• Smart Structures and Systems
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• 제15권3호
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• pp.555-576
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• 2015

The large number of long-span bridges constructed in China motivates the applications of structural health monitoring (SHM) technology. Many bridges have been equipped with sophisticated SHM systems in the mainland of China and in Hong Kong of China. Recently, SHM technology has been extended to field test systems. In this view, SHM can serve as a tool to develop the methods of life-cycle performance design, evaluation, maintenance and management of bridges; to develop new structural analysis methods through validation and feedback from SHM results; and to understand the behavior of bridges under natural and man-made disasters, rapidly assess the damage and loss of structures over large regions after disasters, e.g., earthquake, typhoon, flood, etc. It is hoped that combining analytical methods, numerical simulation, small-scale tests and accelerated durability tests with SHM could become the main engine driving the development of bridge engineering. This paper demonstrates the above viewpoint.

• Journal of Acupuncture Research
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• 제38권4호
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• pp.300-311
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• 2021

Background: So far there is no confidence in the basics of acupoint/meridian phenomena, specifically in spatial and temporal electrical manifestations in the skin. Methods: Using the skin electrodynamic introscopy, the skin areas of 32 × 64 mm² were monitored for spectral electrical impedance landscape with spatial resolution of 1 mm, at 2 kHz and 1 MHz frequencies. The detailed baseline and 2D test-induced 2 kHz-impedance phase dynamics and the 4-parameter time plots of dozens of individual points in the St32-34 regions were examined in a healthy participant and a patient with mild gastritis. Non-thermal stimuli were used: (1) (for the sick subject), microwaves and ultraviolet radiation applied alternately from opposite directions of the meridian; and (2) (for the healthy one) microwaves to St17, and cathodic/anodic stimulation of the outermost St45, alternately. Results: In both cases, the following phenomena have been observed: emergence of in-phase and/or antiphase coherent structures, exceeding the acupoint conditional size of 1 cm; collective movement along the meridian; reversible with a reversed stimulus; counter-directional dynamics of both whole structures and adjacent points; local abnormalities in sensitivity and dynamics of the 1 MHz and 2 kHz parameters indicating existence of different waveguide paths. Conclusion: It is assumed that these findings necessitate reconsideration of some basic methodological issues regarding neurogenic/acupuncture points as spatial and temporal phenomena; this requires development of an appropriate approach for identifying the acuzones patterns. These findings may be used for developing new approaches to personalized/controlled therapy/treatment.

• Journal of Nuclear Fuel Cycle and Waste Technology
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• 제1권1호
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• pp.9-27
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• 2013

Nagra was established in 1972 by the Swiss nuclear power plant operators and the Federal Government to implement permanent and safe disposal of all types of radioactive waste generated in Switzerland. The Swiss Nuclear Energy Act specifies that these shall be disposed of in deep geological repositories. A number of different geological formations and sites have been investigated to date and an extended database of geological characteristics as well as data and state-of-the-art methodologies required for the evaluation of the long-term safety of repository systems have been developed. The research, development, and demonstration activities are further supported by the two underground research facilities operating in Switzerland, the Grimsel Test Site and the Mont Terri Project, along with very active collaboration of Nagra with national and international partners. A new site selection process was approved by the Federal Government in 2008 and is ongoing. This process is driven by the long-term safety and feasibility of the geological repositories and is based on a step-wise decision-making approach with a strong participatory component from the affected communities and regions. In this paper a brief history and the current status of the Swiss radioactive waste management program are presented and special characteristics that may be useful beyond the Swiss program are highlighted and discussed.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• 제70권6호
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• pp.671-681
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• 2019

This paper examines the applicability of artificial neural network (ANN) and multivariate adaptive regression splines (MARS) to predict the compressive strength of bacteria incorporated geopolymer concrete (GPC). The mix is composed of new bacterial strain, manufactured sand, ground granulated blast furnace slag, silica fume, metakaolin and fly ash. The concentration of sodium hydroxide (NaOH) is maintained at 8 Molar, sodium silicate ($Na_2SiO_3$) to NaOH weight ratio is 2.33 and the alkaline liquid to binder ratio of 0.35 and ambient curing temperature ($28^{\circ}C$) is maintained for all the mixtures. In ANN, back-propagation training technique was employed for updating the weights of each layer based on the error in the network output. Levenberg-Marquardt algorithm was used for feed-forward back-propagation. MARS model was developed by establishing a relationship between a set of predictors and dependent variables. MARS is based on a divide and conquers strategy partitioning the training data sets into separate regions; each gets its own regression line. Six models based on ANN and MARS were developed to predict the compressive strength of bacteria incorporated GPC for 1, 3, 7, 28, 56 and 90 days. About 70% of the total 84 data sets obtained from experiments were used for development of the models and remaining 30% data was utilized for testing. From the study, it is observed that the predicted values from the models are found to be in good agreement with the corresponding experimental values and the developed models are robust and reliable.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• 제27권6호
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• pp.1157-1162
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• 2017

