Running head: Sustainability Framework Applied to Integrated Resort 1 International Standard of Sustainability Framework Applied to Integrated Resorts

Purpose The purpose of this study is to explore the extent to which Las Vegas integrated resorts apply measurement framework for sustainability. It will scrutinize and explore the existing sustainability strategies and practices, and look into several plausible ways to improve the sustainability movement that the companies in hospitality industry currently have. The paper will also look into the tracking and measuring system in consuming resources and the equivalent common actions taken by the management of the hospitality companies. From there, the paper will discuss the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) guideline and establish if the companies have aligned their efforts with the given parameter. Lastly, it will tackle and identify means worth turning into action, and the suggestions as to how sustainability efforts can be accelerated and implemented well

Laparoscopic Surgical Management and Clinical Characteristics of Ovarian Fibromas

Ovarian fibromas may be misdiagnosed as uterine myoma or ovarian malignant tumor. Laparoscopic examination appears to be an effective and safe surgical approach for managing ovarian fibromas

A New On-The-Move Integer Ambiguity Determination Method for Precise Positioning of Highly Maneuvering Ground Vehicles

In the conventional RTK (Real Time Kinematics), carrier phase measurements should be collected for several minutes in stationary state in order to determine the IA (Integer Ambiguity) in carrier phase to get the precise position. To determine the IA in motion, several OTM-RTK (On-The-Move RTK) methods have been proposed using vehicle dynamics or augmenting additional sensors. This paper presents a new OTM-RTK technique to determine the IA without aids of external sensors for precise positioning of highly maneuvering ground vehicles. In the proposed technique, the initial IA is determined fast by estimating precise position change during epochs using dual frequency carrier phase measurements. Therefore, IA determination of the proposed method is not influence by vehicle dynamics. By field experiment, performance of the proposed technique is analyzed including IA determination time according to vehicle dynamics and the number of visible SV

Excess cost of non-remission among outpatients with major depressive disorder

Background: The purpose of this study was to assess the economic benefit of achieving remission among outpatients with major depressive disorder (MDD) who are currently employed in Korea. Methods: Cross-sectional observational study. A total of 337 outpatients with MDD with paid jobs were recruited from 14 psychiatric clinics in Korea and were then divided into three groups as follows: new visit group (n = 128), remitted group (n = 100) and non-remitted group (n = 109). The 17-item Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D) was used to decide whether a patient should be assigned to the remitted or non-remitted group. Direct medical and non-medical costs were measured via interview with the subjects. The World Health Organization Health and Work Performance Questionnaire (HPQ) were applied in order to measure the lost productive time (LPT) and related productivity costs. Results: The three groups did not show a significant difference in direct medical cost. However, the difference between the remitted group and non-remitted group was statistically significant (25.49 ± 52.99 vs. 44.79 ± 126.55, χ2 = 12.99, p = 0.0015). The remitted group demonstrated a significant improvement in productivity (particularly presenteeism) when compared with the new visit group (Z = −3.29, p = 0.001). Although the non-remitted group received treatment at psychiatric clinics similar to the remitted group, it lost 33 more working hours per month, which is compatible to $332 per month. Conclusion: These results suggest the economic importance of achieving remission in treating depression

High-yield exfoliation of three-dimensional graphite into two-dimensional graphene-like sheets

Edge-functionalized graphite (EFG) is prepared via a "direct'' covalent attachment of organic molecular wedges. The EFG is dispersed in N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone with a concentration as high as 0.27 mg mL(-1), leading to high-yield exfoliation of the three-dimensional graphite into two-dimensional graphene-like sheets.close464

Welfare Genome Project: A Participatory Korean Personal Genome Project With Free Health Check-Up and Genetic Report Followed by Counseling.

The Welfare Genome Project (WGP) provided 1,000 healthy Korean volunteers with detailed genetic and health reports to test the social perception of integrating personal genetic and healthcare data at a large-scale. WGP was launched in 2016 in the Ulsan Metropolitan City as the first large-scale genome project with public participation in Korea. The project produced a set of genetic materials, genotype information, clinical data, and lifestyle survey answers from participants aged 20-96. As compensation, the participants received a free general health check-up on 110 clinical traits, accompanied by a genetic report of their genotypes followed by genetic counseling. In a follow-up survey, 91.0% of the participants indicated that their genetic reports motivated them to improve their health. Overall, WGP expanded not only the general awareness of genomics, DNA sequencing technologies, bioinformatics, and bioethics regulations among all the parties involved, but also the general public's understanding of how genome projects can indirectly benefit their health and lifestyle management. WGP established a data construction framework for not only scientific research but also the welfare of participants. In the future, the WGP framework can help lay the groundwork for a new personalized healthcare system that is seamlessly integrated with existing public medical infrastructure

The Korean Organ Transplantation Registry (KOTRY): an overview and summary of the kidney-transplant cohort

