محمدحسین رضایی

Nanorobots, also known as nanobots, are promising medical structures with significant potential for revolutionizing medical treatments and preventing their onset. Nanorobotics shows promise for diagnosing, treating, and regenerating age-related diseases. These tiny machines can repair cellular damage, deliver drugs, stimulate tissue regeneration, and monitor treatments. However, their application in controlling cellular aging is in its early stages, requiring more research to fully understand their potential and address safety concerns. Despite this, the benefits of nanorobots in age-related disease management justify further investigation. This narrative review article provides an overview of recent developments in nanorobotics, specifically focusing on its medical applications. PubMed and Google Scholar were utilized to conduct a comprehensive search using relevant keywords including "nanorobots", "cellular aging", "drug delivery systems", "cellular repair", "therapeutics", and "diagnosis". Only articles published between 2005-2023 were selected to support the arguments with up-to-date evidence. The extracted information includes nanorobot design, fabrication methods, applications, and key findings. A quality assessment was performed, and the data were categorized thematically to identify patterns and trends. The article concludes with an examination of the current state and future prospects of nanorobotics in different fields. Our research showed that nanorobots have significant potential in the diagnosis, treatment, and regenerative medicine of age-related diseases. They can detect and repair cellular damage caused by aging, targeting DNA damage and cellular protein misfolding. Nanorobots can also deliver drugs directly to affected areas, reducing side effects. Furthermore, they stimulate tissue regeneration and the growth of new blood vessels by delivering growth factors. Nanorobots can also monitor treatment effectiveness by measuring drug concentration in tumor cells. However, there are concerns about their safety in long-term use that require further research. Overall, nanorobots present an innovative approach to addressing cellular changes in aging, but more research is needed to understand their full potential and address safety concerns. The use of nanorobots in treating cellular aging has opened new possibilities in diagnosing and treating age-related diseases and it is a rapidly evolving field with the potential to revolutionize age-related disease treatment and improve the quality of life globally.

Many elementary school children, even those with average or above-average IQs and good adaptability, often struggle with schoolwork. These challenges are commonly referred to as learning disabilities or learning disorders. Among the types of learning, learning to read is of particular importance in the education system, and students who finish elementary school are expected to read fluently and understand everything they read. Reading is a complex cognitive process of understanding the text, and the reader needs to coordinate information about the subject, using different reading strategies and extracting meaning. To truly learn, students first need to develop their reading skills. Reading is one of the essential tools for learning. Therefore, paying special attention to treating children with reading problems is necessary.A common feature of all children with learning disabilities is difficulty learning school subjects. Students with learning problems tend to internalize their negative experiences at school and often doubt their academic success because they have more problems learning than their peers. Research shows that the three main components of reading, reading ability, reading speed, and reading comprehension, are influenced by cognitive factors such as phonological awareness and working memory function, and deficiencies in these factors have shown a high correlation with reading problems (10). Phonological awareness is essential for literacy success and is a simultaneous and reliable predictor of reading ability (12). Linamood Phonological Sequencing (LiPS) Program provides systematic and explicit psychological instruction in phonemic awareness, along with everyday experiences in reading and writing. Phonological awareness is “a conscious sensitivity to the sound structure of language.” In other words, the ability to analyze spoken language and recognize that it is composed of smaller units. Phonological awareness is used to describe awareness of spoken language at the level of word, syllable, onset, time and phoneme (11). Stimulating phonological awareness is the primary goal of the Lindamood Program, helping students with speaking, spelling, and reading. In this program, the student tries to integrate sensory information, including hearing, seeing, and feeling, and receiving feedback from these senses helps to develop phonological awareness and decoding (29).Phonological awareness is related to the speed and accuracy of reading in children with auditory processing disorder; therefore, in addition to paying attention to phonological skills, it is also essential to strengthen auditory processing skills because these children’s reading skills will be strengthened and improved. Therefore, due to the lack of comprehensive research in the field of the effect of the LiPS program on the reading performance of students with special learning disorders, the mentioned goal is investigated in the present research. Therefore, the research seeks to answer the following questions: 1- Does the LiPS Program increase the reading performance (reading errors, reading speed, and reading comprehension) of students with specific learning disabilities? 2- Does the LiPS Program have stable effects on reading performance over time? 3- Does the LiPS Program improve the subject’s performance in the standardized test? The results of this research can provide a clear and practical vision for counselors and psychotherapists. In addition, the research results can be a suitable theoretical and practical basis for improving reading performance in various educational and therapeutic institutions such as counseling centers in universities, clinics, and the like.

