• Title/Summary/Keyword: Korean Medicine Development Act

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Bioaccumulation of Heavy Metals in Ruditapes philippinarum (바지락 (Ruditapes philippinarum) 의 중금속 축적에 관한 연구)

  • Lee, Yong-Seok;Jo, Yong-Hun;Byun, In-Sun;Kang, Se-Won;Cho, Eun-Mi;Han, Yeon-Soo;Choi, Sang-Haeng;Park, Hong-Seog;Kho, Weon-Gyu;Ahn, In-Young;Jeong, Kye-Heon
    • The Korean Journal of Malacology
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    • v.22 no.2
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    • pp.157-165
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    • 2006
  • The present study was conducted to confirm that a bivalve Ruditapes philippinarum can be used as a biomarker for the monitoring of the heavy metal pollution in the silt of the marine environment. The clams were collected from the silt of Cheonsu-bay, Buheung-ri, and Tan-island of the West Sea, Korea. To observe the normal structures of the target organs (hepatopancreas and gill), they were dissected out for the immunohistochemical study and the electron microscopy with TEM, SEM, and SEM-EDS. The immunohistochemical study showed that the interdiverticular connective tissues of the hepatopancreas, and the outer epithelium of the gill lamellae was strongly reacted to anti-metallothionein (MT), indicating the presence of MT, a metal-binding protein, involved in metal detoxifying process. According to the examinations under the TEM, the epithelial cells of the hepatopancreas of the clams collected from polluted area (Tan-island) showed certain changes such as swollen rER, swollen nuclear envelope and inclusion bodies in the nulcei. In the SEM-EDS analysis, tissue of the hepatopancreas showed relatively higher concentration of S, Zn, and Cd. These elements are supposed to be concerning with the MT-reaction in the hepatopancreas. Considering that the coastal bivalve R. philippinarum showed immediate subcellular responses to heavy metal pollution in the overall experiments conducted, this species might act as one of efficient biomarkers for the heavy metal contamination in the marine environment.

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A Review on Constitutional Discordance Adjudication of the Constitutional Court to Total Ban on Abortion ('낙태죄' 헌법재판소 헌법불합치 결정의 취지와 법률개정 방향 - 헌법재판소 2019. 4. 11. 선고 2017헌바127 전원재판부 결정에 따라 -)

  • Lee, Seok-Bae
    • The Korean Society of Law and Medicine
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    • v.20 no.2
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    • pp.3-39
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    • 2019
  • Even after the Constitutional Court decided on August 23, 2012 that the provisions of abortion were constitutional, discussions on the abolition of abortion continued. The controversy about abortion is not only happening recently, but it has already existed since the time when the Penal Code was enacted, and it shares the history of modern legislation with the Republic of Korea. Legislators whom submitted amendment while insisting upon the eradication of abortion in the process of enacting criminal law at that time, presented social and economic adaptation reasons as the core reason. From then on, the abolition of abortion has been discussed during the development dictatorship, but this was not intended to guarantee women's human rights, but it was closely connected to the national policy projects of "Contraception" and "Family Planning" of the Park's dictatorship. Since then, the enactment of the Mother and Child Health Law, which restrictively allow artificial abortion, was held on February 8, 1973, in an emergency cabinet meeting that replaced the legislative power after the National Assembly was disbanded. It became effected May 10th. The reason behind the Mother and Child Health Law that included legalization of abortion in part was that the Revitalizing Reform at that time did not allow any opinion, so it seem to be it was difficult for the religious to express opposition. The "Maternal and Child Health Law" enacted in this way has been maintained through several amendments. It can be seen that the question of maintenance of abortion has been running on parallel lines without any significant difference from the time when the Penal Code was enacted. On August 23, 2012, the Constitutional Court decided that the Constitutional Opinion and the unonstitutional Opinion were 4: 4. However, it was decided by the Constitution without satisfying the quorum for unconstitutional decision of the Constitutional Court. This argument about abolition of abortion is settled for the the time being with the decision of the constitutional inconsistency of the Constitutional Court, and now, the National Assembly bears the issue of new legislation. In other words, the improved legislation must be executed until December 31, 2020, and if the previous improved legislation is not implemented, the crime of abortion (Article 269, Paragraph 1, Article 270 of the Criminal Code) Article 1 (1) will cease to be effective from 1 January 2021. Therefore, in the following, we will look into the reason of the Constitutional Court's constitutional discordance adjudication on criminal abortion(II), and how it structurally differs from the previous Constitutional Court and the Supreme Court. After considering key issues arised from the constitutional discordance adjudication(III), the legislative direction and within the scope of legislative discretion in accordance with the criteria presented by the Constitutional Court We reviewed the proposed revisions to the Penal Code and the Mather and Child Health Act of Korea(IV).

