Korea Labor Institute

Soft polymer gels, such as hydrogels and organogels, offer tunable mechanical and functional properties, combining softness, deformability, and biocompatibility for bio-integrated applications. Hydrogels, with tissue-like elasticity, are ideal for biomedical uses, while organogels provide superior thermal and environmental stability for soft robotics. Emerging hybrid systems, including organogel–hydrogel composites and organohydrogels, synergize aqueous and organic phases, expanding the potential of gel-based materials for next-generation biomedical and bio-interfacing technologies.

This longitudinal study examines the volatility and crisis resilience of adult lifelong learning participation in South Korea over an 18-year period, elucidating complex dynamics that transcend simple linear growth patterns. Drawing on nationally representative data from the Korean Survey of Lifelong Learning Individual Participation (KEDI, 2007-2024) covering 99,327 adults, this study applied crisis-response analytical frameworks to elucidate participation fluctuations. Empirical analysis revealed significant volatility with participation rates fluctuating from 29.8% (2007) to 33.1% (2024), experiencing peaks of 41.7% (2019) and dramatic declines during the COVID-19 pandemic (40.0% to 28.5%, 2020-2022). While generational and regional disparities demonstrated convergence during stable periods, they exhibited expansion during crises, revealing differential vulnerability patterns. These findings challenge prevailing assumptions about linear progress in lifelong learning development and underscore the critical importance of building crisis-resilient adult education systems.

Prostate cancer is one of the most common cancers, with an approximate global annual incidence of 1.5 million men and nearly 400,000 deaths. Treatment options include surgical resection, radiotherapy, and high-intensity focused ultrasounds, often combined with hormone deprivation therapy. Insurability of prostate cancer patients is evaluated based on tumor severity using the AJCC and TNM classifications, along with PSA levels and Gleason Scores. To control the risk, life insurers use medical selection, albeit many individuals may be excluded from coverage. Regulations, such as France's "Right to Be Forgotten," allow standard rate acceptance for certain prostate cancer survivors under specific conditions. By matching patient data from the SEER database with mortality tables, we established a Cox survival prostate cancer model for patients sharing similar long-term survival risk and compared it with that of the general population. By investigating risks in populations of various age ranges, we defined groups with variable survival risk. To distinguish insurable from uninsurable, we have defined a so-called "acceptance corridor," which delimits the boundary within the expected normal range of survival for a group of age and the highest acceptable premium. This corridor is delimited with an upper boundary depicted where the risk is equal to the standard population and a lower boundary where the risk of death is higher than that of the normal population or where the risk overpasses the maximum acceptable premium of 250%. In this paper, we have revisited the risk of individuals with a history of prostate cancer and have provided estimates of risk belonging within an acceptance corridor of insurability, broadening options for standard rate. This method may be further used to evaluate the impacts of regulatory guidelines, rules, and regulations, such as the right to be forgotten, to cancer patient populations.

Orbital angular momentum (OAM), once considered a marginal property in solids, has recently gained importance in various physical phenomena. Although optical probes couple to OAM directly, comparable low‐energy electrodynamic methods are still in the early stages of development. To exploit the potential of OAM for information science and technology, angular momentum‐resolved transport methods must be established. Here, a principle is presented for an angular momentum‐resolved method to observe orbital Hall effect (OHE) in real space. The orbital conduction in the topological semimetal Td‐WTe2 is measured using contact‐free polarimetric terahertz probe, showing that two distinct regions of ±Lz with a diffusion length of ≈130 µm due to the extremely low scattering rate of Weyl fermions form in real space. The observed orbital conduction can be explained by OHE, according to theoretical calculations. By altering the polarization and intensity of the terahertz electric field input, it is also demonstrated that this orbital conduction can be engineered. Using a spatiotemporal low‐energy electrodynamic probe, the work reveals direct evidence of coherent OHE in an inversion‐broken topological semimetal with strong spin‐orbit coupling—an experimentally elusive regime until now.

