• Journal of Life Science
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.71-76
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• 2010

The purpose of this study was to investigate the changes of long term ECG response in a company with middle-aged male employees. Subjects were 60 men who were 40~55 years old. We enrolled 30 exercise group subjects into a 3-year exercise program. In measurement index, body composition was measured by % body fat and BMI. Exercise stress test analyses were measured using ST/HR slope and QRS vector. Statistical analysis was performed using analysis of repeated ANOVA. Results of this study were as follows: In ST/HR slope, the control group showed symptoms of ischemia after nine minutes of exercise. In the rest frontal axis of the QRS vector, the control group had a tendency towards right axis deviation. In the rest horizontal amplitude of the QRS vector, the control group had a tendency to show a significant decrease, but it was increased significantly in the exercise group. These findings suggest that inactive company workers was showed a decrease of exercise capacity, early diagnosis exercise-induced ST depression, and prolonged deviation of QRS vector, but that cardiac function could be elevated in active middle aged men through regular exercise program participation.

• Journal of Korea Water Resources Association
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.317-326
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• 1998

Water consumption characteristics on the northern part of Seoul were analyzed using wavelet transform with a base function of Coiflets 5. It turns out that long term evolution mode detected at 212 scale in 1995 was in a shape of hyperbolic tangent over the entire period due to the development of Sanggae resident site. Furthermore, there was seasonal water demand having something to do with economic cycle which reached its peak at the ends of June and December. The amount of this additional consumption was about $1,700\;\textrm{cm}^3/hr$ on June and $500\;\textrm{cm}^3/hr$ on December. It was also shown that the periods of energy containing sinusoidal component were 3.13 day, 33.33 hr, 23.98 hr and 12 hr, respectively, and the amplitude of 23.98 hr component was the most humongous. The components of relatively short frequency detected at $2^i$[i = 1,2,…12] scale were following Gaussian PDF. The most reliable predictive models are multiple AR[32,16,23] and ARMA[20, 16, 10, 23] which the input of temperature from the view point of minimized predictive error, mutual independence or residuals and the availableness of reliable meteorological data. The predicted values of water supply were quite consistent with the measured data which cast a possibility of the deployment of the predictive model developed in this study for the optimal management of water supply facilities.

• Science of Emotion and Sensibility
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.95-110
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• 2016

Uncanny valley refers to the condition where the affinity of a human-like object decreases dramatically if the object becomes extremely similar to human, and has been hypothesized to derive from the cognitive load of categorical conflict against an uncanny object. According to the hypothesis, the present study ran an oddball task consisting of trials each displaying one among a non-human, human and uncanny face, and measured event-related potentials (ERPs) for each trial condition. In Experiment 1, a non-human face was presented in 80% of the trials (standard) whereas a human face for another 10% trials (target) and an uncanny face for the remaining 10% trials (uncanny). Participants' responses were relatively inaccurate and delayed in both the target and uncanny oddball trials, but neither P3 nor N170 component differed across the three trial conditions. Experiment 2 used 3-D rendered realistic faces to increase the degree of categorical conflict, and found the behavioral results were similar to Experiment 1. However, the peak amplitude of N170 of the target and uncanny trials were higher than the standard trials while P3 mean amplitudes for both the target and uncanny trials were comparable but higher than the amplitude for the standard trials. P3 latencies were delayed in the order of the standard, target, and uncanny trials. The changes in N170 and P3 patterns across the experiments appear to arise from the categorical conflict that the uncanny face must be categorized as a non-target according to the oddball-task requirement despite its perceived category of a human face. The observed increase of cognitive load following the added reality to the uncanny face also indicates that the cognitive load, supposedly responsible for the uncanny experience, would depend on the increase of categorical conflict information subsequent to added stimulus complexity.

