• Journal of Service Research and Studies
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.44-62
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• 2024

The development of online funeral services and social issues of eco-friendly funeral culture have raised awareness of the new need for online funeral culture. There have been several attempts to revitalize online funeral services in domestic institutions and companies, but the effect is weak. The purpose of this study is to propose a design that can improve the accessibility and usability of online memorial services by analyzing the usability problem factors through a First Time User Experience analysis of the online memorial platform. Therefore, in this study, in order to identify the problem factors of the online memorial platform, a literature review on the UX, OOBE, and FTUE theories was conducted. The subject of the study was the app 'Memorial'. Before analyzing the First-Time User-Experience, IA was compared and analyzed with other similar services to understand the characteristics of the UX service of the app 'Memorial', which is the subject of the study. In addition, tasks corresponding to the Unpack-Setup/Configure-First Use stage were performed on 10 subjects who had no experience using the online memorial platform. The experimental process was expressed as the UX Curve to identify factors that caused negative experiences. As a result, the major problem factors included unnecessary UI elements, the need for sensitive personal information at the membership stage, and lack of immersion in the service. The improvements included strengthening community functions to facilitate the sharing of emotions and promote smooth communication between users. We proposed UI/UX service developments that enhanced the app by incorporating these insights. In order to verify the effectiveness, serviceability, and value of the developed prototype, an interview with a expert was conducted. The interviewes consisted of three service design experts. This study was conducted to contribute to the quality improvement and activation of the recently emerging online funeral services. The study is significant as it aims to understand the current status of these services and identify the factors necessary to improve service accessibility and usability. Subsequent studies require in-depth user verification of how much the proposed improvement plan affects the actual user experience.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.34 no.1
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• pp.18-27
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• 2024

Laying hens are known to be able to 'bio-accumulate' the health-promoting ingredients of their diet into eggs. The purpose of this study was to characterize lignan-rich eggs as functional food fed with Schisandra fruit by-product (SCP). Experimental diets were formulated using yellow corn, rice bran, soybean meal, fish meal, meat bone meal, poultry meal, vitamin premix, mineral premix, CaCO₃, and supplemented Schisandra chinensis by-product. This experiment conducted a completely randomized design with 5 treatments for 5 laying hens. Levels of SCP were fed control diet or each formulated diet containing 1%, 3%, 5% and 7% SCP powder. The weight of eggs and the lignan content in white and yolk of egg were investigated every 7 days. Egg production and egg weight were not affected by diet at less than 5% SCP in the diet, but were significantly reduced when the diet was supplemented with a high concentration of 7% SCP after 3 weeks. Yolks and white in eggs were analyzed by using a high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) to determine the lignans profile. Higher dietary SCP supplementation significantly increased gomisin N and schisandrin C in Acetonitrile (p<0.05). Gomisin N in egg white increased in a concentration-dependent manner, but shisandrin C not detected. These results indicated that the use of SCP powder in layering diets was effective in egg quality and for the production of lignans fortified eggs. In conclusion, dietary supplementation of Schisandra by-product with less than 5% can produce lignans-enrich eggs used as functional foods.

• Journal of Marine Life Science
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.9-21
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• 2024

Paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP) including Saxitoxin (STX) is caused by harmful algae, and poisoning occurs when the contaminated seafood is consumed. The mouse bioassay (MBA), a standard test method for detecting PSP, is being sanctioned in many countries due to its low detection limit and the animal concerns. An alternative to the MBA is the Neuro-2a cell-based assay. This study aimed to establish various test conditions for Neuro-2a assay, including cell density, culture conditions, and STX treatment conditions, to suit the domestic laboratory environment. As a result, the initial cell density was set to 40,000 cells/well and the incubation time to 24 hours. Additionally, the concentration of Ouabain and Veratridine (O/V) was set to 500/50 μM, at which most cells died. In this study, we identified eight concentrations of STX, ranging from 368 to 47,056 fg/μl, which produced an S-shaped dose-response curve when treated with O/V. Through inter-laboratory variability comparison of the Neuro-2a assay, we established five Quality Control Criteria to verify the appropriateness of the experiments and six Data Criteria (Top and Bottom OD, EC₅₀, EC₂₀, Hill slop, and R² of graph) to determine the reliability of the experimental data. The Neuro-2a assay conducted under the established conditions showed an EC₅₀ value of approximately 1,800~3,500 fg/μl. The intra- & inter-lab variability comparison results showed that the coefficients of variation (CVs) for the Quality Control and Data values ranged from 1.98% to 29.15%, confirming the reproducibility of the experiments. This study presented Quality Control Criteria and Data Criteria to assess the appropriateness of the experiments and confirmed the excellent repeatability and reproducibility of the Neuro-2a assay. To apply the Neuro-2a assay as an alternative method for detecting PSP in domestic seafood, it is essential to establish a toxin extraction method from seafood and toxin quantification methods, and perform correlation analysis with MBA and instrumental analysis methods.

• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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• v.113 no.1
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• pp.97-106
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• 2024

Evaluating carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) inputs from litterfall is important for soil nutrient management to enhance forest productivity and to understand the mechanisms of nutrient cycling in forest ecosystems. This study was conducted to compare C and N inputs from litterfall components of Cryptomeria japonica D. Don an d Chamaecyparis obtusa Endlicher planted in adjacent sites in the Jinju Research and Experimental Forests in Gyeongsangnam-do, South Korea. Litterfall into litter traps was collected at three-month intervals between December 2020 and December 2021, and the C and N concentrations of the litterfall components were measured. Litterfall amounts were not significantly different between the plantations, except for reproductive litterfall components. Litterfall accumulation peaked between December and March. The litterfall C concentration in the needle and seed litterfall was significantly higher for C. obtusa than for C. japonica. By contrast, the C concentrations in needle and flower litterfall differed seasonally. The mean N concentration of needle litterfall was significantly higher in C. japonica (0.96%) and C. obtusa collected between June and September (1.01%) than in the other seasons (C. japonica: 0.43%; C. obtusa: 0.53%). Carbon and N inputs in both plantations were highest in needle litterfall collected from December to March and lowest in needle litterfall collected from June to September. Annual C input by litterfall was similar between the plantations (C. japonica: 3,054 kg C ha^-1 yr^-1; C. obtusa: 3,129 kg C ha^-1 yr^-1), whereas total N input was higher for C. japonica (46.93 kg N ha^-1 yr^-1) than for C. obtusa (25.17 kg N ha^-1 yr^-1). The higher N input in the C. japonica plantation than in the C. obtusa plantation was associated with the input of reproductive components. These results could be applied to improve stand-scale models of C and N cycling by litterfall components in C. japonica an d C. obtusa plantations.

• Korean Journal of Veterinary Research
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.23-62
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• 1969

Throughout the studies the following experimental results were obtained and are summarized: 1. Multiplication of agents in primary cell cultures of both GF classical and CR-64 acute strain of Marek's disease infected chicken kidneys was accompanied by the formation of distinct transformed cell foci. This characteristic nature of cell transformation was passaged regularly by addition of dispersed cell from infected cultures to normal chicken kidney cell cultures, and also transferred was the nature of cell transformation to normal chick-embryo liver and neuroglial cell cultures. No cytopathic changes were noticed in inoculated chick-embryo fibroblast cultures. 2. The same cytopathic effects were noticed in normal kidney cell monolayers after the inoculation of whole blood and huffy coat cells derived from both forms of Marek's disease infected chickens. In these cases, however, the number of transformed cell foci appearing was far less than that of uninoculated monolayers prepared directly from the kidneys of Marek's disease infected chickens. 3. The change in cell culture IS regarded as a specific cell transformation focus induced by an oncogenic virus rather than it plaque in slowly progressing cytopathic effect by non-oncogenic viruses, and it is quite similar to RSV focus in chick-embryo fibroblasts in many respects. 4. The infective agent (cell transformable) were extremely cell-associated and could not be separated in an infective state from cells under the experimental conditions. 5. The focus assay of these agents was valid as shown by the high degree of linear correlation (r=0.97 and 0.99) between the relative infected cell concentration (in inoculum) and the transformed cell foci counted. 6. No differences were observed between the GF classical strain and the CR-64 acute strain of Marek's disease as far as cell culture behavior. 7. Characterization of the isolates by physical and chemical treatments, development of internuclear inclusions in Infected cells, and nucleic acid typing by differential stainings and cytochemical treatments indicated that the natures of these cell transformation agents closely resemble to those described fer the group B herpes viruses. 8. Susceptible chicks inoculated with infected kidney tissue culture cells developed specific lesions of Marek's disease, and in a case of prolonged observation after inoculation (5 weeks) the birds developed clinical symptoms and gross lesions of Marek's disease. Kidney cell cultures prepared from those inoculated birds and sacrificed showed a superior recovery of cell transformation property by formation of distinct foci. 9. Electron microscopic study of infected kidney culture cells (GF agent) by negative staining technique revealed virus particles furnishing the properties of herpes viruses. The particle was measured about $100m{\mu}$ and, so far, no herpes virus envelop has been seen from these preparations. 10. No relationship of both isolates to avian leukosis/sarcoma group viruses and PPLO was observed.

