• Journal of the East Asian Society of Dietary Life
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• v.17 no.3
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• pp.304-311
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• 2007

The purpose of this study was to measure the causal relationships among fish consumption behavior, attitude towards fish eating, health involvement, perceived convenience, and age. A total of 235 questionnaires were completed. A structural equation model was used to measure the causal effects of the constructs. The results of the study demonstrated that the structural analysis results were an excellent model fit for the data. The influence of age on attitude towards fish eating, health involvement, and perceived convenience was statistically significant. As expected, attitude towards fish eating, health involvement, and perceived convenience had significant effects on fish consumption behavior. Moreover, age had a significant indirect effect on fish consumption behavior through health involvement. Age also had a significant indirect effect on fish consumption behavior through perceived convenience. By developing and testing conceptual models that integrate the relationships among age, psychological variables, and fish consumption behavior, this study may offer a deeper understanding of the complex relationships among the variables. A greater understanding of these complex relationships can improve the managerial diagnoses of problems and the opportunities for different marketing strategies, including product development and marketing communications.

• Advances in aircraft and spacecraft science
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• v.5 no.3
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• pp.335-348
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• 2018

The structural dynamics (SD) behavior of Elastic Flapping Wings (EFWs) is investigated analytically as a novel approach in EFWs analysis. In this regard an analytical SD solution of EFW undergoing a prescribed rigid body motion is initially derived, where the governing equations are expressed in modal space. The inertial forces are also analytically computed utilizing the actuator induced acceleration effects on the wing structure, while due to importance of analytical solution the linearity assumption is also considered. The formulated initial-value problem is solved analytically to study the EFW structural responses, where the effect of structure-actuator frequency ratio, structure-flapping frequency ratio as well as the structure damping ratio on the EFW pick amplitude is analyzed. A case study is also simulated in which the wing is modeled as an elastic beam with shell elements undergoing a prescribed sinusoidal motion. The corresponding EFW transient and steady response in on-off servo behavior is investigated. This study provides a conceptual understanding for the overall EFW SD behavior in the presence of inertial forces plus the servo dynamics effects. In addition to the substantial analytical results, the study paves a new mathematical way to better understanding the complex role of SD in dynamic EFWs behavior. Specifically, similar mathematical formulations can be carried out to investigate the effect of aerodynamics and/or gravity.

• Computers and Concrete
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• v.25 no.4
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• pp.327-341
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• 2020

Advanced forms of structural design (e.g., displacement-based methods) require knowledge of the non-linear force-displacement behavior of both the overall building and individual lateral load resisting elements, i.e., walls or building cores. Similarly, understanding the non-linear behaviour of the elements in a structure can also allow for a less conservative structural response to be calculated by better understanding the cracked (i.e., effective) properties of the various RC elements. Calculating the non-linear response of an RC section typically involves using 'black box' analysis packages, wherein the user may not be in complete control nor be aware of all the intricate settings and/or decisions behind the scenes. This paper introduces a user-friendly and transparent analysis program for predicting the back-bone force displacement behavior of slender (i.e., flexure controlled) RC walls, building cores or columns. The program has been validated and benchmarked theoretically against both commonly available and widely used analysis packages and experimentally against a database of 16 large-scale RC wall test specimens. The program, which is called WHAM, is written using Microsoft Excel spreadsheets to promote transparency and allow users to further develop or modify to suit individual requirements. The program is available free-of-charge and is intended to be used as an educational tool for structural designers, researchers or students.

• International Journal of High-Rise Buildings
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• v.5 no.4
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• pp.271-291
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• 2016

There is much architectural and engineering literature which discusses the virtues of exterior bracing and diagrid systems in regards to sustainability - two systems which generally reduce building materials, enhance structural performance, and decrease overall construction cost. By surveying past, present as well as possible future towers, this paper examines another attribute of these structural systems - the blend of structural functionality and aesthetics. Given the external nature of these structural systems, diagrids and exterior bracings can visually communicate the inherent structural logic of a building while also serving as a medium for artistic effect. Viewed in this light, the visual appeal of these systems can be enhanced to give a tower a more distinct urban identity. This entails the creation of structural elements that are aesthetically pleasing, geometrically coherent and that demonstrate dexterity of application in regards to a building's composition, while also respecting the laws of physics and mechanics. In this fashion, an artistic approach can exhibit structural systems as not just purely rational features that enable the construction of tall buildings, but as important visual components that afford opportunities for creative expression. This paper, therefore, synthesizes the concepts of structural performance and creative artistry to facilitate a better understanding of the aesthetic developments in skyscrapers worldwide.