Review of 2011 Major Medical Decisions (2011년 주요 의료 판결 분석)

  • Yoo, Hyun-Jung;Seo, Young-Hyun;Lee, Jung-Sun;Lee, Dong-Pil
    • The Korean Society of Law and Medicine
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    • v.13 no.1
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    • pp.199-247
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    • 2012
  • According to the review and analysis of medical cases that are assigned to the Supreme Court and all local High Court in 2011 and that are presented in the media, it was found that the following categories were taken seriously, medical and pharmaceutical product liability, the third principle of trust between medical institutions, negligence and causation estimation, responsibility limit, the meaning of medical records and related judgment of disturbed substantiation, Oriental doctors' duties to explain the procedures, IMS events, whether one can claim for each medical care operated by non-physician health care institutions to the nonmedical domain in the National Health Insurance Corporation, and the basis of norms for each claim. In the cases related to medical pharmaceutical product liability, Supreme Court alleviated burden of proof for accidents with medical and pharmaceutical products prior to the practice of Product Liability Law and onset the point of negative prescription as the time of damage strikes to condition feasibility of the specific situation. In the cases related to the 3rd principle of trust between medical institutions, the Supreme Court refused to sentence the doctor who has trusted the judgment of the same third-party doctors the violations of the care duty. With respect to proof of a causal relationship and damages in a medical negligence case, the Supreme Court decided that it is unjust to deny negligence by the materials of causal relationship rejecting the original verdict and clarified that the causal relationship shall not deny the reasons to limit doctors' responsibilities. In order not put burden on patients with disadvantages in which medical records and the description of the practice or the most fundamental and important evidence to prove negligence and causation are being neglected, the Supreme Court admitted in the hospital's responsibility for the case of the neonate death of suffocation without properly listed fetal heart rate and uterine contraction monitor. On the other hand, the Seoul Western District Court has admitted alimony for altering and forging medical records. With respect to doctors' obligations to description, the Supreme Court decided that it is necessary to explain the foreseen risks by the combination of oriental and western medicines emphasizing the right of patient's self-determination. However, questions have arisen whether it is realistically feasible or not. In a case of an unlicensed doctor performing intramuscular stimulation treatment (IMS), the Supreme Court put off its decision if it was an unlicensed medical practice as to put limitation of eastern and western medical practices, but it declared that IMS practice was an acupuncture treatment therefore the plaintiff's conduct being an illegal act. In the future, clear judgment on this matter should be made. With respect to the claim of bills from non-physical health care institutions, the Supreme Court decided to void it for the implementation of the arrangement is contrary to the commitments made in the medical law and therefore, it is invalid to claim. In addition, contrast to the private healthcare professionals, who are subject to redemption according to the National Healthcare Insurance Law, the Seoul High Court explicitly confirmed that the non-professionals who receive the tort operating profit must return the unjust enrichment and have the liability for damages. As mentioned above, a relatively wide range of topics were discussed in medical field of 2011. In Korea's health care environment undergoing complex changes day by day, it is expected to see more diverse and in-depth discussions striding out to the development in the field of health care.

