• Pediatric Infection and Vaccine
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.106-112
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• 2015

Purpose: The long-term administration of antibiotics interferes with bacterial culture in the middle ear fluids (MEFs) of young children with otitis media with effusion (OME). The purpose of this study is to determine whether molecular diagnostics can be used for rapid and direct detection of the bacterial pathogen in culture-negative MEFs. Methods: The specificity and sensitivity of both polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) to the lytA gene of Streptococcus pneumoniae were comparatively tested and then applied for pneumococcal detection in the clinical MEFs. Results: The detection limit of the PCR assay was approximately $10^4$ colony forming units (CFU), whereas that of LAMP was less than 10 CFU for the detection of S. pneumoniae. Both PCR and LAMP did not amplify nucleic acid at over $10^6$ CFU of H. influenzae or M. catarrhalis, both of which were irrelevant bacterial species. Of 22 culture-negative MEFs from children with OME, LAMP positivity was found in twelve MEFs (54.5%, 12/22), only three of which were PCR-positive (25%, 3/12). Our results showed that the ability of LAMP to detect pneumococcal DNA is over four times higher than that of PCR (P<0.01). Conclusions: As a high-resolution tool able to detect nucleic acid levels equivalent to <10 CFU of S. pneumoniae in MEFs without any cross-reaction with other pathogens, lytA -specific LAMP may be applied for diagnosing pneumococcus infection in OME as well as evaluating the impact of a pneumococcal conjugate vaccine against OME.

• Journal of Technology Innovation
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.277-307
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• 2016

Since 2011, DCF(Discounted Cash Flow) method has been used initiatively for valuating R&D technology assets in the agricultural food industry and recently technology valuation based on royalties comparison among technology transfer transactions has been also carried out in parallel when evaluating the technology assets such as new seed development technologies. Since the DCF method which has been known until now has many input variables to be estimated, sophisticated estimation has been demanded at the time of technology valuation. In addition, considering more similar trading cases when applying sales transaction comparison or industry norm method based on information of technology transfer royalty, it is an important issue that should be taken into account in the same way in the Agri-Food industry. The main input variables used for technology valuation in the Agri-Food industry are life cycle of technology asset, the financial information related to the Agri-Food industry, discount rate, and technology contribution rate. The latest infrastructure building and data updating related to technology valuation has been carried out on a regular basis in the evaluation organization of the Agri-Food segment. This study verifies the key variables that give the most important impact on the results for the existing technology valuation in the Agri-Food industry and clarifies the difference between the existing valuation result and the outcome by referring the support information that is derived through the latest input information applied in DCF method. In addition, while presenting the scheme to complement fragment information which the latest input data just influence result of technology valuation, we tried to perform comparative analysis between the existing valuation results and the evaluated outcome after the latest of reference data for making a decision the input values to be estimated in DCF. To perform these analyzes, it was first selected the representative cases evaluated past in the Agri-Food industry, applied a sensitivity analysis for input variables based on these selected cases, and then executed a simulation analysis utilizing the key input variables derived from sensitivity analysis. The results of this study is to provide the information which there are the need for modernization of the data related to the input variables that are utilized during valuating technology assets in the Agri-Food sector and for building the infrastructure of the key input variables in DCF. Therefore it is expected to provide more fruitful information about the results of valuation.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.41 no.5
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• pp.605-609
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• 2008

Background: It is well known that preoperative administration of combined antiplatelet agents can have an impact on the postoperative bleeding, the requirement for transfusion and the need for reexploration during on-pump coronary artery bypass surgery. Yet its effects have not been well evaluated in the case of off-pump coronary artery bypass surgery. Material and Method: We performed a retrospective study of nineteen patients who underwent OPCAB from March 2003 to December 2004. All the patients had taken antiplatelet agents until 12 hours before operation. The patients were divided into bo groups as an aspirin group and a combined (aspirin+clopidogrel) group. The perioperative platelet count, the hemoglobin level, the hematocrit, the prothrombin time and the aPTT were compared between both groups. The amount of postoperative bleeding, the transfusion requirement and the need for re-exploration to control bleeding were also compared between both groups. Result: There was no difference of operation time and the intraoperative ACT between the aspirin group and the combined group. The amount of blood loss through the chest tube for 24 hours was not different between the aspirin group $(697{\pm}271mL)$ and the combined group $(944{\pm}432mL)$. The number of patients who received blood transfusion was also not different between both groups. There was no patient who required reexploration for bleeding control in both groups. The perioperative hemoglobin level and hematocrit were also not different between both groups, but the postoperative hemoglobin level and hematocrit were decreased significantly in the group. Conclusion: The Preoperative combined antiplatelet (aspirin+clopidogrel) therapy group was not different from the aspirin group for the amount of postoperative bleeding, the amount of blood transfusion and the need for reexploration during off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting. This subject needs further evaluation because of small population in our study.

