• Journal of Technology Innovation
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.99-126
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• 2004

Japan's economic clusters are characterized by their high level of diversity. In essence, Japanese economic clusters are not limited to single industries; they comprise numerous manufacturing industries and firms which cluster in specific heterogeneous economic zones, vice political boundaries. Japanese manufacturing sectors are showing an increased level of diversity, resulting in the spread of experience and knowledge among clusters, and sustained growth at the point of industrial structural transformation. Japan's Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) proposed the creation of intellectual clusters for the purpose of promoting research and development(R&D) activities resulting in the stimulation and development of new technologies. The Ministry of Economy Trade and Industry (METI) is also proposing the industrial cluster plan with the aim to promote the local rebirth and revitalization of the Japanese industrial sector. This paper proposes a methodological analysis which will result in the integration of the two policies currently implemented by the Japanese government. If the current policies are not coordinated and integrated, artificial firms and sectors will continue to hamper innovation and discourage competitiveness, which will ultimately result in Japan's loss of economic opportunities within Asia. In the worst case, failure to act on current economic deficiencies illuminated in this paper could cost Japan its position as an Asian economic leader.

• Journal of Technology Innovation
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• v.13 no.3
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• pp.225-255
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• 2005

The similar point of the 19 regional industrial clusters of Japan is that all of the clusters are not limited to an administrational district but rather covers a larger area. When a cluster covers a larger area, there is problem of acquiring responsible businesses and interactive planing. In order to overcome such a problem, private coordinating organizations have been installed and operated to connect and manage inter-activities of industries, universities, and research institutes. TAMA, a private coordinating organization, differs from other associations in a way that it does not deal with one specific field or business. TAMA rather dealswith various product-developing small to middle size companies by offering strategic support for the development of new technologies and expansion of new businesses. Product-developing small to middle size companies comparatively have their own abilities for technological development and marketing which is quite different from other subcontract companies and their relations to large corporations. In such aspect, product-developing companies are actually similar to large corporations with competitiveness in the world market.

• Journal of Technology Innovation
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• v.14 no.2
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• pp.167-181
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• 2006

This paper reviews regional innovation policy in Japan. 'Technopolis' policy, the first technology-based regional development policy in the world, was implemented in Japan. Nonetheless, technology-based regional endogenous development did not occur. Then, regional technology transfer was pursued. In order to make use of universities and public research institutes in a region for development, university-industry collaboration and cross-over, such as university spin-offs, were promoted. Within this background, new technology-based regional development policies have been introduced based on a cluster approach. These policies are the knowledge cluster Initiative and the industrial cluster program. However, existing companies have difficulty in carrying out innovation. This paper argues that a cluster to create new start-ups that carry out innovation is also needed and explains a new concept of venturing cluster. Based on this new cluster concept, this paper analyzes the situation of Sapporo in Japan, where many university spin-offs are being created in the biotechnology field.

• Journal of Technology Innovation
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.207-222
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• 2005

A prerequisite for making R&D more productive is to able to measure its productivity. Most of the previous studies on this topic have attempted to measure R&D productivity at the firm or industry levels. In this study, however, R&D productivity is measured at the national level to provide R&D policy implications, particularly for Asian countries. Contrary to the previous studies where total factor productivity was adopted, this study employs the data envelopment analysis (DEA) approach to measure R&D productivity. DEA is a multi-factor productivity analysis model for measuring the relative efficiency of each Decision Making Unit (DMU). In addition to the basic DEA model that includes all inputs and outputs, five additional models are constructed by combining single input with all outputs and single output with all inputs in order to measure specialized R&D efficiency. In this study, the twenty-seven countries are classified into four clusters based on the output-specialized R&D efficiency: inventors, merchandisers, academicians, and duds. Then, the characteristics of the Asian countries with respect to R&D efficiency are identified. It is found that Singapore ranks high in total efficiency, and Japan in patent-oriented efficiency. Meanwhile, China, Korea, and Taiwan are found to be relatively inefficient in R&D. We expect that the findings from this study will be able to provide directions for R&D policy-making of the Asian countries.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society for Applied Microbiology Conference
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• 2000.10a
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• pp.118-124
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• 2000

Zn-resistant Methylosobacterium strains were isolated from several non-polluted soil samples collected in all over Japan. Zn-resistant Methylosobacterium strains were predominantly detected in all soil samples and they were also characterized as a UV-tolerant bacteria. The MIC test revealed that the isolates have high zinc resistance in comparison with that of reference Methylosobacterium strains obtained from culture collections. The 16S rDNA-based phylogenetic analysis showed that all strains were divided into two clusters designated as cluster A and cluster B in the present study. All isolates were distributed only in the cluster A. The phylogenetic clustering also well coincided with the differences in the pattern of carbon source utilization.

