A Policy Intervention Study to Identify High-Risk Groups to Prevent Industrial Accidents in Republic of Korea

AbstractBackgroundThe objective of this study is to identify high-risk groups for industrial accidents by setting up 2003 as the base year and conducting an in-depth analysis of the trends of major industrial accident indexes the index of industrial accident rate, the index of occupational injury rate, the index of occupational illness and disease rate per 10,000 people, and the index of occupational injury fatality rate per 10,000 people for the past 10 years.MethodsThis study selected industrial accident victims, who died or received more than 4 days of medical care benefits, due to occupational accidents and diseases occurring at workplaces, subject to the Industrial Accident Compensation Insurance Act, as the study population.ResultsAccording to the trends of four major indexes by workplace characteristics, the whole industry has shown a decreasing tendency in all four major indexes since the base year (2003); as of 2012, the index of industrial accident rate was 67, while the index of occupational injury fatality rate per 10,000 people was 59.ConclusionThe manufacturing industry, age over 50 years and workplaces with more than 50 employees showed a high severity level of occupational accidents. Male workers showed a higher severity level of occupational accidents than female workers. The employment period of < 3 years and newly hired workers with a relatively shorter working period are likely to have more occupational accidents than others. Overall, an industrial accident prevention policy must be established by concentrating all available resources and capacities of these high-risk groups

Genetic engineering of bacteriophage and its applications for biomimetic materials

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Biological Engineering Division, 2006.Includes bibliographical references (leaves 86-96).Filamentous bacteriophage (M13) are excellent biological build block due to their multiple peptide display system including type 8 (complete peptide display at pVIII) and type 83 (complete peptide display at both pVIII and pIII) display systems. Unlike the phagemid systems, the advantage of these systems is that we can get homogenous peptide display on pVIII resulting in uniform placement of selected molecules as well as defined length and width. In this thesis, type 8 and type 83 phage were constructed and used as biological scaffolds to meet the following four specific aims. First, the self-assembly of engineered M13 bacteriophage as a template for Co-Pt crystals was demonstrated. An phage library with an octapeptide library on the major coat protein (pVIII) was used for selection of binders to cobalt ions. Fibrous structures with directionally ordered phage were obtained by interaction with cobalt ions. Co-Pt alloys were synthesized on the fibrous scaffold, and their magnetic properties were characterized. The mineralization showed organized nanoparticles on fibrous bundles with superparamagnetic properties. Second, an in vitro molecular selection method in non-biological conditions for inorganic synthesis was introduced.(cont.) A phage display peptide library which is resistant to ethanol was constructed and used for selection against titania in 90% ethanol. The selected peptide, with a conserved basic amino acid sequence, promotes nanoparticle formation (- 60 nm) during titania synthesis by the traditional sol-gel method. Third, storage of proteins in smectically aligned phage film was demonstrated. [Beta]-galactosidase and a green fluorescent protein variant were stored in the phage film with increased stability. In addition, streptavidin conjugated phycoerythrin were aligned in a SI phage film, in which streptavidin binding peptides are displayed at the end of the phage particles. The alignment showed increased fluorescent intensity of phycoerythrin molecules. Finally, the potential of type 8 and type 83 phage as a nano-structural scaffold were studied 'or device application. An Au binding peptide was selected using type 8 phage library. Self-assembly of gold particles on phage was observed. In addition, type 83 phage which display both streptavidin binding peptide at pIII and Au binding peptide at pVIII were constructed for complex assembly of both Au nanoparticles and streptavidin conjugated nanoparticles. Genetically engineered bacteriophage show promise for application including biologically compatible materials and functional bio-inorganic hybrid materials.by Soo-Kwan Lee.Ph.D

Switching Controller Design for a Class of Markovian Jump Nonlinear Systems Using Stochastic Small-Gain Theorem

Switching controller design for a class of Markovian jump nonlinear systems with unmodeled dynamics is considered in this paper. Based on the differential equation and infinitesimal generator of jump systems, the concept of Jump Input-to-State practical Stability (JISpS) in probability and stochastic Lyapunov stability criterion are put forward. By using backsetpping technology and stochastic small-gain theorem, a switching controller is proposed which ensures JISpS in probability for the jump nonlinear system. A simulation example illustrates the validity of this design

Thermo-flow characteristics of a pin-fin radial heat sinks according to their fin height profile

Paper presented at the 9th International Conference on Heat Transfer, Fluid Mechanics and Thermodynamics, Malta, 16-18 July, 2012.In this study, the thermo-flow characteristics of pin-fin radial heat sinks were investigated according to their fin height profile. A pin-fin radial heat sink is composed of a horizontal circular base and rectangular pin fins. Pin-fin radial heat sinks with differing fin height profiles were examined so that one could be designed for large-output light-emitting diode (LED) products using the same heat sink mass as reported for previous plate-fin heat sinks. Both natural convection and radiation heat transfer were considered in the investigation. The thermal resistances of heat sinks with various types of pin-fin arrays were compared to determine an appropriate reference configuration. A parametric study was then performed to compare the effects of five geometric parameters (outermost fin height, difference between fin heights, number of fin arrays, long fin length, and middle fin length) on thermal resistance. The effects of the outermost fin height and the number of fin arrays were found to be significant.dc201

