• KIEAE Journal
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.3-8
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• 2013

Environmental quality(EQ) is one of the most important components of the assessment of "Quality of Life(QOL)". Most EQ related research dealt with overall built environmental quality issues as represented by several clusters of factors related to occupants' satisfaction. This paper aims to identify and understand the theoretical background and the occupants' comparative standards of response to conditions of the built environment related to environmental quality(EQ). Therefore, this paper have reviewed the theoretical framework and empirical research for environmental quality in built environment. the concept of environmental quality if elaborated from diverse perspectives. Different ways of interpreting environmental quality have led to a variety of ways to conduct evaluations. A review of the theories and methods used for the analysis of perceived environmental quality provides a strong foundation for new research frameworks and environmental quality in built environment.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Agricultural Engineers Conference
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• 2000.10a
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• pp.78-83
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• 2000

Over twenty thousand types of bryohytes are existed in the world. Bryophytes are generally considered to be primitive plants and seriously neglected by even in botany area. Bryophytes includes mosses, liverworts, and hornworts. They thrive in humid environments and require water to survive. Some types, however, can recover after serious dehydration, even after years of complete dehydration. They generally absorb water and nutrients not from roots which is called rhizoid, but through entire body. The rhizoids are nonchlorophyllose fillamentous branches and attach the body to substratum such as soil and rocks. The attachment of mosses in soil surface provides a good protection from soil erosion by runoff water. In this presentation, reviewed and discussed are ecological characteristics and engineering perspectives of mosses, particularly with respect to soil and water conservation.

• KIEAE Journal
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• v.9 no.5
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• pp.13-20
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• 2009

This study suggested practical application of decision aid tool on re-evaluation of current buildings with a focus on a energy and economics evaluation methodology. In Europe, over forty percent of all construction activities are for retrofit. For efficient construction, various tools for re-evaluating existing buildings have been developed and are in use. Legislations of relevant laws and studies are actively initiated. In particular, EPIQR (Energy Performance Indoor environment Quality Retrofit), which was developed through the EU's Third and Fourth Framework Programs laid a foundation on a new concept-based decision aid tool for re-evaluation of existing buildings. As for actual applications, based on this, EPIQR+ was developed to be in line with a building maintenance guideline (SIA 469) and is actively applied to public buildings. This tool quantifies the degree of damages of existing buildings and suggests alternatives to users in energy (SIA 380/1) and economical perspectives. This study examined these preceding tools and suggested some trenchant approaching for more comprehensive and efficient use of re-evaluation tools in building maintenance.

• The Journal of Korea Robotics Society
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.86-92
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• 2022

Utilization of small robots in psychology and biology provides a new breakthrough in understanding the neurobiological mechanisms of various animal behavior. The expansion of robot use in animal research is partly due to increased availability of economically plausible mobile robots and also due to the current shift in animal research toward more ecologically valid experiments. Ground-breaking experimental findings are expected when the behavioral variables are manipulated in more natural situations. In addition, the results from laboratory could be generalized more easily with added ecological validity. The current paper attempts to review a wide range of applications of animal robots used to study animal behavior and to highlight major advantages and limitations. In particular, this review focuses more on the psychological impact of animal robots than engineering details about their structure and operation. Finally, this review will provide some practical considerations when employing robots in animal experiments.

• Korean Journal of Health Education and Promotion
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• v.32 no.2
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• pp.39-52
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• 2015

