• Journal of Ecology and Environment
• /
• v.44 no.1
• /
• pp.33-40
• /
• 2020

Background: Understanding the geographical distribution of a species is a key component of studying its ecology, evolution, and conservation. Although Schlegel's Japanese gecko (Gekko japonicus) is widely distributed in Northeast Asia, its distribution has not been studied in detail. We predicted the present and future distribution of G. japonicus across China, Japan, and Korea based on 19 climatic and 5 environmental variables using the maximum entropy (MaxEnt) species distribution model. Results: Present time major suitable habitats for G. japonicus, having greater than 0.55 probability of presence (threshold based on the average predicted probability of the presence records), are located at coastal and inland cities of China; western, southern, and northern coasts of Kyushu and Honshu in Japan; and southern coastal cities of Korea. Japan contained 69.3% of the suitable habitats, followed by China (27.1%) and Korea (4.2%). Temperature seasonality (66.5% of permutation importance) was the most important predictor of the distribution. Future distributions according to two climate change scenarios predicted that by 2070, and overall suitable habitats would decrease compared to the present habitats by 18.4% (scenario RCP 4.5) and 10.4% (scenario RCP 8.5). In contrast to these overall trends, range expansions are expected in inland areas of China and southern parts of Korea. Conclusions: Suitable habitats predicted for G. japonicus are currently located in coastal cities of Japan, China, and Korea, as well as in isolated patches of inland China. Due to climate change, suitable habitats are expected to shrink along coastlines, particularly at the coastal-edge of climate change zones. Overall, our results provide essential distribution range information for future ecological studies of G. japonicus across its distribution range.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
• /
• v.19 no.10
• /
• pp.37-45
• /
• 2018

The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of a teacher's leadership (initiating and consideration), class climate, and friendship on academic attitudes. In order to accomplish this, 1,533 elementary school students were recruited. Descriptive statistics and path analysis were employed to examine relationships. The major findings of this study are as follows. First, there were positive correlations between academic attitudes and the teacher's leadership, class climate, and friendship. Second, results of path analysis illustrated that a teacher's leadership consideration indicator had a direct impact on class climate, friendship, and academic attitudes. Furthermore, the teacher's leadership consideration indirectly affected academic attitudes through mediation of class climate and friendship. However, the teacher's leadership initiating indicator did not have a direct impact on class climate, friendship, and academic attitude. The indices of the best fit model for these variables were adequate (GFI, NFI, CFI > 0.90). This study shows that the teacher's leadership consideration is the significant predictor for elementary school students' class climate, friendship, and academic attitudes. Finally, the meaning and limitations of this research, and its implications on academic assistance and intervention, are discussed in detail.

• Journal of Distribution Science
• /
• v.11 no.6
• /
• pp.41-50
• /
• 2013

Purpose - Inducing consumers' behavioral intent to use an outlet shopping center is a critical issue for managers since it can be used as a guide for developing marketing strategies. Low prices could lead to a growth in retail purchases, but there might also be a positive relationship between prices and customer perceptions of product quality. The extent to which consumers use price as a predictor of quality may differ according to the availability of important alternative cues such as brand, store name, and identity salience triggered by the store. Consumers can obtain non-economic benefits from marketing exchanges that go beyond basic economic achievement. We argue that identity salience can play a crucial mediating role when consumers, acting as exchange partners, seek to obtain social benefits. This study shows that identity salience could mediate the relationship between identity salience-inducing factors such as multi-finality, prestige and role performance, and consumers' behavioral intent to use an outlet shopping center. Research design, data and methodology - The survey was conducted on college students enrolled in marketing classes. A total of 200 questionnaires were distributed, of which only 194 were returned. After five incomplete questionnaires were excluded, a final sample of 189 was used for empirical analysis. Using a covariance structural analysis in Amos17, we confirmed the fit of the research model and estimated its parameters by using the maximum likelihood method. Results - The results of the hypotheses testing are as follows. First, both identity salience and economic benefits have positive effects on the behavioral intent to use an outlet shopping center. Second, role performance, prestige, and multi-finality have positive effects on identity salience. Finally, the additive analysis of the direct effects of identity salience-inducing factors shows that the role performance, prestige, and multi-finality factors have no direct effects on the behavioral intent to use an outlet shopping center, suggesting that identity salience plays a positive mediating role. Conclusions - This study informs marketers that not only price but shoppers' identity salience directly affects their intent to visit an outlet shopping center. To strengthen shoppers' identity salience, marketers should find ways to help shoppers fulfill their multiple social roles, realize their multiple goals, and achieve prestige. In other words, outlet shopping centers must improve their personal service environment in order to enhance their employees' service quality and assist the execution of multi-finality by minimizing the perceived costs (e.g., travel time, effort) associated with shopping trips, thus making it easier for consumers to combine visits to multiple stores in outlet shopping centers and buy the items required for their consumption goals. Outlet shopping centers must also offer assortments with both breadth and depth in order to help consumers play the social roles their social networks have given them.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
• /
• v.11 no.4
• /
• pp.1419-1429
• /
• 2010

