• Korean Journal of Agricultural Science
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• v.50 no.4
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• pp.663-673
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• 2023

The purpose of this study was to scientifically activate the forest healing program activities for the elderly. The predicted mean vote (PMV) and predicted percentage of dissatisfied (PPD), which are indices of thermal comfort in the thermal environment, and degree of canopy closure were compared and analyzed. Based on this information, the study objective was to present the appropriate conditions for maintaining the best comfort for the elderly. Six deck road shelters, which are the most active locations in forest healing programs among the National Center for Forest Therapy, were selected as the study sites. The results indicated that in the case of the conditions of 1 clo (clothing insulation value) and 1 met (metabolic rate) at an air temperature of 19 to 21 degrees in September on the measurement date, the PMV values ranged between -1.85 and -0.98 at all sites, and PPD values ranged between 25.60% and 68.68%. On the other hand, in the case of 1.3 clo and 1.6 met conditions, the PMV values ranged between -0.08 and 0.23 for all sites and PPD values ranged between 5.40 and 6.18. As shown above, the difference in thermal environment comfort and satisfaction according to the condition of the amount of metabolism and the amount of clothing could be confirmed. In addition, an analysis of the relation between PPD and canopy closure suggested a significantly positive correlation between them, and it was found that canopy closure was a factor affecting thermal comfort. Studies on effects of forest thermal environmental comfort and canopy closure on forest healing program areas should be conducted extensively according to seasonal conditions to provide information that can be used for more effective forest healing programs.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.62 no.1
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• pp.64-74
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• 2024

This pilot study aimed to investigate the effects of regional and seasonal variations on the prevalence of Theileria orientalis and the hematological profile of non-grazed dairy cows in Korea. A total of 365 clinically healthy lactating Holstein Friesian cows from 26 dairy farms in 7 provinces that were categorized into northern, central, and southern regions were sampled during the warm period from July to August and the cold period from October to December. The detection of T. orientalis major piroplasm surface protein gene and the hematology non-grazed dairy cows were analyzed using peripheral blood samples. The T. orientalis prevalence was 20.0% (73/365). The prevalence in the southern region was 35.9%, which was significantly higher than that in the central (21.6%) and northern (12.9%) regions (P<0.05). The prevalence during warm period was higher (43.0%) than that during the cold season (13.5%). The infected cows showed significantly lower erythrocyte counts in the southern region (5.8±0.6 M/㎕) and during the warm period (5.8±0.7 M/㎕) compared with those in the central and northern regions and during the cold season, which affected the extended RBC parameters, including hematocrit and hemoglobin concentrations. Our findings revealed the prevalence of T. orientalis in Korea, highlighting its high occurrence during warm periods and in certain geographical regions. Climatic factors could contribute to the health and productivity of cattle, as evidenced by the prevalence of T. orientalis and its negative impact on animals.

• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
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• v.66 no.5
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• pp.920-935
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• 2024

Embryo transfer plays a crucial role in enhancing the breeding value of livestock; it has been applied in Hanwoo cattle, which is a popular breed for beef production in Korea. Both in vivo-derived (IVD) and in vitro-produced (IVP) embryos are used for this purpose; however, IVP embryos have been preferred recently owing to advancements in ovum pick-up (OPU) technology and genomic selection. Despite technological advancements, comprehensive data on large-scale OPU/IVEP/embryo transfer in Hanwoo cows are lacking. In this study, 16 elite Hanwoo donor cows were selected on the basis of specific criteria. Oocytes were retrieved from 241 cows using OPU. The collected cumulus-oocyte complexes (COCs) were matured, fertilized, and cultured in vitro to produce transferable embryos. Embryos were classified according to their developmental stage and then transferred to 675 recipient cows. A total of 3,317 COCs were collected, with an average of 13.76 COCs per cow. The number of transferable embryos produced per cow was 3.7. Hanwoo OPU-derived IVP embryos exhibited a higher production yield than the global average, indicating a stable IVEP environment. Both fresh and frozen IVP embryos yielded similar conception rates; hence, the use of vitrified-thawed embryos in transfer plans feasible. However, frozen-thawed embryos at Stage 7 had a lower conception rate than those at earlier stages. There was no significant difference between the conception rates of sexually mature heifers and postpartum cows used as recipients. The male-to-female offspring ratio increased as the developmental stage progressed. Seasonal effects on conception rates were not observed; however, higher abortion rates and a higher proportion of male offspring were observed during winter. This study provides valuable data for the Korean embryo transfer industry, enabling more strategic growth of the domestic Hanwoo embryo industry.

