In 2022, research for native prokaryotic species in Korea reported 10 unrecorded bacterial strains affiliated to phyla Actinomycetota, Bacillota, and Pseudomonadota. The strains formed monophyletic clades with the most closely related species (with ≥98.7% sequence similarity) in the 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Among them, four species of the phylum Actinomycetota, two species of the phylum Bacillota, and four species of the phylum Pseudomonadota have not been reported in Korea, suggesting unrecorded species in Korea. Information on strains such as Gram staining reaction, colony and cell morphology, biochemical characteristics, and isolation sources were provided in the species description.

This study was conducted to calculate the damage of Italian ryegrass (IRG) by abnormal climate using machine learning and present the damage through the map. The IRG data collected 1,384. The climate data was collected from the Korea Meteorological Administration Meteorological data open portal.The machine learning model called xDeepFM was used to detect IRG damage. The damage was calculated using climate data from the Automated Synoptic Observing System (95 sites) by machine learning. The calculation of damage was the difference between the Dry matter yield (DMY)normal and DMYabnormal. The normal climate was set as the 40-year of climate data according to the year of IRG data (1986~2020). The level of abnormal climate was set as a multiple of the standard deviation applying the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) standard. The DMYnormal was ranged from 5,678 to 15,188 kg/ha. The damage of IRG differed according to region and level of abnormal climate with abnormal temperature, precipitation, and wind speed from -1,380 to 1,176, -3 to 2,465, and -830 to 962 kg/ha, respectively. The maximum damage was 1,176 kg/ha when the abnormal temperature was -2 level (+1.04℃), 2,465 kg/ha when the abnormal precipitation was all level and 962 kg/ha when the abnormal wind speed was -2 level (+1.60 ㎧). The damage calculated through the WMO method was presented as an map using QGIS. There was some blank area because there was no climate data. In order to calculate the damage of blank area, it would be possible to use the automatic weather system (AWS), which provides data from more sites than the automated synoptic observing system (ASOS).

In this study, an experiment was conducted on the domestic cultivar 'White and Cool' on a farm in Taean to compare the effects of conventional soil cultivation and net cultivation to increase yield and reduce labor input time during outdoor gladiolus cultivation. The above- and below-ground growth, yield, and input labor time were investigated after cultivating half of the seedlings using the conventional cultivation method and the other half using the net cultivation method. There was no difference in the above- or below-ground growth between net cultivation and conventional cultivation. However, the labor input time decreased 2.57 times, the yield of the irrigated area increased by 3%, and the self-fertilization yield increased by 28%. Based on these results, several factors should be considered during net cultivation. First, loose netting should be used for root development. Second, care should be taken while flattening when planting seedlings, and after sowing, the area should be covered with a net to prevent drying. Third, after completion of the installation, compaction should be performed to ensure close contact between the soil and netting, and after removing the space between the nets, the seedlings should be irrigated to induce early rooting.

Extensive research and testing continue to be conducted for the development of vaccines targeting zoonotic diseases such as brucellosis. In this study, the potential of the DapB as a recombinant protein vaccine to effectively combat Brucella abortus 544 infection in BALB/c mice was evaluated. Western blotting assay results showed that recombinant protein DapB reacted with Brucella-positive serum, indicating its potential immunoreactivity. In vivo results showed that the peripheral blood CD4+ and CD8+ T cell population significantly increased in the DapB-immunized mice group after the first, second and third blood collection, compared to the control group that received PBS. Additionally, at the fourth blood collection, an increase in CD4+ T cell activation was observed in three vaccination groups compared to PBS negative control group. These results indicate the potential of DapB in stimulating cellular immunity. Fourteen days after infection, the bacterial load in the spleen was evaluated. The reduction in bacterial replication in the spleen by both DapB and RB51 highlights their protective efficacy against Brucella infection. These findings contribute to the ongoing efforts in developing effective vaccines against brucellosis and provide valuable insights for further research in this field.

