• Journal of the Korean Society of School Health
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.15-25
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• 2005

Purpose: Recently there are scientific evidences for the health effects of Asian dust-storms. Particularly in 2002, the daily average of $PM_10$ exceeded 600 and 700 $\mu{g}/m^3$ in March and April respectively. We examined the effects of Asian dust‐storms on perceived symptoms and preventive behaviors among children, adults, and elders. Method: The subjects of this study were 425 children, 444 adults and 60 elders. A questionnaire survey was carried out on the children and the adults by teachers and on the elders by interviewers to obtain information on demographic variables, perceived symptoms and preventive behaviors, previous respiratory disease, environmental tobacco smoke, and proximity between the house and the road during Asian dust-storms. We analyzed using descriptive statistics, $X^2$ test and multiple logistic regression models. After adjustment for potential confounders, we estimated the odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals of the children and the elders for perceived symptoms and preventive behaviors. Result: The elders had a significantly higher prevalence of respiratory symptoms than the other groups. The children had a significantly higher prevalence than the adults in getting URI (1.51), coughing (1.68), rhinorrhea (1.46), fever (2.39) and medication for allergy or asthma (1.90). The children had better behaviors than the elders in closing windows (3.57), taking less outdoor recreational activity (2.59) and staying home (2.60). Conclusion: This study suggested that children and elders are susceptible to the effects of Asian dust on health. Health educators should inform these populations about the influence of Asian dust and provide health education for preventive behaviors.

• Journal of the Korean Society of School Health
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.1-8
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• 2003

Purpose : While there have been growing concerns about the effects of Asian dusts on health, there are few studies for relationship between Asian dusts and health outcome. This study was designed to examine the perceived symptoms and behavior change of children during the Asian Dust events. Methods : We surveyed 459 students at an elementary school in Seoul, Korea from November 20th to 27th 2002. Children with parents were asked to return the completed questionnaires within a week. The questionnaires included the sociodemographic factor, previous respiratory disease, and perceived symptom, hospital visits and behavior change during the Asian dusts. Results : The majority of children reported that they restrained going out and outdoor recreational activity during the Asian dusts. The rate of children who worn the mask was 49% and 47% in second grade and fifth grade, respectively. Regarding the perceived symptom during the Asian dusts, the children in 2nd were more likely to have symptom than 5th and there were significant difference between two groups in cough, asthma symptom, dry cough, phlegm and medication for allergy or asthma symptom. In addition, children who had previous disease were more likely to change behavior in order to prevent the effects of Asian dusts. Conclusions : This study suggested that the younger children and children who had past respiratory disease were susceptible to the effect of Asian dusts. There is a need for providing public information and health education to prevent the impact of Asian dusts on health.

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.37 no.1 s.106
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• pp.130-136
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• 2004

In the present study, prey preference of juvenile fishes was examined using an experimental approach. Zooplankton composition, as a prey of the fish, was evaluated by taking into account the species as well as body size of juveniles in the aquarium. The predation of juvenile fishes is known to be an important factor in changes of zooplankton communities. In some previous studies at the regulated Nakdong River, the collapse of large cladcoerans and an increase in the rotifer population by selective predation during spring and summer were observed. This study focused on the predation of juvenile fishes such as Hyporhamphus sajori, Rhinogobius brunneus, and Opsariichtys uncirostris amurensis on zooplankton community structure in mesocosm scale experiments. These fishes selected the cladoceran Moina micrura with highest individual preference value (Manly/Chesson index)among zooplankton prey in the experimental aquarium. When the size-selective prey preferences of the juvenile fish were compared, both small (body size <2 cm) and large (body size >2cm) juveniles of O. uncirostris positively selected M. micrura. In the outdoor experimental tanks, juvenile fishes consumed the cladoceran M. micrura, resulting in an high abundance of the rotifer, Polyarthra spp. The results suggest that juvenile fish predation may play an important role in regulating the zooplankton community structure by reducing the cladoceran density and increase of rotifers in the Nakdong River during spring and summer.