• Korean Journal of Veterinary Research
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• v.36 no.3
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• pp.577-598
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• 1996

This study was conducted to identify the effects of caffeine or combinations of caffeine and iron or vitamin E on the lipid and protein components or blood chemistry levels of the serum as well as the total homogenate, mitochondrial and microsomal fraction of the rat(Sprague-Dawley, female) liver. Chronic test were conducted to determine those effects. The chronic test was conducted by dividing rats into 5 groups according to the type of drugs and dosages administrated as follows; the control(group A), and group B was given 25mg/kg caffeine orally once daily for 30 days, group C was given 50mg/kg caffeine orally once daily for 30 days, group D was given 25mg/kg caffeine and orally ferric chloride once daily for 30 days and group E was given 25mg/kg caffeine and 25mg/kg vitamin E once daily for 30 days. The concentrations of glucose, urea nitrogen, uric acid, creatinine, total protein, albumin, A/G ratio, triglyceride, total cholesterol, HDL-cholesterol, free fatty acid, phospholipid as well as the activities of alanine aminotransferase(ALT), aspartate aminotransferase(AST) and alkaline phosphatase(ALP) were measured in the serum of each experimental groups. The concentrations of the carbonyl group and malondiaidehyde(MDA) and the patterns of the SDS-PAGE(Sodium Dodecyl Sulfate - Polyacrylamide Gel Electrophoresis) and fatty acid compositions in free fatty acids and phospholipids were analyzed to determine the oxidative damages and metabolic changes on the lipid and protein components in the serum, and total homogenate, mitochondrial and microsomal fractions of the rat liver. The results obtained from this study were summarized as follows; 1. Body weights of groups B, C, D and E were significantly decreased(p < 0.01) in comparison with that of the control in the chronic test. 2. The concentrations of serum glucose in groups B(124.5mg/dl), C(130.1mg/dl), D(122.1mg/dl), E(119.3mg/dl) were significantly higher(p < 0.01) in comparison to that of the control(101.5mg/dl). But, there were no significant differences in the concentrations of urea nitrogen, uric acid, creatinine, total protein, albumin and A/G ratio in comparison to that of the control. 3. The concentrations of total cholesterol and HDL-cholesterol in serum of groups B(69.6, 53.4mg/dl), C(73.0, 56.3mg/dl), D(68.9, 51.1mg/dl) and E(68.2, 51.3mg/dl) were significantly higher(p < 0.01) in comparison to that of the control(52.6, 38.8mg/dl). On the other hand, the concentrations of triglyceride in serum of groups B(45.0mg/dl), C(40.4mg/dl), D(33.8mg/dl) and E(47.2mg/dl) were significantly lower(p < 0.01) in comparison to that of the control(66.2mg/dl). There were no significant differences in the activities of ALT, AST and ALP in comparison to that of the control. 4. The concentrations of free fatty acid and phospholipid in serum of groups B(45.7, 154.4mg/dl), C(50.0, 167.2mg/dl), D(52.5, 148.4mg/dl) and E(41.1, 159.2mg/dl) were higher(p < 0.01) in comparison to that of the control(35.2, 125.3mg/dl). And the concentrations of the carbonyl group and malondialdehyde in serum of group D(1.82, 0.52nM/mg protein) were significantly higher(p < 0.01) in comparison to the control(1.53nM/mg protein). 