• Journal of Species Research
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.111-126
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• 2024

Korean bamboo forests encompass 22,067 hectares and are dominated by Phyllostachys species. These forests serve as vital ecosystems, providing nourishment and habitat for diverse flora, fauna, and microorganisms. Among these inhabitants, various fungal species have been documented worldwide, displaying ecological roles as saprobes, parasites, and symbionts within or outside the bamboo host. However, a comprehensive study of bambusicolous fungi within the Korean bamboo ecosystem remains a critical gap in our knowledge. In this study, we conducted an extensive survey of bamboo materials collected from various bamboo forests and subsequently undertook fungal isolation. Primary identification of bambusicolous fungi was achieved through analysis of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region. As a result, we identified seven previously unrecorded bambusicolous fungal species (Fusarium bambusarum, Fusicolla violacea, Macroconia gigas, Neopestalotiopsis camelliae-oleiferae, Neopestalotiopsis iberica, Neopestalotiopsis longiappendiculata, and Thyridium punctulatum). Phylogenetic analysis using protein-coding genes appropriate for each taxon and morphological observation were conducted to ensure accurate identification. This study contributes to our understanding of fungal diversity within bamboo forests in Korea.

• IMMUNE NETWORK
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• v.23 no.5
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• pp.36.1-36.16
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• 2023

Thymic epithelial cells (TECs) play a critical role in thymic development and thymopoiesis. As individuals age, TECs undergo various changes that impact their functions, leading to a reduction in cell numbers and impaired thymic selection. These age-related alterations have been observed in both mice and humans. However, the precise mechanisms underlying age-related TEC dysfunction remain unclear. Furthermore, there is a lack of a comprehensive study that connects mouse and human biological processes in this area. To address this gap, we conducted an extensive transcriptome analysis of young and old TECs in mice, complemented by further analysis of publicly available human TEC single-cell RNA sequencing data. Our analysis revealed alterations in both known and unknown pathways that potentially contribute to age-related TEC dysfunction. Specifically, we observed downregulation of pathways related to cell proliferation, T cell development, metabolism, and cytokine signaling in old age TECs. Conversely, TGF-β, BMP, and Wnt signaling pathways were upregulated, which have been known to be associated with age-related TEC dysfunctions or newly discovered in this study. Importantly, we found that these age-related changes in mouse TECs were consistently present in human TECs as well. This cross-species validation further strengthens the significance of our findings. In conclusion, our comprehensive analysis provides valuable insight into the biological and immunological characteristics of aged TECs in both mice and humans. These findings contribute to a better understanding of thymic involution and age-induced immune dysfunction.

• Journal of Koreanology Reviews
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• v.2 no.2
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• pp.9-17
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• 2023

The primary objectives of this study is to examine and identify the historical factors that have significantly contributed to the growth/ expansion and prosperity of SMEs in the Republic of Korea and to evaluate and assess the impact of historical factors on the economic progress/ development, innovation, and job creation within SMEs in South Korea. To achieve the purpose of the current study, the present author has investigated the comprehensive literature investigation and figured out a total of four Key historical factors of SMEs for Economic Growth in the Republic of Korea, such as (1) Government Policies, (2) Technological Advancements, (3) Access to Finance, (4) International Trade. In conclusion, this study has undertaken a thorough investigation into the four critical historical factors that have significantly affected the development and achievements of SMEs in the Republic of Korea. By addressing a notable gap in current scholarly work, this study not only adds to the existing pool of knowledge but also provides valuable insights for various stakeholders. Practitioners/ professionals should proactively participate in government support initiatives/ programs and financial aid. SMEs can benefit from monetary incentives and donations/ grants intended to stimulate research and development, creativity, and international trade ventures.

• Journal of Koreanology Reviews
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• v.2 no.2
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• pp.19-26
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• 2023

This study analyzes the historical events that shaped South Korean Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and its value to businesspeople. Chapter 2 reviews South Korean FDI literature, highlighting critical studies and a research gap. Chapter 3 strategically separates findings into four major historical events. Every event-from economic liberalization to technical advances-is studied. Chapter 5 offers valuable insights and guidance on how these events affect practitioners. The following chapters aim to promote FDI dynamics understanding and enable businesses and governments to make strategic decisions in South Korea's dynamic economy. Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) history in Korea is significant for practitioners. These events have impacted the nation's economy from the 1960s economic liberalization to modern technology advances. Practitioners must understand these events' far-reaching implications to make informed decisions. The opening up of the economy, chaebols' involvement, financial crises, and high-tech industry emphasis provide excellent lessons. This understanding helps practitioners navigate the global economy, adapt, and be resilient for sustainable economic growth in the Republic of Korea. Thus, practitioners should actively advocate for FDI and economic growth policies with government agencies. Collaboration ensures that the government's strategic vision matches industry practitioners' requirements and goals. By working together, practitioners help create policies that make Korea more appealing to international investors.