The research method utilized a single-subject experimental design with an emphasis on precision. Prior to implementing any experimental action, the behavior in question was thoroughly studied and measured. After the experiment, repeated measurements were taken to assess any changes in behavior. This study followed an A-B design, where the initial state (A) was carefully measured, followed by the implementation of the experimental action (B), and then the subject’s behavior was measured again during the follow-up phase.The participants in this study were three male fourth-grade students with specific learning disabilities who attended a regular school in Varzane, Iran, during the academic year 2021-2022. The criteria for selecting participants included reading problems as diagnosed by the Kormi-Nouri and Moradi (2008) reading and dyslexia test, parental consent, normal intelligence status with an IQ score of 85 or above on the Wechsler IQ Scale for Children, 4th edition, being monolingual, and having no visual or hearing impairments as confirmed by individual history forms.

To assess the effectiveness of the LiPS Program, the reading errors, reading speed, and reading comprehension level of all three subjects were compared between the baseline and intervention stages. Reading errors were measured by counting the number of added, deleted, replaced, or moved letters. Reading speed was determined by measuring the time taken to read a given text and the duration of stopping each word in seconds. The mean performance of the subjects during the baseline and intervention phases was used for analysis.All three subjects demonstrated fewer reading errors than the baseline phase in all intervention sessions. For example, the average, effect size, and indices of non-overlapping data adequacy for the first accuracy table are shown in Table 3. The g-Hedges effect size numbers presented in Table 3 suggest that the intervention effect was moderate. These findings indicate that using accurate teaching methods reduced reading problems.The effect of the LiPS Program on the subject’s performance in the standard Nama test was examined. Mohammad Erfan and Mohammad Hossein both showed significant progress in the subtests of reading, naming pictures, and category signs during the intervention and follow-up phases. Mahdi’s performance also improved in all subtests of the Nama test across all four stages of assessment. Mehdi demonstrated significant progress in the subtests of reading, naming pictures, and category signs during the intervention and follow-up phases. Moreover, Mahdi’s progress in reading non-words and pseudo-words, as well as understanding words, was also found to be significant. Overall, all three subjects significantly increased their performance during and after the intervention.

The results of comparing the reading performance of three subjects showed that the LiPS Program was most effective for Mohammad Hossein. From the beginning, Mohammad Hossein showed a willingness to cooperate and eagerness to participate in the program, which translated into better reading performance after just a few intervention sessions.However, the LiPS Program proved to be less effective for Mohammad Erfan, as reported by his teachers, who reported his low self-confidence.Additionally, his parents reported that he has become more sensitive and prone to anger since the birth of his younger brother. These particular traits were observed during the intervention sessions, and unfortunately, there was no notable improvement in his reading performance.His teachers and parents noted that Mahdi was not regularly doing his homework and was stubborn at home. However, after talking to him and explaining the program requirements, Mahdi cooperated well during the intervention sessions. Heshowedimprovements in reading and became motivated to do his homework after only a few sessions.Notably, the research results cannot be generalized to other age or gender groups or students with different disorders. The students’ retention of information could only be checked for up to one month, and generalization of learning to other similar texts was not tested due to time constraints in designing the tool for measuring reading performance. Future research should examine the LiPS Program’s effect on more extensive and diverse participant groups to provide more conclusive evidence to provide more conclusive evidence. It is also recommended that the program’s effectiveness be explored in terms of different types of reading comprehension and other skills, such as math and writing. Moreover, future studies should consider comorbid disorderswhen investigating specific learning disorders.The present research may be useful for educational planners and guardians of education in designing teaching methods for reading in elementary schools and improving students’ reading performance.

In archaeological terminology, small portable objects made of stone, mud, bone, and metal, usually 1-5 cm in diameter, with carved patterns are called seals. This tool probably had different functions in prehistoric times, but the economic function of the seal is more important. The greatest variety of cylindrical and metal mesh seals can be seen in the Bronze Age. The present article seeks to answer the following questions: What are the characteristics of Tepe Hissar seals in terms of typology and iconography? Are the typological and iconographical changes of the seals of Tepe Hissar related to the arrival of other cultures in this region? Have the cultural and religious evolutions of the native people of the region caused the changes in seals? This research is of documentary type and based on the descriptive-analytical method, which was carried out with the aim of typology and iconography of the seals discovered from Tepe Hissar, Damghan. The seals of the Hissar I and II periods have been often discovered from grave contexts and the seals of the Hissar III period have been often discovered from architectural contexts. This study shows that most of the seals are of the stamp type and most of the engraved patterns are geometric. The seals of Tepe Hissar were made of various stones and materials, some of which were local and some imported from other regions. This shows the extent of commercial and economic activities in Tepe Hissar.

