• Title/Summary/Keyword: Risk Potential

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Distribution and Pollution Assessment of Heavy Metals in Surface Sediments Near Gwangan Bridge (광안대교 인근 퇴적토 중의 중금속 농도 및 오염도 조사 연구)

  • Lee, Junho;Yang, Changgeun;Lee, Taeyoon
    • Journal of the Korean GEO-environmental Society
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    • v.19 no.11
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    • pp.15-22
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    • 2018
  • The main objective of this study was to analyse heavy metals in sediments obtained from Gwangan bridge and to evaluate pollution intensity of the sites. To evaluate pollution intensity of the sites, we used enrichment factor (EF), geoaccumulation index, potential ecological risk factor (PERF), and mean PEL quotient. Pollution intensities of these sites were evaluated by above methods, and we found most dangerous heavy metal and polluted sites. All sites showed non polluted or low risk for the heavy metals such as Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, and Zn, but all sites were categorized as minor enrichment for Cd. G4 was evaluated as moderately polluted by Cd ($I_{geo}$) but other sites were unpolluted by heavy metals. In summary, Cd was found to be higher concentrations for all sites. For G4 and G5 sites, Pb and Zn in addition to Cd were higher than other sites.

Potential Risk of Collisions at Intersections Between Crossing Bicycles and Right-turning Cars (교차로에서 우회전차량과 횡단자전거와의 상충위험성에 관한 연구)

  • Lee, Jin Wook;Kim, Kap-Soo;Hwang, Jung-Hoon;Kim, Keun Uk
    • Journal of Korean Society of Transportation
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    • v.31 no.1
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    • pp.57-64
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    • 2013
  • Recently, bicycle accidents have increased with the ever-increasing number of cyclists. Bicycle accidents occurred frequently in intersections, and the perpendicular collision between a right-turning car and a crossing bicycle was the most prevalent accident type. In particular, the collision was caused by motorists' carelessness. In other words, the accident-involved motorists did not pay sufficient attention to a bicycle crossing behind them. Another cause was a cyclist's higher speed than pedestrians. This paper evaluated the potential risk of the collision between right-turning cars and crossing bicycles based on simulation experiments, with motorists' speed and carelessness focused on. Consequently, it was found that to reduce the potential risk of the collisions a motorist should slow down and pay more attention to the rear sight by turning his/her head.

The Impact of Perceived Risks Upon Consumer Trust and Purchase Intentions (인지된 위험의 유형이 소비자 신뢰 및 온라인 구매의도에 미치는 영향)

