• The Research Journal of the Costume Culture
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• v.14 no.5
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• pp.813-827
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• 2006

In this investigation, the following study was carried out for an experimental proposal of the knit item lists which were not actualized due to lack of studies. First of all, we have put the knit item titles that have been used through the document investigation, into the lists in order to clarify the original item list. Furthermore, we have pointed out the problems and the areas to be developed in the original item lists, and proposed twenty new knit item lists. By defining the design traits of each item, we have established item list which could be classified more systematically. As a result, the knit item titles of twenty newly proposed item titles are knit pull over, knit pull over top, knit top, knit t shirt, knit shirt, knit polo shirt, knit blouse, knit vest, knit hood, knit jumper, knit jacket, knit coat, knit cardigan, knit ensemble, knit cape, knit shawl, knit bikini, knit one-piece, knit pants, and knit skirt. Secondly, in order to investigate the possibility of practical use of twenty knit item lists proposed by this study, we have applied anova with repeated measurement for foreign fashion collection knit item trends of the past 10 years based on the proposed item lists. As a result, four items classified as top, shirt, cardigan, and pants had similar changes in the trend for last 10 years in S/S season while eleven items classified as pull over, pull over top, blouse, vest, jacket, coat, cardigan, ensemble, cape, shawl, and one-piece had similar trend changes for F/W season. The first significance of this study is on the experimental proposal of knit item list which could be used in the actual clothing industry and academic field. Furthermore, by defining the design traits of each knit item, it sublated the confusions brought by vocabularies in design of knit products and distribution in the industry perspective, and it made it possible to categorize the knit items correctly in knit design analysis and knit design education in academic field. The second significance shows that this study brought about positive results in the possibility of industrial academic practical use of proposed list by indicating that most of the knit designs appeared in the foreign collections in the past ten years could be correctly classified through investigational analysis.

• Toxicological Research
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.325-332
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• 2018

The mechanism of the previously reported antidiabetic effect of Basella alba is unknown. This study investigated the role of B. alba aqueous leaf extract in the modulation of inflammatory cytokines and islet morphology in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats. Forty male Wistar rats, between 8 and 10 weeks old, were randomly divided into four groups (n = 10) and administered the following treatments: Healthy control (H-c) and Diabetic control (D-c) animals received normal saline 0.5 mL/100 g body weight daily, while Healthy Treatment (H-Ba) and Diabetic Treatment (D-Ba) rats received the plant extract 200 mg/kg body weight daily. All treatments were administered by oral gavage. Diabetes was induced in D-c and D-Ba rats by a single intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin (55 mg/kg body). The body weight and fasting blood sugar (FBS) levels were recorded every week for 4 weeks, after which the rats were euthanized and samples collected for further analysis. After the experiment, FBS level was significantly reduced (p < 0.0001) in rats in the D-Ba group, but increased (p < 0.001) in rats in the D-c group. The absolute (H-c and H-Ba vs D-c, p < 0.05) and relative (D-Ba vs H-c, p < 0.05; D-Ba vs H-Ba, p < 0.005) weights of the pancreases were significantly higher after the experiment. The rats in the D-c group had significantly higher levels of serum interleukin-$1{\beta}$ (p < 0.001 vs H-c; p < 0.05 vs H-Ba and D-Ba) and monocyte chemotactic protein-1 (p < 0.0001), but lower levels of interleukin-10 (p < 0.05) in comparison with the other groups. Histopathological examination revealed severe interstitial congestion, reduced islet area (p < 0.0001), and increased islet cell density in the D-c group compared with those in the D-Ba group. From these findings, it was concluded that the aqueous extract of B. alba stimulates the recovery of beta-islet morphology in streptozotocininduced diabetic rats by modulating the peripheral production of inflammatory cytokines.