• Journal of Information Technology Applications and Management
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.149-163
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• 2024

As conversational AI systems such as ChatGPT have become more advanced, researchers are exploring ways to use them in education. However, we need effective ways to evaluate these systems before allowing them to help teach students. This study proposes a detailed framework for testing conversational AI across three important criteria as follow. First, specialized benchmarks that measure skills include giving clear explanations, adapting to context during long dialogues, and maintaining a consistent teaching personality. Second, adaptive standards check whether the systems meet the ethical requirements of privacy, fairness, and transparency. These standards are regularly updated to match societal expectations. Lastly, evaluations were conducted from three perspectives: technical accuracy on test datasets, performance during simulations with groups of virtual students, and feedback from real students and teachers using the system. This framework provides a robust methodology for identifying strengths and weaknesses of conversational AI before its deployment in schools. It emphasizes assessments tailored to the critical qualities of dialogic intelligence, user-centric metrics capturing real-world impact, and ethical alignment through participatory design. Responsible innovation by AI assistants requires evidence that they can enhance accessible, engaging, and personalized education without disrupting teaching effectiveness or student agency.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.56 no.8
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• pp.3112-3122
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• 2024

Crevice corrosion is a localized attack of metal that occurs in occluded areas of materials as a result of a degradation of the oxide passivity on the metal surface in contact with stagnant environments. Materials suffer crevice corrosion when generally the crevice opening gap is so narrow that the migration or diffusion of ionic species into the crevice can be restricted and consequently results in the production of aggressive crevice solutions and differential aeration conditions over time. Among several factors affecting the crevice corrosion, differential aeration causing oxygen depletion associated with the geometry of components, acidification, and accumulation of aggressive species (e.g., Cl^-, SO₄^-2, NO₃^- ) in the crevice solution become main aspects of the mechanism of the crevice corrosion. Thus, controlling such factors is most critically necessary to either prevents or terminates the crevice corrosion. This paper covers electrochemical aspects of the crevice corrosion, roles of critical factors affecting the crevice corrosion, and electrochemical processes of impurity species in the crevice in high temperature water. A better and clear understanding of mechanisms of the crevice corrosion is important to develop the protection and mitigation technology against the crevice corrosion in order for maintaining the integrity and longevity of structural components at various industries

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.56 no.9
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• pp.3812-3825
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• 2024

The axial-flow-induced vibration of fuel rods in the nuclear power plant is closely related to nuclear safety. In this article, a numerical study is performed on vibration of two elastic cylinders arranged side-by-side in axial flow. Large eddy simulation is employed to predict the turbulent flow. The numerical method has been verified using the experimental root-mean-square vibration amplitude of a single cylinder. A wide range of inflow velocities u^*, incident turbulence intensity T_u and space ratio P/D have been examined, where D and P are the diameter and centre-to-centre distance of the cylinders, respectively. The results show that the vibration amplitudes increase with an increasing u^*, comparable to the case of a single cylinder in axial flow. However, the two cylinders could bend outwards during a relatively high u^* and low T_u. Although T_u significantly affects the amplitudes of the cylinders, it does not change the vibration frequency and the critical velocity at which buckling instability occurs. As the gap between the two cylinders is sufficiently small, the vibration amplitude enhances significantly due to the pronounced hydrodynamic interaction between the two elastic cylinders and surrounding fluid. The direction of buckling is no longer random but fixed.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.16 no.12
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• pp.8176-8186
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• 2015

This research was conducted for the purpose of developing a high-fidelity simulation education program, applying it to clinical field and analyzing this program's effect on nursing college students in order to solve problems being caused from the gap between the adult nursing theoretical class and practical education. As the analysis method, this study developed a scenario including an algorithm for caring hyperkalemia patients, the evaluation check list, and debriefing according to the adult nursing theoretical class's learning goal and measured the high-fidelity simulation program's effect in using the non-equivalent control group pre-test and post-test design. As the results from the analysis, there secured the simulation education program's general properties and dependent variable's homogeneity in the experimental group and the control group. The nursing simulation practice program for hyperkalemia patients showed slight effect on the experimental group compared to the control group in fields such as nursing practice ability, problem solving ability, critical thinking skills, self-confidence of nursing, and knowledge. (t=-83.313, p<.001, t=-3.169, p=.003, t=-2.473, p=.017, t=-4.036, p<.001, t=-5.044, p<.001). High-Fidelity simulation programs in conjunction with an adult nursing theory classes of nursing students nursing practice ability, problem solving ability, critical thinking skills, self-confidence of nursing, and knowledge. This simulation program may be an effective educational method for nursing practice and also support improved quality of nursing education.

