• Title/Summary/Keyword: Product evaluation

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Economic evaluation of a weekly administration of a sustained-release injection of recombinant human growth hormone for the treatment of children with growth hormone deficiency (소아 성장호르몬결핍증 치료에 사용되는 성장호르몬 서방형 주사제의 경제성 평가)

  • Kang, Hye-Young;Kim, Duk Hee;Yang, Sei-Won;Kim, Yoon-Nam;Kim, Miseon
    • Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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    • v.52 no.11
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    • pp.1249-1259
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    • 2009
  • Purpose:From a societal perspective, we evaluated the cost-effectiveness of a novel sustained-release injection of recombinant human growth hormone (GH) administered on a weekly basis compared with that of the present daily GH injection for the treatment of children with GH deficiency. Methods:Health-related utility for GH therapy was measured based on the visual analogue scale. During July 2008, caregivers of 149 children receiving GH therapy form 2 study sites participated in a web-based questionnaire survey. The survey required the caregivers to rate their current subjective utility with daily GH injections or expected utility of weekly GH injections. Because there was no difference in the costs of the daily and weekly therapies, for the purposes of this study, only drug acquisition costs were considered. Results:Switching from daily to weekly injection of GH increased the utility from 0.584 to 0.784 and incurred an extra cost of 4,060,811 Korean won (KW) per year. The incremental cost-utility ratio (ICUR) for a base case was 20,305,055 KW per quality-adjusted life year (QALY) gained. Scenario analyses showed that the ICUR ranged from 15,751,198 to 25,489,929 KW per QALY. Conclusion:The ICUR for a base case and worst case scenario analyses ranged from 0.85 to 1.37-times per capita gross domestic product of Korea, which is considered to be within the generally accepted willingness-to-pay threshold. Thus, it is concluded that switching from daily to weekly injection of GH would be cost-effective.

Applying QFD in the Development of Sensible Brassiere for Middle Aged Women (QFD(품질 기능 전개도)를 이용한 중년 여성의 감성 Brassiere 개발)

  • Kim Jeong-hwa;Hong Kyung-hi;Scheurell Diane M.
    • Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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    • v.28 no.12 s.138
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    • pp.1596-1604
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    • 2004
  • Quality Function Deployment(QFD) is a product development tool which ensures that the voice of the customer needs is heard and translated into products. To develop a sensible brassiere for middle-aged women QFD was adopted. In this study the applicability and usefulness of QFD was examined through the engineering design process for a sensible brassiere for middle-aged women. The customer needs for the wear comfort of brassiere was made by one-on-one survey of 100 women who aged 30-40. The customer competitive assessment was generated by wearing tests of 10 commercial brassieres. The subjective assessment was conducted in the enviornmental chamber that was controlled at $28{\pm}1^{\circ}C,\;65{\pm}3\%RH.$ As a results, we developed twenty-one customer needs and corresponding HOWs for the wear comfort of brassiere. The Customer Competitive Assessment was generated by wearing tests of commercial brassiere. The subjective measurement scale and dimension for the evaluation of sensible brassiere were extracted from factor analysis. Four factors were fitting, aesthetic property, pressure sensation, displacement of brassiere due to movement. The most critical design parameter was wire-related property and second one was stretchability of main material of brassiere. Also, wearing comfort of brassiere was affected by the interaction of initial stretchability of wing and support of strap. Engineering design process, QFD was applicable to the development of technical and aesthetic brassieres.

Physicochemical Quality Characteristics of Traditional Kamju Using Extruded Rice Collet Powder (압출 쌀 콜렛 분말을 사용한 전통 감주의 제조 및 이화학적 품질 특성)

  • Je, Hae-Soo;Kang, Kyung-Hun;Park, Si-Young;Choi, Byeong-Dae;Kang, Young-Mi;Kim, Jeong-Gyun
    • Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
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    • v.48 no.2
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    • pp.147-152
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    • 2016
  • This study was conducted to investigate the physicochemical quality properties and provide basic data for the activation of traditional Kamju of juice type product prepared by mixing malt and extruded rice collet powder. Malt extracts were prepared by extracting the mixture of malt and water at a weight ratio of 25:75 after soaking for 2 h at $45^{\circ}C$. Rice collet powder was prepared by adjusting the barrel temperature to $95^{\circ}C$, screw speed to $3.07{\times}g$, discharge port diameter to 7 mm and a raw material input to 50 kg/h, the powder was then ground to a particle size of 80 mesh. The physicochemical characteristics (pH, color, viscosity, reducing sugars, number of viable cells, free amino acids) and sensory evaluations were conducted at various time points during the saccharification and at different mixing ratios of the extruded rice collet powder to malt extract (5:95, 15:85, 25:75, 35:65, each at $55^{\circ}C$ for 9 h). As a result, with an increase in the proportion of the extruded rice collet powder and saccharification time, the physicochemical properties of traditional Kamju significantly improved (p<0.05). A mixing ratio of 35:65 rice collet powder to malt extract and a saccharification time of 9 h were found to be the most desirable conditions. However, based on the sensory evaluation, a mixing ratio of rice collet powder and malt extract of 25:75 and a saccharification time of 5 h resulted in the most preferable palatability of traditional Kamju (p<0.05). Therefore, the mixing ratio and saccharification time should be determined to provide a better choice with respect to the taste and economic aspects of traditional Kamju.