5. The concentrations of carbonyl group in total homogenate, mitochondrial and microsomal fraction of group D(1.45, 0.94, 1.67nM/mg protein) were significantly higher (p < 0.01) in comparison to the control(1.16, 0.66, 1.27nM/mg protein). And the concentrations of malondialdehyde in the total homogenate, mitochondrial and microsomal fraction of group D(6.70, 6.10, 1.36nM/mg protein) were significantly higher(p < 0.01) in comparison to the control(5.17, 3.64, 0.68nM/mg protein). 6. As the analytical results of the fatty acid compositions of free fatty acid in serum, the proportions of stearic acid and arachidonic acid of groups B(16.52, 12.62%), C(17.52, 15.18%), D(19.73, 13.47%) and E(17.62, 13.28%) were significantly higher(p < 0.01) in comparison to the control(14.75, 7.88%), but the proportions of oleic acid and linoleic acid of groups B(12.97, 32.59%), C(10.88, 31.23%), D(12.37, 30.66%) and E(11.95, 32.41%) were significantly lower(p < 0.01) in comparison to the control(16.44, 35.12%). Otherwise, as the results of the fatty acid compositions of phospholipid in serum, the proportions of stearic acid and arachidonic acid of groups B(39.37, 16.39%), C(40.63, 17.83%), D(42.73, 15.39%) and E(39.16, 15.70%) were significantly higher(p < 0.01) in comparison to the control(37.74, 14.24%), but the proportions of oleic acid and linoleic acid of groups B(4.03, 14.38%), C(3.54, 12.38%), D(4.52, 11.68%) and E(4.29, 13.64%) were significantly lower(p < 0.01) in comparison to the control(5.53, 16.14%). 7. As the analytical results of the fatty acid compositions of free fatty acid in total homogenate, mitochondrial and microsomal fraction of liver, the proportions of oleic acid of groups B(7.8**, 8.73**, 6.88%) and C(6.89**, 7.75**, 6.58%) were lower(**:p < 0.01) in comparison to the control(8.67, 10.08, 7.81%), but the proportions of arachidonic acid of group C(22.62, 19.79, 23.71%) were significantly higher(p < 0.01) in comparison to the control(20.93, 18.47, 22.24%). And the proportions of palmitic acid of group D(25.95**, 26.16, 26.34**%) were significantly higher(**:p < 0.01) in comparison to the control(24.43, 25.42, 23.34%). In addition, the proportions of linoleic acid of group D(23.43, 25.02, 23.95%) were also significantly higher(p < 0.01) in comparison to the control(22.17, 23.75, 21.26%). The proportions of stearic acid of group D(19.87, 19.76**%) in mitochondrial and microsomal fraction were lower(**:p < 0.01) in comparison to the control(21.01, 24.18%), and the proportions of stearic acid of group E(16.71*, 19.65**%) in mitochondrial and microsomal fraction were significantly lower(**:p < 0.01, *:p < 0.05) in comparison to the control(21.01, 24.18%), and the proportions of linoleic acid of group E(25.04, 29.20, 26.48%) in total homogenate, mitochondria and microsome were significantly higher(p < 0.01) in comparison to the control(22.17, 23.75, 21.26%). 8. As the results of the fatty acid compositions of phospholipid in total homogenate, mitochondrial and microsomal fraction of liver, the proportions of palmitic acid of group D(17.58**, 18.78*, 18.23%**) were significantly higher(**:p < 0.01, *:p < 0.05) in comparison to the control(16.28, 17.22, 16.38%), and the proportions of stearic acid of group D(36.41, 37.23, 39.53%) were also significantly higher(p < 0.01) in comparison to the control(34.18, 34.16, 36.04%). But the proportions of oleic acid(3.41*, 3.11**, 3.12**%) and linoleic acid (18.03**, 15.79**, 14.74**%) of group D were significantly lower(**:p < 0.01, *:p < 0.05) in comparison to the control(oleic : 3.63, 3.72, 3.79%, linoleic : 20.03, 18.71, 18.48%). 9. In order to determine the oxidative damages to the protein in serum, mitochondrial and microsomal fraction of the rat liver, the patterns of the SDS-PAGE were identified, but the results of SDS-PAGE were not significantly different between the control and experimental groups.