• Journal of Korean Society of Environmental Engineers
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• v.39 no.5
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• pp.255-264
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• 2017

To evaluate the water quality changes in agricultural reservoir covered with floating photovoltaic solar-tracking systems, the water quality variations with time and depth were monitored on both six sites for light blocking zones and four sites for light penetration zones after the installation of floating photovoltaic solar-tracking systems in Geumgwang reservoir at Anseong-si, Kyeonggi province. For one year with 16 monitoring events, water quality parameters [i.e., water temperature, pH, dissolved oxygen (DO), chlorophyll-a (Chl-a), and blue-green algae (BGA)] were monitored at depths of 0.3 m, 1 m, 3 m, and 5 m, while chemical oxygen demand (COD), total nitrogen (TN), and total phosphorus (TP) were monitored at depths of 0.3 m. Statistically, the difference in all water quality parameters was not significantly different (p > 0.05) at the level of significance of 0.05. Based on these results, the water quality data from light blocking zones (site 1~6) and light penetration zones (site 7~10) were clustered, and were compared with time and depth. As a result, the difference in water temperature, pH, DO, COD, TN, TP, Chl-a, and BGA between light blocking zones and light penetration zones was not significant (p > 0.05) with different time and depth. For Chl-a and BGA, some data from light blocking zones greater than light penetration zones were temporary observed due to the severe drought, low water storage rate, and over growth of periphyton. However, this temporal phenomenon did not impact the water quality. Considering the small water surface area (${\leq}0.5%$) covered by floating photovoltaic solar-tracking systems, the mixing effect of whole Geumgwang reservoir caused by Ekman current and continuous discharge were more dominant than the effect of reduced solar irradiance. Further study is warranted to monitor the changes in water quality and aquatic ecosystems with greater water surface area covered by floating photovoltaic solar-tracking systems for a long time.

• Journal of Korea Water Resources Association
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• v.51 no.3
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• pp.247-261
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• 2018

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the groundwater level behavior of Geum river basin ($9,645.5km^2$) under future climate change scenario projection periods (2020s: 2010~2039, 2050s: 2040~2069, 2080s: 2070~2099) using SWAT (Soil and Water Assessment Tool). Before future evaluation, the SWAT was calibrated and validated using 11 years (2005~2015) daily multi-purpose dam inflow at 2 locations (DCD, YDD), ground water level data at 5 locations (JSJS, OCCS, BEMR, CASS, BYBY), and three years (2012~2015) daily multi-function weir inflow at 3 locations (SJW, GJW, BJW). For the two dam inflow and dam storage, the Nash-Sutcliffe efficiency (NSE) was 0.57~0.67 and 0.87~0.94, and the coefficient of determination ($R^2$) was 0.69~0.73 and 0.63~0.73 respectively. For the three weir inflow and storage, the NSE was 0.68~0.70 and 0.94~0.99, and the $R^2$ was 0.83~0.86 and 0.48~0.61 respectively. The average $R^2$ for groundwater level was from 0.53 to 0.61. Under the future temperature increase of $4.3^{\circ}C$ and precipitation increase of 6.9% in 2080s (2070~2099) based on the historical periods (1976~2005) from HadGEM3-RA RCP 8.5 scenario, the future groundwater level shows decrease of -13.0 cm, -5.0 cm, -9.0 cm at 3 upstream locations (JSJS, OCCS, BEMR) and increase of +3.0 cm, +1.0 cm at 2 downstream locations (CASS, BYBY) respectively. The future groundwater level was directly affected by the groundwater recharge by the future seasonal spatial variation of rainfall in the watershed.

• Journal of Global Scholars of Marketing Science
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.80-88
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• 2010

