• Title/Summary/Keyword: scientific-evidence-based

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Food safety regulation based on WTO SPS agreement and the required future work (WTO SPS 협정에 기초한 식품안전 규제와 향후 과제)

  • Cho, Seung Yong;Cho, Sanggoo
    • Food Science and Industry
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    • v.51 no.3
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    • pp.196-208
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    • 2018
  • This paper described the contents of the WTO (world trade organization) SPS (world trade organization) Agreement and trends in the WTO SPS provisions such as equivalence, localization, transparency, and risk assessment. The purpose of the WTO SPS agreement is to promote international trade by preventing arbitrary and unreasonable use of SPS measures, which are the rights of a country for the protection of human health and animal and plant health, and by abolishing the non-tariff barriers. To this end, the requirements for implementing the SPS measures taken by the importing country are restricted to those that can scientifically prove to be inevitable for SPS protection. The major provisions in WTO SPS agreement were elaborated to promote international trades. When trade-restricted SPS measures such as prohibition of imports are made, a scientific basis should be provided. Therefore, it is essential to provide scientific evidence based on risk analysis to protect people's health from potentially harmful imported foods.

Whose Science is More Scientific? The Role of Science in WTO Trade Disputes

  • Kim, Inkyoung;Brazil, Steve
    • Analyses & Alternatives
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    • v.2 no.1
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    • pp.31-69
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    • 2018
  • This study examines the role of science in resolving trade disputes. After the Great East Japan Earthquake of 11 March 2011 that not only jeopardized the people of Japan, but also put the safety of an entire region at risk, the Republic of Korea (Korea) has imposed import bans as well as increased testing and certification requirements for radioactive material on Japanese food products. Japan has challenged these restrictions at the World Trade Organizations Dispute Settlement Body (DSB). This study aims to explain how international trade agreements and previous DSB rulings have dealt with different scientific viewpoints provided by confronting parties. In doing so, it will contrast the viewpoints espoused by Korean and Japanese representatives, and then analyzes the most similar case studies previously ruled on by the DSB, including the case of beef hormones and the case of genetically modified crops including biotech corn, both between the United States and the European Communities (EC). This study finds that science is largely subordinate to national interests in the case of state decision-making within the dispute settlement processes, and science has largely been relegated to a supportive role. Due to the ambiguity and lack of truly decisive decisions in the Appellate Body in science-based trade disputes, this study concludes that the Appellate Body avoids taking a firm scientific position in cases where science is still inconclusive in any capacity. Due to the panel's unwillingness to establish expert review boards as it has the power to do, instead favoring an individual-based system so that all viewpoints can be heard, it has also developed a system with its own unique weaknesses. Similar to any court of law in which each opposing party defends its own interests, each side brings whatever scientific evidence it can to defend its position, incentivizing them to disregard scientific conclusions unfavorable to their position. With so many questions that can arise, combined with the problems of evolving science, questions of risk, and social concerns in democratic society, it is no wonder that the panel views scientific information provided by the experts as secondary to the legal and procedural issues. Despite being ruled against the EC on legal issues in two previous cases, the EC essentially won both times because the panel did not address whether its science was correct or not. This failure to conclusively resolve a debate over whose science is more scientific enabled the EC to simply fix the procedural issues, while continuing to enforce trade restrictions based on their scientific evidence. Based on the analysis of the two cases of disputes, Korea may also find itself guilty of imposing an unwarranted moratorium on Japan's fish exports, only to subsequently pass new restrictions on labelling and certification requirements because Japan may have much scientific evidence at its disposal. However, Korea might be able to create enough uncertainty in the panel to force them to rule exclusively on the legal issues of the case. This will then equip Korea, like the EC in the past, with a way of working around the ruling, by changing whatever legal procedure they need to while maintaining some, if not most, of its restrictions when the panel fails to address its case on scientific grounds.

