The issue of forced labor during the Asia-Pacific War (1931-1945) remains a stone of contention in Japanese-Korean relations. While the governments of the two countries seem to put the issue aside in order to improve economic and military ties, civil society in both countries remains suspicious. The Asia Pacific Journal: Japan Focus here introduces the positions of representatives of two civil society organizations from South Korea and Japan, respectively, explaining why the government approach to address historical injustices remains unsatisfactory.

Reintroduction includes the captive propagation and movement of extirpated animals or plants into areas of historical and native distribution. Many biotic or abiotic factors can affect a founder population when small numbers are released into unfamiliar novel environments, particularly at the early stage of reintroduction. The inclusion of behavioural and ecological components plays a crucial role in the decision-making process of endangered species conservation efforts such as reintroduction. Since the resident population of Oriental Storks Ciconia boyciana was locally extirpated in South Korea in 1971, its founders have been established through reintroduction since 2015. The aim of this study was to investigate the demography, habitat use, and movement patterns of stork founders using the first two-year demographic and tracking data. Stork founders maintained their population size, which slightly increased in the long term. The patterns of habitat use and movement depended on rice paddy fields for foraging and breeding along with mixed effects of breeding status and season. Considering ecological and life history-related perspectives, we also discuss the potential adaptiveness of founder Oriental Storks as a resident population in a novel environment in South Korea.

Background: Data on antimicrobial use at the national level is crucial to establish domestic antimicrobial stewardship policies and enable medical institutions to benchmark against each other. This study aimed to analyze antimicrobial use in Korean hospitals. Methods: We investigated the antimicrobials prescribed in Korean hospitals between 2018 and 2021, using data from the Health Insurance Review and Assessment. Primary care hospitals (PCHs), secondary care hospitals (SCHs), and tertiary care hospitals (TCHs) were included in this analysis. Antimicrobials were categorized according to the Korea National Antimicrobial Use Analysis System (KONAS) classification, which is suitable for measuring antimicrobial use in Korean hospitals. Results: Out of more than 1,900 hospitals, PCHs and TCHs represented the largest and lowest percentage of hospitals, respectively. The most frequently prescribed antimicrobial in 2021 was piperacillin/β-lactamase inhibitor (9.3%) in TCHs, ceftriaxone (11.0%) in SCHs, and cefazedone (18.9%) in PCHs. Between 2018 and 2021, the most used antimicrobial class according to the KONAS classification was ‘broad-spectrum antibacterial agents predominantly used for community-acquired infections’ in TCHs and SCHs, and 'narrow spectrum beta-lactam agents' in PCH. Total consumption of antimicrobials has decreased from 951.7 to 929.9 days of therapy (DOT)/1,000 patient-days in TCHs and from 817.8 to 752.2 DOT/1,000 patient-days in SCHs during study period, but not in PCHs (from 504.3 to 527.2 DOT/1,000 patient-days). Moreover, in 2021, while use of reserve antimicrobials has decreased from 13.6 to 10.7 DOT/1,000 patient-days in TCHs and from 4.6 to 3.3 DOT/1,000 patient-days in SCHs, it has increased from 0.7 to 0.8 DOT/1,000 patient-days in PCHs. Conclusion: This study confirms that antimicrobial use differs by hospital type in Korea. Recent increases of use of antimicrobials, including reserve antimicrobials, in PCHs reflect the challenges that must be addressed.

Using low-dimensional numerical simulations, we investigate the characteristics of complex and three-dimensional surface waves in a liquid film flowing over a rotating disk, focusing on large flow rates from a nozzle. Existing integral boundary layer (IBL) models, which are based on spatially averaged variables along the direction normal to the disk surface, have primarily focused on the formation of axisymmetric waves under relatively small flow rates. In this study, an extended IBL model that accounts for both laminar and turbulent regimes is developed by considering the non-uniformity of the local flow rate in the spreading film flow and incorporating closure models dependent on the local Reynolds number. Our numerical results successfully capture the generation of concentric waves by an impinging circular liquid jet and their transition into three-dimensional solitary waves. These findings are in good agreement with visualization images and time-series data of free-surface fluctuations from a displacement sensor. The backscattering of small-scale three-dimensional turbulence into large-scale horizontal turbulence inside the film plays a critical role in determining the transition of wave modes and the nonlinear dynamics of the waves in the turbulent regime. Furthermore, the behaviour of three-dimensional waves in the downstream region, including frequent wave coalescence in the transition region and the breakup of small-scale solitons, is distinct from that of gravity-driven falling film flows. The amplitude of the three-dimensional waves is inversely related to the generalized Reynolds number defined for rotating films.

