• Journal of agricultural medicine and community health
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.223-235
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• 2004

Objectives: This study was to evaluate the actual condition of falls among community-dwelling elderly people and its related factors to prepare for the establishment of comprehensive prevention programs of senior population. Methods: The study subjects included 460 home residents over 65 years in a district of Chungnam Province and interviews were given to all of them, asking about experiences of falls and their related factors. The analysis of study results came to the following conclusions. Results: The rate of falls among total subjects was 35.5%. With the percentage by age and sex, over 70's and female were significantly higher than male(p=0.000) and under 69 (p=0.008). The groups with poor visual acuity and hearing ability had higher rate of falls than the normal groups based on their health status. In terms of place they experienced falls, out-door occurrence accounted for 53.4% of total falls, which was higher 46.6% of in-door. By season when falls are experienced, "winter" showed the greatest rate, and by time of the day, evening had the highest rate. By causes of falls, "Slippery ground"accounted for 30.5% and "Tumbled over" 23.5% of total falls, respectively, showing the major role of environmental causes for falls. For individual factors, "Irritability" and "Carelessness" occupied 11.3%, 10.8% of total falls, respectively. The Odds Ratios for falls in women was 2.19 times higher than in men, and those in 70's are 2.01 times higher than in 60's, and those with abnormal BMI was 3.68 times higher than in normal groups, and those with perceived symptoms was 1.94 times higher than those without. Conclusions: It is suggested that more consideration should be directed toward taking comprehensive and systematic prevention measures ranging from setting-up the injury-protective environments to allowing senior citizens to have competence in ADL activity as well as proper general health conditions, considering the higher rate of falls for elderly persons in a rural part of this country than that of western countries and the greater proportion of falls which can be ascribed to environmental factors.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.55 no.3
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• pp.287-296
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• 2003

Background : Drowning represents the third most common cause of all accidental deaths worldwide. Although few studies of submersion injury were done in Korea, the subjects were mainly pediatric patients. The purpose of this study is to describe the clinical feature of submersion injury in adults. Methods : The medical records of 31 patients with submersion injury who were >15 years of age and admitted to Kyungpook National University Hospital from July 1990 to March 2003 were retrospectively examined. Results : The most common age-group, cause, and site of submersion accidents in adults were 15-24 years of age, inability to swim, and river followed by more than 65 years of age, drinking, and public bath respectively. The initial chest radiographics showed bilaterally and centrally predominant distribution of pulmonary edema at lung base in about 90% of patients with pulmonary edema represented by submersion injury but at only upper lung zone in 10%. Eventually, 25 patients (80.6%) survived without any neurologic deficit and 2 patients (6.5%) with significant neurologic deficit, and 4 patients (12.9%) died. Age, arterial gas oxygenation, and mental status among baseline variables showed significant difference for prognosis. Conclusions : More than 65 year of age, drinking, and occurrence in public bath were relatively important in submersion injury of adults, and the successful survival of 80.6% of patients suggests that cardiopulmonary resuscitation should be intensively done in even adults.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Landscape Architecture
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• v.49 no.1
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• pp.1-18
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• 2021

This study was intended to present measures for the improvement of the apartment house landscaping supervision system by examining the adequacy of landscaping supervision, which is aimed at improving the quality of landscape plants and facilities in apartment house landscaping sites. Additionally, this study aims to identify the problems occurring in the process of the performance of landscaping supervision and to provide the evidence for legislative activities and revision of the laws currently being pushed forward for the mandatory deployment of apartment house landscaping supervision personnel. The results of the analysis showed that no landscaping supervision personnel was deployed to apartment complexes with less than 1,500 households and that the landscaping comprised 19% to 46% of the entire construction process. The civil engineering firm performed the landscaping supervision, which made it impracticable to fully focus on the construction quality in the field of landscaping. The quality control in terms of landscape plants revealed differences in quality control, depending on the competence and experience of the civil engineer supervising the personnel, where the landscaping supervision personnel was not deployed. The apartment houses landscaping supervision activity index was analyzed, and the results showed that the supervision activity index for apartment house A was 72.0, B was 70.4, and apartment houses C to G ranged from 38.7 to 46.9, which suggested that the difference in quality control, process control, and technical support affected the construction quality and occurrence of defects.The improvement of landscaping process quality control and process management will be carried out more smoothly and the rate of defects will be drastically reduced if the landscaping supervision personnel placement threshold is lowered from 1,500 households to 300 households in complexes. The results of this study are expected to be useful in promoting and re-establishing the landscaping industry based on the improvement of construction quality in the field of landscaping in connection with the construction of apartment houses.

