• Health Policy and Management
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• v.3 no.2
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• pp.159-176
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• 1993

The utilization of outpatient care services involves two steps of sequential decisions. The first step decision is about whether to initiate the utilization and the second one is about how many more visits to make after the initiation. Presumably, the initiation decision is largely made by the patient and his or her family, while the number of additional visits is decided under a strong influence of the physician. Implication is that the analysis of the outpatient care utilization requires to specify each of the two decisions underlying the utilization as a distinct stochastic process. This paper is concerned with the number of physician visits, which is, by definition, a discrete variable that can take only non-negative integer values. Since the initial visit is considered in the analysis of whether or not having made any physician visit, the focus on the number of visits made in addition to the initial one must be enough. The number of additional visits, being a kind of count data, could be assumed to exhibit a Poisson distribution. However, it is likely that the distribution is over dispersed since the number of physician visits tends to cluster around a few values but still vary widely. A recently reported study of outpatient care utilization employed an analysis based upon the assumption of a negative binomial distribution which is a type of overdispersed Poisson distribution. But there is an indication that the use of Poisson distribution making adjustments for over-dispersion results in less loss of efficiency in parameter estimation compared to the use of a certain type of distribution like a negative binomial distribution. An analysis of the data for outpatient care utilization was performed focusing on an assessment of appropriateness of available techniques. The data used in the analysis were collected by a community survey in Hwachon Gun, Kangwon Do in 1990. It was observed that a Poisson regression with adjustments for over-dispersion is superior to either an ordinary regression or a Poisson regression without adjustments oor over-dispersion. In conclusion, it seems the most approprite to assume that the number of physician visits made in addition to the initial visist exhibits an overdispersed Poisson distribution when outpatient care utilization is studied based upon a model which embodies the two-part character of the decision process uderlying the utilization.

• Journal of Korean Society of Environmental Engineers
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• v.27 no.6
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• pp.642-650
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• 2005

This research investigates the effects of adding oxidants such as $Fe^0$, $Fe^{2+}$, and ${S_2O_8}^{2-}$ in the sonolysis of 1,4-D. Results indicate that the degradation could be divided into two steps (initiation and acceleration) kinetically. The initial portion agreed with zero-order expression, while the second portion could be fitted with pseudo first-order expression. In the presence of ${HCO_3}^-$, as a radical scavenger, the degradations of 1,4-D and TOC were suppressed, indicating that OH radical is an important factor in the sonolysis. The overall degradation efficiency of 79.0% in the sonolysis was achieved within 200 minutes. While $Fe^0$, $Fe^{2+}$, and ${S_2O_8}^{2-}$ were individually combined with sonication, the degradation efficiency of 1,4-D increased 18.6%, 19.1%, and 16.5% after 200 min, respectively. The addition of oxidants not only changed the kinetic model from zero to pseudo first order at initiation step, but also increased the rate constants in the acceleration step. The addition of oxidants in the sonolysis of 1,4-D also improved the mineralization of 1,4-D, however, the effect of adding oxidants on the rate increase was similar regardless of the oxidants.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.67-75
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• 2008

It is interesting to note that distinct element method has been used extensively to model the response of micro and discontinuous behavior in geomechanics. Impressive advances related to response of distinct particles have been conducted and there were difficulties in considering fluid effect simultaneously. Current distinct element methods are progressively developed to solve particle-fluid coupling focused on fluid flow through soil, rock or porous medium. In this research, numerical simulations of fluid injection into particulate materials were conducted to observe cavity initiation and propagation using distinct element method. After generation of initial particles and wall elements, confining stress was applied by servo-control method. The fluid scheme solves the continuity and Navior-Stokes equations numerically, then derives pressure and velocity vectors for fixed grid by considering the existence of particles within the fluid cell. Fluid was injected as 7-step into the assembly in the x-direction from the inlet located at the center of the left boundary under confining stress condition, $0.1MP{\alpha}\;and\;0.5MP{\alpha}$, respectively. For each simulation, movement of particles, flow rate, fluid velocity, pressure history, wall stress including cavity initiation and propagation by interaction of flulid-paricles were analyzed.