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Students Opportunities to Develop Scientific Argumentation in the Context of Scientific Inquiry: A Review of Literature

  • Flick, Larry;Park, Young-Shin
    • Journal of the Korean earth science society
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    • v.25 no.3
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    • pp.194-204
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    • 2004
  • The purpose of this literature review is to investigate what kinds of research have been done about scientific inquiry in terms of scientific argumentation in the classroom context from the upper elementary to the high school levels. First, science educators argued that there had not been differentiation between authentic scientific inquiry by scientists and school scientific inquiry by students in the classroom. This uncertainty of goals or definition of scientific inquiry has led to the problem or limitation of implementing scientific inquiry in the classroom. It was also pointed out that students' learning science as inquiry has been done without opportunities of argumentation to understand how scientific knowledge is constructed. Second, what is scientific argumentation, then? Researchers stated that scientific inquiry in the classroom cannot be guaranteed only through hands-on experimentation. Students can understand how scientific knowledge is constructed through their reasoning skills using opportunities of argumentation based on their procedural skills using opportunities of experimentation. Third, many researchers emphasized the social practices of small or whole group work for enhancing students' scientific reasoning skills through argumentations. Different role of leadership in groups and existence of teachers' roles are found to have potential in enhancing students' scientific reasoning skills to understand science as inquiry. Fourth, what is scientific reasoning? Scientific reasoning is defined as an ability to differentiate evidence or data from theory and coordinate them to construct their scientific knowledge based on their collection of data (Kuhn, 1989, 1992; Dunbar & Klahr, 1988, 1989; Reif & Larkin, 1991). Those researchers found that students skills in scientific reasoning are different from scientists. Fifth, for the purpose of enhancing students' scientific reasoning skills to understand how scientific knowledge is constructed, other researchers suggested that teachers' roles in scaffolding could help students develop those skills. Based on this literature review, it is important to find what kinds of generalizable teaching strategies teachers use for students scientific reasoning skills through scientific argumentation and investigate teachers' knowledge of scientific argumentation in the context of scientific inquiry. The relationship between teachers' knowledge and their teaching strategies and between teachers teaching strategies and students scientific reasoning skills can be found out if there is any.

Systematic Review of the Effect of Glucosamine on Joint Health while Focused on the Evaluation of Claims for Health Functional Food (건강기능식품의 기능성을 중심으로 한 글루코사민의 관절건강 기능성에 대한 체계적 고찰)

  • Kim, Joohee;Kim, Ji Yeon;Kwak, Jin Sook;Paek, Ju Eun;Jeong, Sewon;Kwon, Oran
    • Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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    • v.43 no.2
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    • pp.293-299
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    • 2014
  • Although the functional ingredient has been evaluated based on scientific evidence by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS), the levels of scientific evidence and consistency of the results might vary according to the emerging data. Therefore, a periodic re-evaluation may be needed in some functional ingredients. In this study, we re-evaluated the scientific evidence for the joint health of glucosamine as a functional ingredient in health functional food. Literature searches were conducted using Pubmed, Cochrane, KISS, and IBIDS databases with the search term of glucosamine in combination with osteoarthritis. The search was limited to human studies published in English, Korean and Japanese. Using the MFDS's evidence based evaluation system for scientific evaluation of health claims, 34 human studies were identified and reviewed in order to evaluate the strength of the evidence supporting the relation between glucosamine and joint health. Among the 34 studies, significant effects for joint health were reported in 28 studies, and their daily intake amount was 1.5 to 2 g. Eleven out of 34 studies were identified, excluding severe radiographic osteoarthritis, and ten from those eleven studies reported significant effects for joint health. Based on this systematic review, we concluded that there was possible evidence to support a relation between glucosamine intake and joint health.