• Korean Journal of Veterinary Research
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• v.35 no.2
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• pp.337-345
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• 1995

To evaluate the pathogenicity and immunogenicity of Eimeria tenella to the chicken treated with dexamethasone(DEX) and testosterone propionate (TES), we administered 0.1ml/chicken of dexamethasone and 40mg/chicken of testosterone propionate at 1-, 2-, and 7-days old, respectively. We also immunized with ND oil-emulsion vaccine at 2 weeks old. After that, we immunized and challenged with 100 and $1{\times}10^5$ oocysts/chicken of E tenella at 2 and 4 weeks old, respectively. And then we investigated the HI titers for ND virus, survival rate, body weight gain, lesion score and the weight of the bursa of Fabricius and thymus. The titers for ND virus in the groups treated with TES were higher than those in the groups treated with DEX and CON during 3 to 6 weeks. After challenge, the survival rate of testosterone propionate treated-challenged(TES-CHA) and TES-immunized and challenged(TES-V&C) groups were 61.5 and 83.3% and those of the other groups were all 100%. At 1 week after challenge, the lesion scores of TES-CHA group(4.0) was the highest of all experimental groups. Those of DEX and controlchallenged( CON-CHA) groups were 2.8, and those of all V&C groups were 2.4. During 1 and 2 weeks after immunization, the body weight gains of TES groups were severe low(61.6-82.2g and 189.6-260.4g). During 1 and 2 weeks after challenge, the body weight gains of all CHA groups were lower than those of not challenged groups. But, those of all V AC groups were not different from those of not immunized groups. At 4- and 6-weeks old, the weight of the bursa of Fabricius and thymus in the chicken of all TES groups were lower than those of all control (CON) and DEX groups. Therefore, testosterone propionate acted as immunosuppressive drug. Also, it was thought that the chicken affected a little humoral immunity to E tenella.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology
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• v.1 no.1
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• pp.103-120
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• 1967