  • Hong, Il-Yoo B.;Kim, Woo-Sung;Lim, Byung-Ha
    • Asia pacific journal of information systems
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    • v.21 no.4
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    • pp.1-25
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    • 2011
  • Internet-based commerce has undergone an explosive growth over the past decade as consumers today find it more economical as well as more convenient to shop online. Nevertheless, the shift in the common mode of shopping from offline to online commerce has caused consumers to have worries over such issues as private information leakage, online fraud, discrepancy in product quality and grade, unsuccessful delivery, and so forth, Numerous studies have been undertaken to examine the role of perceived risk as a chief barrier to online purchases and to understand the theoretical relationships among perceived risk, trust and purchase intentions, However, most studies focus on empirically investigating the effects of trust on perceived risk, with little attention devoted to the effects of perceived risk on trust, While the influence trust has on perceived risk is worth studying, the influence in the opposite direction is equally important, enabling insights into the potential of perceived risk as a prohibitor of trust, According to Pavlou (2003), the primary source of the perceived risk is either the technological uncertainty of the Internet environment or the behavioral uncertainty of the transaction partner. Due to such types of uncertainty, an increase in the worries over the perceived risk may negatively affect trust, For example, if a consumer who sends sensitive transaction data over Internet is concerned that his or her private information may leak out because of the lack of security, trust may decrease (Olivero and Lunt, 2004), By the same token, if the consumer feels that the online merchant has the potential to profit by behaving in an opportunistic manner taking advantage of the remote, impersonal nature of online commerce, then it is unlikely that the merchant will be trusted, That is, the more the probable danger is likely to occur, the less trust and the greater need to control the transaction (Olivero and Lunt, 2004), In summary, a review of the related studies indicates that while some researchers looked at the influence of overall perceived risk on trust level, not much attention has been given to the effects of different types of perceived risk, In this context the present research aims at addressing the need to study how trust is affected by different types of perceived risk, We classified perceived risk into six different types based on the literature, and empirically analyzed the impact of each type of perceived risk upon consumer trust in an online merchant and further its impact upon purchase intentions. To meet our research objectives, we developed a conceptual model depicting the nomological structure of the relationships among our research variables, and also formulated a total of seven hypotheses. The model and hypotheses were tested using an empirical analysis based on a questionnaire survey of 206 college students. The reliability was evaluated via Cronbach's alphas, the minimum of which was found to be 0.73, and therefore the questionnaire items are all deemed reliable. In addition, the results of confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) designed to check the validity of the measurement model indicate that the convergent, discriminate, and nomological validities of the model are all acceptable. The structural equation modeling analysis to test the hypotheses yielded the following results. Of the first six hypotheses (H1-1 through H1-6) designed to examine the relationships between each risk type and trust, three hypotheses including H1-1 (performance risk ${\rightarrow}$ trust), H1-2 (psychological risk ${\rightarrow}$ trust) and H1-5 (online payment risk ${\rightarrow}$ trust) were supported with path coefficients of -0.30, -0.27 and -0.16 respectively. Finally, H2 (trust ${\rightarrow}$ purchase intentions) was supported with relatively high path coefficients of 0.73. Results of the empirical study offer the following findings and implications. First. it was found that it was performance risk, psychological risk and online payment risk that have a statistically significant influence upon consumer trust in an online merchant. It implies that a consumer may find an online merchant untrustworthy if either the product quality or the product grade does not match his or her expectations. For that reason, online merchants including digital storefronts and e-marketplaces are suggested to pursue a strategy focusing on identifying the target customers and offering products that they feel best meet performance and psychological needs of those customers. Thus, they should do their best to make it widely known that their products are of as good quality and grade as those purchased from offline department stores. In addition, it may be inferred that today's online consumers remain concerned about the security of the online commerce environment due to the repeated occurrences of hacking or private information leakage. Online merchants should take steps to remove potential vulnerabilities and provide online notices to emphasize that their website is secure. Second, consumer's overall trust was found to have a statistically significant influence on purchase intentions. This finding, which is consistent with the results of numerous prior studies, suggests that increased sales will become a reality only with enhanced consumer trust.

Human Risk Assessment for Exposure to Heavy Metals within Finishing Materials of Playground Facilities for Children in Gwangju (광주지역 어린이 놀이시설 마감재의 중금속 노출에 의한 인체 위해성평가)

  • Sang-Hoon Yoon;So-Young Kim;Eun Cho;Tae-Hui Nam;Jin-Hwan Park;Hwa-Jin Kong;Ki-Won Lee;Gwang-Yeob Seo;Jeong-Hun Park;Kyoung-Woo Min
    • Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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    • v.50 no.2
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    • pp.146-156
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    • 2024
  • Background: Children who use playground facilities are exposed to potential risks due to the high concentration of heavy metals contained in the finishing materials of facilities in children's playgrounds. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to investigate the concentration of heavy metals in the finishing materials of outdoor children's playgrounds where harmful heavy metals exist in Gwangju and to conduct human risk assessment for children and adults by age to find the risks and limitations. Methods: The bottom and top layers of double-painted paint were peeled off and collected together from the finishing materials of children's play facilities such as slides, swings, and seesaws in 147 children's parks in Gwangju. Heavy metals were analyzed using ICP-OES, etc., and human risk assessment was performed using the concentrations of heavy metals. Results: Based on 1.0E-04, which requires legal regulation, CTE was found to pose a carcinogenic risk for preschool children and no carcinogenic risk for the rest of the age groups. However, RME showed that both men and women of all ages had a carcinogenic risk. For reference, when the carcinogenic risk was based on 1.0E-06, CTE was found to pose a carcinogenic risk from infants to elementary school students, and RME was found to have a carcinogenic risk in all age groups. It was judged that there is a non-carcinogenic risk if the non-carcinogenic risk exceeds 1 based on the hazard index (HI) 1. In CTE, there was no non-carcinogenic risk, and RME for preschooler males (1.49E+00) and females (1.56E+00) were found to have non-carcinogenic risk. Conclusions: This study was meaningful in that it examines the differences in the current management of heavy metals concentration standards and potential carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic risks to the human body and discusses the relationship between heavy metals and human health effects.