본 연구는 금속 인공물을 감소시키기 위한 VAT(view angle tilting)와 SEMAC(slice encoding for metal correction) 기법 적용에 따른 온도 변화 범위를 관찰하고자 하였다. 제작된 인체 모방 팬텀을 활용하였고, 검사방법으로는 임상에서 실제로 사용하고 있는 고속스핀에코(fast spin echo, FSE) 기법의 영상 파라미터들을 그대로 이용하였다. VAT 와 SEMAC 기법은 FSE와 같은 파라미터로 설정한 다음 VAT 파라미터는 100%와 SEMAC 파라미터는 25로 설정하였다. 온도 측정 방법으로는 수소원자 공명주파수전이법(proton resonance frequency shift, PRFS)기법을 활용하였으며, 광 섬유 온도계(fiber-optic sensor, FOS)로 절대 온도를 측정한 후 비교 분석하였다. 온도 변화는 SEMAC 기법에서 기존 FSE 기법 (0.28℃±0.10℃)에 비해 1.63℃±0.12℃로 약 6배 상승하였고(SEMAC-FOS = 1.59℃), VAT 기법은 약 2배 증가(VAT-FOS = 0.51℃)가 확인되었다. 특히, SEMAC 기법은 VAT 기법(VAT-FOS = 0.51℃, VAT-PRFS = 0.54℃ ±0.02℃)과 비교하여 약 3배가 증가하여 가장 높은 온도 상승이 관찰되었다. 이는 SEMAC 기법 적용 시 자기공명영상 전자파 인체 영양에 대한 안전기준을 충족하기 위해 영상 파라미터 최적화 작업의 필요성을 시사한다.

DWI 검사 시 인체 조직 및 병변에 근접한 공기는 영상왜곡을 가중해 병변 감별에 어려움을 준다. 이에 본 연구는 팬텀을 제작하 여 기하학적 왜곡을 줄여주는 SMS RESOLVE DWI를 통해 공기 자화율에 의한 왜곡 변화를 정량화하였다. 팬텀은 원통형으로 내부에 공기가 존재하도록 설계하였다. 제한된 환경 속에서 다양한 자화율에 의해 왜곡이 영상에 구현되도록 팬텀 내부에는 증류수, 젤라틴 외 혼합 물질과 공기를 구분되게 채웠다. 팬텀의 정렬을 다르게 하여 공기 있는 상태 실험을 진행 후, 공기 대신 혼합액 넣은 상태 실험을 같은 방식으로 진행하였고 혼합액 대신 증류수 넣은 상태 실험을 진행하였다. 3T MRI 장비로 T2WI, C DWI, SMS-RESOLVE DWI를 촬영하였고 파이썬 OpenCV로 이미지 유사도를 측정 후 비교 분석하였다. 실험 결과 공기 있는 상태 SMS-RESOLVE DWI b0에서 SSIM 평균 0.898, MSE 평균 0.068로 영상왜곡이 가장 적었다. SMS-RESOLVE DWI의 공기 자화율 왜곡 변화는 b0 기준 SSIM, MSE 모두 –0.033~0.003 이미지 유사도 차이를 보였다. SMS-RESOLVE DWI b1000은 수치상 이미지 유사도 차이가 크지 않거나 감쇄되는 때도 있어서 향후 SNR 보완에 초점을 둔다면 보다 개선된 영상진단 성능을 제공할 것으로 기대되고 오픈 소스 라이브러리를 통해 오차를 최소화한 이미지 처리와 유사도를 분석하는 새로운 시도는 앞으로의 연구 방향에 새 모델을 제시한다.

Metaverse is a virtual world where users can engage in various activities, and its market is expected to grow rapidly in the coming years (Hwang, 2021). Generation Z, also known as digital natives, are heavily involved in social media and often share selfies, making them more sensitive to body image concerns (Ameen, 2022). In the metaverse, users can create customized avatars, allowing them to experience an ideal body image. This study applies the “extraordinary self” theory to avatar creation, a concept that explains how people create an ideal, fantastic, or transcendent self by consuming experiences that set them apart from their mundane real self (Procter, 2021). Based on the theory, this study examines how dissatisfaction with body image of Generation Z can lead to the creation of avatars that manifest an ideal body image, which in turn, can influence self-congruence with the avatar and self-esteem in the metaverse. This study also looks into the possible effects of enhanced self-esteem on user’s intention to purchase virtual products and their loyalty to a specific metaverse platform. Therefore, the following hypotheses are developed.