Clay particle aggregation affects a number of environmental processes, such as contaminant sorption/desorption, particle movement/deposition, and sediment structure and stability, yet factors that control clay aggregation are not well understood. This study was designed to investigate how microbial reduction of Fe(III) in clay structure, a common process in soils and sediments, affects clay-particle aggregation. Microbial Fe(III) reduction experiments were conducted with Shewanella putrefaciens CN32 in bicarbonate buffer with structural Fe (III) in nontronite as the sole electron acceptor, lactate as the sole electron donor, and AQDS as an electron shuttle. Four size fractions of nontronite (D5–D95 of 0.12–0.22 µm, 0.41–0.69 µm, 0.73–0.96 µm and 1.42–1.78 µm) were used to evaluate size-dependent aggregation kinetics. The extent of Fe(III) bioreduction and the amount of exopolysaccharide (EPS), a major biopolymer secreted by CN32 cells during Fe(III) bioreduction, were measured with chemical methods. Nontronite particle aggregation was determined by photon correlation spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy. The maximum extent of Fe(III) bioreduction reached 36% and 24% for the smallest and the largest size fractions, respectively. Within the same time duration, the effective diameter, measured at 95% percentile (D95), increased by a factor of 43.7 and 7.7 for these two fractions, respectively. Because there was production of EPS by CN32 cells during Fe(III) reduction, it was difficult to assess the relative role of Fe(III) bioreduction and EPS bridging in particle aggregation. Thus, additional experiments were performed. Reduction of Fe(III) by dithionite was designed to examine the effect of Fe(III) reduction, and pure EPS isolated from CN32 cells was used to examine the effect of EPS. The data showed that both Fe(III) reduction and EPS were important in promoting clay mineral aggregation. In natural environments, the relative importance of these two factors may be dependent on local conditions. These results have important implications for understanding factors in controlling clay particle aggregation in natural environments.

Electron energy-loss spectroscopy (EELS), energy-filtered transmission electron microscopy (EFTEM), and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) have been applied in mineralogy and materials research to determine the oxidation states of various metals at high spatial resolution. Such information is critical in understanding the kinetics and mechanisms of mineral–microbe interactions. To date, the aforementioned techniques have not been applied widely in the study of such interactions. In the present study, the three techniques above were employed to investigate mineral transformations associated with microbial Fe(III) reduction in magnetite. Shewanella putrefaciens strain CN32, a dissimilatory metal-reducing bacterium, was incubated with magnetite as the sole electron acceptor and lactate as the electron donor for 14 days under anoxic conditions in bicarbonate buffer. The extent of bioreduction was determined by wet chemistry and mineral solids were investigated by HRTEM, EFTEM, and EELS. Magnetite was partially reduced and biogenic siderite formed. The elemental maps of Fe, O, and C and red-green-blue (RGB) composite map for residual magnetite and newly formed siderite were contrasted by the EFTEM technique. The HRTEM revealed nm-sized magnetite crystals coating bacterial cells. The Fe oxidation state in residual magnetite and biogenic siderite was determined using the EELS technique (the integral ratio of L3 to L2). The integral ratio of L3 to L2 for magnetite (6.29) and siderite (2.71) corresponded to 71% of Fe(III) in magnetite, and 24% of Fe(III) in siderite, respectively. A chemical shift (~1.9 eV) in the Fe-L3 edge of magnetite and siderite indicated a difference in the oxidation state of Fe between these two minerals. Furthermore, the EELS images of magnetite (709 eV) and siderite (707 eV) were extracted from the electron energy-loss spectra collected, ranging from 675 to 755 eV, displaying different oxidation states of Fe in the magnetite and siderite phases. The results demonstrate that EELS is a powerful technique for studying the Fe oxidation-state change as a result of microbial interaction with Fe-containing minerals.

