• Quality Improvement in Health Care
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.60-73
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• 2014

Objectives: This study aims at decreasing spatial dose rate through work improvement whilst spatial dose rate is the cause of increasing personal exposure dose which occurs in the process of handling radioisotope. Methods: From February 2013 until July 2013, divided into "before" and "after" the improvement, spatial dose rate in laboratory of nuclear medicine was measured in gamma image room, PET/CT-1 image room, and PET/CT-2 image room as its locations. The measurement time was 08:00, 12:00 and 17:00, and SPSS 21.0 USA was opted for its statistical analysis. Result: The spatial dose rate at distribution worktable, injection table, the entrance to the distribution room, and radioisotope storage box, which had showed high spatial dose rate, decreased by more than 43.7% a monthly average. The distribution worktable, that had showed the highest spatial dose rate in PET/CT-1 image room, dropped the rate to 42.3% as of July. The injection table and distribution worktable in the PET/CT-2 image room also showed the decline of spatial dose rate to 89% and 64.4%, respectively. Conclusion: By improving distribution process and introducing proper radiation shielding material, we were able to drop the spatial dose rate substantially at distribution worktable, injection table, and nuclide storage box. However, taking into account of steadily increasing amount of radioisotope used, strengthening radiation related regulations, and safe utilization of radioisotope, the process of system improvement needs to be maintained through continuous monitoring.

• The Journal of Fisheries Business Administration
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• v.50 no.2
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• pp.41-56
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• 2019

The aim of this study is to analyze the productivity change of pollock enterprise by applying a mutually quadratic hyperbolic model and a bootstrapping model. This study used 20 units of pollock firms data (from 2013 to 2017). As a result of total productivity analysis of twenty pollock enterprises, total factor productivity was estimated to have decreased by 24.9% over the last five years (2013~2017). The main cause of this productivity decline was analyzed by technical change. In terms of annual productivity change, it showed decrease 3.0% in 2013~2014, 7.8% in 2014~2015, 4.5% in 2015~2016 and 4.7% in 2016~2017 respectively. In the analysis of productivity by corporation type, total factor productivity showed a significant decrease in both general corporation and external corporation, and productivity decrease (-29.3%) was larger than general corporation (-23.0%). In the productivity analysis by type of business, total factor productivity decreased significantly in the order of wholesale and commodity brokerage (-26.3%), food manufacturing (-25.1%) and fisheries (-15.3%). This decrease in productivity was caused by the technological change which indicates a downward shift in the production curve that is significant in all sectors.

• Journal of the Korean Geographical Society
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• v.37 no.2
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• pp.143-160
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• 2002

Since the 1990s, arable lands in mountainous areas of South Korea have widely been abandoned due to the serious depopulation for the last few decades. Abandonment of arable lands causes not only a decline in production functions of mountainous villages, but also landscape desolation and environmental problems. Due to same cause, Japan has also experienced the serious abandonment of arable lands in mountainous areas since the 1960s. For the last decade, Japanese government has poured investment to the conservation of terraced paddy fields in hilly and mountainous areas in order to restore those environment values. The attempts of Okayama prefecture for the conservation of terraced paddy fields are well known as a successful story in Japan. In order to suggest an effective conservation means far arable lands in mountainous areas in the context of Korea, this paper examines the background and the implementation means of Japanese conservation policy of terraced paddy fields in hilly and mountainous area, focusing on the case of Okayama prefecture.

• Korean Journal of Exercise Nutrition
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.15-23
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• 2020

[Purpose] Lactate is a principal energy substrate for the brain during exercise. A single bout of high-intensity interval exercise (HIIE) can increase the blood lactate level, brain lactate uptake, and executive function (EF). However, repeated HIIE can attenuate exercise-induced increases in lactate level and EF. The lactate levels in the brain and blood are reported to be correlated with exercise-enhanced EF. However, research is yet to explain the cause-and-effect relationship between lactate and EF. This study examined whether lactate consumption improves the attenuated exercise-enhanced EF caused by repeated HIIE. [Methods] Eleven healthy men performed two sets of HIIE, and after each set, 30 min were given for rest and examination. In the 2^nd set, the subjects consumed experimental beverages containing (n = 6) and not containing (n = 5) lactate. Blood, cardiovascular, and psychological variables were measured, and EF was evaluated by the computerized color-word Stroop test. [Results] The lactate group had a higher EF (P < 0.05) and tended to have a higher blood lactate level (P = 0.082) than the control group in the 2^nd set of HIIE. Moreover, blood lactate concentration was correlated with the interference score (i.e., reverse score of EF) (r = -0.394; P < 0.05). [Conclusion] Our results suggest that the attenuated exercise-enhanced EF after repeated HIIE can be improved through lactate consumption. However, the role of lactate needs to be elucidated in future studies, as it can be used for improving athletes' performance and also in cognitive decline-related clinical studies.

