Developmental characteristics of immature stages of Ostrinia scapulalis (Lepidoptera: Crambidae), which is a main insect pest against legume crops, were investigated at constant temperatures to prepare fundamental data for integrated pest management. Egg, larva and pupa could survive at temperatures from 16oC to 36oC. Developmental periods of those stages became shorter with increasing temperature between 16 and 31oC, 16 and 36oC, and 16 and 34oC, respectively. The lower developmental thresholds and degree-days(DD) were determined as 13.0oC and 56.9DD, 13.8oC and 277.5DD, and 14.2oC and 90.8DD using a linear regression model between temperature and development rate. Other parameters for explaining development of this species were estimated using a few non-linear models for developmental rate, distribution, and survivorship.

The Asian corn borer, O. furnacalis (Crambidae) and the old world bollworm, H. armigera (Noctuidae) simultaneously cause ear damage in corn in Suwon area. It has been assumed that the second generation of larvae of both insects is responsible for the damage. We, therefore, studied proper spray timing of insecticide in order to reduce the damage. A waxy corn hybrid cultivar, Ilmichal, was sown directly on four plots of a field at April 10, April 20, May 4, and May 18, 2018, respectively. A sodium channel blocker, indoxacarb, was sprayed eight times at 3- or 4-day intervals around the silking stage of corn in each sowing plot. At ear harvest time of each plot, we investigated damaged ratio and length of ear, and the numbers of both insect species. The significantly effective spray timings on reduction of ear damage were the sprays at June 29 and July 2 in the plot sown at April 10, the sprays from July 2 to 13 in the April 20-sown plot, the sprays from July 2 to 19 in the May 4-sown plot, and the sprays at July 19 in the May 18-sown plot, respectively. The damage level was positively related to the insect number. The result indicated that the spray at the silking stage of corn was effective on reduction of ear damage. It was assumed that occurrence time of neonate larvae of the insects at silking stage cause the damage, based on the experimental results using screened pots inoculated with the two species.

Customer management based on Customer lifetime value has emerged as the most effective way of doing business due to the ability to foster profitable CRM (Verhoef & Lemon, 2013; Villanueva & Hanssens, 2007). Although there has been much conceptual evidence of the positive link between customer equity and firm’s performance(Blattberg, Malthouse, and Neslin 2009), comparison of relationships between two competing firms based on customer equity and firm profitability is limited. Therefore, this research examines the role of customer equity on the firm profitability by comparing the company type such as leader and follower in customer equity setting. The result shows that the effect of newly acquired Customer equity of the second tier company is stronger than that of the top tier company while the effect of retained customer equity of the top company is stronger than that of the second tier company. Overall, the results provide strategic implications for firms to use a different customer equity strategy in a competitive market structure.

To investigate the photosynthesis and growth of Cymbidium ‘Red Fire’ grown under different nitrogen fertilization and night-interruption (NI) illumination, we exposed plants to 9-h short days (SDs), SDs + 3 - 7 μmol·m-2·s-1 NI (low-light intensity of NI, LNI), or SDs + 120 μmol·m-2·s-1 NI (high-light intensity of NI, HNI) illumination with nitrogen supplemented at 0, 100, 200, or 400 mg·L-1. Cymbidium photosynthesized under 3 – 7 μmol·m-2·s-1 NI regardless of nitrogen treatment, promoting growth. HNI treatments and nitrogen supplements at 100 mg·L-1 increased the leaf chlorophyll concentration. LNI increased net CO2 assimilation (An), transpiration, and stomatal conductance. HNI without supplemental nitrogen reduced midday An. However, HNI with supplemental nitrogen increased midday An. Supplemental nitrogen should be provided to Cymbidium when high-irradiance NI is used to promote growth.

Although there has been much conceptual evidence of the positive link between customer equity and firm’s performance, comparison of relationships between two firms based on customer equity and firm profitability is limited. However, there is an increasing demand for research that investigates the relationship between firms in the competitive market structure. Therefore, the goal of this research is to examine the role of customer equity on firm profitability by comparing two firms, in a customer equity setting. The result shows that the effect of newly acquired CE of the second top company is stronger than that of the top company while the effect of retained CE of the top company is stronger than that of the second top company. Overall, the results offer strategic implications for firms to implement a different customer equity strategy in this competitive market structure.

The Social Network System (SNS) has possesses unique characteristic which distinguish it in important ways from traditional communications environment because the social network system allows a fundamentally different environment for communication marketing activities. The traditional marketing communications model was uni-directional, due to the fact that mass communication is a one-to-many process whereby a company transmits content through a medium to a large group of people. Today, communication paradigm has shifted online and is many to many, known as a bi-directional strategy. Bi-directional strategy mediates communications model in which 1) consumers can interact with the medium and with each other, 2) companies can provide content to the medium and interact with each other, 3) companies and consumers can interact, and in the most radical departure from traditional marketing environments to determine how brand relationship is affected. In this paper, we use the social network system as a new marketing communication medium. We use the key Mohr & Nevin’s communication strategies: frequency, direction, content, and modality to measure communication quality, and then implement communication quality by using the attitude and e-WOM intentions. Rich understanding of SNS communication quality can help focus the managerial efforts on vital communication factors, which stimulate positive assessments of communication behaviors. Furthermore, practitioners may better understand which dimensions of communication facets/aspects are more appropriate

