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This prospective study aimed to investigate microvascular changes in diabetic patients undergoing cataract surgery. Foveal avascular zone (FAZ) area, as well as vessel density (VD) in the macula and radial peripapillary capillary plexus (RPC), were compared before and after surgery. Sixty eyes (72.3%) had no diabetic retinopathy (no DR group) and 23 eyes (27.7%) had non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy (DR group). In the no DR group, the FAZ area in the superficial capillary plexus (SCP) decreased from 0.41 ± 0.13 to 0.38 ± 0.11 mm2 (P = 0.036), while no significant change was observed in the DR group (0.33 ± 0.12 to 0.30 ± 0.12 mm2, P = 0.091) at 6 months postoperatively. VD in the RPC increased from 34.4 ± 2.3% to 35.6 ± 2.3% in the no DR group (P = 0.009), but there was no significant change in the DR group (33.0 ± 3.5% vs. 34.0 ± 2.3%, P = 0.051) after 6 months. VD in the macula did not change in either group. Phacoemulsification reduced the FAZ area in the SCP and increased the VD in the RPC in diabetic patients without diabetic retinopathy at six months postoperatively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of escalating the dosage of intravitreal brolucizumab in patients with refractory neovascular age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Methods: This retrospective study included 17 eyes of 17 patients with refractory AMD treated with high-dose brolucizumab (12 mg/0.1 ml) for over 12 months. Patients initially received at least one anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (anti-VEGF) agent and were switched to standard-dose brolucizumab (6 mg/0.05 ml). Those who showed a suboptimal response to standard-dose treatment had their dosage of brolucizumab escalated. Results: Visual acuity was maintained from 68.3 ± 3.4 letters to 70.7 ± 3.2 letters after 12 months of high-dose treatment (P = 0.128). Central subfield thickness was 343.7 ± 17.0 μm before high-dose treatment and 316.7 ± 18.5 μm at 12 months (P = 0.083). The proportions of patients with subretinal fluid and serous pigment epithelial detachment significantly decreased from 82.4% to 41.2% and from 52.9% to 17.6%, respectively, after high-dose treatment (P = 0.039 and P = 0.031, respectively). The treatment interval extended from 7.2 ± 2.4 weeks to 10.2 ± 2.2 weeks after switching to standard-dose brolucizumab (P < 0.001) and was maintained at 13.5 ± 2.8 weeks after increasing the dose (P = 0.154). No severe ocular adverse events were observed. Conclusions: High-dose brolucizumab was effective in patients who did not respond to standard-dose brolucizumab after switching from previous anti-VEGF agents. Increasing the dosage could offer sustained disease control and reduce the treatment burden for patients with refractory AMD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article discusses the surgical approach and outcomes for the removal of juvenile nasopharyngeal angiofibromas (JNAs), which are benign but locally invasive tumors. The authors describe a graduated multi-angle, multi-corridor endoscopic approach that allows for safe resection of JNAs with low rates of morbidity. The study reviewed 15 cases and found that the use of multiple corridors increased surgical freedom and efficiency. All patients achieved gross total resection, although two patients experienced delayed tumor recurrence. The authors conclude that an individualized, tailored approach is effective for JNAs and can be customized based on the tumor's location and anatomical compartments. [Extracted from the article]

The hypercube is one of the best models for the network topology of a distributed system. Recently, Padovan cubes and Lucas–Padovan cubes have been introduced as new interconnection topologies. Despite their asymmetric and relatively sparse interconnections, the Padovan and Lucas–Padovan cubes are shown to possess attractive recurrent structures. In this paper, we determine the cube polynomial of Padovan cubes and Lucas–Padovan cubes, as well as the generating functions for the sequences of these cubes. Several explicit formulas for the coefficients of these polynomials are obtained, in particular, they can be expressed with convolved Padovan numbers and Lucas–Padovan numbers. In particular, the coefficients of the cube polynomials represent the number of hypercubes, a symmetry inherent in Padovan and Lucas–Padovan cubes. Therefore, cube polynomials are very important for characterizing these cubes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to investigate the clinical features and risk factors of uveitis in Korean children with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA). The medical records of JIA patients diagnosed between 2006 and 2019 and followed up for ≥1 year were retrospectively reviewed, and various factors including laboratory findings were analyzed for the risk of developing uveitis. JIA-associated uveitis (JIA-U) developed in 30 (9.8%) of 306 JIA patients. The mean age at the first uveitis development was 12.4 ± 5.7 years, which was 5.6 ± 3.7 years after the JIA diagnosis. The common JIA subtypes in the uveitis group were oligoarthritis-persistent (33.3%) and enthesitis-related arthritis (30.0%). The uveitis group had more baseline knee joint involvement (76.7% vs. 51.4%), which increased the risk of JIA-U during follow-up (p = 0.008). Patients with the oligoarthritis-persistent subtype developed JIA-U more frequently than those without it (20.0% vs. 7.8%; p = 0.016). The final visual acuity of JIA-U was tolerable (0.041 ± 0.103 logMAR). In Korean children with JIA, JIA-U may be associated with the oligoarthritis-persistent subtype and knee joint involvement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present a new interconnection topology called the Padovan cube. Despite their asymmetric and relatively sparse interconnections, the Padovan cubes are shown to possess attractive recurrent structures. Since they can be embedded in a subgraph of the Boolean cube and can have a Fibonacci cube as a subgraph, and since they are also a supergraph of other structures, it is possible that the Padovan cubes can be useful in fault-tolerant computing. For a graph with n vertices, we characterize the Padovan cubes. We also include the number of edges, decompositions, and embeddings, as well as the diameter of the Padovan cubes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Investigation into ZIF-8 as CO2 adsorbent in non-isothermal PSA. • Dynamic model investigated effects of adsorption time, CH4/CO2 ratio, and Length/diameter ratio. • Central composite design highlighted and optimized synergetic effects of studied parameters. • BioCH4 production via ZIF-8 in PSA recorded 99.93% methane purity, 96.5% recovery. • Optimal parameters: CH4/CO2 ratio 2.06, length/diameter 2.76, adsorption time 115 s. The growing interest in biomethane (bioCH 4) as a sustainable replacement for conventional fossil fuels highlights the urgency to develop efficient CO 2 capture methods from raw biogas, thereby enhancing the value of this renewable fuel source. This study investigates the efficacy of ZIF-8 as an adsorbent for CO 2 capture through pressure swing adsorption (PSA) under non-isothermal conditions. ZIF-8 was synthesized and characterized using SEM, BET, FTIR, and XRD to understand and confirm its microstructures. A computational model was developed to simulate the dynamic behavior of ZIF-8 during adsorption, incorporating insights from its characterization. The model, based on the extended Langmuir model for multicomponent adsorption, also accounted for adjustments in the adsorption bed geometry. Dynamic simulations were performed employing the Aspen Adsorption platform to assess the impact of key parameters such as the CH 4 /CO 2 ratio, length/diameter ratio, and adsorption time on bioCH 4 purity. Utilizing the Design of Experiments framework, central composite design (CCD), and desirability functions, the interplay of these parameters was optimized to enhance bioCH 4 purity and recovery rates. The optimized PSA system, utilizing ZIF-8, demonstrated impressive purity of 99.93% and recovery of 96.5% at CH 4 /CO 2 ratio of 2.06, a length/diameter ratio of 2.76, and an adsorption time of 115 s. These results meet stringent quality criteria for vehicle fuel, aligning with the most rigorous emission standards. For future investigations, it is crucial to explore the long-term stability and regeneration capabilities of ZIF-8 in large-scale