Sharif Digital Repository

Background. The Arthritis Impact Measurement Scales 2 (AIMS2) has not been translated and validated for Persian-speaking patients with osteoarthritis of the knee. This was to provide a validated instrument to measure functional disability and health-related quality of life in patients with osteoarthritis of the knee in Iran. The aim of this study was to culturally adapt and validate the AIMS2 for Persian-speaking patients with osteoarthritis of the knee in Iran. Methods. A consecutive sample of patients with knee osteoarthritis were asked to complete the AIMS2, the Short Form Health Survey (SF-36) and four visual analog scales for pain, joint stiffness, patient's and physician's global... 

Cultural adaptation and validation of the Persian version of the Arthritis Measurement Scales 2-Short Form (AIMS2-SF). The translation and cultural adaptation of the original questionnaire was carried out in accordance with published guidelines. Three hundred and fifty consecutive Persian-speaking patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) were asked to complete the AIMS2-SF, the Short Form Health Survey (SF-36), and four visual analog scales (VAS) for pain, joint stiffness, and patient's and physician's global assessment to test convergent validity. In addition, 90 randomly selected patients were asked to complete the questionnaire 48 h later for the second time. Moderate to high correlation... 

Purpose.To translate and validate the Persian version of the Arthritis Measurement Scales 2-Short Form (AIMS2-SF) in patients with osteoarthritis (OA) of the knee. Method.The translation and cultural adaptation of the original questionnaire was carried out in accordance with published guidelines. One hundred and fourteen consecutive Persian-speaking patients with OA of the knee were participated in this study. The Short Form Health Survey (SF-36) and visual analogue scales (VAS) for pain and joint stiffness were used to test convergent validity of the Persian AIMS2-SF. In addition, 35 randomly selected patients were asked to complete the questionnaire 3 days later for the second time.... 

STUDY DESIGN. Cultural translation and psychometric testing. OBJECTIVE. To translate and validate the Iranian versions of the Neck Disability Index (NDI-IR) and the Neck Pain and Disability Scale (NPDS-IR). SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA. The widely used the NDI and the NPDS scales have not been translated and validated for Persian-speaking patients with neck pain. This was to provide a validated instrument to measure functional status in patients with neck pain in Iran. METHODS. The translation and cultural adaptation of the original questionnaires were carried out in accordance with the published guidelines. One hundred and eighty-five patients with neck pain were participated in the study.... 

STUDY DESIGN.: Cross-sectional validation study to investigate psychometric properties of adapted Persian version of the Scoliosis Research Society-22r (SRS-22r) questionnaire. OBJECTIVES.: To translate the SRS-22r into Persian and to evaluate the internal consistency, reliability, and validity of the Persian SRS-22r. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA.: The SRS-22r has not been translated and validated for Persian-speaking patients with idiopathic scoliosis. This was to provide a validated instrument to measure health-related quality of life in patients with idiopathic scoliosis in Iran. METHODS.: The translation and cultural adaptation of the original questionnaire were carried out in accordance... 

Experimental and numerical methods were used to investigate the Magnus phenomena over a spinning projectile. The pressure force acting on the surface of a spinning projectile was measured for various cases by employing a relatively novel experimental technique. A set of miniature pressure sensors along with a data acquisition board, battery and storage memory were placed inside a spinning model and the surface pressure were obtained through a remotely controlled system. Circumferential pressures of the model for both rotational and static conditions were obtained at two different free stream Mach numbers of 0.4 and 0.8 and at different angles of attack. The results showed the ability of this... 

We propose a general mobility model based on region splitting and mapping each subregion on a multi-server node. By using the theory of multi-class Jackson queueing network with multiserver nodes and employing the product-form solution for such queueing networks, we obtain an analytical form for the spatial traffic distribution in a typical region with specific number of users. To this end, we consider the spatial statistical pattern for new and handoff call arrivals and the ratio between these two types of arrivals. At last, we apply our new model to some simple mobility scenarios and compute the resultant active user's location densities. © 2003 IEEE  

In this paper, we focus on the reverse link traffic analysis of a code-division multiple-access (CDMA) cellular network in dynamic environments. In this respect, we propose a new and flexible traffic model, which takes into account the interference-limitedness attribute of CDMA capacity as well as its soft-handoff feature. This new traffic model is developed according to interference-based call admission control (ICAC) method and a geographical structure with three regions. The main advantage of this traffic model is in its flexibility when we consider different traffic conditions including time-varying status of traffic in the neighboring cells  

In this paper, two basic new call admission control policies in soft-handoff regions in Code-Division Multiple-Access (CDMA) cellular networks are compared. The two policies are Independent Decision Policy (IDP), which is, approximately, equivalent to a directed retry policy proposed for non-CDMA cellular networks and Collective Decision Policy (CDP). The merits in this comparison include the tradeoff between carried traffic and quality loss probability while maintaining other traffic parameters (such as blocking and dropping (handoff failure) probabilities) sufficiently low. Using numerical results, it is deduced that the CDP leads to a better overall performance. Another important issue... 