• Journal of Korean Society on Water Environment
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• v.40 no.5
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• pp.229-242
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• 2024

This study investigated water quality characteristics and influencing factors of park drinking fountains having directly piped water systems by analyzing stagnation water (first draw) and water after a 10-minute flush (flushed water). First draws exhibited significant variations in residual chlorine, heavy metals, bacteria, and turbidity, which were largely influenced by usage frequency and external environmental contamination. However, water quality stabilized after flushing. A seasonal analysis indicated that the greatest difference in residual chlorine between first draws and flushed water occurred in spring, followed by that in winter when drinking fountains were discontinued, accompanied by increased zinc concentrations in stagnation water. A comparative analysis of water quality variability by faucet type revealed that push-button faucets exhibited greater variabilities in copper, zinc, and nickel levels than screw-down faucets, likely due to corrosive by-products generated from water hammer effects. Additionally, an analysis based on exterior material indicated that metal fountains experienced higher temperature increases and elevated zinc concentrations in first draws than stone fountains. Regarding installation environments, drinking fountains exposed to direct sunlight or partial shade had higher concentrations of copper, zinc, and nickel in first draws than those installed in constant shade. Overall, these findings suggest that frequent use or flushing can help maintain stable water quality with the exception of push-button faucets.

• Journal of Korean Society of Coastal and Ocean Engineers
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• v.9 no.3
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• pp.155-164
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• 1997

A comprehensive and systematic field monitoring program was initiated since October 1989, in order to investigate the temporal and spatial variation of shoreline position at northern part of Pea Island, North Carolina. Aerial photographs were taken every two months on the shoreline extending from the US Coast Guard Station at the northern end of Pea Island to a point 6 miles to the south. Aerial photographs taken were digitized initially to obtain the shoreline position data. in which a wet-dry line visible on the beach was used to identify the position of shoreline. Since the wet-dry line does not represent the “true" shoreline .position but includes the errors due to the variations of wave run-up heights and tidal elevations at the time the photos taken, it is required to eliminate the tide and wave runup effects from the initially digitized shoreline .position data. Runup heights on the beach and tidal elevations at the time the aerial photographs taken were estimated using tide data collected at the end of the FRF pier and wave data measured from wave-rider gage installed at 4 km offshore, respectively A runup formula by Hunt (1957) was used to compute the run-up heights on the beach from the given deepwater wave conditions. With shoreline position data corrected for .wave runup and tide, both spatial and temporal variations of the shoreline positions for the monitoring shoreline were analyzed by examining local differences in shoreline movement and their time dependent variability. Six years data of one-mile-average shoreline indicated that there was an apparent seasonal variation of shoreline, that is, progradation of shoreline at summer (August) and recession at winter (February) at Pea Island. which was unclear with the uncorrected shoreline position data. Determination of shoreline position from aerial photograph, without regard to the effects of wave runup and tide, can lead to mis-interpretation for the temporal and spatial variation of shoreline changes.nges.

• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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• v.89 no.2
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• pp.198-207
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• 2000

The diurnal and seasonal changes of water potential and stomatal diffusive resistance were investigated with the effects of shade treatment to elucidate the water relations of the one year old seedlings of Betula platyphylla var. japonica, Zelkova serrata, Acer mono, and Prunus sargentii subjected to five levels of artificial shade treatments from full sun to nearly full shading of 2-6% relative light transmittance. Stomatal diffusive resistance measured in the four deciduous hardwood species studied changed variously by growing season and by species with the five shade treatments in the ranges of 1.7~25.1s/cm in 9 a.m., 2.3~33.3s/cm in 1 p.m., and 1.1~36.8s/cm in 5 p.m.. The measurements of stomatal diffusive resistance increased with increasing the shading, and were higher in September than in June or July in most of the species studied. The stomatal diffusive resistance measured in Zelkova serrata, Acer mono, and Prunus sargentii seemed to be approximately 3~4 times higher in nearly full shading treatment than in full sun. Water potential also changed variously by growing season and by species with five different shade treatments in the ranges of -0.17~-1.20MPa in 9 a. m., -0.30~-2.03MPa in 1 p. m., and -0.18~-1.34MPa in 5 p.m., respectively. On the reverse of stomatal diffusive resistance, the measurements of water potential were lower in September than in June or July in most of the species studied, and the seasonal differences were especially greater in Zelkova serrata comparing with the other species. The water potential seemed to be higher of approximately 2~3 times in nearly full shading treatment than in full sun in all of the species studied, but the differences among the shading treatments were less in water potential than in stomatal diffusive resistance. The differences of water potential following the gradient of five shading treatment seemed to be less in Betula platyphylla var. japonica than in the other species. In Acer mono and Prunus sargentii being some shade tolerant species, the water potential increased rapidly through about noontime with raising the shading level from full sun to the intermediate shading level of 22-28% relative light transmittance, but slowly with closing to full shading. In Betula platyphylla var. japonica and Zelkova serrata being shade intolerant species, the water potential increased gradually throughout the shading levels and the increment ranges were greater in Zelkova serrata than in Betula platyphylla var. japonica.

• Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.42 no.4
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• pp.210-218
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• 2018

Background: Soil respiration (Rs) is a major factor of the absorption and accumulation of carbon through photosynthesis in the ecosystem carbon cycle. This directly affects the amount of net ecosystem productivity, which affects the stability and sustainability of the ecosystem. Understanding the characteristics of Rs is indispensable to scientifically understand the carbon cycle of ecosystems. It is very important to study Rs characteristics through analysis of environmental factors closely related to Rs. Rs is affected by various environmental factors, such as temperature, precipitation, soil moisture, litter supply, organic matter content, dominant plant species, and soil disturbance. This study was conducted to analyze the effects of micro-topographical differences on Rs in forest vegetation by measuring the Rs on the ridge and southern slope sites of the broadly established Quercus mongolica forest in the central Korean area. Method: Rs, Ts, and soil moisture data were collected at the southern slope and ridge of the Q. mongolica forest in the Mt. Jeombong area in order to investigate the effects of topographical differences on Rs. Rs was collected by the closed chamber method, and data collection was performed from May 2011 to October 2013, except Winter seasons from November to April or May. For collecting the raw data of Rs in the field, acrylic collars were placed at the ridge and southern slope of the forest. The accumulated surface litter and the soil organic matter content (SOMC) were measured to a 5 cm depth. Based on these data, the Rs characteristics of the slope and ridge were analyzed. Results: Rs showed a distinct seasonal variation pattern in both the ridge and southern slope sites. In addition, Rs showed a distinct seasonal variation with high and low Ts changes. The average Rs measurements for the two sites, except for the Winter periods that were not measured, were $550.1\;mg\;CO_2m^{-2}h^{-1}$ at the ridge site and $289.4\;mg\;CO_2m^{-2}h^{-1}$ at the southern slope, a difference of 52.6%. There was no significant difference in the Rs difference between slopes except for the first half of 2013, and both sites showed a tendency to increase exponentially as Ts increased. In addition, although the correlation is low, the difference in Rs between sites tended to increase as Ts increased. SMC showed a large fluctuation at the southern slope site relative to the ridge site, as while it was very low in 2013, it was high in 2011 and 2012. The accumulated litter of the soil surface and the SOMC at the depth range of 0~5 cm were $874g\;m^{-2}$ and 23.3% at the ridge site, and $396g\;m^{-2}$ and 19.9% at the southern slope site. Conclusions: In this study, Rs was measured for the ridge and southern slope sites, which have two different results where the surface litter layer is disturbed by strong winds. The southern slope site shows that the litter layer formed in autumn due to strong winds almost disappeared, and while in the ridge site, it became thick due to the transfer of litter from the southern slope site. The mean Rs was about two times higher in the ridge site compared to that in the southern slope site. The Rs difference seems to be due to the difference in the amount of litter accumulated on the soil surface. As a result, the litter layer supplied to the soil surface is disturbed due to the micro-topographical difference, as the slope and the change of the community structure due to the plant season cause heterogeneity of the litter layer development, which in turn affects SMC and Rs. Therefore, it is necessary to introduce and understand these micro-topographical features and mechanisms when quantifying and analyzing the Rs of an ecosystem.

• Journal of Wetlands Research
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• v.20 no.4
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• pp.424-431
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• 2018

Stormwater runoff containing considerable amounts of pollutants such as particulates, organics, nutrients, and heavy metals contaminate natural bodies of water. At present, best management practices (BMP) intended to reduce the volume and treat pollutants from stormwater runoff were devised to serve as cost-effective measures of stormwater management. However, improper design and lack of proper maintenance can lead to degradation of the facility, making it unable to perform its intended function. This study evaluated an infiltration trench (IT) that went through a series of maintenance operations. 41 monitored rainfall events from 2009 to 2016 were used to evaluate the pollutant removal capabilities of the IT. Assessment of the water quality and hydrological data revealed that the inflow volume was the most relative factor affecting the unit pollutant loads (UPL) entering the facility. Seasonal variations also affected the pollutant removal capabilities of the IT. During the summer season, the increased rainfall depths and runoff volumes diminished the pollutant removal efficiency (RE) of the facility due to increased volumes that washed off larger pollutant loads and caused the IT to overflow. Moreover, the system also exhibited reduced pollutant RE for the winter season due to frozen media layers and chemical-related mechanisms impacted by the low winter temperature. Maintenance operations also posed considerable effects of the performance of the IT. During the first two years of operation, the IT exhibited a decrease in pollutant RE due to aging and lack of proper maintenance. However, some events also showed reduced pollutant RE succeeding the maintenance as a result of disturbed sediments that were not removed from the geotextile. Ultimately, the presented effects of maintenance operations in relation to the pollutant RE of the system may lead to the optimization of maintenance schedules and procedures for BMP of same structure.