• Progress in Medical Physics
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.209-217
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• 2010

Retinal prostheses are being developed to restore vision for the blind with retinal diseases such as retinitis pigmentosa (RP) or age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Since retinal prostheses depend upon electrical stimulation to control neural activity, optimal stimulation parameters for successful encoding of visual information are one of the most important requirements to enable visual perception. Therefore, in this paper, we focused on retinal ganglion cell (RGC) responses to different voltage stimulation parameters and compared threshold charge densities in normal and rd1 mice. For this purpose, we used in vitro preparation for the retina of normal and rd1 mice on micro-electrode arrays. When the neural network of rd1 mouse retinas is stimulated with voltage-controlled pulses, RGCs in degenerated retina also respond to voltage amplitude or voltage duration modulation as well in wild-type RGCs. But the temporal pattern of RGCs response is very different; in wild-type RGCs, single peak within 100 ms appears while in RGCs in degenerated retina multiple peaks (~4 peaks) with ~10 Hz rhythm within 400 ms appear. The thresholds for electrical activation of RGCs are overall more elevated in rd1 mouse retinas compared to wild-type mouse retinas: The thresholds for activation of RGCs in rd1 mouse retinas were on average two times higher ($70.50{\sim}99.87\;{\mu}C/cm^2$ vs. $37.23{\sim}61.65\;{\mu}C/cm^2$) in the experiment of voltage amplitude modulation and five times higher ($120.5{\sim}170.6\;{\mu}C/cm^2$ vs. $22.69{\sim}37.57\;{\mu}C/cm^2$) in the experiment of voltage duration modulation than those in wild-type mouse retinas. This is compatible with the findings from human studies that the currents required for evoking visual percepts in RP patients is much higher than those needed in healthy individuals. These results will be used as a guideline for optimal stimulation parameters for upcoming Korean-type retinal prosthesis.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.23 no.3
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• pp.452-464
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• 1990

It is well known that extracellular Calcium plays a very important role in several steps of smooth muscle excitability and contractility, and there have been many concerns about factors influencing the distribution of extracellular Ca++ and the Ca++ flux through the cell membrane of the smooth muscle. Based on the assumption that Mg++ may also play an important role in the excitation and contraction processes of the smooth muscle by taking part in affecting Ca++ distribution and flux, many researches are being performed about the exact role of Mg++, especially in the vascular smooth muscle. But yet the effect of Mg++ in the smooth muscle activity is not clarified, and moreover the mechanism of Mg++ action is almost completely unknown. Present study attempted to clarify the effect of Mg++ on the excitability and contractility in the multiunit and unitary smooth muscle, and the mechanism concerned in it. The preparations used were the guinea-pig aortic strip as the experimental material of the multiunit smooth muscle and the rat uterine strip as the one of the unitary smooth muscle. The tissues were isolated from the sacrificed animal and were prepared for recording the isometric contraction. The effects of Mg++ and Ca++ were examined on the electrically driven or spontaneous contraction of the preparations. And the effects of these ions were also studied on the K+ or norepinephrine contracture. All experiments were performed in tris-buffered Tyrode solution which was aerated with 100% 02 and kept at 35oC. The results obtained were as follows: 1] Mg++ suppressed the phasic contraction induced by electrical field stimulation dose-dependently in the guinea-pig aortic strip, while the high concentration of Ca++ never recovered the decreased tension. These phenomena were not changed by the a - or b - adrenergic blocker. 2]Mg++ played the suppressing effect on the low concentration [20 and 40 mM] of K+-contracture in the aortic muscle, but the effect was not shown in the case of 100mM K+-contracture. 3] Mg++ also suppressed the contracture induced by norepinephrine in the aortic preparation. And the effect of Mg++ was most prominent in the contracture by the lowest [10 mM] concentration of norepinephrine. 4] In both the spontaneous and electrically driven contractions of the uterine strip, Mg++ decreased the amplitude of peak tension, and by the high concentration of Ca++ the amplitude of tension was recovered unlike the aortic muscle. 5] The frequency of the uterine spontaneous contraction increased as the [Ca++] / [Mg++] ratio increased up to 2, but the frequency decreased above this level. 6] Mg++ decreased the tension of the low[20 and 40mM] K+-contracture in the uterine smooth muscle, but the effect did not appear in the 100mM K+-contracture. From the above results, the following conclusion could be made. 1] Mg++ seems to suppress the contractility directly by acting on the smooth muscle itself, besides through the indirect action on the nerve terminal, in both the aortic and uterine smooth muscles. 2] The fact that the depressant effect of Mg++ on the K+-contracture is in inverse proportion to an increase of K+ concentration appears resulted from the extent of the opening state of the Ca++ channel. 3] Mg++ may play a depressant role on both the potential dependent and the receptor-operated Ca++ channels. 4] The relationship between the actions of Mg++ and Ca++ seems to be competitive in uterine muscle and non-competitive in aortic strip.

