• Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging
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• v.43 no.5
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• pp.459-467
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• 2009

Purpose: The maximum likelihood-expectation maximization (ML-EM) is the statistical reconstruction algorithm derived from probabilistic model of the emission and detection processes. Although the ML-EM has many advantages in accuracy and utility, the use of the ML-EM is limited due to the computational burden of iterating processing on a CPU (central processing unit). In this study, we developed a parallel computing technique on GPU (graphic processing unit) for ML-EM algorithm. Materials and Methods: Using Geforce 9800 GTX+ graphic card and CUDA (compute unified device architecture) the projection and backprojection in ML-EM algorithm were parallelized by NVIDIA's technology. The time delay on computations for projection, errors between measured and estimated data and backprojection in an iteration were measured. Total time included the latency in data transmission between RAM and GPU memory. Results: The total computation time of the CPU- and GPU-based ML-EM with 32 iterations were 3.83 and 0.26 see, respectively. In this case, the computing speed was improved about 15 times on GPU. When the number of iterations increased into 1024, the CPU- and GPU-based computing took totally 18 min and 8 see, respectively. The improvement was about 135 times and was caused by delay on CPU-based computing after certain iterations. On the other hand, the GPU-based computation provided very small variation on time delay per iteration due to use of shared memory. Conclusion: The GPU-based parallel computation for ML-EM improved significantly the computing speed and stability. The developed GPU-based ML-EM algorithm could be easily modified for some other imaging geometries.

• Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology & Nutrition
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.233-241
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• 2006

Purpose: This study was carried out to investigate the awareness of the weaning of food using questionnaires, and the relationship with the weight gain in young infants. Methods: From September 2005 to December 2005, we performed a survey on 141 guardians of young infants aged from 6 to 18 months, who visited the pediatric out-patient department at Dongguk University Medical Center. We calculated the total score for each responder from ten questions on the weaning of food and assessed the body weight percentile of each of the young infants. Results: The most commonly reported information source for weaning food was 'the friends around' by 62 respondents (44.0%); 54 (38.3%) responded that the definition of weaning food was the preparatory step before starting a solid diet. Most used a spoon (90.8%) to feed when weaning food with a thin gruel of rice (78.7%). The time for weaning of food was before breast or infant formula feeding (55.3%). Addition of cow's milk was around 12 months (77.3%). The mean score was 6.21; however this did not show a statistically significant correlation with weight gain in young infants. Conclusion: The overall awareness of weaning of food has improved; however, information from doctors has decreased. Although the relationship between the awareness of weaning of food and the growth of young infants was not statistically significant, further studies on weaning of food, with larger and controlled sample sizes may provide important information.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2011.02a
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• pp.57-58
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• 2011

