Assessing the Value of Korean School Library Research: A Bibliometric Comparison of Korean and International Journal Papers

This study aimed to assess the value of Korean school library research by comparing Korean and international research on school libraries. To conduct this research, records of international papers indexed by Scopus and domestic papers indexed by the Korean Citation Index (KCI) on school libraries were downloaded. These records were analyzed and compared in terms of publication trends, journals, and author keywords. Approximately, four Korean LIS journals collectively published 39% more papers than the international journals indexed by Scopus, suggesting the substantial contributions made by Korean researchonschool libraries. The unique subtopicsofschool libraries in Korean domestic research were the revitalization of school libraries, reading instruction, curriculum development, library instruction, and the School Library Promotion Act. The results also showed that despite the many papers on school libraries in domestic journals, there was a lack of papers on Korean school libraries in the Scopus database. Consequently, more research is particularly needed for the Korean researchers to effectively share their domestic research with the international academic community

Direct Reprogramming of Rat Neural Precursor Cells and Fibroblasts into Pluripotent Stem Cells

Background: Given the usefulness of rats as an experimental system, an efficient method for generating rat induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells would provide researchers with a powerful tool for studying human physiology and disease. Here, we report direct reprogramming of rat neural precursor (NP) cells and rat embryonic fibroblasts (REF) into iPS cells by retroviral transduction using either three (Oct3/4, Sox2, and Klf4), four (Oct3/4, Sox2, Klf4, and c-Myc), or five (Oct3/4, Sox2, Klf4, c-Myc, and Nanog) genes. Methodology and Principal Findings: iPS cells were generated from both NP and REF using only three (Oct3/4, Sox2, and Klf4) genes without c-Myc. Two factors were found to be critical for efficient derivation and maintenance of rat iPS cells: the use of rat instead of mouse feeders, and the use of small molecules specifically inhibiting mitogen-activated protein kinase and glycogen synthase kinase 3 pathways. In contrast, introduction of embryonic stem cell (ESC) extracts induced partial reprogramming, but failed to generate iPS cells. However, when combined with retroviral transduction, this method generated iPS cells with significantly higher efficiency. Morphology, gene expression, and epigenetic status confirmed that these rat iPS cells exhibited ESC-like properties, including the ability to differentiate into all three germ layers both in vitro and in teratomas. In particular, we found that these rat iPS cells could differentiate to midbrain-like dopamine neurons with a high efficiency. Conclusions/Significance: Given the usefulness of rats as an experimental system, our optimized method would be useful for generating rat iPS cells from diverse tissues and provide researchers with a powerful tool for studying human physiology and disease

Discovery of first-in-class inhibitors of ASH1L histone methyltransferase with anti-leukemic activity

ASH1L histone methyltransferase plays a crucial role in the pathogenesis of different diseases, including acute leukemia. While ASH1L represents an attractive drug target, developing ASH1L inhibitors is challenging, as the catalytic SET domain adapts an inactive conformation with autoinhibitory loop blocking the access to the active site. Here, by applying fragment-based screening followed by medicinal chemistry and a structure-based design, we developed first-in-class small molecule inhibitors of the ASH1L SET domain. The crystal structures of ASH1L-inhibitor complexes reveal compound binding to the autoinhibitory loop region in the SET domain. When tested in MLL leukemia models, our lead compound, AS-99, blocks cell proliferation, induces apoptosis and differentiation, downregulates MLL fusion target genes, and reduces the leukemia burden in vivo. This work validates the ASH1L SET domain as a druggable target and provides a chemical probe to further study the biological functions of ASH1L as well as to develop therapeutic agents

Assessing the Value of Korean School Library Research: A Bibliometric Comparison of Korean and International Journal Papers

This study aimed to assess the value of Korean school library research by comparing Korean and international research on school libraries. To conduct this research, records of international papers indexed by Scopus and domestic papers indexed by the Korean Citation Index (KCI) on school libraries were downloaded. These records were analyzed and compared in terms of publication trends, journals, and author keywords. Approximately, four Korean LIS journals collectively published 39% more papers than the international journals indexed by Scopus, suggesting the substantial contributions made by Korean researchonschool libraries. The unique subtopicsofschool libraries in Korean domestic research were the revitalization of school libraries, reading instruction, curriculum development, library instruction, and the School Library Promotion Act. The results also showed that despite the many papers on school libraries in domestic journals, there was a lack of papers on Korean school libraries in the Scopus database. Consequently, more research is particularly needed for the Korean researchers to effectively share their domestic research with the international academic community