Concrete is an unprecedented porous and highly heterogeneous composite material. The durability of reinforced concrete with steel fibers in chloride and sulfate environments is of interest for engineers, infrastructure owners, maintainers, and researchers. Steel fibers and concrete matrices are bonded together through a weak bond, and the properties of this composite are largely due to the surface bonding of the fibers and the concrete matrix. Less permeability maintains the durability of the structure in contact with harmful substances such as chloride ions, sulfate ions and acids because it cannot easily penetrate In this paper, three types of steel fiber reinforced concrete (1, 1.5 and 2% steel fiber) were prepared and used in 3 environments, i.e. magnesium sulfate, sodium sulfate, and sodium chloride, for 6 and 12 months. Compressive strength, flexural strength, electrical resistance, water penetration, and rapid penetration of chloride were also examined. According to the results, the sample containing 2% steel fiber when exposed to acids showed more mechanical performance deterioration compared to the two other samples, i.e. 1% and 1.5% steel fiber.

Ochre is a common and very valuable pigment and has been used for many thousands of years by many ancient cultures on all continents. Ochre is a term used by Archaeologists to describe the earth's pigments, usually red. In the present study, based on the evidence found, we try to examine the evidence left over the use of Ochre and the uses, reasons (practical or symbolic aspect) of the use of this Let's look at pigments from the Paleolithic period to the contemporary period. Therefore, the present study seeks to answer questions about the period of time and in which areas the use of ochre has been used? What was the use of Ochre among the people in prehistoric times? From the perspective of an Archaeological-Anthropological approach, what are the properties of Ochre pigments that have been exploited by humans in the long-term?. The research method in this descriptive-analytical study is based on the Archaeological-Anthropological approach. In the present study, we first examined the evidence for the use of Ochre among prehistoric societies in the Ancient Near East and then Ethnographic and Anthropological studies conducted among different communities that use Ochre, so We can explain the reasons for the use of the recent pigment by prehistoric societies. The results of the present study show that, in fact, for a wide range of purposes, including artistic, ceremonial and medicinal purposes, such as painting objects, painting the body, or as a food preservative and wood preservative, repelling insects, skin tanning and used for rituals and burials.

In the light of the history of the ancient religious beliefs of the indigenous peoples of the Iranian plateau, and especially of the eastern lands, the effects of the Mesopotamian religions have remained somewhat obscure. One of the examples that can be mentioned is the influence of the Ishtar goddess in Greater Khorasan, which is manifested in the tomb of Estir on the desert shore. This Article is based on signs; Small but solid signs that, with proper placement, give a relatively clear picture of the presence of the Babylonian Ishtar goddess in the heart of Khorasan. Statements such as Star etymology, the gender of the pilgrims, and others reveal Piere Estir's conformity to Ishtar. The method of the present study is based on ethnographic approach using library resources and field observation simultaneously. This study shows that Piere Estir, according to the existing propositions, is the Babylonian goddess who settled in this land and continued to live in the Islamic form until the contemporary period and has been transmuted.

Burial traditions have not been formed all at once and in the long term numerous factors and variables have played a role in its formation and continuation or obsolescence. Among these factors, we can mention the influence and contacts made between different cultures, and in the meantime, Zoroastrian culture can not be an exception to this rule and it can be said that the burial practice in the Zoroastrian religion (Ossuary) probably has a long history among different ethnic groups and nations, and these cultures were influential in adopting the burial practice (Ossuary) in the Zoroastrian religion. Similar to the burial practice (Ossuary) in the Zoroastrian religion, it has been found in the Iranian plate and Levant and Central Asian in the Epipaleolithic period to the late Bronze Age. Therefore, the aim of this research is to evaluate the relationship between the secondary burial practice during the Epipaleolithic period and the time of the advent of Zoroastrian religion and its effect on the burial method in Zoroastrianism. Accordingly, the present research seeks to answer the following questions: How early on and how did the burial data of archaeology come from? And what is the connection between the method of the second burial and burial in Zoroastrianism?. The method of this research is descriptive-analytical, based on archaeological reports. In the present study, information was obtained from archaeological reports and published articles about various sites of Iran's plateau and Levant and Central Asia, of which secondary burials have been discovered. The philosophy of doing this burial method could be different or a reason other than respect for nature, and these secondary burials were probably carried out by non-sedentry groups that used permanent sites for burial and probably died somewhere outside the facility, and the possibility of transferring bodies to There were no grounds for burial, so the deceased were abandoned in the same place, and later, after the loss of soft tissues, the bones were collected and buried in the graves in the site