III-V족 화합물 반도체의 일종인 InSb는 77 K에서 0.23 eV의 작은 밴드 갭을 가지며 높은 전하 이동도를 가지고 있기 때문에 대기권에서 전자파 흡수가 일어나지 않는 3~5 ${\mu}m$범위의 장파장 적외선 감지가 가능하여 중적외선 감지 소자로 이용되고 있다. 하지만 InSb는 밴드 갭이 매우 작기 때문에, 소자 제작시 누설전류에 의한 소자 특성의 저하가 문제시 되고 있다. 또한 다른 화합물 반도체에 비해 녹는점이 낮고, 휘발성이 강한 5족 원소인 Sb의 승화로 기판의 화학양론적 조성비(stoichiometry)가 변하기 쉬워, 계면특성 저하의 원인이 된다. 따라서 우수한 특성을 가지는 적외선 소자의 구현을 위해서, 저온에서 계면 특성이 우수한 고품질의 절연막 증착 연구가 필수적이다. 본 연구에서는 InSb 기판 위에 $SiO_2$, $Si_3N_4$의 절연막 형성시 증착온도의 변화에 따른 계면 트랩 밀도를 분석하였다. $SiO_2$, $Si_3N_4$ 절연막은 플라즈마 화학 기상 증착법(PECVD)을 이용하여 n형 InSb 기판 위에 증착하였으며, 증착온도를 $120^{\circ}C$부터 $240^{\circ}C$까지 변화시켰다. Metal oxide semiconductor(MOS) 구조 제작을 통하여, 커패시턴스-전압(C-V)분석을 진행하였으며, 절연막과 InSb 사이의 계면 트랩 밀도를 Terman method를 이용하여 계산하였다[1]. 또한, $SiO_2$와 $Si_3N_4$의 XPS 분석과 TOF-SIMS 분석을 통하여 계면 트랩 밀도의 원인을 밝혀 보았다. $120{\sim}240^{\circ}C$ 온도 범위에서 계면 트랩 밀도는 $Si_3N_4$의 경우 $2.4{\sim}4.9{\times}10^{12}cm^{-2}eV^{-1}$, $SiO_2$의 경우 $7.1{\sim}7.3{\times}10^{11}cm^{-2}eV^{-1}$ 값을 나타냈고, 두 절연막 모두 증착 온도가 증가할수록 계면 트랩 밀도가 증가하는 경향을 보였다. 그러나 모든 샘플에서 $Si_3N_4$의 경우, flat band voltage가 음의 전압으로 이동한 반면, $SiO_2$의 경우, 양의 전압으로 이동하는 것을 확인할 수 있었다. 계면 트랩 밀도 증가의 원인을 확인하기 위해서, oxide를 $120^{\circ}C$, $240^{\circ}C$에서 증착시킨 샘플을 XPS 분석을 통하여 깊이에 따른 성분분석을 하였고, 그 결과, $240^{\circ}C$에서 증착된 샘플에서 계면에서 $In_2O_3$와 $Sb_2O_3$ 피크의 증가를 확인하였다. 이는 계면에서 oxide양이 증가함을 의미하며, 이렇게 생성된 oxide는 계면 트랩으로 작용하므로, 계면 특성을 저하시키는 원인으로 작용함을 알 수 있었다. Nitride 절연막을 증착시킨 샘플은 TOF-SIMS 분석을 통해, 계면에서의 성분 분석을 하였고, 그 결과, $240^{\circ}C$에서 증착된 샘플에서 In-N, Sb-N, Si-N 결합의 감소를 확인하였다. 이렇게 분해된 결합들의 dangling 결합이 늘어 계면 트랩으로 작용하므로, 계면 특성을 저하시키는 원인으로 작용함을 알 수 있었다. 최종적으로, 소자특성을 확인 하기 위하여 계면 트랩 밀도가 가장 낮게 측정된 $200^{\circ}C$ 조건에서 $SiO_2$ 절연막을 증착하여 InSb 적외선 소자를 제작하였다. 전류-전압(I-V) 분석 결과 -0.1 V에서 16 nA의 누설 전류 값을 보였으며, $2.6{\times}10^3{\Omega}cm^2$의 RoA(zero bias resistance area)를 얻을 수 있었다. 절연막 증착조건의 최적화를 통하여, InSb 적외선 소자의 특성이 개선됨을 확인할 수 있었다.

• Magazine of the Korean Society of Agricultural Engineers
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.3263-3291
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• 1974

