Ni-GDC (gadolinia-doped ceria) composite powders, the anode material for the application of solid oxide fuel cells, were prepared by a solution reduction method using hydrazine. The distribution of Ni particles in the composite powders was homogeneous. The Ni-GDC powders were sintered at 1400˚C for 2 h and then reduced at 800˚C for 24 h in 3% H2. The percolation limit of Ni of the sintered composite was 20 vol%, which was significantly lower than these values in the literature (30-35 vol%). The marked decrease of percolation limit is attributed to the small size of the Ni particles and the high degree of dispersion. The hydrazine method suggests a facile chemical route to prepare well-dispersed Ni-GDC composite powders.

The purposes of this study were to assess and modify the original classification categories of the modified Oswestry Low Back Pain Disability Questionnaire (ODQ) and to determine the unidimensionality of the modified ODQ applying Rasch Analysis. The data were obtained from 108 work-related low back pain patients by physical therapists. Construct validity of the scale using the Rasch model required the structure of the rating scale to be modified from 6 response levels to 4 response levels. Eight items from the modified ODQ fit the Rasch model. The items, "pain intensity" and "social life" showed misfit statistics. In general, the order of item difficulty of the remaining 8 items showed a logical item difficulty hierarchy with the "changing degree of pain" item being the most difficult and the "walk" item being the easiest. The results showed that further study is needed to expand the construct of ODQ including additional higher-level items related to work activities. This study may be useful for establishing a standard method to assess the functionality of low back pain patients.

Multi-sensory systems, including the visual, somatosensory, and vestibular ones, are involved in maintaining standing balance. The organization of these sensory systems is as important as the efficiency of each individual system in maintaining optimal balance. The purpose of the present experiment was to investigate the developmental changes in static standing balance and sensory organization under altered sensory conditions. This study involved 64 children (from 4 to 15 years of age) and 17 young adults. The children were divided into four age groups: 4~6, 7~9, 10~12, and 13~15 years. Static standing balance was assessed with the one-leg standing test under four different sensory conditions: the children stood on a firm surface with (1) eyes open or (2) closed, and they stood on a foam surface with eyes (3) open or (4) closed. In balancing ability, the age groups exhibited significant differences. The function of sensory organization for balance control was poorer for the children than for the young adults. The functional efficiency of the somatosensory system of the children aged 7~9 years was at the young adults' level, and the visual function of the children aged 10~12 years had also reached the young adults' level. However, the functional efficiency of the vestibular system of children was significantly lower than that of the young adults, even at the age of 15 years. This may indicate that sensory organization and standing balance are still developing after the age of 15 years.

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of the hip internal rotation on knee extensor and hip abductor electromyographic (EMG) activity during stair up and stair down mobility. Eighteen healthy subjects were recruited. All subjects performed stair up and down movements on a step of 30cm height while maintaining the hip in neutral (condition 1) and hip in internal rotation (condition 2). Surface EMG activity was recorded from five muscles (gluteus maximus, vastus lateralis (VL), vastus medialis oblique (VMO), posterior gluteus medius (Gmed), and tensor fascia latae (TFU)) and hip internal rotation angle was measured using a three dimensional motion analysis system The time period for stair up and down was normalized using the MatLab 6.5 program, and EMG activity was normalized to the value of maximal voluntary isometric contraction (%MVIC). The EMG activities according to the hip rotation (neutral or internal rotation) during the entire time period of stair up and down in each phase were compared using a paired t-test. During the entire period of stair up, the EMG activities of VL and TFL in condition 2 were significantly greater than in condition 1 (p<.05). During the entire period of stair down, the EMG activities of VL and TFL in condition 2 were significantly greater than in condition 1 (p<.05). However, the EMG activities of the other muscles were not significantly different between the conditions (p>.05). These results suggest that the stair up and down maintaining hip internal rotation was could be a contributing factor on patellar lateral tracking.

Studies of attentional focus effects, have shown that the performer's attentional focus plays an important role in the performance and learning of motor tasks. We examined the influence of attentional focus on the performance of dual tasks (a postural task and a suprapostural task) and used electromyography (EMG) to examine whether the differences between external and internal focus were also manifest at the neuromuscular level. The subjects (n=40) stood on a balance board (postural task) and held a bar horizontally (suprapostural task). All of the subjects performed under different attentional focus conditions: external (balancer on balance board) or internal (feet) focus on the postural task, and external (balancer on bar) or internal (hand) focus on the suprapostural task. The mean displacement velocity of the bar and the percent reference voluntary contraction (%RVC) of the biceps brachii were reduced when the subjects adopted an external focus on the suprapostural task (p<.05). In addition, the mean displacement velocity of the balance board and %RVC of the tibialis anterior were reduced when the subjects adopted an external focus on the postural task (p<.05). When the subjects adopted an external focus on the suprapostural task, the mean displacement velocity of the balance board and %RVC of the tibialis anterior were also reduced (p<.05). When the subjects' attentional focus was on the postural task, there were no differences in the mean displacement and %RVC of the biceps brachii between attentional focuses. The performance of each task was enhanced when subjects focused on the respective task. The suprapostural task goals had a stronger influence on postural control than vice versa. These results reflect the propensity of the motor system to optimize control processes based on the environmental outcome, or movement effect, that the performer wants to achieve.