• Biomedical Science Letters
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• v.2 no.2
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• pp.231-240
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• 1996

Human blood clotting (coagulation) factor 9 cDNA which codes for 461 amino acid has been cloned by screening human fetal liver cDNA library using PCR. This 1.4 kb cDNA spanning from the ATG initiation codon to the TAA termination codon was cloned into bacterial .expression vector pGEX-2T, generating pGEX-F9 plasmid. The plasmid pGEX-F9 expresses about 73 kDa GST (Glutathione S-transferase)-Factor 9 fusion protein when introduced into E. coli. Western blot analysis using polyclonal antibody raised against human factor 9 confirmed this fusion protein contains factor 9 protein. The level of GST-factor 9 expression was about 20% of total protein and the purification of fusion protein was efficiently achieved by using GST agarose bead based on one step purification protocol.

• Fire Science and Engineering
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• v.30 no.6
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• pp.43-47
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• 2016

The recent changes in the judicial system in South Korea, including the stronger trial-centrism and legal market opening, have made fire investigations seek more scientific evidence and structure. The collection of physical evidence is very important to prove the substantial truth of a fire at the court. Without the appropriate physical proof, the credibility of a fire investigation is lost as evidence in a court. Therefore, the fire investigation team needs to carefully handle the fire site and fire initiation evidence because evidence of a fire incident can be destroyed easily by chemical and physical damage. In addition, the fire investigation team also needs to carefully record the collections of any evidence including pictures and their analysis. This study proposed the needs of the procedure manual and guidelines that can provide a step-by-step process of fire investigations in South Korea. This study also helps fire investigation agencies to secure fire-scene evidence to distinctly investigate the facts of fire. The guidelines and manual can eventually improve the ways for the fire investigation processes in South Korea.

• Journal of Korean Society of Environmental Engineers
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• v.27 no.10
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• pp.1114-1122
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• 2005

This research investigates the effects of sonication mode, reaction temperature and volume on sonolysis of 1,4-dioxane in order to increase the degradation efficiency and kinetics. The degradation efficiency in case with pulse mode was about 10 % higher than that in case with continuous mode. The degradation profiles in both cases, which were performed without the control of reaction temperature and in 1000 mL, were composed of three steps. However, 1,4-D was mainly degraded in the initiation step as the first portion and the acceleration step as the second portion. The initial step agreed with zero-order expression well, while the acceleration step could be fitted with pseudo 1st-order expression. The kinetic model in case with $5^{\circ}C$ and 300 mL conformed to pseudo 1st-order, while that in cases with $10^{\circ}C$ to $40^{\circ}C$ agreed with zero-order expression. The degradation efficiency and profile of 1,4-D in the experiment with $20^{\circ}C$ and 300 mL was higher and simpler than that in case with $20^{\circ}C$ and 1000 mL. The reaction temperature and volume influence bubble intensity, which was produced in sonication. The increase of bubble intensity induced to augment the production of OH radical in sonication.

• Management & Information Systems Review
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• v.23
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• pp.75-97
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• 2007

In the meantime hospital system of Korea has institutionally performed its errand in stable circumstance, however the system now faces with new environment of change of customer's satisfaction, of regime, deepening of competition, and opening market. Under the rapidly and complicatedly changing circumstance, the hospital system is required to promote getting a dominant position in the competition, enhancing outcome, creating value added, and customer satisfaction in both internally and externally likewise other organizations, as they continuously introduce a knowledge management and originate, accumulate, and put the knowledge to practical use. This organization capacity of knowledge management involves a process of management that requires great change of all organizations and individuals and it is brought up through four steps which are Initiation, Propagation, Integration, and Networking. The main factors of successful knowledge management are intension of the chief executive officer(CEO), organizational culture, appraisal and compensation of work, knowledge controlling system, and organizational structure, and each of these five stage has got different characteristic. To be successful by introducing knowledge management, hospital organization should be based on these premises. Not only CEO or the director of a hospital, but also the constituent members should be fully aware of knowledge, the characteristic of knowledge management, and successful factors of this operation. Should understand step-by-step characteristic of knowledge management, therefore able to analyse a situation of specific hospital and see which step corresponds to that hospital. By analysing, constituents should make up for the weak points and ready to move on to next step. CEO or the director of a hospital should be aware of knowledge management as a strategic factor which is able to get a dominant position in the rapidly changing environment, and also it should be firm in the director's intention to introduce the knowledge management into the hospital. By continuously carrying out education and training constituent members, the director of a hospital should promote their interest and participation in knowledge management, and build an organization culture that ultimately creates, accumulates, shares, and put the knowledge to practical use. The hospital organization needs to systematize an institution of objective compensation that corresponds to objective appraisal of knowledge management outcome. The hospital ought to build knowledge controlling system in stages, in order to take the initiative in rapidly changing environment. By considering the characteristic of hospital system, it is required to change the organizational structure into self-managing team which is a sort of horizontal structure that allows members to make decisions and take the responsibility by themselves. The limitation of this study is experimental study. Positive investigation about successful factors of hospital knowledge management and characteristic of each steps is expected with following study.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.17 no.10
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• pp.655-665
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• 2016