• Journal of the Korean Wood Science and Technology
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• v.43 no.6
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• pp.798-803
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• 2015

This study was conducted to predict the effect of door opening in wooden cultural heritages (WCHs) on their conservation environment. For this prediction, measured relative humidity (RH) and surface wood moisture content (MC) of inner part of wood columns in open wooden building and neighboring closed wooden building were compared with minimum RH, including the duration of minimum RH, and MC required for spore germination and resultant growth of wood-degrading fungi reported in some literatures. Moisture conditions, namely RH of inside wooden building and MC of wood was unsuitable for decay and sap-stain fungi all the year round; however, moisture conditions during summer season was suitable for spore germination and resultant growth of surface mold fungi, regardless of door opening. When compared, the duration of minimum (75%) or higher RH and the number of wood columns with MC level greater than the minimum MC (15%) during summer season, the surface mold related to the conservation environment of inside wooden building was somewhat better in open building than in closed building. Rather, doors should be opened in closed building for reducing indoor RH as a necessary measure during summer season when outdoor RH is high.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Landscape Architecture
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• v.49 no.6
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• pp.49-63
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• 2021

The Forest Visitor Centers for Little Children who means preschoolers is an educational facility that achieves holistic growth by experiencing forests, and it should not be completed by installing specific facilities in the forest environment, but should be a space where preschoolers can play freely in the forest environment themselves. This study comprehensively evaluated the current status of Seoul Forest Visitor Centers for Little Children and suggested space improvement measures to enhance the effectiveness of forest experience. Through the theoretical review, seven spatial elements that enhance the effect of forest experience and six areas composing outdoor play areas were derived to prepare an analysis table for current status evaluation, and field survey studies were conducted on 24 centers in Seoul. Through expert interviews, the physical status was examined from the perspective of childhood education and the experiences of the users were summarized. As a result of the study, the Seoul Forest Visitor Center for Little Children is classified into six types according to the location characteristics and spatial structure, and has the characteristics of each type. The effectiveness of forest experience can be enhanced by identifying and revealing the environmental strengths of individual centers. In the case of outdoor experience learning zones, the proportion of exercise play areas was very large. By evenly organizing the forest experience space for each area, it will be possible to provide more diverse experiences to preschoolers. However, the status of uniform facility-oriented cannot be viewed as a fragmentary factor that lowers the effect of forest experience. The key to increasing the effect of forest experience by inducing creative activities is the spatial composition that considers the surrounding natural environment. Facilities should be a medium to help preschoolers' interest move into the forest. This study prepared data to understand the average physical status of the Seoul Forest Visitor Center for Little Children and suggested space improvement measures to increase the effectiveness of forest experience. This can be used as basic data for research to improve the quality level of the Seoul Forest Visitor Center for Little Children about 10 years after the project was implemented.

• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.147-158
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• 2016

Objectives: The objective of this study was to evaluate the assessment of exposure to welding fume and heavy metals among construction welders. Methods: Activity-specific personal air samplings(n=206) were carried out at construction sites of three apartment, two office buildings, and two plant buildings using PVC(poly vinyl chloride) filters with personal air samplers. The concentration of fumes and heavy metals were evaluated for five different types of construction welding jobs: general building pipefitter, chemical plant pipefitter, boiler maker, ironworker, metal finishing welder. Results: The concentration of welding fumes was highest among general building pipefitters($4.753mg/m^3$) followed by ironworkers($3.765mg/m^3$), boilermakers($1.384mg/m^3$), metal finishing welders($0.783mg/m^3$), chemical pipefitters($0.710mg/m^3$). Among the different types of welding methods, the concentration of welding fumes was highest with the $CO_2$ welding method($2.08mg/m^3$) followed by SMAW(shield metal arc welding, $1.54mg/m^3$) and TIG(tungsten inert gas, $0.70mg/m^3$). Among the different types of workplace, the concentration of welding fumes was highest in underground workplaces($1.97mg/m^3$) followed by outdoor($0.93mg/m^3$) and indoor(wall opening as $0.87mg/m^3$). Specifically comparing the workplaces of general building welders, the concentration of welding fumes was highest in underground workplaces($7.75mg/m^3$) followed by indoor(wall opening as $2.15mg/m^3$). Conclusions: It was found that construction welders experience a risk of expose to welding hazards at a level exceeding the exposure limits. In particular, for high-risk welding jobs such as general building pipefitters and ironworkers, underground welding work and $CO_2$ welding operations require special occupational health management regarding the use of air supply and exhaust equipment and special safety and health education and fume mask are necessary. In addition, there is a need to establish construction work monitoring systems, health planning and management practices.

• Journal of Global Scholars of Marketing Science
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.59-69
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• 2010

