The Korea Touch Association kicks off its 2013 season Saturday with an open day in Seoul. The event is for both old hands and first timers, with coaching clinics and introductions to the rules, and a chance to develop the skills and get feedback for those who have never played before. There will also be a match for experienced players, along with raffles and refreshments.The sport originated as a low-contact training exercise for the rugby league. It follows similar rules to the league, but with

The Irish Association of Korea’s St. Patrick’s Day festival runs this Saturday at D Cube Plaza in Seoul, with this year’s event broadening to include more family-friendly activities and opportunities to experience Irish culture.There will be live performances of Irish music and dance, with performers including Bard, Sweet Murphy’s Fancy, Dara Sheanan and Tap Pung, with an open invitation for audience members to join in the dancing in front of the stage.This year’s event will have an added “villa

AUSTIN, Texas (AFP) ― Basketball legend Shaquille O’Neal on Monday credited the “geeks” who introduced him to computers during his troubled teenage years for making him the tech tycoon that he is today.The retired National Basketball Association star with a Ph.D. in human resources who invested in Google before it went public held court at the South by Southwest (SXSW) festival where he found two new startups to support.In an hour-long talk that repeatedly had an adoring SXSW audience bent over

WASHINGTON (Yonhap News) ― U.S. President Barack Obama plans to award a posthumous medal next month to a U.S. Army chaplain known for his sacrifice during the 1950-53 Korean War, the White House said Monday.The ceremony for Capt. Emil J. Kapaun will take place on April 11 at the presidential office, attended by his family, it added.“When Chinese Communist Forces viciously attacked friendly elements, Chaplain Kapaun calmly walked through withering enemy fire in order to provide comfort and medica

The president of Harvard University has been chosen as an honorary fellow of South Korea’s Ewha Womans University for her contribution to the improvement of women’s rights, school officials said.Drew Gilpin Faust, the 28th president of Harvard University and the Lincoln Professor of History in Harvard’s Faculty of Arts and Sciences, will be awarded with the “Distinguished Honorary Ewha Fellow” award, as she “has greatly contributed to the improvement of women’s social status as the first female

A study suggested that melittin, a toxin found in bee stings, could destroy HIV cells and lead to the development of related drugs. Scientists from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis argued that the potent toxin in bee stings could selectively kill HIV cells if attached to nanoparticles. The melittin attached to the nanoparticles could rip holes in the outer layer of the HIV cells and destroy them, leaving other body cells intact, the research paper claimed. While most anti-HI

A dentist was detained by police on suspicions of pulling out a patient’s teeth after a quarrel over a medical bill, a Spanish daily reported Monday.According to ABC newspaper, a 39-year-old dentist from Zaragoza is accused of removing several implanted teeth from a middle-aged female patient in February. The victim -- who was being treated by the doctor for months -- asked the dentist why her bill had amounted to thousands of euros, which led to a heated argument. The dentist then sat her down

LONDON (AFP) ― British researchers on Saturday unveiled a new theory for the origins of Stonehenge, saying the ancient stone circle was originally a graveyard and venue for mass celebrations.The findings would overturn the long-held belief that Stonehenge on Salisbury Plain in southwestern England was created as a Stone Age astronomical calendar or observatory.A team led by Professor Mike Parker Pearson of University College London said Stonehenge, a UNESCO World Heritage site, is both older and

The 2012 London Olympics Opening Ceremony was a new chapter for the so-called creative industry. It was the moment when creativity beat big-scale, blockbuster conventionality.A huge group of dancers performed a running storyline and the Olympic Flame was lit in a flower-shaped cauldron, while everyone sang along to “Hey Jude” with Paul McCartney: It was not as lavish or grand as the Beijing opening ceremony, but more of a condensed, cool and witty celebration.On Monday, Ed Vaizey, U.K. minister

MIAMI (AFP) ― Former tennis World No. 1 Jennifer Capriati is facing battery charges and possible arrest after being accused of stalking and punching an ex-boyfriend on Valentine’s Day.Capriati, a three-time Grand Slam champion who won 14 titles and earned gold at the 1992 Olympics, had an altercation with Ivan Brannan at the Oxygen Health & Wellness gym in North Palm Beach, Florida on Feb. 14, the local police department said.While Brannan was working out, Capriati, 36, “started screaming” at hi