South Korea’s top health agency said Thursday that it would be evaluating the age recommendations for the use of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine in the wake of recent decisions by some European countries and Japan, which are now discouraging its use in some young people. Hong Jeong-ik, head of the KDCA’s vaccination management division, told a news briefing that the national advisory committee on immunization practices and a panel of outside experts would be conducting a safety revi

Kwon Jun-wook, the Korea National Institute of Health’s director, said Thursday that he sees a full vaccination rate of 85 percent as the threshold for defeating COVID-19’s delta variant, even without wearing face masks and other social distancing restrictions in place. During a televised briefing, Kwon said, “An 85 percent fully vaccination rate roughly translates to an 80 percent herd immunity, by which point, theoretically, even the delta variant can be beaten without the

As the opening of KIAF Seoul 2021 at 3 p.m. on Wednesday drew near, there was already a long line of avid art lovers of various ages waiting to check in at Coex in southern Seoul. Korea’s largest annual international art fair is being held physically for the first time after it went online on its viewing room platform after the global COVID-19 pandemic hit early last year. Nearly 5,000 people visited the fair on the first day, which was open to VVIPs and the press, proving that people

BTS’ V was spotted by a Korea Herald reporter Wednesday evening at KIAF Seoul 2021, South Korea’s largest international art fair being held at Coex in southern Seoul. V, wearing a Louis Vuitton jacket and a cap, was seen strolling around the exhibition hall. When the reporter approached him and asked if he was V from BTS, he first denied it: “Nope, no I am not.” After a few seconds of eye contact, he said, “Sorry, yes, I am.” He made a 90-degree bow and

Lisa of Blackpink will team up with DJ Snake, Megan Thee Stallion and Ozuna, the French-Algerian producer/DJ announced via his Instagram on Thursday. 　 He shared a 30 second teaser that showed number plates -- with the names of the singers and himself -- on black cars, with the caption, “Coming Soon.” Label YG Entertainment confirmed the news. 　 Lisa left for Paris on Oct. 4 and is currently in France, reportedly working on the project and shooting a music video. She is due to be b

Forum brings business leaders, academia experts, foreign envoys together to discuss future of Eurasia

Designers should have a grasp on artificial intelligence to build a system that is fully aware of what users want in advance, said Yong Kim, chief product officer at Woowa Brothers, which runs delivery app Baemin, at this year’s Herald Design Forum on Thursday. “Users shouldn’t have to tell their apps what they want, when they want it. They should be given choices they like and that will be the new human-machine interface,” Kim said. Kim referred to GPT-3, a language-ge

Travel and leisure platform operator Yanolja said on Thursday that it will acquire a 70 percent stake in Interpark, one of South Korea’s first e-commerce platforms, for 294 billion won ($248 million). Following the announcement of the deal, Yanolja said it would enter the global tourism market with the new “growth engine.” “The international tourism market has been dominated by foreign platforms. The acquisition will see Yanolja enter the market as a South Korea company

Although normally celebrated at bars and clubs in South Korea, Halloween this year may look a little different as the pandemic puts paid to nights out partying. The retail industry is coming up with creative Halloween-themed treats and drinks to capture customers planning to celebrate at home. South Korean confectionery maker Orion dressed its signature Choco Pie in a Halloween costume this year. It launched a limited edition “Halloween Choco Pie,” using traditional flavors of H

Three design experts shared their thoughts Thursday on how unique sustainable designs are created during the 11th edition of Herald Design Forum that was held on the floating island of Sevit on the Han River in Seoul. Referring to projects carried out by the Madrid-based company, Jeffrey Ludlow, founder and creative director of Point of Reference Studio, said small sustainability solutions such as signage could have big effects in consuming advertisement media. “Laws and norms are labele

Future designers should not only have design skills, but also should be versatile in programming and have a deep understanding of people, top experts in the field of industrial and product design said Thursday. Kim Jong-min, Google’s senior user experience engineer, suggested designers pursue their paths as generalists amid the fast-changing information technology environment.　 “In line with technology development, companies want talented workers. They thought it was nearly impossi

High oil, dollar prices to aggravate burden for debt-saddled households

Sustainability is a key trend in industrial design as Generation Z consumers prioritize conscious and valuable consumption when it comes to making purchases. The latest trend for those born between 1997 and the early 2010s, is not about being trendy, but about creating designs that people do not get sick of for a long period of time and thus leaving a smaller carbon footprint, said experts in industrial design who took part in the Herald Design Forum 2021 on Thursday. Benjamin Hubert, a Londo