• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.163-169
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• 2022

Background: It is estimated that about 13 million artisanal and small-scale miners carry out their activities under harsh, precarious, unfriendly, and risky conditions. Yet, our understanding of the extent to which these workers use personal protective equipment (PPE) and navigate through the various risks and hazards they face is still limited. This article has two main objectives. First, it explores the extent of usage of PPE among artisanal and small-scale miners for the prevention of hazards and risks. Second, it examines the coping strategies used by these miners as a response to experiences of occupational injuries and risks Methods: A cross-sectional survey of small-scale miners was conducted in six communities across three districts in Ghana, West Africa. The mixed methods approach was adopted. A total of 148 small-scale miners participated in the study. Six focus group discussions (FGDs) were held across the six communities. The data were analysed using descriptive statistics. Chi-square tests were used to analyse the relationship between some socio-demographic characteristics (sex, age, and educational background) and the usage of PPE. Open-ended questions and responses from FGDs were analysed based on the content and verbatim quotations from miners. Results: Findings suggest that 78% of the miners interviewed do not use the appropriate PPE citing reasons such as cost, and their personal discomfort associated with use of PPE. There was no significant relationship between socio-demographic characteristics (i.e., sex, age, education and major mining activity) and the usage of PPE. The study further revealed four main coping strategies used by miners to handle the risks. These are rest, taking unprescribed medication and hard drugs, registration with health insurance scheme and savings and investments. Conclusion: This study shows that very few artisanal miners use PPE despite the significant hazards and risks to which they are exposed. The study recommends to the government to put in place measures to ensure that miners adhere to health and safety regulations before undertaking mining activities. This means that health and safety plans and use of PPE should be linked to the license acquisition process for miners.

• Geophysics and Geophysical Exploration
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.140-161
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• 2022

Seismic data with missing traces are often obtained regularly or irregularly due to environmental and economic constraints in their acquisition. Accordingly, seismic data interpolation is an essential step in seismic data processing. Recently, research activity on machine learning-based seismic data interpolation has been flourishing. In particular, convolutional neural network (CNN) and generative adversarial network (GAN), which are widely used algorithms for super-resolution problem solving in the image processing field, are also used for seismic data interpolation. In this study, CNN-based algorithm, U-Net and GAN-based algorithm, and conditional Wasserstein GAN (cWGAN) were used as seismic data interpolation methods. The results and performances of the methods were evaluated thoroughly to find an optimal interpolation method, which reconstructs with high accuracy missing seismic data. The work process for model training and performance evaluation was divided into two cases (i.e., Cases I and II). In Case I, we trained the model using only the regularly sampled data with 50% missing traces. We evaluated the model performance by applying the trained model to a total of six different test datasets, which consisted of a combination of regular, irregular, and sampling ratios. In Case II, six different models were generated using the training datasets sampled in the same way as the six test datasets. The models were applied to the same test datasets used in Case I to compare the results. We found that cWGAN showed better prediction performance than U-Net with higher PSNR and SSIM. However, cWGAN generated additional noise to the prediction results; thus, an ensemble technique was performed to remove the noise and improve the accuracy. The cWGAN ensemble model removed successfully the noise and showed improved PSNR and SSIM compared with existing individual models.

• Journal of Science Education
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• v.46 no.3
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• pp.312-325
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• 2022

This study aims to provide a science history content system necessary in the course design process of liberal arts subjects, along with the application of flip learning in liberal arts science classes for humanities and social sciences students. For the research, we analyzed the current state of the liberal arts and history of science classes at universities. Then we developed the 'Understanding the History of Science' subject by applying the flip learning method through the analysis of various previous studies. As the goal of science history lectures that can reach the essential purposes of science liberal arts education, including knowledge acquisition and strengthening various competencies, scientific attitude cultivation was set, and the content system of week 15 was designed to consider this. The four topics corresponding to the "History of Science" part of the "Understanding Science History" content system consisted of flipped learning classes and teaching and learning activities, including online video materials and group discussion activities. As a result of opening courses for students in the humanities and social sciences and operating classes for 56 college students, it was confirmed that students' interest and awareness of science increased. This study provides educational evidence for science history and liberal arts education.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Surveying, Geodesy, Photogrammetry and Cartography
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• v.40 no.1
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• pp.41-49
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• 2022