Green or an environmental consciousness has been a major issue for businesses and government offices, as well as consumers, worldwide. In response to this movement, the Korean government announced, in the early 2000s, the era of "Green Growth" as a way to encourage green-related business activities. The Korean fashion industry, in various levels of involvement, presents diverse eco-friendly products as a part of the green movement. These apparel products include organic products and recycled clothing. For these companies to be successful, they need information about who are the consumers who consider green issues (e.g., environmental sustainability) as part of their personal values when making a decision for product purchase, use, and disposal. These consumers can be considered as eco-sumers. Previous studies have examined consumers' purchase intention for or with eco-friendly products. In addition, studies have examined influential factors used to identify the eco-sumers or green consumers. However, limited attention was paid to eco-sumers' disposal or recycling behavior of clothes in comparison with their green product purchases. Clothing disposal behaviors are ways that consumer can get rid of unused clothing and in clue temporarily lending the item or permanently eliminating the item by "handing down" (e.g., giving it to a younger sibling), donating, exchanging, selling, or simply throwing it away. Accordingly, examining purchasing behaviors of eco-friendly fashion items in conjunction with clothing disposal behaviors should improve understanding of a consumer's clothing consumption behavior from the environmental perspective. The purpose of this exploratory study is to provide descriptive information about Korean eco-sumers who have ecologically-favorable lifestyles and behaviors when buying and disposing of clothes. The objectives of this study are to (a) categorize Koreans on the basis of clothing disposal behaviors; (b) investigate the differences in demographics, lifestyles, and clothing consumption values among segments; and (c) compare the purchase intention of eco-friendly fashion items and influential factors among segments. A self-administered questionnaire was developed based on previous studies. The questionnaire included 10 items of clothing disposal behavior, 22 items of LOHAS (Lifestyles of Health and Sustainability) characteristics, and 19 items of consumption values, measured by five-point Likert-type scales. In addition, the purchase intention of two eco-friendly fashion items and 11 attributes of each item were measured by seven-point Likert type scales. Two polyester fleece pullovers, made from fabric created from recycled bottles with the PET identification code, were selected from one Korean brand and one US imported brand among outdoor sportswear brands. A brief description of each product with a color picture was provided in the survey. Demographic variables (i.e., gender, age, marital status, education level, income, occupation) were also included. The data were collected through a professional web survey agency during May 2009. A total of 600 final usable questionnaires were analyzed. The age of respondents ranged from 20 to 49 years old with a mean age of 34 years. Fifty percent of the respondents were males and about 58% were married, and 62% reported having earned university degrees. Principal components factor analysis with varimax rotation was used to identify the underlying dimensions of the clothing disposal behavior scale, and three factors were generated (i.e., reselling behavior, donating behavior, non-recycling behavior). To categorize the respondents on the basis of clothing disposal behaviors, k-mean cluster analysis was used, and three segments were obtained. These consumer segments were labeled as 'Resale Group', 'Donation Group', and 'Non-Recycling Group.' The classification results indicated approximately 98 percent of the original cases were correctly classified. With respect to demographic characteristics among the three segments, significant differences were found in gender, marital status, occupation, and age. LOHAS characteristics were reduced into the following five factors: self-satisfaction, family orientation, health concern, environmental concern, and voluntary service. Significant differences were found in the LOHAS factors among the three clusters. Resale Group and Donation Group showed a similar predisposition to LOHAS issues while the Non-Recycling Group presented the lowest mean scores on the LOHAS factors compared to the other segments. The Resale and Donation Groups described themselves as enjoying or being satisfied with their lives and spending spare-time with family. In addition, these two groups cared about health and organic foods, and tried to conserve energy and resources. Principal components factor analysis generated clothing consumption values into the following three factors: personal values, social value, and practical value. The ANOVA test with the factors showed differences primarily between the Resale Group and the other two groups. The Resale Group was more concerned about personal value and social value than the other segments. In contrast, the Non-Recycling Group presented the higher level of social value than did Donation Group. In a comparison of the intention to purchase eco-friendly products, the Resale Group showed the highest mean score on intent to purchase Product A. On the other hand, the Donation Group presented the highest intention to purchase for Product B among segments. In addition, the mean scores indicated that the Korean product (Product B) was more preferable for purchase than the U.S. product (Product A). Stepwise regression analysis was used to identify the influence of product attributes on the purchase intention of eco product. With respect to Product A, design, price and contribution to environmental preservation were significant to predict purchase intention for the Resale Group, while price and compatibility with my image factors were significant for the Donation Group. For the Non-Recycling Group, design, price compatibility with the factors of my image, participation to eco campaign, and contribution to environmental preservation were significant. Price appropriateness was significant for each of the three clusters. With respect to Product B, design, price and compatibility with my image factors were important, but different attributes were associated significantly with purchase intention for each of the three groups. The influence of LOHAS characteristics and clothing consumption values on intention to purchase Products A and B were also examined. The LOHAS factor of health concern and the personal value factor were significant in the relationships with the purchase intention; however, the explanatory powers were low in the three segments. Findings showed that each group as classified by clothing disposal behaviors showed differences in the attributes of a product, personal values, and the LOHAS characteristics that influenced their purchase intention of eco-friendly products. Findings would enable organizations to understand eco-friendly behavior and to design appropriate strategic decisions to appeal eco-sumers.