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Current Status and Future Perspective of Industrial Insects Use in South Korea (국내 산업곤충의 이용 현황과 미래 전망)

  • Kim, Wontae;Kim, So-Yun;Ji, Sangmin;Chang, Gyu-Dong;Song, Jeong-Hun
    • Korean journal of applied entomology
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    • v.61 no.1
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    • pp.221-227
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    • 2022
  • In accordance with Article 6 of the 「Insect Industry Promotion and Support Act」, the National Institute of Agricultural Sciences conducted a fact-finding investigation in the insect industry for related workers in 2020. Most commonly, insect industry workers were involved in production (98.5%), the male ratio was high (80.4%), while those in their 50s comprised 36.4% of the workers. As for the uses of industrial insects, 66.5% was for food and medicine, 12.7% for feed, and 20.7% as pets. The most commonly produced industrial insect species by use were the white-spotted flower chafer (69.6%), Protaetia brevitarsis seulensis (Kolbe), for food and medicine; crickets (31.2%) for feed; and the rhinoceros beetle (45.6%), Allomyrina dichotoma (Linnaeus), as pets. Powder was the most common product form at 68.5%, and live insects constituted 40.9%. Insect farms with an annual income accounted for 77.3%, of which 65.4% had annual sales of less than 20 million won. Market acquisition was rated by most insect industry workers (84.0%) as the primary challenge. In conclusion, although the number of people employed in the insect industry is increasing annually, the number of young insect farmers (20s to 40s) is decreasing. The production of industrial insects was limited to a few species, and more than half of insect farms have very low incomes. Furthermore, insect farms have the greatest difficulty in market acquisition, necessitating the development of utilization technology to promote the consumption of industrial insects.

An Analysis on the Knowledge Levels, Attitudes, and Factors Affecting the Choices of Those Who Completed the Education of Persons Conducting Clinical Trial Workers (의약품 임상시험 종사자 교육 이수자의 지식 수준, 태도, 교육 선택 요인 분석)

  • Lee, Yoon Jin;Jang, Hye Yun;Lee, Yu-Mi
    • The Journal of KAIRB
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    • v.3 no.2
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    • pp.19-27
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    • 2021
  • Purpose: This study aimed to analyze the knowledge levels, attitudes, and factors affecting the choices on the education of the participants who completed their education of persons conducting clinical trial workers, and to assess the problems of the current education system for clinical trial workers, leading to improvements. Methods: Clinical trial workers (including principal investigators/subinvestigators, members of the Institutional Review Board [IRB], clinical research coordinators) who were affiliated to one of the 4 university hospitals running their own clinical trial center and IRB in Daegu and completed their education of persons conducting clinical trial workers were the subjects of this study. One hundred seven online questionnaires were answered from 2021-04-02 to 2021-04-17. Descriptive statistics and Pearson correlation analysis were used to analyze the acquired data. Independent t-test and 1-way analysis of variance were used to analyze the differences in the knowledge levels and attitudes following the characteristics of the education participants. Results: The baseline characteristics of the 107 participants were as follows: the majority of the participants were female (72.0%), were in their 30s (36.4%), had a nursing major (29.0%), were clinical research coordinators (63.6%), had never experienced a principal investigator (79.4%), had participated 3 or more educations (58.9%), had completed their maintenance course (55.1%), had 5 or more years of clinical trial experiences (34.6%). The fields on which participants had low levels of objective knowledge were "types and preparations on audits of clinical trials," "regulations on clinical trials (Pharmaceutical Affairs Act, Korea Good Clinical Practice)." The difficulties that the participants faced were on "annual educations" and "lack of information regarding the educations." Factors that showed significant differences in objective knowledge were sex (p=0.02), number of educations (p=0.004), the curriculum of 2020 (p=0.001). Age (p=0.004), having experienced a principal investigator (p=0.006), number of educations (p<0.001), the curriculum of 2020 (p<0.001), clinical trial career (p=0.001) were factors that significantly affected subjective knowledge. Attitudes toward the education were positively correlated with objective knowledge (r=0.20, p=0.04) and subjective knowledge (r=0.32, p=0.001). Major sources through which information on educations was acquired were "institutional notices," and major factors affecting the choices on the education were "when the education took place" and "where the education took place." "Within the affiliated institution," "Online classes (recorded)" and "IRB and review processes" were each the most preferred place, mode, and content of the education. Conclusion: Knowledge levels varied largely among participants who completed their education of persons conducting clinical trial workers, depending on their characteristics such as the number of educations. Participants also complained about their lack of information on educations. The quality of education may be improved if clinical trial organizations are designated as education facilities. Education programs must be developed considering the knowledge level and demand of the participants. Furthermore, as offline classes may be impossible due to pandemics such as the coronavirus disease 2019, the development of diverse and sophisticated online classes is looked forward to.

