• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Crop Science Conference
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• 2022.10a
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• pp.9-9
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• 2022

The concept of food security has gained increasing attention during the food crisis period between 2006 and 2011. According to the FAO, food security is defined as an access by all people at all times to the food needed for healthy and active life. Achieving food security means that sufficient food is available, food supply is relatively stable, and those in need of food can afford food at a reasonable cost. After a short period of stable food prices the world is facing another food crisis due mainly to the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russian invasion over Ukraine. Food security has re-emerged as an urgent problem to the world. There have been two conflicting opinions about how to achieve food security. Agricultural exporting countries insist diversification of food sources and freer trade on the top of domestic self-reliance. On the other hand, food importing countries emphasize self-sufficiency of major food crops. This study investigates whether domestic agricultural production contributes to strengthening food security. The panel data analysis shows that the increase in food self-sufficiency raises the Global Food Security Index and lessens the probability of food riots, while lower import tariffs (implying freer trade) do not. Some related issues are discussed accordingly.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Crop Science Conference
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• 2022.10a
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• pp.10-10
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• 2022

The concern about food security is rising as the unstable situation of food supply and demand due to the Covid-19 pandemic, climate change, and turbulent political situation. Korea's global food security index (GFSI), analyzed by the Economist Group, is considered good, but the level continuously decreases in comparing food security levels by country. In particular, Korea is highly dependent on food imports, and food and grain self-sufficiency rates continuously decrease. Therefore, increasing those rates to strengthen food security is urgent. Among the major grains, the self-sufficiency of wheat, com, and soybeans, except rice, is relatively low. Unlike the decrease in the annual rice consumption, the annual wheat consumption has been continuously maintained or increased, which is required public-private efforts to increase the self-sufficiency rate of wheat. Applying the government's policies implemented to increase the self-sufficiency rate of rice in the past will help increase the self-sufficiency rate of wheat. In other words, expanding wheat production and infrastructure, stabilizing supply and demand, and establishing a distribution system can be applied. However, the processing capability of wheat and rice is different, which is necessary to improve wheat quality and processing technology to produce consumer-preferred wheat-based products. The wheat and flour quality can be improved through breeding, cultivation, post-harvest management, and milling. In addition, research on formulation, processes, packaging, and storage to improve the quality of wheat-based products should be done continuously. Overall, food security could be strengthened by expanding wheat production and consumption, improving wheat quality, and increasing wheat self-sufficiency.

• The Journal of Information Systems
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• v.32 no.4
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• pp.95-118
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• 2023

Purpose This study employed the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) to understand students' acceptance of online learning systems. Specifically, this study investigated the factors influencing the behavioral intention of South Korean major university students to use online learning systems for educational purposes in the period when their university life had largely returned to the state it was in before the COVID-19 pandemic. Design/methodology/approach This study examined the impact of four external factors: self-efficacy, personal innovativeness, perceived enjoyment, and system quality, on two TAM constructs: perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness. Additionally, this study explored how perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness affect the behavioral intention to use online learning systems. We conducted an online-based survey using a structured questionnaire. The data collected from the survey were then subjected to Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) analysis to test the study's hypotheses and examine the relationships among the various constructs. Findings The findings reveal that perceived usefulness and ease of use significantly influence students' behavioral intentions to use online learning systems. Furthermore, factors of self-efficacy, perceived enjoyment, and system quality positively affect perceived usefulness and ease of use. Notably, personal innovativeness impacts ease of use but not perceived usefulness.

• Journal of Information Technology Applications and Management
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• v.30 no.6
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• pp.53-68
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• 2023

Through the COVID-19 pandemic, the demand for non-face-to-face communication systems has surged, leading to an increased prevalence of virtual interactions across various domains, such as tasks, meetings, orders and deliveries, and even student education. Against this backdrop, interest in the metaverse platform has been on the rise, with metaverse services like Zepeto, Roblox, and Minecraft expanding beyond gaming to encompass educational fields as well. This study aims to identify authenticity factors influencing metaverse platform-based educational services and examine their impact. The authenticity components are defined as integrity, empathy, interactivity, presence, and uniqueness. The study investigates the effects of these authenticity components on both service value and service satisfaction. To achieve this, a survey involving 320 metaverse users was conducted, and the model was subjected to statistical validation. The findings of this research underscore that perceiving metaverse education services, still in the early stages of introduction, as authentic educational methods for learners positively influences satisfaction with the educational service.This study holds significance as it lays the theoretical groundwork for enhancing the authenticity of educational services in virtual space. It defines and proposes authenticity elements for customer satisfaction in metaverse educational services, which are still in their nascent stages. Moving forward, it is anticipated that various studies will be conducted to enhance the value of metaverse education services and achieve higher customer satisfaction as customer experiences evolve and deepen.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Aviation and Aeronautics
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• v.31 no.4
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• pp.126-132
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• 2023

During the COVID-19 pandemic, there have been many changes in the aviation industry as a whole. Passenger traffic has decreased, but on the contrary, the international transport demand for cargo planes has never been higher. Due to their geopolitical location when flying to major cities around the world, Korea's international pilots are bound to have relatively more jet lag-causing routes than their American or European-based pilots. Through this study, we tried to analyze the degree of fatigue and fatigue weighting factors according to operating conditions for domestic pilots. As a result of the study, the following conclusions were drawn. Despite the variety of models, routes, and fatigue between individuals, it was found that the 3 Pilot operation route was concentrated as a representative fatigue route. Most of the individual fatigue improvement request sections showed higher fatigue as the night flight section was longer among the 3Pilot routes for more than 12 hours, and 43 out of 90 participants (Korean Air pilots) focused on 3Pilot (two captains and one pilot) as fatigue-intensive operating conditions. Therefore, it proposes an improvement in the system of applying 12-hour unification standards according to Korea's geopolitical international operating conditions and time difference standards.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers
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• v.36 no.6
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• pp.556-562
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• 2023