Recently interests on the application of thermal cameras have increased with the advance of image analysis technology. Aside from a simple image acquisition, applications such as digital twin and thermal image management systems have gained popularity. To this end, we studied the effect of emissivity on the DN (Digital Number) value in the process of derivation of a relational expression for converting DN to an actual surface temperature. The DN value is a number representing the spectral band value of the thermal image, and is an important element constituting the thermal image data. However, the DN value is not a temperature value indicating the actual surface temperature, but a brightness value indicating high and low heat as brightness, and has a non-linear relationship with the actual surface temperature. The reliable relationship between DN and the actual surface temperature is critical for a thermal image processing. We tested the relationship between the actual surface temperature and the DN value of the thermal image, and then the radiation adjustment was performed to better estimate actual surface temperatures. As a result, the relation graph between the actual surface temperature and the DN value similarly show linear pattern with the relation graph between the radiation-controlled non-contact thermometer and the DN value. And the non-contact temperature after adjusting the emissivity was closer to the actual surface temperature than before adjusting the emissivity.

• The Korean Journal of Franchise Management
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• v.2 no.2
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• pp.70-83
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• 2011

The number of agricultural products due to open in response to international competitiveness of the farming press and the need for structural adjustment in agriculture and in agricultural crops receive a fair market price, fair trade, such as improving efficiency sidaejeo appropriate response to the request of the government must have. For this purpose, compared to the communist bojaphan agricultural water efficiently changing the structure of the distribution, agricultural products originating from the acquisition phase choice of shipping a stable product supply and plans to expand production system to induce a smooth supply of agricultural products, expand processing capacity and sales control should be. Also, in the distribution process by eliminating various immoral conduct commerce retail establishment and enforcement of policies for efficient and accurate distribution statistics, information is needed. The ultimate goal of agricultural restructuring and ensure fair price for producers sangpuui and improvement of production facilities for maximizing and affordable for consumers, according to your preferences to receive the best offer will be Foo. Therefore, management increases the efficiency of just distribution costs, or margins, lowering the improvement is not practical to restructure the distribution structure of costs for the best product and must supply the next country of agricultural products, strengthen the consumer's purchase desire to meet will be.

• The Journal of the Convergence on Culture Technology
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.171-179
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• 2023

Due to man-made climate change, global abnormal weather phenomena have occurred, increasing disasters. Major developed countries(military) are preparing for disasters caused by extreme weather appearances. However, currently, disaster prevention plans and facilities have been implemented based on the frequency and intensity method based on statistical data, it is not enough to prepare for disasters caused by frequent extreme weather based on probability basis. The U.S. and British forces have been the fastest to take research and policy approaches related to climate change and the threat of disaster change, and are considering both climate change mitigation and adaptation. The South Korean military regards the perception of disasters to be storm and flood damage, and there is a lack of discussion on extreme weather and disasters due to climate change. In this study, the process of establishing disaster management systems in developed countries(the United States and the United Kingdom) was examined, and the response policies of each country(military) were analyzed using literature analysis techniques. In order to maintain tight security, our military should establish a response policy focusing on sustainability and resilience, and the following three policy approaches are needed. First, it is necessary to analyze the future operational environment of the Korean Peninsula in preparation for the environment that will change due to climate change. Second, it is necessary to discuss climate change 'adaptation policy' for sustainability. Third, it is necessary to prepare for future disasters that may occur due to climate change.

