Market Competition and Cultural Tensions Between Hollywood and the Korean Film Industry

The market shares of Hollywood movies in European and Asian markets are so large that policymakers around the world are concerned about the import domination not only in theaters but also in the subsequent windows. Media economists acknowledge that domestic producers have an advantage in terms of a "cultural discount," referring to the unavoidable disadvantage of imported films. However, expenditure on a film's production also determines the extent of popular appeal, thus creating an advantage for films that have a large and wealthy home market base such as Hollywood. In this article, I aim at understanding the dynamics of these 2 seemingly opposing forces in the motion picture market in Korea. I review the film market in Korea, explore the relation between performances of 2 windows, theaters and home video, over the two countries-the United States and Korea-and compare the determinants of performance of Hollywood and local films in Korean box offices. A strong hit orientation and preference for local content was empirically found.     

The Gender War in U.S. Sport: Winners and Losers in News Coverage of Title IX

Title IX, the 1972 federal law that guarantees girls and young women access to scholastic sporting opportunities, has been the catalyst for explosive growth in female athletics. Despite evidence that Title IX has opened doors for female athletes without closing them to boys, the law continues to be a source of controversy. This research explores the ways stories in U.S. regional and national newspapers framed Title IX issues between 2002 and 2005, critical years for the civil-rights legislation because of political and legal activity at the national level. Content analysis found that although most stories avoided negative framing devices, stories about the Title IX Commission during 2002 and 2003 more often used negative framing that could perpetuate misunderstanding about the law. Further, paper size, placement of stories and reporter gender were factors in the way stories framed and sourced Title IX coverage. This study points to the need of journalists for a better understanding of the law and its impact on high school and collegiate athletics. Journalists also need to better understand Title IX's relationship with the fiscal hierarchy of collegiate athletics in U.S. universities so “blame the victim” mythology is not reinforced. Journalists should reject patriarchal frames and report about Title IX in ways that benefit public discourse.     

Partisans and Controversial News Online: Comparing Perceptions of Bias and Credibility in News Content From Blogs and Mainstream Media

Based on the hostile media effect (HME), this 2 (partisan opinion) × 2 (news source) × 2 (content valence) factorial experiment investigated how partisans (N = 132), in terms of perceived bias and credibility, assess same-sex marriage coverage by either an online mainstream news source or a citizen blog. Partisans who disagreed with the content's valence evaluated both mainstream online news and the blog posting as more biased and less credible than did partisans who agreed with the content's valence. The perceived reach of blog postings appears to generate a relative HME similar to that triggered by mainstream news. In particular, this study suggests that user-generated content—specifically blog postings—might generate a stronger relative HME than that observed with mainstream news.     

Supply chain information capabilities and performance outcomes: An empirical study of Korean steel suppliers

This article discusses how supply chain information capabilities are instrumental to achieve performance outcomes. We identify critical components of supply chain information capabilities in terms of inter-organizational information system capacity and inter-organizational relational competency. In view of the high degree of industry concentration in Korea, this article presents and tests a research model using a sample of Korean steel suppliers. Empirical tests are conducted using the structural equation modeling, PLS (partial least squares). The results of this study suggest that Korean manufacturing (e.g., automobile, shipbuilding, construction, and mobile industries) are heavily influenced by the competitiveness of the steel industry in terms of supply chain information capabilities and performance outcomes—supply chain-level (i.e., supply chain flexibility) and firm-level performance outcomes (i.e., customer responsiveness and cost reductions). Future research may extend the findings of this study in other country contexts to accomplish both customer responsiveness and cost reductions through supply chain information capabilities.     

The Internet Defends Itself: The Network Neutrality Debate on the Web

This study examines the network neutrality debate, as represented online. The research begins by conducting network analysis to identify key websites, followed by retrieving the relevant documents and using content analysis. Results demonstrate that the online version of the debate skews heavily toward the pro-network neutrality side. The web debate also includes much higher proportions of voices from nonprofit sectors, especially nongovernmental organizations. Telecommunications companies and trade groups, which anchor the anti-network neutrality coalition, are relatively quiet online. These findings show groups that are less powerful making heavy use of online communication and, in light of the political history of the issue, they also suggest online mobilizing may help reshape the dynamics of issue advocacy.     