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A Research in the Characteristic of Arthritis Patienth (관절염환자(關節炎患者)의 특성(特性)에 대한 조사(調査) 연구(硏究))

  • Kang Jeam-Dug;Nam Chul-Hyun;Kim Gi-Yeol
    • Journal of Society of Preventive Korean Medicine
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    • v.1 no.1
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    • pp.149-165
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    • 1997
  • In order that, investigating the feature of patients suffering arthritis, analysing its contents, and grasping a Primary factor affecting it, I might offerbasic datas which could help to plan and perform healthy affairs to thake precautions beforehand, I have investigated, analysed, and studied a total of 320 patients suffering arthritis, who have received physiotherapy in hospital located in Teaegu area for five months, from November 1 1995 to March 30 1996, of which summary and conclusion is this. 1. The general feature of patients in investigative objects In the distribution of the distinction of sex, men accounted for 26.9% and women, for 73.1%, and, in the fistribution of age, 60-year-old or more, most for 27.2% and from 20 to 29 years old, least for 14.0%. In the distinction of a vocation, housewives most accounted for 34.7% and students(jobless men), least for 19.3%. In the distinction of a matrimonial state, married persons most accounted for 76.7% and people living alone(divorce, separation by death, separation), least for 11.4%. In the distinction of an economic state, the middle classes most accounted for 73.5% and the upper classes, least for 2.9%. In the distinction of their academic careers, graduates of a primary school most accounted for 26.9% and graduates of university, for 14.1%, of which patients, having the ability to decode the national language, reached to 11.3%. In the distinction of the house form, people living in independent houses most accounted for 76.4% and residents in apartment(having an elevator), least for 9.4%. 2. In the distribution of the recurring state in the distinction of the feature, the recurring group was more than the group of patients falling that ill at first as 62.2% and in the distinction of the feature of the recurring group, the recurring group turned high in case of men being from 50s to 60s years old or more, people living alone (divorce, separation by death, separation), students (joblessmen), people working in farming, stockbeeding, forestry, fisheries, a simple labour, graduates of a primary school I having the ability to decode the national language, the upper classes, people part two years since they begined to suffer arthritis, people who had members having ever experienced arthritis among families. 3. In the distribution of arthritis on the distinction of bodily pars, a knee articulation most accounted for 50.2% and the articulation of fingers, for 8.8%, wile the simultaneous, several parts (multiple) accounted for 35.1%. In the distinction of the feature, arthritis of a knee turned high in case of men being from 20s to 30s years old, unmarried persons, people having academic careers of university, the middle classes, residents in apartment (having stairs). In the dictnction of a feature the case of several parts (multiple) turned high in case of women being from 50s to 60s years old or more, people living alone (divorce, separation by death, separation), people having the ability to decode th. national language, the graduates of a primary school, the upper classes, residents in apartment (having elevator). 4. In the distribution of arthritis on e distinction of a contracting term, two years or more most accounted for 51.6% and the case of contacting from one year to two years, for 15.3%. Analysing the distinction of the feature, the case of two years or more turned high in case of women being from 50s to 60s years old or more, people living alone (divorce separation by death, separation), the upper classes, people having the ability to decode the national language, residents in apartment (having elevator). 5. In the distribution of an treatment institution before patients came to help, their not curing most accounted for 39.1%, general, orthopedic, neurological surgery (physical therapy), for. 20.0%, and th. therapy of Chinese medicine (acupuncture, moxacautery, Chinese medicine), for 17.5%, and a pharmacy (medical therapy), for 13.4%. The case of patients not curing, in the distinction of a feature, turned high in case of men 20s years old, unmarried, the lower classes, people having academic careers of university, residents in apartment (having elevator). 