• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.55 no.2
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• pp.655-668
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• 2023

In radiography, an antiscatter grid is a well-known device for eliminating unexpected x-ray scatter. We investigate a new stationary grid artifact suppression method based on a nonsubsampled contourlet transform (NSCT) incorporated with Gaussian band-pass filtering. The proposed method has an advantage that extracts the Moiré components while minimizing the loss of image information and apply the prior information of Moiré component positions in multi-decomposition sub-band images. We implemented the proposed algorithm and performed a simulation and an experiment to demonstrate its viability. We did this experiment using an x-ray tube (M-113T, Varian, focal spot size: 0.1 mm), a flat-panel detector (ROSE-M Sensor, Aspenstate, pixel dimension: 3032 × 3800 pixels, pixel size: 0.076 mm), and carbon graphite-interspaced grids (JPI Healthcare, 18 cm × 24 cm, line density: 103 LP/inch and 150 LP/inch, ratio: 5:1, focal distance: 65 cm). Our results indicate that the proposed method successfully suppressed grid artifacts by reducing them without either reducing the spatial resolution or causing negative side effects. Consequently, we anticipate that the proposed method can improve image acquisition in a stationary grid x-ray system as well as in extended x-ray imaging.

• Progress in Medical Physics
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• v.20 no.4
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• pp.216-224
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• 2009

$^{131}I$ is a radiological isotope being used widely for treatment of cancer as emitting gamma-ray and it is also applied to estimate the function of thyroid for its accumulation in thyroid. However, $^{131}I$ is more difficult to quantitate comapred to $^{99m}Tc$, because $^{131}I$ has multiple energy gamma-ray emissions compared to $^{99m}Tc$ which is a mono energetic gamma-ray source. Especially, scattered ray and septal penetration resulted by high energy gamma ray have a bad influence upon nuclear medicine image. The purpose of this study was to estimate scatter components depending on the different source locations within a phantom using Monte Carlo simulation (GATE). The simulation results were validated by comparing with the results of real experiments. Dual-head gamma camera (ECAM, Chicago, Illinois Siemens) with high energy, general-purpose, and parallel hole collimators (hole radius: 0.17 cm, septal thickness: 0.2 cm, length: 5.08 cm) was used in this experiment. The NaI crystal is $44.5{\times}59.1\;cm$ in height and width and 0.95 cm in thickness. The diameter and height of PMMA phantom were 16 cm and 15 cm, respectively. The images were acquired at 5 different locations of $^{131}I$ point source within the phantom and the images of $^{99m}Tc$ were also acquired for comparison purpose with low energy source. The simulation results indicated that the scattering was influenced by the location of source within a phantom. The scattering effects showed the same tendency in both simulation and actual experiment, and the results showed that the simulation was very adequate for further studies. The results supported that the simulation techniques may be used to generalize the scattering effects as a function of a point source location within a phantom.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.30 no.3
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• pp.249-262
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• 1997

