• Journal of agricultural medicine and community health
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• v.39 no.3
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• pp.176-186
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• 2014

Objectives: As a sequel to the former analysis of the quality of life (QoL) among young-old and old-old in Korea, this research was aimed to identify factors related to the quality of life and the gender difference after controlling for the related factors among Korean elderly. Methods: Selected elderly data of 1,339 subjects from the 5th Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey conducted in 2010 was analyzed. In this survey, QoL was measured using Euro Quality of Life (EQ-5D) instrument. Data were analyzed using complex survey data analysis on IBM-SPSS 20.0. The related factors were identified using general linear models with backward elimination. The gender difference was tested also using general linear models. Results: The distributions of educational level, family income level, and presence of cohabitant were different between male and female elderly in both young-old and old-old age group. So were the health behaviors and perceived health, and experience of stress, depression, and suicidal thoughts. QoL and its subscales- mobility, self care, daily living, pain and discomfort, and anxiety and depression- were consistently better among male elderly regardless of age group. Among the variables considered, education, family income level, presence of cohabitant, perceived health, age group and BMI were found to be related to the QoL at p=.05, and presence of chronic diseases at p=.10. The difference in QoL between male and female elderly after controlling for the variables was statistically significant. Conclusion: Improving QoL is particularly important for the elderly. In order to improve QoL of the elderly, age- and gender- differences need to be considered when developing services and programs for the elderly.

• Journal of dental hygiene science
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.73-80
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• 2008

The purpose of this study was to examine the health promotion behavior of dental hygiene students in boosting a university student health. The subjects in this study were 687 dental hygiene students in four different colleges in Gyeonggi province. A survey was conducted in September and October 2007, and the collected data were analyzed with SPSS 12.0 program. The findings of the study were as follows: 1. The he freshmen scored lowest in oral health care behavior($3.11{\pm}.57$), and the gap between them and the others was statistically significant (p < .001). 2. In regard to health promotion behavior, the students who found themselves not to be in good shape scored lower in terms of nutritional care($3.63{\pm}.63$), social support($2.43{\pm}.60$), responsibility for their own health($2.40{\pm}.68$) and esteem for their own lives($2.33{\pm}.51$). There were statistically significant differences between them and the others(p < .001, p < 0.01). 3. As to the relationship of the academic background of parents to health promotion behavior, the students whose fathers stopped at middle school($3.62{\pm}.52$) lagged behind most in terms of nutritional (p < .001), and those whose mothers stopped at middle school($2.52{\pm}.52$) were given the smallest social support. The gap between these groups and the others were statistically significant(p < .05). 4. The self-boarding students($3.66{\pm}.57$) fall behind most in the aspect of nutritional care, and there was a statistically significant gap between them and the others(p < .001). 5. The students whose monthly mean household income was one million won or less($2.42{\pm}.62$) valued their own lives least, and the gap between them and the others was statistically significant(p < .05). 6. As for correlation among the variables, stronger social support led to better reverence for life, and better esteem for life was concurrent with better stress management. There was a statistically significant relationship between those variables(p < .01).

• Journal of KIISE:Computer Systems and Theory
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• v.33 no.3
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• pp.157-165
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• 2006

The change of external/internal factors of the cell rquires specific biological functions to maintain life. Such functions encourage particular genes to jnteract/regulate each other in multiple ways. Accordingly, we applied a linear decomposition model IFSA, which derives hidden variables, called the 'expression mode' that corresponds to the functions. To interpret gene interaction/regulation, we used a cross-correlation method given an expression mode. Linear decomposition models such as principal component analysis (PCA) and independent component analysis (ICA) were shown to be useful in analyzing high dimensional DNA microarray data, compared to clustering methods. These methods assume that gene expression is controlled by a linear combination of uncorrelated/indepdendent latent variables. However these methods have some difficulty in grouping similar patterns which are slightly time-delayed or asymmetric since only exactly matched Patterns are considered. In order to overcome this, we employ the (IFSA) method of [1] to locate phase- and shut-invariant features. Membership scoring functions play an important role to classify genes since linear decomposition models basically aim at data reduction not but at grouping data. We address a new function essential to the IFSA method. In this paper we stress that IFSA is useful in grouping functionally-related genes in the presence of time-shift and expression phase variance. Ultimately, we propose a new approach to investigate the multiple interaction information of genes.