6. In e distribution of the extent of satisfaction with treatment, common most accounted for 54.4% and some satisfaction, for 32.8%. The case of common, in the distinction of a feature, turned high, in case of men living alone from 50s to 60s years old (divorce, separation by death, separation), married persons, the upper classes, people having academic careers of university, residents in independent house, residents in apartment (having elevator), 7. In the distribution of the degree of knowledge of the cause of arthritis, patients knowing that the cause is to use very much a articulation in normal times most accounts for 60.1%, and patients knowing the state of short nutrition as a cause, for 2.5%. The case of patients knowing that the cause is to use very much in normal times, in the distinction of a feature, turned high in·case of ment being 20s and 60s years old or more, unmarried persons, e lower classes, people having the ability to decode. the national language, people having academic careers of university, residents in apartment (having stairs), 8. In the distribution of the state of physical exercise before arthritis contracted, patients exercising very much on the whole most accpimend for 40.3%, and patients not exercising, for 34.7%. The case of patients exercising very much on the whole, in the distinction of the feature, turned high in case of men being from 50s to 60s years old or more, people living alone(divorce, separation by death, separation), the lower classes, people having the ability to decode the national language, graduates of a primary school, residents in apartment (having elevator). 9. In the taste of patients suffering from arthritis, while the group of patients falling that ill at first and the recurring group didn't smoke cigarets, during alcohol and coffee on the whole, and the group of patients falling once again that ill drank a cup of distilled linquor and three cup of coffee or more on the whole per one day, and the group of patients falling that ill at first liked sort of vegetables and the recurring group liked very much sons of vegetables and fresh and meat in their loving food normal times. 10. Analysing the distribution on the dining table used by patients and the structure of a powder room, at first, in the structure of a powder room, the group of patients filling that ill have a toilet stool using as their sits, and a Bush toilet on the whole, and the recurring group, a toilet stool using as their sits and conventional type, and in the structure of a dinning table, the group of patients falling that ill at first and the recurring group turned high, each as 66.9% and 6.3%, who have a dining table carring here and there. 11. In the distribution of patients of arthritis in relation to stress, the case that they feeled severly symptoms of arthritis when thay got stress, turned high, each, as 78.6% in the recurring poop, and the case not knowing, as 61.5% in the first group. In the extent of stress normal times, the case that they got much stress on the whole turned high, each, as 72.4% in e recurring group, and the care that got less stress on the whole, as 60.0%. 12. In the distribution on the distinction of symptoms and impedimental extent, the recurring group turned high in each variable. Analysing the feature of the recurring group, in the distinction of symptoms, the case that they fooled much that the node of an articulation is stiff, turned high, as 71.6, and in the distinction of treatment before. patients came to helpk, the theraphy of Chinese medicine (physical theraphy), as 84.4%, the theraphy of Chinese medicine (acupuncture, moxacautery, Chinese medicine), as 73.2%, and in the distinction of the satisfing extent on treatment, the case of comman, as 72.3%, and in the cause of arthritis, the case not recruiting their health after a birth, as 68.5%, and the case not recovering wholely an articulation having got hurt, as 62.8%, and in the state of physical exercise before they begined suffering from arthritis, the case exercising very much on the whole, (as 74.2%), and in the extent of subjective impediment, the case of not being able to act almost, as 66.7%, the case of acting but feeling some hard, as 66.3%. 13. The correlation in variables in relation to arthritis Analysing realted variables, the recurring frequency showed correlation with such as the extent that patients got stress normal times, and the exercising state before suffering arthritis, and showed contra-correlation with academic careers, the wights, coffee. The cigaret, e loving food of taste, showed corralation with the weight, stature, alcohole as the loving food of taste. On the basis of this result medical members of heal, who are related to the regular education, public education or development of this program, should be concerned to prevent orthris.