Considering the importance of SMEs, which account for 88% of employment and 99% of domestic businesses, the government has implemented informatization policy support. On the other hand, due to budget limitations and the ability of the private market, it is time to transition to the new policy of the informatization support paradigm. This study evaluated the informatization policy support of SMBA by a comparison with the stage model to determine the future direction. The informatization development model is a step model divided into five levels ranging from the informatization initiation level to the strategic innovation level. The informatization policy of SMBA was focused on the development of automation and in-house integration, and business-to-business integration and strategic innovation step was found to be lacking. Based on these results, there are three implications for the informatization policy of the next SMEs. First, there is a need for a movement of the center of the support in the informatization step to the strategic innovative step. Second, by establishing an informatization road map, it is necessary to develop their own informatization capabilities according to the road map. Finally, it is important to improve the effectiveness of informatization support based on performance rather than policy providers.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.14 no.4
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• pp.2201-2205
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• 2013

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most common cancers in many parts of the world. Its development is a multi-step process involving three distinct stages, initiation that alters the molecular message of a normal cell, followed by promotion and progression that ultimately generates a phenotypically altered transformed malignant cell. Reports have suggested an association of the phosphoinositide-3-kinase (PI3K)/Akt pathway with colon tumorigenesis. Activation of Akt signaling and impaired expression of phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN) (a negative regulator of Akt) has been reported in 60-70% of human colon cancers and inhibitors of PI3K/Akt signaling have been suggested as potential therapeutic agents. Around 80% of human colon tumors possess mutations in the APC gene and half of the remainder feature ${\beta}$-catenin gene mutations which affect downstream signaling of the PI3K/Akt pathway. In recent years, there has been a great focus in targeting these signaling pathways, with natural and synthetic drugs reducing the tumor burden in different experiment models. In this review we survey the role of PI3K/Akt/mTOR and Wnt signaling in CRC.

• Journal of the Earthquake Engineering Society of Korea
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• v.11 no.4
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• pp.25-31
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• 2007

For areas such as the Korean Peninsula, which have moderate seismic activity but no available records of strong ground motion, synthetic seismograms can be used to evaluate ground motion without waiting for a strong earthquake. Such seismograms represent the estimated ground motions expected from a set of possible earthquake scenarios. Local site effects are especially important in assessing the seismic hazard and possible ground motion scenarios for a specific fault. The earthquake source and rupture dynamics can be described as a two-step process of rupture initiation and front propagation controlled by a frictional sliding mechanism. The seismic wavefield propagates through heterogeneous geological media and finally undergoes near-surface modulations such as amplification or deamplification. This is a complex system in which various scales of physical phenomena are integrated. A unified approach incorporates multi-scale problems of dynamic rupture, radiated wave propagation, and site effects into an all-in-one model using a three-dimensional, fourth-order, staggered-grid, finite-difference method. The method explains strong ground motions as products of complex systems that can be modified according to a variety of fine-scale rupture scenarios and friction models. A series of such deterministic earthquake scenarios can shed light on the kind of damage that would result and where it would be located.