To broaden the utilization of nuclear energy, uranium as a fuel should be mined indispensably. Mining accounts for the largest portion of the cost of producing the uranium assembly. Therefore, this study analyzes the trends of uranium prices, which have a significant impacts on the mining cost. Uranium production contributing to the price fluctuations is explained in five periods from 1945 to the present. Moreover, the series of events affecting uranium prices from the 1970s until the present are verified. Among them, the most recent incidents considered in this study are the following: COVID-19 pandemic, Kazakhstan unrest, and Russia-Ukraine war. European countries have started to reconsider the transition to nuclear power to reduce their dependence on Russian oil and gas, which has contributed to the surge in uranium prices. Based on the results of this study, various international issues have been closely associated with the nuclear power industry and uranium, affecting the production of uranium and its price.

With about 80% of the global economy expected to shift to the global market by 2030, exports of reverse direct purchase products, in which foreign consumers purchase products from online shopping malls in Korea, are growing 55% annually. As of 2021, sales of reverse direct purchases in South Korea increased 50.6% from the previous year, surpassing 40 million. In order for domestic SMEs(Small and medium sized enterprises) to enter overseas markets, it is important to come up with export strategies based on various market analysis information, but for domestic small and medium-sized sellers, entry barriers are high, such as lack of information on overseas markets and difficulty in selecting local preferred products and determining competitive sales prices. This study develops an AI-based product recommendation and sales price estimation model to collect and analyze global shopping malls and product trends to provide marketing information that presents promising and appropriate product sales prices to small and medium-sized sellers who have difficulty collecting global market information. The product recommendation model is based on the LTR (Learning To Rank) methodology. As a result of comparing performance with nDCG, the Pair-wise-based XGBoost-LambdaMART Model was measured to be excellent. The sales price estimation model uses a regression algorithm. According to the R-Squared value, the Light Gradient Boosting Machine performs best in this model.

In the era of the 4th Industrial Revolution, Logistic 4.0 using data-based technologies such as IoT, Bigdata, and AI is a keystone to logistics intelligence. In particular, the AI technology such as prognostics and health management for the maintenance of logistics facilities is being in the spotlight. In order to ensure the reliability of the facilities, Time-Based Maintenance (TBM) can be performed in every certain period of time, but this causes excessive maintenance costs and has limitations in preventing sudden failures and accidents. On the other hand, the predictive maintenance using AI fault diagnosis model can do not only overcome the limitation of TBM by automatically detecting abnormalities in logistics facilities, but also offer more advantages by predicting future failures and allowing proactive measures to ensure stable and reliable system management. In order to train and predict with AI machine learning model, data needs to be collected, processed, and analyzed. In this study, we have develop a system that utilizes an AI detection model that can detect abnormalities of logistics rotational equipment and diagnose their fault types. In the discussion, we will explain the entire experimental processes : experimental design, data collection procedure, signal processing methods, feature analysis methods, and the model development.

단단한 자구를 가진 적색 비모란선인장 ‘Gangjeok’ 품종 은 ‘Isaek’품종을 모본으로, ‘Suyeon’ 품종을 부본으로 하여 2018년에 교배하여 육성하였다. 교배 후 획득한 종자는 조직 배양실에서 기내파종하여 획득한 유묘를 기내에서 삼각주선 인장에 접목하여 ‘1802001’ 등 20계통을 양성하였다. 2019 년에 기내에서 양성한 20계통을 온실에서 삼각주선인장 대목 에 접목하여 재배하면서 ‘1812005’ 계통을 1차 선발하였다. 2020년부터 2022년까지 3차에 걸쳐서 특성을 검정한 후, 농 산물직무육성품종 심의회에서 최종 선발하여 ‘Gangjeok’으 로 명명하였다.‘Gangjeok’ 품종은 편원형의 적색 구를 가진 다. 혹(tubercle)이 돌출된 형태의 모구는 8.4개의 능(rip)을 가지며, 3.5mm 짧은 회색 가시가 발생한다. 정식 10개월 후 ‘Gangjeok’ 품종의 직경은 46.1mm이며, 자구는 평균 18.3 개 발생한다. 2022년 육성계통 평가회에서 ‘Gangjeok’ 품종 은 높은 기호도 점수 4.0을 받았다.