Variation of Hospital Costs and Product Heterogeneity

  • Shin, Young-Soo
    • Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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    • v.11 no.1
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    • pp.123-127
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    • 1978
  • The major objective of this research is to identify those hospital characteristics that best explain cost variation among hospitals and to formulate linear models that can predict hospital costs. Specific emphasis is placed on hospital output, that is, the identification of diagnosis related patient groups (DRGs) which are medically meaningful and demonstrate similar patterns of hospital resource consumption. A casemix index is developed based on the DRGs identified. Considering the common problems encountered in previous hospital cost research, the following study requirements are estab-lished for fulfilling the objectives of this research: 1. Selection of hospitals that exercise similar medical and fiscal practices. 2. Identification of an appropriate data collection mechanism in which demographic and medical characteristics of individual patients as well as accurate and comparable cost information can be derived. 3. Development of a patient classification system in which all the patients treated in hospitals are able to be split into mutually exclusive categories with consistent and stable patterns of resource consumption. 4. Development of a cost finding mechanism through which patient groups' costs can be made comparable across hospitals. A data set of Medicare patients prepared by the Social Security Administration was selected for the study analysis. The data set contained 27,229 record abstracts of Medicare patients discharged from all but one short-term general hospital in Connecticut during the period from January 1, 1971, to December 31, 1972. Each record abstract contained demographic and diagnostic information, as well as charges for specific medical services received. The 'AUT-OGRP System' was used to generate 198 DRGs in which the entire range of Medicare patients were split into mutually exclusive categories, each of which shows a consistent and stable pattern of resource consumption. The 'Departmental Method' was used to generate cost information for the groups of Medicare patients that would be comparable across hospitals. To fulfill the study objectives, an extensive analysis was conducted in the following areas: 1. Analysis of DRGs: in which the level of resource use of each DRG was determined, the length of stay or death rate of each DRG in relation to resource use was characterized, and underlying patterns of the relationships among DRG costs were explained. 2. Exploration of resource use profiles of hospitals; in which the magnitude of differences in the resource uses or death rates incurred in the treatment of Medicare patients among the study hospitals was explored. 3. Casemix analysis; in which four types of casemix-related indices were generated, and the significance of these indices in the explanation of hospital costs was examined. 4. Formulation of linear models to predict hospital costs of Medicare patients; in which nine independent variables (i. e., casemix index, hospital size, complexity of service, teaching activity, location, casemix-adjusted death. rate index, occupancy rate, and casemix-adjusted length of stay index) were used for determining factors in hospital costs. Results from the study analysis indicated that: 1. The system of 198 DRGs for Medicare patient classification was demonstrated not only as a strong tool for determining the pattern of hospital resource utilization of Medicare patients, but also for categorizing patients by their severity of illness. 2. The wei틴fed mean total case cost (TOTC) of the study hospitals for Medicare patients during the study years was $11,27.02 with a standard deviation of $117.20. The hospital with the highest average TOTC ($1538.15) was 2.08 times more expensive than the hospital with the lowest average TOTC ($743.45). The weighted mean per diem total cost (DTOC) of the study hospitals for Medicare patients during the sutdy years was $107.98 with a standard deviation of $15.18. The hospital with the highest average DTOC ($147.23) was 1.87 times more expensive than the hospital with the lowest average DTOC ($78.49). 3. The linear models for each of the six types of hospital costs were formulated using the casemix index and the eight other hospital variables as the determinants. These models explained variance to the extent of 68.7 percent of total case cost (TOTC), 63.5 percent of room and board cost (RMC), 66.2 percent of total ancillary service cost (TANC), 66.3 percent of per diem total cost (DTOC), 56.9 percent of per diem room and board cost (DRMC), and 65.5 percent of per diem ancillary service cost (DTANC). The casemix index alone explained approximately one half of interhospital cost variation: 59.1 percent for TOTC and 44.3 percent for DTOC. Thsee results demonstrate that the casemix index is the most importand determinant of interhospital cost variation Future research and policy implications in regard to the results of this study is envisioned in the following three areas: 1. Utilization of casemix related indices in the Medicare data systems. 2. Refinement of data for hospital cost evaluation. 3. Development of a system for reimbursement and cost control in hospitals.

