Instrument development for measuring determinants in defense R&D policy

The Korean military's defense research and development (R&D) policy was often shortsighted because of environmental changes, such as the Korea–U.S. alliance, security policies under the regime, and limited budgets. In addition, there was a lack of prior research focusing on identifying the determinants of defense R&D policy, making it difficult for stakeholders in defense R&D policies to determine the appropriateness or validity of decision making. To this end, the purpose of the present study was to suggest a basic reference for defense R&D decision making through the conceptualization of determinants in defense R&D policy and development of measurement items. For this, we developed operational definitions of influencing factors and preliminary items related to defense R&D policy decisions, considering the Republic of Korea Armed Forces. To test reliability and validity, we performed exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses based on discussions with experts. The results show a six-factor structure (security policy, defense posture, technological ambition, dominant and shifting paradigm, science and technology, industry knowledge base, and resources) and 24 items. It is concluded that the use of questionnaire results might better reflect multiple aspects of decision making in defense R&D policy. Future studies need to elaborate on the measurement indicators for defense R&D policy determinants and theorize on policy directions according to changes in future defense and private technology development

RF Sensor-based Liveness Detection Scheme with Loop Stability Compensation Circuit for a Capacitive Fingerprint System

A capacitive fingerprint system is the most widely used biometric identification method for smartphones. In this paper, we propose a RF sensor-based liveness detection scheme. This method solves the problem of spoofing attacks, which is a primary disadvantage to capacitive fingerprint sensors. The proposed scheme measures the inherent impedance characteristic difference of the target fingerprint caused by the eddy-current effect with an auto-balancing bridge method. The magnetic field is generated by a small form-factor inductor coil of ?? = 1.5mm. This detection scheme can be easily integrated with an existing capacitive fingerprint sensor by using the same CMOS process. The measured results demonstrate the liveness detection capability of the Si-graphite (silicone-graphite) and polyvinyl fake fingerprints that cannot be distinguished by conventional capacitive fingerprint sensors

TLR2-induced astrocyte MMP9 activation compromises the blood brain barrier and exacerbates intracerebral hemorrhage in animal models

Background: The innate immune response plays an important role in the pathogenesis of intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH). Recent studies have shown that Toll-like receptor 2 (TLR2) is involved in the innate immune response in various neurological diseases, yet neither its role in ICH nor the mechanisms by which it functions have yet been elucidated. We examined these in this study using a collagenase-induced mouse ICH model with TLR2 knock-out (KO) mice. Results: TLR2 expression was upregulated in the ipsilateral hemorrhagic tissues of the collagenase-injected mice. Brain injury volume and neurological deficits following ICH were reduced in TLR2 KO mice compared to wild-type (WT) control mice. Heterologous blood-transfer experiments show that TLR2 signaling in brain-resident cells, but not leukocytes, contributes to the injury. In our study to elucidate underlying mechanisms, we found that damage to blood-brain barrier (BBB) integrity following ICH was attenuated in TLR2 KO mice compared to WT mice, which may be due to reduced matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP9) activation in astrocytes. The reduced BBB damage accompanies decreased neutrophil infiltration and proinflammatory gene expression in the injured brain parenchyma, which may account for the attenuated brain damage in TLR2 KO mice after ICH. Conclusions: TLR2 plays a detrimental role in ICH-induced brain damage by activating MMP9 in astrocytes, compromising BBB, and enhancing neutrophils infiltration and proinflammatory gene expression. © 2015 Min et al.; licensee BioMed Central.1

Host Immunosuppression Induced by Steinernema feltiae, an Entomopathogenic Nematode, through Inhibition of Eicosanoid Biosynthesis

