The Korea Herald

Naro rocket set for third attempt

Nov 28, 2012

The Korea Space Launch Vehicle-1, or Naro rocket, is set for its third launch on Thursday. If successful in putting a scientific satellite mounted on the rocket into orbit, Korea will become the 10th country with its own capability to develop and launch a rocket.The first attempt ended in failure 540.8 seconds after the launch due to malfunction of a fairing, a cover for the payload satellite, in August 2009.The rocket failed a second time, exploding 137.3 seconds after launch in June 2010. The
Researchers claim sequenced 'Bigfoot' DNA

Nov 28, 2012

A Texas veterinarian says she and fellow genetic researchers have confirmed the existence of "Bigfoot," though their findings have yet to pass peer review.Dr. Melba S. Ketchum of Nacogdoches, founder of DNA Diagnostics Inc. in the eastern Texas town of Timpson, said she and her team spent five years on their study of purported Bigfoot hair and concluded they have confirmed the existence of a hominin hybrid species, the legendary creature commonly called "Bigfoot" or "Sasquatch," living in North
Gardening could help long space missions

Nov 28, 2012

NASA says it is conducting plant research aboard the International Space Station because life in space may depend on it during future long-duration missions.Using plants to provide a food source and to recycle carbon dioxide into breathable oxygen may prove critical for astronauts who will live in space for months at a time, the space agency said in a release Tuesday.Several plant-growing experiments have been conducted to help scientists understand the impact of zero gravity conditions on plant
Life found buried beneath Antarctic ice

Nov 28, 2012

U.S. scientists say they found metabolically active bacteria in the brine of an Antarctic lake sealed for thousands of years under more than 65 feet of ice.Researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago, writing in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, said the finding sheds light on the limits of life in extreme environments.The brine has been isolated from the surface environment, and from any external sources of energy, for at least 2,800 years, they said."This provides u
Korea to invest W579b in genomics research

Nov 27, 2012

The Korean government plans to invest 579 billion won ($534 million) in genomics research over the next eight years to create and support related industries in the field.Five ministries will be participating in the project ― the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology; Ministry of Health and Welfare; Ministry of Knowledge Economy; Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs; and Ministry for Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries.The plan comes as Korea has been lagging behind other adva
6,000 or more steps a day = better health

Nov 26, 2012

Making 6,000 or more steps a day adds up to a healthier life for midlife women, researchers in Brazil found. Although previous research showed the value of structured exercise in lowering the risk of diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease, this study shows habitual physical activity, whether it comes from exercising or just activities of daily living, can improve women‘s health.The study involved 292 women ages 45-72 living in Passo Fundo, Brazil, who wore pedometers and recorded their
Extreme weather tough on U.S. transport system

Nov 25, 2012

Wild weather is taking a toll on roads, airports, railways and transit systems across the country.That’s leaving states and cities searching for ways to brace for more catastrophes like Superstorm Sandy that are straining the nation’s transportation lifelines beyond what their builders imagined.Despite their concerns about intense rain, historic floods and record heat waves, some transportation planners find it too politically sensitive to say aloud a source of their weather worries: climate cha
Korean team develops new way of generating stem cells

Nov 25, 2012

Korean scientists have discovered a new molecular compound that could increase the efficiency of human adult cell reprogramming to induced pluripotent stem cells.The low-molecule Reprogramming Stimulating Compound 133, or RSC133, adds to the list of non-viral vectors that are crucial to advancing the biotechnology and production of iPS cells.Dr. Cho Yee-sook and Dr. Lee Jung-woon of the Korea Research Institute of Bioscience & Biotechnology led a team of researchers for this latest discovery tha
Woman dies after 42 years in coma

Nov 25, 2012

A Miami woman who fell into a diabetic coma in 1970 died at age 59 after 42 years of unconsciousness, her family said.Edwarda O‘Bara died Wednesday after being cared for by her mother and sister through decades of illness, the Miami New Times reported Friday.O’Bara was a high school student when she fell ill and regurgitated her diabetes medicine. She was rushed to the hospital, where she asked her mother never to leave her side just before she slipped into the coma, The Miami Herald said.Her mo
Planets around cooling stars unlikely to support life: study

Nov 23, 2012

Exoplanets orbiting cooling stars like white dwarf and brown dwarf stars are unlikely to support life, new study suggestedAs those stars cool down over time, their habitable zone –- a zone where liquid water, therefore life may exist –- shift over time, according to research by Rory Barnes of the University of Washington and René Heller of Germany‘s Leibniz Institute for Astrophysics Potsdam. Although theoretically both white and brown dwarf stars can be bright enough to create habitable zones,
Argentine experts find giant penguin fossils in Antarctica

Nov 23, 2012

Argentine experts have discovered the fossils of a two-meter tall penguin that lived in Antarctica 34 million years ago.Paleontologists with the Natural Sciences Museum of La Plata province, where the capital Buenos Aires is located, said the remains were found on the icy southern continent."This is the largest penguin known to date in terms of height and body mass," said researcher Carolina Acosta, who noted that the record had been held by emperor penguins, which reach heights of 1.2 meters ta
Study: Muscular men live longer

Nov 22, 2012

Muscular men are likely to enjoy a longer life span, according to a study in Sweden. The study underlined it does not imply any extreme workout will be always beneficial, but the general strength of muscle is important.To measure muscle power, the team carried out several tests such as push-ups or leg curls. More than 1 million men aged 16 to 19 participated in this study and they were tracked for 24 years. The study revealed that those with above-average muscle strength tend to have a 20 to 30
Aussie scientists undiscover Pacific island

Nov 22, 2012

A South Pacific island identified on Google Earth and world maps does not exist, according to Australian scientists who went searching for the mystery landmass during a geological expedition.The sizeable phantom island in the Coral Sea is shown as Sandy Island on Google Earth and Google maps, supposedly midway between Australia and the French-governed New Caledonia.The Times Atlas of the World appears to identify it as Sable Island and according to Dr. Maria Seton the weather maps used by the So
Seoul set to launch space rocket on Nov. 29

Nov 22, 2012

South Korea plans to launch the Korea Space Launch Vehicle-1 (KSLV-1) next week in its third attempt to send a rocket into space from its own soil, a government committee said Thursday."Nov. 29 has been set as the candidate launch date," the Naro Launch Preparation Committee said in a released statement. "The possible time of the launch will be between 4 and 6:55 p.m. with the actual time to be decided on the launch date."It said, however, that both the date and time were still tentative as bad
‘Going to day care ups chance of obesity for children’

Nov 20, 2012

Children going to day care have a higher risk of being obese, a study by University of Montreal researchers claimed.In the study published recently in the Journal of Pediatrics, lead researcher Marie-Claude Geoffroy said children regularly attending day-care centers have a 50 percent higher chance of being obese than those staying home with parents. “We found that children whose primary care arrangement between 1.5 and 4 years was in day-care centers or with an extended family member were around