applications. Understanding its practical feasibility and sustainability as an adsorbent for biogas upgrading will provide valuable insights for further advancements in this field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic, elicited by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), is ongoing. Currently accessible antigen-detecting rapid diagnostic tests are limited by their low sensitivity and detection efficacy due to evolution of SARS-CoV-2 variants. Here, we produced and characterized an anti-SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid (N) protein-specific monoclonal antibody (mAb), 2A7H9. Monoclonal antibody 2A7H9 and a previously developed mAb, 1G10C4, have different specificities. The 2A7H9 mAb detected the N protein of S clade, delta, iota, and mu but not omicron, whereas the 1G10C4 antibody recognized the N protein of all variants under study. In a sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, recombinant N protein bound to the 1G10C4 mAb could be detected by both 1G10C4 and 2A7H9 mAbs. Similarly, N protein bound to the 2A7H9 mAb was detected by both mAbs, confirming the existence of dimeric N protein. While the 1G10C4 mAb detected omicron and mu with higher efficiency than S clade, delta, and iota, the 2A7H9 mAb efficiently detected all the strains except omicron, with higher affinity to S clade and mu than others. Combined use of 1G10C4 and 2A7H9 mAb resulted in the detection of all the strains with considerable sensitivity, suggesting that antibody combinations can improve the simultaneous detection of virus variants. Therefore, our findings provide insights into the development and improvement of diagnostic tools with broader specificity and higher sensitivity to detect rapidly evolving SARS-CoV-2 variants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, we aimed to determine the effect of COVID-19 vaccination on 3-month immune response and durability after natural infection by the Omicron variant and to assess the immune response to a fourth dose of COVID-19 vaccination in patients with prior natural infection with the Omicron variant. Overall, 86 patients aged ≥60 years with different vaccination histories and 39 health care workers (HCWs) vaccinated thrice before Omicron infection were enrolled. The sVNT50 titer was significantly lower in patients with incomplete vaccination before SARS-CoV-2 infection with the S clade (p < 0.001), Delta variant (p < 0.001), or Omicron variant (p = 0.003) than in those vaccinated thrice. The sVNT results against the Omicron variant did not differ significantly in patients aged ≥60 years (p = 0.49) and HCWs (p = 0.17), regardless of the recipient receiving the fourth dose 2 months after COVID-19. Incomplete COVID-19 vaccination before Omicron infection for individuals aged ≥60 years conferred limited protection against homologous and heterologous virus strains, whereas two or three doses of the vaccine provided cross-variant humoral immunity against Omicron infection for at least 3 months. However, a fourth dose 2 months after Omicron infection did not enhance immunity against the homologous strain. A future strategy using the bivalent Omicron-containing booster vaccine with appropriate timing will be crucial. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

10.3390/rs13214334 7 Park S.-H., Yoo J., Son D., Kim J., Jung H.-S. Improved Calibration of Wind Estimates from Advanced Scatterometer MetOp-B in Korean Seas Using Deep Neural Network. Lee and Choi [[4]] proposed a daytime cloud detection algorithm using a multi-temporal Geostationary Korea Multi-Purpose Satellite 2A (GEO-KOMPSAT-2A, GK-2A) dataset. 10.3390/rs13214282 9 Park S.-H., Jung H.-S., Lee S., Kim E.-S. Mapping Forest Vertical Structure in Sogwang-ri Forest from Full-Waveform Lidar Point Clouds Using Deep Neural Network. [Extracted from the article]

As we age, humans see natural decreases in muscle force and power which leads to a slower, less efficient gait. Improving mobility for both healthy individuals and those with muscle impairments/weakness has been a goal for exoskeleton designers for decades. In this work, we discover that significant reductions in the energy cost required for walking can be achieved with almost 50% less mechanical power compared to the state of the art. This was achieved by leveraging human-in-the-loop optimization to understand the importance of individualized assistance for hip flexion, a relatively unexplored joint motion. Specifically, we show that a tethered hip flexion exosuit can reduce the metabolic rate of walking by up to 15.2 ± 2.6%, compared to locomotion with assistance turned off (equivalent to 14.8% reduction compared to not wearing the exosuit). This large metabolic reduction was achieved with surprisingly low assistance magnitudes (average of 89 N, ~ 24% of normal hip flexion torque). Furthermore, the ratio of metabolic reduction to the positive exosuit power delivered was 1.8 times higher than ratios previously found for hip extension and ankle plantarflexion. These findings motivated the design of a lightweight (2.31 kg) and portable hip flexion assisting exosuit, that demonstrated a 7.2 ± 2.9% metabolic reduction compared to walking without the exosuit. The high ratio of metabolic reduction to exosuit power measured in this study supports previous simulation findings and provides compelling evidence that hip flexion may be an efficient joint motion to target when considering how to create practical and lightweight wearable robots to support improved mobility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The emergence of the high correlation between type 2 diabetes and obesity with complicated conditions has led to the coinage of the term "diabesity". AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) activators and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPARγ) antagonists have shown therapeutic activity for diabesity, respectively. Hence, the discovery of compounds that activate AMPK as well as antagonize PPARγ may lead to the discovery of novel therapeutic agents for diabesity. In this study, the knockdown of PTPN6 activated AMPK and suppressed adipogenesis in 3T3-L1 cells. By screening a library of 1033 natural products against PTPN6, we found ethyl gallate to be the most selective inhibitor of PTPN6 (Ki = 3.4 μM). Subsequent assay identified ethyl gallate as the best PPARγ antagonist (IC50 = 5.4 μM) among the hit compounds inhibiting PTPN6. Ethyl gallate upregulated glucose uptake and downregulated adipogenesis in 3T3-L1 cells as anticipated. These results strongly suggest that ethyl gallate, which targets both PTPN6 and PPARγ, is a potent therapeutic candidate to combat diabesity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ginkgolic acid (C13:0) (GA), isolated from Ginkgo biloba, is a potential therapeutic agent for type 2 diabetes. A series of GA analogs were designed and synthesized for the evaluation of their structure–activity relationship with respect to their antidiabetic effects. Unlike GA, the synthetic analog 1e exhibited improved inhibitory activity against PTPN9 and significantly stimulated glucose uptake via AMPK phosphorylation in differentiated 3T3-L1 adipocytes and C2C12 myotubes; it also induced insulin-dependent AKT activation in C2C12 myotubes in a concentration-dependent manner. Docking simulation results showed that 1e had a better binding affinity through a unique hydrophobic interaction with a PTPN9 hydrophobic groove. Moreover, 1e ameliorated palmitate-induced insulin resistance in C2C12 cells. This study showed that 1e increases glucose uptake and suppresses palmitate-induced insulin resistance in C2C12 myotubes via PTPN9 inhibition; thus, it is a promising therapeutic candidate for treating type 2 diabetes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates income and price elasticities of residential electricity demand and electricity rebound effect using the annual panel data of 18 European Union countries. Quantile regression results show that income elasticities are higher in lower quantiles, whereas price elasticities are uniform in all quantiles. Three fixed-effect estimators provide consistent results, with the scale of long-run income and price elasticities increasing compared to short-run elasticities. In the short run, the derived elasticities of electricity demand are 0.08 for income and −0.03 for price, whereas in the long run, they are at 1.17 for income and −0.43 for price. In addition, asymmetric price response is observed, estimating the rebound effect in the decomposed price model. Our empirical results suggest that European governments implement policies that accelerate improvements to electricity efficiency and invigorate the retail electricity market, making residential electricity prices more transparent to consumers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Limited evidence-based, interactive, Internet-delivered preoperative preparation programs for children and their parents exist. The purpose of this investigation was to compare the Internet-delivered, preoperative program (I-PPP) in alleviating anxiety in children undergoing outpatient surgery delivered alone (I-PPP) and in conjunction with parental presence (I-PPP + parent) to treatment as usual (TAU). 