The Sr and Nd isotopic compositions of two foliated granitic plutons located in the Chonju and Sunchang area were determined in order to reconfirm the intrusion ages of granitoids and to study the sources of granitic magmas. The best defined Rb-Sr isochron for the whole rock samples of the Chonju foliated granite (CFGR) give an age of $284{\pm}12Ma$, suggesting early Permian intrusion age. In contrast, the whole rock Rb-Sr data of the Sunchang foliated granite (SFGR) scatter widely on the isochron diagram with very little variation in the $^{87}Rb/^{86}Sr$ ratios and, therefore, yield no reliable age information. Futhermore they show the concordance of mineral and whole rock Rb-Sr isochron and divide into two linear groups with roughly the same slopes and significantly different $^{87}Sr/^{86}Sr$ ratios, indicating some kind of Rb-Sr distortion in whole rock scale and a difference in source material and/or magmatic evolution between two subsets. The reconstructed isochrons of 243 Ma, which was defined from the proposed data by the omission of one sample point with significantly higher $^{87}Rb/^{86}Sr$ ratio than the others, and 252 Ma, from the combined data of it and some of this study, strongly suggest the possibility that the SFGR was intruded appreciably earlier than had previously been proposed, although the reliability of these ages still questionable owing to high scatter of data points and, therefore, further study is necessary. All mineral isochrons for the investigated granites show the Jurassic to early Cretaceous thermal episode ranging from 160 Ma to 120 Ma Their corresponding initial $^{87}Sr/^{86}Sr$ ratios correlate well with their whole rock data, indicating that the mineral Rb-Sr system of the investigated granites was redistributed by the postmagmatic thermal event during Jurassic to early Cretaceous. The initial ${\varepsilon}Sr$ values for the CFGR (64.27 to 94.81) tend to be significantly lower than those for the SFGR (125.43 to 167.09). Thus it is likely that there is a marked difference in the magma source characteristics between the CFGR and the SFGR, although the possibility of an isotopic resetting event giving rise to a high apparent initial ${\varepsilon}Sr$ in the SFGR can not be ruled out. In contrast to ${\varepsilon}Sr$, both batholiths show a highly resticted and negative values of initial ${\varepsilon}Nd$, which is -14.73 to -19.53 with an average $-16.13{\pm}1.47$ in the CFGR and -14.78 to -18.59 with an average $-17.17{\pm}1.01$ in the SFGR. The highly negative initial ${\varepsilon}Nd$ values in the investigated granitoids strongly suggest that large amounts of recycled old continental components have taken part in their evolution. Furthermore, this highly resticted variation in ${\varepsilon}Nd$ is significant because it requires that the old crustal source material, from which the granitoid-producing melts were generated, should have a reasonably uniform Nd isotopic composition and also quit similar age. Calculated T2DM model ages give an average of $1.83{\pm}0.25Ga$ for CFGR and $1.96{\pm}0.19Ga$ for SFGR, suggesting the importance of a mid-Proterozoic episode for the genesis of two foliated granites. Although it is not possible to determine precisely the source rock compositions for the investigated foliatic granites, the Sr-Nd isotopic evidences indicate that midcrustal or less probably, a lower crustal granulitic source could be the most likely candidate.

• KOREAN JOURNAL OF CROP SCIENCE
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• v.44 no.4
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• pp.355-363
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• 1999

The experiments were carried out to elucidate the varietal variation of retrogradation in aged cooked rice and its association with some physicochemical properties of milled rice. The fifteen rice materials were selected from forty-three low-amylose japonica and Tongil-type rice cultivars based on palatability and retrogradation of cooked rice stratified by preliminary sensory evaluation of warm and cooled cooked rice. One japonica glutinous rice variety was included for comparison of retrogradation of cooked rice. The $\alpha$-amylase-iodine method was adopted for checking the varietal difference in retrogradation of cooked rice. The desirable checking time for evaluating the varietal difference in deterioration of aged cooked rice was four hours after storing in room temperature and two hours after preserving in refrigerator based on the largest coefficients of variations in degree of retrogradation of cooked rice. The rice cultivars revealing the relatively slow retrogradation in aged cooked rice were Ilpumbyeo, Chucheongbyeo, Sasanishiki, Jinbubyeo and Koshihikari. A Tongil-type rice, Taebaegbyeo, and a japonica cultivar, Seomjinbyeo, showed the relatively fast deterioration of cooked rice. The retrogadation index represented by the percentage of retrogradation difference between warm and cooled cooked rice to original estimates of warm cooked rice was significantly affected by the degree of retrogradation of cooled cooked rice. Generally, the better rice cultivars in eating quality of cooked rice showed less retrogradation and much sponginess in cooled cooked rice. Also, the rice varieties exhibiting less retrogradation in cooled cooked rice revealed higher hot viscosity and lower cool viscosity of rice flour in amylogram. The sponginess of cooled cooked rice was closely associated with magnesium content and volume expansion of cooked rice. The hardness-changed ratio of cooked rice by cooling was negatively correlated with solids amount extracted during boiling and volume expansion of cooked rice. The major physicochemical properties of rice grain closely related to the palatability of cooked rice may be directly or indirectly associated with the retrogradation characteristics of cooked nce. The varietal difference in retrogradation of cooked rice can be effectively classified by scatter diagram on the plane of upper two principal components based on some retrogradation properties of cooked rice. The deteriorated structural change in cooled cooked rice by observing through the scanning electron microscope was more conspicuous in the fastly retrograded cooked rice than in the slower one.

• Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.40 no.1
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• pp.24-33
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• 2016

Background: Previous numerous studies on watershed scale demonstrated that the constructions of upper dams may influence the below dams due to modifications of flow regime and nutrient inputs. Little is known about how the dam constructions influence the downstream lakes or reservoirs in the regional scale. This study demonstrates how the construction of upper dam (i.e., Yongdam Dam) influences nutrient regime, trophic relations, and empirical models in Daechung Reservoir (DR). Yongdam Dam was constructed at the upstream region of DR in year 2000. Results: The analysis of hydrological variables showed that inflow and discharge in the DR were largely reduced after the year 2000. The construction of upper dam construction also resulted in increases of water temperature, pH and conductivity (as an indicator of ionic content) in the DR. Empirical models of TP-CHL and N:P ratio-CHL suggested that stronger responses of CHL to the phosphorus were evident after the upper dam construction, indicating that algal production at a unit phosphorus increased after the upper dam construction. Mann-Kendall tests on the relations of N:P ratios to TN showed weak or no relations ($t_{au}=-0.143$, z = -0.371, p = 0.7105) before the dam construction, while the relation of N:P ratios to TP showed strong in the periods of before- ($t_{au}=-0714$, z = -2.351, p = 0.0187) and after the construction ($t_{au}=-0.868$, z = -4.270, p = 0.0000). This outcome indicates that TP is key determinant on N:P ratios in the reservoir. Scatter Plots on Trophic State Index Deviations (TSIDs) of "TSI(SD) - TSI(CHL)" against "TSI(TP) - TSI(CHL)" showed that the dominance of clay turbidity or light limitation was evident before the upper dam construction [TSI(TP) - TSI(CHL) > 0 and TSI(SD) - TSI(CHL) > 0] and phosphorus limitation became stronger after the dam construction [(TSI(TP) - TSI(CHL) < 0 and TSI(SD) - TSI(CHL) > 0]. Conclusions: Overall, our analysis suggests that the upper dam construction modified the response of trophic components (phytoplankton) to the nutrients or nutrient ratios through the alteration of flow regime, resulting in modifications of ecological functions and trophic relations in the low trophic levels.

• KOREAN JOURNAL OF CROP SCIENCE
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• v.44 no.3
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• pp.288-295
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• 1999

Nineteen japonica and Tongil-type rices were selected from seventy nine Korean and Japanese rice cultivars grown in 1989 based on the water uptake behavior of milled rice under the room temperature and boiling conditions. The selected rice cultivars were investigated for water absorbability and some physicochemical characteristics of milled rice, proper water amount for cooking and sensory evaluation of cooked rice. The relationships among the tested grain properties were also examined. The highest varietal variation of water uptake rate was observed at twenty minutes after soaking in water. The maximum water uptake of milled rices at room temperature occurred mostly at about eighty minutes after soaking in water. Newly harvested rices showed a significantly lower water uptake rate of milled rice at 20 minutes after soaking, a relatively higher maximum water absorption ratio under the room temperature, and the less water uptake and volume expansion of boiled rice compared with the one-year old rice samples. The water uptake rate and the maximum water absorption ratio showed significantly negative correlations with the K/Mg ratio and alkali digestion value(ADV) of milled rice. The rice materials showing the higher amount of hot water absorption exhibited the larger volume expansion of cooked rice. The harder rices with lower moisture content revealed the higher rate of water uptake at twenty minutes after soaking and the higher ratio of maximum water uptake under the room temperature condition. These water uptake characteristics were not associated with the protein and amylose contents of milled rice ansd the palatability of cooked rice. The water/rice ratio(in w/w basis) for optimum cooking was averaged to 1.52 in dry milled rices (12% wet basis) with varietal range from 1.45 to 1.61 and the expansion ratio of milled rice after proper boiling was averaged to 2.63(in v/v basis). The water amount needed for optimum cooking was the lowest in Cheongcheongbyeo (Tongil-type rice) and the highest in Jinbubyeo, and the amount could be estimated with about 70% fittness by the multiple regression formula based on some water uptake characteristics, ADV and amylose content of milled rice as the independent variables. Nineteen rice cultivars were classified into seven groups based on scatter diagram projected by principal component analysis using eight properties related to water uptake and gelatinization of milled rice.