• Clean Technology
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.1-8
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• 2021

Due to the negative impacts of microplastics (MPs) on the ecosystem, the investigation of its occurrence and its treatment from sewage and wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) have received a lot of attention in the recent years. Most MPs are precipitated and removed with the sludge during the treatment process. Proper sludge management is immensely necessary to avoid MP exposure in the environment. However, the domestic research on this aspect is limited. This study reviews appropriate sludge management approaches to decrease environmental MP exposure. This can be achieved through investigating sludge generation and treatment, regulation laws and government policy trends with an emphasis on WWTPs. The ratio of sludge in sewage treatment plants has been observed to be highest in recycling followed by incineration and landfills. Recycling is the highest in fuel followed by construction materials and composting. For WWTPs, the highest ratio is in recycling followed by fuel and landfills, and recycling is confirmed in the following order: incineration > after composting > after solidification > earthworm breeding. Treatment approaches that can increase the exposure of MPs to the ecosystem are considered to be used in landfills and agricultural fields. However, this method is not appropriate given the insufficient capacity of domestic landfills and the sufficient supply of existing chemical and animal manure fertilizers. Instead, it would be rational in terms of environmental preservation to expand the use of fuel and energy in connection with the new and renewable energy policy, and to actively seek the use of sub-materials for construction materials. In order to secure the basic data for the effectiveness of future planning and revision of related laws, it is required to perform an in-depth investigation of the sludge supply and demand status along with the environmental and economic effects.

• Research in Plant Disease
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.113-121
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• 2022

Rice blast is a major plant disease that occurs worldwide and significantly reduces rice yields. Rice blast disease occurs periodically in Korea, causing significant socio-economic damage due to the unique status of rice as a major staple crop. A disease outbreak prediction system is required for preventing rice blast disease. Epidemiological investigations of disease outbreaks can aid in decision-making for plant disease management. Currently, plant disease prediction and epidemiological investigations are mainly based on quantitatively measurable, structured data such as crop growth and damage, weather, and other environmental factors. On the other hand, text data related to the occurrence of plant diseases are accumulated along with the structured data. However, epidemiological investigations using these unstructured data have not been conducted. The useful information extracted using unstructured data can be used for more effective plant disease management. This study analyzed news articles related to the rice blast disease through text mining to investigate the years and provinces where rice blast disease occurred most in Korea. Moreover, the average temperature, total precipitation, sunshine hours, and supplied rice varieties in the regions were also analyzed. Through these data, it was estimated that the primary causes of the nationwide outbreak in 2020 and the major outbreak in Jeonbuk region in 2021 were meteorological factors. These results obtained through text mining can be combined with deep learning technology to be used as a tool to investigate the epidemiology of rice blast disease in the future.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Radiology
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.231-242
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• 2023

This study aims to provide basic data to reduce the incidence of radiation dermatitis and improve patient satisfaction by investigating the management status and satisfaction level of radiation dermatitis in patients undergoing radiation therapy. From October 28, 2022, to April 4, 2023, a survey was conducted on 137 breast cancer patients who received radiation therapy at G Hospital in Busan. The Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG) cutaneous acute radiotherapy toxicity score was used as the standard for measuring skin reactions, and the association between cancer stage and RTOG was analyzed. SPSS program (ver. 18.0) was used for statistical analysis. The frequency of radiation dermatitis occurrence was relatively low, with 73% in the RTOG 0-1 group and 27% in the 2-3 group. Patient satisfaction after radiation therapy varied significantly depending on the RTOG group, with lower levels of dermatitis resulting in higher satisfaction and higher levels resulting in dissatisfaction (p=0.001). Although there was no statistically significant difference in RTOG group and skin satisfaction depending on the frequency of aloe mist use (p=0.065), the group that used it 1-2 times a day (69.3%) showed a higher satisfaction level. The perceived effects of aloe mist use were statistically significant for decreasing heat sensation (p=0.001), pain (p=0.033), itching (p=0.001), and psychological stability (p=0.027), especially in the higher RTOG groups. Additionally, as cancer stage increased, the severity of radiation dermatitis also increased, which was statistically significant (p=0.001). In conclusion, radiation dermatitis is the most common side effect of radiation therapy, and it can appear in various forms depending on individual skin sensitivity and external factors during treatment. Adequate education before treatment and the use of MD Cream and aloe vera mist are recommended to reduce the incidence and manage radiation dermatitis effectively.