Background: Research on the reproductive physiology of Water and Sika deer, an endemic in Korea, still needs to be completed. This study analyzed the ovarian development and morphological characteristics of wild Water deer and Sika deer. Methods: Water deer and Sika deer ovaries were collected from the Korean Peninsula and Russia–Korean Peninsula border during the estrus and pregnancy seasons, respectively. And, morphological and physiological analysis and immunohistochemistry were conducted to confirm the detection of Ca2+ and assess the morphological changes in the ovaries. Results: The results of morphological analysis of ovaries during pregnancy and estrus, the development of the corpus luteum and follicles of Water deer showed similar patterns to other mammals. In contrast, the corpus luteum of Sika deer differed in tissue morphology and composition from Water deer. Ca2+ related to tissue metabolism was detected in the theca cells zone of Water deer on the estrus and was highly detected in the luteum cells zone during pregnancy. The hormone receptor protein expression patterns were generally higher in the ovaries of Water deer on the estrus and the pregnancy than in Sika deer. The expression of LH receptor was relatively low in the lutein cell zone, unlikely that of Water deer. The expression of VEGF was also different from Water deer, and the response in Sika deer was relatively very low compared to Water deer in expressing all proteins-related development. Conclusions: Therefore, the results of the study were shown that the composition of the corpus luteum of Sika deer is not clear compared to Water deer, and there are many differences in the functional and morphological formation of the corpus luteum.

Natural uranium-contaminated soil in Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute (KAERI) was generated by decommissioning of the natural uranium conversion facility in 2010. Some of the contaminated soil was expected to be clearance level, however the disposal cost burden is increasing because it is not classified in advance. In this study, pre-classification method is presented according to the ratio of naturally occurring radioactive material (NORM) and contaminated uranium in the soil. To verify the validity of the method, the verification of the uranium radioactivity concentration estimation method through γ-ray analysis results corrected by self-absorption using MCNP6.2, and the validity of the pre-classification method according to the net peak area ratio were evaluated. Estimating concentration for 238U and 235U with γ-ray analysis using HPGe (GC3018) and MCNP6.2 was verified by 􀟙-spectrometry. The analysis results of different methods were within the deviation range. Clearance screening factors (CSFs) were derived through MCNP6.2, and net peak area ratio were calculated at 295.21 keV, 351.92 keV(214Pb), 609.31 keV, 1120.28 keV, 1764.49 keV(214Bi) of to the 92.59 keV. CSFs for contaminated soil and natural soil were compared with U/Pb ratio. CSFs and radioactivity concentrations were measured, and the deviation from the 60 minute measurement results was compared in natural soil. Pre-classification is possible using by CSFs measured for more than 5 minutes to the average concentration of 214Pb or 214Bi in contaminated soil. In this study, the pre-classification method of clearance determination in contaminated soil was evaluated, and it was relatively accurate in a shorter measurement time than the method using the concentrations. This method is expected to be used as a simple pre-classification method through additional research.

In this study, four technologies were selected to treat river water, lake water, and groundwater that may be contaminated by tritium contaminated water and tritium outflow from nuclear power plants, performance evaluation was performed with a lab-scale device, and then a pilot-scale hybrid removal facility was designed. In the case of hybrid removal facilities, it consists of a pretreatment unit, a main treatment unit, and a post-treatment unit. After removing some ionic, particulate pollutants and tritium from the pretreatment unit consisting of UF, RO, EDI, and CDI, pure water (2 μS/cm) tritium contaminated water is sent to the main treatment process. In this treatment process, which is operated by combining four single process technologies using an inorganic adsorbent, a zeolite membrane, an electrochemical module and aluminumsupported ion exchange resin, the concentration of tritium can be reduced. At this time, the tritium treatment efficiency of this treatment process can be increased by improving the operation order of four single processes and the performance of inorganic adsorbents, zeolite membrane, electrochemical modules, and aluminum- supported ion exchange resins used in a single process. Therefore, in this study, as part of a study to increase the processing efficiency of the main treatment facility, the tritium removal efficiency according to the type of inorganic adsorbent was compared, and considerations were considered when operating the complex process.

