• Proceedings of the Korean Society for Applied Microbiology Conference
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• 2005.06a
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• pp.66-70
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• 2005

Microbiology research must be conducted in a fashion that assures the health and well being of the researcher and the safety of the community. This lecture raises awareness of biosafety issues and discusses how the interaction of the pathogen being studied, the person conducting the research, and the practices being used can be manipulated to assure safety. The characterization of pathogens into Risk Groups, how these relate to Biosafety Levels, and the personal practices and laboratory design criteria associated with each Biosafety Level are explained. The importance of preventing or containing aerosols, limiting opportunities for cross-contamination, and taking a flexible multi-component approach to biosafety are emphasized.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.53-62
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• 1988

A field experiment was conducted in the arid interior of British Columbia, Canada to assess the seasonal soil temperature and moisture regimes in an American ginseng garden. As a consequence of the man-modified microclimate (elevated shade canopy and surface covering of mulch), the growing environment of the crop was fundamentally altered when compared to adjacent agricultural growing environments. In the ginseng garden, soil temperatures were found to remain low throughout the growing season whereas soil moisture remained high when compared with the outside garden environment. These results indicate that even in the hot, arid environment of the interior of British Columbia, the growing of ginseng is undertaken in sub-optimal conditions for the major part of the growing season. This poses challenges for the producers of the crop to modify the architecture of the gardens to enhance the soil regime without creating a deleterious aerial environment.

• Journal of Korea Technical Association of The Pulp and Paper Industry
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• v.42 no.5
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• pp.1-14
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• 2010

Bio-ethanol is a promising alternative energy source for reducing both consumption of crude oil and environmental pollution from renewable resources like lignocellulosic biomass such as wood, forest residuals, agricultural leftovers and urban wastes. Based on current technologies, the cost of ethanol production from lignocellulosic materials is relatively high, and the main challenges are the low yield and high cost of the hydrolysis process. Development of more efficient pretreatment technology (physical, chemical, physico-chemical, and biological pretreatment), integration of several microbiological conversions into fewer reactors, and increasing ethanol production capacity may decrease specific investment for ethanol producing plants. The purpose of pretreatment of lignocellulosic material is to improve the accessible surface area of cellulose for hydrolytic enzymes and enhance the conversion of cellulose to glucose and finally high yield ethanol production which is economic and environmental friendly.

• Electronics and Telecommunications Trends
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• v.36 no.2
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• pp.22-31
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• 2021

This report introduces a definition for robot task intelligence and explains the basis of the challenges associated with implementing robot task intelligence in real-world problems. Two fundamental elements of this intelligence, robot manipulation and navigation, are introduced herein. We describe the existing trends and industrial applications of the robot task intelligence in logistics and agricultural automation. Furthermore, as an underpinning technology for this intelligence, we review the existing three-dimensional position estimation techniques and summarize the difficulties associated with applying pure SLAM technology to real-world applications. Finally, we discuss the prospects of the robot task intelligence research and its potential for solving real-world problems.

• Animal Bioscience
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• v.37 no.2_spc
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• pp.346-359
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• 2024

Advanced and innovative breeding and management of meat-producing animals are needed to address the global food security and sustainability challenges. Beef production is an important industry for securing animal protein resources in the world and meat quality significantly contributes to the economic values and human needs. Improvement of cattle feed efficiency has become an urgent task as it can lower the environmental burden of methane gas emissions and the reduce the consumption of human edible cereal grains. Cattle depend on their symbiotic microbiome and its activity in the rumen and gut to maintain growth and health. Recent developments in high-throughput omics analysis (metagenome, metatranscriptome, metabolome, metaproteome and so on) have made it possible to comprehensively analyze microbiome, hosts and their interactions and to define their roles in affecting cattle biology. In this review, we focus on the relationships among gut microbiome and beef meat quality, feed efficiency, methane emission as well as host genetics in beef cattle, aiming to determine the current knowledge gaps for the development of the strategies to improve the sustainability of beef production.

• Journal of the Semiconductor & Display Technology
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.79-83
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• 2024

Digital Twin technology is rapidly transforming various industries by providing comprehensive virtual models that replicate physical objects or processes. In the context of agriculture, digital twin can be a game-changer. This technology can help in creating precise simulations of farming scenarios, thereby enabling farmers to make data-driven decisions and optimize farm operations. The potential benefits include improved crop yields, resource efficiency, and environmental sustainability. However, the implementation of digital twin technology in agriculture poses challenges, such as data management issues and the need for robust IoT infrastructure. Despite these hurdles, the future of digital twin in agriculture looks promising, with ongoing research and developments aimed at overcoming these obstacles.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural Science
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• v.42 no.4
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• pp.335-339
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• 2015