• Asian Journal of Atmospheric Environment
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• v.9 no.4
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• pp.237-246
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• 2015

We conducted intensive observations of ozone, CO, $NO_x$ (=NO and $NO_2$), $NO_y$ (total odd nitrogen species including particulate nitrate) and total nitrate (the sum of gaseous $HNO_3$ and particulate nitrate) at Cape Hedo, Okinawa, Japan, from 19 March to 3 April, 2009, to investigate ozone production during long-range transport from the Asian continent. Ozone production efficiency (OPE) was used to evaluate photochemical ozone production. OPE is defined as the number of molecules of ozone produced photochemically during the lifetime of a $NO_x$ molecule. OPE is calculated by the ratio of the concentration increase of ozone to that of $NO_z$ ($=NO_y-NO_x$). Average OPE during observation was estimated to be $12.6{\pm}0.5$, but concentrations of ozone increased nonlinearly with those of $NO_z$. This non-linearity suggests that OPE depends on air mass origin and $NO_z$ concentrations. There were very different values of OPE for the same air mass origin, so that only the air mass origin alone does not control OPE. OPE was low when $NO_z$ concentration was high. We examined the correlation between $NO_z$ and $CO/NO_y$ ratios, which we used instead of the ratio of non-methane hydrocarbons (NMHCs) to $NO_x$. The $CO/NO_y$ ratios decreased with increasing $NO_z$ concentrations. These results indicate that competition reactions of OH with NMHCs and $NO_2$ are the rate determining steps of photochemical ozone production during long-range transport from the Asian continent to Cape Hedo, for high concentrations of nitrogen oxides.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.46 no.3
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• pp.610-618
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• 2008

It is not easy to compare the treatment processes and find an optimum operating condition by the experiments due to influent conditions, treatment processes, various operational conditions and complex factors in real wastewater treatment system and also need a lot of time and costs. In this paper, the activated sludge models are applied to four principal biological wastewater treatment processes, $A_2O$(anaerobic/anoxic/oxic process), Bardenpho(4 steps), VIP(Virginia Initiative Plant) and UCT(University of Cape Town), and are used to compare their environmental and economic assessment for four key processes. In order to evaluate each processes, a new assessment index which can compare the efficiency of treatment performances in various processes is proposed, which considers both environmental and economic cost. It shows that the proposed index can be used to select the optimum processes among the candidate treatment processes as well as to find the optimum condition in each process. And it can find the change of economic and environmental index under the changes of influent flowrate and aerobic reaction size and predict the optimum index under various operation conditions.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.14 no.2
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• pp.291-295
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• 2004

Rooibos (Aspalathus linearis) (RB) is a leguminous shrub native to the mountainous areas of the northwestern Cape Province in South Africa. RB tea infusions are the fermentation products of its leaves and fine sterns, and known to have a high antioxidative activity due to the presence of flavonoids and phenolic acids. We investigated the effects of RB tea on the alleviation of oxidative stress on cultured rat cortical neurons in a hypoxic model. Measurement of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) released into culture media revealed that RB increased cell viabilities in both normoxia (6-18%) and hypoxia (2-24%) dose-dependently (10-100 $\mu\textrm{g}$/ml) on 16 days in vitro (3 days after treatment). Visualization of cell morphology by expression of GFP-Hsc70 fusion protein showed that RB (50 $\mu\textrm{g}$/ml) reduced the average vacuolated soma from 55.4$\pm$4.59% (no RB addition) to 40.9$\pm$6.3% (RB addition) on 5 days after hypoxia. Our results proves efficacy of RB in the neuroprotection of hypoxic neurons and extend application for RB into the prevention and/or treatment of neuronal damages.

• Journal of the Earthquake Engineering Society of Korea
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• v.6 no.2
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• pp.63-71
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• 2002

This paper examines the ASCE first generation benchmark problem for a seismically excited cable-stayed bridge, and proposes a new semi-active control strategy focusing on inclusion of effects of control-structure interaction. This benchmark problem focuses on a cable-stayed bridge in Cope Girardeau, Missouri, USA, for which construction is expected to be completed in 2003. Seismic considerations were strongly considered in the design of this bridge due to the location of the bridge in the New Madrid seismic zone and its critical role as a principal crossing of the Mississippi River. In this paper, magnetorheological(MR) fluid dampers are proposed as the supplemental damping devices, and a clipped-optimal control algorithm is employed. Several types of dynamic models for MR fluid dampers, such as a Bingham model, a Bouc-Wen model, and a modified Bouc-Wen model, are considered, which are obtained from data based on experimental results for full-scale dampers. Because the MR fluid damper is a controllable energy-dissipation device that cannot add mechanical energy to the structural system, the proposed control strategy is fail-safe in that bounded-input, bounded-output stability of the controlled structure is guaranteed. Numerical simulation results show that the performance of the proposed semi-active control strategy using MR fluid dampers is quite effective.