• The Journal of Korean Society for Radiation Therapy
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• v.11 no.1
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• pp.16-21
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• 1999

Purpose : The aim of this study is to conform the possibility of the liquid type EPID as a QC tools to clinical indication and of replacement of the film dosimetry. Aditional aim is to describe a procedure for the use of a EPID as a physics calibration tool in the measurements of radiation beam parameters which are typically carried out with film. Method & Materials : In this study we used the Clinac 2100c/d with EPID. This system contains 65536 liquid-filled ion chambers arranged in a $256{\times}256$ matrix and the imaging area is $32.5{\times}32.5cm$ with liquid layer thickness of 1mm. The EPID was tested for different field sizes under typical clinical conditions and pixel values were calibrated against dose by producing images using various thickness of lead attenuators(lead step wedge) using 6 & 10MV x-ray. We placed various thickness of lead on the table of linear accelerator and set the portal vision an SDD of 100cm. To acquire portal image we change the field size and energy, and we recorded the average pixel value in a $3{\times}3$ pixel region of interest(ROI) at field center was recorded. The pixel values were also measured for different field sizes in order to evaluate the dependence of pixel value on x-ray energy spectrum and various scatter components. Result : The EPID, as a whole, was useful as a QA tool and dosimetry device. In mechanical check, cross-hair centering was well matched and the error was less than ?2mm and light/radiation field coincidence was less than 1mm also. In portal dosimetry the wider the field size the the higher the pixel value and as the lead thickness increase, the pixel value was exponentially decreased. Conclusions : The EPID was very suitable for QA tools and it can be used to measure exit dose during patients treatment with reasonable accuracy. But when indicate the EPID to clincal study deep consideration required

• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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• v.98 no.3
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• pp.339-350
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• 2009

This study was carried out to investigate distributional condition of rare plants and useful plant resources, and to verify distributional patterns of understory vegetation associated with the upper layer's vegetation structure. Total 59 families, 160 genera, 218 kinds of vascular plants were identified at the study site including 6 rare plants designated by Korea Forest Service (Lloydia triflora Bak., Trillium kamtschaticum Pall., Lilium distichum Nakai, Anemone koraiensis Nakai, Iris odaesanensis Y.N. Lee, Viola diamantica Nakai). Twenty three species of useful plant resources were also identified at the site; 8 of them showed clustered distributions and the others were prone to scatter. Actual vegetation of this study area consisted of one natural community dominated by Quercus mongolica Fisch. and three disturbed communities of Larix kaempferi (Lamb.) Carriere, Abies holophylla Max. and/or a herbaceous vegetation resulting from forest removal and strong wind of mountain top. This classification was strongly supported by cluster analysis based on the surveyed plot data. Distributional patterns of understory vegetation within forest stand were somewhat related to overstory vegetation structure, but showed a different tendency according to site condition, species composition, and competitive pressure among understory vegetation. Therefore, in order to protect the important understory components as forest genetic resources, forest treatments such as density control of overstory should be implanted based on understanding of impact on understory's dynamics and growing condition.

• KOREAN JOURNAL OF CROP SCIENCE
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• v.50 no.spc1
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• pp.161-166
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• 2005

Objectives of this study were to select inbred lines which have a good eating quality and desirable segregates during inbreeding of waxy corn. The 64 inbred lines showed a large variance in their kernel shape and weight. 100-kernel weight, pericarp thickness, kernel length, kernel width, and kernel thickness ranged $11.7\~37.3g,\;11\~77{\mu}m,\;5.8\~9.6mm,\;6.5\~10.0mm$, and $4.1\~6.8mm$, respectively. The physicochemical analysis of 64 waxy corn inbred lines showed crude protein, crude fat, free sugar, and amylopectin content ranging $8.7\~15.8\%,\;2.3\~5.8\%,\;1.1\~11.0\%,\;and\;78.5\~93.8\%$, respectively. The texture property analysis of 64 inbred lines by texture analyzer showed a big difference. Gumminess, hardness, and chewiness of 64 inbred lines ranged $91\~383,\;181\~394,\;and\;73\~370$, respectively. The principal component analysis for 14 characteristics related to kernel quality showed that $73.1\%$ of the total variation could be attributed to the first five principal components. Biological meaning of the principal component was explained clearly by the correlation coefficient between principal components and characters. The first principal component appeared to correspond to small kernel and bad eating quality, The second principal component appeared to correspond to large kernel and good eating quality. The 64 inbred lines were classified into 8 groups by the cluster analysis using the first and second principal component. Among the groups, group VII and VIII included inbred lines with good eating quality that had thin pericarp thickness, low protein content, large kernel, and soft tenderness.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.1-10
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• 2002