There has been considerable research examining the relationship between stockholders equity and various marketing strategies. These include studies linking stock price performance to advertising, customer service metrics, new product introductions, research and development, celebrity endorsers, brand perception, brand extensions, brand evaluation, company name changes, and sports sponsorships. Another facet of marketing investments which has received heightened scrutiny for its purported influence on stockholder equity is television advertisement embedded within specific sporting events such as the Super Bowl. Research indicates that firms which advertise in Super Bowls experience stock price gains. Given this reported relationship between advertising investment and increased shareholder value, for both general and special events, it is surprising that relatively little research attention has been paid to investigating the relationship between advertising in the Olympic Games and its subsequent impact on stockholder equity. While attention has been directed at examining the effectiveness of sponsoring the Olympic Games, much less focus has been placed on the financial soundness of advertising during the telecasts of these Games. Notable exceptions to this include Peters (2008), Pfanner (2008), Saini (2008), and Keller Fay Group (2009). This paper presents a study of Olympic advertisers who ran TV ads on NBC in the American telecasts of the 2000, 2004, and 2008 Summer Olympic Games. Five hypothesis were tested: H1: The stock prices of firms which advertised on American telecasts of the 2008, 2004 and 2000 Olympics (referred to as O-Stocks), will outperform the S&P 500 during this same period of time (i.e., the Monday before the Games through to the Friday after the Games). H2: O-Stocks will outperform the S&P 500 during the medium term, that is, for the period of the Monday before the Games through to the end of each Olympic calendar year (December 31st of 2000, 2004, and 2008 respectively). H3: O-Stocks will outperform the S&P 500 in the longer term, that is, for the period of the Monday before the Games through to the midpoint of the following years (June 30th of 2001, 2005, and 2009 respectively). H4: There will be no difference in the performance of these O-Stocks vs. the S&P 500 in the Non-Olympic time control periods (i.e. three months earlier for each of the Olympic years). H5: The annual revenue of firms which advertised on American telecasts of the 2008, 2004 and 2000 Olympics will be higher for those years than the revenue for those same firms in the years preceding those three Olympics respectively. In this study, we recorded stock prices of those companies that advertised during the Olympics for the last three Summer Olympic Games (i.e. Beijing in 2008, Athens in 2004, and Sydney in 2000). We identified these advertisers using Google searches as well as with the help of the television network (i.e., NBC) that hosted the Games. NBC held the American broadcast rights to all three Olympic Games studied. We used Internet sources to verify the parent companies of the brands that were advertised each year. Stock prices of these parent companies were found using Yahoo! Finance. Only companies that were publicly held and traded were used in the study. We identified changes in Olympic advertisers' stock prices over the four-week period that included the Monday before through the Friday after the Games. In total, there were 117 advertisers of the Games on telecasts which were broadcast in the U.S. for 2008, 2004, and 2000 Olympics. Figure 1 provides a breakdown of those advertisers, by industry sector. Results indicate the stock of the firms that advertised (O-Stocks) out-performed the S&P 500 during the period of interest and under-performed the S&P 500 during the earlier control periods. These same O-Stocks also outperformed the S&P 500 from the start of these Games through to the end of each Olympic year, and for six months beyond that. Price pressure linkage, signaling theory, high involvement viewers, and corporate activation strategies are believed to contribute to these positive results. Implications for advertisers and researchers are discussed, as are study limitations and future research directions.

• Management & Information Systems Review
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• v.36 no.4
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• pp.1-19
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• 2017

These days, the concept of creating shared value is drawn keen attentions to. This interest comes out of the expectation that Creating Shared Value(CSV) can offer an answer to some social issues by creating societal and economic values on the top of the achievements that existing Corporate Social Responsibility(CSR) has made. However, it is difficult to make a clear distinction between the achievements that the activities of CSR and CSV have made. In this regard, developing a methodology to make an actual proof analysis on the accomplishments of CSV and to verify customer's awareness of and attitude towards the CSV is necessarily required. A company needs to gain a competitive advantage in the marketplace as well as resolve a social issue by innovating value chain. The research has verified the cause and effect relationship between the CSV from the point of view of value chain and the purchase intention aroused by its economic, societal and cultural values through the company image and credibility with actual proof analysis and come up with following results. First, a societal and cultural value resulted in giving positive impact on a company's image, which implies that CSV activities can be the thin end of the wedge through which customers have a good image of the company involved in CSV. Second, a societal value makes a positive influence on the credibility of a company. In this regard, CSV should be recognized not just as a thing that generates a cost, but a way to win-win as well as future development. Third and last, the research results show that both company image and credibility influence on purchase intention. Considering that CSV generates a positive evaluation on a company that will ultimately cause continuous profit-making, the company's ultimate goal of activities, it should be approached from the perspective of making a mid-and-long term strategy.

