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This study applied various scientific analyses to one fragment of paper and three pigments excavated from earthenware found in the Hoeamsa Temple site at Yangju, Korea, which is believed to have been built in the early twelfth century. Radiocarbon dating of the paper fragment suggests a manufacture date between 1460 and 1646 (at a 95% confidence interval). It was estimated to have been used during the early and middle period of the Joseon dynasty (1391–1776), when the Hoeamsa Temple site was rebuilt. In addition, by staining the fiber of the paper fragment with Graff "C" stain, the paper's raw material was identified as paper mulberry through dislocation, cross-marking, and transparent membrane, which are characteristics of the bast fiber. Efforts were made to identify their material properties and manufacturing techniques of the three types of pigments. Color difference analysis was performed by distributing the pigments in large areas to reveal characteristic differences according to the color difference of the pigment. We found that green-type pigments are malachite and atacamite, red-type pigments are hematite based on the element Fe, and white-type pigments are quartz and muscovite based on the elements Si and Al. In addition, as the size distribution of the three types of pigments is wide and has a multi-peak distribution curve, it was concluded that the pigments were used without purification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although the quantitative performance of national R&D projects in Korea has increased along with budgetary investments, the qualitative performance of these projects needs improving. In 2014, a new performance evaluation system using qualitative indicators was introduced for national R&D projects, and quantitative performance indicators of evaluated projects were converted into qualitative ones. This paper used quantitative empirical analysis based on the difference-in-difference (DID) technique to examine the relationship between individual projects' performance and the new qualitative evaluation system, to estimate whether the quality of papers and patents increased after the introduction of the new system. The estimation showed that the system had a statistically significant effect on the quality of papers. On the other hand, there was no statistically significant effect on the quality of patents. The results of the paper can inform the future improvement and direction of the new qualitative evaluation system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents three papers on gastroenterology. Its first paper is based on prevalence of Barrett's esophagus (BE) in Korea. It aims to assess the prevalence of BE in Korea, contrary to the belief that its prevalence in far east is very low. Second paper is about expression and significance of ID1 helix-loop-helix protein in gastric cancer. Third paper is about role of gastroesophageal reflux disease in asthma. It explains response to treatment with potent acid suppression in difficult-to-control asthma patients.