High energy photon beams from medical linear accelerators produce large scattered radiation by various components of the treatment head, collimator and walls or objects in the treatment room including the patient. These scattered radiation do not provide therapeutic dose and are considered a hazard from the radiation safety perspective. Scattered dose of therapeutic high energy radiation beams are contributed significant unwanted dose to the patient. ICRP take the position that a dose of 500mGy may cause abortion at any stage of pregnancy and that radiation detriment to the fetus includes risk of mental retardation with a possible threshold in the dose response relationship around 100 mGy for the gestational period. The ICRP principle of as low as reasonably achievable (ALARA) was recommended for protection of occupation upon the linear no-threshold dose response hypothesis for cancer induction. We suggest this ALARA principle be applied to the fetus and testicle in therapeutic treatment. Radiation dose outside a photon treatment filed is mostly due to scattered photons. This scattered dose is a function of the distance from the beam edge, treatment geometry, primary photon energy, and depth in the patient. The need for effective shielding of the fetus and testicle is reinforced when young patients ate treated with external beam radiation therapy and then shielding designed to reduce the scattered photon dose to normal organs have to considered. Irradiation was performed in phantom using high energy photon beams produced by a Varian 2100C/D medical linear accelerator (Varian Oncology Systems, Palo Alto, CA) located at the Yonsei Cancer Center. The composite phantom used was comprised of a commercially available anthropomorphic Rando phantom (Phantom Laboratory Inc., Salem, YN) and a rectangular solid polystyrene phantom of dimensions $30cm{\times}30cm{\times}20cm$. the anthropomorphic Rando phantom represents an average man made from tissue equivalent materials that is transected into transverse 36 slices of 2.5cm thickness. Photon dose was measured using a Capintec PR-06C ionization chamber with Capintec 192 electrometer (Capintec Inc., Ramsey, NJ), TLD( VICTOREEN 5000. LiF) and film dosimetry V-Omat, Kodak). In case of fetus, the dosimeter was placed at a depth of loom in this phantom at 100cm source to axis distance and located centrally 15cm from the inferior edge of the $30cm{\times}30cm^2$ x-ray beam irradiating the Rando phantom chest wall. A acryl bridge of size $40cm{\times}40cm^2$ and a clear space of about 20 cm was fabricated and placed on top of the rectangular polystyrene phantom representing the abdomen of the patient. The leaf pot for testicle shielding was made as various shape, sizes, thickness and supporting stand. The scattered photon with and without shielding were measured at the representative position of the fetus and testicle. Measurement of radiation scattered dose outside fields and critical organs, like fetus position and testicle region, from chest or pelvic irradiation by large fie]d of high energy radiation beam was performed using an ionization chamber and film dosimetry. The scattered doses outside field were measured 5 - 10% of maximum doses in fields and exponentially decrease from field margins. The scattered photon dose received the fetus and testicle from thorax field irradiation was measured about 1 mGy/Gy of photon treatment dose. Shielding construction to reduce this scattered dose was investigated using lead sheet and blocks. Lead pot shield for testicle reduced the scatter dose under 10 mGy when photon beam of 60 Gy was irradiated in abdomen region. The scattered photon dose is reduced when the lead shield was used while the no significant reduction of scattered photon dose was observed and 2-3 mm lead sheets refuted the skin dose under 80% and almost electron contamination. The results indicate that it was possible to improve shielding to reduce scattered photon for fetus and testicle when a young patients were treated with a high energy photon beam.