104 children undergoing day surgery procedures at a local hospital and their parents/guardians participated. Primary outcome measures: (a) observer-rated child anxiety and (b) induction compliance. Results demonstrated an interaction between the I-PPP and TAU groups over time, F(1, 64) = 5.11, p =.027, partial ηp2 =.07. At anesthetic induction, the I-PPP group demonstrated lower observer-rated anxiety than TAU, F(1, 64) = 4.72, p =.034, ηp2 =.07. I-PPP group demonstrated the best anesthesia induction compliance, F(1, 64) = 4.84, p =.031, ηp2 =.07. Our findings demonstrate that the I-PPP is an efficacious preoperative preparation intervention for children. The 'real-world' uptake and integration of the I-PPP into pediatric preoperative settings require exploration going forward. Trial retrospectively registered March 2019 (Open Science Registration https://doi.org/10.17605/osf.io/2x8rg). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Finding and developing a reasonable design for renewable energy certificate (REC) systems is essential for societies to realize their policy goal of establishing optimal renewable energy portfolios and to minimize the controversy that surrounds REC multipliers. However, it is challenging to assess the adequacy of REC multipliers on a logical and quantitative basis. To fill this gap, we develop a levelized cost of electricity (LCOE)-integrated analytic hierarchy process (AHP) model as a quantitative method for identifying and analyzing appropriate REC multipliers. Our model prioritizes cost-effectiveness and social concerns as the two core factors of consideration in determining REC multipliers, and then quantitatively analyzes each using the LCOE and AHP methods. We also present results of analysis applying the proposed model for the Korean REC market. Our findings reflect the renewable energy market conditions and policy objectives in Korea, while revealing related needs such as the long-term policy objective of ensuring stability of power supply. The Korean government recently revised the REC multipliers adopting the results from our model, and in consideration of overall government policy, the diverse interests of stakeholders, and the need to ensure institutional consistency and market stability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Fast pyrolysis of CNS was systematically researched in a bubbling fluidized bed reactor. • Bio-oil from CNS contained a high amount of cardanol monoene and had a high HHV. • Calcined dolomite favored deoxygenation and formation of aromatics and syngas. • Dolomite showed higher CO 2 capture ability at a temperature of 550 °C than at 475 °C. • The dual role of dolomite as catalyst and sorbent in fast pyrolysis was elucidated. A rigorous investigation of characteristic parameters (i.e., pyrolysis temperature, fluidization velocity, and sample particle size) in the fast pyrolysis of cashew nut shells using a bubbling fluidized bed reactor was conducted. The highest liquid yield of 47.87 wt% was obtained for the non-catalytic pyrolysis of cashew nut shells under the following conditions: a temperature of 475 °C, a fluidization velocity of 2.5 times the minimum velocity, and a particle size ranging from 0.45 to 0.71 mm. It was found that the main component of the oil phase was cardanol monoene, and calcined dolomite promoted dehydration, decarboxylation, cracking, and the production of aromatic hydrocarbons and syngas (H 2 and CO). In catalytic pyrolysis with the first-time use of dolomite at 550 °C, the oil phase with the highest heating value of 37.17 MJ/kg was produced, promising as a potential drop-in biofuel. In addition, the carbon capture of dolomite was investigated by analyzing its crystallographic structure, CO 2 desorption behavior, coke oxidation, and changes in elemental content. Accordingly, the catalytic pyrolysis at higher temperatures led to a stronger carbon capture in dolomite. This research has great practical significance in that dolomite is used as a catalyst to improve the quality of pyrolysis bio-oil and as a carbon capture sorbent to mitigate carbon emissions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research has demonstrated the effectiveness and efficacy of the Internet-delivered, preoperative program (I-PPP) in alleviating child anxiety when the I-PPP is completed prior to the day of surgery. However, recent evidence has suggested that preparation on the day of surgery may be an effective option. The objective of this investigation was to explore the effect of the timing of the delivery of the I-PPP (i.e., prior to day of surgery versus day of surgery) on anxiety in children 3-10 years of age undergoing a day surgery procedure. Eighty children undergoing day surgery procedures at a local hospital and their parents/guardians participated. Primary outcome measures were (a) observer-rated child anxiety, (b) induction compliance. For observer-rated child anxiety, results demonstrated a main effect for time of assessment, F(2, 150) = 16.64, p =.001, ηp2 =.18. No group differences were observed nor group by time of assessment interaction. No group differences were observed for induction compliance. Our findings demonstrated that the timing of the delivery of the I-PPP does not influence the experience of child anxiety. However, the I-PPP delivered prior to the day of surgery may be more preferable for families and the intervention setting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Effective biological treatment of marine wastewater is not well-known. Accumulation of nitrogen and phosphorus from land-based effluent is a crucial cause of red-tide in marine systems. The purpose of the study is to reduce nitrogen and phosphorus in marine wastewater with a pilot plant-scale sequencing batch reactor (SBR) system by using marine sediment as eco-friendly and effective biological materials, and elucidate which bacterial strains in sludge from marine sediment influence the performance of SBR. By applying eco-friendly high efficiency marine sludge (eco-HEMS), the treatment performance was 15 m3 d-1 of treatment amount in 4.5 m3 of the reactor with the average removal efficiency of 89.3% for total nitrogen and 94.9% for total phosphorus at the optimal operation condition in summer. Moreover, the average removal efficiency was 84.0% for total nitrogen and 88.3% for total phosphorus in winter although biological treatment efficiency in winter is generally lower due to bacterial lower activity. These results were revealed by the DNA barcoding analysis of 16s rRNA amplicon sequencing of samples from the sludge in winter. The comparative analysis of the bacterial community composition in sludge at the high efficiency of the system showed the predominant genera Psychromonas (significantly increased to 45.6% relative abundance), Vibrio (13.3%), Gaetbulibacter (5.7%), and Psychroserpens (4.3%) in the 4 week adaptation after adding marine sediment, suggesting that those predominant bacteria influenced the treatment performance in winter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Aminobenzoate-defected UiO-66(Zr)–NH 2 was produced by continuous-flow synthesis. • Defective AUiO-66-NH 3 + exhibited enhanced adsorption capacity for NCCs in n -octane. • AUiO-66-NH 3 + pellets treated NCCs effectively under continuous fixed-bed conditions. • The adsorption mechanisms of NCCs onto the adsorbents were revealed. In this work, imperfection UiO-66-NH 2 frameworks (AUiO-66-NH 2) were engineered and scalably produced by a continuous flow method with the assistance of 4-aminobenzoate (ABA) modulators. ABA modulators competed with MOF ligands to bond to Zr4+ clusters under continuous flow conditions, producing AUiO-66-NH 2 frameworks containing aminobenzoate linkers and ligand-missing defects. The average ligand deficiency per Zr 6 unit of defective AUiO-66(Zr)–NH 2 framework ranged from 0.75 ∼ 2.36 upon changing ABA/H 2 N-BDC molar ratio and reaction temperature, thereby adjusting their porosity and exposing more metal open sites of Zr4+. The batch removal of N-containing compounds (NCCs), including quinoline (QUN) and 2-methyl pyrrole (MPR) in n -octane indicated that the ABA-modulated UiO-66-NH 2 samples had improved adsorption capability compared to the perfect MOF. Noticeably, the adsorption performances were further enhanced by protonating 2.5AUiO-66-NH 2 to 2.5AUiO-66-NH 3 + owing to the synergetic effects of acid-base interaction, H-bonds, cation-π interactions, and π-π stacking interactions between adsorbent and adsorbate. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations further revealed that the NCCs preferably accumulated onto the protonated AUiO-66-NH 3 + rather than AUiO-66-NH 2. The AUiO-66-NH 3 + exhibited adsorbing capacities of ∼204 mg/g and ∼275 mg/g for MPR and QUN, respectively, and obeyed the pseudo-second-order kinetic model. Finally, the continuous fixed-bed adsorptions of these NCCs in model fuel over the AUiO-66-NH 3 + pellets (3 mm × 6 mm) showed that 1.0 g of adsorbent can purify with ∼28 L and ∼49 L liquid fuel containing MPR and QUN with a concentration of 1 mg L−1. These state that combining continuous-flow synthesis and defect engineering of the UiO-66-NH 2 could be a promising strategy to produce efficient adsorbent materials for upgrading liquid fuel. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vehicle emissions are largely determined by the details of driving behaviours. Accordingly, emissions are often estimated by integrating micro-scale emission models into traffic simulations. Under this approach, it is essential to replicate the actual traffic situation being considered in an emission evaluation using a proper calibration procedure. Most previous research with respect to traffic flow has primarily focused on adjusting the complex combinations of parameters evaluated in these models, but it is not guaranteed that the use of widely used calibration measures can lead more accurate emissions estimates. Accordingly, we propose a systematic guideline for calibration to ensure reliable micro-scale emissions estimates. A calibration procedure is thus established in this paper based on various measure of effect (MOE) compositions (i.e., calibration levels) consisting of aggregated traffic data to identify the level that most reliably estimates micro-scale emissions. Five calibration levels of progressively more detailed measurements are first defined, valid calibration levels are identified, and the reliable calibration level is finally selected based on the available traffic data. The effect of vehicle type (i.e., light vs. heavy vehicles) composition on the estimated emissions is also evaluated for a well-calibrated simulation. We expect that a highly reliable estimation of emissions is possible using this more detailed traffic simulation calibration measurement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Microporous ZIF-8 membrane has great potential to separate propylene from propane effectively by molecular sieving due to the theoretical ZIF-8 aperture of 0.4 nm, which lies in between the kinetic diameter of propylene (0.4 nm) and propane (0.43 nm). In this work, defect free ZIF-8 membranes were successfully developed from the secondary growth seeding technique with sodium formate as deprotonating agent that facilitated a continuous, well-intergrown ZIF-8 crystal layer on α-Al 2 O 3 support. The defects formed by the crack formation in the membrane were steadily removed by the uniquely discovered rapid recrystallization property. The ZIF-8 membranes demonstrated excellent molecular sieve separation capability for equal molar propylene/propane mixture with the highest separation factor of 115 and average propylene permeance of 50.40 × 10−10 mol/m2 s Pa. Image 1 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Most ophthalmologists appear to have no distinct preference between unilateral recess-resect (R&R) and bilateral lateral rectus (BLR) recessions to treat basic-type exotropia. This study aimed to determine whether differences in distance-near discrepancy and resultant exotropia types of recurrent exotropia following surgery for primary basic-type exotropia exist between the two surgical options. Methods: Ninety-three patients with recurrent exotropia following BLR recessions for basic-type exotropia (BLR group) and 95 following R&R for basic-type exotropia (R&R group) were included in this retrospective study. The exotropia types in recurrent exotropia were classified into three types according to distance-near discrepancy: basic, divergence-excess, and convergence-insufficiency. The BLR and R&R groups were compared. Results: After surgery for basic-type exotropia, the type composition changed differently in each group (p < 0.001). The basic-type of primary exotropia was more often maintained in recurrent exotropia in the R&R group than in the BLR group. The incidence of postoperative convergence-insufficiency type exotropia in the BLR group was 28.0% and 8.4% in the R&R group (p = 0.001). Postoperative near stereopsis and fusion control grade of distance deviation did not differ between the two groups (p > 0.05). Conclusions: Convergence-insufficiency type recurrent exotropia occurred more frequently after BLR recessions than after R&R for basic-type exotropia. The high rate of secondary convergence-insufficiency type exotropia after BLR recessions should be considered when clinicians select a surgical option to treat exotropia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • Methods to assess an energy rebound effect are reviewed. • Our new approach to assess rebound effect considers the factors of production. • Energy rebound effect in Korea is investigated. • The estimation result of our model is more plausible than one of previous model. Abstract Our paper presents a new approach to estimating the macroeconomic growth energy rebound effect. Utilizing data envelopment analysis, our suggested methodology, unlike the standard macroeconomic growth rebound effect estimation, considers other factors of production. Through an output-oriented data envelopment analysis, optimal economic growth is derived considering all factors of production. The difference between the optimal economic growth and actual economic growth represents information on energy overspending. This overspent energy directly equates to the macroeconomic growth energy rebound effect. For the empirical case study, time-series data of economic growth and factors of production, demonstrated by energy supply, capital stocks, and labor force, are collected for the period of 1971 to 2012 in Korea. While the energy rebound effect results using the standard approach to estimating macroeconomic growth energy rebound effect are in the vicinity of 100%, our empirical results show that there is a 1% rebound effect in most of the years. Our method is plausible since our results show that the energy rebound effect is high when the economy is in recession or energy prices are shocked. That is, energy, one of the factors of production, is wasted from an economic viewpoint, which is consistent with the definition of energy rebound effect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study investigated the effects of dietary supplementation of multienzyme preparation on growth performance, apparent total tract digestibility (ATTD) of nutrients, and gut health of weaned pigs. A total of 240 weaned pigs (initial body weight: 7.3 ± 0.7 kg) were randomly allotted to five treatments on the basis of body weight. The dietary treatments included a corn-soybean meal (SBM)-based diet supplemented with 0 (control), 0.025, 0.050%, 0.075%, or 0.10% multienzyme preparation. The experimental diets were fed in a meal form for two phases (d 0-14, phase I and d 15-28, phase II). Increasing multienzyme supplementation linearly improved overall (d 0-28) average daily gain, gain:feed, and ATTD of dry matter, gross energy, and crude protein. At d 21, pigs fed dietary increasing levels of multienzyme preparation had linearly greater Lactobacillus spp. (ileum and caecum and faeces) and fewer Clostridium spp. (ileum and caecum) and Escherichia coli (ileum and faeces) populations. On d 28, villus height of the jejunum and ileum were linearly increased with dietary increase in multienzyme preparation. In conclusion, this