As pointed out by many previous investigators, the cardio-pulmonary system of well trained athletes is so adapted that they can perform a given physical exercise more efficiently as compared to non-trained persons. However, the time course of the development of these cardio-pulmonary adaptations has not been extensively studied in the past. Although the development of these training effects is undoubtedly related to the magnitude of an exercise load which is repeatedly given, it would be practical if one could maintain a good physical fitness with a minimal daily exercise. Hence, the present investigation was undertaken to study the time course of the development of cardio-pulmonary adaptations while a group of non-athletes was subjected to a daily 6 to 10 minutes running exercise for a period of 4 weeks. Six healthy male medical students (22 to 24 years old) were randomly selected as experimental subjects, and were equally divided into two groups (A and B). Both groups were subjected to the same daily running exercise (approximately 1,000 kg-m). 6 days a week for 4 weeks, but the rate of exercise was such that the group A ran on treadmill with 8.6% grade for 10 min daily at a speed of 127 m/min while the group B ran for 6 min at a speed of 200 m/min. In order to assess the effects of these physical trainings on the cardio-pulmonary system, the minute volume, the $O_2$ consumption, the $CO_2$ output and the heart rate were determined weekly while the subject was engaged in a given running exercise on treadmill (8.6% grade and 127 m/min) for a period of 5 min. In addition, the arterial blood pressure, the cardiac output, the acid-base state of arterial blood and the gas composition of arterial blood were also determined every other week in 4 subjects (2 from each group) while they were engaged in exercise on a bicycle ergometer at a rate of approximately 900 kg m/min until exhaustion. The maximal work capacity was also determined by asking the subject to engage in exercise on treadmill and ergometer until exhaustion. For the measurement of minute volume, the expired gas was collected in a Douglas bag. The $O_2$ consumption and the $CO_2$ output were subsequently computed by analysing the expired gas with a Scholander micro gas analyzer. The heart rate was calculated from the R-R interval of ECG tracings recorded by an Offner RS Dynograph. A 19 gauge Cournand needle was inserted into a brachial artery, through which arterial blood samples were taken. A Statham $P_{23}AA$ pressure transducer and a PR-7 Research Recorder were used for recording instantaneous arterial pressure. The cardiac output was measured by indicator (Cardiogreen) dilution method. The results may be summarized as follows: (1) The maximal running time on treadmill increased linearly during the 4 week training period at the end of which it increased by 2.8 to 4.6 times. In general, an increase in the maximal running time was greater when the speed was fixed at a level at which the subject was trained. The mammal exercise time on bicycle ergometer also increased linearly during the training period. (2) In carrying out a given running exercise on treadmill (8.6%grade, 127 m/min), the following changes in cardio·pulmonary functions were observed during the training period: (a) The minute volume as well as the $O_2$ consumption during steady state exercise tended to decrease progressively and showed significant reductions after 3 weeks of training. (b) The $CO_2$ production during steady state exercise showed a significant reduction within 1 week of training. (c) The heart rate during steady state exercise tended to decrease progressively and showed a significant reduction after 2 weeks of training. The reduction of heart rate following a given exercise tended to become faster by training and showed a significant change after 3 weeks. Although the resting heart rate also tended to decrease by training, no significant change was observed. (3) In rallying out a given exercise (900 kg-m/min) on a bicycle ergometer, the following change in cardio-vascular functions were observed during the training period: (3) The systolic blood pressure during steady state exercise was not affected while the diastolic blood Pressure was significantly lowered after 4 weeks of training. The resting diastolic pressure was also significantly lowered by the end of 4 weeks. (b) The cardiac output and the stroke volume during steady state exercise increased maximally within 2 weeks of training. However, the resting cardiac output was not altered while the resting stroke volume tended to increase somewhat by training. (c) The total peripheral resistance during steady state exercise was greatly lowered within 2 weeks of training. The mean circulation time during exorcise was also considerably shortened while the left heart work output during exercise increased significantly within 2 weeks. However, these functions_at rest were not altered by training. (d) Although both pH, $P_{co2}\;and\;(HCO_3-)$ of arterial plasma decreased during exercise, the magnitude of reductions became less by training. On the other hand, the $O_2$ content of arterial blood decreased during exercise before training while it tended to increase slightly after training. There was no significant alteration in these values at rest. These results indicate that cardio-pulmonary adaptations to physical training can be acquired by subjecting non-athletes to brief daily exercise routine for certain period of time. Although the time of appearance of various adaptive phenomena is not identical, it may be stated that one has to engage in daily exercise routine for at least 2 weeks for the development of significant adaptive changes.

• Journal of Korean Society of Environmental Engineers
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• v.30 no.6
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• pp.642-652
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• 2008