• Journal of Bio-Environment Control
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.34-39
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• 2018

This research was conducted to estimate moisture content in cucurbitaceae seedlings, such as cucumber and watermelon, using hyperspectral imagery. Using a hyperspectral image acquisition system, the reflectance of leaf area of cucumber and watermelon seedlings was calculated after providing water stress. Then, moisture content in each seedling was measured by using a dry oven. Finally, using reflectance and moisture content, the moisture content estimation models were developed by PLSR analysis. After developing the estimation models, performance of the cucumber showed 0.73 of $R^2$, 1.45% of RMSE, and 1.58% of RE. Performance of the watermelon showed 0.66 of $R^2$, 1.06% of RMSE, and 1.14% of RE. The model performed slightly better after removing one sample from cucumber seedlings as outlier and unnecessary. Hence, the performance of new model for cucumber seedlings showed 0.79 of $R^2$, 1.10% of RMSE, and 1.20% of RE. The model performance combined with all samples showed 0.67 of $R^2$, 1.26% of RMSE, and 1.36% of RE. The model of cucumber showed better performance than the model of watermelon. This is because variables of cucumber are consisted of widely distributed variation, and it affected the performance. Further, accuracy and precision of the cucumber model were increased when an insignificant sample was eliminated from the dataset. Finally, it is considered that both models can be significantly used to estimate moisture content, as gradients of trend line are almost same and intersected. It is considered that the accuracy and precision of the estimating models possibly can be improved, if the models are constructed by using variables with widely distributed variation. The improved models will be utilized as the basis for developing low-priced sensors.

• Journal of the Ergonomics Society of Korea
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• v.36 no.3
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• pp.183-196
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• 2017

Objective: The purpose of this research was to assess the agreement between job physical risk factor analysis by ergonomists using ergonomic methods and physical examinations made by occupational physicians on the presence of musculoskeletal disorders of the upper extremities. Background: Ergonomics is the systematic application of principles concerned with the design of devices and working conditions for enhancing human capabilities and optimizing working and living conditions. Proper ergonomic design is necessary to prevent injuries and physical and emotional stress. The major types of ergonomic injuries and incidents are cumulative trauma disorders (CTDs), acute strains, sprains, and system failures. Minimization of use of excessive force and awkward postures can help to prevent such injuries Method: Initial data were collected as part of a larger study by the University of Utah Ergonomics and Safety program field data collection teams and medical data collection teams from the Rocky Mountain Center for Occupational and Environmental Health (RMCOEH). Subjects included 173 male and female workers, 83 at Beehive Clothing (a clothing plant), 74 at Autoliv (a plant making air bags for vehicles), and 16 at Deseret Meat (a meat-processing plant). Posture and effort levels were analyzed using a software program developed at the University of Utah (Utah Ergonomic Analysis Tool). The Ergonomic Epicondylitis Model (EEM) was developed to assess the risk of epicondylitis from observable job physical factors. The model considers five job risk factors: (1) intensity of exertion, (2) forearm rotation, (3) wrist posture, (4) elbow compression, and (5) speed of work. Qualitative ratings of these physical factors were determined during video analysis. Personal variables were also investigated to study their relationship with epicondylitis. Logistic regression models were used to determine the association between risk factors and symptoms of epicondyle pain. Results: Results of this study indicate that gender, smoking status, and BMI do have an effect on the risk of epicondylitis but there is not a statistically significant relationship between EEM and epicondylitis. Conclusion: This research studied the relationship between an Ergonomic Epicondylitis Model (EEM) and the occurrence of epicondylitis. The model was not predictive for epicondylitis. However, it is clear that epicondylitis was associated with some individual risk factors such as smoking status, gender, and BMI. Based on the results, future research may discover risk factors that seem to increase the risk of epicondylitis. Application: Although this research used a combination of questionnaire, ergonomic job analysis, and medical job analysis to specifically verify risk factors related to epicondylitis, there are limitations. This research did not have a very large sample size because only 173 subjects were available for this study. Also, it was conducted in only 3 facilities, a plant making air bags for vehicles, a meat-processing plant, and a clothing plant in Utah. If working conditions in other kinds of facilities are considered, results may improve. Therefore, future research should perform analysis with additional subjects in different kinds of facilities. Repetition and duration of a task were not considered as risk factors in this research. These two factors could be associated with epicondylitis so it could be important to include these factors in future research. Psychosocial data and workplace conditions (e.g., low temperature) were also noted during data collection, and could be used to further study the prevalence of epicondylitis. Univariate analysis methods could be used for each variable of EEM. This research was performed using multivariate analysis. Therefore, it was difficult to recognize the different effect of each variable. Basically, the difference between univariate and multivariate analysis is that univariate analysis deals with one predictor variable at a time, whereas multivariate analysis deals with multiple predictor variables combined in a predetermined manner. The univariate analysis could show how each variable is associated with epicondyle pain. This may allow more appropriate weighting factors to be determined and therefore improve the performance of the EEM.

• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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• v.98 no.6
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• pp.733-739
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• 2009

This study was carried out to analyze the relationship between major climatic factors (monthly temperature, precipitation) and radial growth of Korean Pine (Pinus koraiensis) in Inje-gun(Mt. Seorak), Sanchung-gun and Namwon-si(Mt. Jiri). Radial growth measurements were crossdated and correlated with climate variables. The climatic factors used were monthly mean temperature and monthly precipitation from August of previous year to September of the current year. In Inje-gun, radial growth was negatively correlated with monthly mean temperature in April, May, June, and August of the current year and was positively correlated with precipitation in August, October of the previous year and in April, August of the current year. Sanchung-gun showed a negative correlation with monthly mean temperature in September of the previous year and August of the current year but positive correlation in January of the current year. In contrast, precipitation in September of the previous year and August of the current year showed a positive influence. The results suggest that high temperature together with low precipitation may thus cause water stress and thereby limit radial growth in this region. In Namwon-si, the climategrowth relationships show that radial growth was negatively correlated with monthly mean temperature in August, October of the previous year and June of the current year. But August of the previous year and May, August of the current year in precipitation was positively correlated with radial growth. In the study areas, precipitation plays an important role for the radial growth of Kroean Pine (Pinus koraiensis). The results suggest that precipitation is important in the radial growth because water deficit in trees would take place in response to high temperature in the study area. Also there was some differences with study areas in the effects of both climatic variables probably as a result of different stand structure and geographical conditions and micro-climate.

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.48 no.6
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• pp.519-529
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• 2015

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine the prevalence of food insecurity in Korean elderly and to analyze the health status as well as food and nutrient intakes according to food insecurity status. Methods: A total of 939 elderly subjects (over 65 years old) were used in our analysis from the fifth 2010 Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES V-1). The variables consisted of general characteristics, physical and mental health, nutrient intake, rate of deficient intake of energy and nutrients compared with Dietary Reference Intakes for Koreans (KDRIs) and food quality and diversity according to the status of food insecurity. Food insecurity status was measured using a self-reported food security questionnaire on the dietary situation in the previous year, and participants were classified according to three groups: food secure group, mildly food insecure group, and moderately/severely food insecure group. Results: The proportion of the food insecure group was approximately 67% and the food insecure group had lower income and educational status than the food secure group. Food insecurity was associated with worse physical and mental health status after adjusting potentially confounding variables. The results showed that food insecurity in Korean elderly significantly affected mental health (including stress cognition, depression experience, and suicide thoughts) which exceeded stages of physical health. In addition, food insecurity showed significant association with low nutrient intake and high rate of deficient intakes of energy and nutrients compared with KDRIs, and a reduction of dietary quality and diversity was indicated in the food insecure group. Conclusion: This study concludes that the prevalence of food insecurity may affect the physical and mental health as well as dietary intake of the elderly Korean population. Therefore, food insecurity should be considered as an important public health issue in Korea.

• Korean Journal of Psychosomatic Medicine
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.17-25
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• 2021

Objectives : This study aimed to investigate quality of life, severity of depression, suicidality, subjective health and subjective stress of depression with subjective cognitive decline in Korean adults. Methods : We used the 7th KNHANES data to enroll 415 participants with a score of 10 or higher on Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), aged 20-64. Depression was divided into two groups based on the presence/absence of subjective cognitive decline. Demographic and psychological characteristics were compared between two groups. Correlation analysis of subjective cognitive decline, quality of life, depression, suicidal idea was carried out. To detect which variables influenced quality of life, a multiple regression analysis was carried out. Results : Among the 415 participants, 98 had depression with subjective cognitive decline. We identified significant differences in age, marital status, education, employment between the two groups. After adjusting for these variables, depression with subjective cognitive decline had lower EuroQol-5D index scores, more severe depressive symptoms without cognition and worse subjective health than depression without cognitive decline. There was a significant correlation between subjective cognitive decline and quality of life (r=-0.236, p<0.001), suicidal idea (r=0.182, p<0.001), depression score without cognition (r=0.108, p=0.028). Through multiple regression analysis, subjective cognitive decline was predictor of reduced quality of life (β=-0.178, p<0.001). Conclusions : Depression with subjective cognitive decline has poor quality of life and severe depression. Cognitive decline should be considered to improve treatment result in depression.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare
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• v.58 no.4
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• pp.141-168
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• 2006

