محسن جمالی

The petroglyphs located in Teymareh are recognized as one of the most significant and extensive collections of rock art in Iran. Among the various motifs present, signs and linear inscriptions stand out, with Pahlavi inscriptions being a notable subset. A total of fifteen Pahlavi inscriptions have been documented within the petroglyphs of Teymareh in Golpayegan. This article presents, for the first time, the introduction of six new Pahlavi inscriptions discovered during the authors’ recent field research in the Qarqab, Esfajerd, and Kucherey sites. The analysis, translation, and interpretation of these inscriptions raise two pertinent questions: Is there a conceptual relationship between these new inscriptions and the existing Pahlavi inscriptions in Teymareh? Furthermore, how do the themes of these inscriptions correlate with the natural and cultural landscape of the area? The inscriptions predominantly address the theme of “water,” with the term “Zehab” frequently appearing throughout. According to the Pahlavi Dictionary, “river” is the most prevalent interpretation of Zehab. This terminology is intrinsically linked to the region’s natural environment and its proximity to water sources, as well as the locations of the petroglyphs found in these areas. It is plausible that these inscriptions served to indicate the availability of water resources, particularly for travelers and nomadic groups. Furthermore, the significance of water and the historical narratives associated with it are deeply embedded in the oral traditions of the local populace. Collectively, these factors underscore the vital importance of water to both indigenous and nomadic communities, particularly during the late Sassanid and early Islamic periods. This research was conducted through a descriptive-analytical approach, utilizing surveys, field interviews, and library research.

Statement of the problem: Petroglyphs are considered as one of the types of ancient cultural materials, which include all patterns and lines created on the surface of rocks in the open air or the internal surfaces of caves. These cultural finds that are mostly located in the open space; Unlike other cultural materials, it is not pulled out of the soil layers, for this reason, they have been reviewed by humans over thousands of years, and sometimes new designs have been created on them. The petroglyphs have not been spared from natural erosion and human damage. The petroglyphs are new documents that by studying them carefully, many missing links of history can be found. Petroglyphs can be studied from different perspectives. One of the most important aspects of studying petroglyphs is the examination and interpretation of its motifs. The connection between different motifs in a stone panel can create interesting narrative scenes. Although researchers may not have the same opinion in the analysis and interpretation of narrative scenes, they can finally bring these opinions closer to each other. In order to study the narrative scenes, it is necessary that the researcher, in addition to being familiar with the types of rock patterns and the characters found on the petroglyphs of different regions and other historical monuments, possess other basic information in the fields of archaeology, anthropology, etc. The interpretation of narrative scenes after the issue of chronology is one of the most challenging debates in rock art studies.The most important theme of the narrative scenes on the petroglyphs has been the theme of hunting, the battle of humans, the representation of the natural environment, the establishment of rituals and customs, etc. In this research, we are going to investigate and analyze one of the important narrative scenes among the petroglyphs of Teymareh, which seems to have certain complications.Based on this, relying on field and library studies, we were able to provide interpretations for this narrative scene. Golpayegan city is located in the northwest of Isfahan province and on the eastern edge of Central Zagros. The fertile plain of Golpayegan, along with the permanent water sources of the Anarbar River and several seasonal rivers, have provided favorable conditions for settling in this area for thousands of years. On the one hand, this area has been a communication route between areas in the central plateau of Iran and on the other hand areas located in the central Zagros. Golpayegan plain is located in the middle of a fence of high and low mountains, which in the mountains on the edge of the plain and often next to water sources, there is a concentration of rock motifs, and also in the plain, there are important historical sites such as Loharamesh (related to 4th millennium BC) and Chogha Hassan (related to the 5th millennium BC) and some other important sites (Javari et al., 2012: 73).Teymareh is the historical name of a region which, according to the current political divisions, is a part of Isfahan, Markazi and Lorestan provinces and includes the cities of Golpayegan, Khomein, Mahalat, Aligudarz, etc. This name has been used a lot since the Sasanian period and especially at the beginning of the Islamic period (Hasan Qomi, 1982). The collection of petroglyphs and rock motifs of Teymareh Golpayegan, due to the great richness of the subject, needs a more serious examination and reflection.Often in the foothills of the mountains surrounding the Golpayegan plain and mostly next to water sources such as permanent rivers, seasonal rivers, springs and reservoirs, there is a large concentration of petroglyphs, especially in areas with a specific type of schist, which mostly have smooth surfaces for Creating roles are there. During the years of field investigation, we managed to investigate most of the areas of Golpayegan city that had such characteristics, and these continuous investigations led to the identification of thirty-two areas and an approximate number of thirty-six thousand and five hundred stone canvases. These petroglyphs with different themes such as hunting scenes, human battles, showing local customs, showing the natural environment and tools of hunting and life, etc., were created during different historical periods (Jamali, 2014: 53). Among animal motifs, ibex includes approximately seventy-five percent of animal species. Currently, some of these petroglyphs are dated in a relative way, and based on the available evidence, some of them have been dated to the beginning of the Chalcolithic period (Jamali, 2022). There are a lot of narrative topics among the petroglyphs, and it can be said that narrative is the most important feature of a rock art. In one of the stone panels in one of the thirty-two sites with petroglyphs in Teymareh Golpayegan, we see a very special scene. A unique narrative scene in which sixteen people are shown in different situations. The motif of several animals as well as a large number of tools can also be seen. For the first time, we are facing unique motifs from snare. According to the motifs and the relationship between them, the placement position and its special style, the following questions can be considered for this research.What scene does this stone panel narrate, war or hunting?Is there a significant connection between this stone panel and other petroglyphs in this region?Can a relative chronology be considered for this stone panel? Research method  After investigating the area of Makuleh petroglyphs, in 2013, we decided to study its most important narrative scene in a continuous manner. Based on this, we returned to the target area and made further investigations and took more pictures. Similar motifs were also examined in other rock panels that were probably the same period as the petroglyphs in question. Graphic designs were prepared from the stone panel of "Sixteen Humans". Also, in addition to field surveys, library surveys were also conducted.ConclusionThis stone panel is one of the unique narrative examples in the collection of petroglyphs of Teymareh Golpayegan. The similar style of the motifs of this stone panel has been observed in a number of petroglyphs of the same region, they are of similar age. The elegance in these petroglyphs is very high. A sharp pointed tool with very little load was used to create the petroglyphs. The depth of the engravings in these patterns is low and finally reaches 2 mm, also the method of creating patterns is tapping. The most important motifs of this panel are human motifs; 16 people, 15 of whom are men and one woman. The clothes of these people are different, in such a way that people who are moving in one direction have one type of clothes and people who are moving in another direction have different clothes. It is noteworthy that these people have long spears in their hands, and each group is throwing spears at the other group. Also, the motif of three animals can be seen in this panel, but due to the lack of animal motifs and the absence of dog motifs, it can be concluded that this scene is not a hunting scene. But due to the conflict between human groups and the existence of livestock or cages as well as many frames and lines, the conflict was probably over the acquisition of the hunting territory. For these petroglyphs, according to analytical methods, relative chronology can be done in the interval between the beginning of the Chalcolithic period and the end of the bronze period.