multienzyme has potential to improve the growth performance, ATTD of nutrients, and gut health of weaned pigs fed a corn-SBM-based diet in the absence of antibiotics growth promoters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Google Trends is a service based on big data that shows the frequency of global searches in real time. As an index of individual interest, Google Trends has been used in various research fields. This study estimates the relationship between household electricity consumption and individuals' interest in energy based on Google Trends data. In particular, from the viewpoint of renewable energy, we compare the relationship between electricity consumption and the “renewable” Google Trends keyword with that between electricity consumption and other keywords. A model is constructed to examine the effect on household consumption of substituting electricity with renewable energy. We find that household electricity consumption decreases by 16.017 million kWh for every one unit increase in search of the “renewable” keyword. This study therefore illustrates that Google Trends enables the estimation of driving factors that are difficult to uncover when analyzing with various economic indicators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To evaluate the comparative effects and safety of topical diclofenac sodium, fluorometholone, and dexamethasone for controlling inflammation after routine strabismus surgery.Methods: This was a randomized clinical trial. Ninety-nine patients admitted for surgery to treat intermittent exotropia were randomly assigned to receive 1 of 3 postoperative eye drops between January 2015 and February 2016. The primary efficacy outcomes were pain and conjunctival injection. Pain score from 0 to 10 was evaluated in each patient at postoperative days 1, 2, 3, and 5, in addition to weeks 1, 2, and 4. Conjunctival injection was graded from 1 to 4 at postoperative weeks 1, 2, and 4. We also evaluated intraocular pressure (IOP), discomfort attributed to the drops, and development of any other side effects.Results: Conjunctival injection grade was the lowest in the diclofenac sodium group at postoperative weeks 1 and 2 (P < 0.001 and P = 0.03). There was no significant difference in pain score among the 3 groups. Mean IOP was the highest in the dexamethasone group at postoperative weeks 1, 2, and 4 (P < 0.001, P < 0.001, and P = 0.02). Significant IOP elevation (≥10 mmHg relative to preoperative IOP) was observed in 6 patients in the dexamethasone group. There was no difference in discomfort upon administration of the drops among the 3 groups, and no other adverse events developed.Conclusion: Diclofenac sodium was more effective against conjunctival injection than the 2 topical corticosteroids tested, but had a similar effect on postoperative pain as them. IOP elevation developed only in the dexamethasone group. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose. To compare the eyelid pressure between patients with functional nasolacrimal duct obstruction (FNLDO) and normal controls using blepharo-tensiometer, and to evaluate the relationship between eyelid pressure and the outcomes of silicone intubation (SI) in patients with FNLDO. Study design. Prospective case-control study. Methods. We enrolled 36 eyes of 36 patients with suspected FNLDO who underwent SI and 36 healthy eyes of age-matched controls. One eye of each patient with FNLDO was randomly selected for analysis. The eyelid pressure was estimated using a blepharo-tensiometer and compared between the control and FNLDO groups. The relationship between eyelid pressure and clinical variables was analyzed. The outcomes of SI were assessed at 6 months after surgery using subjective and objective criteria. Results. The eyelid pressure was significantly lower in the FNLDO group than in the control group P=0.008. In the control group, the eyelid pressure was correlated with age P<0.001 and lower eyelid laxity P=0.016. In the FNLDO group, the eyelid pressure was only correlated with age P<0.001. The success rate of SI for FNLDO was 69.4% (25 of 36 eyes). The eyelid pressure was higher in the surgical success subgroup than in the failure subgroup, although the difference was not statistically significant P=0.08. Conclusions. Our results suggest that the eyelid pressure measured using a blepharo-tensiometer has a diagnostic value since it is decreased in patients with FNLDO. The role of eyelid pressure as a possible predictor of the outcomes of SI for FNLDO should be investigated in further studies. This trial is registered with KCT0002828. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the determinants of carbon emissions based on energy consumption, analyzing the data of 30 countries using nuclear energy for the period 1990–2014. Renewable energy and nuclear energy consumption are adopted as determinants, and real coal price and real GDP are used as additive variables. The panel cointegration analysis and Granger causality tests are conducted to investigating the relationship among the variables. First, the panel cointegration test results suggest that long-run equilibrium relationship exists among carbon emissions, renewable energy consumption, and nuclear energy consumption. The results of the long-run cointegrating vector and Granger causality tests indicate that nuclear energy does not contribute to carbon reduction unlike renewable energy. Thus, the development and expansion of renewable, not nuclear, energy are essential to prevent global warming. Though there is a concern that rising energy prices caused by the expansion of renewable energy may impact the economy negatively, our empirical results also imply that renewable energy consumption will promote economic growth. In other words, our evidence shows that using and expanding renewable energy is both economically and ecologically beneficial. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Amorphous In-Ga-Zn-O experiences device instability in thin-film transistors (TFTs) due to the vulnerability of oxide channel materials under ambient conditions. Nitrogenation of In-Ga-Zn-O TFTs by partial oxygen substation of nitrogen was performed to enhance stability. The nitrogenated In-Ga-Zn-O thin films were deposited under plasma conditions involving nitrogen gas molecules. The TFT stability was tested under various conditions of temperature, illumination, time, and sweeping. Despite the minor weakness at elevated operation temperature, the nitrogenated In-Ga-Zn-O TFTs exhibited superior tolerance against sweeping operations in TFT devices, illumination, and time-dependent degradation. The improved stability is attributed to the incorporation of nitrogen into In-Ga-Zn-O via oxygen vacancy and its corresponding interface trap improvement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The deployment of electric vehicles (EVs) is rapidly progressing worldwide, and energy efficiency is an important indicator for both the economy and the environment. It is necessary to verify whether EVs are more energy efficient than internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles. However, studies have yet to evaluate the energy efficiency of EVs using the data envelopment analysis (DEA) approach. To fill this research gap, this paper evaluated the energy efficiency of EVs for road passenger transportation using a slacks-based measure (SBM) approach in six European countries from 2012 to 2018. EVs have been separated from the entire transport sector and compared to ICE vehicles. In the case of EVs that use electricity as fuel, the primary energy supply must be used as energy input to reflect conversion loss during power generation. The primary energy supply was calculated by applying the power generation efficiency of each country for use as an energy input to reflect conversion loss. EVs were more energy efficient than ICE vehicles in four out of six countries but less energy efficient in two countries. Based on the measured slack results, the potential energy savings were quantified, and the main factors in reducing energy efficiency were identified. • The energy efficiency of EVs for road passenger transportation was analyzed. • A SBM model based on DEA was used for this analysis for the first time. • Primary energy supply was used as an input to reflect the energy conversion loss. • EVs were more efficient than ICE vehicles in Belgium, Germany, Norway, and the UK. • Large labor force (Greece) and energy consumption (Italy) led to low EV efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While