The detection and measurement of faint features in cometary image is generally troublesome due to the high value of the ratio of the brightness of the nucleus to the tail, the large size and low surface brightness of the coma and tail and the disturbing presence of field stars trails. The image processing is based on background removal by median filtering. Sample results are shown for the case study of comet 73P/Schwassmann-Wachmann 3.

  In this study, we propose an RFID based container terminal operation process. Field tests are conducted for 900 MHz (truck identification) tag and 433 MHz RFID (container identification/e-seal) tag at an Incheon container terminal to verify possibility

Simpson and Hunter (974) 의 포텐셜 에너지 anomaly(V)를 이용하여 한국 남해의 여름과 겨울철 성층 변동 및 수온과 염분이 성층의 강도에 미치는 영향을 분석하였다. 수온 및 염분은 국립수산과학원이 1999년 8월, 2000년 2월에 실시한 정선 관측 자료이다. 8월(여름)은 남해의 외해측에서 V 값이 높게 나타나는 반면, 2월(겨울)의 경우 연안역 가까운 곳에서 높게 나타났다. 8월은 대기의 가열 현상 및 쓰시마난류의 유입 등이 V 가 증가하는 주요 인자이며, 2월은 대기 냉각 및 남해연안수의 확장이 표 저층간의 성층의 세기를 변화시키는 요인으로 작용한다. 전 시기에 걸쳐 수온이 염분보다 성층의 세기 변화에 큰 영향을 미치며, 8월에는 수온과 염분이 성층의 세기를 증가시키는 작용을 하는 반면, 2월에는 염분이 성층의 세기를 감소시키는 작용을 한다.

목적 : 본 연구의 목적은 문항반응이론에 기초한 라쉬모형을 적용하여 뇌졸중 외래환자의 일상생활수행 평가도구를 개발하는 것이다. 연구방법 : 연구 대상자는 뇌졸중 외래환자로 169명이었다. 조사방법은 사전연구에서 항목의 중요도로 수집된 23개의 일상생활수행 평가항목으로 구성된 설문지를 사용하였다. 조사자료는 전국 18개 재활기관에서 작업치료사가 평가한 결과를 수집하여 Winsteps 프로그램으로 라쉬분석을 하였다. 결과 : 7개 항목이 부적합한 항목으로 판정되었으며, 16개 항목이 적절한 항목으로 채택되었다. 뇌졸중 외래환자의 일상생활 수행능력은 -6.32~6.23 로짓으로 표시할 수 있으며, 표준화점수로 표시하기 위한 변환식은 "점수=(로짓점수+6.32)/(6.32+6.23)100" 이었다. 일상생활 수행능력을 평가하기위한 항목을 난이도 순서에 따라 배열하였다. 가장 어려운 항목은 보행영역의 '계단 오르내리기' 항목이었으며, 가장 쉬운 항목은 식사하기 영역의 '음료 마시기’항목이었다. 결론 : 라쉬분석을 이용하여 개발된 뇌졸중 외래환자의 일상생활수행 평가도구는 신뢰도와 타당도가 입증된 객관적인 도구이다.

The purpose of this study was to examine inter- and intra-examiner reliability of the sacroiliac joint (SIJ) anatomical landmarks palpation. Two physical therapists and one doctor specializing in rehabilitation examined 22 asymptomatic subjects. They examined anterior superior iliac supine (ASIS), posterior superior iliac supine (PSIS) and iliac crest (IC). For the assessment of intra-examiner reliability, 3 examiners repeated the measurements 3 times over a 2-week interval. Kappa (Kg) yielded intra-examiner reliability that ranged between slight to fair for the ASIS (Kg=.06 to .26; mean Kg=.19), and slight for the PSIS(Kg=-.04 to .18; mean Kg=.07) and slight to fair for the IC (Kg=.06 to .32; mean Kg=.21). Inter-examiner reliability was slight (ASIS Kg=.13; PSIS Kg=.05; IC Kg=.14). These results suggest that the reliability of the assessing SIJ anatomical landmarks using palpation and observation as an indication of SIJ dysfunction still remains questionable. Before this test can be relied upon as an accurate indicator of SIJ dysfunction, it must undergo further research. This further research needs to examine not only reliability, but also validity, sensitivity and specificity.

The purpose of this study was to compare the onset times of muscle activities and the order of muscle firing in erector spinae, multifidus, rectus abdominis and biceps brachii during perturbation between subjects with and without work-related chronic low back pain (LBP). Twenty-nine subjects, 14 with and 15 without LBP, participated in this study. The muscle responses were measured by surface EMG (electromyography) during perturbation in eye opened and eye closed conditions. The EMG onset times of the erector spinae, multifidus, rectus abdominis and biceps brachii were similar between groups in eye closed condition. But the onset times of the erector spinae, multifidus, rectus abdominis were significantly delayed in subjects with LBP in eye opened condition. The results provide an evidence for impaired feed-forward control of the trunk muscles in subjects with LBP. Further studies are needed to identify whether the impaired feed-forward control of the trunk muscles is the contributing factor to LBP.

더러브렛종 암말의 번식 능력을 향상시키기 위해 호르몬 투여 및 인공 조명에 의한 인위적으로 발정 조절을 실시한 결과는 다음과 같다. 발정 주기에 있는 암말의 또는 altrenogst투여에 의한 발정 발현율은 100%이었으며, 수태율은 각각 95.2% 및 71.4%였다. 전년도 공태마에 대하여 altrenogest단독 또는 altrenogest과 estradiol 병행 투여시 3월 이내 100% 발정이 발현되었으며, 발정 발현일은 altrenogest 투