Golpayegan is the name of a land in the northwest of Isfahan province, which is located almost in the center of Iran. Golpayegan river is considered as an important factor in the formation of ancient cultures in this region. Archaeological sites (Choqa -Hassan and Lohramesh) show that at least from the fifth millennium BC this area has been the habitat of human groups and also the existence of a large number of petroglyphs that during various periods, on the rock Art made of schist stone; Throughout this area, there is a sign of ancient civilization in this region. Thematically, the designs of these rocks include animal, human, plant, symbolic, tools, lines, etc. Among these, animal motifs have the highest frequency and among animal motifs, the motif of Ibex has been repeated the most. One of the rare animal motifs in this is the image of a Cattle, which is depicted in two different poses, which seem to be a sign of being domesticated and wild. Signs of using the power of this animal in the domestic state and in agriculture with plow motifs can also be examined. In this article, based on the works identified in this geographical area and the historical study of the biological signs of this animal on the plateau of Iran and the comparison of this motif on petroglyphs of other regions in Iran and other prehistoric decorative arts, this motif has been studied. Finally, based on the type of domestic and wild Cattle motifs, a relative chronology of such motifs can be obtained; So that for the motif of wild Cattles, the minimum chronology that can be imagined is the beginning of the Chalcolithic period, and for the motif of domestic Cattles, the maximum age is probably the beginning of the Chalcolithic period.

