• Journal of the Computational Structural Engineering Institute of Korea
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.9-16
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• 2014

Using a level set method and topological derivatives, a topological shape optimization method that is independent of an initial design is developed for linearly elastic structures. In the level set method, the initial domain is kept fixed and its boundary is represented by an implicit moving boundary embedded in the level set function, which facilitates to handle complicated topological shape changes. The "Hamilton-Jacobi(H-J)" equation and computationally robust numerical technique of "up-wind scheme" lead the initial implicit boundary to an optimal one according to the normal velocity field while minimizing the objective function of compliance and satisfying the constraint of allowable volume. Based on the asymptotic regularization concept, the topological derivative is considered as the limit of shape derivative as the radius of hole approaches to zero. The required velocity field to update the H-J equation is determined from the descent direction of Lagrangian derived from optimality conditions. It turns out that the initial holes are not required to get the optimal result since the developed method can create holes whenever and wherever necessary using indicators obtained from the topological derivatives. It is demonstrated that the proper choice of control parameters for nucleation is crucial for efficient optimization process.

• Clinical and Experimental Reproductive Medicine
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• v.38 no.2
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• pp.103-108
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• 2011

Objective: To investigate adverse pregnancy outcomes in non-obese women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) compared with obese-PCOS and control groups. Methods: Women with PCOS who underwent assisted reproductive technology (ART) from August, 2003 to December, 2007, were considered. A total of 336 women with PCOS were included in the study group and 1,003 infertile women who had tubal factor as an indication for ART were collected as controls. They were divided into four groups: a non-obese PCOS group, obese-PCOS group, non-obese tubal factor group, and obese tubal factor group, with obesity defined by a body mass index over 25 kg/$m^2$, and reviewed focusing on the basal characteristics, ART outcomes, and adverse pregnancy outcomes. Results: There was no difference among the groups' the clinical pregnancy rate or live birth rate. Regarding adverse pregnancy outcomes, the miscarriage rate, multiple pregnancy rate, and prevalence of preterm delivery and pregnancy induced hypertension were not different among the four groups. The incidence of small for gestational age infant was higher in the PCOS groups than the tubal factor groups ($p$ <0.02). On the other hand, the morbidity of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) was not high in the non-obese PCOS group but was in the obese groups. And in the obese PCOS group, the newborns were heavier than in the other groups ($p$ <0.02). Conclusion: Non-obese PCOS presents many differences compared with obese PCOS, not only in the IVF-parameters but also in the morbidity of adverse pregnancy outcomes, especially in GDM and fetal macrosomia.

• Journal of Korean Medicine for Obesity Research
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• v.5 no.1
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• pp.1-8
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• 2005

Objectives: Although electro-acupuncture is being utilized to reduce weight in Korea, its usefulness in obesity management has not been fully evaluated yet. The objective of this study is to evaluate the effect of Electro-acupuncture on thigh circumference. Methods: 12 healthy volunteers participated in this study. We measured the circumference of both thighs, and treated the thicker one with transcutaneous electro-acupuncture at 8 acupoints, 10 times in total. The electrical parameters were : 1st step frequency set was at 15Hz and the treatment proceeded for 50 minutes, 2nd step at 50Hz for 10 minutes and at 3rd step the acupunctures were removed and electrodes were attached on the lower limb at 166Hz for 15 minutes. In order to evaluate the effect of the treatment, total body weight, percentage of body fat and thigh circumference were measured 4 times. Before the treatment, after 5th and 10th treatment and 1 month after completion of the whole treating procedure. Statistical significance(P<0.05) was determined using the Wilcoxon signed rank test. We did not control diet, exercise and lifestyle of the volunteers. Results: No significant change was shown in body weight after 10 times of treatment. Yet the thigh circumference of effect group significantly decreased after 5th treatment and 10th treatment. The circumference of control group that was not treated by electro-acupuncture significantly decreased too. At first, difference between the two thighs in circumference was obvious, but no difference was left after 10 times of treatments on the thicker thigh. Percentage of body fat was significantly decreased. 1 month after having completed the treatment, there was no significant difference of body weight, thigh circumferences and percentage of body fat. Conclusion: These results suggest that electro-acupuncture effectively regulates regional fat, body fat percentage and body shape.