• KSCE Journal of Civil and Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.44 no.1
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• pp.85-93
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• 2024

The monitoring of environmental information (e.g. noise, dust, vibration, temperature, humidity) is crucial to the safe and sustainable operation of a construction site. However, commercial sensors exhibit certain drawbacks when applied on-site. First, the installation cost is prohibitively high. Second, these sensors have been engineered without considering the rugged and harsh conditions of a construction site, resulting in error-prone sensing. Third, construction sites are compelled to allocate additional resources in terms of manpower, expenses, and physical spaces to accommodate individual sensors. This research developed an integrated sensing module to measure the environmental information in construction site. The sensing module slashes the installation cost to 3.3%, is robust enough to harsh and outdoor sites, and consolidates multiple sensors into a single unit. The sensing module also supports GPS, LTE, and real-time sensing. The evaluation showed remarkable results including 97.5% accuracy and 99.9% precision in noise measurement, an 89.7% accuracy in dust measurement, and a 93.5% reliability in data transmission. This research empowers the collection of substantial volumes and high-quality environmental data from construction sites, providing invaluable support to decision-making process. These encompass objective regulatory compliance checking, simulations of environmental data dispersion, and the development of environmental mitigation strategies.

• Journal of Korean Tunnelling and Underground Space Association
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• v.25 no.6
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• pp.555-567
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• 2023

The cracks in the tunnel are currently determined through visual inspections conducted by inspectors based on images acquired using tunnel imaging acquisition systems. This labor-intensive approach, relying on inspectors, has inherent limitations as it is subject to their subjective judgments. Recently research efforts have actively explored the use of deep learning to automatically detect tunnel cracks. However, most studies utilize public datasets or lack sufficient objectivity in the analysis process, making it challenging to apply them effectively in practical operations. In this study, we selected test datasets consisting of images in the same format as those obtained from the actual inspection system to perform an objective evaluation of deep learning models. Additionally, we introduced ensemble techniques to complement the strengths and weaknesses of the deep learning models, thereby improving the accuracy of crack detection. As a result, we achieved high recall rates of 80%, 88%, and 89% for cracks with sizes of 0.2 mm, 0.3 mm, and 0.5 mm, respectively, in the test images. In addition, the crack detection result of deep learning included numerous cracks that the inspector could not find. if cracks are detected with sufficient accuracy in a more objective evaluation by selecting images from other tunnels that were not used in this study, it is judged that deep learning will be able to be introduced to facility safety inspection.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.34 no.3
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• pp.231-247
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• 2024

In the field of high-level radioactive waste disposal targeting deep rock environments, hydraulic characteristic information serves as the most important key factor in selecting relevant disposal sites, detailed design of disposal facilities, derivation of optimal construction plans, and safety evaluation during operation. Since various rock types are mixed and distributed in a small area in Korea, it is important to conduct preliminary work to analyze the hydrogeological characteristics of rock aquifers for various rock types and compile the resulting data into a database. In this paper, we obtained hydraulic conductivity data, which is the most representative field hydraulic characteristic of a high-depth volcanic bedrock aquifer, and also analyzed and evaluated the field data. To acquire field data, we used a high-performance hydraulic testing system developed in-house and applied standardized test methods and investigation procedures. In the process of hydraulic characteristic data analysis, hydraulic conductivity values were obtained for each depth, and the pattern of groundwater flow through permeable rock joints located in the test section was also evaluated. It is expected that the series of data acquisition methods, procedures, and analysis results proposed in this report can be used to build a database of hydraulic characteristics data for high-depth rock aquifers in Korea. In addition, it is expected that it will play a role in improving technical know-how to be applied to research on hydraulic characteristic according to various bedrock types in the future.

• Convergence Security Journal
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.89-104
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• 2024

This study is an empirical study to examine the factors that influence the intention to use artificial intelligence (AI) technology for SW engineering-related tasks, and the purpose of the study is to understand the key factors that influence the use in terms of AI augmentation characteristics and interactive UI/UX characteristics. For this purpose, a survey was conducted among information and communication workers who have experience in using AI-related technologies and the collected data was analyzed. The results of the empirical analysis showed that perceived usefulness was positively influenced by the factors of expertise, interestingness, realism, aesthetics, efficiency, and flexibility, and perceived ease of use was positively influenced by the factors of expertise, interestingness, realism, aesthetics, and flexibility. Variety had no effect on both perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness. Perceived ease of use had a significant effect on perceived immersion, which positively influenced intention to use. These findings are significant in that they provide an academic understanding of the factors that influence the use of AI-enhanced tools in SW engineering-related tasks such as application design, development, testing, and process automation, as well as practical directions for the creators of tools that provide AI-enhanced development services to develop user acquisition strategies.