• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.51 no.1
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• pp.1-5
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• 2018

Smokers keep smoking despite knowing that tobacco claims many lives, including their own and others'. What makes it hard for them to quit smoking nonetheless? Tobacco companies insist that smokers choose to smoke, according to their right to self-determination. Moreover, they insist that with motivation and willpower to quit smoking, smokers can easily stop smoking. Against this backdrop, this paper aims to discuss the addictive disease called tobacco use disorder, with an assessment of the addictiveness of tobacco and the reasons why smoking cessation is challenging, based on neuroscientific research. Nicotine that enters the body via smoking is rapidly transmitted to the central nervous system and causes various effects, including an arousal response. The changes in the nicotine receptors in the brain due to continuous smoking lead to addiction symptoms such as tolerance, craving, and withdrawal. Compared with other addictive substances, including alcohol and opioids, tobacco is more likely to cause dependence in smokers, and smokers are less likely to recover from their dependence. Moreover, the thinning of the cerebral cortex and the decrease in cognitive functions that occur with aging accelerate with smoking. Such changes occur in the structure and functions of the brain in proportion to the amount and period of smoking. In particular, abnormalities in the neural circuits that control cognition and decision-making cause loss of the ability to exert self-control and autonomy. This initiates nicotine dependence and the continuation of addictive behaviors. Therefore, smoking is considered to be a behavior that is repeated due to dependence on an addictive substance, nicotine, instead of one's choice by free will.

• Journal of KIISE:Software and Applications
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• v.31 no.12
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• pp.1581-1590
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• 2004

We present a robust off-line method recognizing handwritten digits by only using stroke direction codes as a feature of handwritten digits. This method makes general 8-direction codes for an input digit and then has the multi-layered neural networks learn them and recognize each digit. The 8-direction codes are made of the thinned results of each digit through SOG*(Improved Self-Organizing Graph). And the usage of these codes simplifies the complex steps processing at least two features of the existing methods. The experimental result shows that the recognition rates of this method are constantly better than 98.85% for any images in all digit databases.

• The Korean Journal of Ecology
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.73-78
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• 1986

The effects of density and soil nutrient regime on competition between individuals in pure and mixed populations of two annuals. Chenopodium album and Digitaria sanguinalis were investigated at the level of enegy allocation. Seedling emergence of two species was extremely high (>90%) in both pure and mixed culture irrespective of the density and nutrient regime, but percentage of seedling establishment or fertile plant became gradually low with increasing density owing to 'self-thinning'. The mean plant dry weight was significantly reduced with increasing density and decreasing soil fertility. The dry matter production of D. sanguinalis in mixture was markedly greater than in pure culture under medium and high density. Also, as considered the number of seed production as reproductive allocation, relationship between them and the number of seed production per plant showed a similar tendency. Therefore, these results indicated that D. sanguinalis had a greater competitive advantage than C. album and energy allocations to variious organs were regulated by plastic response rather than determined genetically.

• Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.37 no.2
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• pp.105-111
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• 2014

To elucidate whether small diameter at breast height correlates with tree death in an overcrowded tree population, we analyzed self-thinning occurring over the course of 37 years in naturally established Pinus densiflora populations in Sugadaira, central Japan. As trees grew, their diameters at breast height increased and the number of trees consequently decreased. Spatial distribution, which was initially clumped, changed accordingly, first becoming random and finally uniform. We calculated the "available area" of individual trees to elucidate the contribution of this parameter to tree mortality. Small diameter at breast height was strongly correlated with tree death, with a slight correlation observed between tree death and small available area of individual trees.

• The Korean Journal of Ecology
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.203-211
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• 1994

The establishment by seeds and the maintenance by ramets of the autumn olive (Elaeagnus umbellata) population were investigated in the Namhansansung Provincial Park, Jungbu-myun, Kwangju-gun, Kyunggi-do. Seed production and germination rate were 3, 300 $seeds{\cdot}m^{-2}{\cdot}yr^{-1}$ and 52%, respectively. The ramet formation in the population was classified into 4 types: stump type, creeping root type, lateral root type and secondary creeping root type. The subterranean creeping roots were 0.1~1.0 m in length, 4.5~14.0 mm in diameter and 0.06~0.2 m in soil depth. The number of ramets formed from a node was 1~21. The subterranean roots spread $5~509cm^2{\cdot}plant^{-1}{\cdot}yr^{-1}$, which began to be produced from 7~9 year-old individuals. The number of stems was 1~67 per stump, which was reduced by self-thinning from 2 to 14 year-old trees. The frequency distribution of stem diameter$(D_{30})$ showed a reverse J-shaped curve, suggesting that this population be maintained perpetually by their own ramets.

• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.122-132
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• 2008

The purpose of this study is to present the basic materials of a developmental counterplan by assessing prevalence of musculoskeletal symptoms and characteristics of work-related ergonomic risk factors. The prevalence of musculoskeletal symptoms of 64 vineyard workers was investigated by using a self-reported questionnaire. And the vineyard workers' tasks were also collected and analyzed during 9-month period by observing and videotaping methods to identify the ergonomic risk factors. The prevalence rate of musculoskeletal symptoms of female(84.4%) was much higher than that of male(62.5%) and a total prevalence rate was 73.4%. There was no different prevalence of musculoskeletal symptoms between age over 60 years and under 60 years. The prevalence rates of musculoskeletal complaints for each body part were 48.4%, 42.2%, and 35.9% for the wrist, legs/knee, and shoulder, respectively. In postural risk analysis, 7 works(REBA score) represented the high risk tasks such as delivering harvest boxed(12), picking cluster(11) and so on. The main works(exposure score) were orderly ranked as picking cluster(1590), pruning branch(388), and cluster thinning(327). The risk factors of vineyard work were identified as follows: shoulder flexion(${\geq}45^{\circ}$), wrist Flex./Ext.(${\geq}15^{\circ}$), hand force(power/pinch-grip), and prolonged standing(${\geq}4hr$). The engineering solutions including an improvement of hand tools, working process, and working environment should be applied to the high risky tasks in order to resolve the ergonomic problems. The administrative solutions such as improving a distribution of resting time, an exercise cure, an early recognition of symptoms and rehabilitation might be another solution for reducing musculoskeletal symptoms in vineyard workers.

• Horticultural Science & Technology
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.708-710
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• 2010

'Skinny Green' is the third hairless-variety release by National Institute of Horticultural & Herbal Science (NIHHS) of Rural Development Administration (RDA) in Korea. It was bred by field crossing using the KN8903 as the mother plant, which had been selected from the crossbreeding of a Korean wild germplasm of tara vine with a male $Actinidia$ $deliciosa$ cv. Tomuri, and tara vine as the father plant collected from Korean mountains. The principal features of the final release are firstly, the fruit size not bigger than a mouthful bite with the average fruit weight not more than 19.3 g, and secondly, the thin and hairless edible fruit skin. It has green flesh color maintaining soluble solids and acid contents about $16.7^{\circ}Brix$ and 0.91% respectively. Its harvest season is usually in mid October. As it is not self-fertile it needs artificial pollination. Its tendency to produce maximum numbers of fruit requires thinning out of the fruits in a proper way.

• Proceedings of the Korea Water Resources Association Conference
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• 2012.05a
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• pp.767-771
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• 2012