Effect of a dual inlet channel on cell loading in microfluidics

Unwanted sedimentation and attachment of a number of cells onto the bottom channel often occur on relatively large-scale inlets of conventional microfluidic channels as a result of gravity and fluid shear. Phenomena such as sedimentation have become recognized problems that can be overcome by performing microfluidic experiments properly, such as by calculating a meaningful output efficiency with respect to real input. Here, we present a dual-inlet design method for reducing cell loss at the inlet of channels by adding a new “ upstream inlet ” to a single main inlet design. The simple addition of an upstream inlet can create a vertically layered sheath flow prior to the main inlet for cell loading. The bottom layer flow plays a critical role in preventing the cells from attaching to the bottom of the channel entrance, resulting in a low possibility of cell sedimentation at the main channel entrance. To provide proof-of-concept validation, we applied our design to a microfabricated flow cytometer system (μFCS) and compared the cell counting efficiency of the proposed μFCS with that of the previous single-inlet μFCS and conventional FCS. We used human white blood cells and fluorescent microspheres to quantitatively evaluate the rate of cell sedimentation in the main inlet and to measure fluorescence sensitivity at the detection zone of the flow cytometer microchip. Generating a sheath flow as the bottom layer was meaningfully used to reduce the depth of field as well as the relative deviation of targets in the z-direction (compared to the x-y flow plane), leading to an increased counting sensitivity of fluorescent detection signals. Counting results using fluorescent microspheres showed both a 40% reduction in the rate of sedimentation and a 2-fold higher sensitivity in comparison with the single-inlet μFCS. The results of CD4⁺ T-cell counting also showed that the proposed design results in a 25% decrease in the rate of cell sedimentation and a 28% increase in sensitivity when compared to the single-inlet μFCS. This method is simple and easy to use in design, yet requires no additional time or cost in fabrication. Furthermore, we expect that this approach could potentially be helpful for calculating exact cell loading and counting efficiency for a small input number of cells, such as primary cells and rare cells, in microfluidic channel applications.     

A microfluidic perfusion platform for cultivation and screening study of motile microalgal cells

Systematic screening of algal cells is getting huge interest due to their capability of producing lipid-based biodiesel. Here, we introduce a new microfluidic platform composed of an array of perfusion chambers designed for long-term cultivation and preliminary screening of motile microalgal cells through loading and releasing of cells to and from the chambers. The chemical environment in each perfusion chamber was independently controlled for 5 days. The effect of nitrogen-depletion on the lipid production, phototaxis behavior in the absence of Ca²⁺, and cytotoxic effect of herbicide on microalgal cells was successfully monitored and compared with simultaneous control experiments on the platform. The present methodology could be extended to effective screening of algal cells and various cell lines for the production of biodiesel and other useful chemicals.     

A microfluidic manifold with a single pump system to generate highly mono-disperse alginate beads for cell encapsulation

Cell encapsulation technology is a promising strategy applicable to tissue engineering and cell therapy. Many advanced microencapsulation chips that function via multiple syringe pumps have been developed to generate mono-disperse hydrogel beads encapsulating cells. However, their operation is difficult and only trained microfluidic engineers can use them with dexterity. Hence, we propose a microfluidic manifold system, driven by a single syringe pump, which can enable the setup of automated flow sequences and generate highly mono-disperse alginate beads by minimizing disturbances to the pump pressure. The encapsulation of P19 mouse embryonic carcinoma cells and embryonic body formation are demonstrated to prove the efficiency of the proposed system.     

A portable lab-on-a-chip system for gold-nanoparticle-based colorimetric detection of metal ions in water

Heavy metal ions released into various water systems have a severe impact on the environment and human beings, and excess exposure to toxic metal ions through drinking water poses high risks to human health and causes life-threatening diseases. Thus, there is high demand for the development of a rapid, low-cost, and sensitive method for detection of metal ions in water. We present a portable analytical system for colorimetric detection of lead (Pb²⁺) and aluminum (Al³⁺) ions in water based on gold nanoparticle probes and lab-on-a-chip instrumentation. The colorimetric detection of metal ions is conducted via single-step assays with low limits of detection (LODs) and high selectivity. We design a custom-made microwell plate and a handheld colorimetric reader for implementing the assays and quantifying the signal readout. The calibration experiments demonstrate that this portable system provides LODs of 30 ppb for Pb²⁺ and 89 ppb for Al³⁺, both comparable to bench-top analytical spectrometers. It promises an effective platform for metal ion analysis in a more economical and convenient way, which is particularly useful for water quality monitoring in field and resource-poor settings.     

