Background & Aims: Empathy plays an important role in patient’s relationship with his/her dentist or doctor. One of the most used tools for evaluation of empathy is the Jefferson Scale of Physician Empathy-Health Professionals Version (JSPE-HP). The aim of this study was to validate the JSPE-HP for use among Iranian population.Methods: The English original version of the JSPE-HP questionnaire was translated into Persian language by a forward–backward translation method. Reliability was tested on 30 Dental and Medical students. Then validity and internal consistency were tested on 554 students.Results: The reliability coefficient (Cronbach's alpha) of the JSPE-HP was excellent (alpha: 0.83). The coefficient of test re-test reliability measured by ICC (Intra class correlation coefficient) was 0.82 (CI 95%: 0.80-0.87). Freshman students had higher scores than other students and this difference was significant (P=0.03). There was no significant difference on empathy scores between Dental and Medical students.Conclusion: The overall findings of this study indicate that the Persian version of the JSPE is a valid and reliable instrument for evaluating physician-patient empathy in Iranian Population.

Background and Aim: Evaluation of hospital environments with reliable and valid tools is considered to be one of the essential prerequisites for continuous improvement of the hospital learning environment. The present study aimed to translate and evaluate psychometric properties of the short version of the PHEEM questionnaire among the residents of Tehran University of Medical Sciences residents. Materials and Methods: This was a psychometric evaluation study. After translation and back translation, the questionnaire was provided to 18 experts. The content validity was qualitatively checked using the coefficients of content validity ratio (CVR), content validity index (CVI), and face validity. Then, the revised questionnaire was distributed among 20 residents. Face validity was evaluated by qualitative method and cognitive interview to check the questionnaire items in terms of difficulty level, appropriateness, and ambiguity. The test-retest method checked initial reliability by redistributing the questionnaire to the same residents with an interval of two weeks. In order to determine construct validity, the modified questionnaire was distributed among 548 medical residents from 24 specialized fields. The sample was selected using the convenience sampling method. Then the data were analyzed using exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis. Internal consistency was calculated using Cronbach’, s alpha. Results: The questionnaire’, s content validity ratio (CVR) and content validity index (CVI) were 0. 93 and 0. 88, respectively. Based on the results of face validity, some minor changes were made to the vocabulary of most items, and item 12 was wholly changed. The ICC coefficient was more than 0. 90 in all dimensions. In the exploratory factor analysis using the principal component method (PCA), the Kaiser-Meyer-Elkin value was 0. 83. Bartlett’, s test of sphericity was statistically significant (P<0. 001), which confirms the functionality of the correlation matrix. The Cronbach’, s alpha coefficient of the questionnaire was 0. 83, which indicates the internal consistency of the questionnaire items. Conclusions: According to the results, the PHEEM short-version questionnaire has good reliability and validity (face, content, and structure) among medical residents. Therefore, this measure can be used to evaluate residents’,perceptions regarding the quality of the educational environment of hospitals.

The monitoring and analyzing of drought conditions is one of the main requirements for water resources management. In present paper, Standard Precipitation Index (SPI) and Standardized Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index (SPEI) were compared in order to assess the drought conditions in the Esfarayen-Sabzevar region. As in the aforementioned region sufficient long-term data is not available to assess the drought, reanalysis data of ERA-Interim were used to be combined with the observed data. For this purpose, climatic data of precipitation and temperature were extracted for each station in the statistical period of 1979-2016 using the web interfaces, Python script, ECMWF WebAPI and ArcGIS software. After correcting the bias of the data based on observational data, combined data of precipitation and temperature were obtained for the aforementioned period and used as the basis for calculating the drought. Finally, drought assessment and estimating the correlation of SPI and SPEI were conducted for three stations of Sarcheshme, Ghasemabad, and Jaghtay in the time scales of 3, 6, 12, 18, and 24 months. After generating data combination, the Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) and Bias were decreased from 0. 39 and 6. 69 to 0. 32 and 0. 24 respectively. Thus similar approach to data can be used for drought assessment in areas with lack of observed data. Results showed that in the short-term scales the frequency of dry and wet periods is high. By increasing the time scale, the frequency of the dry and wet period decreases but their duration increases. In most cases in the stations both indices showed coordination in the dry and wet periods. Based on the provided results regarding the correlation between SPI and SPEI indices, there is a positive and significant correlation between the above indices and the correlation is higher in the humid regions. As a result, the SPI index can be used in the regions with no temperature data with a precession similar to the SPEI index.

Shams al-Dīn Samarqandī has authored two logical books Qisṭās al-afkār and its self-commentary Sharḥ al-Qisṭās, both of which have two versions on ḥaqīqī and khārijī propositions, which seem to be due to the change of Samarkandi's logical opinions about ḥaqīqī and khārijī propositions. In the first versions of both the books, the relations between the propositions are mere implication (ʿumūm wa khuṣūṣ muṭlaq), but in the second version, the relations change to denial of implication (ʿumūm wa khuṣūṣ min wajhin). Also, in the first version, Samarqandī presents a universal rule (ḍābiṭ) for taking conclusions from mixed syllogisms composed of ḥaqīqī and khārijī propositions. Indeed, the second version can be seen as correcting the first version. In this paper, we shall show that even though Samarqandī’s attempt corrected some faults in the first version, it leaves some others uncorrected. In addition, there are new objections to the second version which would not been forwarded to the first version. Therefore, none of the first and second versions provides a correct and complete analysis of the mixing of the categorical khārijī, ḥaqīqī and mental propositions.

Khaqani’ s poetry is replete with references to the sciences of his time. This causes his poetry to be impossible to understand without comprehending the variety of sciences (medicine, astronomy, history, mythology, geography etc. ) which he makes reference to. One of Khaqani’ s techniques to enrich his poetry is using Koranic verses and Hadith. In his time, the first sciences that children learned at school were religious sciences including the Koran and Hadith. Undoubtedly, these teachings influenced their mentality, language, and art. So, there were few poets whose works did not reflect these teachings. In Khaqani’ s poetry, because he adorns each line of his poems with religious images and themes which are in line with his writing style, this reflection is highlighted. In some cases the scribes or correctors’ negligence has caused Khaqani’ s divan to be distorted. In this article, some cases in which the scribes or correctors have been ignorant of the religious context of Khaqani’ s poetry are studied.

Among the many epics written after Shahnameh, Borzunameh enjoys more popularity with the public in Iran. With its uncomplicated plot, simple language, and entertaining story it has been intertwined with the peoples' life and seeped into the memory of people like other popular stories such as Amir Arsalan-e Namdar and Hussein Kord-e Shabestari. The popularity of Borzunameh in different parts of Iran over the years has caused the first version to undergo changes and different oral versions have appeared which are sometimes very different from each other. In this paper an oral version which ispopular in Kohmareh Sorkhi is introduced? The differences and similarities of this version with the written version are discussed

Material implication is the special relation between components of conditionals, i.e. a conditional is false if its antecedent is true and its consequent is false, otherwise the conditional is true. Therefore every conditional with false antecedent or true consequent is true and no relevance between its components is needed. The paradoxes of material implication raise from this truth-functional version. The essential character of truth-functional view is its violation of impossibility of contradiction. If we replace material implication with the natural one, the problems such as above violation and counter factuals will not occur.