• Journal of the Economic Geographical Society of Korea
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• v.7 no.1
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• pp.45-63
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• 2004

The main purpose of this article is to suggest policy implications for building innovative cluster in Korea by investigating the operating system and role of the Kanagawa Science Park (KSP) located in Kanagawa prefecture, Japan as a central network agent. The KSP established mainly by private and government partnership has played a critical role for building innovative clusters as a way in which increase national competitiveness. But they also provide variety of real service from R&D to commercialization for local firms by facilitating and coordinating networks among regional economic actors such as firms, universities and public research institutes. The regional policy as a way in which increase national competitiveness in Korea is also the establishment of innovative clusters based on regional and industrial characteristics. However, the main problem with building the innovative cluster is the reduction of policy effectiveness due to duplicated supporting and coordinating institutes and institutions established by the each central administration and local governments, aimed at facilitating networks among regional economic actors. In this context, the article suggests that there is a need to build a regional central network agent by designing an organic operating system for the effective management of each network agent in accordance with the process from R&D to commercialization, i.e. an encompassed supporting system, on the basis of benchmarking the KSP operating system in Japan.

• International Commerce and Information Review
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• v.16 no.3
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• pp.275-304
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• 2014

Due to the rapid progress of globalization, fierce international competition, a declining population, low birth rate and aging population, deficit in a difficult situation at home and abroad, Japan's local governments expand internal and external alliances and partnerships to maximize the economic benefits to the region seeking to enable in the region have efficient allocation of human and material resources through industry support, funding, and administrative efficiency for the purpose of speeding up the formation of a mega regional economies. Union of Kansai Government implements, especially in the wide area of industrial clusters, economic policy need to comprehensive planning and growth strategy such as adjusting the growth strategy attempts to promote the local economy and to enable investment planning and coordination within the current mega regions, These roles are further improving and upgrading their importance of mega regional phase in Japan's regional economic policy.

• Journal of Plant Biotechnology
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• v.50
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• pp.207-214
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• 2023

Lindera obtusiloba (Lauraceae) is a dioecious tree that is widely distributed in the low-altitude montane forests of East Asia, including Korea. Despite its various pharmacological properties and ornamental value, the genetic diversity and population structure of this species in Korea have not been explored. In this study, we selected 6 nuclear and 6 chloroplast microsatellite markers with polymorphism or clean cross-amplification and used these markers to perform genetic diversity and population structure analyses of L. obtusiloba samples collected from 20 geographical regions. Using these 12 markers, we identified a total of 44 alleles, ranging from 1 to 8 per locus, and the average observed and expected heterozygosity values were 0.11 and 0.44, respectively. The average polymorphism information content was 0.39. Genetic relationship and population structure analyses revealed that the natural L. obtusiloba population in Korea is composed of 2 clusters, possibly due to two different plastid genotypes. The same clustering patterns have also been observed in Lindera species in mainland China and Japan.

• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.1-14
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• 2020

Leading the fourth industrial revolution era requires science and technology strategies that establish original research directions at the national level. To this end, it is necessary to look at the research and development activities for the fourth industrial revolution of technology-leading countries. In this study, the research programs of the U.S. Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity(IARPA), an organization focusing on cutting edge research on science and technology information such as artificial intelligence, are investigated by using network analysis. The findings show that, resolving around the information identification and forecasting, decision making and cybersecurity clusters, IARPA's research programs largely focus on finding hidden information and predicting specific events, supporting decision making by considering changes in and outside organizations or establishing cybersecurity. Also, this study finds that China and Japan, representative technology-leading Asian countries, refer to the research programs of IARPA to establish their science and technology policies. The results of this study suggest implications for Korea's science and technology policies in response to the fourth industrial revolution era.

• KIEAE Journal
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• v.7 no.1
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• pp.5-13
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• 2007

Since aging has become one of most hot and serious issues in the whole global world, universal design as a strategic concept to enable the elderly age in place has received much attention and its importance is getting recognized. Japan has undergone the Aging phenomenon much earlier than Korea and other countries. During that time, through much trials and errors, it accumulated the wisdoms and techniques to precede aging friendly environment and products. Therefore current Japan house is a comprehensive setting which embraces lots of universal design features that has a valuable implication for Korean development that faces fast aging future. The purpose of this study was to delineate characteristics of universal design features appeared in Japanese Model houses. One site of housing park in the city where various model houses of representative housing construction companies was selected as a cluster area for data collecting. Data were collected mainly through field survey at the housing park of Tokyo during November, 2006, and additional data were collected through website and company information of relevant company. Universal design features were extracted for 17 houses of the housing park and sorted and analyzed according to the analysis frame. The frame were made using 2 major clusters; space area, and 8 universal design principle. Results showed a range of universal design feature and its detail universal design principle satisfied. The 8 principle currently developed became to house realistic practical examples and theory became proved its impractical power. The academic, educational and industrial implication were documented.