Disaster hits the poor hardest, rickety homes builts on steep inclines swept awayRIO DE JANEIRO (AP) ― Summer rains sent tons of red mud and torrents of water rushing down mountainsides in towns outside Rio, enveloping homes of rich and poor alike and killing at least 257 people in 24 hours. Some survivors clung to trees to escape the water and landslides.Rescuers used heavy machinery, shovels and

ROME (AP) ― Forget her smile. An Italian researcher says the key to solving the enigma of “Mona Lisa” lies in her eyes.Silvano Vinceti claims he has found the letter “S” in the woman’s left eye, the letter “L” in her right eye, and the number “72” under the arched bridge in the backdrop of Leonardo da Vinci’s famous painting. According to the researcher, the symbols open up new leads to identifyin

U.S. actress Jessica Szohr posed nude for a new advertise (Captured from New York Daily News)ment campaign to promote a soft drink, New York Daily News reported.The 25-year-old actress, who came into the spotlight after starring in the hit television series Gossip Girl, removed all her clothing with nothing but body paint covering her. In the photos, the star is seen naked holding a bottle of SoBe

TOKYO (AFP) ― A Japanese technology firm on Tuesday unveiled a mirror-like thermometer that can identify a person who is feverish.“Thermo Mirror,” which looks like a table mirror, measures the skin temperature of the person looking into it, without the need for physical contact, said the firm, NEC Avio Infrared Technologies.The person’s temperature is displayed on the surface, and the device has a

Cho Kwang-rae aims to crack tough defenseSouth Korea is coming off a solid 2-1 win over Bahrain on Tuesday to start its Asian Cup football tournament in Qatar, but the real test is set for Friday.At 10:15 p.m. Friday, Korean time, South Koreans will face Australia, the highest-ranked team at this year’s Asian Cup at No. 26 in the world.This is Australia’s second Asian Cup appearance since the coun

   The coach credited with grooming swimmer Park Tae-hwan to become an Olympic gold medalist abruptly announced Thursday that he was resigning as head coach of the national team, a move that followed Park's recruitment of a foreign private coach.   Roh Min-sang started coaching Park when the swimmer was 7, two years after his parents introduced him to swimming to heal asthma.National swimming coac

Steelmaker posts record sales in 2010POSCO chief executive Chung Joon-yang said Thursday the nation’s top steelmaker is considering acquiring the country’s largest delivery service provider Korea Express Co.Kumho Asiana Group plans to sell Korea Express, which it acquired in March 2008, to stabilize the group’s financial structure.“With regards to the logistics needs arising at overseas steelworks

Samsung Group, Korea’s top conglomerate, said Thursday it has launched an English blog to boost communications with users around the world. The Samsung Village (www.samsungvillage.com) is designed to introduce the group’s history and business, and offer open forums where local and foreign visitors can share their views and opinions about news and human interest stories, the group said.“Digital med

Telecom, energy giant to focus on green energy, overseas resources, new mobile technologiesSK Group said Thursday it would increase investment 30 percent this year to a record high 10.5 trillion won ($9.4 billion) to power future growth in clean energy, overseas resources and advanced mobile technologies.Korea’s third-largest conglomerate also plans to hire about 3,000 new employees, 25 percent mo

A package of government measures unveiled Thursday to curb rising consumer prices includes a policy to stabilize the property market amid soaring housing rent prices.The government has focused on active supply of small-sized houses and funding for the mid- and lower-income households which generally resort to “jeonse,” the Korean rent system under which tenants pay a lump-sum deposit to rent a hou

Renault-Nissan Alliance held its annual purchasing conference in Seoul this week, opening new opportunities for local parts makers, Renault Samsung Motors Co. said Thursday.The conference, held Monday and Tuesday by Renault-Nissan Purchasing Organization that oversees purchasing and quality control of parts for Renault and Nissan operations, is customarily held at the headquarters of Renault or Ni

Consilience and platforms act as foundation for knowledge connection and integrationThis is the 41st in a series of articles introducing the Korean government’s R&D policies. Researchers at the Science & Technology Policy Institute will explain Korea’s R&D initiatives aimed at addressing major socioeconomic problems facing the nation. ― Ed.As the knowledge-based economy intensifies, knowledge exch