Label-free density difference amplification-based cell sorting

The selective cell separation is a critical step in fundamental life sciences, translational medicine, biotechnology, and energy harvesting. Conventional cell separation methods are fluorescent activated cell sorting and magnetic-activated cell sorting based on fluorescent probes and magnetic particles on cell surfaces. Label-free cell separation methods such as Raman-activated cell sorting, electro-physiologically activated cell sorting, dielectric-activated cell sorting, or inertial microfluidic cell sorting are, however, limited when separating cells of the same kind or cells with similar sizes and dielectric properties, as well as similar electrophysiological phenotypes. Here we report a label-free density difference amplification-based cell sorting (dDACS) without using any external optical, magnetic, electrical forces, or fluidic activations. The conceptual microfluidic design consists of an inlet, hydraulic jump cavity, and multiple outlets. Incoming particles experience gravity, buoyancy, and drag forces in the separation chamber. The height and distance that each particle can reach in the chamber are different and depend on its density, thus allowing for the separation of particles into multiple outlets. The separation behavior of the particles, based on the ratio of the channel heights of the inlet and chamber and Reynolds number has been systematically studied. Numerical simulation reveals that the difference between the heights of only lighter particles with densities close to that of water increases with increasing the ratio of the channel heights, while decreasing Reynolds number can amplify the difference in the heights between the particles considered irrespective of their densities.Separating specific cells from heterogeneous or homogeneous mixtures has been considered as a key step in a wide variety of applications ranging from biomedicine to energy harvesting. For example, the separation and sorting of rare circulating tumor cells (CTCs) from whole blood has gained significant importance in the potential diagnosis and treatment of metastatic cancers.^1,2 Similarly, malaria detection relies on the collection of infected red blood cells (RBCs) from whole blood.^3,4 In addition, the selective separation of lipid-rich microalgae from homogeneous mixtures of microalgae is a promising technique in biomass conversion.⁵To date, conventional cell separation can be done by labelling cells with biomolecules to induce differences in physical properties. For instance, in a fluorescence-activated cell sorter (FACS), cells to be separated are labelled with antibodies or aptamers with fluorescent molecules, and then sorted by applying an electrical potential.^6,7 Similarly, magnetic-activated cell sorter (MACS) uses magnetic.^8,9 Alternatively, label-free cell separation methods have exploited inherent differences in the physical properties (e.g., size and dielectric properties) of different kinds of cells. For example, acoustophoresis forces particles larger than a desired size to move into the center of a fluidic channel by using ultrasonic standing waves.^10–12 Inertial microfluidics takes advantage of curved fluidic channels in order to amplify the size differences between particles.^13,14 Mass-dependent separation of particles based on gravity and hydrodynamic flow was also reported.¹⁵ Particles with different dielectric properties can also be sorted by dielectrophoresis which induces the movement of polarizable particles.^16–18The disadvantage of these methods, however, is that they require external forces and labels that may cause unexpected damage to biological cells.^19–21 More importantly, most methods are limited in separating cells of the same kind or cells with similar sizes and dielectric properties.Here we designed a novel, label-free density difference amplification-based cell sorting (dDACS) that allows the separation of particles with the same size and charge by exploiting subtle differences in density without the use of external forces. Figure 1(a) illustrates the proposed microfluidic model and its underlying mechanism. The conceptual microfluidic system consists of an inlet, a separation chamber (hydraulic jump cavity), and multiple outlets. Particles entering through the inlet experience gravity (F_G), buoyancy (F_B), and drag (F_D) forces in the separation chamber. The net force acting on the particles can be described as F = F_G + F_B + F_D.(1)As particles enter the separation chamber (i.e., hydraulic jump cavity), F_D acting on the particles changes its direction along the streamline. The particles experience additional forces in the y direction due to large tangential angle (Fig. 1(b)). For lighter particles, whose densities are close to that of the surrounding water, F_D becomes comparable to F_G (i.e., in the y direction), while the net force for heavier particles is less affected by this additional contribution of F_D due to a large F_G. As a result, the height (H) and distance (D) that each particle can travel are different depending on its density. The difference in the maximum height (ΔH_max) between two particles with different density (ρ_p1 and ρ_p2) can be further approximated as ΔHmax∝(vyp0)2(vyf−vyp0), (ρp1−ρp2) ,(2)where v_yp0 and v_yf represent the velocity of particle and fluid along the y direction at the entrance of hydraulic jump cavity, respectively.Open in a separate windowFIG. 