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A Study on the Planning of Nationwide Indexing Services for Korea (전국색인지간행협동체제 편성방안에 관한 연구)

  • Choi Sung Jin
    • Journal of the Korean Society for Library and Information Science
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    • v.12
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    • pp.39-86
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    • 1985
  • The main purpose of the present study is to survey the major iudexing bulletins of national nature in Korea, to define such problem areas as lacunae, duplicates and limitation in coverage in the indexing services currently available in Korea, and to make some suggestions for action for improving the existing indexing services in the light of general principles and the tradition and constraints unique to Korea. The major findings and conclusions reached at this study are summarised as follows: (A) A new indexing bulletin of general nature covering the entire field needs to be created in each of the following fields without an established indexing service available for the outcome of research and development activities in Korea. (1) Philosophy (2) Religion (3) Pure sciences (4) Art (5) Language (6) Literature (7) History (B) A new specialised indexing bulletin needs to be created in each of the following fields where indexing services are heavily utilised but no, or only partial, indexing service is available. (1) Social sciences (a) Statistics (b) Sociology (c) Folklore (d) Military science (2) Pure sciences (a) Mathematics (b) Physics (c) Chemistry (d) Astronomy (e) Geology (f) Mineralogy (g) Life sciences (h) Botany (i) Zoology (3) Applied sciences (a) Medicine (b) Agriculture (c) Civil engineering (d) Architectural engineering (e) Mechanical engineering (f) Electrical engineering (g) Chemical engineering (h) Domestic science (C) Publication of the indexing bulletins suggested in A and B above may be ideally carried on by a qualified and dependable learned society established in the respective fields and designated by the Minister of Education, and should be financially supported from the public fund under the provisions of Art. 27 of the Scientific Research Promotion Act of 1979. (D) The coverage and contents of the four indexing bulletins in the field of banking and financing published by the Library of the Bank of Korea are similar and considerably duplicated. It is, therefore, suggested that the four indexing bulletins are combined in one to form a more comprehensive and efficient bibliographical tool in the field and it is further developed into a general guide to the literature produced in the entire field of economics in Korea by gradually expanding its subject coverage. (E) For the similar reasons stated in D, the Index to the Articles on North Korea and the Catalogue of Theses on North Korea, both publisheds by the Ministry of Unification Library, are suggested to make into one. The Index to the Articles of the Selected North Korean Journals and the Index to the Articles of the North Korean Journals in Microfilm Housed in the Ministry of Unification Library, both published by the same Library, are also suggested to be combined in one. (F) The contents of the Catalogue of the Reports Submitted by Government Officials Who Have Travelled Abroad, published by the National Archives are included in the Index to the Information Materials Related to Government Administration, published by the National Archives. The publication of the former is hardly justified. (G) The contents of the Index to Legal Literature published by the Seoul National University Libraries and those of the Law Section of the Index to Scholastic Works published by the National Central Library are nearly identical. One of the two indexes should cease to be published. (H) Though five indexes are being published in the field of political science and four in the field of public administration, their subject coverage is limited. Naturally, these indexes are little usable to many other researchers in the two fields. A comprehensive index covering all the specialised areas in each field needs to be developed on one or all the existing indexes. (I) It is suggested that the Catalogue of the Scholastic Works on Curricula published by the National Central Library expands its subject coverage to become a more usable and effective index to all the researchers in the field of education. (J) The bimonthly Index to Periodical Articles and the specialised index by subject series published by the National Assembly Library, and the Index to Scholastic Works published by the National Central Library are expected to increase their coverage and frequency of publication to be used more effectively and more efficiently by all users in all fields till the indexing bulletins suggested in this study will fully be available in Korea.