The variation of seawater level resulting from tidal fluctuations is usually neglected in regional groundwater flow studies. Although the tidal oscillation is damped near the shoreline, there is a quasi-steady-state rise in the mean water-table position, which may have an influence on regional groundwater flow. In this paper the effects of tidal fluctuations on groundwater hydraulics are investigated using a variably saturated numerical model that includes the effects of a realistic mild beach slope, seepage face and the unsaturated zone. In particular the impact of these factors on the velocity field in the aquifer is assessed. Simulations show that the tidal fluctuation has substantial... 

The process of local scour around bridge piers is fundamentally complex due to the three-dimensional flow patterns interacting with bed materials. For geotechnical and economical reasons, multiple pile bridge piers have become more and more popular in bridge design. Although many studies have been carried out to develop relationships for the maximum scour depth at pile groups under clear-water scour condition, existing methods do not always produce reasonable results for scour predictions. It is partly due to the complexity of the phenomenon involved and partly because of limitations of the traditional analytical tool of statistical regression. This paper addresses the latter part and... 

One of the most prominent features of code division multiple-access (CDMA) cellular networks is their ability for applying soft-handoff. This type of handoff results in a better supporting of seamless communication services, capacity enhancement, QoS improvement, etc. Because of existence of more parameters and flexibilities compared to hard-handoff, an optimum solution for soft-handoff management and admission control for new and handoff calls is necessary. In this paper we propose a new algorithm with two thresholds for admission of new and handoff calls, and with two decision boundaries for controlling of handoff traffic. We compare this algorithm with a simpler one with only one decision... 

In this paper, an underwater wireless sensor network (UWSN) is modeled with the help of queueing theory in order to evaluate the maximum stable throughput of the network. To this end, a new scenario for multi-layer mobile UWSN is considered. Then, a new MAC algorithm comprised of random access scheme (like MACAW) and CDMA-based data transmission along with a simplified routing algorithm is proposed. In order to analyze the considered UWSN scenario, we propose two related queueing networks, one for modeling the wireless node mobility and the other for representing the process of multi-hop packet transmission according to considered MAC and routing algorithms. Finally, the maximum stable... 

Regarding the dynamic nature of cognitive radio networks and the delay of the central decision algorithms due to collecting necessary information in a multi-hop wireless network, distributed resource allocation algorithms are of crucial importance. In this paper we propose a new distributed resource allocation algorithm that properly selects link/frequency in a multi-hop cognitive radio network for delay sensitive applications. This algorithm, uses the locally collected information from neighboring nodes to make suitable routing decisions regarding the dynamic environment and the behavior of the neighbors. We consider the delay as the routing criterion, consisting the queueing delay and the... 

In this paper, we propose a general mobility model suitable for wireless multimedia networks. Our model is based on splitting a region into subregions. Furthermore, we make an analogy between subregions as well as their inter-connections with a multi-class Jackson queueing network comprising of infinite-server nodes. The main attribute of such a network is due to its product-form stationary distribution. Using this model, we are able to obtain a closed analytical form for the spatial traffic distribution corresponding to a specific number of network-connected users with different classes of service and mobility in a typical region. Also, we show the flexibility obtained by the proposed... 

The traffic assignment problem (TAP) is traditionally defined without side constraints. Although introducing side constraints into the TAP is used as a way of refining applied assignment models, it brings some computational difficulties that prevent the refined model from being applicable in real-case problems. In this paper an iterative solution algorithm is developed for TAP with linear side constraints. This method is based on implicitly considering the side constraints by means of adding a dynamic penalty function (DPF) to the link travel times. Each of the iterations of the algorithm is reduced to an unconstrained assignment followed by updating the penalty functions. The unconstrained... 

The present study provides the experimental results of the flow pattern around two-circular piers positioned in side-by-side arrangement. The experiments were performed for two bed configurations (with and without a scour hole). Velocities were measured by an Acoustic Doppler Velocimeter (ADV). Flat bed and scour hole were frozen by synthetic glue to facilitate the performance of the experiments. The contours and distributions of the time-averaged velocity components, turbulence intensities, turbulence kinetic energy, and Reynolds stresses at different horizontal and vertical planes are presented. Streamlines and velocity vectors obtained from time-averaged velocity fields are used to show... 

The present study provides a comparison between the flow pattern around two circular piers in tandem and a single pier set up on a moderately rough flat bed in a laboratory flume. Velocities are measured by an Acoustic Doppler Velocimeter (ADV). The contours of the time-averaged velocity components, Reynolds shear stresses, turbulence intensities and turbulence kinetic energy at different planes are presented. Streamlines and vectors are used to study the flow features. The analysis of power spectra around the piers is also presented. The results show that the presence of downstream pier changes the flow structure to a great extent, particularly in the near-wake region. Within the gap... 

Experimental results of detailed flow measurements using an Acoustic-Doppler Velocimeter (ADV) around a complex bridge pier (CBP) are presented. The pier consists of a column, a pile cap (PC) and a 2×4 pile group. The time-averaged velocities, turbulence intensities, and Reynolds stresses are studied and presented at different horizontal and vertical planes. Streamlines obtained from the velocity fields are used to show the complexity of the flow around the pier. It is shown that the main feature of the flow responsible for the entrainment of the bed sediments is a contracted (pressurized) flow below the PC toward the piles. A deflected flow around the PC and a strong down-flow along its...