• Science of Emotion and Sensibility
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.107-116
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• 2013

In the implementation of a P300 speller, rows and columns paradigm (RCP) is most commonly used. However, the RCP remains subject to adjacency-distraction error and double-flash problems. This study suggests a novel P300 speller stimuli presentation-the sub-block paradigm (SBP) that is likely to solve the problems effectively. Fifteen subjects participated in this experiment where both SBP and RCP were used to implement the P300 speller. Electroencephalography (EEG) activity was recorded from Fz, Cz, Pz, Oz, P3, P4, PO7, and PO8. Each paradigm consisted of a training phase to train a classifier and a testing phase to evaluate the speller. Eighteen characters were used for the target stimuli in the training phase. Additionally, 5 subjects were required to spell 50 characters and the rest of the subjects were to spell 25 characters in the testing phase. Classification accuracy results show that average accuracy was significantly higher in SBP as of 83.73% than that of RCP as of 66.40%. Grand mean event-related potentials (ERPs) at Pz show that positive peak amplitude for the target stimuli was greater in SBP compared to that of RCP. It was found that subjects tended to attend more to the characters in SBP. According to the participants' ratings on how comfortable they were with using each type of paradigm on 7-point Likert scale, most subjects responded 'very difficult' in RCP while responding 'medium' and 'easy' in SBP. The result showed that SBP was felt more comfortable than RCP by the subjects. In sum, the SBP was more correct in P300 speller performance as well as more convenient for users than the RCP. The actual limitations in the study were discussed in the last part of this paper.

• Phonetics and Speech Sciences
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• v.11 no.3
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• pp.69-76
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• 2019

This study aimed to investigate the effects of vocal aerobic treatment (VAT) on the improvement of voice in patients with voice disorders. Twenty patients (13 males, 7 females) were diagnosed with voice disorders on the basis of videostroboscopy and voice evaluations. Acoustic evaluation was performed with the Multidimensional voice program (MDVP) and Voice Range Profile (VRP) of Computerized Speech Lab (CSL), and aerodynamic evaluation with PAS (Phonatory Aerodynamic System). The changes in F0, Jitter, Shimmer, and NHR before and after treatment were measured by MDVP. F0 range and Energy range were measured with VRP before and after treatment, and the changes in Expiratory Volume (FVC), Phonation Time (PHOT), Mean Expiratory Airflow (MEAF), Mean Peak Air Pressure (MPAP), and Aerodynamic Efficiency (AEFF) with PAS. Videostroboscopy was performed to evaluate the regularity, symmetry, mucosal wave, and amplitude changes of both vocal cords before and after treatment. Voice therapy was performed once a week for each patient using the VAT program in a holistic voice therapy approach. The average number of treatments per patient was 6.5. In the MDVP, Jitter, Shimmer, and NHR showed statistically significant decreases (p < .001, p < .01, p < .05). VRP results showed that Hz and semitones in the frequency range improved significantly after treatment (p < .01, p < .05), as did PAS, FVC, and PHOT (p < .01, p < .001). The results for videostroboscopy, functional voice disorder, laryngopharyngeal reflux, and benign vocal fold lesions were normal. Thus, the VAT program was found to be effective in improving the acoustic and aerodynamic aspects of the voice of patients with voice disorders. In future studies, the effect of VAT on the same group of voice disorders should be studied. It is also necessary to investigate subjective voice improvement and objective voice improvement. Furthermore, it is necessary to examine the effects of VAT in professional voice users.