To study the effects of artificial seed ageing on germination indices in the laboratory condition and seedling establishment and yield of two red kidney bean genotypes in the field condition, an experiment was carried out at Research Field of Faculty of Agriculture, University of Tehran, Karaj, Iran in 2011. The two experiment design, were as factorial with four replications arranged in randomized complete blocks design (RCBD) and complete randomized design (CRD) for field and laboratory condition, respectively. The experimental treatments consisted of four levels of seed ageing – 0 (control), 2, 4 and 6 days seed ageing – and two red bean genotypes (Akhtar and Sayyad). Results showed that germination percentage, germination rate, normal seedling and seedling vigor index significantly decreased by seed ageing treatment in standard germination test. Also, seed ageing significantly decreased germination percentage, germination rate, seedling length and dry weight, normal seedling and seedling vigor index in accelerated ageing test. Studied genotypes was different in terms of germination percentage, germination rate, normal seedling, seedling length, seedling vigor index and electrical conductivity test. In the electrical conductivity test, seed leakage increased by increment of seed ageing level and is sever in Akhtar compared to Sayyad. In the field condition, seedling emergence and grain yield significantly affected by genotype and seed ageing. Seedling emergence index, seedling establishment percentage and grain yield decreased by seed ageing treatment that was severe in Akhtar than that of Sayyad genotype.

This study was evaluated the ability of a hydrothermal time model (HTT) to describe the kinetics of seed germination in crops and also to determine the cardinal temperatures for germination (as a case study; velvetleaf). For this purpose, the experiment was carried out at eight constant temperature regimes (T; 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 37, 40 and 42°C) at each of the following water potential (ψs; 0, –0.18, –0.36, –0.54 and –0.72 MPa; using PEG 6000). The results indicated that ψ influenced germination rate and germination percentage (P < 0.0001). For this seed lot, cardinal temperatures were 11.8°C for Tb, 35.4°C for To and 45.2°C for Tc in the control (0 MPa) treatment. There was a decrease in hydrotime constant (θH) when T was increased to To and then remained constant at supra-optimal Ts (24 MPa h-1). At the Ts above To, ψb(50) values increased linearly with T. The kT value (the slope of the relationship between ψb(50) and T exceeds To) of this seed lot was calculated as 0.1011 MPa°Ch-1. Moreover, the ψb(50) was estimated to be –0.91 MPa based on this model. Our results show that when the HTT model is applied, it can accurately describe germination response of velvetleaf around Ts and ψs.

Given the increasing requirements of communication and the need for advanced network-based technologies, cloud computing has been suggested as a perfect strategy to achieve these objectives. Yet, despite the development of computing applications and the increased number of alternatives, it is quite a difficult task to select the exact software platform for the implementation of cloud computing arrangements. In this line, the present paper aimed to develop a scientific framework as how to select the proper software for successful cloud computing implantation at the infrastructure level. First through a review on the related literature and using experts’ opinions, the software selection criteria were extracted. Based on the framework proposed here, the interval-valued fuzzy ARAS method was then employed for weighting and prioritizing specified alternatives. This model was applied by the Faculty of New Sciences and Technologies of Tehran University in order to select proper software platforms from among five alternatives. The results revealed that the OpenStack cloud operating system has been selected as the best alternative, most probably because this platform demonstrates significant achievement for its merits such as high level of performance, reliability and security, stability, and usability.

To study the effects of tillage systems and seed priming on yield and yield components of three soybean cultivars, a field experiment as split factorial structure based on a randomized complete block design with three replications was carried out at Research Field of Faculty of Agriculture, University of Tehran, Karaj, Iran in 2014. The main plots were two tillage systems level (conventional and No-till) and factorial combinations of seed priming at two levels (priming with 0.4 of Potassium nitrate and No-priming) and three soybean genotypes (Williams, L17 and Nekador) were assigned in sub-plots. Results showed that tillage system × priming interaction was significant (p ≤0.01) seedling establishment. The highest value of plant density (25.3 plants per meter square) was related to non-priming in conservation tillage system. Also, seed priming reduce grain yield in both conventional and conservation tillage systems. Results showed that grain yield significantly decreased by seed priming (3.09 and 1.39 kg ha-1 in non-prime and primed seeds, respectively). In the most traits, except number of grain per pod, plant height and harvest index, Williams cultivar was better than L17 and Nekador cultivars. Since grain filling period of Nekador cultivar was occured at cold tempratures, this cultivar couldn’t produce its potential yield. The highst value of grain yield (3559 kg.ha-1) was related to Williams cultivar in conventional tillage system. Also, in conservation tillage system, the highst value of grain yield was attained in L17 cultivars that don’t showed significant difference with other cultivars. In conservation tillage systems, yield losses by soil compaction can be compensated by higher seeding density