• Journal of Navigation and Port Research
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• v.42 no.6
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• pp.539-545
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• 2018

In recent years, research on shipping market forecasting with the employment of non-linear AI models has attracted significant interest. In previous studies, input variables were selected with reference to past papers or by relying on the intuitions of the researchers. This paper attempts to address this issue by applying the stepwise regression model and the random forest model to the Cape-size bulk carrier market. The Cape market was selected due to the simplicity of its supply and demand structure. The preliminary selection of the determinants resulted in 16 variables. In the next stage, 8 features from the stepwise regression model and 10 features from the random forest model were screened as important determinants. The chosen variables were used to test both models. Based on the analysis of the models, it was observed that the random forest model outperforms the stepwise regression model. This research is significant because it provides a scientific basis which can be used to find the determinants in shipping market forecasting, and utilize a machine-learning model in the process. The results of this research can be used to enhance the decisions of chartering desks by offering a guideline for market analysis.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.6 no.2
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• pp.146-150
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• 2015

Occupational health and safety (OHS) is a broad field of professional practice, which involves specialists from different disciplines including but not limited to engineers, occupational health physicians, physical and biological scientists, economists, and statisticians. The preventive systems required to ensure workers are protected from injuries and illnesses dwell heavily on engineers; however, the extent to which the engineer can go regarding planning and implementing preventive measures is dependent on specific legal requirements, leadership commitment from the company, organization, and nation. The objective of this paper is to identify the areas of opportunities for improvements in OHS management in Ghana with regard to the nation's legal requirements, commitment of the Ghana government, and Ghanaian leadership as well as appropriate structuring of Ghanaian institutions responsible for monitoring and managing OHS in Ghana. This paper identified Ghana's fragmented legal requirements concerning OHS, which are under different jurisdictions with unclear responsibilities and accountabilities. The paper also highlights the training needs of Ghanaian academic institutions regarding OHS. Among other recommendations made including structuring of Ghanaian institutions to manage OHS in line with the ILO-OSH 2001, this paper aligns the recommendations with the articles and elements of International Labour Organization convention number 155 and OHSAS 18001 elements.

• ALGAE
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• v.26 no.3
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• pp.243-251
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• 2011

Environmental conditions can influence the morphology of local biota through phenotypic plasticity or local adaptation. Macroalgal morphologies are often associated with wave-exposure conditions. We investigated the relationship between morphology and wave exposure in two common endemic subtidal macroalgae, Carpophyllum angustifolium and C. maschalocarpum, from the East Cape of New Zealand. Morphological comparisons were made between individuals from two sites and four different wave-exposure zones, as defined by fetch and barnacle composition. Of the seven morphological traits measured in C. angustifolium, only total length varied, and individuals were longer in more wave-exposed environments between the two exposure zones where the species were found. In contrast, total length, stipe thickness and vesicle presence all varied significantly between exposure zones in C. maschalocarpum. C. maschalocarpum specimens were shorter with thinner stipes, and fewer individuals had vesicles in the more wave-exposed zones. Morphological traits of both species also varied between sites, suggesting that other influences are important for determining species morphology. Further study is needed to investigate the role of phenotypic plasticity and genetic variability for driving morphological variation in C. angustifolium and C. maschalocarpum.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.7 no.4
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• pp.284-292
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• 2016

Background: In Ghana, fire incidents have become a regular occurrence, with thousands of lives and millions of dollars lost every year. Hardly a day passes without news of a fire outbreak in some part of Ghana, causing fear and panic among the people. This generates much discussion centering on rumors relating to politics, sabotage, misfortune, religious differences, etc. This article seeks to discuss the trend of fire incidents occurring in Ghana from 2000 to 2013 and the different ways to prevent these incidents. Methods: The pattern of fire incidence in Ghana as a whole as well as in each region is discussed. The study took into consideration the causes, mechanisms, as well as preventive measures against the fire menace. Data were obtained from the head office of Ghana's national fire service. Results: It was noticed that in general the rate of fire incidence increased each year. This increase was attributed to several factors: rate of population growth and industrialization, unstable electricity, urbanization, negligence, illegal electrical connection, etc. The cause of fire was categorized into domestic, industrial, vehicular, institutional, electrical, commercial, bush, and others. Among these causes, domestic fire accounted for 41% of the total number of fire incidents in the country. Conclusion: Finally, this study presents several recommendations to help prevent and mitigate fire incidents in Ghana.