he study of human remains derived from burial and non-burial contexts is one of the subcategories of Archaeometry. According to these studies, archaeological researchers, with the help of physiologists, have quantitative and quantitative aspects of the remnants of past humans, including age, Sex and the use of medical tests, especially pathology, diseases and causes of death. The topic of interdisciplinary studies in the Khorasan area, due to the lack of material evidence until the present decade, lacked any research, although the importance of Khorasan has always been mentioned in this cycle. In the last decade, according to the approach of researchers in this field, the subject of quantitative studies has flourished. In this regard, the human remains of three burials belonging to the late bronze age from the Shahrak-e-Firouzeh site were used to determine the age and gender of the samples, as well as to identify the ethnic race in the study of physical anthropology. In this research, human skeletons of the Shahrak-e-Firouzeh site were first cleaned up. Finally, with the participation of the Medical Society of Isfahan, the determination of age, gender and race was performed on the basis of morphology and anthropology. Then extracted DNA was isolated and dental samples were taken. The results of physical anthropology studies on the samples indicated that, the samples studied belong to the population of Shahrak-e-Firouzeh site, which is of age in both adolescents and adults (2 adolescents and 1 adult) and sexually belonging to two male and female groups. Men and women). In relation to the mortality rate and demographic average of the Shahrak-e-Firouzeh community, due to the low volume of samples, it cannot be clearly summoned, but according to the current samples and the number of burials, it shows the high rate of low-mortality in the Shahrak-e-Firouzeh Site.

Obsidian is one of the volcanic rocks that can be turned into glass as it cools rapidly. The remarkably high sharpness of the edges of the tools made from these rocks has led it to attract the attraction of pre-historic people quickly. The limited resources of this rock in the Near East and the Caucasus have made it possible for researchers to identify the chemical characteristics of each source for provenance purposes. The first sign of the obsidian exchange in the Near East dates back to the New Paleolithic period and in the Shannidar Cave in Iraqi Kurdistan, and has continued up to the end of the Chalcolithic period. The geological structure of Iran and the possible availability of such sources in Iran, as well as the reports on the existence of tools with unknown sources, strengthened the idea of obsidian sources in Iran. Previous results showed that all specimens of Tapeh Ali Kosh belong to unknown sources; and the previous report in this regard may be false due to the fact that no complete database of all available sources were known, since such researches have been in their inchoate stages. Based on the data obtained, Tapeh Ali Kosh was actually the most important site in the southwest of Iran during the Neolithic period and was the basis of Ilam chronology. A total of 347 obsidian fragments (9% of the total stone tools) were found in Tapeh Ali Kosh and in Buz Mordeh phases. In the Ali Kosh phase, 2% of the tools belong to obsidian instruments (474 pieces). However, in the Buz Mordeh phase, a decline in the proportion of tools was observed. At this stage, the number of obsidian instruments equals to 417 pieces, which includes 1.7% of the tools. Some of the researchers of obsidians in Iran, since the beginning of this kind of studies, due to the few reports about the samples of unknown sources and also to the volcanic structure of different regions of Iran, have always investigated the obsidian sources which are inside Iran. While, Tapeh Ali Kosh in Deh Luran plain is one of the most important sites, which is one of the first studied archaeological sites on obsidian provenance. Among the samples obtained from this site, some specimens from unknown sources have been reported. The main questions of this study were: 1- If more examples be analyzed, new sources could be identified? 2- Considering the identification of various sources and new subsources in the Caucasus, Asia Minor, Afghanistan, and the Arabian Peninsula, samples from this new source are among the Tapeh Ali Kosh tools? 3- Because of extensive studies have been carried out on obsidian sources and subsources in different regions; are there any samples from Tapeh Ali Kosh with unknown source? In this research, some specimens were selected to evaluate such ideas and theories after more than 50 years. Twenty one obsidian artifacts were collected from Tapeh Ali Kosh for the study. All specimens were surface finds and include blades, flakes, and debitage ranging in size from 2 to 4 cm. All 21 samples were sent to the Archaeometry Laboratory at the University of Missouri Research Reactor (MURR) for analysis by X-ray fluorescence (pXRF). A Bruker III-V portable spectrometer was used for the pXRF analysis. Twelve elements (including K, Ti, Mn, Fe, Zn, Ga, Rb, Sr, Y, Zr, Nb, and Th) could be measured in each sample, but only six of these (Fe, Rb, Sr, Y, Zr, and Nb) are useful for provenance of the obsidian artifacts. The results showed that two specimens were from Nemrut/Bingol (specimens no. 3 and 13), and 4 specimens were from Meydan Dag, i.e. specimens no. 6, 9, 10, and 16. The remaining 15 specimens belong to Nemrut Dag B. Based on the results obtained, it is known that the specimens found at Tapeh Ali Kosh have been supplied from at least two, and at most three sources, and from one unknown source. While in other study conducted on Chogha Ahowan and Chia Sabz specimens, no unknown specimens have been reported.