Background As the need for a nationwide organ-transplant registry emerged, a prospective registry, the Korean Organ Transplantation Registry (KOTRY), was initiated in 2014. Here, we present baseline characteristics and outcomes of the kidney-transplant cohort for 2014 through 2019. Methods The KOTRY consists of five organ-transplant cohorts (kidney, liver, lung, heart, and pancreas). Data and samples were prospectively collected from transplant recipients and donors at baseline and follow-up visits; and epidemiological trends, allograft outcomes, and patient outcomes, such as posttransplant complications, comorbidities, and mortality, were analyzed. Results From 2014 to 2019, there were a total of 6,129 registered kidney transplants (64.8% with living donors and 35.2% with deceased donors) with a mean recipient age of 49.4 ± 11.5 years, and 59.7% were male. ABO-incompatible transplants totaled 17.4% of all transplants, and 15.0% of transplants were preemptive. The overall 1- and 5-year patient survival rates were 98.4% and 95.8%, respectively, and the 1- and 5-year graft survival rates were 97.1% and 90.5%, respectively. During a mean follow-up of 3.8 years, biopsy-proven acute rejection episodes occurred in 17.0% of cases. The mean age of donors was 47.3 ± 12.9 years, and 52.6% were male. Among living donors, the largest category of donors was spouses, while, among deceased donors, 31.2% were expanded-criteria donors. The mean serum creatinine concentrations of living donors were 0.78 ± 0.62 mg/dL and 1.09 ± 0.24 mg/dL at baseline and 1 year after kidney transplantation, respectively. Conclusion The KOTRY, a systematic Korean transplant cohort, can serve as a valuable epidemiological database of Korean kidney transplants

Vasorelaxing Activity of Ulmus davidiana Ethanol Extracts in Rats: Activation of Endothelial Nitric Oxide Synthase

Ulmus davidiana var. japonica Rehder (Urticales: Ulmaceae) (UD) is a tree widespread in northeast Asia. It is traditionally used for anticancer and anti-inflammatory therapy. The present study investigated the effect of an ethanol extract of UD on vascular tension and its underlying mechanism in rats. The dried root bark of UD was ground and extracted with 80% ethanol. The prepared UD extract was used in further analysis. The effect of UD on the cell viability, vasoreactivity and hemodynamics were investigated using propidium iodide staining in cultured cells, isometric tension recording and blood pressure analysis, respectively. Low dose of UD (10~100µg/ml) did not affect endothelial cell viability, but high dose of UD reduced cell viability. UD induced vasorelaxation in the range of 0.1~10µg/ml with an ED50 value of 2µg/ml. UD-induced vasorelaxation was completely abolished by removal of the endothelium or by pre-treatment with L-NAME, an inhibitor of nitric oxide synthase. UD inhibited calcium influx induced by phenylephrine and high K+ and also completely abolished the effect of L-NAME. Intravenous injection of UD extracts (10~100 mg/kg) decreased arterial and ventricular pressure in a dose-dependent manner. Moreover, UD extracts reduced the ventricular contractility (+dP/dt) in anesthetized rats. However, UD-induced hypotensive actions were minimized in L-NAME-treated rats. Taken together, out results showed that UD induced vasorelaxation and has antihypertensive properties, which may be due the activation of nitric oxide synthase in endothelium

Catalytic ozone oxidation of benzene at low temperature over MnOx/Al-SBA-16 catalyst

The low-temperature catalytic ozone oxidation of benzene was investigated. In this study, Al-SBA-16 (Si/Al = 20) that has a three-dimensional cubic Im3m structure and a high specific surface area was used for catalytic ozone oxidation for the first time. Two different Mn precursors, i.e., Mn acetate and Mn nitrate, were used to synthesize Mn-impregnated Al-SBA-16 catalysts. The characteristics of these two catalysts were investigated by instrumental analyses using the Brunauer-Emmett-Teller method, X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and temperature-programmed reduction. A higher catalytic activity was exhibited when Mn acetate was used as the Mn precursor, which is attributed to high Mn dispersion and a high degree of reduction of Mn oxides formed by Mn acetate than those formed by Mn nitrate

Impact of Reducing the Procedure Time on Thromboembolism After Coil Embolization of Cerebral Aneurysms

Background: There is still controversy regarding which procedure-related factors affect the occurrence of periprocedural thromboembolism. This study aimed to investigate which procedure-related risk factors can be modified to prevent adverse thromboembolic events after coil embolization of intracranial aneurysm.Methods: Using a single-center database, we retrospectively identified a consecutive series of patients with symptomatic and asymptomatic cerebral aneurysms treated with coil embolization. We evaluated the following procedure-related factors: procedure time, procedure methods (simple coiling, stent-assisted coiling, and use of multiple microcatheters), and number of coils inserted. The primary outcome was the development of thromboembolism before and after coil embolization confirmed by diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) irrespective of the location of the procedure. Pearson's chi-square, Student's t-test, multivariable logistic regression analysis, and sensitivity analysis with multinomial logistic regression analysis were used in the statistical analyses.Results: Of 180 cases enrolled, 146 (81.1%) had evidences of thromboembolism confirmed by DWI, and 13 (7.2%) had neurologic symptoms. Among the documented modifiable procedure-related factors, every 10 min increase in the procedure time was independently associated with the risk of thromboembolism, after adjusting the analysis (adjusted odds ratio 1.11; 95% confidence interval 1.01–1.21). The coiling methods, use of multiple catheters, and number of coils inserted did not change the effect of the procedure time on thromboembolic events (p for interactions > 0.05).Conclusion: This study showed that the procedure time might be the most effective modifiable factor for reducing thromboembolic events irrespective of the procedure methods used during coil embolization of cerebral aneurysms