• Journal of Environmental Impact Assessment
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• v.32 no.6
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• pp.389-406
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• 2023

The research area, located in the northern coastal region of South Korea's West Sea, involves three bird habitats. Among these are two newly established habitats in Songdo International Business District, created by filling and developing tidal flats that were previously utilized as stopover sites for migratory birds. One of these areas showed decrease (Residual tidal flats, site.1) while the other showed increase (Artificial lake, site.2) in bird influx. The third habitat (Namdong reservoir, site.3) is a pre-existing stable habitat which has been maintained as a stable habitat. This study conducts an assessment of habitats based on avian population clusters and environmental surveys and proposes habitat management measures. A survey of bird populations and habitat environments was conducted for a total of 39 occasions from January to December 2022. The observed bird species totaled 14 families and 48 species with 20,760 individuals. Compared to the existing habitats, the newly established habitats showed relatively lower influx of bird species and individuals. During the habitat assessment, the newly established habitats were rated as I to II grade, while the existing habitat was rated as relatively high III grade on the grading assessment of the tidal flat. An analysis of habitat types revealed that the existing habitat, in which diverse strategies for habitat type diversity and mitigating anthropogenic interference were demonstrated, attracted a diverse range of bird species. Through this research, it was deduced that the diversity of habitat types plays a significant role in attracting various bird species. Upon evaluation of habitat types concerning the habitat characteristics of the bird species selected for habitat management, as habitat management measures, it is deemed that the creation of shielded green areas (referred to as 'buffer green') to minimize interference from the surroundings, the establishment of reed fields (site.1, 2) positively correlated with reservoirs, and the improvement of sandbanks (site.1) positively associated with tidal flats, the two relations which we drew from correlation analysis between occurrence species and habitat types, would contribute to the future restoration and maintenance of stable habitats. The results of this study can be applied not only to the study area but also to other development zones, such as coastal reclamation sites, which share similar geographical and environmental characteristics, including arrival sites for migratory birds.

• Journal of Korea Water Resources Association
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• v.56 no.12
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• pp.919-928
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• 2023

Rainfall characteristics in Korea are concentrated during the summer flood season. In particular, when a large amount of turbid water flows into the dam due to the increasing trend of concentrated rainfall due to abnormal rainfall and abnormal weather conditions, prolonged turbid water phenomenon occurs due to the overturning phenomenon. Much research is being conducted on turbid water prediction to solve these problems. To predict turbid water, turbid water data from the upstream inflow is required, but spatial and temporal data resolution is currently insufficient. To improve temporal resolution, the development of the Turbidity-SS conversion equation is necessary, and to improve spatial resolution, multi-item water quality measurement instrument (YSI), Laser In-Situ Scattering and Transmissometry (LISST), and hyperspectral sensors are needed. Sensor-based measurement can improve the spatial resolution of turbid water by measuring line and surface unit data. In addition, in the case of LISST-200X, it is possible to collect data on particle size, etc., so it can be used in the Turbidity-SS conversion equation for fraction (Clay: Silt: Sand). In addition, among recent remote sensing methods, the spatial distribution of turbid water can be presented when using UAVs with higher spatial and temporal resolutions than other payloads and hyperspectral sensors with high spectral and radiometric resolutions. Therefore, in this study, the Turbidity-SS conversion equation was calculated according to the fraction through laboratory analysis using LISST-200X and YSI-EXO, and sensor-based field measurements including UAV (Matrice 600) and hyperspectral sensor (microHSI 410 SHARK) were used. Through this, the spatial distribution of turbidity and suspended sediment concentration, and the turbidity calculated using the Turbidity-SS conversion equation based on the measured suspended sediment concentration, was presented. Through this, we attempted to review the applicability of the Turbidity-SS conversion equation and understand the current status of turbid water occurrence.

• Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Venturing and Entrepreneurship
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.55-73
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• 2024

Unicorn companies are attracting attention around the world as they are recognized for their high corporate value in a short period of time as an innovative business models. Their growth process presents good lessons for the startup ecosystem and have a positive impact on national economic development and job creation. However, previous studies related to unicorn companies are focused on 'event studies' and 'case studies' such as characteristics of founders, environmental factors, business models and success/failure cases of companies already recognized as unicorns rather than a multifaceted approach. The occurrence of unicorn companies and Macroscopic analysis of related factors is lacking. Against this background, this study are considering the characteristics of unicorns examined through previous research and the current status unicorns with a high proportion of technology companies, the purpose was to analyze the impact of the country's technological competitiveness, such as 'technology human resource index', 'R&D index', and 'technology infrastructure index', on the increase in unicorn companies. For statistical analysis, data published by various international organizations, the Bank of Korea, and Statistics Korea from 2017 to 2020 and unicorn company data compiled by CB Insights were used as panel data for 44 countries to be tested by multiple regression analysis. As a result of the study, it was confirmed that the number of science majors had a positive (+) effect on the increase of unicorn companies in the case of technology human resource index, and in the case of R&D index, the total amount of R&D investment had a positive (+) effect on the increase of unicorn companies, while the number of Triad Patents Families and the number of scientific and technological papers published had a negative (-) effect on the increase of unicorn companies. Finally, in the case of technology infrastructure index, it was confirmed that the number of the world's 500th-ranked universities had a positive (+) effect on the increase of unicorn companies. This study is the first to reveal the causal relationship between national technological competitiveness and unicorn company growth based on country-specific and time-series empirical data, which were insufficiently covered in previous studies. and compared to the UN's ranking of the global industrial competitiveness index and the OECD's total R&D investment by country, Korea is considered to have technological and growth potential, while the number of unicorn companies driving growth as leaders of the innovative economy is relatively small, so the research results can be used when establishing policies to discover and foster unicorn companies in the future.

• Korean Journal of Ichthyology
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.48-57
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• 2024

Distribution status and extinction threat evaluation of an endangered species, Cobitis choii, were investigated from 2015 to 2019. In 2015 and 2018, we investigated past appearance sites of C. choii. In 2015, 163 individuals from nine sites were collected by surveying 19 stations. In 2018, 19 individuals from five sites were collected by surveying 22 sites. In 2019, 156 individuals from 12 sites were collected as a result of a survey of 79 sites of past appearance and potential appearance of C. choii. Appearance regions were Mihocheon (Baekgokcheon (2 sites), Chopyeongcheon (1 sites)), Gapcheon (3 sites), Yugucheon (2 sites), Jicheon (4 sites), and Geumgang mainstream (2 sites). Among these appearing regions, Baekgokcheon, Yugucheon, and Mihocheon mainstreams showed a sharp decline in population. Baekgokcheon was estimated to have a habitat change due to a project to raise the bank of Baekgok Reservoir. Yugucheon was estimated to have a habitat disturbance due to flood-induced collapse and reconstruction of weir. Mihocheon mainstream was estimated to have water pollution and habitat disturbance. On the other hand, Chopyeongcheon and Geumgang mainstream were newly habitat identified and Gapcheon was noted to show an increase in the number of individuals. After performing extinction threat evaluation, C. choii was evaluated as Endangered (EN A2ac) due to its rapid population decline (more than 50%) in its habitats of Baekgokcheon, Yugucheon, and Mihocheon based on criteria A, while it was evaluated as Vulnerable (VU B1ab (iii,v) +B2ab +B2ab (iii,v)) due to its narrow extent of occurrence (EOO, 1,735 km²) and area of occupancy (AOO, 36 km²) in 6 locations with a continuous population decline based on criteria B. Therefore, the final threat of extinction grade was evaluated as Endangered (EN A2ac). In Baekgokcheon, Yugucheon, and Mihocheon mainstream where the population has declined rapidly recently, conservation measures are urgently required to increase its population.