• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Crop Science Conference
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• 2017.06a
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• pp.7-7
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• 2017

Unfavorable weather and soil conditions reduce rice yield and land and water productivity, aggravating existing encounters of poverty and food insecurity. These conditions are foreseen to worsen with climate change and with the unceasing irrational human practices that progressively debilitate productivity despite global appeals for more food. Our understanding of plant responses to abiotic stresses is advancing and is complex, involving numerous critical processes - each controlled by several genetic factors. Knowledge of the physiological and molecular mechanisms involved in signaling, response and adaptation, and in some cases the genes involved, is advancing. Moreover, the genetic diversity being unveiled within cultivated rice and its wild relatives is providing ample resources for trait and gene discovery, and this is being scouted for rice improvement using modern genomics and molecular tools. Development of stress tolerant varieties is now being fast-tracked through the use of DNA markers and advanced breeding strategies. Large numbers of drought, submergence and salt tolerant varieties were commercialized over recent years in South and Southeast Asia and more recently in Africa. These varieties are making significant changes in less favorable areas, transforming lives of smallholder farmers - progress considered incredulous in the past. The stress tolerant varieties are providing assurance to farmers to invest in better management of their crops and the ability to adjust their cropping systems for even higher productivity and more income, sparking changes analogous to that of the first green revolution, which previously benefited only favorable irrigated and rainfed areas. New breeding tools using markers for multiple stresses made it possible to develop more resilient, higher yielding varieties to replace the aging and obsolete varieties still dominating these areas. Varieties with multiple stress tolerances are now becoming available, providing even better security for farmers and lessening their production risks even in areas affected by complex and overlapping stresses. The progress made in these less favorable areas triggered numerous favorable changes at the national and regional levels in several countries in Asia, including adjusting breeding and dissemination strategies to accelerate outreach and enabling changes at higher policy levels, creating a positive environment for faster progress. Exploiting the potential of these less productive areas for food production is inevitable, to meet the escalating global needs for more food and sustained production systems, at times when national resources are shrinking while demand for food is mounting. However, the success in these areas requires concerted efforts to make use of existing genetic resources for crop improvement and establishing effective evaluation networks, seed production systems, and seed delivery systems to ensure faster outreach and transformation.

• Journal of Internet Computing and Services
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.29-43
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• 2014

The development of NGS technologies, such as scientific workflows, has reduced the time required for decoding DNA sequences. Although the automated technologies change the genome sequence analysis environment, limited computing resources still pose problems for the analysis. Most scientific workflow systems are pre-built platforms and are highly complex because a lot of the functions are implemented into one system platform. It is also difficult to apply components of pre-built systems to a new system in the cloud environment. Cloud computing technologies can be applied to the systems to reduce analysis time and enable simultaneous analysis of massive DNA sequence data. Web service techniques are also introduced for improving the interoperability between DNA sequence analysis systems. The workflow-based middleware, which supports Web services, DBMS, and cloud computing, is proposed in this paper for expecting to reduceanalysis time and aiding lightweight virtual instances. It uses DBMS for managing the pipeline status and supporting the creation of lightweight virtual instances in the cloud environment. Also, the RESTful Web services with simple URI and XML contents are applied for improving the interoperability. The performance test of the system needs to be conducted by comparing results other developed DNA analysis services at the stabilization stage.

• School Mathematics
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• v.7 no.2
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• pp.193-219
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• 2005

This study looked into the procedures of and the status on the implementation of the new mathematics curriculum at the secondary school level(7th through 10th grades). This study examined schools and the teachers were subjects for the actual implementation of the mathematics classroom. More specifically it examined the degree to which the particular innovation ideas of the 7th mathematics curriculum(i.e., reorganization , student-centeredness, diversification/specialization) were being carried out at every stage of the curriculum implementation. Nationwide survey for teachers including students were conducted along with classroom observation and teacher interviews. For an in-depth study into the process and the product of mathematics curriculum implementation, two provincial boards of education participated in the project as research partners. Detailed documentation on the classroom practices were made in order to provide schools and teachers including policy makers with relevant and practical suggestions for further improvement of mathematics curriculum implementation. It was found that mathematics teachers generally were reconstructing the contents giving the priority to the needs of the learners. The concept of learner-centered-ness was reflected in teaching objectives, contents, instructional methods and evaluation. In most schools observed, emphasis was given to the reorganization of the curriculum contents fitting to the concept of 'student-centered' curriculum. The efforts by teachers to diversity and/or specialize the curriculum contents with consideration of various educational conditions such as student readiness, student abilities, classroom equipment and facilities, school locations and environment were found.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Pharmacy
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.24-32
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• 2016