This paper reviews current status of weed science in Japanese regional agricultural systems based on the 54th Annual Meeting of the Weed Science Society of Japan. About 300 researchers from 5 countries including Korea participated in the Conference and presented 100 papers in research areas. This congress has an purpose to discuss new troubles, findings and results of weed science. Weed science faces big challenges such as increase in herbicide-resistant weeds, gene-flow from transgenic crops, and invasive weeds. Major research topics were invasive weeds and their ecology, allelopathy, weed management in paddy field, weed management in field crops, and herbicide resistance. Weed control and herbicide resistance management in paddy field were a main object of research. To prevent the increase of problematic weeds and to overcome food crisis, the importance of weed-related researches has been raised. Therefore it is expected that various weed management systems and control of herbicide resistant weeds should be studied continuously in the weed science.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Organic Agriculture Conference
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• 2009.12a
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• pp.284-284
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• 2009

EFA production systems have through necessity resulted in the development of innovative practices for weed, pest and diseases control, for example, using ducks and snails for weed control in paddy fields. These practices began to be introduced in the early 1990's and the techniques have become more popular and have been adapted to suit regional conditions. In this study, the production practices, productivity and economic performances of organic and non-chemical rice farming adopting ducks and snails for weed control were compared. In the production practices, Korean organic and non-chemical farming seem to have several concerns in terms of sustainability. It comprises lack of resistant variety use and rotational cropping system as well as high dependency upon external inputs such as organic fertilizer and farming materials for pest control. The production level of organic farming is approximately similar level but 20% higher income than non-chemical farming, while, when it was compared with conventional farming organic farming showed 20% lower productivity but 20% higher income. Organic farming shows 15% to 18% higher profits than non-chemical farming as the snail-using organic farming tends to have higher income and lower input costs than duck-using organic farming. This may encourage more farmers to convert to organic production using these techniques than simply non-chemical farming in the future. This organic conversion could be more promoted by policy intervention. However, it may result in increased supply and therefore decreased prices for organic rice in the long term unless further market demand occurs. Balanced policy measures considering production as well as marketing and consumption are urgently required for the sustainable development of organic farming.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.32 no.1
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• pp.1-13
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• 2019

This paper aims to critically analyse and synthesise existing knowledge concerning the use of environmental enrichment and its effect on behavior, physiology and performance of pigs housed in intensive production systems. The objective is also to provide clarity as to what constitutes successful enrichment and recommend when and how enrichment should be used. Environmental enrichment is usually understood as an attempt to improve animal welfare and to a lesser extent, performance. Common enrichment objects used are straw bedding, suspended ropes and wood shavings, toys, rubber tubings, colored plastic keys, table tennis balls, chains and strings. These substrates need to be chewable, deformable, destructible and ingestible. For enrichment to be successful four goals are essential. Firstly, enrichment should increase the number and range of normal behaviors; secondly, it should prevent the phenomenon of anomalous behaviors or reduce their frequency; thirdly, it should increase positive use of the environment such as space and fourthly it should increase the ability of the animals to deal with behavioral and physiological challenges. The performance, behavior and physiology of pigs in enriched environments is similar or in some cases slightly better when compared with barren environments. In studies where there was no improvement, it should be borne in mind that enriching the environment may not always be practical and yield positive results due to factors such as type of enrichment substrates, duration of provision and type of enrichment used. The review also identifies possible areas that still need further research, especially in understanding the role of enrichment, novelty, breed differences and other enrichment alternatives.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.55 no.3
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• pp.289-296
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• 2022

Objectives: Integrating retail and manufacturing enables limitless potential for food businesses, but also creates challenges for navigating within complex food safety regulations. From public health inspectors' (PHIs) perspective, this study aimed (1) to describe the characteristics of crossover businesses in Louisiana, and (2) to evaluate regulation awareness and food safety education needs for business owners and PHIs who inspect crossover businesses. Methods: A self-administered questionnaire was administered to Louisiana Department of Health PHIs using Qualtrics^®. A descriptive analysis was performed, focusing on the frequency of each item. Results: In total, 1774 retailers were conducting or planned to conduct specialized processes, while 552 food manufacturers were performing or planned to perform retail functions. Reduced oxygen packaging, the use of additives such as vinegar as a method of preservation, and smoking food as a method of preservation were observed by 62%, 36%, and 35% of the PHIs, respectively. The PHIs perceived crossover businesses as "not aware" or "somewhat aware" of the food safety regulations. The current food safety training level for these businesses was reported to range from "no training" to "some training but not sufficient." When asked for a self-assessment, the majority of PHIs reported themselves as being "familiar" with the variance requirement for specialized processing. Their confidence in inspecting crossover businesses, however, leaned towards "not confident" or "somewhat confident." Conclusions: To better guard public health, food safety training is needed for crossover food business owners, as well as PHIs, on regulations and conducting or inspecting specialized processes.