In an influential paper, Choi and Kim (2010) derived waiting times in an  queuing model under net neurality and under prioritization. In this short paper, we argue that the waiting times of content transmission that Choi and Kim (2010) derived by using the  gueuing model under the non-preemptive priority rule are miscalculated. We provide corrected waiting times in the  queuing model in the prioritization case. We also show that this correction does not affect their main results on the delay time and the incentive to invest in the network capacity qualitatively.

Lytic polysaccharide monooxygenases (LPMOs) catalyze the oxidative cleavage of glycosidic bonds in crystalline polysaccharides including chitin and cellulose. The recent discovery of LPMO family proteins in many insect species suggests that they presumably play a role in chitin degradation in the cuticle/exoskeleton, tracheae and peritrophic matrix during insect development. Insect LPMOs belong to auxiliary activity family 15 (AA15/LPMO15) and have been classified into at least four groups based on phylogenetic analysis. In this study, we identified and investigated the physiological functions of group I LPMO15 (MaLPMO15-1 and PhLPMO15-1) in two longhorn beetle species, Monochamus alternatus and Psacothea hilaris. In both species, depletion of LPMO15-1 transcripts by RNAi resulted in a lethal pupal-adult molting defect. The insects were unable to shed their old pupal cuticle and died entrapped in their exuviae. Furthermore, TEM analysis revealed a failure of degradation of the chitinous procuticle layer of their old cuticle, retaining intact horizontal laminae and vertical pore canals containing perpendicularly oriented chitin fibers (pore canal fiber, PCF) in their core. These results indicate that MaLPMO15-1 and PhLPMO15-1 are required for turnover of the chitinous old cuticle, which is critical for insect molting.

Insect cuticle is an extracellular matrix formed primarily from two different biopolymers, chitin and protein. During each molt cycle, a new cuticle is deposited simultaneously with degradation of the old cuticle by molting fluid cuticle degrading-enzymes, including epidermal chitinases (CHTs). Insect CHTs, belonging to family 18 glycosylhydrolase (GH18), have been classified into at least eleven subgroups based on phylogenetic analyses, and group I (CHT5) and group II (CHT10) epidermal CHTs present in molting fluid. In this study we report the physiological function of MaCHT5 and MaCHT10 in the Japanese pine sawyer, Monochamus alternatus. RNAi for either MaCHT5 or MaCHT10 resulted in larval-pupal and pupal-adult molting defects, in which the insects were unable to shed completely their old cuticle and died entrapped in their exuviae. Furthermore, TEM analysis revealed a failure of degradation of the old cuticle in both MaCHT5- and MaCHT10-deficient pharate adults. In the old pupal cuticle, the chitinous horizontal laminar and vertical pore canal essentially remained intact in the endocuticular layer. These results indicate that both CHTs are required for turnover of the chitinous old cuticle, which is critical for completion of insect molting. We also discuss the possible function of two spliced variants of MaCHT10, MaCHT10a and MaCHT10b.

Lytic polysaccharide monooxygenases (LPMOs) catalyze the oxidative cleavage of glycosidic bonds in crystalline polysaccharides including chitin and cellulose. The recent discovery of LPMO family proteins in many insect species suggests that they presumably play a role in chitin degradation in the cuticle/exoskeleton, tracheae and peritrophic matrix during insect development. Insect LPMOs belong to auxiliary activity family 15 (AA15/LPMO15) and have been classified into at least four groups based on phylogenetic analysis. In this study, we identified, characterized and investigated the physiological functions of group I LPMO15 (MaLPMO15-1 and PhLPMO15-1) in two longhorn beetle species, Monochamus alternatus and Psacothea hilaris. In both species, depletion of LPMO15-1 transcripts in last instar larvae by RNAi had no effect on subsequent larval-pupal molting and the resulting pupae developed normally. However, adverse effects on their development were observed during the pupal-adult molting period. The pharate adults were unable to shed their old pupal cuticle and died entrapped in their exuviae probably due to a failure of degradation of the chitin in their old cuticle, which is critical for completion of the insect molting and continuous growth.