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The Usability Evaluation of the Usefulness of Bismuth Shields in PET/CT Examination (PET/CT 검사에서 비스무스(bismuth) 차폐체의 적용에 따른 유용성 평가)

  • Park, Hoon-Hee;Lee, Juyoung;Kim, Ji-Hyeon;Nam, Kun-Sik;Lyu, Kwang-Yeul;Lee, Tae Soo
    • Journal of radiological science and technology
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    • v.37 no.1
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    • pp.49-56
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    • 2014
  • Recently with CT developed, various studies for reduction of exposure dose is underway. Study of bismuth shields in these studies is actively underway, and has already been applied in the clinical. However, the application of the PET/CT examination was not activated. Therefore, through this study, depending on the application of bismuth shields in the PET/CT examination, we identify the quality of the image and the impact on the Standard Uptake Value (SUV). In this study, to apply to the shielding of the breast, by using the bismuth shields that contains 0.06 mm Pb ingredients, was applied to the PET/CT GEMINI TF 64 (Philips Healthcare, Cleveland, USA). Phantom experiments using the NEMA IEC Body Phantom, images were acquired according to the presence or absence of bismuth shields apply. Also, When applying, images were obtained by varying the spacing 0, 1, 2 cm each image set to the interest range in the depth of the phantom by using EBW-NM ver.1.0. When image of the PET Emission acquires, the SUV was in increased depending on the use of bismuth shields, difference in the depth to the surface from deep in the phantom increasingly SUV increased (P<0.005). Also, when using shields, as the more gab decreased, SUV is more increased (P<0.005). Through this study, PET/CT examination by using of bismuth shields which is used as purpose of reduction dose. When using shields, the difference of SUV resulting from the application of bismuth shields exist and that difference when gab is decrease and surface is wider. Therefore, setting spacing of shield should be considered, if considering the reduction of the variation of SUV and image quality, disease of deep organs should be a priority rather than superficial organ disease. Use of bismuth shielding factor considering the standard clinical examination, decrease unnecessary exposure can be expected to be considered.

Evaluation of Soil Redox Capacity using Chromium Oxidation-reduction Reactions in Volcanic Ash Soils in Jeju Island (크롬산화환원반응을 이용한 제주도 화산회토양 내 토양산화환원능 평가)

  • Chon, Chul-Min;Ahn, Joo-Sung;Kim, Kue-Young;Park, Ki-Hwa
    • Journal of the Mineralogical Society of Korea
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    • v.21 no.2
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    • pp.161-175
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    • 2008
  • The soil developed from volcanic ash in Jeju Island, Korea, were classified as typical Andisols. The soils had acidic pH, high water contents, high organic matters and clay-silty textures. The crystalline minerals of the samples were mainly composed of ferromagnesian minerals such as olivine and pyroxene, and iron oxides such as magnetite and hematite derived from basaltic materials. A large amount of gibbsite was found at the subsurface horizon as a secondary product from the migration of excessive aluminum. In addition, our study has shown that considerable amounts of poorly ordered minerals like allophane and ferrihydrite were present in Jeju soils. The contents of $SiO_2$ were lower than those of other soil orders, but $A1_2O_3$ and $Fe_2O_3$ contents were higher. These results are some of the important chemical properties of Andisols. The contents of heavy metals were in the range of $84{\sim}198$ for Zn, $56{\sim}414$ for Ni, $38{\sim}150$ for Co, $132{\sim}1164\;mg\;kg^{-1}$ for Cr, which are higher than the worldwide values in most of the soils. Some soil samples contained relatively high levels of Cr exceeding 1000 mg/kg. Mean reduction capacity of the Jeju soils was $6.53\;mg\;L^{-1}$ reduced Cr(VI), 5.1 times higher than that of the non-volcanic ash soils from inland of Korea. The soil reduction capacity of the inland soils had a good correlation with total carbon content (R = 0.90). However, in spite of 20 times higher total carbon contents in the Jeju soils, there was a week negative correlation between the reduction capacity and the carbon content (R = -0.469), suggesting that the reduction capacity of Jeju soils is not mainly controlled by the carbon content and affected by other soil properties. Correlations of the reduction capacity with major elements showed that Al and Fe were closely connected with the reduction capacity in Jeju soil (R = 0.793; R = 0.626 respectively). Moreover, the amounts of Ni, Co and Cr had considerable correlations with the reduction capacity (R = 0.538; R = 0.647; R = 0.468 respectively). In particular, in relation to the behavior of redox-sensitive Cr, the oxidation of the trivalent chromium to mobile and toxic hexavalent chromium can be restricted by the high reduction capacity in Jeju soil. The factors controlling the reduction capacity in Jeju soils may have a close relation with the andic soil properties explained by the presence of considerable allophane and ferrihydrite in the soils.

