• The Journal of Asian Finance, Economics and Business
• /
• v.4 no.1
• /
• pp.5-18
• /
• 2017

Total debt in the People's Republic of China surged to nearly 290% as a ratio to GDP by the second quarter of 2016, mostly on account of non-financial corporate debt. The outpouring of credit to stem the impact of the global financial crisis accentuated industrial overcapacity in traditional sectors, such as steel, cement, and energy, while feeding asset bubbles in the property, equity and bond markets. At the Chinese corporate level, this has translated into weakened fundamentals and a fall in industrial profits, particularly of SOEs. As debtors struggle to service interest payments, non-performing loans (NPLs) have been on the rise. This paper assesses the financial fragility of the Chinese economy by looking at risk factors in the non-financial sector. We apply quantile regressions to a dataset containing all Chinese listed companies in Standard & Poor's IQ Capital database. We find higher sensitivity over time of corporate leverage to some of its key determinants, particularly for firms at the upper margin of the distribution. In particular, profitability increasingly acts as a curb on corporate leverage. At a time of falling profitability across the Chinese non-financial corporate sector, this eases the brake on leverage and may contribute to its continuing increase.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
• /
• v.20 no.6
• /
• pp.581-585
• /
• 2009

Diabetes is caused by the lack of insulin secretion or the reduction in its sensitivity. The recent treatments for diabetes do not fulfill the requirements for the maintaining of normal blood glucose level. The most frequently used treatment for type I diabetes is an insulin injection. However, the insulin injection often involves the life-threatening risk and the low compliance of patients. Accordingly, extensive studies have been done to overcome the shortcomings of the injection. A representative approach is to employ self-regulated insulin delivery systems. This report includes the principles of glucose-responsive release in the self-regulated insulin delivery systems.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Automotive Engineers
• /
• v.17 no.1
• /
• pp.176-181
• /
• 2009

The passenger airbag(PAB) designed for standard sized adults may induce unexpected results to children in out-of-position(OOP) postures. In this work, using MADYMO software, simulations of the OOP injury of children have been performed with respect to PAB design parameters and child dummy positions. The attention is focused on some details with respect to the injury of 3 and 6 year old children in two OOP postures. Among the various design parameters of the passenger airbag systems, four parameters are selected for the sensitivity analysis of the injury with the Taguchi method: bag folding pattern, vent hole size, position of the cover tear seam and the type of door tear seam. An optimal combination of the parameters is suggested.

• Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
• /
• v.16 no.3
• /
• pp.187-194
• /
• 2013

Microalgae are sensitive indicators of environmental changes, and hence they are widely used in environmental risk assessments and for the development of discharge guidelines. Here we evaluated the toxicity of metals and endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) to the marine green microalga, Tetraselmis suecica. The toxicants investigated included the metals, Cu, Ni, and Pb; and the EDCs, bisphenol A (BPA), endosulfan (ES), and polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB). The endpoints were variations in cell counts and chlorophyll a levels. T. suecica displayed a varied pattern of sensitivity to the toxicants. Based on the 72-h median effective concentration ($EC_{50}$), ES (0.045 mg/L) was most toxic to T. suecica, followed by PCB (3.96 mg/L) and Pb (9.62 mg/L). Interestingly, T. suecica was relatively tolerant to Cu (43.03 mg/L). The 72-h $EC_{50}$ values of Ni and BPA were approximately 16 mg/L. Our data suggest that this species may be relatively tolerant to most of the chemicals within their permissible limits in the environment.

• Korean Journal of Psychosomatic Medicine
• /
• v.16 no.2
• /
• pp.81-86
• /
• 2008

Delirium is not developed naturally and is not an endogenous disease. However, delirium has occurred in some specific populations, such as the elderly or medically compromised patients. These become limitations on the systematic study of the epidemiology of delirium. Many epidemiologic studies of delirium have been focused on the elderly due to the fact there are relatively few in the general population. In addition, assessment tools with various sensitivity and specificity have been used. Advanced age, male, poorer cognitive and functional status, and alcohol abuse are well known risk factors of delirium. the epidemiological data will be reviewed in the elderly, patients with dementia, hip fractures, patients hospitalized in intensive care units, terminal cancer and patients with stroke.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
• /
• v.40 no.4
• /
• pp.463-472
• /
• 2010