• Journal of Korea Water Resources Association
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• v.56 no.4
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• pp.285-299
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• 2023

Estimating the evapotranspiration is very important factor for effective water resources management, and FAO Penman-Monteith (FAO P-M) model has been applied for reference evapotranspiration estimation by many researchers. However, because various input data are required for the application of FAO P-M model, understanding the effect of each input data on FAO P-M model is necessary. Therefore, in this study, for 56 study stations located in South Korea, the effects of 8 meteorological factors (maximum and minimum temperature, wind speed, relative humidity, solar radiation, vapor pressure deficit, net radiation, ground heat flux), energy and aerodynamic terms of FAO P-M model, and elevation on FAO P-M reference evapotranspiration (RET) estimation were analyzed. The relative sensitivity analysis was performed to determine how 10% increment of each specific independent variable affects a reference evapotranspiration under given set of condition that other independent variables are unchanged. Furthermore, to select the 5 representative stations and perform the monthly relative sensitivity analysis for those stations, 56 study stations were classified into 5 clusters using cluster analysis. The study results showed that net radiation was turned out to be the most sensitive factor in 8 meteorological factors for 56 study stations. The next most sensitive factor was relative humidity, solar radiation, maximum temperature, vapor pressure deficit and wind speed, followed by minimum temperature in order. Ground heat flux was the least sensitive factor. In case of ground surface condition, elevation showed very low positive relative sensitivity. Relativity sensitivities of energy and aerodynamic terms of FAO P-M model were 0.707 for energy term and 0.293 for aerodynamic term respectively, indicating that energy term was more contributable than aerodynamic term for reference evapotranspiration. The monthly relative sensitivities of meteorological factors showed the seasonal effects, and also the relative sensitivity of elevation showed different pattern each other among study stations. Therefore, for the application of FAO P-M model, the seasonal and regional sensitivity differences of each input variable should be considered.

• The Sea:JOURNAL OF THE KOREAN SOCIETY OF OCEANOGRAPHY
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.77-100
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• 2024

Circulation, tides, currents, harmful algal blooms, water quality, and hypoxic conditions in Jinhae-Masan Bay have been extensively studied. However, these previous studies primarily focused on short-term variations, and there was limited detailed investigation into the physical mechanisms responsible for ocean circulation in the bays. Oceanic processes in the bays, such as pollutant dispersal, changes on a seasonal time scale. Therefore, this study aimed to understand how the circulation in Jinhae-Masan Bay varies seasonally and to examine the effects of tides, winds, and river discharges on regional ocean circulation. To achieve this, a three-dimensional ocean circulation model was used to simulate circulation patterns from 2016 to 2018, and sensitivity experiments were conducted. This study reveals that convective estuarine circulation develops in Jinhae and Masan Bays, characterized by the inflow of deep oceanic water from the Korea Strait through Gadeoksudo, while surface water flows outward. This deep water intrusion divides into northward and westward branches. In this study, the volume transport was calculated along the direction of bottom channels in each region. The meridional water exchange in the eastern region of Jinhae Bay is 2.3 times greater in winter and 1.4 times greater in summer compared to that of zonal exchange in the western region. In the western region of Jinhae Bay, the circulation pattern varies significantly by season due to changes in the balance of forces. During winter, surface currents flow southward and bottom currents flow northward, strengthening the north-south convective circulation due to the combined effects of northwesterly winds and the slope of the sea surface. In contrast, during summer, southwesterly winds cause surface seawater to flow eastward, and the elevated sea surface in the southeastern part enhances northward barotropic pressure gradient intensifying the eastward surface flow. The density gradient and southward baroclinic pressure gradient increase in the lower layer, causing a strong westward inflow of seawater from Gadeoksudo, enhancing the zonal convective circulation by 26% compared to winter. The convective circulation in the western Jinhae Bay is significantly influenced by both tidal current and wind during both winter and summer. In the eastern Jinhae Bay and Masan Bay, surface water flows outward to the open sea in all seasons, while bottom water flows inward, demonstrating a typical convective estuarine circulation. In winter, the contributions of wind and freshwater influx are significant, while in summer, the influence of mixing by tidal currents plays a major role in the north-south convective circulation. In the eastern Jinhae Bay, tidally driven residual circulation patterns, influenced by the local topography, are distinct. The study results are expected to enhance our understanding of pollutant dispersion, summer hypoxic events, and the abundance of red tide organisms in these bays.