Shewanella putrefaciens CN32 reduces Fe(III) within two illites which have different properties: the Fithian bulk fraction and the <0.2 µm fraction of Muloorina. The Fithian illite contained 4.6% (w/w) total Fe, 81% of which was Fe(III). It was dominated by illite with some jarosite (∼32% of the total Fe(III)) and goethite (11% of the total Fe(III)). The Muloorina illite was pure and contained 9.2% Fe, 93% of which was Fe(III). Illite suspensions were buffered at pH 7 and were inoculated with CN32 cells with lactate as the electron donor. Select treatments included anthraquinone-2,6-disulfonate (AQDS) as an electron shuttle. Bioproduction of Fe(II) was determined by ferrozine analysis. The unreduced and bioreduced solids were characterized by Mössbauer spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy. The extent of Fe(III) reduction in the bulk Fithian illite was enhanced by the presence of AQDS (73%) with complete reduction of jarosite and goethite and partial reduction of illite. Mössbauer spectroscopy and chemical extraction determined that 21–25% of illite-associated Fe(III) was bioreduced. The extent of bioreduction was less in the absence of AQDS (63%) and only jarosite was completely reduced with partial reduction of goethite and illite. The XRD and TEM data revealed no significant illite dissolution or biogenic minerals, suggesting that illite was reduced in the solid state and biogenic Fe(II) from jarosite and goethite was either released to aqueous solution or adsorbed onto residual solid surfaces. In contrast, only 1% of the structural Fe(III) in Muloorina illite was bioreduced. The difference in the extent and rate of bioreduction between the two illites was probably due to the difference in layer charge and the total structural Fe content between the Fithian illite (0.56 per formula) and Muloorina illite (0.87). There may be other factors contributing to the observed differences, such as expandability, surface area and the arrangements of Fe in the octahedral sheets. The results of this study have important implications for predicting microbe-induced physical and chemical changes of clay minerals in soils and sediments.

The role of saline lake sediments in preserving organic matter has long been recognized. In order to further understand the preservation mechanisms, the role of clay minerals was studied. Three sediment cores, 25, 57, and 500 cm long, were collected from Qinghai Lake, NW China, and dissected into multiple subsamples. Multiple techniques were employed, including density fractionation, X-ray diffraction, scanning and transmission electron microscopy (SEM and TEM), total organic carbon (TOC) and carbon compound analyses, and surface area determination. The sediments were oxic near the water-sediment interface, but became anoxic at depth. The clay mineral content was as much as 36.8%, consisting mostly of illite, chlorite, and halloysite. The TEM observations revealed that organic matter occurred primarily as organic matter-clay mineral aggregates. The TOC and clay mineral abundances are greatest in the mid-density fraction, with a positive correlation between the TOC and mineral surface area. The TOC of the bulk sediments ranges from 1 to 3% with the non-hydrocarbon fraction being predominant, followed by bitumen, saturated hydrocarbon, aromatic hydrocarbons, and chloroform-soluble bitumen. The bimodal distribution of carbon compounds of the saturated hydrocarbon fraction suggests that organic matter in the sediments was derived from two sources: terrestrial plants and microorganisms/algae. Depth-related systematic changes in the distribution patterns of the carbon compounds suggest that the oxidizing conditions and microbial abundance near the water-sediment interface promote degradation of labile organic matter, probably in adsorbed form. The reducing conditions and small microbial biomass deeper in the sediments favor preservation of organic matter, because of the less labile nature of organic matter, probably occurring within clay mineral-organic matter aggregates that are inaccessible to microorganisms. These results have important implications for our understanding of mechanisms of organic matter preservation in saline lake sediments.