Experimental work of grain bin was carried out to develop the methods of natural air in-bin drying and storage. The method is considered to be more economical, labour saving, and an effective countermeasure to grain loss. To examine the possibility of farm use of the grain bin and to analyze the related factors concerned with in-bin grain drying and storage, ambient air conditions (especially the change of air temperature and relative humidity) and grain quality during drying and storage periods were investigated. A laboratory model bin was constructed to investigate the effect of different forced air conditions on the drying characteristics of rice. In addition, a grain bin with 2.2m diameter and 1.8m height, considered to be the optimum size for the average Korean farm, was constructed and tested to examine the drying and storing characteristics of rice. The weather data analyzed in this study was the nine-year (from 1964 to 1972) record of air temperature and relative humidity in the Suweon area, and the thirty-year (from 1931 to 1960) record of pentad normal relative humidity and air temperature in the Seoul area. From the results of the weather data analyses, the adequate air delivery hours (which was arbitrary defined as the condition to give less than 75% relative humidity) to dry the rice during October were about nine hours (from approximately 10 A.M. to 7 P.M, ) a day, in which the average air temperature was about 15.9$^{\circ}C$ and average relative humidity was 66%. The occurence of days having three hours of such conditions was 1, 2, and 1-day within the 1st, 2nd add last 10-day periods for the month of October, respectively. Therefore, it may be considered that the weather condition in October was satisfactory for the forced natural air drying. The results of the laboratory model bin test were analyzed to obtain the drying curve and drying rate for different drying stages and grain layers in the bin corresponding to various conditions of forced natural air. A drying experiment with a prototype grain bin showed that an approximate 5 percent grain moisture gradient through a 1.6 meter grain deposit was observed after 80 hours of intermittent drying, giving an over dried zone in the lower grain layers and an extremely high grain moisture zone in the upper layers. This indicates that an effective measure should be taken to reduce this high moisture gradient. In order to investigate the drying characteristics of bulk grain in a layerturning operation a grain bin test was performed. This showed a significant improvement of uniform drying. In this test, approximate 107 hours were required to dry a depth of 1.6 meter of grain from an initial moisture content of 22.2 percent to a moisture content of 16.7 percent using an air delivery rate of 2.8 cubic meter per a minute per every cubic meter of grain. This resulted in a 2 percent moisture gradient from the top to the bottom of the bin. During storage period, till the end of June the average temperature of grain was 2~3$^{\circ}C$ higher than ambient air temperature. But during July when the grain moisture content went up slightly (less than 1 percent), the average temperature of the grain also increased to 3~5$^{\circ}C$ higher than ambient air temperature. It is therefore recommended that for safe grain storage, grain should not be stored in sheet metal bins after mid May. From the above results, in-bin rice drying and storage can be used effectively on Korean farms. It is strongly recommended that the use of grain-bin system should be implemented for farm use to improve farm drying and storage of rice.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural and Forest Meteorology
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• v.11 no.2
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• pp.72-78
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• 2009

The demand for rainfall data in gridded digital formats has increased in recent years due to the close linkage between hydrological models and decision support systems using the geographic information system. One of the most widely used tools for digital rainfall mapping is the PRISM (parameter-elevation regressions on independent slopes model) which uses point data (rain gauge stations), a digital elevation model (DEM), and other spatial datasets to generate repeatable estimates of monthly and annual precipitation. In the PRISM, rain gauge stations are assigned with weights that account for other climatically important factors besides elevation, and aspects and the topographic exposure are simulated by dividing the terrain into topographic facets. The size of facet or grid cell resolution is determined by the density of rain gauge stations and a $5{\times}5km$ grid cell is considered as the lowest limit under the situation in Korea. The PRISM algorithms using a 270m DEM for South Korea were implemented in a script language environment (Python) and relevant weights for each 270m grid cell were derived from the monthly data from 432 official rain gauge stations. Weighted monthly precipitation data from at least 5 nearby stations for each grid cell were regressed to the elevation and the selected linear regression equations with the 270m DEM were used to generate a digital precipitation map of South Korea at 270m resolution. Among 1.25 million grid cells, precipitation estimates at 166 cells, where the measurements were made by the Korea Water Corporation rain gauge network, were extracted and the monthly estimation errors were evaluated. An average of 10% reduction in the root mean square error (RMSE) was found for any months with more than 100mm monthly precipitation compared to the RMSE associated with the original 5km PRISM estimates. This modified PRISM may be used for rainfall mapping in rainy season (May to September) at much higher spatial resolution than the original PRISM without losing the data accuracy.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural and Forest Meteorology
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.11-22
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• 2010