Objective: The visually impaired have limited access to health care services and related information, and thus, they can have serious hurdles against properly taking medications. Despite that it is important to improve self-care ability of the visually impaired for correct medication use, there have been few studies investigating their needs for health care services in Korea, particularly focusing on proper medication usage. This study is to explore safety-related issues regarding mediation usage among the visually impaired based on in-depth interview. We particularly focus on any obstacles for safe use of medicines including experience on medication-related adverse effects in order to provide preliminary evidence for policy measures to improve proper medication use among the visually impaired. Methods: Study sample was visually impaired individuals who resided in Seoul area and were registered in the National Association of Visually Impaired. The association helped the process of recruiting the study participants. In-depth interview for each study participants was conducted. Each interview was recorded and later converted into a written script to extract core contents for the analysis. Results: The study participants comprised of three women (42.9%) and four men (57.1%). One was in his 20's, and there were four participants in 30's and two in 40's. Fully impaired participants were majority (5 out of 7). Limitation to physical access to health care providers and health information were the key factors to hamper safe medication utilization among the study participants. Difficulty reading medication information and may take the wrong medication or incorrect doses of medication, resulting in serious consequences, including overdose or inadequate treatment of health problems. Visually impaired patients report increased anxiety related to medication management and must rely on others to obtain necessary drug information. Pharmacists have a unique opportunity to pursue accurate medication adherence in this special population. This article reviews literature illustrating how severe medication mismanagement can occur in the visually impaired elderly and presents resources and solutions for pharmacists to take a larger role in adherence management in this population. Conclusion: The visually impaired had difficulties reading medication information and identifying medicines, and took incorrect doses of medications. Public support for safe medication use and medication management among the visually impaired is necessary.

• Journal of the Economic Geographical Society of Korea
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.405-421
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• 2019

International aid to North Korea remains far below the humanitarian needs of vulnerable people. This paper examines the trajectory of international humanitarian assistance to North Korea over the last two decades with the focus on its decline in the context of the country's nuclear standoff and corresponding stringent sanctions. In so doing, the paper addresses major problems associated with North Korea's reception of foreign aid and operational constraints placed on humanitarian activities in the country. It shows that humanitarian assistance to North Korea has been largely shaped by geopolitical dynamics. A survey of UN reports and statistics also suggests a shifting trend in recent international aid to North Korea. The decline of aid and multiple operational obstacles faced by humanitarian organizations, for instance, have led to a fall in agricultural support and a proportional rise in health and related services. While UN Security Council resolutions include an exemption provision, humanitarian assistance to North Korea has been constrained by stringent sanctions, which have led to adverse consequences for the civilian population. In this regard, the paper suggests some policy directions for international aid to North Korea amidst negotiations over denuclearization, while stressing an urgent need to address the negative impact of sanctions on vulnerable groups in the country.

• Journal of Families and Better Life
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• v.20 no.5
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• pp.149-166
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• 2002

In this study, 1 have analyzed the state of the use of information technology by the at-risk children who are residing in Husan metropolitan area. The ultimate goal of this study is to help ensure the healthy development of the children and improve the quality of their lives in this information-oriented society. For this research, 1 surveyed 183 children living in an institution or a low-income family in Busan metropolitan area. The survey questionnaire was designed to obtain information on the respondents, socio-demographic characteristics, computer-related conditions of the immediate and social environments, patterns of computer and Internet use, their experience and degree of so called, Net-generation syndrome, Internet addiction disorder, changes in social and familial life caused by Internet use, and exposure to pornographic materials. The results show that 95.9 % of at-risk children in Husan own a computer, 60.9 % of those computers being Pentium Ⅲ. A majority of the children (74.9 %) are connected to Internet at a high-speed, using such devices as LAN, ADSL or cables. About seventy-six percent of the children have used a PC and Internet less than two years. In other words, a majority of them have not used those for a long period of time. The main results of the research are summarized in the following: There is a significant difference among at-risk children in terms of experiences in computer and Internet use according to their grade levels. There is a gender difference in the amount of time spent on computer and Internet. Boys spend more time every week on computer and Internet than girls do. There is a significant difference in the pattern of computer and Internet use, according to the type of their risk, and grade level. The so-called 'Net Generation Syndrome' is not serious in this group. A majority of the at-risk children think that Internet is more interesting than TV. They hardly shop on Internet, and they don think the advertisements on Internet are a serious problem. Also, unlike many people assumptions, their desire to communicate through on-line chatting was very low. They do not tend to buy computer game programs, and Internet Addiction Disorder was not pronounced among them. The at-risk children rarely had an exposure to pornographic materials in the cyber space. However, the exposure was more frequent for institutionalized children than children in low-income families. These results point to a need for a policy to improve the welfare of at-risk children and guarantee their right to information.