Digital Forensics: Review of Issues in Scientific Validation of Digital Evidence

  • Arshad, Humaira;Jantan, Aman Bin;Abiodun, Oludare Isaac
    • Journal of Information Processing Systems
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    • v.14 no.2
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    • pp.346-376
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    • 2018
  • Digital forensics is a vital part of almost every criminal investigation given the amount of information available and the opportunities offered by electronic data to investigate and evidence a crime. However, in criminal justice proceedings, these electronic pieces of evidence are often considered with the utmost suspicion and uncertainty, although, on occasions are justifiable. Presently, the use of scientifically unproven forensic techniques are highly criticized in legal proceedings. Nevertheless, the exceedingly distinct and dynamic characteristics of electronic data, in addition to the current legislation and privacy laws remain as challenging aspects for systematically attesting evidence in a court of law. This article presents a comprehensive study to examine the issues that are considered essential to discuss and resolve, for the proper acceptance of evidence based on scientific grounds. Moreover, the article explains the state of forensics in emerging sub-fields of digital technology such as, cloud computing, social media, and the Internet of Things (IoT), and reviewing the challenges which may complicate the process of systematic validation of electronic evidence. The study further explores various solutions previously proposed, by researchers and academics, regarding their appropriateness based on their experimental evaluation. Additionally, this article suggests open research areas, highlighting many of the issues and problems associated with the empirical evaluation of these solutions for immediate attention by researchers and practitioners. Notably, academics must react to these challenges with appropriate emphasis on methodical verification. Therefore, for this purpose, the issues in the experiential validation of practices currently available are reviewed in this study. The review also discusses the struggle involved in demonstrating the reliability and validity of these approaches with contemporary evaluation methods. Furthermore, the development of best practices, reliable tools and the formulation of formal testing methods for digital forensic techniques are highlighted which could be extremely useful and of immense value to improve the trustworthiness of electronic evidence in legal proceedings.

A Study on the Inquiry-Based Water Environmental Education Model with Watershed Concept: Focusing on the ENVISION Program (유역 개념을 중심으로 한 탐구 기반의 물 환경교육 모형에 관한 연구: ENVISION 프로그램을 중심으로)

  • Lee, Du-Gon
    • Hwankyungkyoyuk
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    • v.19 no.3
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    • pp.150-164
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    • 2006
  • This study reviewed a recently developed environmental education model 'ENVISION' and analyzed the value of the ENVISION program with environmental education(EE) perspective. Also this study proposed a prototype model of a inquiry-based water environmental education model with watershed concepts as a result of discussion of tills research. In the review of ENVISION, this research followed the theoretical framework of 'Inquiry-Based EE' that was previously proposed by the author. The ENVISION was characterized in tills research as two directions: watershed and scientific inquiry. Tills research argued that the watershed concept has a potentially very good meaning in EE because watershed enables 'holistic' view in EE area, and that the scientific inquiry in ENVISION seeks evidence-based explanation about local watershed environmental problems. That belongs to the scientific inquiry, which is also 'Inquiry-Based EE' and has internal value under EE perspective. Finally, this research proposed a prototype EE model that is about watershed concept, and is based on inquiry as general sense (scientific and insightful inquiries) and 'Environmental Studies for EE, (ESEE)' as the inquiry directions. The proposed model can be said a combination of the watershed concept and inquiry-based EE, and it seems that the model materializes better the EE nature than the ENVISION model.

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Effects of Scientific Argumentation on Argument Tasks with Incorrect Alternative Ideas in Elementary Science Classes (오류 상황을 포함하는 논증 과제 제시를 통한 초등 과학수업의 효과 및 특징)

  • Lim, Heejun;Jeong, In-Soon
    • Journal of Korean Elementary Science Education
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    • v.33 no.1
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    • pp.195-205
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    • 2014
  • The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of scientific argumentation on argument tasks with incorrect alternative ideas in elementary science classes. The subjects were 41 fourth graders of 2 classes in an elementary school. In the experimental group, argument tasks with pictures including incorrect alternative ideas were suggested in order to facilitate argumentation. Students were asked to perform argumentation with the component of claim, evidence, and reasoning. In the control group, textbook-based traditional instruction was used. The results showed that scientific argumentation activities on argument tasks with incorrect alternative ideas had positive effects on students' science achievement and science-related affective domains. The analyses of students' argumentation revealed that argument tasks with incorrect alternative ideas could facilitate students' participation and exposure of their preconceptions. It also led students to find and connect evidence to support their claims. In some cases, students had difficulty in making appropriate argumentation because of unclear experimental data and/or invalid reasoning. Educational implications were discussed.

The PSA Testing Debate in the U.S and Flexible Evidence-Based Medicine (미국의 PSA 진단검사 논쟁과 유연한 근거중심의학)

  • Hyun, Jae Hwan
    • Journal of Science and Technology Studies
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    • v.13 no.1
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    • pp.77-109
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    • 2013
  • The global diffusion of Evidence-Based Medicine (EBM) is changing the landscape of medicine and the healthcare system. STS scholars have shown how EBM works when put into practice. In continuing to add to the literature of previous scholars, this paper traces the historical process and debate over Prostate-Specific Antigen (PSA) testing as an early screening test for prostate cancer in the U.S. This study will reveal that both pros and cons of the testing using EBM as a crucial resources of the debate, and in the process both 'flexibly' interpret and mobilize the hierarchy of scientific evidence for EBM despite the fact the hierarchy is imagined to being scientific criteria that is rigid. Furthermore, this paper will argue that this phenomenon, for which EBM currently seems to support the cons side of PSA screening, was constructed in the context of appraisal of the value 'quality of life' in the EBM system. This case study proposes that those who study the debate of medical technology in the EBM era should contextualize and analyze EBM as part of this debate rather than simply taking EBM for granted.

