen supplementation with endurance exercise group performed endurance exercise for 8 weeks, three sessions per week. In each week, the estrogen supplementation group and estrogen supplementation with endurance exercise group were injected subcutaneously with 3 mg/kg of estradiol benzoate. The soleus muscle was retracted and placed into 10 % buffered formalin solution. In a pathological lab, the number of satellite cells was counted and recorded using a light microscope through hematoxylin and eosin staining and immunohistochemistry for CD56. Increase in satellite cell number was significant in the two groups of intact rats treated with estrogen supplementation and the ovariectomized rats which performed endurance exercise. The comparison of these groups' means demonstrated that the satellite cell number increased more in the ovariectomized rats. Endurance exercise and estrogen supplementation can increase the proliferation of satellite cells in the rat's soleus muscle

Stability analysis of Hilfer fractional differential systems

In this paper, we present some remarks on the stability of fractional order systems with the Hilfer derivative. Using the Laplace transform, some sufficient conditions on the stability and asymptotic stability of autonomous and non-autonomous fractional differential systems are given. The results are obtained via the properties of Mittag-Leffler functions and the non-standard Gronwall inequality

New Computational Algorithms for Analyzing the Stability of the Differential Equations System

In this paper we show how to improve the approximate solution of the large Lyapunov equation obtained by an arbitrary method. Moreover, we propose a new method based on refinement process and Weighted Arnoldi algorithm for solving large Lyapunov matrix equation. Finally, some numerical results will be reported to illustrate the efficiency of the proposed method

Enhancement of Sleep Quality and Stability Using Acoustic Stimulation During Slow Wave Sleep

Background: One of the challenges today is that the quality of sleep has weakened by many external factors, which we are not even aware of and which directly affect sleep. Sleep quality has an essential role in maintaining the cognitive function and memory consolidation of individuals. So far, various studies have been done to improve the quality of sleep by using external electrical stimulation, vestibular and olfactory system stimulation.Methods: In this study, the increase in sleep quality was considered by simultaneous acoustic stimulation in a deep sleep to increase the density of slow oscillations. Slow oscillations are the important events recorded in electroencephalography (EEG) and hallmark deep sleep. Acoustic stimulation of pink noise with random frequency ranging from 0.8 to 1.1 Hz was used to improve sleep quality.Results: Eight healthy adults (mean age: 28.4±7.8 years) studied in 3 nights under 3 conditions: accommodation night, stimulation night (STIM) and no stimulation night (SHAM), in counter-balanced order. Significant characteristics of the objective and subjective quality of sleep have been extracted from the acquired EEG and compared in the last 2 nights. Also, the arousal and cyclic alternating pattern characteristics have been measured to assess sleep stability over 2 nights of STIM and SHAM.Conclusion: Our findings confirm this goal of the study that applying designed acoustic stimulation simultaneously in the slow wave sleep (SWS) stage increases the duration of deep sleep and ultimately improves overall sleep stability and quality

Evaluation and comparison of knowledge, attitude, and practice of sleep hygiene in students of different universities of isfahan city, Iran

Background: Sleep is an effective factor in physical and psychological health that its lack can cause a malfunction in the daily functioning, as well as loss of overall performance. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 918 students of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan University of Technology, and the University of Isfahan in Isfahan City, Iran. Clustered random sampling method was used to select the participants. The instruments used were the demographic questionnaire and sleep health scale. Data were analyzed using covariance analysis and Tukey’s post hoc test. Findings: The mean total score of the sleep hygiene questionnaire was 297.90 ± 39.15, which varied from 195 to 425. The mean score of the total score of the questionnaire was higher in students of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences compared to other universities (P < 0.050). Girls of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences scored the highest score (P < 0.050). The average score of knowledge of sleep health was significantly higher in students of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences than in Isfahan University of Technology (P < 0.001) and in University of Isfahan (P < 0.001). The mean score of sleep hygiene knowledge had a significant and direct relation with different years of study and age (P < 0.050). The average score of sleep attitude was higher in dentistry students than other students (P < 0.001). Conclusion: Results showed that medical students have a better attitude and function of sleep health. Mean scores of attitude, performance, and sleep hygiene were significantly higher in students of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences than in other two universities, and the mean score of girls in Isfahan University of Medical Sciences was higher than other groups. © 2019, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences(IUMS). All rights reserved

The relationship between the severity of asthma and the severity of symptoms of anxiety and depression: A cross-sectional study

Background: Depression and anxiety are two common mood disorders in modern societies with global expansion, which reduce the quality of life. A number of recent studies have investigated the relationship between anxiety and depression in patients with asthma. Due to the lack of studies in this area, especially in Iran, we studied this issue in Iranian population. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study on 151 patients with asthma referred to lung subspecialty clinics in Isfahan and Shahrekord cities, Iran, in 2016. The participants were included using sequential sampling method. The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) questionnaire was used as an instrument for measuring anxiety and depression. Data were analyzed using t and Spearman correlation tests via SPSS software. Findings: 151 patients with asthma entered the study. By controlling demographic characteristics, and considering the underlying disease, the relationship of depression scores with the severity of asthma was not significant. Anxiety scores related to having the disease and gender. Conclusion: It can be concluded that the level of anxiety and depression was not related to the severity of asthma. Considering the high prevalence of asthma and the role of depression and anxiety in people's quality of life, more studies, using different tools to measure the level of anxiety and depression, shows to be needed. © 2019, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences(IUMS). All rights reserved

Detection and Prediction of Absence Seizures Based on Nonlinear Analysis of the EEG in Wag/Rij Animal Model

 Background: Epilepsy is a common neurological disorder with a prevalence of 1% of the world population. Absence epilepsy is a form of generalized seizures with Spike wave discharge in EEG. Epileptic patients have frequent absence seizures that cause immediate loss of consciousness.Methods: In this study, it has been tried to explore whether EEG changes can effectively detect epilepsy in animal model applying non-linear features. To predict the occurrence of absence epilepsy, a long-term EEG signal has been recorded from frontal cortex in seven Wag/Rij rats. After preprocessing, the data was transferred to the phase space to extract the brain system dynamic and geometric properties of this space. Finally, the ability of each features to predict and detect absence epilepsy with two criteria of predictive time and the accuracy of detection and its results were compared with previous studies.Results: The results indicate that the brain system dynamic changes during the transition from free-seizure to pre-seizure and then seizure. Proposed approach diagnostic characteristics yielded 97% accuracy of absence epilepsy diagnosis indicating that due to the nonlinear and complex nature of the system and the brain signal, the use of methods consistent with this nature is important in understanding the dynamic transfer between different epileptic seizures.Conclusion: By changing the state of the absence Seizures, the dynamics are changing, and the results of this research can be useful in real-time applications such as predicting epileptic seizures

Stability Analysis of Distributed Order Fractional Differential Equations

We analyze the stability of three classes of distributed order fractional differential equations (DOFDEs) with respect to the nonnegative density function. In this sense, we discover a robust stability condition for these systems based on characteristic function and new inertia concept of a matrix with respect to the density function. Moreover, we check the stability of a distributed order fractional WINDMI system to illustrate the validity of proposed procedure