• Progress in Medical Physics
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.26-32
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• 2012

The magnification technique has recently become popular in bone radiography, mammography and other diagnostic examination. However, because of the finite size of X-ray focal spot, the magnification influences various imaging properties with resolution, noise and contrast. The purpose of study is to investigate the influence of magnification and focal spot size on digital imaging system using eDQE (effective detective quantum efficiency). Effective DQE is a metric reflecting overall system response including focal spot blur, magnification, scatter and grid response. The adult chest phantom employed in the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) was used to derive eDQE from eMTF (effective modulation transfer function), eNPS (effective noise power spectrum), scatter fraction and transmission fraction. According to results, spatial frequencies that eMTF is 10% with the magnification factor of 1.2, 1.4, 1.6, 1.8 and 2.0 are 2.76, 2.21, 1.78, 1.49 and 1.26 lp/mm respectively using small focal spot. The spatial frequencies that eMTF is 10% with the magnification factor of 1.2, 1.4, 1.6, 1.8 and 2.0 are 2.21, 1.66, 1.25, 0.93 and 0.73 lp/mm respectively using large focal spot. The eMTFs and eDQEs decreases with increasing magnification factor. Although there are no significant differences with focal spot size on eDQE (0), the eDQEs drops more sharply with large focal spot than small focal spot. The magnification imaging can enlarge the small size lesion and improve the contrast due to decrease of effective noise and scatter with air-gap effect. The enlargement of the image size can be helpful for visual detection of small image. However, focal spot blurring caused by finite size of focal spot shows more significant impact on spatial resolution than the improvement of other metrics resulted by magnification effect. Based on these results, appropriate magnification factor and focal spot size should be established to perform magnification imaging with digital radiography system.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.60 no.2
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• pp.160-170
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• 2006

Background : The aberrant promoter hypermethylation of p16INK4a, as a tumor suppressor gene, is contributory factor to non-small cell lung cancer(NSCLC). However, its potential diagnostic impact of lung cancer is unclear. This study measured the level of $p16^{INK4a}$ promoter hypermethylation in the sputum and blood, and compared this with the level measured in the tissue obtained from NSCLC and pulmonary inflammation. Methods : Of the patients who visited the Our Lady of Mercy Hospital in Incheon, Korea for an evaluation of a lung mass and underwent blood, sputum, and tissue tests, 23patients (18 NSCLC, 5 pulmonary inflammation) were enrolled in this study. DNA was extracted from each sample and the level of p16INK4amethylation was determined using methylation-specific polymerase chain reaction. Results : $p16^{INK4a}$ methylation of the blood was observed in 88.9% (16 of 18) and 20.0% (1 of 5) of NSCLC and from pulmonary inflammation samples, respectively (P=0.008). Methylation of the sputum was observed in 83.3% (10 of 12) 80.0% (4 of 5) of NSCLC and pulmonary inflammation samples, respectively (P=1.00). Among the 8 NSCLC tissue samples, methylation changes were detected in 75.0% of samples (6 cases). Four out of seven tissue samples (57.1%) showed concordance, being methylated in both the blood and sputum. Conclusions : There was a higher level of $p16^{INK4a}$ methylation of the blood from NSCLC patients than from pulmonary inflammation. The tissue showed a high concordance with the blood in the NSCLC samples. These findings suggest that $p16^{INK4a}$ promoter hypermethylation of the blood can used to discriminate between NSCLC and pulmonary inflammation.

• The Korean Journal of Elementary Counseling
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.33-50
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• 2009

The purpose of this study was to develop a PBL-based career education program and to examine its effectiveness on school children's career maturity. It's specifically meant to prepare a career education program to assist students to get an accurate grip on their aptitude, interest and personality and explore various sorts of occupations in the course of solving authentic and contextual career-related problems. After children's developmental characteristics and needs were analyzed, task analysis was implemented, and the objectives were defined. And then the core of the program, PBL problems were developed, and the validity of the problems were verified Evaluation plans and tools were prepared to assess children's problem-solving process and presentation, and an online learning space was designed. The program that consisted of 10-minute 21 sessions was provided to fifth-grade elementary schoolers for eight weeks. The findings of the study were as follows: The experimental group that participated in the PBL-based career education program showed a more significant improvement than the control group that didn't in career attitude and three career attitude subfactors involving planness, disposition and compromise. And the former made a more significant progress than the latter in career ability and its subfactors including vocational comprehension, self-understanding and decision-making skills as well. As a result of making a content analysis to make up for the survey, the students reported that they were able to get an objective understanding of themselves and acquire diverse and profound knowledge on work and the business world in the middle of solving the given PBL problems related to different areas in group and giving a presentation. In conclusion, a PBL based career education program developed by this researcher encouraged the students to have an objective self-understanding, to have a dynamic interactive discussion with their group members. Therefore the program had a positive impact on boosting the career attitude and career ability of the elementary schoolers. The findings suggested that in the field of elementary career education, autonomous learning attitude and subjecthood are the crucial factors to stimulate school children to explore and create their own future.