Objectives: Residents of a single room occupancy (Jjok-bang) in Seoul are at high risk of having mental health issues. The majority of residents live in single households with past traumatic experiences including self-deprivation and social exclusion. This study was to investigate the association between mental health and socio-ecological factors at the intrapersonal and community levels. Methods: We conducted face-to-face surveys in Dongja-dong Jjok-bang area in June, 2014. Of 78 participants, 76% were male and the mean age was 60 years (SD=11.53). A multiple regression was used to analyze the association among depression, a sense of well-being, socio-ecological factors, and perceived empowerment and community solidarity. Results: Perceived empowerment (${\beta}=0.83$; 95% CI=0.40, 1.26) and community solidarity (${\beta}=0.52$; 95% CI=0.04, 1.01) were positively associated with a sense of well-being. Participants with empowerment (${\beta}=-2.55$; 95% CI=-4.86, -0.23) and those with community solidarity (${\beta}=-2.36$; 95% CI=-4.94, 0.21) were negatively associated with being depressed. Conclusion: Mental health of the residents in Jjok-bang was more influenced by empowerment and community solidarity than socio-demographic factors. It is necessary to improve public health infrastructures that can enable the residents to enhance empowerment and community solidarity utilizing socio-ecological perspectives.

• Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology & Nutrition
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• v.11 no.sup1
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• pp.83-92
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• 2008

Helicobacter pylori is the causative agent of chronic gastritis and has a role in the pathogenesis of peptic ulcer diseases, and gastric cancer. There have been reports suggesting a close link between these gastroduodenal disorders and a state of vitamin C deficiency. In this paper, the past, present and future perspectives on H. pylori infection and vitamin C will be discussed under the following view points. Since the ecological niche of H. pylori is the mucus layer and intercellular junctions of the gastric epithelium, the various kinds of host inflammatory cells motivated by the local and systemic immune responses cannot eliminate the microorganisms. When the invading foreign body is not removed, despite full activation of defense mechanisms, adverse consequences of the immune responses develop on the host gastric mucosa. The reasons for the body vitamin C depletion could be explained as follows; 1) the increased vitamin C consumption by increased oxygen free radical production through the prolonged hypersensitivity reactions in the gastric mucosa, 2) the increased vitamin C oxidation by the nitrite which is formed from nitrate reduction by the intragastric bacteria proliferated in the hypochlorhydric gastric cavity, 3) the strong ${\gamma}$-glutamyltranspeptidase activity of H. pylori which depletes the glutathiones in gastric mucosa. Depletion of glutathiones in the stomach favors irreversible oxidative destruction of ascorbic acid. Both persistent inflammatory burdens in the stomach by H. pylori and resultant vitamin C depletions synergistically and uninhibitedly might aggravate the hypothetical sequence of gastric carcinogenesis: atrophic gastritis${\rightarrow}$intestinal metaplasia${\rightarrow}$dysplasia${\rightarrow}$gastric adenocarcinoma. High intake of vitamin C could reverse the hypothetical sequence of the gastric carcinogenesis via direct and indirect effects on H. pylori and host-parasite relationships.

• Journal of Environmental Impact Assessment
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.275-286
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• 2019

In order to prevent local extinction of organisms and to preserve biodiversity, it is important to ensure connectivity between habitats. Even if the habitat is exposed to various disturbance factors, it is possible to avoid or respond to disturbances if they are linked to other habitats. Habitat connectivity can be assessed from a variety of perspectives, but the importance of functional connectivity based on species movement has been emphasized in recent years due to the development of computational capabilities and related software. Among them, Circuitscape, which is a connectivity evaluation tool, has an advantage it can provide detailed reference data for the city planning because it maps ecological flows on individual grid based on circuit theory. Therefore, in this study, the functional connectivity of Suwon was evaluated by applying Circuitscape and then, the ecological corridor to be conserved and supplemented was suggested based on it. The results of this study are expected to effectively complement the methodology related ecological corridor/axis, which was previously provided only in the form of a diagram, and to be effective in management of development project and urban planning.