Deep Neural Network (DNN) models for ship maneuvering model are commonly constructed using experimental model ships or simulation data, this study focuses on training four Non-parameter Ship maneuvering Network models (NSM_Net_models) by using real ship voyage data, then evaluating their performance by comparison. To support the data-driven approach, real ship voyage data is collected from the Voyage Data Recorder (VDR) system of a training ship. Along with this, the input variables of the models are enhanced by incorporating the past movement history of ships. Furthermore, the impact of three different durations of past ship motion history on the models' performance is compared and analyzed. The results suggest the feasibility and practical application value of the ship maneuvering motion model built by the deep network. • Described a data-driven approach to developing Deep Neural Network (DNN) network models using real ship voyage data collected from the VDR system of a training ship. • Four different network-based models were developed, and their performance was compared and analyzed. • The models also incorporated past ship movement history as input to improve their accuracy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, hybrid poplars were genetically engineered to increase their biomass volume and change their biochemical composition to improve the pyrolytic production of bio-oil. Wild-type hybrid poplars (WT) and genetically engineered hybrid poplars (TP) were comparatively investigated with regard to their pyrolysis characteristics and kinetics via thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and isothermal pyrolysis within a micro-tubing reactor. Model-free methods were used to determine the activation energy for the thermal decomposition of the WT and TP samples. The results showed that the activation energy of the WT sample was always greater than that of the TP sample at the same level of conversion. Isothermal pyrolysis experiments of the two biomass samples were performed at various temperatures (360–400 °C) and durations (1–5 min) using a micro−tubing reactor. The pyrolytic product distributions and chemical compositions were compared. The obtained results showed that the TP sample yielded a higher quantity of bio-oil compared to the WT sample under the same conditions with different chemical compositions. A reaction network and quantitative kinetic model were proposed for pyrolysis of the WT and TP samples. Kinetic parameters were obtained through an optimization function and used to explore the parameter space in order to predict product yields as a function of reaction time and temperature for both WT and TP feedstocks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Kim, J.; Choi, J.; Choi, C., and Hwang, C., 2017. Forecasting the potential effects of climatic and land-use changes on shoreline variation in relation to watershed sediment supply and transport. This study investigated the potential effects of future climatic and land-use changes on sediment supply and shorelines in the Hoeya River estuary, Korea. Historical shoreline variations were determined along Jinha and Solgae Beaches for the period 1975-2013 using the Digital Shoreline Analysis System. Sediments during future periods were simulated in this watershed under the Representative Concentration Pathways 4.5 and 8.5 scenarios using the soil and water assessment tool model. Subsequently, this study analyzed the correlations between the beaches and the sediment supply. For the natural beaches BS-I (0.805) and BS-II (0.700) in 1975-2013, the river-supplied sediment was closely correlated to shoreline changes. The area of beach sediment for future periods was assessed based on R-squared values. The artificial beach BS-III (0.203), which had remained relatively stable in 1975-92, showed shoreline erosion following this period. This beach is now artificially supplied with sediment because of a training dike. In 1986, because of the presence of a dam, a decrease in the discharge volume of suspended solids from the watershed caused a clear erosional trend in artificial beach BS-IV (0.432) from 1975. Artificial activity in the study area has caused major changes to the shoreline, but the R-squared values are relatively low. In the future, the area of the natural beach will increase during spring and winter and will decrease during summer and autumn. Furthermore, these seasonal trends in future periods may be amplified by seasonal variability in the wave direction. These results are expected to improve the understanding of shoreline changes that contribute to sediment supply and transport in river watersheds, which has significant implications for the effective management of the coastal environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • CTAB-modified UiO-67(Zr) exhibited enhanced porosity via creating ligand-missing defects. • Defective Cu+@UiO-67 achieved CO adsorption capacity of 2.91 mmol g−1 and selectivity of 318 at 27 °C and 100 kPa. • Cu+@UiO-67 effectively separated CO under dynamic flow mixture conditions. • Defective Cu+@UiO-67 adsorbent had good renewability. The Cu+-based π-complex adsorbent is a promising material for storing and separating carbon monoxide (CO) from various industrial gas emission sources. Herein, defective Cu+@UiO-67(Zr) materials were developed and exploited for the adsorptive separation of CO. First, a defective UiO-67(Zr) framework was prepared using cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) as a modulator (UiO-67-CT). Then, Cu2+ was reduced to defective UiO-67(Zr)-CT at 150 °C to obtain Cu+@UiO-67-CT adsorbents. Results indicated that CTAB-created UiO-67 contained defects with the ligand deficiency of ca. ∼ 2.05 per Zr 6 unit, enhancing their porosity and giving beneficiation for loading Cu+. The gas adsorption experiments showed that the Cu+@UiO-67-CT adsorbents exhibited enhanced CO adsorption compared to the parent MOF, and their adsorption ability depends on the Cu+ load. The optimal 25Cu+@UiO-67-CT had CO uptake capacity and CO/N 2 selectivity of ca. ∼ 2.91 mmol g−1 and ∼ 318 at 100 kPa and 27 °C, respectively, exceeding many reported adsorbents, such as CuCl/Al 2 O 3 , CuCl/MCM-41, CuZSM-5, and Cu(I)/polymer. Furthermore, the prepared defective Cu+@UiO-67-CT showed good CO/N 2 separation under dynamic flow mixture conditions. The study provides a strategy for developing efficient π-complex adsorbents for CO recovery and separation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Synthesis of a metal-organic-framework (MOF) has been gaining increasing interest due to the interesting characteristics and far-reaching functionalities of the material. In this work, a stable pentaethylenehexamine (PEHA) grafted onto microporous structure of MOF-199 was engineered to enhance the CO 2 adsorption under repeated cycles. The composition, morphology and structural analyses of the developed adsorbents were performed. Results from XPS, FT-IR, and EDX analyses confirmed successful grafting of the amine groups (-NH 2) into the MOF-199 macro and meso-structures which helped to increase the adsorbent affinity for CO 2 considerably. Experimental CO 2 and N 2 adsorption at 278 K indicated that there was an increased CO 2 uptake from 2.12 mmol/g (using pristine MOF-199) to 5.95 mmol/g (using PEHA modified MOF-199) with enhanced CO 2 /N 2 selectivity from 36.4 to 71.4. At 298 K and 100 kPa, the adsorption capacity reduced to 4.25 mmol/g but the selectivity increased exponentially to 391.9. The improved performance was sustained even after five successive adsorption−desorption swings due to its high structural integrity. A stable pentaethylenehexamine (PEHA) modified microporous MOF-199 was successfully prepared for CO 2 capture. The grafting of the amine groups (-NH 2) into the MOF-199 macro and meso-structures helped to increase the adsorbent affinity for CO 2 considerably, from merely 2.12 mmol/g to 5.95 mmol/g with enhanced CO 2 /N 2 selectivity from 36.4 to 71.4. At 298 K and 100 kPa, the adsorption capacity reduced to 4.25 mmol/g but the selectivity increased exponentially to 391.9. [Display omitted] • PEHA/MOF-199 was engineered to enhance CO 2 adsorption under repeated cycles. • CO 2 uptake increased to 5.95 mmol/g with enhanced CO 2 /N 2 of 71.4 • CO 2 increase was induced by electrostatic interactions and quadrupole moments. • 5 Å tetrahedral cavity of paddle wheel structure further facilitated CO 2 capture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, trona