• Journal of Distribution Science
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• v.14 no.7
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• pp.83-90
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• 2016

Purpose - This study focuses on new type distribution channel that named as Omnichannel. Omnichannel is developed from Multichannel which is used in many distribution channels to buy or selling goods. Omnichannel basically needs an Information and Communications Technologies(ICT) to use, so researcher conduct a Technology Acceptance Model(TAM) to research model. Customer-brand relationship was used as dependent variable to focus on the role of Omnichannel. Research design, data, and methodology - The subject of this study is customer who purchase goods or service through omnichannel. Based on the literature from the preceding research analysis of TAM and customer-brand relationship, this study was constructed by the reference to previous studies, final research model design for figure out casual relationship among perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, omnichannel use and customer-brand relationship. From 2016 February 3 to March 17, questionnaire survey targeted customers who use online and offline channels. 273 questionnaire survey had conducted, then, 252 survey data were available for empirical analysis. Researcher provide descriptive statistics for checking generality. Cronbach's alpha value was used to check the reliability of data. Exploratory factor analysis was used for purification of values and eigenvalue checking. After EFA, Confirmatory factor analysis was used to prepare structural equation modeling with executing structural equation modeling for confirming hypothesis which developed by researcher. Results - The main results of this empirical study are as follows. First, omnichannel's perceived ease of use has positive significant effect on perceived usefulness(estimate: 0.579). Moreover, omnichannel's perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness has positive significant effect on omnichannel use(estimate: 0.325,0.648). Second, using omnichannel has positive significant effect on brand-customer relationship(estimate: 0.521). Every hypothesis adopted as researcher designed. This study found out the intermediate relationship between perceived ease of use and omnichannel use by investigating hypothesis. Conclusions - Base on the empirical result, this study confirmed that TAM theory perceived has relation with omnichannel. First, factors of TAM has positive effect on omnichannel use, so it highlights the important role of customer based interface and usefulness. Especially, perceived usefulness has high indirect influence on ease of use and use of omnichannel. It seems that when customers try to decide use or not use omnichannel, customers focus on percept benefits from omnichannel. Thus, a provider should applicate attractive price table, accurate product or service information and high switching cost strategy to emphasize the usefulness of omnichannel. Second, using omnichannel enhances the relationship between customers and brand, because there are more time and frequency to serve customers. It is important because good relationship between customers can increase the future's financial performance through word of mouse, positive brand image and loyalty to brand or company. Finally, despite of empirical result and implications, this study has limitations. First, there are only a few previous studies about omnicahnnel, so literature reviews are restricted. While set up the factors which can affect the use of omnichannel, next study should be considered with broader theories or models(ex: contingency theory). Second, omnichannel has developed from multichannel, so comparative analysis is needed between these methods because there is a possibility about different forte character of each distribution system on customer's consuming patterns.