The aim of our research was to apply experimental design methodology in the optimization condition of Photo-Fenton oxidation of the residual livestock wastewater after the coagulation process. The reactions of Photo-Fenton oxidation were mathematically described as a function of parameters amount of Fe(II)($x_1$), $H_2O_2(x_2)$ and pH($x_3$) being modeled by the use of the Box-Behnken method, which was used for fitting 2nd order response surface models and was alternative to central composite designs. The application of RSM using the Box-Behnken method yielded the following regression equation, which is an empirical relationship between the removal(%) of livestock wastewater and test variables in coded unit: Y = 79.3 + 15.61x$_1$ - 7.31x$_2$ - 4.26x$_3$ - 18x$_1{^2}$ - 10x$_2{^2}$ - 11.9x$_3{^2}$ + 2.49x$_1$x$_2$ - 4.4x$_2$x$_3$ - 1.65x$_1$x$_3$. The model predicted also agreed with the experimentally observed result(R$^2$ = 0.96) The results show that the response of treatment removal(%) in Photo-Fenton oxidation of livestock wastewater were significantly affected by the synergistic effect of linear terms(Fe(II)($x_1$), $H_2O_2(x_2)$, pH(x$_3$)), whereas Fe(II) $\times$ Fe(II)(x$_1{^2}$), $H_2O_2$ $\times$ $H_2O_2$(x$_2{^2}$) and pH $\times$ pH(x$_3{^2}$) on the quadratic terms were significantly affected by the antagonistic effect. $H_2O_2$ $\times$ pH(x$_2$x$_3$) had also a antagonistic effect in the cross-product term. The estimated ridge of the expected maximum response and optimal conditions for Y using canonical analysis were 84 $\pm$ 0.95% and (Fe(II)(X$_1$) = 0.0146 mM, $H_2O_2$(X$_2$) = 0.0867 mM and pH(X$_3$) = 4.704, respectively. The optimal ratio of Fe/H$_2O_2$ was also 0.17 at the pH 4.7.

• Journal of Intelligence and Information Systems
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• v.18 no.4
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• pp.59-77
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• 2012

This study focuses on predicting which firms will increase capital by issuing new stocks in the near future. Many stakeholders, including banks, credit rating agencies and investors, performs a variety of analyses for firms' growth, profitability, stability, activity, productivity, etc., and regularly report the firms' financial analysis indices. In the paper, we develop predictive models for rights issues using these financial analysis indices and data mining techniques. This study approaches to building the predictive models from the perspective of two different analyses. The first is the analysis period. We divide the analysis period into before and after the IMF financial crisis, and examine whether there is the difference between the two periods. The second is the prediction time. In order to predict when firms increase capital by issuing new stocks, the prediction time is categorized as one year, two years and three years later. Therefore Total six prediction models are developed and analyzed. In this paper, we employ the decision tree technique to build the prediction models for rights issues. The decision tree is the most widely used prediction method which builds decision trees to label or categorize cases into a set of known classes. In contrast to neural networks, logistic regression and SVM, decision tree techniques are well suited for high-dimensional applications and have strong explanation capabilities. There are well-known decision tree induction algorithms such as CHAID, CART, QUEST, C5.0, etc. Among them, we use C5.0 algorithm which is the most recently developed algorithm and yields performance better than other algorithms. We obtained data for the rights issue and financial analysis from TS2000 of Korea Listed Companies Association. A record of financial analysis data is consisted of 89 variables which include 9 growth indices, 30 profitability indices, 23 stability indices, 6 activity indices and 8 productivity indices. For the model building and test, we used 10,925 financial analysis data of total 658 listed firms. PASW Modeler 13 was used to build C5.0 decision trees for the six prediction models. Total 84 variables among financial analysis data are selected as the input variables of each model, and the rights issue status (issued or not issued) is defined as the output variable. To develop prediction models using C5.0 node (Node Options: Output type = Rule set, Use boosting = false, Cross-validate = false, Mode = Simple, Favor = Generality), we used 60% of data for model building and 40% of data for model test. The results of experimental analysis show that the prediction accuracies of data after the IMF financial crisis (59.04% to 60.43%) are about 10 percent higher than ones before IMF financial crisis (68.78% to 71.41%). These results indicate that since the IMF financial crisis, the reliability of financial analysis indices has increased and the firm intention of rights issue has been more obvious. The experiment results also show that the stability-related indices have a major impact on conducting rights issue in the case of short-term prediction. On the other hand, the long-term prediction of conducting rights issue is affected by financial analysis indices on profitability, stability, activity and productivity. All the prediction models include the industry code as one of significant variables. This means that companies in different types of industries show their different types of patterns for rights issue. We conclude that it is desirable for stakeholders to take into account stability-related indices and more various financial analysis indices for short-term prediction and long-term prediction, respectively. The current study has several limitations. First, we need to compare the differences in accuracy by using different data mining techniques such as neural networks, logistic regression and SVM. Second, we are required to develop and to evaluate new prediction models including variables which research in the theory of capital structure has mentioned about the relevance to rights issue.