1.Schematic illustration of label-free density difference amplification-based cell sorting (dDACS), which exploits differences in the densities (ρ₁ > ρ₂) of particles with similar diameters (d) and charge. (a) The conceptual microfluidic design consists of an inlet, a separation chamber (hydraulic jump cavity), and multiple outlets. Incoming particles experience gravity (F_G), buoyancy (F_B), and drag (F_D) forces in the separation chamber, and depending on their densities, the height (H) and distance (D) that each particle is able to reach will be different, allowing the particles to be separated into multiple outlets. (b) Possible microfluidic channel configurations for density-based separation: Uniform channel height (left), gradual channel expansion (middle), and hydraulic jump cavity with sudden channel expansion (right). The height difference between particles with different densities can be amplified by the sudden channel expansion compared to the other two cases due to the relatively large tangential angle, θ of F_D. (|θ₁|≪ |θ₂|) (see Fig. S1 in the supplementary material²²).In comparison with the other two cases (Fig. 1(b) uniform channel height and gradual channel expansion), the height difference between the particles with different densities can be amplified by the sudden channel expansion in the hydraulic jump cavity due to relatively large tangential angle (see supplementary material²²). Therefore, the particles can be separated through the multiple outlets, depending on their height and distance.In order to analyze the separation behavior of particles in the chamber according to differences in their densities, H and D are systematically investigated. The numerical simulations are performed using a commercial CFD software (CFX 14.0; ANSYS 14.0; ANSYS, Inc.). Particles with the same density may have different trajectories in the separation chamber depending on their inlet positions (Fig. 2(a)). Prior to this investigation, the maximum height (H_max) and distance (D_max) for each particle are compared by examining H and D of 100 identical particles at different inlet positions since the inlet position of particles could be controlled.²⁰ Fig. 2(b) shows H_max and D_max of particles with respect to density at a fixed Reynolds number (Re = 0.1). Note that Reynolds number is defined as Re = ρ_fv_fD_h/μ, where ρ_f, v_f, D_h, μ are density of fluid, velocity of the fluid, hydraulic diameter of a channel, and dynamic viscosity of the fluid, respectively. The hydraulic diameter in the Reynolds number is determined with the inlet channel. Particle densities in the range of 1.1 to 2.0 g/cm³ are chosen with the increase of 0.1 g/cm³. These values are quite reasonable in that the densities of many microorganisms such as microalgae are typically within this range and their densities can be varied by 0.2 g/m³ depending on their cellular context.²³ The lighter particles travel with a higher H_max, and longer D_max. With the separation chamber, the height difference between particles with densities of 1.1 and 1.2 g/cm³ can be amplified by about 10 times as compared to that in a channel without the chamber, judging from the position where the 1.1 g/cm³ particle reaches its H_max.Open in a separate windowFIG. 2.Microfluidic particle separation with respect to Reynolds number (Re). (a) Trajectories in the separation chamber of a hundred particles with the same density starting from inlet positions chosen arbitrarily in order to investigate the effect of the inlet positions on the maxima of the height (H_max) and distance (D_max) prior to further simulation. (b) Representative trajectories of particles having different densities from 1.1 to 2.0 g/cm³. (c) The maximum height (H_max) of each particle with respect to Re. (d) Representative maximum distance (D_max) of each particle at Re = 0.1. (Left) Streamline of fluid and representative trajectories of particles with densities of 1.1 and 2.0 g/cm³ in the separation chamber at Re = 0.1 (right).In Fig. 2(c), the values for H_max of particles with respect to Reynolds number (Re) are presented. Since in our study, the maximum height (H_max) and distance (D_max) for each particle were compared by examining H and D of 100 identical particles that are randomly distributed in the channel (throughout all figures), there is little variation in H_max and D_max between each simulation. However, the standard deviation between each simulation is quite small and can be negligible. The H_max values particles at Re = 0.5 with densities of 1.1 g/cm³ and 1.2 g/cm³ are 2.21 × 10³μm and 2.17 × 10³μm, respectively. The difference between H_max of different particles, ΔH_max, increases with decreasing Re. For example, ΔH_max between particles with densities of 1.1 and 2.0 g/cm³ becomes 0.26 × 10³μm at Re = 1.0, but increases to 1.38 × 10³μm as Re decreases to 0.1. As Re increases (velocity of fluid increases), the relative velocity in the y direction between the fluid and the particle increases resulting in increasing of F_D in the y direction since the velocity of particle in the y direction is very small at the entrance of the separation chamber. Thus, contribution of F_D becomes