The city of Mashhad was particularly important in the Islamic period due to its economic, commercial, religious and pivotal conditions in the province of Khorasan. For this reason, an active mint was established in the city during the Timurid era until 1295 AH / 1878 and during the period of Nasser Al-Din Shah Qajar (1313-1264 AH / 1896-1848) many silver coins were minted between the years 1295-1266 AH / 1878-1850. Although the Nasserian coinage system was nominally adherent to the Tehran regime, in practice each city had an autonomous system, and most city coins were minted with varying amounts of silver purity. This issue raises two questions in the field of Mashhad's main mint. 1. What was the purity of silver coins minted in Mashhad and how did it change? 2. How were the coins of Mashhad, as an important econimic city, compared to other important cities such as Tabriz, Tehran, Isfahan and Shiraz? To answer these questions, elemental analysis of coins of this period using Pixie method due to its non-destructive, high speed and accuracy, was the main basis of this study to analyze Mashhad's commitment to the central coinage system in different histories compared to other major cities in Qajar era in Iran. In this study, 30 coins in 30 different dates were used for elemental analysis, which resulted in a trend of changes in the average purity of silver in the three intervals between 90.09% 1880-1880-1280-1290.09%, 1890-1281 1290-1865 years 87.14%, 1295-1291h / 1878-1874m 84.30% and for the whole thirty-year period 88.14%, showing its position in terms of purity of silver compared to the mints of Tabriz (82%), Tehran (90%), Isfahan (84 %) and Shiraz (90%). The results of the Pixie experiment on the specimens indicated that the presence of the copper element (7.24%) and the iron element (2.35%) is higher than the normal amount, and this indicates an optional fusion for the sterilization of the silver metal. In addition, the presence of lead element (0.86%) indicates the use of lead mines (Cerussite and Galena) to produce silver metal and inaccuracy in its extraction. Also, the presence of the gold element (0.55%) can indicate the use of mines of the Cerussite type.

A study of dental elements can provide useful information about the diet and social, economic and biological status of the human population in the past. The nutritional status of the past human populations can be achieved by examining the portion of dental elements obtained. In this study, a total of 8 dental samples, four ancient samples (belonging to the Bronze Age) obtained from the site of Firouzeh Neyshabur and four other new samples (collected from the contemporary period) were retrieved from the Repair Clinics of the Mashhad Dentistry Faculty. To determine properties of the chemical structure of the enamel using the semi-quantitative analysis of elements by the Energy Dispersive X-Ray Analysis (EDX), the samples were sent to the Razi Metallurgical Laboratory of Tehran. Inhabitants of Shahrake Firouzeh,Site it could be posited that they mainly used vegetable and meat in their diet and seafood constituted part of their  dietary regime. Our result shows that the high levels of essential elements of teeth, such as calcium, phosphorus and fluorine, and the absence of any decay on enamels of dental samples derived from Shahrake Firouzeh demonstrate the relative dental health during that Bronze Age, which can be said to be the result of proper nutrition and access of people to resources of healthy drinking water in those areas.

 Groundwater, its quantitative/qualitative variables, and variability directly affect human life, and thus has always been one of the major topics in scientific and academic research. Due to geographical, climatic and hydrological conditions, and specific patterns of surface water and subsurface water resources exploitation, this country has always faced water scarcity. As a result of global and regional changes in temporal and spatial patterns of rainfall, this has intensified in recent years. Therefore, exploitation of groundwater resources has been considered as an option for supplying agricultural, industrial and drinking water. However, excessive exploitation of these resources will result in their destruction. In recent years, excessive removal of groundwater and reduction of groundwater levels have resulted in some problems like subsidence in some plains. This makes it necessary to study the quantitative and qualitative changes of these resources more clearly. Due to the complex nature of aquifers’ hydrogeological systems, accurate investigation of these resources seems costly and even impossible. Thus in order to achieve a better understanding, it is necessary to use different methods for estimation and evaluation of such variables.