Changes of MCPD and Chemical Components in Soy Sauce Made of Acid-hydrolyzate of Defatted Soy protein by Fermenting the Soy Sauce koji (곡자첨가에 의한 산분해간장 발효 중 MCPD 및 주요 화학성분의 변화)

  • Yoon, Bok-Man;Park, Jae-Sean;Park, Chang-Hee;Choi, Yeong-Jin;Jun, Mun-Jin
    • Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
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    • v.30 no.2
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    • pp.419-424
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    • 1998
  • Removal of monochloropropanediol (MCPD) and improvement of quality of the soy-sauce made from acid-hydrolyzate of defatted soy protein (SAHSP) were examined by fermenting the soy-sauce with soy-sauce koji or koji plus Pediococcus soya or/and Saccharomyces rouxii. The overall fermentation process performed in this work consisted sequentially of autodigestion of soy-sauce koji $(at\;45^{\circ}C\;for\;12\;days)$, lactic acid fermentation $(at\;30^{\circ}C\;for\;14\;days\;in\;S3\;and\;S4)$, ethanol fermentation $(at\;30^{\circ}C\;for\;14\;days\;in\;S2\;and\;S4)$,and aging $(at\;25^{\circ}C\;for\;20\;days)$. At the end of the autodigestion period, the highest MCPD removal (from the initial 38.6 ppm to 1.3 ppm) was observed in the S-2. Reducing sugar contents of the S-2 and S-4 sharply decreased from the 30th day of incubation, from the initial concentration of about 5.0% to less than 0.5% at the end of the process. Total soluble nitrogen content of all the soy-sauce products slightly increased during the overall fermentating period.The level of free glutamic acid, a major amino acid that is known to determine the taste of soy-sauce was determined to be an average value of $1270{\sim}1323\;mg/100\;mL$ of soy-sauce. The results of sensory evaluation of the fermented SAHSPs show that qualities of the S-2 and S-4 samples are nearly on the same level with that of the commercially fermented soy-sauce (p<0.05). This result suggests that the fermentation process in this work, especially the process performed with S. rouxii has a good effect for removing MCPD from SAHSP and also for improving quality of the SAHSP product.

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Effect of mixed Cropping with Legume and using fermented Cattle Manure on Productivity of Whole Crop Barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) and Organic Hanwoo feeding Capacity in Gyeongbuk Region of Korea (경북지역에서 콩과 사료작물의 혼파 재배와 발효 우분의 시용이 청보리의 생산성과 유기 한우 사육능력에 미치는 영향)

  • Jo, Ik-Hwan
    • Korean Journal of Organic Agriculture
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    • v.24 no.3
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    • pp.525-537
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    • 2016
  • This study was aimed to grow organic forage as a prime requirement for organic Hanwoo cattle production over a period of 3 years (2012~2015) in Gyeongbuk region, Korea through mixed cropping of winter fodder barley with legume and application of fermented cattle manure. The effect of barley-legume mixed cropping and application of different levels of fermented cattle manure was studied on forage productivity of whole-crop barley (WCB) and evaluation of feeding capacity of Korean native cattle (Hanwoo) per unit area. The collected data was analyzed using SAS 9.3 software. Barley-legume mixed cropping increased (P<0.05) yields of dry matter (DM), crude protein (CP) and total digestible nutrients (TDN) as compared to those of sole WCB as monoculture. Similarly, acid detergent fiber (ADF) contents and relative feed value (RFV) were also higher (P<0.05) in barley-legume mixed sowing forage compared with those of sole WCB as monoculture. In case of manure application, yields of DM, CP and TDN were also found (P<0.05) highest in 100~150 kg N/ha. However, varying cattle manure levels did not influence (P>0.05) CP and neutral detergent fiber (NDF) contents. In response to increasing nitrogen application level, ADF content increased (P<0.05) but TDN content and RFV decreased (P<0.05). The Barley-legume mixed sowing and increasing application levels of fermented cattle manure also significantly enhanced (P<0.05) feeding capacity of organic Hanwoo (head/ha) having 450 kg body weight with 400 g of daily gain. Findings of present study indicated that barley-legume biculture not only cut nitrogen application level of fermented cattle manure by over 50 kg per ha but also increased their feed value and productivity of forage as compared to WCB monoculture. This would be contribution to the diversity of forage resources as well as production of organic animal product by creating low cost and high quality organic forage.