As manufacturing continues to advance, autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) are becoming increasingly essential in logistics transportation. However, individual AMRs fall short in terms of size and payload capacity, restricting their ability to transport large or heavy objects. To address this limitation, collaborative systems composed of multiple AMRs have emerged as a promising solution for transporting oversized items. Despite their potential, existing collaborative transportation methods for controlling the system encounter several challenges, including formation maintenance, trajectory optimization, and obstacle avoidance, each of which holds varying levels of priority. To effectively manage these challenges and manage task prioritization, this study proposes a lexicographic optimization-based model predictive control (LO-MPC) framework. Through simulation experiments, the proposed framework demonstrates its ability to ensure a safe and reliable transportation process.

Abstract Using a job-based methodology, this chapter studies structural shifts in employment in the South Korean labour market from 2000 to 2021. The methodology follows the approach suggested and applied in the reports published in the context of the European Jobs Monitor, such as Eurofound (Upgrading or polarization? Long-term global shifts in the employment structure: European Jobs Monitor 2015, Publications Office of the European Union, 2015, Occupational change and wage inequality: European Jobs Monitor, Publication Office of the European Union, 2017). This study segments the analysis duration into three periods: 2000–2009, 2009–2019 and 2019–2021. The patterns of change in the employment structure between 2000–2009 and 2009–2019 vary greatly. Employment in higher-paid jobs increased between 2000 and 2009. Employment polarization, on the other hand, emerged between 2009 and 2019. Since 2000, changes in the employment structure have been influenced by a combination of increasing demand for highly skilled labour, deindustrialization, increased trade and changes in the employment protection system. As the population ages rapidly in the 2010s, employment in health and social work services is increasing rapidly. The 2019–2021 period was set aside to investigate the impact of COVID-19 on the employment structure. Due to the spread of COVID-19, employment in face-to-face education and food services decreased in 2020 but quickly recovered in 2021.

digital technology; labor regulations; comparative industrial relations; state legislature; union organizing

Recent studies of electronic nose system tend to waste significant amount of important data in odor identification. Until now, the sensitivity-oriented data composition has made it difficult to discover meaningful data to apply artificial intelligence in terms of in-depth analysis for odor attributes specifying the identities of gas molecules, ultimately resulting in hindering the advancement of the artificial olfactory technology. Here, we realize a data-centric approach to implement standardized artificial olfactory systems inspired by human olfactory mechanisms by formally defining and utilizing the concept of Eigengraph in electrochemisty. The implicit odor attributes of the eigengraphs were mathematically substantialized as the Fourier transform-based Mel-Frequency Cepstral Coefficient feature vectors. Their effectiveness and applicability in deep learning processes for gas classification have been clearly demonstrated through experiments on complex mixed gases and automobile exhaust gases. We suggest that our findings can be widely applied as source technologies to develop standardized artificial olfactory systems.

The objective of this paper is to investigate whether an aging workforce is associated with an increase in work-related non-fatal injuries and to explore the underlying reasons for this potential increase. Aged workers were defined as those who were at least 55-years-old. Work-related non-fatal injuries were assessed in aged and young workers who were registered with the workers' compensation system from 2017 to 2021 of South Korea. The mean estimated rate of work-related non-fatal injuries of aged workers (0.88/100) was about 2.5-times higher than that of younger workers (0.35/100). Most work-related non-fatal injuries in the older adults were in individuals working in the "construction sector" (36.0%), those with "elementary occupations (unskilled workers)" (45.0%), and those with employment status of "daily worker" (44.0%). "Trip & slip" (28.7%) and "falling" (19.6%) were more frequent types of work-related non-fatal injuries in aged workers relative to young workers. The category of "buildings, structures, and surfaces" was a more frequent cause of work-related non-fatal injuries in aged workers than young workers. The incidence of non-fatal work-related injuries is higher among aged workers compared to their younger counterparts. The increased occurrence of aged workers participating in precarious employment and jobs, along with the greater physical vulnerability, is likely the cause of their higher rate of work-related non-fatal injuries.