Most environmental features are completely continuous in nature, which makes it impossible to measure these features in every part of these environments. Thus, we can generalize measured samples to other areas lacking accurate measurements, and in this way estimate these variables in unmeasured areas. This is also true about quantitative and qualitative variables of groundwater, i.e. by collecting samples from some sections, we can measure different characteristics in these samples. This surface modelling -or in other words, generalization of points to surface- can be achieved with mathematical and statistical relationships and rules. Due to the spatial structure of the measured specimens, geo statistics is used in this regard. In recent years, artificial intelligence models, inspired by the natural nervous system and simulating its function, have yielded a very satisfactory result in groundwater estimation and studies. In order to evaluate the accuracy of geo statistical methods and artificial neural networks, the present study takes advantage of statistics and measurements collected from groundwater level of 46 wells in Shabestar-Sufiyan plain in 2014. Kriging method (geo statistics) and multilayer perceptron neural network method (MLP) were used along with error propagation pattern (BP) to estimate unmeasured features in the study area. MATLAB 2016B was used to perform the neural network modeling and ARCGIS10.5 was used to perform Kriging method and prepare the final maps. In both neural network and kriging models, geographical coordinates of observed wells was used as input and measured water table was introduced as the study goal. Primary data reduces the accuracy of models. Thus, data was normalized before being introduced to the neural network model. After the initial analysis of data dispersion and normalization, logarithmic transfer function was used due to the relative improvement of data in Kriging estimator model.  

Results indicate that at the training and testing stage (with Sigmoid tangent activation function (Tansig) and 9 neurons in the middle layer), neural network method (MLP) with a high correlation coefficient (0.96) and root mean square error of 13.18 is more accurate than Kriging method with J-shaped Variogram model, a correlation coefficient of 0.90 and root mean square error of 20.10. Due to realistic results provided by neural network method, it is considered to be a more efficient method in estimation of water table in Shabestar-Sufiyan Plain. This is also consistent with earlier hydrogeological studies (regarding aquifers) performed on the ability and flexibility of Artificial Intelligence models.

Results obtained from the current research, and previous studies conducted in this field indicate that most artificial intelligence computing models are capable of evaluating and estimating continuous environmental variables. On the other hand, understanding groundwater resources’ conditions is considered to be crucial. Thus, new methods, such as artificial neural networks (ANN) and adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference methods (ANFIS) and fuzzy inference systems (FIS), which provide greater accuracy can help decision makers and researchers in maintenance and improvement of the groundwater status.

The Kazeron County is located in the West of Fars Province and 732 M above sea level. From identified sites in survey of Kazeron plane (that mainly are sites of Neolithic period to late of Bronze Age) in total of 141 pieces of stone tools were gathered from 13 sites. Based on research on stone tools, sites as SK023 are show extraction and use / maintenance / repair. In these sites, the existence of core stone indicates of the construction of tools, and also existence a lot of the stone tools are indicates of settlement long-term in these sites. The core stones in all sites are exclusively chipped stone and mostly from kind of Chert stone of gray – green. It seems, produce of tools from other types of Chert stones such as red Chert, Chert of brown stripes, cream Chert, and… have been made in another place. The blades and their flakes in some sites of Kazeron plane (especially sites of SK022 and SK023) represents are the use of these tools for reaping of the plants. The raw material used to make stone tools (that often made of local stone) today it is easily accessible in the Kazeron mountains. These tools, to form of a combination and with natural resins such as bitumen have been placed inside the bone handle or in newer periods inside the metal handle, and similar to sickle have been used to cut plants. From of the main goals of the present research, study of technology diversity in stone tools sites of prehistory in Kazeron plane is for regional and comparative studies and for gain of general knowledge the prehistory of Kazeron plane.

The Sassanid kings, named after the Sassan, great of Pars and the priest of the Anahita Temple in the Estakhr ruled in Iran from the third to the seventh century AD. The most important buildings of Sassanians in Iran are the majestic palaces of the kings. Bisapur is one of the most important cities of the Sassanid era, which is located in Kazerun County. Following an archaeological study on the Sassanid pavement located in the mountainous region of the city of Kotal in the east of Kazerun city, the remains of some stone masses from the Sassanid era came to light on the basis of archaeological investigations and studies by the Cultural Heritage office of Kazerun. It was discovered that these two sites were used as a stone mines. Stone is one of the materials used to build bisapur buildings. Considering that in most cases archaeological investigations are based on material evidence, it is necessary to better understand these data and interpret them by using interdisciplinary sciences. Accordingly, in this research, a field survey and sampling of the stones used in the construction of Bisapur buildings have been carried out and after sampling of the Bishapur buildings, comparison of samples taken from other stone mines (based on laboratory methods) for understanding the source of stones extraction has been addressed. To achieve this, the experimental methods of studying the Thin Sections of the stones, as well as the XRD and XRF analysis were applied and it was determined by the experiments that the mines and buildings stones of the Sassanid era of Bishapur (Valerian Palace, Anahita Temple and Towers) were made of genus compounds with similar structures.