• The Journal of Korean Medicine Ophthalmology and Otolaryngology and Dermatology
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.76-88
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• 2009

Back ground and Objective : There is a need for objectification and scientific verification of Pattern identification in Oriental medicine. The purpose of this study was to investigate the skin characteristics of Qi deficiency and Blood deficiency animal models. Material and Methods : Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into three groups: normal group, Qi deficiency group and Blood deficiency group. The Qi deficiency animal model was induced through restriction of food (75g/kg/day) for 20 days. Blood deficiency animal model was induced by bleeding from tail vein(0.3 ml/time) 8 times. The normal animal model was kept without any intervention. The general condition was observed by measuring body weight, body temperature, blood pressure, pulse rate, and hematological and biochemical parameters. The skin characteristics were observed by measuring the erythema index(EI), melanin index(Ml), transepidermal water loss(TEWL) and dermal microcirculation. Results : 1. In the Qi deficiency group, body weight was lower than the other groups. In the Qi deficiency group, blood pressure was lower than in the Normal group. There was no difference in body temperature and pulse rate between the three groups. 2. In the Qi deficiency group, blood sugar was lower than in the Blood deficiency group. There was no difference in triacylglycerol between the three groups. In the Qi deficiency group, the WBC count was lower than in the Blood deficiency group. RBC count was highest in the Qi deficiency group, Normal group and Blood deficiency group respectively. In the Qi deficiency group, Hb and Hct were higher than the other groups. 3. EI and MI were decreased in the Qi deficiency group, and EI showed a significant decrease. 4. EI and MI were increased in the Blood deficiency group, and MI showed a significant increase. 5. TEWL was significantly increased in the Qi deficiency group, while it was decreased in the Blood deficiency group, TEWL was highest in the Qi deficiency group, Normal group and Blood deficiency group respectively and all three groups showed significant difference. 6. In the Qi deficiency group, dermal microcirculation was lower than the other groups. Conclusion : The above results show that the erythema index decreases in the Qi deficiency model, and the melanin index increases in the Blood deficiency model. The Qi deficiency animal model shows an increase in transepidermal water loss, while the Blood deficiency animal model shows a decrease. Further studies should develop new models of Pattern Identification that are more specific.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.77-86
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• 2011

The advanced geotechnical information has been required to determine the accurate design parameters for complex construction. However, the Standard Penetration Test (SPT), which has low reliability, has been used to estimate the subsurface condition in the field. The objective of this paper is development and application of the Static-Dynamic penetrometer, which detects the resistances in soft clay, sand and rock. The energy losses according to the rod connection methods (perfect or non-perfect connection, and number rods) are experimentally evaluated. The reflection and transmission ratios are used to investigate the energy loss by a simulation. The static-dynamic cone penetrometer, in which the accelerometers and strain gauges are installed on the cone tip and the rod head, is used to estimate the energy loss during penetration by impacts. The experimental and simulation studies show that the transferred energy through rods with non-perfect connection dramatically decreases. Furthermore, the transferred energy on the rod head is not the same as that on the cone tip. This study demonstrates that the energy loss should be evaluated on the cone tip.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.35-45
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• 2013

The void ratio is an important parameter for reflecting the soil behavior including physical property, compressibility, and relative density. The void ratio can be obtained by laboratory test with extracted soil samples. However, the specimen has a possibility to be easily disturbed due to the stress relief when extracting, vibration during transportation, and error in experimental process. Thus, the theoretical equations have been suggested for obtaing the void ratio based on the elastic wave velocities. The objective of this paper is to verify the accuracy of the proposed analytical solution through the error norm. The paper covers the theoretical methods of Wood, Gassmann and Foti. The elastic wave velocity is determined by the Field Velocity Probe in the southern part of Korean Peninsular. And the rest parameters are assumed based on the reference values. The Gassmann method shows the high reliability on determining the void ratio. The error norm is also analyzed as substitution of every parameter. The results show every equation has various characteristics. Thus, this paper may be widely applied for obtaining the void ratio according to the field condition.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural and Forest Meteorology
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.246-251
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• 2017

Crop models have been used to predict a heading date for efficient management of fertilizer application. Recently, the ORYZA (v3) model was developed to improve the ORYZA2000 model, which has been used for simulation of rice growth in Korea. Still, little effort has been made to assess applicability of the ORYZA (v3) model to rice farms in Korea. The objective of this study was to evaluate reliability of heading dates predicted using the the ORYZA (v3) model, which would indicate applicability of the model to a decision support system for fertilizer application. Field experiments were conducted from 2015-2016 at the Rural Development Administration (RDA) to obtain rice phenology data. Shindongjin cultivar which is mid-late maturity type was grown under a conventional fertilizer management, e.g., application of fertilizer at the rate of 11 Kg N/10a. Another set of heading dates was obtained from annual reports at experiment farms operated by the National Institute of Crop Science and Agricultural Technology Centers in each province. The input files for the ORYZA (v3) model were prepared using weather and soil data collected from the Korean Meteorology Administration (KMA) and the Korean Soil Information System, respectively. Input parameters for crop management, e.g., transplanting date and planting density, were set to represent management used for the field experiment. The ORYZA (v3) model predicted heading date within 1 day for two seasons. The crop model also had a relatively small error in prediction of heading date for three ecotypes of rice cultivars at experiment farms where weather input data were obtained from a near-by weather station. Those results suggested that the ORYZA (v3) model would be useful for development of a decision support system for fertilizer application when reliable input data for weather variables become available.