The relationship between companies in the supply chain is a core competency of the company and key indicator which determines the survival of a company. Therefore, companies are investing in efforts for inter-company relations, and related studies have been conducted for a long time. However, in the supply chain, the positions and characteristics of suppliers and buyers are not the same. Therefore, research is needed to better understand and respond to other characteristics of the relationship between suppliers and buyers. The purpose of this study was to identify the characteristics of the resources held between the buyer and the supplier through social capital, which is a value asset that can be used as a resource created through social relations, and whether it affects the commitment of the relationship. In addition, The core of this study was to statistically analyze the differences between suppliers and buyers through this analysis. This study was conducted by surveying companies that are suppliers and buyers along the supply chain. The difference between the supplier and the buyer was revealed through empirical analysis, and statistically, the difference between the two groups was also revealed. As a result of the analysis, the higher the involvement of the buyer, the more significant the result of structural capital was, and the result was statistically opposite to the supplier. As for the relationship capital, quantitative and qualitative relationship capital had different effects on the commitment. Both the supplier and the buyer had a positive effect on relationship performance. However, the effect of emotional commitment on non-financial relationship performance has a greater degree of influence on suppliers, and it appears in statistical differences. This study revealed differences in the relationship between suppliers and buyers, and found that different investments and efforts were required for each group.

The main purpose of this study is to prove that art therapy games work for ADD children. We have demonstrated the effectiveness of the Mandala art therapy game for attention-deficient children through experiments. This study conducted art therapy programs and art therapy games on children aged 7 years old to verify the effectiveness of ADD children's attention focus and verified their effect on children’s attention and concentration. Through this experiment, the art therapy game proved that the program has the effect of improving the emotional stability and attention of ADD children and that art therapy games are beneficial programs for children's psychological treatment.

Sandwich structures are general-purpose structures that can reduce the structural weight of composite ships. Core materials are essential for these structures, with polyvinyl chloride (PVC) foams being the most popular. These foam core materials are subjected to various tests in the development process, and must satisfy the performance requirements of several ISO and ASTM standards. Therefore, a procedure for evaluating the performance of foam core materials was proposed in this paper. In addition, prototypes were fabricated using a commercial PVC foam core product in accordance with the structural design of an 11 m fiber-reinforced plastic yacht. Then, a case study was conducted on the proposed evaluation procedure. The proposed procedure facilitates the understanding of the performance requirements and evaluation of core materials used in composite ships and is expected to be utilized in developing core materials for marine structures.

Sea trial tests are necessary to verify speed-power performance, and are an import contract between ship owners and shipyards. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) published ISO 15016:2015, which specifies the correlation method between model and full-scale ships. The results of sea trials have been questioned because of the uncertainty of speed and power measurements, especially when sea conditions differ from ideal calm water conditions. In this paper, such uncertainties were investigated by utilizing the standard speed-power trial analysis procedure defined in ISO 15016:2015 through Monte Carlo simulations. It was found that the expanded uncertainty of the delivered power (PDid) at 95 % confidence interval (k = 2) was ±1.5 % under 75 % MCR conditions.

Osteoarthritis occurs when the cartilage that gradually deteriorates as common aging-associated disease in humans and animals. There is no cure, but the treatments are available to manage to relieve pain through medication such as steroids. Growing interest has been focused on the role of cell-based therapies using mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs). In addition, mesenchymal stem cells can be isolated from almost adult tissues and known for their potential of becoming cartilage. Clinical and experimental studies indicate that the development of treatment using stem cells is double-edged sword involving a possibility such as tumorigenesis. This study focused on the electrical features during articular cartilage development and hypothesized that external electric fields promote pre-chondrogenic condensation without concern relating to genetic modification or exogenous factors. Here, it has been reported that exogenous direct electric fields drive pre-chondrogenic condensation which is the stage where cartilage formation begins by condensation of stem cells and cartilage cells in the microenvironment of the joint. Time-dependent observations also support the contribution of electrical stimulation (ES) to induce gradual aggregation of MSCs into highly compact structures within 3 days. Collectively, our findings provide the potential of electrical stimulation-driven chondrogenesis of mesenchymal stem cells in the absence of exogenous factors for repair of cartilage defects.