This paper presents the development and market trends of nano biosensors. These biosensors must possess high sensitivity and selectivity to effectively detect diseases. Presently, many research groups are focusing on the field-effect transistor aspect of nano biosensors, which can identify diseases such as Down syndrome, bladder cancer, breast cancer, and numerous other cancers, utilizing graphene and transition metal dichalcogenide materials. In the case of in-vitro diagnostics, the use of nano biosensors has been rapidly growing since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. This paper also discusses market trends and the outlook for both national and international enterprises engaged in the nano biosensor field. Nano biosensors are expected to play a beneficial and significant role soon, contributing to the early diagnosis of diseases and subsequently improving patient outcomes.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.32 no.12
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• pp.979-985
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• 2023

After the outbreak of COVID-19, the demand for home-enjoyable video games has surged, driven by extended pandemic conditions and resulting in rapid graphic technology advancements. Consequently, games with diverse expression techniques have emerged, captivating players. Virtual Reality (VR) environments predominantly feature natural landscapes, with advancing graphic technology enabling lifelike scenes. The rise in individuals seeking solace through natural elements in games has followed suit. As VR technology and metaverse interest grow, more people are exposed to digital imagery. However, evidence on the influence of graphic expression methods on emotional response to that is lacking. Our study examined user emotional responses, focusing on natural landscapes in digital graphics of games. Analyzing a group of 47 young adults as frequent digital media consumers, we studied reactions to different image styles (Realism, Semi-Realism, Stylized). In the analysis, Realism-style images were perceived the most positively, while emotional responses to natural landscapes with different graphical expressions showed no significant differences. Results suggest that recognizing digital natural landscapes may outweigh expression style impacting the evaluation of digital nature. This study's empirical analysis enhances the understanding of digital nature's application to actual situations.

• Proceedings of the Plant Resources Society of Korea Conference
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• 2022.09a
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• pp.92-92
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• 2022

Under the COVID-19 pandemic, interest in immune enhancement is increasing. Although the immune-enhancing activity of plants of the genus Hibiscus has been reported, there is no study on the immune-enhancing activity of H. syriacus. Thus, in this study, we investigated the immune-enhancing activity of Hibiscus syriacus leaves (HSL) in mouse macrophages, RAW264.7 cells, and immunosuppressed mice. HSL increased the production of immunostimulatory factors such as nitric oxide (NO), inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), interleukin-1β (IL-1β), and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and activated the phagocytosis in RAW264.7 cells. The HSL-mediated production of immunostimulatory factors was dependent on toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4), p38, and c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) in RAW264.7 cells. In the immunosuppressed mouse model, HSL increased the spleen index, the levels of the cytokines, and the numbers of lymphocytes, neutrophils, and monocytes. Taken together, HSL may be considered to have immune-enhancing activity and be expected to be used as a potential immune-enhancing agent.

• Proceedings of the Plant Resources Society of Korea Conference
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• 2022.09a
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• pp.87-87
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• 2022

Under the COVID-19 pandemic, interest in immune enhancement and anti-obesity is increasing. Thus, in this study, we investigated whether Kadsura japonica fruits (KJF) exhibits immunostimulatory activity and anti-obesity activity. KJF increased the production of immunostimulatory factors and phagocytosis in RAW264.7 cells. Inhibition of TLR2 and TLR4 blocked KJF-mediated production of immunostimulatory factors in RAW264.7 cells. In addition, the inhibition of MAPK and PI3K/AKT signaling pathway reduced KJF-mediated production of immunostimulatory factors, and the activation of MAPK and PI3K/AKT signaling pathway by KJF suppressed the inhibition of TLR2/4. KJF attenuated the lipid accumulation and the protein expression such as CEBPα, PPARγ, perilipin-1, adiponectin, and FABP4 related to the lipid accumulation in 3T3-L1 cells. In addition, KJF inhibited excessive proliferation of 3T3-L1 cells and protein expressions such as β-catenin and cyclin D1 related to cell growth. These findings indicate that KJF may have immunostimulatory activity and anti-obesity activity.

• Korea Trade Review
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• v.47 no.5
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• pp.181-200
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• 2022

After the COVID-19 pandemic, a global economic downturn and a recession in the shipping market are expected, it is important for domestic shipping companies to establish appropriate strategy in response to the recession. Accordingly, domestic shipping companies should grow into integrated logistics companies that combine shipping and logistics in the future. And for this purpose, it is necessary to actively promote logistics integration with external shipping and logistics companies. This paper presents the direction of logistics integration for domestic shipping companies to develop as integrated logistics operators with competitiveness in the global shipping market, and presents detailed alternatives. Domestic shipping companies lack the infrastructure such as ships, port terminals, and warehouses, so they have a weak capacity to independently promote logistics integration. At the shipping company level, a logistics integration promotion strategy should be established, and accordingly, logistics infrastructure, service network, and logistics integration operating system should be established. The government should provide tax benefits for logistics integration, financial support for M&As led by domestic shipping companies, a standardized information sharing system, and preparation of educational courses for nurturing digital manpower.