Given the pervasive use of brand personification by marketers, it is surprising that there has been extremely limited research directly examining the effects of brand personification. In this article, we attempt to fill this gap in part by exploring how personified brand, in contrast to an objectified brand, might affect consumers’ response. Also, previous research have studied mainly on the visual or combined (visual-verbal) brand personification without differentiating the two types of brand personification. Therefore, this study tries to focus on the verbal brand personification which has not been studied extensively. And there are two types of verbal brand personification: external and internal image. So this study validates the effect of internal (kind) or external (looking good) verbal brand personification separately in the series of two experiments. Study 1 tests the effect of internal verbal brand personification on the consumer evaluation using product brand. Specifically, we test the moderating effect of brand knowledge between verbal brand personification and consumer evaluation and explore the underlying mechanisms (brand intimacy, psychological discomfort) about how the interaction effect of personification level and brand knowledge occurs. Study 2 tests the effect of external verbal brand personification on the consumer evaluation using service brand. Specifically, we test the effect of need-for-cognition on attitude towards personified brand ad and additionally explore the underlying mechanisms (perceived novelty, cognitive resistance) about how need-for-cognition influences. This research could provide useful guidelines for the marketers to utilize personification method when planning the head copy or slogan for advertisement. Therefore, marketers are better able to make an effective brand personification strategy through understanding the boundary conditions and mechanisms about the impact of brand personification based on the findings of this study.

In this study, bulk nickel-carbon nanotube (CNT) nanocomposites are synthesized by a novel method which includes a combination of ultrasonication, electrical explosion of wire in liquid and spark plasma sintering. The mechanical characteristics of the bulk Ni-CNT composites synthesized with CNT contents of 0.7, 1, 3 and 5 wt.% are investigated. X-ray diffraction, optical microscopy and field emission scanning electron microscopy techniques are used to observe the different phases, morphologies and structures of the composite powders as well as the sintered samples. The obtained results reveal that the as-synthesized composite exhibits substantial enhancement in the microhardness and values more than 140 HV are observed. However an empirical reinforcement limit of 3 wt.% is determined for the CNT content, beyond which, there is no significant improvement in the mechanical properties.

In this study, Fe-Cu-Ni-Mo-C low alloy steel powder is consolidated by spark plasma sintering (SPS) process. The internal structure and the surface fracture behavior are studied using field-emission scanning electron microscopy and optical microscopy techniques. The bulk samples are polished and etched in order to observe the internal structure. The sample sintered at 900oC with holding time of 10 minutes achieves nearly full density of 98.9% while the density of the as-received conventionally sintered product is 90.3%. The fracture microstructures indicate that the sample prepared at 900oC by the SPS process is hard to break out because of the presence of both grain boundaries and internal particle fractures. Moreover, the lamellar pearlite structure is also observed in this sample. The samples sintered at 1000 and 1100oC exhibit a large number of tiny particles and pores due to the melting of Cu and aggregation of the alloy elements during the SPS process. The highest hardness value of 296.52 HV is observed for the sample sintered at 900oC with holding time of 10 minutes.

Beet armyworm, Spodoptera exigua, diamondback moth, Plutella xylostella and tobacco cutworm, Spodoptera litura are the three most serious pests of many economically important crops such as cruciferous crops, various vegetables and ornamental plants. Because these pests are known to be resistant to lots of chemical insecticides, integrated control using both or either entomophathogen and/or natural enemy is thought to be an attractive alternative for effective control. One of the obstacles using and expanding mycopesticide is narrow host ranges. At commercial farms, cultivating crops are seriously damaged by various Lepidopteran pests. Farmers want to use a microbial control agent which can control various host insects to reduce cost and labor. In previous study, we selected two entomopathogenic fungi, Metarhizium anisopliae and Paecilomyces fumosoroseus, which shown high virulence against beet armyworm. For wide use of the isolates in farm, we tested its host ranges, especially to diamondback moth and tobacco cutworm, which also are serious pest in Korea. The two isolates were shown a good control effect in leaf disc bioassy.

Microbe have been considered as potential control agents for pest, as alternative to chemical control methods. Among entomopathogens, fungi cause the mortality by penetrating the cuticle of pest and/or by metabolites such as toxin. Not only this direct control effect of fungi, but repellency of fungi also may be used to prevent the pest. Repellence effect of fungi is considered as inhibitory factor to control termite. A study was reported in Japan that termite was able to detect and remove the conidia of fungi on their surface. The termite can escape from fungal infection and protect their colony. There is few study that insect pest such as moth can detect and avoid the virulence fungi. Therefore, we has been conducting the detection and avoidance of beet armyworm to high pathogenic fungi, Paecilomyces fumosoroseus. Adult of the beet armyworm avoided oviposition at Chinese cabbage treated with P. fumosoroseus compare to control. This result may be used to prevent the infestation of moth in crop production.