The Korea Herald

One-person households multiply in Seoul

Oct 28, 2012

In a show of rapid demographic changes, Seoul has seen a steady rise in one-person households and a fall in multi-member households, municipal government data showed Sunday.According to the data released by the Seoul Metropolitan Government, the number of one-person households in the capital city increased more than 9 percent between 2007 and 2011, whereas the number of households with more than four members decreased by nearly 4.5 percent in the same period.The number of one-person households i
Anti-Dokdo stake found at South Korean consulate in New York

Oct 28, 2012

Another act of vandalism hit South Korea's consulate general in New York after two similar cases claiming Japan's ownership of the South Korean islets of Dokdo affected the diplomatic mission and a South Korean monument in New Jersey, consulate officials said Saturday.The South Korean consulate in Manhattan said its officials found a white wooden stake reading Dokdo "belongs to Japanese territory" at the entrance of its consular section office on Saturday. The consulate reported it to the police
S. Korean solider shot by poacher during night drill: police

Oct 27, 2012

South Korean police and military launched an investigation after a solider was allegedly shot by a poacher during training on Friday night in Eumseong County, North Chungcheong Province. The 21-year-old corporal surnamed Lee was allegedly hit by an air gun pellet in the collarbone at around 11:20 p.m., authorities said. His unit based in Gyeonggi Province was staging a weeklong drill in nearby mountains. “While Lee and another corporal were engaged in ambush exercises, a sport utility vehicle su
Investigation rights row shouldn't be politicized: ex-chief prosecutor

Oct 27, 2012

A former chief prosecutor said Saturday that presidential candidates should not politicize the issue of investigative rights of the prosecution and police as campaign pledges ahead of the December election.Former Prosecutor-General Kim Joon-gyu stepped down from his post in July 2011 in protest over the parliamentary approval of a contentious bill that prosecutors claim limits their investigatory power. The resignation came less than two months before his term was scheduled to end in mid-August.
Business leaders discuss model to reshape Seoul

Oct 26, 2012

Global business leaders discussed Friday ways to promote cooperation between the public and the private sector and expand citizens’ participation in the Seoul city government’s policymaking and development projects. Under the theme “Seoul as a role model in triple partnership: business, government and citizens” brought by a liberal-minded Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon, key business figures from around the world offered solutions for the country’s capital aiming to become a city full of creativity an
Lee’s son grilled on retirement home plan

Oct 25, 2012

President Lee Myung-bak’s only son was questioned Thursday over alleged irregularities in connection with his father’s now-defunct retirement home project.Lee Si-hyung, 34, became the first child of an incumbent president to be summoned as a criminal suspect. “I will speak the truth, answer sincerely,” he told reporters at the independent counsel’s office in southern Seoul in the morning. He was accompanied by lawyers and presidential security guards. On behalf of the president, Lee bought a plo
Ministry to restrict online gaming money

Oct 25, 2012

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism on Thursday announced a package of plans to regulate online gambling including a limit on the purchase of game money to 300,000 won ($280) a month. The decision is expected to trigger fierce resistance from online game operators who claim that the regulation will kill the industry. According to the authorities, registered users of sites hosting “hwatu” (a Korean card game), poker and other games will only be able to buy 300,000 won worth of game money
Arrest warrant sought for LIG owner’s son, executives

Oct 25, 2012

Prosecutors on Thursday sought the arrest of the first son of LIG Group Chairman Koo Cha-won and one former and one current top executive of the group’s affiliates in connection with allegations that the group’s owner family fraudulently issued commercial papers worth multiple billions of won last year.Koo Bon-sang, the son and vice chairman of LIG Nex1, a defense arm of the group; Oh Chun-seok, the president and CEO of LIG Corp.; and Jeong Jong-oh, the former chief management official at LIG En
Lee aide says he saw transcript of 2007 summit

Oct 25, 2012

A top security official said Friday he saw a transcript of the 2007 summit dialogue between former President Roh Moo-hyun and then North Korean leader Kim Jong-il amid allegations the late president made remarks undermining the legitimacy of the western sea border.Senior presidential security secretary Chun Yung-woo said during a parliamentary audit of the presidential office that he saw a transcript of the dialogue being kept at the intelligence agency.“It was about two years ago, not long afte
Nongshim ordered to recall noodles containing carcinogen

Oct 25, 2012

Korea Food and Drug Administration on Thursday ordered a recall of instant noodles found to contain benzopyrene, a substance classified as a carcinogen.The decision comes four months after the food inspection agency found an excess amount of benzopyrene in the powdered soup seasoning in six of Nongshim’s ramyeon brands.The list of brands that contain the toxic substance includes Nongshim’s Neoguri, Saewootang Keun Sabalmyeon and Saeng Saeng Woodong. Nongshim, the country’s largest instant noodle
KEITI chief named adviser to U.N. environment body

Oct 25, 2012

Yoon Seung-joon, president of the Korea Environmental Industry and Technology Institute, has been named a member of the advisory board to a United Nations body on environmental technology, the state-run KEITI said Thursday. He is among the six experts in the 17-member International Advisory Board to the U.N. Environmental Program’s International Environmental Technology Center. The board consists of government policymakers, U.N. officials and experts in the environmental field from around the wo
Serving the world with safe, clean drinking water

Oct 25, 2012

Water filter maker Microfilter sets sights on India, Middle East
Osteopetrosis

Oct 25, 2012

Our bones may seem sturdy and hard, but they are very active organs that undergo extensive synthesis and absorption. Bones are associated with growth, fracture repair and adjustment to exercise. We develop more bone in areas where they are needed more. For example, in environments with no gravity (as for astronauts in space), the bone becomes very weak and light. In athletes, the bones grow stronger because they are constantly under load. Our bones are cylindrical in shape with an empty space i
Lee's son appears before special counsel over 'retirement home scandal'

Oct 25, 2012

President Lee Myung-bak's only son appeared before a special counsel on Thursday to face questioning over alleged irregularities in a land deal for his father's now-scrapped retirement home project.The 34-year-old Lee Si-hyung entered the counsel's office in Seocho-dong, southern Seoul, at 10:11 a.m. in his capacity as a criminal suspect in the alleged attempt to misuse taxpayer money through the aborted land deal. This is the first time in South Korean history a child of a sitting president has
Korea hopes for success of Naro

Oct 24, 2012

Space technology has advanced through trial and error, a solace for Korean scientists who were humiliated by the past two failed launches of the country’s first locally assembled rocket called Naro. Advanced economies such as the U.S. and Japan have a record of launch failures. Even Russia, which fired the most rockets into space between 1957 and 2011, had several misfires.In a survey of 1,000 Koreans by a local news agency, over 80 percent said that Korea should increase its space investment an