Human is dependent on nature; he changes it while he is part of it, but at the same time he is separated from it by cultural factors. Emergence of various forms of life, e.g. plant, animal and human lives, is of the result of several natural factors such as climate, topography, soil type and water. For our survey of Kazeroun Plain, we used 1:50000 scale satellite and topographic maps, and divided the surface of plain into northern, southern, eastern and western parts. The survey began on a regular basis from the southern part and eventually ended in the northern part with random sampling as our sampling strategy. For each site, a SK (Survey of Kazeroun) code was assigned, and different data types including GPS coordinate, dimension of site, local geographical data were recorded. Besides, any additional cultural information such as location name, historical background, effective and efficient set of factors including vegetation, climate and landscape were also recorded. In our archaeological survey 19 Bakun period sites were identified. In this study, it is attempted to assess the environmental factors and their role in shaping the space of human settlements during the Bakun period in the Kazeroun Plain. To this end, the sites related to Bakun period were chosen as our sample. A number of variables were considered in evaluation and study of prehistoric settlements in Kazeroun Plain. These included distance and proximity to water resources and agricultural lands, elevation, size and density of sites, distribution of sites in terms of rainfall, distribution of sites in terms of slope, and annual temperature average. All these factors were considered together as criteria for identifying patterns of settlement in this region. Most of Bakun period sites are located near Parishan Lake. During Bakun period, the number of settlements in the Kazeroun Plain increased and new segments of the plain were occupied, so that there is evidence of settlement in Jereh Plain in southern part of Kazeroun Plain. Most of the Bakun period sites are located in open plain on well-drained soil near water resources. The settlement patterns in Kazeroun Plain have been prevailed with simple methods of irrigation and expansion of agriculture, with decreased number of sites as the distance from the lakes and rivers increases. This pattern is also seen in the Kur River Basin and Nourabad Mamasani region. Among the various factors associated with the establishment and distribution of habitats and sites, geographical conditions and factors have had an important role. The important point in studying the prehistoric settlements in this region is proximity of the settlements to Parishan Lake and Shapur River and agricultural lands. As mentioned earlier, these indicators have had a significant role in formation of sites. Parishan Lake is located in the center of Kazeroun Plain, and therefore the majority of sites have been concentrated in the center of plain in the basin of lake. Study of relevant documents and spatial analyses were used in the form of GIS using ArcGIS software and correlation test in SPSS 16. SPSS16 was used to analyze the correlation between surface area of the layers and number of sites in each layer. Due to quantitative values, Pearson’s correlation with a significance level of 0.01 was used. The results showed that correlation between elevation levels, precipitation and temperature layers and the number of sites on them was insignificant. The correlation between the distance from water resources and correlation between vegetation and the number of sites was significant and strong. Therefore, vegetation and distance from water resources were found to be more effective in distribution of archaeological sites than the other natural factors.

Vartoun village is located 35 km North East of Isfahan County and is an administrative unit of Sagzi County. Karkas mountain range with a height of over 3000 meters covers North and West of Sagzi County as well as Vartoun village and a relatively flat plain covers other areas of this country. Villages and springs emerged in the margin of these mountains, which are considered the origin of contemporary nomadic people in these areas. During visits to villages and springs in this region, man-made caves were discovered in the margin of Vartoun hot spring. As far as we know, the man-made architecture has been developed in different periods and situations with various functions such as residence, refuge, warehouse and animal shelter. In this study, we first attempt to introduce spatial archaeology, architecture plan analysis, Annales school historiography approach and the collection of man-made caves of Vartoun hot spring in its historical-cultural context and analyze its application and creation time. Spatial and building material analysis as well as survey results of man-made caves in the historic-cultural context of Vartoun hot spring, given the therapeutic importance of hot spring and its long distance from nearby cities and villages, indicates a temporary residential use of man-made spaces before the Seljuks.