comparable to the net force in the y direction. As a result, most of the particles even in the case of heavier ones travel quite similarly with the streamline, and ΔH_max subsequently decreases. On the other hand, as Re decreases, the contribution of F_G becomes dominant due to the decrease of F_D in the y direction. Consequently, the particles start to cross downwards streamlines as the density of the particles increases and H_max gradually decreases. In addition, irrespective of their densities, ΔH_max of the particles increases with decreasing Re.Fig. 2(d) shows D_max with respect to the density of the particles (left). Different densities of particles show different trajectories due to the relative contribution of F_D to the net force in the y direction depending on the particle density (right). At Re = 0.1, D_max of particles with densities of 1.1 cm³ and 1.2 g/cm³ are 2.91 × 10⁴μm and 1.43 × 10⁴μm, respectively. As the density of a particle increases, its D_max dramatically decreases. The difference in D_max between particles with densities of 1.1 and 1.2 g/cm³ is 1.48 × 10⁴μm, and 0.0037 × 10⁴μm for particles with densities of 1.9 and 2.0 g/cm³. The effect of F_D is stronger compared to that of F_G on lighter particles. Thus, lighter particles travel quite similarly with the streamline and finally have a large D_max. On the other hand, heavier particles where effect of F_G is stronger compared to that of F_D cross downwards streamlines and finally have a small D_max.Next, in order to investigate the separation behavior of particles with respect to the geometry of the microfluidic device, the effect of the ratio of the height of the separation chamber (h_c) to the inlet (h_i) on H_max is investigated as shown in Fig. ​Fig.3.3. Interestingly, H_max of particles with density of 1.1 g/cm³ increases from 1.93 × 10³μm to 6.48 × 10³μm while that of particles with density of 1.9 g/cm³ slightly changes from 0.70 × 10³μm to 0.73 × 10³μm as h_c/h_i increases from 5 to 20.Open in a separate windowFIG. 3.Microfluidic particle separation with respect to the ratio of the height of the inlet (h_i) to the separation chamber (h_c).This result can be attributed to two effects: (1) the change in the streamline and (2) the relative contribution of drag force to the net force depending on the density. With increasing h_c/h_i, dramatic increase in H_max for lighter particles is because the streamline for the lighter ones experiences more vertical displacement in the separation chamber and the contribution of F_D to the net force acting on the lighter one is more significant (see Fig. S2 in the supplementary material²²).Based on this approach, we propose a microfluidic device for the selective separation of the lightest particle. Fig. 4(a) shows one unit (with three outlets) of the proposed microfluidic device that can be connected in series. The ratio of channel heights (h_c/h_i) is set to 20, and the particle densities are in the range of 1.1 ∼ 1.5 g/m³. Fig. 4(b) shows the representative separation behavior of the particles. A portion of the lightest particles (1.1 g/cm³) is selectively separated into the upper and middle outlets, while remaining light particles together with four other heavier particles with densities in the range of 1.2 to 1.5 g/cm³ leave through the lowest outlet. With a single operation of this unit, 40% of the lightest particles are recovered. In addition, the yield increases with increasing number of cycles (Fig. 4(c)).Open in a separate windowFIG. 4.(a) One unit of the proposed microfluidic device for the selective separation of the lightest particle based on the simulation results. Particles are separated into two outlets based on differences in both the height and distance travelled stemming from differences in density. (b) Representative separation behavior of particles observed in the device. (c) The yield of the lightest particle (1.1 g/cm³) with the proposed microfluidic device according to the number of cycles (i.e., this unit is assumed to be connected in series).In summary, we have demonstrated a label-free microfluidic system for the separation of particles according to subtle differences in their densities without external forces. Our microfluidic design consists simply of an inlet, a separation chamber, and multiple outlets. When entering the separation chamber, the particles experience an additional drag force in the y direction, amplifying the difference in both the height and the distance that the particles with different densities can travel within the chamber. At a fixed Reynolds number, with increasing particle density, H_max decreases monotonously, and D_max decreases dramatically. On the other hand, as Reynolds number increases, the difference between the heights of particles with different densities is attenuated. In addition, the simulation reveals that increasing the ratio of the channel heights increases the difference between the heights of particles only when their densities are close to that of the surrounding water. Based on this approach, a microfluidic device for the separation of the lightest particles has been proposed. We expect that our density-based separation design can be beneficial to the selective separation of specific microorganisms such as lipid-rich microalgae for energy harvesting application.