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Pre-service Elementary Teachers' Inquiry on a Model of Magnetism and Changes in Their Views of Scientific Models (초등 예비교사의 자기 모델 탐구 과정과 과학적 모델에 대한 이해 변화)

  • Yoon, Hye-Gyoung
    • Journal of Korean Elementary Science Education
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    • v.30 no.3
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    • pp.353-366
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    • 2011
  • An alternative vision for science inquiry that appears to be important and challenging is model-based inquiry in which students generate, evaluate and revise their explanatory model. Pre-service teachers should be given opportunities to develop and use their mechanistic explanatory models in order to participate in the practice of science and to have a sound understanding of science. With this view, this study described a case of pre-service elementary teachers' scientific modeling in magnetism. The aims of this study were to explore difficulties preservice elementary teachers encountered while they engaged in a model-based inquiry, and to examine how their understandings of the nature of scientific models changed after the model-based inquiry. The data analysis revealed that the pre-service teachers had difficulties in drawing and writing their own thinking because they had little experience of expressing their own science ideas. When asked to predict what would happen, they could not understand what it meant to make a prediction "based on their model". They did not know how to use or consider their model in making a prediction. At the end of the model-based inquiry they reached a final consensus of a best model. However, they were very anxious about whether the model was the "correct" answer. With respect to the nature of scientific models, almost all of the pre-service teachers initially viewed models only as a communication tool among scientists or students and teachers to help understand others' ideas. After the model-based inquiry, however, many of them understood that they could create, test, and revise their "own" models "by themselves". They also realized the key aspects of scientific models that a model can be changed as evidence is accumulated and a model is a knowledge production tool as well as a communication tool. The results indicated that pre-service elementary teachers' understandings of the nature of scientific models and their previous school science experiences could affect their performance on a model-based inquiry, and their experience of scientific modeling could help them enhance their understandings of the nature of scientific models.

Next Generation Dairy Processing Science and Technology: Functional and Rational in Dairy Industry

  • Charchoghlyan, Haykuhi
    • Journal of Dairy Science and Biotechnology
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    • v.33 no.3
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    • pp.167-170
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    • 2015
  • The dairy industry, as part of the broader agricultural sector, is classified as a basic industry to the Korea economy. Basic industries provide income to a region by producing an output, purchasing production inputs, services and labor. An integrated, multidisciplinary approach for the next generation of dairy products with added health benefits represent the direct economic contribution. The commercialization of "nutritional" functional foods can only be successful if the consumer is confident in the scientific validity of the claims. Modern biotechnologies such as genomics, genetic expression and biomarkers of health performance suggested to whole dairy products, such as fluid milk, butter, cheese, ice cream and frozen dessert products (German, 1999). The following definition makes the point that dairy products can provide a nutritional value beyond the basic nutritional requirements: 1) The dairy industry has the opportunity to improve the health and well-being of its customers and/or to reduce their risk of disease through dairy products with added activities. 2) Functional dairy products are those that can be demonstrated to benefit target functions in the body in a way that improves the state of health and /or reduces the risk of disease. They are food products that are consumed as part of a normal diet rather than pills or supplements. 3) Dairy products based on functionality will need to link the scientific basis of such functionality to the communication of its benefit to the general public. 4) Both the efficacy and the safety of the food components with health benefits will require evidence based on the measurement of scientific biomarkers relevant to their biological responses and health end points. 5) Sound evidence from human studies based on intermediate health end points using accepted biomarkers will provide the basis for promotional messages divided into two categories-enhanced function and reduced risk of disease. 6) Success in solving key scientific and technological challenges will only be achieved by interdisciplinary research programs to exploit the scientific concepts in functional dairy science.

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