• Journal of Fashion Business
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.62-73
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• 2024

This study explored and compared apparel products in domestic and international adaptive apparel markets through the lens of inclusive design to improve lives of people with disabilities. The purpose of this research was to gain a deeper understanding of these markets, identify product characteristics, and examine factors for continuous growth of the adaptive apparel market. In the domestic market, Heartist is the only brand that has consistently commercialized a wide range of apparel products. This brand did not limit itself to developing apparel specifically for people with disabilities, but combined stylish design and functionality to make enhancements accessible to a wider range of users. However, its actual products in the marketplace reflect only a few functional enhancements rather than accounting for various types of physical capabilities. Adaptive apparel brands in international markets were segmented by various design purposes, enabling wearers with different physical capabilities to enjoy a wider range of designs. Selected brands focused on business casual styles, incorporating various fastenings and magnetic closures for enhanced functionality. Findings of this research will furnish designers and product developers with practical insights, thereby contributing to tangible and positive improvements of lives for people with disabilities.

• Journal of Construction Engineering and Project Management
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• v.4 no.2
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• pp.12-22
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• 2014

Over the last decade, Saudi Arabia has experienced significant economic increases as evidenced by the 30% growth in its gross domestic product; furthermore, the construction industry has increased 10% in the same time period. Due to this significant growth, the construction industry is encountering issues related to construction quality resulting in significant waste and associated environmental impacts. In this research, we applied our previously developed framework that integrates three different methods-Lean, Green, and Six-sigma - to a residential construction complex in Saudi Arabia. Our aim of this case study was to explore the application of the framework in practice to glean quantitative results and further validate the framework. In the case study, we used the developed framework to identify a significant issue related to quality and delays - final completion of 53 residential units was delayed because of failed exterior buildings surfaces. We then used the framework to define the causes behind the defects via a field investigation of the 53 units. Of the defect, construction execution was responsible for 43% of the defect, 31% untrained workers, 19% unfavorable construction weather condition, with 7% accounting for other issues. A procedure was developed in concert with the construction manager and overall developer reducing the amount of rework and waste causes revealed by the field examination and the framework. Although two steps were added to the original construction process to overcome waste causes, still save a lot of resources and reduces environmental impact. In summary, we found that the Lean, Green, Six-sigma framework increased productivity, quality, and reduced waste.

• ALGAE
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• v.35 no.3
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• pp.277-292
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• 2020

Omega-3 fatty acids, including eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), are polyunsaturated fatty acids beneficial to human health. A limited number of microalgae have been used for commercial omega-3 production, which necessitates the identification of new microalgae with high omega-3 contents. We explored the fatty acid composition and EPA and DHA contents of the mixotrophic dinoflagellate Gymnodinium smaydae fed with the optimal algal prey species Heterocapsa rotundata. Cells of G. smaydae were found to be rich in omega-3 fatty acids. In particular, the DHA content of G. smaydae was 21 mg g^-1 dry weight, accounting for 43% of the total fatty acid content. The percentage of DHA in the total fatty acid content of G. smaydae was the highest among the reported microalgae except for Crypthecodinium cohnii. Moreover, to determine if the prey supply interval affected the growth rate of G. smaydae and its fatty acid content, three different prey supply intervals (daily, once every 2 d, and once for 4 d) were tested. Daily prey supply yielded the highest total fatty acid and DHA contents in G. smaydae. Furthermore, we successfully produced high-density G. smaydae cultures semi-continuously for 43 d with daily prey supply. During the semi-continuous cultivation period, the highest density of G. smaydae was 57,000 cells mL^-1, with an average growth rate of 0.7 d^-1. Taken together, the percentage of EPA and DHA in the total fatty acid content was maintained in the range of 54.2-56.9%. The results of this study support G. smaydae as a promising microalgal candidate for commercial DHA production and demonstrate that daily supply of prey can efficiently produce high-density G. smaydae cultures for more than a month.

• The Korean Journal of Quaternary Research
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.157-159
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• 2003