Effects of Abdominal Obesity and Risk Drinking on the Hypertension Risk in Korean Adults (복부비만과 위험음주가 성인의 고혈압에 미치는 영향)

  • Lee, Eun Sook
    • Research in Community and Public Health Nursing
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    • v.29 no.3
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    • pp.349-358
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    • 2018
  • Purpose: This study was conducted to investigate the combined effects of abdominal obesity and alcohol drinking on the risk of hypertension in Korean adults (aged ${\geq}30yrs$). Methods: Data of 13,885 subjects from the sixth Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey were analyzed. The multiple logistic regression tests were used for the analysis, including potential covariates of the model. Results: Frequency of drinking, typical drinking quantity, and frequency of binge drinking had a positive relation to hypertension. The odds ratio of hypertension for risk drinkers with abdominal obesity was 4.81 compared to non-risk drinkers with normal waist circumstance, whereas the odds ratios of hypertension for risk drinkers with normal waist circumstance and non-risk drinkers with abdominal obesity were 1.58 and 2.37 respectively. Conclusion: Both abdominal obesity and alcohol drinking patterns were strong risk factors of hypertension in the Korean adults. Risk drinkers with abdominal obesity showed a marked high risk in hypertension compared to those with a single condition alone.

PRA RESEARCH AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF RISK-INFORMED REGULATION AT THE U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

  • Siu, Nathan;Collins, Dorothy
    • Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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    • v.40 no.5
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    • pp.349-364
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    • 2008
  • Over the years, probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) research activities conducted at the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) have played an essential role in support of the agency's move towards risk-informed regulation. These research activities have provided the technical basis for NRC's regulatory activities in key areas; provided PRA methods, tools, and data enabling the agency to meet future challenges; supported the implementation of NRC's 1995 PRA Policy Statement by assessing key sources of risk; and supported the development of necessary technical and human resources supporting NRC's risk-informed activities. PRA research aimed at improving the NRC's understanding of risk can positively affect the agency's regulatory activities, as evidenced by three case studies involving research on fire PRA, human reliability analysis (HRA), and pressurized thermal shock (PTS) PRA. These case studies also show that such research can take a considerable amount of time, and that the incorporation of research results into regulatory practice can take even longer. The need for sustained effort and appropriate lead time is an important consideration in the development of a PRA research program aimed at helping the agency address key sources of risk for current and potential future facilities.

A two-step interval risk assessment method for water inrush during seaside tunnel excavation

  • Zhou, Binghua;Xue, Yiguo;Li, Zhiqiang;Gao, Haidong;Su, Maoxin;Qiu, Daohong;Kong, Fanmeng
    • Geomechanics and Engineering
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    • v.28 no.6
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    • pp.573-584
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    • 2022
  • Water inrush may occur during seaside urban tunnel excavation. Various factors affect the water inrush, and the water inrush mechanism is complex. In this study, nine evaluation indices having potential effects on water inrush were analysed. Specifically, the geographic and geomorphic conditions, unfavourable geology, distance from the tunnel to sea, strength of the surrounding rock, groundwater level, tidal action, cyclical footage, grouting pressure, and grouting reinforced region were analysed. Furthermore, a two-step interval risk assessment method for water inrush management during seaside urban tunnel excavation was developed by a multi-index system and interval risk assessment comprised of an interval analytic hierarchy process, fuzzy comprehensive evaluation, and relative superiority analysis. The novel assessment method was applied to the Haicang Tunnel successfully. A preliminary interval risk assessment method for water inrush was performed based on engineering geological conditions. As a result, the risk level fell into a risk level IV, which represents a section with high risk. Subsequently, a secondary interval risk assessment method was performed based on engineering geological conditions and construction conditions. The risk level of water inrush is reduced to a risk level II. The results agreed with the current tunnel situation, which verified the reliability of this approach.