This study was undertaken to investigate the changes in flocculation properties of Fe-rich smectite (nontronite, NAu-1) suspensions, including settling velocity, aggregate size and floc architecture associated with microbial Fe(III)-reduction in the smectite structure. The dissimilatory Fe-reducing bacterium Shewanella oneidensis MR-1 was incubated with lactate as the electron donor and structural Fe(III) as the sole electron acceptor for 3, 12, 24 and 48 h in an anaerobic chamber. Two controls were prepared; the first was identical to the experimental treatments except that heat-killed cells were used (non-reduced control), and the second control was the same as the first except that the incubation was carried out in an aerobic environment. The extent of Fe(III) reduction for the 48 h incubation was observed to reach up to 18%. Neither the non-reduced control nor the aerobically inoculated sample showed Fe(III) reduction. Compared with the non-reduced control, there was a 2.7 μm increase in mean aggregate size and a 30-fold increase in average settling velocity in the bioreduced smectite suspensions as measured using a Micromeritics Sedigraph®. The aerobically inoculated smectite showed a similar aggregate-size distribution to that of the non-reduced control. Significant changes in physical properties of smectite suspensions induced by microbial Fe(III) reduction were measured directly using transmission electron microscopy. The floc architecture of bioreduced smectite revealed less open structures compared to those of a non-reduced control. The aspect ratio (thickness/length) of individual smectite particle increased from 0.11 for the non-reduced control to 0.18 on average for the bioreduced smectite suspensions. The effects of pH on the clay flocculation were minimal in this study because the value of pH remained nearly constant at pH = 7.0–7.3 before and after the experiments. We therefore suggest that the increase in net negative charge caused by microbial Fe(III) reduction significantly promoted clay flocculation by increasing the electrochemical attraction in the smectite suspensions.

River-dominated delta areas are primary sites of active biogeochemical cycling, with productivity enhanced by terrestrial inputs of nutrients. Particle aggregation in these areas primarily controls the deposition of suspended particles, yet factors that control particle aggregation and resulting sedimentation in these environments are poorly understood. This study was designed to investigate the role of microbial Fe(III) reduction and solution chemistry in aggregation of suspended particles in the Mississippi Delta. Three representative sites along the salinity gradient were selected and sediments were collected from the sediment-water interface. Based on quantitative mineralogical analyses 88–89 wt.% of all minerals in the sediments are clays, mainly smectite and illite. Consumption of ${\text{SO}}_4^{2-}$\$\end{document} and the formation of H2S and pyrite during microbial Fe(III) reduction of the non-sterile sediments by Shewanella putrefaciens CN32 in artificial pore water (APW) media suggest simultaneous sulfate and Fe(III) reduction activity. The pHPZNPC of the sediments was ⩽3.5 and their zeta potentials at the sediment-water interface pH (6.9–7.3) varied from −35 to −45 mV, suggesting that both edges and faces of clay particles have negative surface charge. Therefore, high concentrations of cations in pore water are expected to be a predominant factor in particle aggregation consistent with the Derjaguin-Landau-Verwey-Overbeek (DLVO) theory. Experiments on aggregation of different types of sediments in the same APW composition revealed that the sediment with low zeta potential had a high rate of aggregation. Similarly, addition of external Fe(II) (i.e. not derived from sediments) was normally found to enhance particle aggregation and deposition in all sediments, probably resulting from a decrease in surface potential of particles due to specific Fe(II) sorption. Scanning and transmission electron microscopy (SEM, TEM) images showed predominant face-to-face clay aggregation in native sediments and composite mixtures of biopolymer, bacteria, and clay minerals in the bioreduced sediments. However, a clear need remains for additional information on the conditions, if any, that favor the development of anoxia in deep- and bottom-water bodies supporting Fe(III) reduction and resulting in particle aggregation and sedimentation.