• Asian Journal of Atmospheric Environment
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• v.5 no.4
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• pp.205-215
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• 2011

Ozone ($O_3$) is a main component of photochemical oxidants and a phytotoxic air pollutant. Although the current levels of tropospheric $O_3$ in East Asia could adversely affect productivity of forest tree species, risk assessments of $O_3$ impact were limited. In this paper, we summarize the methodology of risk assessment of $O_3$ on forest tree species based on our two previous studies, risk assessments of $O_3$ impact on the growth of Fagus crenata by Watanabe et al. (2012) and on the annual carbon absorption of three representative conifers, Cryptomeria japonica, Pinus densiflora and Larix kaempferi by Watanabe et al. (2010). $O_3$ sensitivity of each tree species obtained from an experimental study, $O_3$ exposure and atmospheric N deposition based on field monitoring and vegetation survey were integrated by geographic information system method. Based on the results, we conclude that the area with high risk of $O_3$ impact does not necessarily correspond to the area with high $O_3$ exposure. The varieties of tree habitat, tree sensitivity to $O_3$ and annual carbon absorption among the tree species, and N deposition-induced change in the $O_3$ sensitivity of F. crenata are raised as the factors of discordance between areas with high risk and those with high $O_3$ exposure. In the last part of this paper, we discuss the present uncertainty and perspectives of risk assessment for the future studies on the impact of $O_3$ on forest tree species in East Asia.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.243-252
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• 2006

The emergy concept was used to valuate the contributions of a tidal flat ecosystem included in the fourth stage reclamation plan for the Youngsan River area to the Korean economy. Emergy contributions of the ecosystem were compared with those of economic valuations performed on the same ecosystem. The tidal flat ecosystem contributed 3.55 million EmW/ha annually. This, however, cannot be compared directly with those of the economic valuations because both methodologies approach the valuation of ecosystems in different perspectives. The emergy methodology is a donor-based valuation in which what goes into making a product or service is measured, while the economic valuation is a receiver-based approach in which human receivers determine the value of an ecosystem product or service. An emergy valuation was conducted for the three ecosystem functions included in the economic valuations to compare the results of both methodologies on the same basis. Fishery production and pollutants removal contributed 9.86 million EmW/ha/yr and 0.88 million EmW/ha/yr, respective1y. The conservation value of the tidal flat ecosystem was 3.55 million EmW/ha/yr. Overall, the emergy valuation that try to include works of both human and nature on the same basis resulted in higher economic contribution of the tidal flat ecosystem than that calculated by the economic methodologies in which only human works are measured based on the willingness-to-pay of people. This study showed that the emergy concept could provide an alternative tool for policy decision-making regarding utilization and conservation of ecosystems by approaching the ecosystem valuation from a different perspective than that of economic methodologies.

• Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.44 no.3
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• pp.162-177
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• 2020

Background: Ecologists have achieved much progress in the study of mechanisms that maintain species coexistence and diversity. In this paper, we reviewed a wide range of past research related to these topics, focusing on five theoretical bodies: (1) coexistence by niche differentiation, (2) coexistence without niche differentiation, (3) coexistence along environmental stress gradients, (4) coexistence under non-equilibrium versus equilibrium conditions, and (5) modern perspectives. Results: From the review, we identified that there are few models that can be generally and confidently applicable to different ecological systems. This problem arises mainly because most theories have not been substantiated by enough empirical research based on field data to test various coexistence hypotheses at different spatial scales. We also found that little is still known about the mechanisms of species coexistence under harsh environmental conditions. This is because most previous models treat disturbance as a key factor shaping community structure, but they do not explicitly deal with stressful systems with non-lethal conditions. We evaluated the mainstream ideas of niche differentiation and stochasticity for the coexistence of plant species across salt marsh creeks in southwestern Denmark. The results showed that diversity indices, such as Shannon-Wiener diversity, richness, and evenness, decreased with increasing surface elevation and increased with increasing niche overlap and niche breadth. The two niche parameters linearly decreased with increasing elevation. These findings imply a substantial influence of an equalizing mechanism that reduces differences in relative fitness among species in the highly stressful environments of the marsh. We propose that species evenness increases under very harsh conditions if the associated stress is not lethal. Finally, we present a conceptual model of patterns related to the level of environmental stress and niche characteristics along a microhabitat gradient (i.e., surface elevation). Conclusions: The ecology of stressful systems with non-lethal conditions will be increasingly important as ongoing global-scale climate change extends the period of chronic stresses that are not necessarily fatal to inhabiting plants. We recommend that more ecologists continue this line of research.