• Journal of Intelligence and Information Systems
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• v.10 no.3
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• pp.39-57
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• 2004

Many dairy producers periodically receive information about their bulk tank milk with reference to bulk tank somatic cell counts, standard plate counts, and preliminary incubation counts. This information, when collected over a period of time, in combination with bulk tank mastitis culture reports can become a significant knowledge base. Several guidelines have been proposed to interpret farm bulk tank milk bacterial counts. However many of the suggested interpretive criteria lack validation, and provide little insight to the interrelationship between different groups of bacteria found in bulk tank milk. Also the linguistic terms describing bulk tank milk quality or herd management status are rather vague or fuzzy such as excellent, good or unsatisfactory. The objective of this paper was to develop a set of fuzzy descriptors to evaluate bulk tank milk quality and herd's milking practice based on bulk tank milk microbiology test results. Thus, fuzzy logic based reasoning methodologies were developed based on fuzzy inference engine. Input parameters were bulk tank somatic cell counts, standard plate counts, preliminary incubation counts, laboratory pasteurization counts, non agalactiae-Streptococci and Streptococci like organisms, and Staphylococcus aureus. Based on the input data, bulk tank milk quality was classified as excellent, good, milk cooling problem, cleaning problem, environmental mastitis, or mixed with mastitis and cleaning problems. The results from fuzzy reasoning would provide a reference regarding a good management practice for milk producers, dairy health consultants, and veterinarians.

• Journal of Navigation and Port Research
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• v.39 no.6
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• pp.457-463
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• 2015

A gas turbine engine plays an important role as a prime mover that is used in the marine transportation field as well as the space/aviation and power plant fields. However, it has a complicated structure and there is a time delay element in the combustion process. Therefore, an elaborate mathematical model needs to be developed to control a gas turbine engine. In this study, a modeling technique for a gas generator, a PLA actuator, and a metering valve, which are major components of a gas turbine engine, is explained. In addition, sub-models are obtained at several operating points in a steady state based on the trial running data of a gas turbine engine, and a method for controlling the engine speed is proposed by designing an NPID controller for each sub-model. The proposed NPID controller uses three kinds of gains that are implemented with a nonlinear function. The parameters of the NPID controller are tuned using real-coded genetic algorithms in terms of minimizing the objective function. The validity of the proposed method is examined by applying to a gas turbine engine and by conducting a simulation.

• Korean Journal of Applied Biomechanics
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• v.28 no.1
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• pp.19-27
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• 2018

Objective: This study aimed to analyze the effects of freezing of gait on spatiotemporal variables, ground reaction forces (GRFs), and joint moments during the sit-to-walk task at the preferred and maximum speeds in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). Method: The subjects were classified by a neurologist into 12 freezers, 12 non-freezers, and 12 controls. Sit-to-walk parameters were measured during three repetitions of the task in a random order at the preferred and maximum possible speeds. Results: In the sit-to-walk task at the preferred speed, the freezers and non-freezers exhibited a higher peak anterior-posterior GRF (p<0.001) in the sit-to-stand phase and lower step velocity (p<0.001), step length (p<0.001), and peak anterior-posterior GRF (p<0.001) in the first-step phase than the controls. The freezers had higher peak anterior-posterior GRF (p<0.001) and peak moment of the hip joint (p=0.008) in the sit-to-stand phase than the non-freezers. In the sit-to-walk phase at the maximum speed, the freezers and non-freezers had lower peak moment of the hip joint (p=0.008) in the sit-to-stand phase than the controls. The freezers and non-freezers displayed lower step velocity (p<0.001) and peak anterior-posterior GRF (p<0.001) in the first-step phase than the controls. The freezers showed higher peak moments of the hip joint in the sit-to-stand phase than the non-freezers (p=0.008). Conclusion: The PD patients had reduced control ability in sit-to-stand motions for efficient performance of the sit-to-walk task and reduced performance in the sit-to-walk task. Furthermore, the freezers displayed reduced control ability in the sit-to-stand task. Finally, the PD patients exhibited a lower ability to control dynamic stability with changes in speed than the controls.