Steinernema feltiae K1 (Filipjev) (Nematode: Steinernematidae), an entomopathogenic nematode, was isolated and identified based on its morphological and molecular diagnostic characteristics. Its infective juveniles (IJs) were highly pathogenic to three lepidopteran (LC50 = 23.7–25.0 IJs/larva) and one coleopteran (LC50 = 39.3 IJs/larva) insect species. Infected larvae of the diamondback moth, Plutella xylostella (L.) (Insecta: Lepidoptera), exhibited significant reduction in phospholipase A2 (PLA2) activity in their plasma. The decrease of PLA2 activity was followed by significant septicemia of the larvae infected with S. feltiae. Insecticidal activity induced by S. feltiae was explained by significant immunosuppression in cellular immune responses measured by hemocyte nodule formation and total hemocyte count (THC). Although S. feltiae infection suppressed nodule formation and THC in the larvae, an addition of arachidonic acid (AA, a catalytic product of PLA2) rescued these larvae from fatal immunosuppression. In contrast, an addition of dexamethasone (a specific PLA2 inhibitor) enhanced the nematode’s pathogenicity in a dose-dependent manner. To discriminate the immunosuppressive activity of a symbiotic bacterium (Xenorhabdus bovienii (Proteobacteria: Enterobacterales)) from the nematode, kanamycin was applied to after nematode infection. It significantly inhibited the bacterial growth in the hemolymph. Compared to nematode treatment alone, the addition of antibiotics to nematode infection partially rescued the immunosuppression measured by phenol oxidase activity. Consequently, treatment with antibiotics significantly rescued the larvae from the insecticidal activity of S. feltiae. These results suggest that immunosuppression induced by infection of S. feltiae depends on its symbiotic bacteria by inhibiting eicosanoid biosynthesis, resulting in significant insect mortality. However, the addition of antibiotics or AA could not completely rescue the virulence of the nematode, suggesting that the nematode itself also plays a role in its insecticidal activity

Estimating the Benefits of Korea’s Intercity Rail Speed Increase Project: An Agent-Based Model Approach

In the cost–benefit analysis of urban transportation investment, a logsum-based benefit calculation is widely used. However, it is rarely applied to inter-regional transportation. In this study, we applied a logsum-based approach to the calculation of benefits for high-speed projects for inter-regional railways in Korea’s long-term transportation plan. Moreover, we applied a behavioral model in which an agent travels beyond the zones assumed by an aggregate model. In the case of South Korea, such a model is important for determining transportation priorities: whether to specialize in mobility improvement by investing in a high-speed railway project, such as the 300 km/h Korea Train eXpress (KTX), or to improve existing facilities, such as by building a relatively slower railroad (150–250 km/h) to enhance existing mobility and accessibility. In this context, if a new, relatively slow railroad were constructed adjacent to a high-speed railroad, the benefits would be negligible since the reduction in travel time would not sufficiently reflect accessibility improvements. Therefore, this study proposes the use of aggregate and agent-based models to evaluate projects to improve intercity railway service and conduct a case study with the proposed new methodology. A logsum was selected to account for the benefits of passenger cars on semi-high-speed and high-speed railroads simultaneously since it has been widely used to estimate the benefits of new modes or relatively slow modes. To calculate the logsum, this study used input data from both the aggregate and individual agent-based models, and found that an analysis of the feasibility of inter-regional railroad investment was possible. Moreover, the agent-based model can also be applied to inter-regional analysis. The proposed methods are expected to enable a more comprehensive evaluation of the transport system. In the case of the agent-based model, it is suggested that further studies undertake more detailed scenario analysis and travel time estimation

Improved Thermal and Electrical Properties of P-I-N-Structured Perovskite Solar Cells Using ZnO-Added PCBM as Electron Transport Layer

Not only can perovskite solar cells be exposed to high temperatures, up to 80 °C, depending on the operating environment, but absorbed energy is lost as heat, so it is important to have thermal stability for commercialization. However, in the case of the recently reported p-i-n structure solar cell, most of the electron and hole transport layers are composed of organic materials vulnerable to heat transfer, so the light absorption layer may be continuously exposed to high temperatures when the solar cell is operated. In this study, we attempted to improve the thermal conductivity of the electron transport layer using phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM) containing zinc oxide (ZnO). As a result, the thermal conductivity was improved by more than 7.4% and 23.5% by adding 6.57vol% and 22.38vol% of ZnO to PCBM, respectively. In addition, the insertion of ZnO resulted in changes in the electron transport behavior and energy level of the electron transport layer. As a result, it was confirmed that not only could the temperature stability of the perovskite thin film be improved, but the efficiency of the solar cell could also be improved from 14.12% to 17.97%