Conventional soil tillage (CT), such as mouldboard ploughing and rotary ploughing aggressively disturb the surface soil layer every year. In the short term, these systems create a good soil physical environment for crop emergence, rapid early growth, nutrient uptake, and high crop yield (Six et al., 1999). However, over the long term, the soil structure becomes degraded and soil organic matter (SOM) mineralization is increased, leading to SOM and nutrient content depletion, soil compaction and soil erosion (Triplett and Dick, 2008). All of these processes degrade well-structured soil and obstruct farmland sustainability (Fernandez et al., 2009). Hence, adoption of conservation tillage practices, for example no-till (NT) and reduced-till (RT), has been widely accepted over the last two decades in selected areas (Triplett and Dick, 2008). Conservation tillage improves economic performance and energy use efficiency, and reduces production risks; it also decreases soil disturbance, improves SOM maintenance and benefits soil quality (Zentner et al., 2004). Lafond et al. (1996) reported that conservation tillage increases pea, flax and spring wheat grain yields.
Considering that there is little information available about the differences in variety with the ability to allocate between the main stem and branch yield response to tillage systems, a field experiment was therefore conducted in 2014 on a split factorial in a randomized complete block design with three replications at the research farm of the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources of Tehran University in Karaj. The main factor includes two types of tillage systems (conventional tillage and no-tillage) and the subplots of three cultivars (L17, Williams, Nekador); the third factor was priming (priming with potassium nitrate 0.4 %) and no-priming (control) to the factorial in the main plots were broken. In this experiment, characteristics such as the number of branches per plant, yield and yield components on the main stem and branches were measured.
Plant density (m-2) was significantly affected by the interaction between the seed priming and tillage system, and the effect of the choice of cultivar as well. The interaction between tillage system, cultivar and priming was statistically significant on the number of seeds in the pod, grain yield on main stem, number of seeds in the plant and thousand seed weight of soybean. In addition, interaction between seed priming and tillage system was significant on the thousand seed weight on the main stem and grain yield of branches. The number of pods in the plant and the grain yield of branches were influenced by the interaction between cultivar and tillage system, while the number of seeds in the plant and the grain yield of branches were affected by interaction between the cultivar and priming. The effects of cultivar and tillage systems were significant on the number of branches on the plant and grain yield on the main stem. Final grain yield on the main stem and branches of soybean were affected by the tillage system, cultivar and priming.
Maximum plant density (25 plants in m-2) was observed when the conventional tillage system was used under control conditions. Seedling establishment of soybean was lower as the result of seed priming and tillage system. The maximum grain yield was observed in L17 under the conventional tillage system and without seed priming, but Nekadar produced the minimum grain yield. Non-priming of the seed (control) in the normal tillage system produced the maximum grain yield in branches and primed seeds of soybean under the conventional tillage system produced the minimum grain yield. The grain yield of branches under the normal tillage system was higher than with the conventional tillage system in the Williams cultivar. The maximum contribution of grain yield under the conventional tillage and normal tillage systems was related to main stems and branches, respectively.

In order to investigate and determine the best laboratory test for predicting seedling emergence of canola (Brassica napus L.) in field conditions, two experiments were conducted using three canola cultivars (RG003, Sarigol and Zarfam). In the first experiment, different laboratory tests including standard germination (SG), germination rate (GR), seedling dry weight (SDW), seedling length (SL), accelerated aging (AA) and electrical conductivity (EC) were conducted as a factorial experiment in a completely randomized design with three replications. In the second experiment a randomized complete block design with three replications was used in field conditions. The results indicated that there was not any significant differences between cultivars in terms of SG and GR. Similarly, there was not significant differences between cultivars in terms of SDW, SL and EC after AA for 24 hours at 41 °C. But, GR, EC, SL and SG after AA for 24 and 48 hours at 41 °C showed significant differences among the cultivars. Generally, the results of this study indicated that EC, SG and AA for 24 and 48 at 41 °C can well predict the percentage of canola seedling emergence in field conditions. Therefore, these tests can be suggested for prediction of canola seedling emergence

In order to determinate the best laboratory test for predicting emergence and establishment of sesame seedlings (Sesamum indicum, L.) at field condition, an experiment was conducted in two parts using six cultivars (Yellow-white, Darab14, Sari, Gorgan, Osbomahaleh and Shiraz). Results showed that there were no significant differences among cultivars for standard germination test, seedling dry weight and seedling length. But electrical conductivity test, germination rate and germination percentage after accelerated aging for 24 and 48 hours at 45°C showed significant differences among cultivars. The results showed that electrical conductivity test and accelerated aging for 48 hours at 45 °C can well predict the percentage of seedling emergence at field. Therefore, these tests can be suggested for prediction of sesame seed emergence.