The decommissioning of Korea Research Reactor Units 1 and 2 (KRR-1&2), the first research reactors in South Korea, began in 1997. Approximately 5,000 tons of waste will be generated when the contaminated buildings are demolished. Various types of radioactive waste are generated in large quantities during the operation and decommissioning of nuclear facilities, and in order to dispose of them in a disposal facility, it is necessary to physico-chemically characterize the radioactive waste. The need to transparently and clearly conduct and manage radioactive waste characterization methods and results in accordance with relevant laws, regulations, acceptance standards is emerging. For radioactive waste characterization information, all information must be provided to the disposal facility by measuring and testing the physical, chemical, and radiological characteristics and inputting related documents. At this time, field workers have the inconvenience of performing computerized work after manually inputting radioactive waste characterization information, and there is always a possibility that human errors may occur during manual input. Furthermore, when disposing of radioactive waste, the production of the documents necessary for disposal is also done manually, resulting in the aforementioned human error and very low production efficiency of numerous documents. In addition, as quality control is applied to the entire process from generation to treatment and disposal of radioactive waste, it is necessary to physically protect data and investigate data quality in order to manage the history information of radioactive waste produced in computerized work. In this study, we develop a system that can directly compute the radioactive waste characterization information at the field site where the test and measurement are performed, protect the stored radioactive waste characterization data, and provide a system that can secure reliability.

The nuclear facilities at Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute (KAERI) have generated a variety of liquid radioactive waste and most of them have low-level radioactive or lower levels. Some of the liquid radioactive waste generated in KAERI is transported to Radioactive Waste Treatment Facility (RWTF) in 20 L container. Liquid radioactive waste transported in a 20 L container is stored in a Sewer Tank after passing through a solid-liquid separation filter. It is then transferred to a very low-level liquid radioactive waste Tank after removing impurities such as sludge through a pre-treatment device. The previous pre-treatment process involved an underwater pump and a cartridge filter device passively, but this presented challenges such as the inconvenience of having to install the underwater pump each time, radiation exposure for workers due to frequent replacement of the cartridge filter, and the generation of large amounts of radioactive waste from the filter. To address these challenges and improve efficiency and safety in radiation work, an automated liquid radioactive waste pre-treatment device was developed. The automated liquid radioactive waste pre-treatment device is a pressure filtration system that utilizes multiple overlapping filter plates and pump pressure to effectively remove impurities such as sludge from liquid radioactive waste. With just the push of a button, the device automatically supplies and processes the waste, reducing radiation hazards and ensuring worker safety. Its modular and mobile design allows for flexible utilization in various locations, enabling efficient pre-treatment of liquid radioactive waste. To evaluate the performance of the newly constructed automated liquid radioactive waste treatment device, samples were taken before and after treatment for 1 hour cycling and analyzed for turbidity. The results showed that the turbidity after treatment was more than about four times lower than before treatment, confirming the excellent performance of the device. Also, it is expected that the treatment efficiency will improve further as the treatment time and number of cycles increase.

Surface water temperature of a bay (from the south to the north) increases in spring and summer, but decreases in autumn and winter. Due to shallow water depth, freshwater outflow, and weak current, the water temperature in the central to northern part of the bay is greatly affected by the land coast and air temperature, with large fluctuations. Water temperature variations are large in the north-east coast of the bay, but small in the south-west coast. The difference between water temperature and air temperature is greater in winter and in the south-central part of the bay than that in the north to the eastern coast of the bay where sea dykes are located. As the bay goes from south to north, the range of water temperature fluctuation and the phase show increases. When fresh water is released from the sea dike, the surrounding water temperature decreases and then rises, or rises and then falls. The first mode of empirical orthogonal function (EOF) represents seasonal variation of water temperature. The second mode represents the variability of water temperature gradient in east-west and north-south directions of the bay. In the first mode, the maximum and the minimum are shown in autumn and summer, respectively, consistent with seasonal distribution of surface water temperature variance. In the second mode, phases of the coast of Seosan~Boryeong and the east coast of Anmyeon Island are opposite to each other, bordering the center of the deep bay. Periodic fluctuation of the first mode time coefficient dominates in the one-day and half-day cycle. Its daily fluctuation pattern is similar to air temperature variation. Sea conditions and topographical characteristics excluding air temperature are factors contributing to the variation of the second mode time coefficient.