The goal of this study was to identify and characterize selected Trichoderma isolates by metabolic profiling and enzyme assay for evaluation of their potential as biocontrol agents against plant pathogens. Trichoderma isolates were obtained from the Rural Development Administration Genebank Information Center (Wanju, Republic of Korea). Eleven Trichoderma isolates were re-identified using ribosomal DNA internal transcribed spacer (ITS) regions. ITS sequence results showed new identification of Trichoderma isolates. In addition, metabolic profiling of the ethyl acetate extracts of the liquid cultures of five Trichoderma isolates that showed the best anti-Phytophthora activities was conducted using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Metabolic profiling revealed that Trichoderma isolates shared common metabolites with well-known antifungal activities. Enzyme assays indicated strong cell wall-degrading enzyme activities of Trichoderma isolates. Overall, our results indicated that the selected Trichoderma isolates have great potential for use as biocontrol agents against plant pathogens.

• 한국수산과학회지
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• 제54권5호
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• pp.596-616
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• 2021

A global increase in fish consumption has led to a rapid expansion of aquaculture production, which has been linked to enhancing the spread of infectious diseases. Viral diseases can cause high mortality in many cultured fish species, posing a serious threat to the aquaculture industry. Infectious hematopoietic necrosis virus (IHNV) is one of the primary threats to aquacultured salmonid species, causing huge economic losses. Since the first report in cultured sockeye salmon Oncorhynchus nerka during the 1950s in North America, IHNV has spread to other regions, including Europe, Asia, South America, and Africa by transportation of infected fish and eggs, causing disease and increasing mortality in a wide variety of salmonid species. Here, we review existing information relevant to IHNV: its phylogenetic characteristics, origin, infection history, virulence determinants, susceptible hosts, vectors, and vaccine development. This review also addresses a possible cross-species transmission of IHNV to a new host, olive flounder Paralichthys olivaceus, a cultured fish of economic importance in East Asian countries.

• 농촌계획
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• 제5권2호
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• pp.30-37
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• 1999

It is necessary to evaluate the location suitability for protected horticulture to plan new protected horticultural facilities in rural areas. For objective and systematic evaluation of location suitability for protected horticulture, three different evaluation models were constructed based on grading, proportion, and analytic hierarchy process(AHP). The three methods were tested to evaluate the location suitability for protected horticulture in three selected regions; suburban, plain, mountainous. The results indicated that the grading method underestimated the difference of importance among grouping categories, compared to the proportion and AHP methods. Based on the results, the AHP method was founded to be better than the other two methods in terms of evaluation process, reproductivity and reliability of the results.

• International Journal of Precision Engineering and Manufacturing
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• 제2권1호
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• pp.18-25
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• 2001

Electrolytic polishing is the anodic dissolution process in the transpassive state. It removes non-metallic inclusion and improves mechanical and corrosion resistance of stainless steel. If there is a Bailby layer, it will be removed and the true structure of the surface will be restored. Electrolytic polishing is normally used to remove a very thin layer of material from the surface of metal object. A new electrolyte composed of phosphoric, sulfuric and distilled water has been developed in this study. Two current density, high & low current density regions, have been applied in this study. In this study, In the region of high current density, there is no plateau region but excellent electrolytic polishing effect can be accomplished in short machining time because material removel process and leveling process occur simultaneously. In the low current density region, there can be found plateau region. The material removal process and leveling process occur successively. The aim of this work is to determine electrolytic polishing for stainless steel in terms of high & low current density and workpiece surface roughness.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• 제16권2호
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• pp.451-455
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• 2015

More than one million new patients suffer from breast cancer annually in the world. In developed countries, breast cancer is the most common malignancy diagnosed among women, and in developing regions, it often ranks second to cervical cancer. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between incidence of breast cancer and reproductive factors in North-West of Iran. This retrospective analytical control-case study was conducted with 235 breast cancer patients and 235 women in the control group. Data collection tools included a set of questions with interviews and patient medical records. Data were analyzed using statistical tests: t-test, Chi-square, Fisher, and Pearson correlation coefficient. Significantly increased risks were associated between breast cancer and older age at first pregnancy, age at menopause and history of contraceptive use. A trend for decreasing risk were observed with increasing parity. Findings of this study showed no association between breast cancer and age at menarche. The study results suggested that physiological and reproductive factors may play important roles in the development breast cancer among Iranian women.

• 한국수산과학회지
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• 제49권3호
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• pp.376-384
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• 2016

Seasonal catch distributions of large purse seines and daily landings of coastal set nets were analyzed to understand the migration path of the Spanish mackerel Scomberomorus niphonius around Korean waters. The Spanish mackerel start to move toward the coastal region in the South and West Sea in May for spawning and stay until July, when spawning finishes. Afterwards, they start to migrate to the East China Sea and the southern East Sea and are found irrespective of the onshore and offshore regions. Therefore, they disappear from the offshore region during the spawning season in June and July, and a new recruitment population of age 0 begins to inflow into the coastal fishing grounds in the South Sea and West Sea in August, one month earlier than in the Japanese coastal region of the East Sea.