Uncertainties in Risk Assessment

  • Hattis Dale;Froines John
    • 대한예방의학회:학술대회논문집
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    • 1994.02a
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    • pp.440-449
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    • 1994
  • Current risk assessment practices largely reflect the need for a consistent set of relatively rapid, first-cut procedures to assess 'plausible upper limits' of various risks. These practices have important roles to play in 1) screening candidate hazards for initial attention and 2) directing attention to cases where moderate-cost measures to control exposures are likely to be warranted, in the absence of further extensive (and expensive) data gathering and analysis. A problem with the current practices, however, is that they have led assessors to do a generally poor job of analyzing and expressing uncertainties, fostering 'One-Number Disease' (in which everything from one's social policy position on risk acceptance to one's technical judgment on the likelihood of different cancer dose-response relationships is rolled into a single quantity). At least for analyses that involve relatively important decisions for society (both relatively large potential health risks and relatively large potential economic costs or other disruptions), we can and should at least go one further step - and that is to assess and convey both a central tendency estimate of exposure and risk as well as our more conventional 'conservative' upper-confidence-limit values. To accomplish this, more sophisticated efforts are needed to appropriately represent the likely effects of various sources of uncertainty along the casual chain from the release of toxicants to the production of adverse effects. When the effects of individual sources of uncertainty are assessed (and any important interactions included), Monte Carlo simulation procedures can be used to produce an overall analysis of uncertainties and to highlight areas where uncertainties might be appreciably reduced by further study. Beyond the information yielded by such analyses for decision-making in a few important cases, the value of doing several exemplary risk assessments in. this way is that a set of benchmarks can be defined that will help calibrate the assumptions used in the larger number of risk assessments that must be done by 'default' procedures.

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Risk Assessment of Human Exposure to Methidathion during Harvest of Cucumber in Green House

  • Byoun Ji-Youn;Choi Hoon;Moon Joon-Kwan;Park Hee-Won;Liu Kwang-Hyeon;Ihm Yang-Bin;Park Byeoung-Soo;Kim Jeong-Han
    • Toxicological Research
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    • v.21 no.4
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    • pp.297-301
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    • 2005
  • Farmers are generally expressed to pesticides through mixing loding, application activity and harvesting of crop after application of pesticides. The present work investigated the exposure and risk of furathiocarb to workers when harvesting of cucumber was carried out in green house after application of furathiocarb EC. Glove was used for the hand exposure assessment, socks for foot and dermal patches for the other parts of body. Personal air monitor equipped with a XAD-2 resin was used for the respiratory exposure assessment. During the harvest of cucumber in green house, the initial rate of potential dermal exposure (Day 1) for methidathion was 1.3 mg/hr. The major exposure parts were hand $(78\~83\%),\;thigh\;(5\~7\%)$ and arms $(6\~9\%)$ during 3 days' harvest. No exposure was detected from the respiratory monitoring. For risk assessment, the potential dermal exposure (PDE), the absorbable quantity of exposure (AQE) and the margin of safety (MOS) and margin of exposure (MOE) were calculated. In risk assessment of harvester exposure for 7days, all MOS was > 1 and MOE was > 100 indicating that possibility of risk was little.

Multiple Sexual Partners as a Potential Independent Risk Factor for Cervical Cancer: a Meta-analysis of Epidemiological Studies

  • Liu, Zhi-Chang;Liu, Wei-Dong;Liu, Yan-Hui;Ye, Xiao-Hua;Chen, Si-Dong
    • Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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    • v.16 no.9
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    • pp.3893-3900
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    • 2015
  • It's known that having multiple sexual partners is one of the risk factors of human papillomavirus (HPV) infection which is a major cause of cervical cancer. However, it is not clear whether the number of sexual partners is an independent risk factor for cervical cancer. We identified relevant studies by searching the databases of MEDLINE, PubMed and ScienceDirect published in English from January 1980 to January 2014. We analyzed those studies by combining the study-specific odds ratios (ORs) using random-effects models. Forty-one studies were included in this meta-analysis. We observed that the number of sexual partners was associated with the occurrence of non-malignant cervical disease (OR=1.82, 95%CI 1.63-2.00) and invasive cervical carcinoma (OR=1.77, 95%CI 1.50-2.05). Subgroup analyses revealed that the association remained significant after controlling for HPV infection (OR=1.52, 95%CI 1.21-1.83 for non-malignant disease; OR=1.53, 95%CI 1.30-1.76 for invasive cervical carcinoma). We found that there was a non-linear relation of the number of sexual partners with both non-malignant cervical disease and invasive cervical carcinoma. The risk of both malignant and non-malignant disease is relatively stable in women with more than 4-7 sexual partners. Furthermore, the frequency-risk of disease remained significant after controlling for HPV infection.The study suggested that h aving multiple sexual partners, with or without HPV infection, is a potential risk factor of cervical cancer.