According to IPCC 4th Assessment Report, concentration of carbon dioxide has been increasing by 30% since Industrial Revolution. Most of IPCC $CO_2$ emission scenarios estimate that the concentration will reach up to double of its present level within 100-year if the current tendency continues. The global warming has resulted in the agro-climate change over the Korean Peninsula as well. Accordingly, it is necessary to understand the future agro-climate induced by the increase of greenhouse gases in terms of the agro-climatic indices in the Korean peninsula. In this study, the future climate is simulated by an atmosphere/ocean/land surface/sea ice coupled general circulation climate model, Pusan National University Coupled General Circulation Model(hereafter, PNU CGCM), and by a regional weather prediction model, Weather Research and Forecasting Model(hereafter, WRF) for the purpose of a dynamical downscaling. The changes of the vegetable period and the crop growth period, defined as the total number of days of a year exceeding daily mean temperature of 5 and 10, respectively, have been analyzed. Our results estimate that the beginning date of vegetable and crop growth periods get earlier by 3.7 and 17 days, respectively, in spring under the $CO_2$-doubled climate. In most of the Korean peninsula, the predicted frost days in spring decrease by 10 days. Climatic production index (CPI), which closely represent the productivity of rice, tends to increase in the double $CO_2$ climate. Thus, it is suggested that the future $CO_2$ doubled climate might be favorable for crops due to the decrease of frost days in spring, and increased temperature and insolation during the heading date as we expect from the increased CPI.

• KOREAN JOURNAL OF CROP SCIENCE
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• v.29 no.4
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• pp.376-385
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• 1984

The habit of anthesis and maturity of sesame were investigated as a basic research for the improvement of high-yielding varieties and cultural practices. Eight different plant types were identified using typical cultivars among gene pool grown in Korea. Non-branching, Monocapsule, Bicarpels quadriloculi (NMB) type showed higher ratio for capsule setting compared with Non-branching, Monocapsule, Quadricarpels octoloculi (NMQ) type. Non-branching, Tricapsules, Quadricarpels octoloculi(NTQ) type presented lower ratio for capsule setting than non-branching, tricapsules, bicarpels quadriloculi(NTB) type. The number of flowers by flower setting position was the highest on lower part, intermediate on middle part, and the lowest on higher part in NMB and NTB type. However, the number of flowers was the highest on middle part, intermediate on lower part, and lowest on higher part in NMQ and NTQ type. BMB type appeared to have the highest ratio for capsule setting when compared with the other plant types. BTB type with many flowers and capsules exhibited higher percentage for capsule setting than BTQ type with lowest capsule setting percentage. Capsule setting percentage of branch appeared to be lower than that of main stern in the branching type. The branching type had more flowers and capsules than non-branching type. Tricapsules type had more flowers and capsules per plant than monocapsule type, and bicarpels quadriloculi type had more than quadricarpels octoloculi type. However, capsule setting ratio in non-branching type was higher than in branching type. The ratio was higher in monocapsule type than in tricapsules type. Bicarpels quadriloculi type had higher ratio of capsule setting than quadricapels octoloculi type. Number of capsules per plant and capsule setting ratio are supposed to be dominated by shape of capsule (number of carpels and loculi), not by branching or number of capsules per axil. The order of number of capsules per plant was as follows; BTB, BMB, NTB, BTQ, BMQ, NTQ, NMQ, and NMB types. However, the order of capsule setting ratio was as follows: BMB, NMB, NTB, NTQ, NMQ, BMQ, BTB, BTQ types. Consequently, branching, tricapsules, bicarpels quadriloculi(BTB) type was considered as a sourse of breeding for high yielding varieties by introducing the genes govering BMB type with one capsule per axil which has high capsule setting ability.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.36 no.2
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• pp.119-128
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• 2017

