• The Research Journal of the Costume Culture
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• v.13 no.4 s.57
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• pp.513-525
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• 2005

This article examines how the development process of muff has changed over history as well as considering value. This study is based on secondary sources such as books and fashion magazines. The imminent value of muff based on the results of this historical study can be summarized by its utility, its ornamentation, and its fashion value. First, muff is not only used to protect the hands or to keep them warm, but also as a substitute for the purse. Second, muff is an ornament decorated mainly with fur, using splendid colors, patterns, embroidery etc. Third, muff goes with other clothes as an ornament, and therefore, can be a means to express the attitude or behavior of many circumstances. Muff has vanished in casual wear and could meet by chance in a designers collection. However, the fashion value of muff brings it new attention making various creative fashion images by itself or with other clothes in the modern fashion trend. This study on the history and the aesthetic value of muff could stimulate the appreciation of the ornamentation aside from the clothes and serve to develop a new creative way in fashion design.

• The Journal of the Acoustical Society of Korea
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• v.32 no.5
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• pp.423-429
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• 2013

The present study aimed to find the most sensitive placement of the skull to perceive speech through the bone vibrator in various protection methods while being exposed to noise. Twenty young normal-hearing adults (10 male and 10 female) participated in the study. As stimulus, Korean spondee words were presented via one of five skull locations (i.e., jaw angle, condyle, temple, mastoid, and vertex), while the participants wore one of four protection methods (i.e., ear form, ear plug, ear muff, and ear form and muff together) against white noise in one of four noise directions (i.e., 0, 90, 180, 270 degrees). The results showed: 1) there was a significant difference among the five skull locations with condyle being the most sensitive placement; 2) there was a significant difference among the four protection methods, with the ear form plus ear muff condition (or dual protection) providing the lowest threshold; 3) when exposed to noise from 90 degrees, the significantly lowest threshold was found; 4) there was no significant difference in results by gender. The pattern of results suggests that the communicative condition via the condyle bone conduction and the dual protection of the air conduction under any noise direction might be ideal for preventing noise-induced hearing loss, although further studies should be undertaken in this area.