The development of baked kelp snack through examining its physicochemical properties (물리화학적 특성 연구를 통한 구운 다시마 스낵 개발)

  • Kang, Suna;Oh, Jihee;Hong, Jeonguie;Cho, Yejin;Park, Sunmin
    • Journal of Applied Biological Chemistry
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    • v.61 no.2
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    • pp.157-164
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    • 2018
  • The purpose of this study was to develop a kelp (Laminaria japonica) product with optimal sensory and nutritional properties for eating as a snack by investigating its physicochemical properties and conducting sensory evaluation. A preliminary study using tripolypolyphosphate solution found that it was good for removing the fishy smell and for making it soft. We soaked the kelp in 0.3-0.4% sodium tripolyphosphate buffer and tested with or without baking. In searching for the optimal polyphosphate dilution concentration, soaking in 0.3-0.4% sodium tripolyphosphate resulted in the best texture and flavor. As kelp separates into thick or thin samples, thick kelp was best when soaked in 0.4% sodium tripolyphosphate buffer and thin soaked in 0.3%. The kelp snack made from the thick one (over 221 mm thickness) was better than the thin one. Baking improved the moisture, texture and feel of the kelp snack. Tripolyphosphate treatment affected protein contents and texture softening. The differences by baking and tripolyphosphate treatment were shown with electromicroscopic image. Kelp snacks with added sweet and hot taste were preferred to sour taste. In conclusion, in making kelp snacks, it is advisable to use a thick kelp, 0.3-0.4% sodium tripolyphosphate, and baking treatment for better texture and feel. This kelp snack has low fishy smell, better taste and soft feel. Further research is needed to support sea food's importance, and usefulness of the kelp snack to help prevent goiter in inland province citizens.

Comparative Evaluation for Environmental Impact of Rapeseed and Barley Cultivation in Paddy Field for Winter using Life Cycle Assessment (겨울논 유채와 보리 재배시 전과정평가 방법을 이용한 환경영향 비교 평가)

  • Hong, Seung-Gil;Shin, JoungDu;Park, Kwang-Lai;Ahn, Min-Sil;Ok, Yong-Sik;Kim, Jeong-Gyu;Kim, Seok-Cheol
    • Journal of the Korea Organic Resources Recycling Association
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    • v.24 no.4
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    • pp.59-68
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    • 2016
  • The application of the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodology to assess the environmental impact of rapeseed cultivation in winter fallow after harvesting rice was investigated and compared with barley cultivation in crop rotation system. Data for input materials were collected and analyzed by 1 ton rapeseed and barley as functional unit. For the Life Cycle Impact Assessment (LCIA) the Eco-indicator 95 method has been chosen because this is well documented and regularly applied impact method. From the comparison of impact categories such as greenhouse effect, ozone depletion, acidification, heavy metals, carcinogens, summer smog, and energy resources for 1 ton of final product, emission potential from rapeseed was higher than that from barley. The range from 65 to 96% of these potential came from chemical fertilizer. On the other hand, eutrophication potential from barley was higher than that from rapeseed, mainly came from utilizing the chemical fertilizer. During the cultivation of barley and rape, environmental burden by heavy metals was evaluated by 0.5 Pt, larger than points from other impact categories. The sum of points from all impact categories in barley and rapeseed was calculated to be 0.78 Pt and 0.82 Pt, respectively. From the sensitivity analysis for barley and rapeseed, scenario 1 (crop responses to fertilization level) showed the environmental burden was continuously increased with the amount of fertilization in barley cultivation, while it was not increased only at the optimum crop responses to fertilization in rapeseed (R3). With these results, rapeseed cultivation in winter fallow paddy contributed to the amounts of environmental burden much more than barley cultivation. It is, however, highly determined that environmental weighted point resulted from evaluating both cultivation was not significantly different.