Value Discount of Business Groups Surrounding the Asia Financial Crisis: Evidence from Korean Chaebols

Asian Financial Crisis, Business Group, Chaebol, Diversification, Firm Value

Concrete Crack Identification Using a UAV Incorporating Hybrid Image Processing

Crack assessment is an essential process in the maintenance of concrete structures. In general, concrete cracks are inspected by manual visual observation of the surface, which is intrinsically subjective as it depends on the experience of inspectors. Further, it is time-consuming, expensive, and often unsafe when inaccessible structural members are to be assessed. Unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) technologies combined with digital image processing have recently been applied to crack assessment to overcome the drawbacks of manual visual inspection. However, identification of crack information in terms of width and length has not been fully explored in the UAV-based applications, because of the absence of distance measurement and tailored image processing. This paper presents a crack identification strategy that combines hybrid image processing with UAV technology. Equipped with a camera, an ultrasonic displacement sensor, and a WiFi module, the system provides the image of cracks and the associated working distance from a target structure on demand. The obtained information is subsequently processed by hybrid image binarization to estimate the crack width accurately while minimizing the loss of the crack length information. The proposed system has shown to successfully measure cracks thicker than 0.1 mm with the maximum length estimation error of 7.3%

The factors that influence the passenger's satisfaction towards Malaysia Airlines catering service

Service quality has become a centerpiece for airline companies in vying with one another and keeps their image in the minds of passengers.Many airlines have pushed service quality from the viewpoint of retaining satisfied passengers and attracting new ones.Besides those, in-flight catering is another important aspect of the airline operation.This study reports the outcomes of the investigation on in-flight meals/food attributes toward passengers’ level of satisfaction and re-flying intention. Taste, freshness, appearance of in-flight meals served and menu choices are important to the airlines passengers especially for the long haul flight

Complete genome sequence of Mycobacterium tuberculosis K from a Korean high school outbreak, belonging to the Beijing family

Mycobacterium tuberculosis K, a member of the Beijing family, was first identified in 1999 as the most prevalent genotype in South Korea among clinical isolates of M. tuberculosis from high school outbreaks. M. tuberculosis K is an aerobic, non-motile, Gram-positive, and non-spore-forming rod-shaped bacillus. A transmission electron microscopy analysis displayed an abundance of lipid bodies in the cytosol. The genome of the M. tuberculosis K strain was sequenced using two independent sequencing methods (Sanger and Illumina). Here, we present the genomic features of the 4,385,518-bp-long complete genome sequence of M. tuberculosis K (one chromosome, no plasmid, and 65.59 % G + C content) and its annotation, which consists of 4194 genes (3447 genes with predicted functions), 48 RNA genes (3 rRNA and 45 tRNA) and 261 genes with peptide signals.

Coexistence of 5G with satellite services in the millimeter-wave band

In this study, a new method is proposed to confirm the possibility of coexistence between the existing satellite services and potential fifth-generation (5G) cellular services in the millimeter-wave band according to the frequency-designation agenda of International Mobile Telecommunications (IMT)-2020 for 5G. To evaluate the accumulated interference power of numerous 5G systems distributed globally at a satellite receiver, we extend the satellite's interference reception area to the entire coverage area, from which only the land area is extracted using the geospatial terrain data of Earth in three dimensions. This enables more accurate interference assessment than conventional methods that only consider the footprint of the satellite's 3-dB beamwidth. We also place the IMT-2020 (5G) systems in the coverage area using the IMT-2020 parameters and modeling documents for the International Telecommunication Union's coexistence study. The propagation loss is modeled considering the clutter loss, building entry loss, and attenuation from atmospheric gases. Subsequently, we analyze the interference power received by a fixed satellite service (FSS) satellite operating in the same band and an Earth exploration satellite service (EESS) passive sensor operating in an adjacent channel. Our simulation shows that the FSS satellite receives up to 7.9dB more interference than that obtained from the existing method. Although this is a substantial difference, we find that the protection criteria is still satisfied. However, all EESS passive sensors do not meet the protection criteria in most scenarios, and additional frequency separation or interference mitigation techniques are required to protect these sensors. The proposed method is also applicable to the analysis of non-terrestrial network interference from airships, balloons, unmanned aerial vehicles, etc

The Expression of AGO2 and DGCR8 in Idiopathic Sudden Sensorineural Hearing Loss

ObjectivesThe microRNAs have been implicated in the development and function of the inner ear, especially in contribution to hearing. However, the impact of idiopathic sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHL) on expression of miRNA biogenesis-related components has not been established. To investigate the regulations of microRNA (miRNA) biogenesis-related components, argonaute 2 (AGO2) and DiGeorge syndrome critical region gene 8 (DGCR8) mRNA expression in SSNHL and to evaluate the value of clinical parameters on their expression.MethodsThirty-seven patients diagnosed with SSNHL and fifty-one healthy volunteers were included in this study. We measured mRNA expression levels of AGO2 and DGCR8 in whole blood cells but erythrocytes of patients with SSNHL and controls, using reverse transcription and real-time polymerase chain reaction analysis.ResultsThe mRNA expression level of AGO2 is upregulated in SSNHL. The expression level of AGO2 was significantly correlated with that of DGCR8 in both patients with SSNHL and controls. Expression level of AGO2 in SSNHL was correlated with white blood cell counts.ConclusionThis study demonstrated for the first time that the AGO2 mRNA expression level was upregulated in SSNHL, suggesting its important role in pathobiology of SSNHL development

Importância dos Saca-Rabos (Herpestes Ichneumon) como Reservatório de Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis. Deteção por Técnicas Tradicionais e Moleculares

Poster apresentado nas IV Jornadas de Genética, realizadas na UTAD, Vila Real, nos dias 1,2 e 3 de Março de 2012.Os saca-rabos (Herpestes ichneumon) também conhecidos por mangustos, são carnívoros diurnos selvagens que juntamente com a geneta (Genetta genetta) representam os exemplares da família Viverridae em Portugal. É uma espécie cinegética de caça menor que se alimenta de coelhos, roedores, aves, cobras, insectos e ovos. Neste estudo colheram-se amostras de 8 animais mortos por atropelamento e em ações de controlo de predadores, durante os anos de 2010 e 2011, nos concelhos de Idanha-a-Nova e Penamacor do distrito de Castelo Branco. As amostras colhidas foram fígado, pulmão, baço, intestino, rim, gânglio mesentérico, retrofaríngeo, mediastínico, amígdalas e fezes. As amostras foram submetidas à técnica de PCR e a cultura microbiológica em meios específicos. Em três saca-rabos (37,5%) detectou-se Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (Map) através da técnica de biologia molecular. Dois eram machos e um era fêmea. Map foi confirmado também em cultura nos dois machos. Sete saca-rabos (87,5%) apresentaram bactérias álcool-ácido resistentes compatíveis com Map em esfregaços de diferentes tecidos, quando corados pelo método de Ziehl-Neelsen. Estes resultados preliminares confirmam os saca-rabos como reservatório de Map no nosso país. Atualmente, estão a ser desenvolvidos mais estudos para a avaliação dos saca-rabos na dinâmica da infeção de Map em mamíferos selvagens