Purpose: This study was done to develop a web-based education program for nurses working in nursing homes. The focus was on the rights of older adults. Methods: The program was designed based on the Network-Based Instructional System Design (NBISD) model and was operated and evaluated between July 2007 and June 2008. Results: Out of nursing records of 40 residents from a nursing home, the final 7 cases were deducted through classification using the Resource Utilization Group (RUG)-III. The data on needs for education was collected from 28 nurses working in 15 nursing homes located in Seoul and Gyeonggi Province, who agreed to complete a self-report questionnaire. A comprehensive review of the literature and two focus groups interviews were used to search for risk factors and guidelines for protection of human rights. The education program was developed based on Kolb's experiential learning model and composed of 5 units, which included content on types of human rights and rights to death with dignity, elder abuse, physical liberty, and self-determination. The program was positively evaluated showing a score of 3.35 (SD=0.37) out of 4. Conclusion: The educational program developed in this study should promote nurses' sensitivity to the rights of elders and improve nurses' behaviors in protecting the rights of elders residing in nursing homes.

• Journal of Digital Convergence
• /
• v.15 no.2
• /
• pp.511-518
• /
• 2017

The purpose of this study was to investigate the typology of response to unwanted sexual request, and find the characteristics according to the types. For this purpose, 332 college female students were surveyed. As a results, two group were identified through cluster analysis: assertive type and compliant type. Compliant type had more sexual experiences, consensual unwanted sex, reasons for sexual compliance. Furthermore, compliant type had more unstable attachment, rejection sensitivity, and loneliness. Implications related with prevention and education program for the high risk compliant group were discussed and ideas for health, education, psychological experts were suggested.

• Publications of The Korean Astronomical Society
• /
• v.30 no.2
• /
• pp.621-624
• /
• 2015

We present the current status (as of August 2014) of SPICA (Space Infrared Telescope for Cosmology and Astrophysics), which is a mission optimized for mid- and far-infrared astronomy with a cryogenically cooled 3m-class telescope. SPICA is expected to achieve high spatial resolution and unprecedented sensitivity in the mid- and far-infrared, which will enable us to address a number of key problems in present-day astronomy, ranging from the star-formation history of the universe to the formation of planets. We have carried out the "Risk Mitigation Phase" activity, in which key technologies essential to the realization of the mission have been extensively developed. Consequently, technical risks for the success of the mission have been significantly mitigated. Along with these technical activities, the international collaboration framework of SPICA has been revisited, which resulted in la arger contribution from ESA than that in the original plan. To enable the ESA participation under the new framework, a SPICA proposal to ESA is under consideration as a medium-class mission under the framework of the ESA Cosmic Vision. The target launch year of SPICA under the new framework is the mid-2020s.

• Clinical and Experimental Reproductive Medicine
• /
• v.3 no.1
• /
• pp.13-19
• /
• 1976

Serum levels of human placental lactogen have been measured by hemagglutination-inhibition reaction in 67 normal pregnant state and in 15 postpartum 24 hour state, HAIR is less sensitive and reliable method than radioimmunoassay, but simple, rapid, less expensive and fairly accurate, so it is more helpful in screening of large antenatal population with or without high risk complications. 1) Sensitivity of HPL-HAIR test kit was $0.1{\mu}g$/ml of H.P.L. serum level and had no cross reaction to HCG or male serum or non-pregenant female or newborn infant, 2) H.P.L. value was around $2{\mu}g$/ml until 24th week of pregnancy and rose to $6{\sim}8$ ${\mu}g$/ml continuously until about 36th week of pregnancy and then slightly decreased or stationary. 3) H.P.L. value in postpartum 24 hour state was undetectable. 4) There was poor correlation between maternal serum H.P.L. value at term and baby weight.

• Food Science and Biotechnology
• /
• v.16 no.1
• /
• pp.67-70
• /
• 2007

Mackerel (Scomber japonicus) often causes severe allergic reactions in sensitive people. Food containing undeclared mackerel may pose a risk to such people. The major allergenic protein in fish such as mackerel, codfish, and Alaska pollack has been found to be parvalbumin. In this study, we developed a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method to detect mackerel DNA using primers corresponding to the parvalbumin gene. We cloned and sequenced 1.5 kb of parvalbumin gene by PCR using mackerel genomic DNA as a template. Nucleotide sequence analysis of genomic parvalbumin gene, composed of 4 exons and 3 introns, allowed the selection of two pairs of oligonucleotide primers specific for mackerel. These primers successfully enabled PCR amplification of specific regions of genomic parvalbumin DNA from mackerel, but no amplification from 8 other fish samples, surimi, and 6 boiled fish pastes. The sensitivity of this method was sufficient to detect 5 ng of purified mackerel DNA mixed with 50 ng of surimi DNA. This rapid and specific method for the detection of allergenic mackerel would be beneficial in reducing food allergy caused by the ingestion of hidden allergen in processed food.