• ETRI Journal
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• v.40 no.4
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• pp.499-510
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• 2018

A vector space based augmented structural kinematic (VSASK) feature descriptor is proposed for human activity recognition. An action descriptor is built by integrating the structural and kinematic properties of the actor using vector space based augmented matrix representation. Using the local or global information separately may not provide sufficient action characteristics. The proposed action descriptor combines both the local (pose) and global (position and velocity) features using augmented matrix schema and thereby increases the robustness of the descriptor. A multiclass support vector machine (SVM) is used to learn each action descriptor for the corresponding activity classification and understanding. The performance of the proposed descriptor is experimentally analyzed using the Weizmann and KTH datasets. The average recognition rate for the Weizmann and KTH datasets is 100% and 99.89%, respectively. The computational time for the proposed descriptor learning is 0.003 seconds, which is an improvement of approximately 1.4% over the existing methods.

• BMB Reports
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• v.37 no.1
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• pp.28-34
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• 2004

The discovery of biochemical and cellular functions of unannotated gene products begins with a database search of proteins with structure/sequence homologues based on known genes. Very recently, a number of frontier groups in structural biology proposed a new paradigm to predict biological functions of an unknown protein on the basis of its three-dimensional structure on a genomic scale. Structural proteomics (genomics), a research area for structure-based functional discovery, aims to complete the protein-folding universe of all gene products in a cell. It would lead us to a complete understanding of a living organism from protein structure. Two major complementary experimental techniques, X-ray crystallography and NMR spectroscopy, combined with recently developed high throughput methods have played a central role in structural proteomics research; however, an integration of these methodologies together with comparative modeling and electron microscopy would speed up the goal for completing a full dictionary of protein folding space in the near future.

• BMB Reports
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• v.39 no.2
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• pp.132-139
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• 2006

Vascular endothelial cadherin (VE-cadherin), which belongs to the classical cadherin family, is localized at adherens junctions exclusively in vascular endothelial cells. Biochemical and biomechanical cues regulate the VE-cadherin adhesive potential by triggering the intracellular signals. VE-cadherin-mediated cell adhesion is required for cell survival and endothelial cell deadhesion is required for vascular development. It is therefore crucial to understand how VE-cadherin-based cell adhesion is controlled. This review summarizes the inter-endothelial cell adhesions and introduces our recent advance in Rap1-regulated VE-cadherin adhesion. A further analysis of the VE-cadherin recycling system will aid the understanding of cell adhesion/deadhesion mechanisms mediated by VE-cadherin in response to extracellular stimuli during development and angiogenesis.

• KIEAE Journal
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• v.4 no.3
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• pp.45-52
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• 2004

The purpose of this research was to identify the structural characteristics of open housing typologically and systematically. The main method of this study was content analysis and literature review on open housing. This study found that the typological analysis on terminology and the details of the constituents concerning structural patterns in open housing indicated that the main approaches were classified into three criteria such as 'Organization Element', 'Construction Element', and 'Equipment Element'. Organization Element was classified into 'Main Dwelling Unit Area and its Form', 'Room Organization Method', 'Relationship with the Main Dwelling Unit's External Constituents', and 'Combination Method of Support and Infill'. Construction Element was classified into 'Method of Structure' and 'Structural Element Technology'. Equipment Element was classified into 'Method of Using Duct' and 'Wet Zone Method'. The attributes were determined based on these classifications. The results of this study can be used to construct an evaluation tool and further to develop a framework in understanding open housing. Technical research should be conducted on the variables that affect the flexibility of space.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.49 no.2
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• pp.387-394
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• 2017

Seismic probabilistic risk assessment (SPRA) requires a large number of simulations to evaluate the seismic vulnerability of structural and nonstructural components in nuclear power plants. The effect of structural modeling and analysis assumptions on dynamic analysis of 3D and simplified 2D stick models of auxiliary buildings and the attached nonstructural components is investigated. Dynamic characteristics and seismic performance of building models are also evaluated, as well as the computational accuracy of the models. The presented results provide a better understanding of the dynamic behavior and seismic performance of auxiliary buildings. The results also help to quantify the impact of uncertainties associated with modeling and analysis of simplified numerical models of structural and nonstructural components subjected to seismic shaking on the predicted seismic failure probabilities of these systems.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Nondestructive Testing
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• v.32 no.3
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• pp.241-262
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• 2012

Some applications require structural health monitoring in inaccessible components. This paper presents a technique useful for Structural Health Monitoring of double wall structures, such as double wall steam pipes and double wall pressure vessels separated from an ultrasonic transducer by three layers. Detection has been demonstrated at distances in excess of one meter for a fixed transducer. The case presented here is for one of the layers, the middle layer, being a fluid. For certain transducer configurations the wave propagating in the fluid is a wave with low velocity and attenuation. The paper presents a model based on wave theory and finite element simulation; the experimental set-up and observations, and comparison between theory and experiment. The results provide a description of the technique, understanding of the phenomenon and its possible applications in Structural Health Monitoring.