Female online community in disasters: an analysis of the Pohang mom`s caf??

Department of Urban and Environmental Engineering (Disaster Management Engineering)This study analyzed the 2017 Pohang Earthquake response activities of victims who participate in the local online community, Mom Caf??. The Mom Caf?? is oriented from the parenting women who have been recognized as the vulnerability at disaster. However, women affected by the Pohang earthquake showed voluntary and active earthquake response activities through the online community environment. Accordingly, this research analyzed the online posts from the Mom Caf?? Earthquake Preparedness board and to identify the motivation of earthquake response activities. The result of interviews showed that victims have negative emotions toward the 2017 Pohang earthquake. The earthquake was caused by geothermal power plants and it created the need for earthquake response activities to the victims. Through the activities, earthquake victims felt positive emotions by recovering themselves. This helped to ensure the continuity of the activity. Positive emotions also influenced some users in the Mom Caf?? to become HUB users. They showed high support by conducting various earthquake response activities based on emotions. The HUB user showed high influences on the information production and mediation in the Mom Caf??. This affected lay members to behave like the HUB users. Their behavior is to participate in earthquake response activities and to write review postings of the earthquake response activities. It has high support, gives the opportunity to become a HUB user, and keeps earthquake response activities continuously. These activities were gathered into a group, which led to organizational earthquake response actions such as opposition sessions and press conferences. This indicates that online communities can stimulate people to participate in disaster response. The victims of the 2017 Pohang earthquake responded to the countermeasure against earthquake to relieve negative emotions. Earthquake victims also formed positive emotions to overcome their negative situation. Thus, making good utilization of online communities in disaster situations can eventually decrease disaster vulnerability.clos

Electronic structure of YbB6_{6}: Is it a Topological Insulator or not?

To resolve the controversial issue of the topological nature of the electronic structure of YbB$_{6}$, we have made a combined study using density functional theory (DFT) and angle resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES). Accurate determination of the low energy band topology in DFT requires the use of modified Becke-Johnson exchange potential incorporating the spin-orbit coupling and the on-site Coulomb interaction $U$ of Yb $4f$ electrons as large as 7 eV. We have double-checked the DFT result with the more precise GW band calculation. ARPES is done with the non-polar (110) surface termination to avoid band bending and quantum well confinement that have confused ARPES spectra taken on the polar (001) surface termination. Thereby we show definitively that YbB$_{6}$ has a topologically trivial B 2$p$-Yb 5$d$ semiconductor band gap, and hence is a non-Kondo non-topological insulator (TI). In agreement with theory, ARPES shows pure divalency for Yb and a $p$-$d$ band gap of 0.3 eV, which clearly rules out both of the previous scenarios of $f$-$d$ band inversion Kondo TI and $p$-$d$ band inversion non-Kondo TI. We have also examined the pressure-dependent electronic structure of YbB$_{6}$, and found that the high pressure phase is not a Kondo TI but a \emph{p}-\emph{d} overlap semimetal.Comment: The main text is 6 pages with 4 figures, and the supplementary information contains 6 figures. 11 pages, 10 figures in total To be appeared in Phys. Rev. Lett. (Online publication is around March 16 if no delays.

Deficits of case marker processing in persons with mild cognitive impairment

The purpose of the current study was to investigate whether persons with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) showed deficits in processing case markers compared to normal elderly adults (NEA). Results revealed that individuals with MCI presented significantly lower accuracy than the NEA group on a case marker processing (CMP) task. Both groups showed greater difficulties in the passive sentences than sentences with the transitive verbs. The current results suggested that individuals with early stage of dementia started presenting deficits in case marker processing compared to the control group

Comparative analysis of FBS containing media and serum free chemically defined media, CellCor for adipose derived stem cells production

Background: As a result of the aging society, the average OECD life expectancy has grown to about 80 years, yet the average health life still remains at only 65 years, leaving more than 15 years of life in an uncertain health state. Regenerative medicine is a new concept of medicine that combines cells and biomaterials to restore the functions of aged or damaged tissues or organs. It is also a good treatment for chronic diseases and incurable diseases, receiving attention as a new paradigm for treating diseases. Problems: As the market for regenerative medicine grows, mass production of consistent quality cells is required. Media is the most important thing in mass production of consistent quality cells. However, the fetal bovine serum (FBS) containing media that is currently wide used has many problems, such as unidentified viral infection, immunogenicity, lot variations, unstable supply, and ethical issues. To solve these problems and make rapid progress in regenerative medicine, a high-performance serum free chemically defined media (CDM) is needed. Solution: CellCor is a serum free CDM that provides excellent performance, safety, economy and consistency in stem cell production. CellCor allows higher-speed cell production rate than current FBS containing culture media (Figure 1). Compared to the FBS containing media, CellCor is able to maintain stem cell markers, higher population homogeneity, genetic stability, and excellent differentiation potency even at later passage. Please click Additional Files below to see the full abstract

TLR3 signaling is either protective or pathogenic for the development of Theiler's virus-induced demyelinating disease depending on the time of viral infection

Background: We have previously shown that toll-like receptor 3 (TLR3)-mediated signaling plays an important role in the induction of innate cytokine responses to Theiler\u27s murine encephalomyelitis virus (TMEV) infection. In addition, cytokine levels produced after TMEV infection are significantly higher in the glial cells of susceptible SJL mice compared to those of resistant C57BL/6 mice. However, it is not known whether TLR3-mediated signaling plays a protective or pathogenic role in the development of demyelinating disease. Methods: SJL/J and B6; 129S-Tlr3(tm1Flv)/J (TLR3KO-B6) mice, and TLR3KO-SJL mice that TLR3KO-B6 mice were backcrossed to SJL/J mice for 6 generations were infected with Theiler\u27s murine encephalomyelitis virus (2 x 10(5) PFU) with or without treatment with 50 mu g of poly IC. Cytokine production and immune responses in the CNS and periphery of infected mice were analyzed. Results: We investigated the role of TLR3-mediated signaling in the protection and pathogenesis of TMEV-induced demyelinating disease. TLR3KO-B6 mice did not develop demyelinating disease although they displayed elevated viral loads in the CNS. However, TLR3KO-SJL mice displayed increased viral loads and cellular infiltration in the CNS, accompanied by exacerbated development of demyelinating disease, compared to the normal littermate mice. Late, but not early, anti-viral CD4(+) and CD8(+) T cell responses in the CNS were compromised in TLR3KO-SJL mice. However, activation of TLR3 with poly IC prior to viral infection also exacerbated disease development, whereas such activation after viral infection restrained disease development. Activation of TLR3 signaling prior to viral infection hindered the induction of protective IFN-gamma-producing CD4(+) and CD8(+) T cell populations. In contrast, activation of these signals after viral infection improved the induction of IFN-gamma-producing CD4(+) and CD8(+) T cells. In addition, poly IC-pretreated mice displayed elevated PDL-1 and regulatory FoxP3(+) CD4+ T cells in the CNS, while poly IC-post-treated mice expressed reduced levels of PDL-1 and FoxP3(+) CD4(+) T cells. Conclusions: These results suggest that TLR3-mediated signaling during viral infection protects against demyelinating disease by reducing the viral load and modulating immune responses. In contrast, premature activation of TLR3 signal transduction prior to viral infection leads to pathogenesis via over-activation of the pathogenic immune response