• Journal of Distribution Science
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• v.13 no.4
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• pp.35-43
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• 2015

Purpose - This study aims to seek various plans to maintain the advancement of the overseas and domestic employment scenario through a case analysis of the Japanese industry, which maintains domestic employment while promoting the overseas advancement of companies despite having a similar industrial structure as Korea. The study further intends to derive insightful implications for Japanese manufacturing companies and government policies. Research design, data, and methodology - We selected four companies from the Japanese manufacturing industry. Being companies that were successful in increasing the domestic employment scenario while advancing in overseas markets. We utilized several secondary data sources including Japanese newspapers and report literature. Results - Previous studies have shown a negative relationship between Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) or offshoring and domestic employment. However, our results showed this relationship with respect to the Japanese manufacturing industry as follows: 1. FDI for developing overseas markets does not decrease domestic production. If Japanese companies change their strategy from exports to overseas production, there will be a consequent decrease in domestic employment of Multinational Enterprises (MNEs). However, the local production that plans the sales expansion of a foreign market does not substitute domestic production. 2. Several case studies illustrate that, as the production of final goods is expanded in foreign countries, there is a corresponding increase in the export of intermediary goods from Japan. In this case, if the production process of Japanese companies is promoted in foreign markets, the amount of exported material and parts from Japan will consequently increase. 3. It is difficult to consider that the establishment of subsidiary companies in foreign countries by manufacturing companies for wholesale, retail, and services decreases domestic employment. This is because the international development of these industries needs expatriates, expatriate training organizations, and research and development (R&D) activities. 4. When there is overseas demand, the growth of local management activities is expected to increase the work of the overseas business department in the head office in Japan, if competitiveness can be secured for better localization and management speed. 5. The conversion of the domestic manufacturing industry into high value-added production is necessary. The relocation of domestic production to foreign markets decreases domestic employment. To prevent this, the upgradation of domestic production bases, including high value-added production, and R&D capability need to be strengthened. Technology-based companies must develop new technology, patents, processes, and so forth, which require extensive human resources for R&D. Conclusions - Domestic medium-sized companies that are capable of consistently supplying high value-added products should be actively encouraged to deploy into and develop overseas markets. Further, this paper considers the necessity of a guidance policy that provides suggestions for overseas deployment, by the initiation of the government, to companies that cannot do so due to the lack of foreign experience or decisions by the CEO, despite having the relevant capability and technologies to supply high value-added products.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.18 no.10
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• pp.490-498
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• 2017

The purpose of this study was to investigate how many kindergarten parents use after-school programs and specialization activities and to suggest effective policy improvement plans based on the results. After 693 parents were interviewed by the investigators, the collected data were presented by calculating the percentages, averages, and standard deviations. First of all, the results of after-school are presented. First, about 38.2% of the surveyed parents spent additional expenses to use after - school program, and the average of additional costs was about 62,850 won. When the cost burden and satisfaction were evaluated as 5 points, it was rated as normal. Second, the main reason for participating in the after-school program was both parents were working, followed by the parents' wishes for their children to spend time with their friends. Next, the results for specialization activities at kindergartens are presented. First, the proportion of children using after-school specialization activities was 68.2%, of which 79% were expenditures, the number of activities was 2.69, and the average cost was 83,540 won. Second, the most preferred after-school specialization activity by age group was English, and the most common reason for this was that the children liked to participate. Improvement of the educational contents suggested as the most important thing to improve after-school specialization activities. Lastly, the results showed that after-school specialization activities reduced parents' spending on private education. On the basis of the results, some discussions are presented included the development after-school programs focusing on the different needs of children and parents accordingly.

• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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• v.97 no.3
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• pp.305-315
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• 2008

Payments for Environmental (or Ecosystem) Services (PES) are emerging as new conservation policy tools. The basic concept underlying PES is that users pay to providers of environmental services for ensuring the continual provision of services based on the voluntary contracts. The purpose of this paper is to introduce the concepts and types of PES and to design a pilot PES scheme for biodiversity/ecosystem conservation on Genetic Reserve Forest in Korea. Genetic Reserve Forest is one of the protected areas designated in Korea to maintain forest biodiversity. PES is designed for the pine forests only in Genetic Reserve Forest, which corresponds to 943 ha. Service providers are to manage their forests based on the contracts in ways that maintain and enhance forest biodiversity and receive the payments in return. The payments are calculated as the sum of management, monitoring, and opportunity costs, resulting 1,140,378 won/year/ha (it corresponds to approximately $1,227 based on the 2007 average exchange rate 1$ = 929.2 won). Because PES are relatively new policies, however, more work needs to be done. Future work includes researches on the correlation between forest biodiversity and management practices and the economic evaluation of forest biodiversity. In addition, enhancing awareness on PES and education of stakeholders are warranted to further develop the scheme.