남강댐은 평지에 위치하여 댐 높이가 낮고 댐운영 수위의 편차가 작기 때문에 계획홍수위 아래 완경사 비탈면이 갈수기인 3월부터 5월 사이에 장기간 노출되어 5월 전후에 발아하는 식생 특히, 버들류가 이입, 성장하여 대규모 군락을 이루고 있다. 현재 형성된 대규모의 버들류 군락은 댐수질을 악화시킬 뿐만 아니라 자기솎음질(self-thinning)에 의해 고사한 버들류의 유목으로 인하여 댐운영에 많은 애로를 초래하고 있다. 본 연구에서는 버들류 군락 형성과 댐운영수위와의 상관관계를 도출하여 버들류를 적절하게 제어할 수 있는 댐운영 방안을 마련하기 위한 기초자료로 활용하고자 하였다. 따라서, 버들류의 이입시점을 명확히 파악하기 위하여 현재의 남강댐 건설 직후인 1979년, 2003년 2010년의 항공사진과 수심측량에 의한 지형도를 이용하여 버들류 군락의 확장 경향을 분석하였다. 또한, 버들류의 이입시점을 명확히 파악하기 위하여 방형구를 설치하여 버들류의 밀도 및 흉고직경을 조사하고, 성장추에 의한 수령을 조사, 분석하였다. 연구결과를 요약하면 다음과 같다. 남강댐 연안대에 분포하는 버들류는 총 17종이며, 출현빈도가 높은 종은 선버들(Salix nipponica), 버드나무(Salix nipponica), 왕버들(Salix gracilistyla), 등으로서 선버들(Salix nipponica)이 우점종인 것으로 조사되었다. 남강댐 연안대에 분포하는 버들류의 수령을 조사한 결과 수령은 약 9년~10년, 흉고직경 10~15cm, 수고 7~8m인 것으로 조사되었다. 댐운영수위와 버들류의 수령을 분석한 결과 2002년 5월 댐수위 38.5~41.0m 일 때 연안대의 수면부근에서 1단계로 이입, 정착한 것으로 보이며, 2004년 및 2005년 5월경에 댐수위 36m일 때 2단계로 이입, 정착하여 현재 대규모 군락을 형성한 것으로 추정된다. 남강댐 버들류 군락의 형성은 버들류의 발아기에 댐수위 부근의 습지에서 발아환경이 최적인 온도와 저토환경에서 일시에 이입, 성장한 것으로 보인다. 따라서, 남강댐과 같이 평야부에 위치한 댐에서 댐운영 및 댐수질에 영향을 미치는 버들류를 제어하기 위해서는 버들류의 발아기에 댐운영 수위를 최대한 높여 현재의 버들류 군락에 의하여 발아, 성장이 불가능하도록 하거나 아니면 댐운영 수위를 낮추어 발아해도 홍수기 동안 장기간의 침수에 의하여 고사되도록 하는 댐운영 방안을 마련해야 할 것이다.

• Ecology and Resilient Infrastructure
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• v.4 no.3
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• pp.149-155
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• 2017

Willow plants are representative biomaterials used in river restoration and main target trees in stream managements. In order to understand the changes in the growth of Salix subfragilis and S. chaenomeloides with their stand ages, we investigated the density, height and basal area of stems and biomass at their different aged stands of the riparian zone of the sand-bed stream, the Nakdong River, Korea. We also developed allometric equations for estimating the biomass of these two species by establishing the relationship between diameter at breadth height and tree height with above-ground biomass. The stem density showed a sharp decrease for 3 years after germination for S. subfragilis and 6 years for S. chaenomeloides, resulting in strong self-thinning. The stem height of the two species increased to 7.5 m in 15 years for S. subfragilis, and to 14 m in 13 years for S. chaenomeloides. Aboveground biomass also increased rapidly at the early stage of growth. The biomass increased to 17 ton DM/ha in 13 years for S. subfragilis and to 1,110 ton DM / ha in 13 years for S. chaenomeloides. It is expected that the allometric equations of two Salix species derived from this study will be applied to the objectively estimating the biomass of willow plants for the management of floodplain trees in streams.

• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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• v.99 no.1
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• pp.153-162
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• 2010

Abies holophylla Maxim. is a shade tolerant species that has potential to be used for continuous cover forestry system. Stand structure and natural regeneration of A. holophylla stands in Yong-In area located in the central part of Korea was investigated to estimate the self sustainability of A. holophylla plantation. Species composition, diameter at breast height (DBH) and height distribution of trees larger than 2 cm DBH were measured in ten stands in three study sites of Jeongsu-ri, Daedae-ri, and Hodong. Species and coverage of shrub layer, and A. holophylla seedlings were also investigated. While A. holophylla in non-managed stands (Jengsuri and Daedae-ri study sites) had the importance value of 40% and showed continuous diameter and age distribution, A. holophylla in Hodong site had narrow bell-shaped DBH distribution mostly concentrating between 25-35 cm DBH classes, and single canopy structure. Abies holophylla stands in Hodong have experienced occasional thinning and selective cutting. The correlation coefficient between age-DBH was significant but low ($R^2$=0.2, P=0.03), and similar aged A. holophylla had diverse DBH values. Continuos DBH distribution and multi-canopy structure of A. holophylla stands in Jeongsu-ri site show that natural regeneration of A. holophylla has been continuously occurred in this area. Seedling density of A. holophylla was between 2000 and 33000/ha, however, the number of trees in 2-5 cm DBH class was only 40-150 trees/ha, implying that the survival rate of seedlings is not high. Continuous natural regeneration and 0.6 cm/year of diameter growth rate of A. holophylla indicate that this area could be an appropriate habitat for this species, and A. holophylla plantation in this region seem to persist suggesting the possibility of managing the stands for continuous cover forestry system as well as selective harvesting practices.