Industry structure and environment of the domestic bank have been changed by an influx of large foreign-banks and advanced financial products when the currency crisis erupted in Korea. In a competitive environment, accurate forecasts of changes and tendencies are essential for the survival and development. Forecast of whether to approve loan applications for customer or not is an important matter because that is related to profit generation and risk management on the bank. Therefore, this paper proposes the method to improve forecast accuracy of loan underwriting. Processes in experiments are as follows. First, we select the predictor variables which affect significantly to the result of loan underwriting by correlation analysis and feature selection technique, and then cluster the customers by the 2-Step clustering technique based on selected variables. Second, we find the most accurate forecasting model for each clustering by applying LR, NN and SVM. Finally, we compare the forecasting accuracy of the proposed method with the forecasting accuracy of existing application way.

• The Journal of Society for e-Business Studies
• /
• v.18 no.4
• /
• pp.273-299
• /
• 2013

This study attempts to identify user perceived value as a major predictor of the usage of smartphone-based mobile commerce(m-commerce). More specifically, the study conceptualizes user perceived value of smartphone-based m-commerce along three dimensions, such as temporal, functional, and economic values. Moreover, this study proposes service ubiquity and user control that are uniquely defining characteristics of smartphone-based m-commerce and examines how the two variables are associated with the creation of user perceived value. Using a total of 164 data collected on users of smartphone-based mcommerce, we conducted PLS analysis to test the proposed model and hypotheses. The key findings are as follows : First, it has been found that the usage of smartphone-based m-commerce is determined by the three values, such as temporal, functional, and economic values. Particularly, the results show that temporal value is the most influential variable in predicting m-commerce use. Second, the results demonstrate that service ubiquity has a significant positive effect on temporal value, whereas it has no effect on functional value. Finally, user control is positively associated with temporal and functional values. Overall, the results indicate that service ubiquity and user control considerably increase temporal value, thereby accelerating the use of smartphone-based m-commerce. Discussions and implications of the results are provided.

• Journal of dental hygiene science
• /
• v.14 no.4
• /
• pp.510-515
• /
• 2014

Despite the high demand for dental care professionals, high turnover of dental hygienists have been reported, especially among workers in the dental clinics. This study aimed to examine job satisfaction factors affecting dental hygienist's service year in Seoul using cross-sectional data. The questionnaire survey was conducted from August 26, 2013 to September 13, 2013. Data were collected from 296 employees of dental clinics and hospitals located in Seoul. Logistic regression analysis was applied for parameter estimates, using PASW Statistics 18.0 and R software version 3.0.3. The Cronbach's ${\alpha}$ for the total job satisfaction factors was 0.922. In descriptive statistics, the group (that less than four years of working and over four years of working) had a statistically significant difference in age, religion, experience of turnover and autonomous factor among job satisfaction factors. In multiple logistic regression model, autonomy in job satisfaction was an important factor to predict the length of service in dental hygienist (odds ratio, 2.65; 95% confidence interval, 1.06~6.60). Autonomous factor was a significant predictor of length of service for dental hygienist. This study encourages future investigations of the role of job satisfaction of service year using better analytical frameworks.

• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
• /
• v.62 no.12
• /
• pp.450-455
• /
• 2019

Background: Lipid accumulation product (LAP) is associated with the presence and severity of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in adults. Purpose: Here we evaluated the ability of LAP to predict NAFLD in obese children. Methods: Eighty obese children (38 girls; age 6-18 years) were included. Anthropometric measurements and biochemical values were obtained from the patients' medical records. LAP was calculated as [waist circumference (WC) (cm) - 58]×triglycerides (mmol/L) in girls; [WC (cm) - 65]×triglycerides (mmol/L) in boys. The minLAP and adjLAP were described (3% and 50% of WC values, respectively) and the total/high-density lipoprotein cholesterol index (TC/HDL-C) was calculated. NAFLD was observed on ultrasound, and patients were divided into 3 groups by steatosis grade (normal, grade 0; mild, grade 1; moderate-severe, grade 2-3). The area under the curve (AUC) and appropriate index cutoff points were calculated by receiver operator characteristic analysis. Results: LAP was positively correlated with puberty stage (rho=0.409; P<0.001), fasting insulin (rho= 0.507; P<0.001), homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (rho=0.470; P<0.001), uric acid (rho=0.522; P<0.001), and TC/HDL-C (rho=0.494; P<0.001) and negatively correlated with HDL-C (rho=-3.833; P<0.001). LAP values could be used to diagnose hepatosteatosis (AUC=0.698; P=0.002). The LAP, adjLAP, and minLAP cutoff values were 42.7 (P=0.002), 40.05 (P=0.003), and 53.47 (P= 0.08), respectively. For LAP, the differences between the normal and mild groups (P=0.035) and the normal and moderate-severe groups were statistically significant (P=0.037), whereas the difference between the mild and moderate-severe groups was not (P>0.005). There was a statistically significant difference between the normal and mild groups for adjLAP (P=0.043) but not between the other groups (P>0.005). There was no significant intergroup difference in minLAP (P>0.005). Conclusion: LAP is a powerful and easy tool to predict NAFLD in childhood. If LAP is ≥42.7, NAFLD should be suspected. This is the first study to assess LAP diagnostic accuracy for childhood obesity.