This study was undertaken to investigate mechanisms of mineral transformations associated with microbial reduction of structural Fe(III) in smectite. Shewanella oneidensis strain MR-1 cells were inoculated with lactate as the electron donor and Fe(III) in smectite as the electron acceptor. The extent of Fe(III) reduction was observed to reach up to 26%. Reduction proceeded via association of live bacterial cells with smectite. At the end of incubation, a large fraction of starting smectite was transformed to euhedral flakes of biogenic smectite with different morphology, structure, and composition. Lattice-fringe images obtained from environmental cell transmission electron microscope displayed a decrease of layer spacing from 1.5±0.1 nm for the unreduced smectite to 1.1±0.1 nm for the reduced smectite. The biogenic smectite contained more abundant interlayer cations, apparently as a result of charge compensation for the reduced oxidation state of Fe in the octahedral site. To capture the dynamics of smectite reduction, a separate experiment was designed. The experiment consisted of several systems, where various combinations of carbon source (lactate) and different concentrations of AQDS, an electron shuttle, were used. Selected area electron diffraction patterns of smectite showed progressive change from single-crystal patterns for the control experiment (oxidized, unaltered smectite), to diffuse ring patterns for the no-carbon experiment (oxidized, but altered smectite), to well-ordered single crystal pattern for the experiment amended with 1 mM AQDS (well crystalline, biogenic smectite). Large crystals of vivianite and finegrained silica of biogenic origin were also detected in the bioreduced sample. These data collectively demonstrate that microbial reduction of Fe(III) in smectite was achieved via dissolution of smectite and formation of biogenic minerals. The microbially mediated mineral dissolution-precipitation mechanism has important implications for mineral reactions in natural environments, where the reaction rates may be substantially enhanced by the presence of bacteria.

The formation of illite through the smectite-to-illite (S-I) reaction is considered to be one of the most important mineral reactions occurring during diagenesis. In biologically catalyzed systems, however, this transformation has been suggested to be rapid and to bypass the high temperature and long time requirements. To understand the factors that promote the S-I reaction, the present study focused on the effects of pH, temperature, solution chemistry, and aging on the S-I reaction in microbially mediated systems. Fe(III)-reduction experiments were performed in both growth and non-growth media with two types of bacteria: mesophilic (Shewanella putrefaciens CN32) and thermophilic (Thermus scotoductus SA-01). Reductive dissolution of NAu-2 was observed and the formation of illite in treatment with thermophilic SA-01 was indicated by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM). A basic pH (8.4) and high temperature (65°C) were the most favorable conditions forthe formation of illite. A long incubation time was also found to enhance the formation of illite. K-nontronite (non-permanent fixation of K) was also detected and differentiated from the discrete illite in the XRD profiles. These results collectively suggested that the formation of illite associated with the biologically catalyzed smectite-to-illite reaction pathway may bypass the prolonged time and high temperature required for the S-I reaction in the absence of microbial activity.

Structural realists accuse U.S. economic engagement with China as a mistake driven by liberal idealism and lack of realism. I suggest that this increasingly popular narrative reflecting the traditional idealism-realism distinction is misplaced. First, liberal approaches to international relations can clash with each other when a democratic state engages with an authoritarian state, and engagement is justified by one strand of liberalism—economic interdependence liberalism—whereas a different liberal perspective—democratic peace liberalism—opposes economic engagement with an oppressive regime. Second, realism—in particular, structural realism—posits that important state behaviors reflect the need to attain more relative power than others. Then, if economic engagement better serves a state’s relative capacity vis-à-vis other states, economic exchanges with a potential strategic contender would be an unavoidable choice. The liberal case for economic engagement is much more restrictive than it is often articulated, while a structural realist case for engagement can be convincingly made. For about two decades since the mid-1990s, U.S. administrations defended economic engagement with China not only with economic interdependence liberalism but also by utilizing an argument in line with the structural realist case for engagement. Blaming one foreign policy idea as responsible for today’s strategic difficulties is misleading.

We report VLBI monitoring observations of the 22 GHz H2O masers toward the Mira variable BX Cam. Data from 37 epochs spanning ∼3 stellar pulsation periods were obtained between May 2018 and June 2021 with a time interval of 3–4 weeks. In particular, the VERA dual-beam system was used to measure the kinematics and parallaxes of the H2O maser features. The obtained parallax, 1.79±0.08 mas, is consistent with Gaia EDR3 and previous VLBI measurements. The position of the central star was estimated relied on Gaia EDR3 data and the center position of the 43 GHz SiO maser ring imaged with KVN. Analysis of the 3D maser kinematics revealed an expanding circumstellar envelope with a velocity of 13±4 km s−1 and significant spatial and velocity asymmetries. The H2O maser animation achieved by our dense monitoring program manifests the propagation of shock waves in the circumstellar envelope of BX Cam.