• The Journal of Korean Philosophical History
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• no.30
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• pp.311-344
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• 2010

Over 100 years in Mainland China, the 'traditional' thought and culture have been transformed from 'the past must be sublated' to 'the heritage must be preserved.' Today, China hopes to deal with the negative effects of industrial development such as the gap between rich and poor, and the absence of common values etc. through the reconstruction of traditional thought and culture, especially that of Confucianism. The Chinese government superficially accepts Confucianism for the purpose of the social stabilization and ongoing economic development while they keep the Socialism as the nation's ideological system. In the private sectors, there is endeavoring move to make the Chinese traditional thought and culture global paralleled to their economic growth. There are also scholars who find the cultural unification and the spiritual comfort from the restoration of the traditional thought and culture. They, so called 'the critical successionists' or 'the cultural conservativists,' believe that the traditional thought and culture could play a role in the Chinese modernization, and the new understanding and interpretation of their tradition could provide an alternative for their future. In my view, we need a careful survey on the view of the critical successionists or the cultural conservativists who regard tradition and culture as a power (力量). With this, we are required to investigate our own problems through the new understanding of our traditional thought and culture.

• Journal of Korean Medicine Rehabilitation
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• v.18 no.4
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• pp.39-61
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• 2008

Objectives : The present study was performed to investigate whether acupuncture stimulation in the rats affected regeneration properties of the injured sciatic nerve. A differential effect of acupuncture stimulation on the one point near the spinal nerve root controlling sciatic nerve activity and the other point in the peripheral area subordinated by injured nerve was compared. Materials and Methods: Rat sciatic nerves were injured by crush, and the effects on axonal regeneration on injured sciatic nerves were evaluated by acupuncture stimulation at two different regions. In proximal acupuncture stimulation group, acupuncture stimulation was performed on Huatuo Jiaji(EX B2) points located from L5 to S1 vertebral levels to stimulate the nearest spinal nerve root that innervates sciatic nerves. In distal acupuncture stimulation group, acupuncture stimulation was performed on Zusanli(ST 36) and Weizhong(BL 40) points to stimulate at peripheral area dominated by injured sciatic nerves. Acupuncture stimulation was given every other days for 1 or 2 weeks. Sciatic nerve tissues collected from acupuncture stimulation experimental groups, injury control group, and intact animal group were used for protein analysis by Western blotting or Hoechst nuclear staining. To determine axonal regeneration, Dil fluorescence dye was injected into the sciatic nerve 0.5 cm distal to the injury site in individual animal groups and Dil-labeled cells by retrograde tracing were measured in the DRG at lumbar 5 or in the spinal cord. DRG sensory neurons prepared from individual animal groups were used to measure the extent of neurite outgrowth and for immunofluorescence staining with anti-GAP-43 antibody. Results : Animal groups given proximal or distal acupuncture stimulation showed upregulation of GAP-43 and Cdc2 protein levels in the sciatic nerve at 7 days after injury. Cdk2 protein levels were strongly induced by nerve injury, but did not show changes by acupuncture stimulation. Phospho-Erk1/2 protein levels were elevated by acupuncture stimulation above those present in the injury control animals. These increase in regeneration-associated protein levels appeared to be related with increase cell proliferation in the injured sciatic nerves. Hoechst 33258 staining of sciatic nerve tissue to visualize nuclei of individual cells showed increased Schwann cell number in the distal portion of the injured nerve 7 and 14 days after injury and further increases by acupuncture stimulation particularly at the proximal position. Measurement of axonal regeneration by retrograde tracing showed significantly increased Dil-labeled cells in proximal acupuncture stimulation group compared to distal acupuncture stimulation group and injury control group. Finally, an evaluation of axonal regeneration by retrograde tracing showed increased number of Dil labeled cells in the DRG at lumbar 5 or in the ventral horn of the spinal cord at lower thoracic level at 7 days after nerve injury. Conclusions : The present data show that the proximal acupuncture stimulation at Huatuo Jiaji(EX B2) points governing injured sciatic nerves was more effective for axonal regeneration than the distal acupuncture stimulation. Further studies on functional recovery or associated molecular mechanisms should be critical for developing animal models and clinical applications.