buffer was used to mitigate the previously reported inhibition effect of CO 2 , SO 2 , NO, and HCl gases in combustion flue gases for the growth of Nannochloris sp. Culture medium with trona buffer after absorbing CO 2 (g) contains high dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) concentration that can help maximize the growth and alleviate the inhibition effect as long as the pH of the medium is controlled at an optimum pH (pH ∼7–8) window for the growth of Nannochloris sp. A supply of high purity CO 2 (g) did not inhibit the growth. The acid gaseous constituents including SO 2 , NO, and HCl gases did not significantly reduce the growth as compared to the results previously reported. This study suggests that trona buffer can be effectively used for microalgae cultivation as biological CO 2 remediation when it is considered being integrated into a coal-fired power plant after wet flue gas desulfurization system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, the potential applicability of the modified Shuisheng-4 culture medium with Na 2 CO 3 buffer for CO 2 (g) capture and the resultant CO 2 -rich solution was investigated for the autotrophic growth of Nannochloris sp. Na 2 CO 3 solution after absorbing CO 2 (g) controlled at pH ∼7–8 contains high dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC = HCO 3 − + CO 2 (aq)) concentration in water applicable to both open and closed systems and the pH is suitable for the growth. High DIC concentration was also found to enhance the autotrophic growth rate when the Na + concentration is ∼ <120 mM. However, the tolerance of a marine green alga, Nannochloris sp., to Na + ion was found to be twice as much as that of a freshwater green alga, Chlorella vulgaris . Therefore, it is anticipated that Na 2 CO 3 buffer solution has potential for better CO 2 utilization for the mutual benefit of microalgae-derived biomass production and carbon recycle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Quantifying the sources of change in energy use by decomposition can provide policymakers with useful information, especially for Korea, which has energy-intensive industries such as steel and petrochemicals. In this article, intermediate energy demand is analyzed using a four-part structural decomposition model. The proposed model can distinguish a structure effect from the Leontief effect. From the results, a noticeable structure effect is observed from 1995 to 2005. Moreover, the results show that the Leontief effect can be estimated oppositely according to energy demand sector. Consequently, this article shows the necessity of investigating intermediate demand when analyzing energy use applying a decomposition analysis method. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

We have recently developed very precise carbon-interspaced antiscatter grids having a wide range of grid strip densities ( i.e. , 85–234 lines/in.) by adopting the sawing process, depending on the demands of specific imaging modalities. However, because grid strips of the recently developed grids are mostly invisible through X-ray nondestructive testing due to their high strip densities, quality assurance in the manufacturing has not yet satisfactorily made. In this work, we proposed a pragmatic method to measure actual grid strip densities over the Nyquist sampling rate based on the moiré pattern analysis. We prepared several samples of the carbon-interspaced grids having nominal grid strip densities of 85, 103, 130, 150, 178, 203, 215, and 234 lines/in. and measured their strip densities by using the proposed method to demonstrate its viability assessment. The differences between the nominal and the measured grid strip densities were less than about 1.8%, indicating the proposed method is useful for the quality assurance in grid manufacturing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, a potential applicability of a modified Shuisheng-4 culture medium with trona buffer for CO(g) capture and the resultant CO-rich solution was investigated for the autotrophic growth of Nannochloris sp. Trona is an inexpensive naturally-occurring mineral with high solubility in water. Trona solution after absorbing CO(g) controlled at pH ~7 ~ 8 contains high dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) concentration in water applicable to both open and closed systems and the pH is suitable for the growth. High DIC concentration was also found to enhance the autotrophic growth rate when the Na concentration is ~ < 0.12 M. However, the tolerance of a marine green alga, Nannochloris sp., to Na ion was found to twice as much as that of a freshwater green alga, Chlorella vulgaris. Therefore, it is anticipated that trona buffer solution has potential for better CO utilization for the mutual benefit of microalgae-derived biofuels production and carbon recycle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Following the unconventional gas revolution, the forecasting of natural gas prices has become increasingly important because the association of these prices with those of crude oil has weakened. With this as motivation, we propose some modified hybrid models in which various combinations of the wavelet approximation, detail components, autoregressive integrated moving average, generalized autoregressive conditional heteroskedasticity, and artificial neural network models are employed to predict natural gas prices. We also emphasize the boundary problem in wavelet decomposition, and compare results that consider the boundary problem case with those that do not. The empirical results show that our suggested approach can handle the boundary problem, such that it facilitates the extraction of the appropriate forecasting results. The performance of the wavelet-hybrid approach was superior in all cases, whereas the application of detail components in the forecasting was only able to yield a small improvement in forecasting performance. Therefore, forecasting with only an approximation component would be acceptable, in consideration of forecasting efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The horticulture and stockbreeding sectors are the highest energy consumers in the Korean agriculture industry. Reducing this consumption would be useful given that non-renewable resources account for 70.3% of the source of this energy. We apply the fuzzy analytic hierarchy process with the benefits, opportunities, costs, and risks (BOCR) approach to select an optimal heating facility for the horticulture and stockbreeding sectors in Korea. We set 11 factors based on the BOCR approach and evaluate six heating options that use either fossil fuels or renewable energy (oil-fired boiler, coal-fired boiler, electricity heater, geothermal heat pump, aero-thermal heat pump, and wood pallet-fired boiler). From the energy and agricultural experts׳ perspectives, the geothermal heat pump is selected as the most appropriate heating source. While it requires the highest initial investment cost of all the options, the geothermal heat pump earned high scores on most other factors. Moreover, the aero-thermal heat pump and the wood pallet-fired boiler, which run on renewable energy, also scored relatively well. However, the oil-fired boiler, which currently has the predominant share of heating facilities in these sectors, ranked the lowest. The results show that the Korean government׳s energy policies regarding the agriculture industry have resulted in a distorted resource allocation. Thus, it would be prudent to phase out the tax exemption on petroleum products and discounts on electricity provided to this industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A model for the autotrophic growth of Chlorella vulgaris ( C. vulgaris ) under photolimitation and photoinhibition in cylindrical photobioreactor was developed by taking into account the interactions between the biomass concentration and light intensity. The growth kinetic model for a batch system was developed by coupling the light distribution under photolimitation and photoinhibition effects with the biomass growth with respect to incident light intensity on the surface of the reactor. The developed model could successfully simulate the specific growth rates, light intensity distribution in the reactor, average light intensities, and biomass concentrations at a given incident light intensity with good accuracy. The prediction of the cell density primarily depended on the determination of the parameters included in the specific growth