Developments in the first half of the third millennium B.C. led to the formation of extensive urban cultures in different regions of the Middle East with special iconography in works of art, which originated from their beliefs and convictions. Cultural zone of Elam in southwest of Iran with a focus on Susa and Choghazanbil, cultural zone of southeast of Iran with a focus on Jiroft, cultural zone of Sistan with a focus on Shahr-e Sukhteh, cultural zone of Gorgan with a focus on Bazghir, cultural zone of Khorasan centered on Shahrake Firouzeh and Chelow, Bactria-Margiana Archaeological Complex in Central Asia, as well as cultural zones in southern coast of Persian Gulf, Makran, Pakistan, and the Indus Valley are among the most important cultural zones of this period. Each urban culture in this period is recognized as a cultural-artistic center with specific ideological beliefs, social systems, traditions, ¬and unique art of iconography. The serpent has manifested as a mythical animal of chalcolithic period in material-artistic works of the above mentioned cultural zones with a different iconography. The present study was an attempt to evaluate the stylistic changes and mythical concepts of this motif in prehistoric urban centers of Iran and Central Asia with a comparative methodology and iconographic approach. The results indicated that the serpent motif in Eastern Iran and Central Asia art has been inspired by western Iran and Mesopotamia art and gradually has been integrated with art, beliefs, rituals, Eastern Iran and Central Asia mythology, and changes in social, religious, and political levels of these communities; therefore, it has led to innovations in artistic concepts and styles of this motif.

This paper evaluates the predictive ability of mixed-frequency autoregressive models in forecasting seasonal inflation rate of IRAN economy. For this, forecasting accuracy of models with monthly lags of inflation rate are compared with a benchmark model which uses seasonal lags. Results indicate incorporating monthly lags, instead of seasonal lags, improves the accuracy of seasonal forecasts, especially for 1-step ahead forecasts. Among mixed-frequency models, MIDAS regressions are more accurate than the benchmark model in 1-step, 3-step and 4-step ahead forecasts. Step-weighting model which features proliferation of parameters outperforms the MIDAS regression which is non-linear and parameter efficient in estimation.

According to the Basel accords, financial institutions should forecast VaR of their portfolio over multi-period time horizons in order to determine their capital adequacy. Hence, finding efficient models for forecasting multi-period VaR is crucial for Chief Risk Officers (CRO) in general and Financial Risk Mangers (FRM) in particular. This paper tries to analyze and compare the predictive power of parametric, nonparametric and semiparametric methods of forecasting multi-period VaR for portfolios invested in Tehran Stock Exchange. The results indicate that the “square-root-of-time rule” (the conventional approach) in majority of time horizons has a weak prediction ability vis-a-vis the other multi-period VaR models. Empirical results suggest, employing parametric methods results in larger losses and lower opportunity costs relative to nonparametric methods.

Painted rocks may be considered the oldest manifestation of art in human society. The history of this art is estimated to be more than 30 thousand years. This art has also a long history in Iran. This article introduces one of these rock art sites i. e. Ghalat Niloo which is located in Kazeroon County، south-east of Ghalat Niloo village. The purpose of this study is to identify and determine the location، the function of concepts، the history، classification and relationship of these designs with similar samples available from other areas. These designs have been engraved on the walls of the caves and include subjects such as hunting، human on horseback with a bow in hand، animal images mostly goats and in one case a dog. They probably date back to the 1st Millennium BC.

Nowadays, the need for tall buildings, substruction of highways, construction of underground trains and consequently excavating operations is essential for modern urban communities. One of the most common types of retaining structures used for varying excavation depths is the metal truss. The aim of this study was to introduce a logical connection between two and three-dimensional analyses in a manner that by using two-dimensional analysis, horizontal and vertical displacements as well as internal forces of the retaining structures with a good approximation in three dimensional analysis (which is closer to the reality) can be calculated. Therefore, several parametric modelings were simulated in order to investigate the behavior of supported excavations via truss. Also, it was aimed to determine the ratio between maximum horizontal displacement at two-dimensional and three-dimensional analyses (PSR ratio). The PSR ratios for the depth of 4, 7 and 10 meters were 0.7, 0.55 and 0.4, respectively. The internal forces of a critical truss (near the center of the excavation) including axial forces and bending moments were also studied. Comparing the values of axial forces in the main structural members of the critical truss in two-dimensional and three-dimensional analyses shows a good agreement between the two types of modeling. The magnitude of bending moment in three-dimensional to two-dimensional analyses was 0.14, which proves unrealistic in twodimensional analysis, and can consequently be neglected in structural design procedure