Implications of Punctuation Mark Normalization on Text Retrieval

This research investigated issues related to normalizing punctuation marks from a text retrieval perspective. A punctuated-centric approach was undertaken by exploring changes in meanings, whitespaces, words retrievability, and other issues related to normalizing punctuation marks. To investigate punctuation normalization issues, various frequency counts of punctuation marks and punctuation patterns were conducted using the text drawn from the Gutenberg Project archive and the Usenet Newsgroup archive. A number of useful punctuation mark types that could aid in analyzing punctuation marks were discovered. This study identified two types of punctuation normalization procedures: (1) lexical independent (LI) punctuation normalization and (2) lexical oriented (LO) punctuation normalization. Using these two types of punctuation normalization procedures, this study discovered various effects of punctuation normalization in terms of different search query types. By analyzing the punctuation normalization problem in this manner, a wide range of issues were discovered such as: the need to define different types of searching, to disambiguate the role of punctuation marks, to normalize whitespaces, and indexing of punctuated terms. This study concluded that to achieve the most positive effect in a text retrieval environment, normalizing punctuation marks should be based on an extensive systematic analysis of punctuation marks and punctuation patterns and their related factors. The results of this study indicate that there were many challenges due to complexity of language. Further, this study recommends avoiding a simplistic approach to punctuation normalization

<i>Minjung</i> Theology in Contemporary Korea: Liberation Theology and a Reconsideration of Secularization Theory

The Sewol Ferry tragedy in April 2014 has drawn a renewed attention to the role of religion in South Korea. Theologians and religiously-motivated NGOs in Korea at the time and thereafter have called for the need for religion, and religious organizations, to become more actively involved with societal needs, especially after disasters, to help alleviate their pain by providing relief aid and counselling. Such calls for the greater involvement of religion in relief efforts have coincided with Pope Francis&#8217; repeated calls for the Catholic Church&#8217;s greater involvement in social affairs on behalf of the poor and the underprivileged. This paper contends that these developments in and outside of Korea provide an opportune time to renew discussion on oft-misunderstood liberation theology. This is because the latter&#8217;s advocacy of an interpretation of the teachings of Jesus Christ from the perspective of the poor and the marginalized for the purpose of alleviating unjust economic, social, or political conditions is as compelling today as it was some 60 years ago when it first arose. The paper offers a reassessment of the role of religion in light of liberation theology, arguing that religion can make itself more relevant to people&#8217;s lives today by engaging more actively with social issues. The paper will pay special attention to liberation theology in the Korean context, namely minjungshinhak or &#8220;people&#8217;s theology.&#8222; The paper also discusses the implications of liberation theology for secularization theory, arguing, among others, that the former refutes the &#8220;decline of religion&#8222; thesis of the latter, since liberation theology manifests a different role of religion in contemporary society rather than its diminishing significance

A Study on the Possibility of Religious Governance of New Religions in Korea: Focusing on the Ecological Worldview of Donghak and Won Buddhism

The most serious threats to humankind today are environmental and ecological problems. The global warming in particular is generally perceived as a serious threat to the survival of humanity and this sense of urgency has given us a chance to consider our place in the ecosystem and question our anthropocentrism. Various faiths acknowledge human obligations to protect the environment and preserve biodiversity. In the Korean context, while the eco-friendly worldviews of Buddhism are well-known, very little is known about other Korean religions’ views on the environment. This paper examines whether representative new religions of Korea, namely Donghak and Won Buddhism, can contribute as “religious mechanisms” in alleviating ecological problems. The paper particularly focuses on the former’s doctrine of samgyeong or “the Threefold Respect” and the latter’s philosophy of saeun or “the Fourfold Grace,” examining their relevance for religious governance. The paper argues that these two doctrines are permeated with an ecological view implying the need for all living things, including humans, animals and plants as well as the natural environment, to coexist. The paper also argues that these two religions, complete with guidelines for actions or practices, provide a path for building the possibility of religious governance through religious awakening of believers, mutual respect and mutual trust, and mutual communication and reflective cooperation

A Comparison of Asian Law Journals Published in Asian and Western Countries

The purpose of this study was to compare Asian law journals published in Asia with those published in Western countries to determine the characteristics of the journals in relation to the geographic region in which they are published. In this study, Western countries refer to the Anglo-Saxon English-speaking countries, such as the United States and the United Kingdom. Using the Scimago Journal and Country Rank (SJR), 12 Asian law journals published in Asia and 8 Asian law journals published in Western countries were analyzed for performance, authorship, and topical research areas. Human rights issues affecting Asian countries were more prevalent in journals published in Western countries. In terms of journal performance, Asian law journals published in Western countries had a higher h-index, SJR, and citation rate than those published in Asia. Journals published in Western countries are published by reputable commercial publishers or university presses, and journals published in Western countries have longer coverage years. These reasons likely contributed to better visibility, which resulted in better performance