Prospects of sustainable polymers

Synthetic polymers have shown a great impact on every aspect of our life and attained an exponential rise in their production and utilization in the past decades due to their durability, flexibility, moldability, and inexpensive nature. However, the use of natural polymers or development of safe and environment-friendly synthetic bio-based polymers is continuously undergoing for a sustainable future owing to the exhaustion of petroleum-based resources or fossil-based materials, disposal and economical concerns, including government guidelines. In this regard, the development of new sustainable polymers or materials will step up and build a genuinely circular economy by decreasing manufacture or utilization of fossil-based materials as limited reserves

Improvement of thermal efficiency of a radial heat sink with a surrounding structure

This study proposed a radial heat sink with a surrounding structure as a cooling system for light-emitting diode (LED) lighting with a circular base. The radial heat sink with long and middle fins was considered. Heat flow and radiative heat transfer were simulated numerically and the numerical model was validated experimentally. Natural convection heat transfer at the heat sink can be improved by controlling the air flow pattern. In this study, the surrounding structure increased the velocity of the inlet air around the heat sink due to the narrow air inlet surface, allowing the cooling air to move to the center of the heat sink. The effects of the material used to make the surrounding structure and the surface treatment of the heat sink were also analyzed. The results showed that the thermal efficiency of the radial heat sink was improved by up to 40% following installation of the chimney-shaped surrounding structure. The material used to make the surrounding structure did not influence the ability of the heat sink to dissipate heat. This research is expected to be helpful in the development of high-power LED lighting with a natural cooling system.Papers presented to the 12th International Conference on Heat Transfer, Fluid Mechanics and Thermodynamics, Costa de Sol, Spain on 11-13 July 2016

Old drug, new findings: colistin resistance and dependence of

Colistin is an old drug, and its use has recently resurged because of increasing antibiotic resistance in gram-negative bacteria such as Acinetobacter baumannii. Although the colistin resistance rates in gram-negative bacteria are currently not high, many colistin-resistant isolates are being identified and the possibility of horizontal transmission of colistin resistance has increased because of the plasmid-borne colistin resistance gene mcr-1 (mobilized colistin resistance). In this review, we have discussed colistin resistance in A. baumannii. In addition, we have reviewed an abnormal phenomenon called colistin dependence in A. baumannii

Thermal performance of a scaled-up louvered fin heat exchanger with unequal louver pitch

We analyzed the thermal performance of louvered fin heat exchanger with equal and unequal louver pitch which continuously increased by 20% from air inlet area to the redirection region and difference of thermal performance of the louvered fin heat exchanger with unequal louver pitch was compared with that of equal louver pitch. The frost blocking of the spaces between louvers at front side of the louvered fin heat exchanger with unequal louver pitch was delayed and the time, the heat transfer rate of louvered fin heat exchanger reached 50% of the maximum heat transfer rate, of the unequal louver pitch louvered fin heat exchanger was also delayed than that of the equal louver pitch louvered fin heat exchanger. The operating time of louvered fin heat exchanger with unequal louver pitch was longer than that of equal louver pitch and the total heat transfer until reaching 50% of the maximum heat transfer rate increased at 18% than that of equal louver pitch.Papers presented to the 12th International Conference on Heat Transfer, Fluid Mechanics and Thermodynamics, Costa de Sol, Spain on 11-13 July 2016

Trends in Cancer Screening Rates among Korean Men and Women: Results from the Korean National Cancer Screening Survey (KNCSS), 2004-2010

PURPOSE: The Korean National Cancer Screening Survey (KNCSS) is a continuous nationwide survey implemented by the National Cancer Center in Korea since 2004. The purpose of the present study was to report trends in cancer screening rates for the five major cancers (stomach, liver, colorectal, breast, and cervix uteri) in Korean men and women. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study used KNCSS data collected between 2004 and 2010. The survey was conducted on Korean men aged 40-74 years and Korean women aged 30-74 years with no history of cancer diagnosis. The annual percentage change and corresponding 95% confidence intervals were used to examine changes in annual screening rates. RESULTS: Screening rates with recommendation increased by 4.4% annually for stomach cancer, 1.5% for liver cancer, 2.8% per year for colorectal cancer, 4.5% for breast cancer, and 1.2% for cervix uteri cancer. The increasing trend in cancer screening rates, with the exception of liver cancer, was significant. CONCLUSION: Cancer screening rates have increased consistently from 2004 to 2010 among Korean men and women. Stomach and breast cancer screening rates in particular have increased markedly.ope