BACKGROUND: Miscellaneous cereal have been largely consumed in Korea as due to their physiological functions beneficial to human health. The cereals are currently a social concern because they have been found to contain heavy metals. Thus, monitoring heavy metals in the cereals is an important requirement for food safety analysis. In this study, we determined arsenic concentration in the cereals randomly harvested from different markets. METHODS AND RESULTS: Inorganic arsenic was determined by ICP-MS coupled with HPLC system. The HPLC-ICP-MS analysis was optimized based on the limit of detection and recover test to reach $0.13-1.24{\mu}g/kg$ and 94.3-102.1%, respectively. The concentrations of inorganic arsenic equivalent to daily exposure were levels of $19.91{\mu}g/day$ in mixed grain, $1.07{\mu}g/day$ in glutinous rice, $0.77{\mu}g/day$ in black brown rice, $0.13{\mu}g/day$ in barley and $0.11{\mu}g/day$ in soybeans. CONCLUSION: The levels of arsenic in miscellaneous cereals were found lower than the recommended The Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA) levels, suggesting that the cereals marketed in Korea are not potential concern in risk assessment.

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.49 no.1
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• pp.51-61
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• 2016

This study was carried out to assess the carbon budget of two urban parks and one natural park and to prepare the plan for improving the ecological functions of the park including carbon sink. Net Ecosystem Production (NEP) of those study sites was calculated from the relationship between Net Primary Production (NPP) and soil respiration of each study site. To understand carbon budget of the whole area designated as the park, carbon budget of the urban park was analyzed by classifying the vegetated and the non-vegetated zones. NEP of the Nohae and the Sanggye parks calculated by reflecting areal size that the non-vegetated zones occupy were shown in -1.0 and $0.6\;ton\;C\;ha^{-1}yr^{-1}$, respectively. On the other hand, NEP of Mt. Bulam natural park as a reference site was in $2.3\;ton\;C\;ha^{-1}yr^{-1}$. Based on the result, the Nohae park was assessed as carbon source rather than carbon sink. On the other hand, the Sanggye park was classified as carbon sink but the role was poor compared with natural park. The result is, first of all, due to lower NPP of the vegetation introduced for the parks compared with natural vegetation. The other reason is due to wide arrangement of non-vegetated zone. To solve those problems and thereby to create the urban park with high ecological quality, selection of plant species suitable for the ecological characteristic of the park, their arrangement imitated natural vegetation, and ecological zoning were recommended.

• Restorative Dentistry and Endodontics
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• v.32 no.2
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• pp.102-110
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• 2007

The purpose of this study was to obtain the basic information for the improvement of dental environment by investigating the presence of methicillin- or vancomycin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA or VRSA) isolated from dental health care workers (DHCWs) and environment of the Chosun University Dental Hospital (CUDH) and a private dental clinic (control group). Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) was isolated from anterior nares of 42 DHCWS and 38 sites, unit chairss, x-ray devices, computers, etc., at 10 departments of the CUDH and 20 DHCWs and 11 sites at the private dental clinic. S. aureus was isolated on mannitol salt agar plate and confirmed by PCR with S. aureus species-specific primer. Antimicrobial susceptibility test of clinical isolates of S. aureus against several antibiotics including methicillin (oxacillin) was performed by investigating minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) using broth microdilution assay. In addition, PCR was performed to detect the methicillin- or vancomycin-resistant gene. The data showed that one strain of S. aureus was isolated from DHCWs of the CUDH and three strains of S. aureus was isolated from 3 samples of the private dental clinic, respectively. All of the isolates from the CUDH and the private dental clinic had resistance to penicillin G, amoxicillin and vancomycin and susceptibility to oxacillin and ciprofloxacin. The S. aureus strains were already obtained the resistance to penicillin G and amoxicillin. These results suggest that two dental clinics were under relatively safe environment.