rate expression, which is a function of the light intensity distribution. Despite the limitation of the semi-empirical specific growth rate expression, the coupled model could predict the biomass growth in different reactor sizes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A radiometric characterization of the Korea Multi-Purpose Satellite (KOMPSAT) Series multispectral imagery was performed by the Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI) and the Pukyong National University Remote Sensing Group (PKNU RSG). This paper presents a vicarious radiometric calibration performed by KARI and PKNU RSG in 2012 and 2014. Correlations between top-of-atmosphere (TOA) radiances and the spectral band responses of the KOMPSAT-3 sensors at Zuunmod, Mongolia and Goheung, South Korea, were significant for multispectral bands. KOMPSAT-3 calibration coefficients for all bands estimated in 2012 continued to agree well with calibration coefficients estimated in 2014 (within 1.5%). As a result of this study, KARI will update and publish the KOMPSAT-3 multispectral radiometric calibration coefficients as official values. The average difference in TOA reflectance between KOMPSAT-3 and Landsat-8 images over the Libya 4, Libya and Railroad Valley Playa, USA, in the red–green–blue region was under 3%, whereas in the near-infrared band, the TOA reflectance of KOMPSAT-3 was lower than that of Landsat-8 due to the difference in the bandwidths of two sensors. The KOMPSAT-3 sensor includes a bandwidth near 940 nm that can be strongly absorbed by water vapour and therefore displayed low reflectance. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

A novel and simple electromagnetic actuation (EMA) system having a permanent magnet (PM) type micro-robot and external coil pairs is proposed. The micro-robot is composed of PM and the newly proposed EMA system consists of only two coil pairs arranged along x- and y-axis, respectively, allowing different current intensity into each coil to derive torque and thrust force on the horizontal plane. Magnetic fields generated by the EMA system are analyzed through the finite element analysis and numerical results are compared with the theoretical analysis to verify the feasibility of the proposed system. A prototype system is manufactured and its performance is verified by comparison of magnetic flux values. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Soil moisture (SM) is a crucial hydrologic factor that affects the global cycle of energy, carbon, and water, as well as plant growth and crop yield; therefore, an accurate estimate of SM is important for both the global environment and agriculture. Satellite-based SM data have been provided by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)'s Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) and the European Space Agency (ESA)'s Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity (SMOS) satellite missions, but these data are based on passive microwave sensors, which have limited spatial resolution. Thus, detailed observations and analyses of the local distribution of SM are limited. The recent emergence of deep learning techniques, such as rectified linear unit (ReLU) and dropout, has produced effective solutions to complex problems. Deep neural networks (DNNs) have been used to accurately estimate hydrologic factors, such as SM and evapotranspiration, but studies of SM estimates derived from the joint use of DNN and high-resolution satellite data, such as Sentinel-1 and Sentinel-2, are lacking. In this study, we aim to estimate high-resolution SM at 30 m resolution, which is important for local-scale SM monitoring in croplands. We used a variety of input data, such as radar factors, optical factors, and vegetation indices, which can be extracted from Sentinel-1 and -2, terrain information (e.g., elevation), and crop information (e.g., cover type and month), and developed an integrated SM model across various crop surfaces by using these input data and DNN (which can learn the complexity and nonlinearity of the various data). The study was performed in the agricultural areas of Manitoba and Saskatchewan, Canada, and the in situ SM data for these areas were obtained from the Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) Real-time In Situ Soil Monitoring for Agriculture (RISMA) network. We conducted various experiments with several hyperparameters that affected the performance of the DNN-based model and ultimately obtained a high-performing SM model. The optimal SM model had a root-mean-square error (RMSE) of 0.0416 m3/m3 and a correlation coefficient (CC) of 0.9226. This model's estimates showed better agreement with in situ SM than the SMAP 9 km SM. The accuracy of the model was high when the daily precipitation was zero or very low and also during the vegetation growth stage. However, its accuracy decreased when precipitation or the vitality of the vegetation were high. This suggests that precipitation affects surface erosion and water layer formation, and vegetation adds complexity to the SM estimate. Nevertheless, the distribution of SM estimated by our model generally reflected the local soil characteristics. This work will aid in drought and flood prevention and mitigation, and serve as a tool for assessing the potential growth of crops according to SM conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The supply security of fossil fuels is one of the most important policy issues in South Korea. This is because of South Korea’s economic condition, geopolitical status, and lack of energy resources. This study investigates the Korean public’s perceptions of the supply security of fossil fuels using the contingent valuation method. It derives the Korean public’s willingness to pay (WTP) for policy measures that enhance the supply security of fossil fuels, such as overseas energy development and strategic reserves. It also compares the WTP in terms of an increase in taxes on gasoline or diesel with the WTP in terms of an increase in the tax on electricity. The results demonstrate that the WTP will increase if the Korean public’s understanding of the importance of policy measures that boost the supply security of fossil fuels as well as the role of government in implementing these measures are enhanced. The comparison of the WTP shows that the Korean public will be less against an increase in the tax on electricity than an increase in the tax on gasoline or diesel. This is so even though the WTP amount for a tax increase on electricity is smaller than that for a tax increase on gasoline or diesel. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes novel motion modes for a microrobot which enable several driving options during its 2-D locomotion. The robot motion based on conventional methods shows stick–slip phenomena which produce imprecise jerking movement. We solved the imprecise control problem by using the concept of kinetic friction force. Furthermore, we introduced several motion modes that can generate smooth motion under different environments and presented the pros and cons of each motion mode. A motion mode is properly selected depending on the environment or application purpose, and it can exhibit high performance in the execution of the task. The proposed method using a suitable mode of operation of the microrobot has the potential to be applied in various medical fields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Kim, J. and Cho, D., 2014. Policy suggestion and implications for the use and management of bathing beaches. In the Republic of Korea, beaches are the most popular holiday destination; approximately 70 million people visit beaches every year. The maintenance and management of beaches are deemed important because more than 50% of marine activities take place on at beaches. This paper reviews the status of Korean bathing beaches and addresses safety management, environmental pollution, and legal and institutional issues. In addition, policies for sustainable use and the maintenance of bathing beaches as well as the use of marine tourism attractions are proposed. The relevant laws and regulations urgently need to be modified for the effective use and management of bathing beaches. In addition, close cooperation with non-government organizations is needed for the safety management of bathing beaches. Safety measures and education to protect users from hazards such as rip currents and jellyfish, etc. need to be strongly implemented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]