The present study explored and compared the risk factors of two subtypes of maritally violent men with those of a nonviolent comparison group. One type of batterers consisted of a community sample, and the other was sought from the criminal justice system. The identities of the male community batterers were not exposed to the society since their victims did not contact any of the social service agents related to domestic violence. To identify the different characteristics associated with two subtypes of woman abusers, a total of 152 nonviolent men, 82 male community batterers, and 336 offenders in a criminal justice system were considered. The results of the descriptive analysis showed that the level of physical violence of the community batterers was two times lower than that of the batterers who received legal punishments. The results of the multinominal logistic regression were as follows: (1) The variables that distinguished the male community batterers from the nonviolent men were the use of physical violence towards children, marital decision power, and income. (2) Four factors had been found to distinguish batterers in the criminal justice system from nonbatterers, namely: attitudes towards woman battering, education, violence towards children, and level of jealousy. (3) The community batterers showed a higher level of education and of stress as well as a longer period of marital relationship compared to the batterers in the criminal justice system. On the other hand, the batterers who received legal punishments had more severe alcohol problems and had an accepting attitude towards the use of violence. This study also investigated psychopathology among batterers using MCMI-III, based on 333 subjects. In terms of the mean scores, there were no subscales associated with personality pathology in all the male groups. Based on the logit model, the community batterers showed a stronger tendency towards having a passive-aggressive personality than did their counterparts, and they recorded a higher level of narcissism compared to the court-referred battering men. Post-traumatic stress was the only symptom that distinguished the batterers who received legal punishments from the other groups. The theoretical and practical implications of these results were pointed out and discussed in the paper.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.13 no.11
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• pp.1619-1637
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• 2000

A review was undertaken to obtain information on the range of beak-trimming methods available or under development. Beak-trimming of commercial layer replacement pullets is a common yet critical management tool that can affect the performance for the life of the flock. The most obvious advantage of beak-trimming is a reduction in cannibalism although the extent of the reduction in cannibalism depends on the strain, season, and type of housing, flock health and other factors. Beak-trimming also improves feed conversion by reducing food wastage. A further advantage of beak-trimming is a reduction in the chronic stress associated with dominance interactions in the flock. Beak-trimming of birds at 7-10 days is favoured by Industry but research over last 10 years has shown that beak-trimming at day-old causes the least stress on birds and efforts are needed to encourage Industry to adopt the practice of beak-trimming birds at day-old. Proper beak-trimming can result in greatly improved layer performance but improper beak-trimming can ruin an other wise good flock of hens. Re-trimming is practiced in most flocks, although there are some flocks that only need one trimming. Given the continuing welfare scrutiny of using a hot blade to cut the beak, attempts have been made to develop more welfare friendly methods of beak-trimming. Despite the developments in design of hot blade beak-trimmers the process has remained largely unchanged. That is, a red-hot blade cuts and cauterises the beak. The variables in the process are blade temperature, cauterisation time, operator ability, severity of trimming, age of trimming, strain of bird and beak length. This method of beak-trimming is still overwhelmingly favoured in Industry and there appears to be no other alternative procedures that are more effective. Sharp secateurs have been used trim the upper beak of both layers and turkeys. Bleeding from the upper mandible ceases shortly after the operation, and despite the regrowth of the beak a reduction of cannibalism has been reported. Very few differences have been noted between behaviour and production of the hot blade and cold blade cut chickens. This method has not been used on a large scale in Industry. There are anecdotal reports of cannibalism outbreaks in birds with regrown beaks. A robotic beak-trimming machine was developed in France, which permitted simultaneous, automated beak-trimming and vaccination of day-old chicks of up to 4,500 chickens per hour. Use of the machine was not successful because if the chicks were not loaded correctly they could drop off the line, receive excessive beak-trimming or very light trimming. Robotic beak-trimming was not effective if there was a variation in the weight or size of chickens. Capsaicin can cause degeneration of sensory nerves in mammals and decreases the rate of beak regrowth by its action on the sensory nerves. Capsaicin is a cheap, non-toxic substance that can be readily applied at the time of less severe beak-trimming. It suffers the disadvantage of causing an extreme burning sensation in operators who come in contact with the substance during its application to the bird. Methods of applying the substance to minimise the risk to operators of coming in contact with capsaicin need to be explored. A method was reported which cuts the beaks with a laser beam in day-old chickens. No details were provided on the type of laser used, or the severity of beak-trimming, but by 16 weeks the beaks of laser trimmed birds resembled the untrimmed beaks, but without the bill tip. Feather pecking and cannibalism during the laying period were highest among the laser trimmed hens. Currently laser machines are available that are transportable and research to investigate the effectiveness of beak-trimming using ablasive and coagulative lasers used in human medicine should be explored. Liquid nitrogen was used to declaw emu toes but was not effective. There was regrowth of the claws and the time and cost involved in the procedure limit the potential of using this process to beak-trim birds.