Much of northern Asia is lacking in high-resolution palaeoclimatic data coverage. This vast region thus represents a sizeable gap in data sets used to reconstruct hemispheric-scale temperature trends for the past millennium. To improve coverage, we present a regional-scale composite of four tree-ring width records of Siberian pine and Siberian larch from temperature-sensitive alpine timber-line sites in Mongolia. The chronologies load closely in principal components analysis (PCA) with the first eigenvector accounting for over 53% of the variance from ad 1450 to 1998. The 20-year interval from 1974 to 1993 is the highest such growth period in this composite record, and 17 of the 20 highest growth years have occurred since 1946. Thus these trees, unlike those recently described at some northern sites, do not appear to have lost their temperature sensitivity, and suggest that recent decades have been some of the warmest in the past 500 years for this region. There are, however, comparable periods of inferred, local warmth for individual sites, e.g., in 1520-1580 and 1760-1790. The percent common variance between chronologies has increased through time and is highest (66.1%) in the present century. Although there are obvious differences among the individual chronologies, this result suggests a coherent signal which we consider to be related to temperature. The PCA scores show trends which strongly resemble those seen in recent temperature reconstructions for the Northern Hemisphere, very few of which included representation from Eurasia east of the Ural Mountains. The Mongolia series therefore provides independent corroboration for these reconstructions and their indications of unusual wanning during the twentieth century.

• Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.2 no.2
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• pp.113-121
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• 1999

Changes in lipid content, lipid class and fatty acid compositions of the cultured oysters in shallow-water, Bukman bay (Tongyeong, Korea), using both Korean and Japanese spats were investigated. The content of non-polar lipid (NL) comprised approximately $60- 80\%$ of total lipid (TL) in the cultured oysters. There was a positive correlation between NL content and meat weight, y=0.287lx-15.309 (r=0.834l, p<0.001). The prominent fatty acids of the oysters were 16:0, 20:5n-3 (eicosapentaenoic acid, EPA), 22:6n-3 (docosahexaenoic acid, DHA), 18:0, l8:1n-7, l8:1n-9, l6:1n-7, 14:0 and l6:4n-3. During the growth of the oysters, l6:4n-3 showed the highest coefficient of variation, accounting for $41.8\%$ for the Korean oyster and $32.3\%$ for the Japanese one, respectively. Both oysters showed low level of n-3 fatty acids such as DHA and EPA and high level of n-6 fatty acid, 20:4n-6, in the spawning period (August). During growth of the oysters, both EPA and DHA were the richest fatty acids in the harvest period (December, 314 mg/100g sample) and in the pre-spawning period (July, 237-247 mg/100g sample), respectively. Consequently, the cultured oyster with Japanese spat contained approximately two times more n-3 fatty acids per oyster individual than those with Korean one in the harvest season.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.17 no.3
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• pp.965-971
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• 2016

Aims: To investigate the distribution of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutations, and explore any relationships with clinical characteristics in non-small-cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC) patients. Materials and Methods: EGFR mutations were assessed by ADx-ARMS in 261 NSCLC patients from West China Hospital of Sichuan University. Relationships between EGFR mutation and clinical characteristics were analyzed by SPSS. Results: The EGFR mutation rate was 48.7% (127/261), 19-del and L858R mutations occurred predominantly, accounting for 33.1% and 40.9%, respectively, in mutated cases. Moreover, 10.2% patients were found to carry double mutations. EGFR mutations occurred more frequently in women (57.5%) than in men (41.8%) (P=0.01), and were more frequent in non-smokers (61.2%) than in former or current smokers (31.2%) (P<0.00). In addition, they were more common in adenocarcinomas (52.8%) and adenosquamous carcinomas (42.8%) than in squamous cell carcinomas (14.8%) (p<0.00). However, only smoking history and pathological types, rather than gender, proved to be associated with EGFR mutations on multivariate logistic regression analysis. No significant differences in pathological stage and metastasis status were found between EGFR wild-type and mutated cases, although EGFR mutation type was related to pathological type (p=0.00) - 19-del, L858R and other mutation types respectively occurred in 34.2%, 42.5% and 23.3% of adenocarcinomas, but in 14.3%, 0% and 85.7% of non-adenocarcinomas. Conclusions: The EGFR mutation rate was 48.7% in NSCLCs in Southwest China, so that nearly 40% patients might benefit from targeted therapies. Smoking status and pathological types were independent predictors of EGFR mutation, while EGFR mutation type was related to only pathological type, rather than smoking status.

• KDI Journal of Economic Policy
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• v.32 no.4
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• pp.75-114
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• 2010

This paper examines empirically whether information and communication technology(ICT) has improved total factor productivity at industry level in Korea, considering time lag between ICT capital accumulation and improvement of productivity. To evaluate if ICT is pervasive enough to raise productivity, ICT capital stock of Korea is compared with those of advanced economies. From the perspective of aggregate economy, the ICT capital in Korea has increased fast since the mid-1990s and became comparable with advanced economies. However it is mostly attributed to rapid growth of ICT-producing industries. In other industries, ICT capital are still less accumulated than advanced economies. Growth accounting results exhibit that the productivity has risen faster since 2000 in industries using ICT intensively, but looking into specific industries, it is not likely for ICT to be the main factor of productivity improvement except in business service industry. Regression results provide some evidence that ICT is useful in raising productivity only after considerable amount of time allowed. To fully exploit the positive effect of ICT on productivity, it may be necessary for the Korean economy to create institutional environment facilitating complementary innovations as well as ICT captial accumulation.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.30 no.5
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• pp.662-667
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• 2020

Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutations are not only genetic markers for diagnosis but also biomarkers of clinical-response against tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Among the EGFR mutations, the in-frame deletion mutation in EGFR exon 19 kinase domain (EGFR exon 19-del) is the most frequent mutation, accounting for about 45% of EGFR mutations in NSCLCs. Development of sensitive method for detecting the EGFR mutation is highly required to make a better screening for drug-response in the treatment of NSCLC patients. Here, we developed a fluorometric tandem gene amplification assay for sensitive detection of low-abundance EGFR exon 19-del mutant genomic DNA. The method consists of pre-amplification with PCR, thermal cycling of ligation by Taq ligase, and subsequent rolling circle amplification (RCA). PCR-amplified DNA from genomic DNA samples was used as splint DNA to conjugate both ends of linear padlock DNA, generating circular padlock DNA template for RCA. Long stretches of ssDNA harboring multiple copies of G-quadruplex structure was generated in RCA and detected by thioflavin T (ThT) fluorescence, which is specifically intercalated into the G-quadruplex, emitting strong fluorescence. Sensitivity of tandem gene amplification assay for detection of the EGFR exon 19-del from gDNA was as low as 3.6 pg, and mutant gDNA present in the pooled normal plasma was readily detected as low as 1% fraction. Hence, fluorometric detection of low-abundance EGFR exon 19 deletion mutation using tandem gene amplification may be applicable to clinical diagnosis of NSCLC patients with appropriate TKI treatment.

• Journal of Korean Society of Industrial and Systems Engineering
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• v.41 no.1
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• pp.70-83
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• 2018

Korea's five leading industries-chemical, automobile, shipbuilding, metal and electronics-have been the growth engines of the Korean economy for the last 30 years. However, with their performance weakening in the past few years, Korea's annual growth rate has dropped to less than 2%. Just as the Japanese economy struggled through the lost decades, Korea's leading industries have been facing signals of arriving at a Strategic Inflection Point ("SIP") since the mid-2000s. The objective of this study is to present an appropriate value strategy for Korean firms in leading industries to gain sustainable competitive advantages. This paper examines the following issues : First, it diagnoses the signs and timing of SIP for the five leading industries. Second, this study examines 78 Korean and Japanese firms in order to understand the adaptation strategies of the highest and lowest performing firms from a value strategy point of view. Third, it empirically analyzes the correlation between the indicators of value strategy and the accounting performances of the Korean and Japanese firms. The data set used in the cluster analysis were collected from KISLINE database of NICE Information Service and annual reports. The findings in the case analyses of high and low performing companies show that high value-added specialty chemical materials and electronic component manufacturers that had a strong focus on value creation were defined as high performing companies. And in the cosmetic and automobile industries, companies with a strong emphasis on value appropriation gained high performance. Furthermore, the study conducted a cluster analysis based on two indicators R&D and advertisement expense. The analysis shows that a significant gap exists in the operating incomes among three groups classified under the value strategy. The study recommends that Korean firms are requested to increase R&D expenditure, conduct M&A and collaborate with companies that own source technologies to narrow the technology gap and improve their segment portfolio from commodity to value-added products.

• The Journal of Asian Finance, Economics and Business
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• v.8 no.4
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• pp.83-91
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• 2021

Health is an outset of psychological, social, financial, and physical state. Several macroeconomic factors are entangled with health and mortality. Infant mortality and life expectancy are two keyguard on demographic research context on last few decades. On the other hand, foreign inflows play an unprecedent role for raising economic circulation and providing more opportunities to build a better society. The study aims to investigate the relationship between foreign direct investment (FDI), economic growth, and Bangladesh's health. This study employs time-series data from 1980 to 2018. Results show, with Auto-regressive Distribute Lag (ARDL) model, that there is significant cointegration among variables. Foreign investment and economic output relate significantly and positively to health. On the contrary, education is quasi-linked with a different sign-on different model. For model validation, pitfalls of time-series multicollinearity, heteroscedasiticy, and autocorrelation are not present. Also, CUSUM and CUSUMSQ tests are validating the model as stable and fit for future prediction. Medical assessment and education need more attention from the government as well as the private sector. FDI can play a catalyst role for improving the health sector, raising opportunity in educating and creating a better lifestyle. In order to optimize foreign investment, the government should implement necessary reforms and policies.