Word sense disambiguation based on context selection using knowledge-based word similarity

In this paper, we introduce a novel knowledge-based word-sense disambiguation (WSD) system. In particular, the main goal of our research is to find an effective way to filter out unnecessary information by using word similarity. For this, we adopt two methods in our WSD system. First, we propose a novel encoding method for word vector representation by considering the graphical semantic relationships from the lexical knowledge bases, and the word vector representation is utilized to determine the word similarity in our WSD system. Second, we present an effective method for extracting the contextual words from a text for analyzing an ambiguous word based on word similarity. The results demonstrate that the suggested methods significantly enhance the baseline WSD performance in all corpora. In particular, the performance on nouns is similar to those of the state-of-the-art knowledge-based WSD models, and the performance on verbs surpasses that of the existing knowledge-based WSD models.     

Molecular diffusion analysis of dynamic blood flow and plasma separation driven by self-powered microfluidic devices

Integration of microfluidic devices with pressure-driven, self-powered fluid flow propulsion methods has provided a very effective solution for on-chip, droplet blood testing applications. However, precise understanding of the physical process governing fluid dynamics in polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS)-based microfluidic devices remains unclear. Here, we propose a pressure-driven diffusion model using Fick''s law and the ideal gas law, the results of which agree well with the experimental fluid dynamics observed in our vacuum pocket-assisted, self-powered microfluidic devices. Notably, this model enables us to precisely tune the flow rate by adjusting two geometrical parameters of the vacuum pocket. By linking the self-powered fluid flow propulsion method to the sedimentation, we also show that direct plasma separation from a drop of whole blood can be achieved using only a simple construction without the need for external power sources, connectors, or a complex operational procedure. Finally, the potential of the vacuum pocket, along with a removable vacuum battery to be integrated with non-PDMS microfluidic devices to drive and control the fluid flow, is demonstrated.     

The impact of after-school programs on educational equality and private tutoring expenses

The purpose of this study was to examine how the implementation of after-school programs in Korea’s public schools is related to educational equality and private tutoring expenses. The analyzed data was from the Survey on the Status of Private Tutoring and the Study of the Policy Measures to Reduce Private Tutoring Expenses conducted by KEDI (Korea Education Development Institute) in (International conference for exploring the ways to activate the after-school program, KEDI, Seoul, 2007). The Chi-square test was employed to investigate (a) the relationship between after-school participation and family income and residential location of students (b) the association between after-school engagement and the reduction in private tutoring expenses. The study found that: (a) in general, low-income and rural students participated more than higher income and urban peers in after-school programs and (b) after-school participation was generally negatively associated with private tutoring engagement and the impact of after-school participation on the reduction in private tutoring expenses was stronger for low-income students in elementary and high schools and rural students in high schools. The overall findings provide further research issue regarding whether after-school programs can help foster educational equality by offering more opportunities for learning and achievement improvement for disadvantaged students. The results also imply the potential of after-school programs in reducing private tutoring expenses, particularly for low-income families.     

What spurs curriculum making in physical education? Four narratives of experienced teachers

Anchored in the narrative inquiry tradition, this paper examines commonly held motives about curriculum making from the perspectives of four experienced physical education teachers in Korea. Field texts were collected throughout by employing narrative research tools such as in-depth interviews, focus groups, class observations and documents analyses, and transformed into research texts using broadening, burrowing, and storying and restorying as suggested by Connelly and Clandinin. For experienced physical educators, this paper illuminates what motivates curriculum making as a narrative phenomenon storied and restoried over time. Different stories produced different motives of curriculum making, and a number of issues related to teacher development for curriculum making emerged.     

Cultivating divergent thinking in mathematics through an open-ended approach

The purpose of this study was to develop a program to help cultivate divergent thinking in mathematics based on open-ended problems and to investigate its effect. The participants were 398 seventh grade students attending middle schools in Seoul. A method of pre- and post-testing was used to measure mainly divergent thinking skills through open-ended problems. The results indicated that the treatment group students performed better than the comparison students overall on each component of divergent thinking skills, which includes fluency, flexibility, and originality. The developed program can be a useful resource for teachers to use in enhancing their students’ creative thinking skills. An open-ended approach in teaching mathematics suggested in this paper may provide a possible arena for exploring the prospects and possibilities of improving mathematical creativity.     

KORMARC

This article investigates the characteristics of KORMARC (Korean Machine Readable MARC) format and the role and influence of KORMARC on the development of library automation in Korea, as an example of library automation in the developing countries. The first section is a general overview of the development of KORMARC. In the second section, the characteristics of the KORMARC format for monographs are investigated, mainly based on the bibliographic characteristics in the East-Asian countries. In the third section, the influence of KORMARC on library automation in Korea is reviewed along with the prospects for the future.     

Profit Sharing in a Closed Content Market

Many media industries can be characterized as a closed content market in which only subscribers of the distribution network operator (Network Provider [NP]) have access to the content provided by a content provider (CP). In these markets, the NP frequently charges the CP for providing billing and connectivity services to potential customers. Due to this carriage payment, the closed content market has structural similarity to the coalitional form game. Consequently, concepts of superadditivity, the core, and the Shapley value can be applied to determine what constitutes a sustainable and fair share of the CP's profit that could be paid to the NP as a carriage payment. This article addresses issues concerning the existence of the sustainable and fair profit allocation in a closed content market like the one described previously.     

USING AN ENHANCED CONFLICT MAP IN THE CLASSROOM (PHOTOELECTRIC EFFECT) BASED ON LAKATOSIAN HEURISTIC PRINCIPLE STRATEGIES

Researchers have shown that most students resist changes to their core beliefs by offering auxiliary hypotheses at the first sign of the development of conceptual change. Studies have viewed student reaction to discrepant events as an important clue in helping researchers understand not only the structure of alternative concepts (Niaz, Science & Education, 7(2):107 – 127, 1998) but also the nature of scientific concepts. The main objectives of this research were the following: (a) to consider prudently the conflict map of Tsai (International Journal of Science Education, 22(3):285 – 302, 2000); (b) to initiate and develop an enhanced conflict map based on Lakatosian ethodology, which could help science teachers and students resolve conflicts that occur in the explanation of natural phenomena; (c) to examine the effectiveness of the enhanced conflict map; and (d) to discuss these implications in science education. Specifically, this study used two freshman classes from the Department of Electronics and one class of Astronomy majors from C. National University, South Korea, to investigate how scientific concepts change after selecting the modern physics field (Photoelectric effect), which is included in the Physics and Astronomy courses. Modern physics has led to the so-called Lakatosian heuristic principle or methodology, a useful framework that includes scientific philosophy and science history as study strategies. “Enhanced conflict maps” are suggested for use to consistently show all the study processes.     

KORMARC: Its characteristics and influence on the library automation in Korea

This article investigates the characteristics of KORMARC (Korean Machine Readable MARC) format and the role and influence of KORMARC on the development of library automation in Korea, as an example of library automation in the developing countries. The first section is a general overview of the development of KORMARC. In the second section, the characteristics of the KORMARC format for monographs are investigated, mainly based on the bibliographic characteristics in the East-Asian countries. In the third section, the influence of KORMARC on library automation in Korea is reviewed along with the prospects for the future.