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Wearable Computers

  • Cho, Gil-Soo;Barfield, Woodrow;Baird, Kevin
    • Fiber Technology and Industry
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    • v.2 no.4
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    • pp.490-508
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    • 1998
  • One of the latest fields of research in the area of output devices is tactual display devices [13,31]. These tactual or haptic devices allow the user to receive haptic feedback output from a variety of sources. This allows the user to actually feel virtual objects and manipulate them by touch. This is an emerging technology and will be instrumental in enhancing the realism of wearable augmented environments for certain applications. Tactual displays have previously been used for scientific visualization in virtual environments by chemists and engineers to improve perception and understanding of force fields and of world models populated with the impenetrable. In addition to tactual displays, the use of wearable audio displays that allow sound to be spatialized are being developed. With wearable computers, designers will soon be able to pair spatialized sound to virtual representations of objects when appropriate to make the wearable computer experience even more realistic to the user. Furthermore, as the number and complexity of wearable computing applications continues to grow, there will be increasing needs for systems that are faster, lighter, and have higher resolution displays. Better networking technology will also need to be developed to allow all users of wearable computers to have high bandwidth connections for real time information gathering and collaboration. In addition to the technology advances that make users need to wear computers in everyday life, there is also the desire to have users want to wear their computers. In order to do this, wearable computing needs to be unobtrusive and socially acceptable. By making wearables smaller and lighter, or actually embedding them in clothing, users can conceal them easily and wear them comfortably. The military is currently working on the development of the Personal Information Carrier (PIC) or digital dog tag. The PIC is a small electronic storage device containing medical information about the wearer. While old military dog tags contained only 5 lines of information, the digital tags may contain volumes of multi-media information including medical history, X-rays, and cardiograms. Using hand held devices in the field, medics would be able to call this information up in real time for better treatment. A fully functional transmittable device is still years off, but this technology once developed in the military, could be adapted tp civilian users and provide ant information, medical or otherwise, in a portable, not obstructive, and fashionable way. Another future device that could increase safety and well being of its users is the nose on-a-chip developed by the Oak Ridge National Lab in Tennessee. This tiny digital silicon chip about the size of a dime, is capable of 'smelling' natural gas leaks in stoves, heaters, and other appliances. It can also detect dangerous levels of carbon monoxide. This device can also be configured to notify the fire department when a leak is detected. This nose chip should be commercially available within 2 years, and is inexpensive, requires low power, and is very sensitive. Along with gas detection capabilities, this device may someday also be configured to detect smoke and other harmful gases. By embedding this chip into workers uniforms, name tags, etc., this could be a lifesaving computational accessory. In addition to the future safety technology soon to be available as accessories are devices that are for entertainment and security. The LCI computer group is developing a Smartpen, that electronically verifies a user's signature. With the increase in credit card use and the rise in forgeries, is the need for commercial industries to constantly verify signatures. This Smartpen writes like a normal pen but uses sensors to detect the motion of the pen as the user signs their name to authenticate the signature. This computational accessory should be available in 1999, and would bring increased peace of mind to consumers and vendors alike. In the entertainment domain, Panasonic is creating the first portable hand-held DVD player. This device weight less than 3 pounds and has a screen about 6' across. The color LCD has the same 16:9 aspect ratio of a cinema screen and supports a high resolution of 280,000 pixels and stereo sound. The player can play standard DVD movies and has a hour battery life for mobile use. To summarize, in this paper we presented concepts related to the design and use of wearable computers with extensions to smart spaces. For some time, researchers in telerobotics have used computer graphics to enhance remote scenes. Recent advances in augmented reality displays make it possible to enhance the user's local environment with 'information'. As shown in this paper, there are many application areas for this technology such as medicine, manufacturing, training, and recreation. Wearable computers allow a much closer association of information with the user. By embedding sensors in the wearable to allow it to see what the user sees, hear what the user hears, sense the user's physical state, and analyze what the user is typing, an intelligent agent may be able to analyze what the user is doing and try to predict the resources he will need next or in the near future. Using this information, the agent may download files, reserve communications bandwidth, post reminders, or automatically send updates to colleagues to help facilitate the user's daily interactions. This intelligent wearable computer would be able to act as a personal assistant, who is always around, knows the user's personal preferences and tastes, and tries to streamline interactions with the rest of the world.

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