• BMB Reports
• /
• v.51 no.5
• /
• pp.255-260
• /
• 2018

Wntless/GPR177 functions as WNT ligand carrier protein and activator of $WNT/{\beta}$-catenin signaling, however, its molecular role in gastric cancer (GC) has remained elusive. We investigated the role of GPR177 in gastric tumorigenesis and provided the therapeutic potential of a clinical development of anti-GPR177 monoclonal antibodies. GPR177 mRNA expression was assessed in GC transcriptome data sets (GSE15459, n = 184; GSE66229, n = 300); protein expression was assessed in independent patient tumor tissues (Yonsei TMA, n = 909). GPR177 expression were associated with unfavorable prognosis [log-rank test, GSE15459 (P = 0.00736), GSE66229 (P = 0.0142), and Yonsei TMA (P = 0.0334)] and identified as an independent risk predictor of clinical outcomes: GSE15459 [hazard ratio (HR) 1.731 (95% confidence interval; CI; 1.103-2.715), P = 0.017], GSE66229 [HR 1.54 (95% CI, 1.10-2.151), P = 0.011], and Yonsei TMA [HR 1.254 (95% CI, 1.049-1.500), P = 0.013]. Either antibody treatment or GPR177 knockdown suppressed proliferation of GC cells and sensitized cells to apoptosis. And also inhibition of GPR177 suppresses in vitro and in vivo tumorogenesis in GC cells and inhibits $WNT/{\beta}$-catenin signaling. Finally, targeting and inhibition of GPR177 with antibody suppressed tumorigenesis in PDX model. Together, these results suggest GPR177 as a novel candidate for prognostic marker as well as a promising target for treatment of GC patients.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers A
• /
• v.41 no.5
• /
• pp.361-366
• /
• 2017

As the recent development of computing architecture and application software technology, real world simulation, which is the ultimate destination of computer simulation, is emerging as a practical issue in several research sectors. In this paper, metal plate motion in a square shock tube for small time interval was calculated using a supercomputing-based fluid-structure-combustion multi-physics simulation tool called Illinois Rocstar, developed in a US national R amp; D program at the University of Illinois. Afterwards, the simulation results were compared with those from experiments. The coupled solvers for unsteady compressible fluid dynamics and for structural analysis were based on the finite volume structured grid system and the large deformation linear elastic model, respectively. In addition, a strong correlation between calculation and experiment was shown, probably because of the predictor-corrector time-integration scheme framework. In the future, additional validation studies and code improvements for higher accuracy will be conducted to obtain a reliable open-source software research tool.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
• /
• v.15 no.15
• /
• pp.6449-6453
• /
• 2014

Background: Prior studies showed a relationship between serum albumin and the albumin to globulin ratio with different types of cancer. We aimed to evaluate the predictive value of the albumin-globulin ratio (AGR) for survival of patients with lung adenocarcinoma. Materials and Methods: This retrospective study included 240 lung adenocarcinoma patients. Biochemical parameters before chemotherapy were collected and survival status was obtained from the hospital registry. The AGR was calculated using the equation AGR=albumin/(total protein-albumin) and ranked from lowest to highest, the total number of patients being divided into three equal tertiles according to the AGR values. Furthermore, AGR was divided into two groups (low and high tertiles) for ROC curve analysis. Cox model analysis was used to evaluate the prognostic value of AGR and AGR tertiles. Results: The mean survival time for each tertile was: for the $1^{st}$ 9.8 months (95%CI:7.765-11.848), $2^{nd}$ 15.4 months (95%CI:12.685-18.186), and $3^{rd}$ 19.9 months (95%CI:16.495-23.455) (p<0.001). Kaplan-Meier curves showed significantly higher survival rates with the third and high tertiles of AGR in comparison with the first and low tertiles, respectively. At multivariate analysis low levels of albumin and AGR, low tertile of AGR and high performance status remained an independent predictors of mortality. Conclusions: Low AGR was a significant predictor of long-term mortality in patients with lung adenocarcinoma. Serum albumin measurement and calculation of AGR are easily accessible and cheap to use for predicting mortality in patients with lung adenocarcinoma.