• Journal of the Korea Safety Management & Science
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.23-32
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• 2020

There has been a significant decline in the number of rail accidents in Korea since system safety management activities were introduced. Nonetheless, analyzing and preventing human error-related accidents is still an important issue in railway industry. As a railway system is increasingly automated and intelligent, the mechanism and process of an accident occurrence are more and more complicated. It is now essential to consider a variety of factors and their intricate interactions in the analysis of rail accidents. However, it has proved that traditional accident models and methods based on a linear cause-effect relationship are inadequate to analyze and to assess accidents in complex systems such as railway systems. In order to supplement the limitations of traditional safety methods, recently some systemic safety models and methods have been developed. Of those, FRAM(Functional Resonance Analysis Method) has been recognized as one of the most useful methods for analyzing accidents in complex systems. It reflects the concepts of performance adjustment and performance variability in a system, which are fundamental to understanding the processes of an accident in complex systems. This study aims to apply FRAM to the analysis of a rail accident involving human errors, which occurred recently in South Korea. Through the application of FRAM, we found that it can be a useful alternative to traditional methods in the analysis and assessment of accidents in complex systems. In addition, it was also found that FRAM can help analysts understand the interactions between functional elements of a system in a systematic manner.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.17 no.5
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• pp.179-185
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• 2016

This study verifies whether speculative trading in commodity markets acted as the primary cause of the increase in commodity prices after the global financial crisis using the Structural Vector Autoregressive (SVAR) model. The effects of speculative trading on commodity prices increased by a factor of 3 to 6 after the crisis compared to those before the crisis. Although the demand related variables, such as industrial production, affected commodity prices significantly before the crisis, their effects decreased after the crisis. Consequently, the rebound of commodity prices after the crisis was mainly caused by the increase in speculative money, fortified by the expansion of the global liquidity supply. The global liquidity may well increase in the future, because the U.S. Federal Reserve Board is likely to continue to increase its interest rate. This study claims that when global liquidity shrinks as a result of a change in the Fed's monetary policy stance, speculative trading will slow down, leading to a decline in commodity prices.

• Herbal Formula Science
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.271-280
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• 2020

Hypertension has been approved to cause disharmony between the heart and kidney such as cardiac hypertrophy and kidney dysfunction. In traditional oriental medicine Paeo-tang (PET) has been shown to have effects on blood circulation improvement. However, the beneficial effect of PET on hypertension remains unknown. In this study, we investigated that PET attenuates blood pressure and improves cardiovascular and renal function in NG-nitro-L-arginine methylester (L-NAME) rat model. Hypertensive rat models were induced by the administration of L-NAME (40 mg/kg/day) and then PET (50 or 100 mg/kg/day) or Olmetec was treated for 2 weeks. PET treatment significantly suppressed the systolic blood pressure and decreased intima-media thickness in the thoracic aorta. PET ameliorated endothelium-dependent and independent vascular relaxation in the L-NAME-induced vascular dysfunction. PET ameliorated the functional decline in the kidney such as albumin and blood urea nitrogen in plasma. These results demonstrated that PET possesses protective effects against L-NAME-induced hypertension.

• Korean Journal of Construction Engineering and Management
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• v.6 no.5 s.27
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• pp.102-109
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• 2005

The contract price of successful bidders in domestic public work projects has dropped significantly under lowest bidding process. Furthermore, compared to the U.S. and Japan, the bids are substantially lower. The increasing trend for domestic construction companies to bid projects without considering markup or expected profit, with the purpose of gaining experience for future similar work, has contributed to the overall dumping in bid prices. The government has implemented controls in hopes of reducing the price dropping trend but these have yet to work in the market. This study determines the level of significance of the contract price of the successful bidder in domestic public works projects and identifies factors that cause bid-dropping by comparing to those of the US and Japan. By mirroring advance countries' rules and regulations to prevent an abnormally low bidder, recommendation are provided to keep unrealistically low bidders from winning the work.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.17 no.3
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• pp.554-559
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• 2016

Cheongju has been a continuously expanding city due to housing development and new town construction since the 1980s. With time, many urban problems have arisen, such as commercial decline, and degradation of the residential environment in inner city. To revitalize the inner city, this study proposed some planning strategies through the linkage of separated urban regeneration projects maximizing its effectiveness. Therefore, firstly, this study selected the target area in the inner city and identified the cause of the declination and deterioration pattern. Secondly, the main issues were derived by reviewing the locational characteristics and the potential of the target area. Finally, four strategies and detailed projects were suggested for the target area for revitalization of the inner city. Although the effectiveness cannot yet be verified due to its under realization, the results derived from the citizen's participation are having a very important impact and they can be a useful reference for similar planning.

• Journal of the Korea Institute of Information and Communication Engineering
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.648-655
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• 2018

Our government has concentrated its policy capabilities on Software industry in order to realize software-centric society. Through such efforts, software industry has developed continuously. As well, it has been a high-valued industry by the association with other various industries, so its importance has been great and its market has grown explosively. However, owing to the hasty support policies focused on software industry, various problems and adverse effects, such as the decline of construction quality due to the confusion of business operator selection and the business area conflict, has occurred. Therefore, in this thesis, I will find the problem and its cause about software support policies and relevant laws according to rapid market change, and will suggest the improvement plan about them. So, I intend to minimize the problems associated with the confusion of business operator selection, through the business area clarification(software industry and information communication construction industry) about complex ICT industry.