The Korea Herald

300 vials labeled flu, dengue found at U.S. lab

HealthJul 17, 2014

WASHINGTON (AP) ― The same U.S. government scientist who recently found forgotten samples of smallpox at a federal lab also uncovered over 300 additional vials, many bearing the names of highly contagious viruses and bacteria. The new revelations raise serious concerns about the government’s ability to secure its collections of potentially deadly pathogens.Food and Drug Administration officials said Wednesday the undocumented collection contained 327 carefully packaged vials, listing pathogens l
‘Song of the Shank’ celebrates a unique American musician

BooksJul 17, 2014

“Song of the Shank,” Jeffery Renard Allen’s epic and brilliant new novel about slavery and musical genius, is not an easy book to read. There is, for starters, the book’s odd and sometimes confounding protagonist, based on a real man who is most often referred to in historical accounts as “Blind Tom.”“He isn’t talking. He isn’t playing,” his mother observes when Tom is a boy. “He isn’t even moving.” As he grows into adulthood, Blind Tom is a cipher for dozens of pages and then suddenly sets off
‘Mockingbird Next Door’ recalls life with Harper Lee

BooksJul 17, 2014

What ever happened to Harper Lee? The Alabama native was 34 when her first novel, “To Kill a Mockingbird,” was published in 1960. This tale of childhood innocence and racial injustice in the Depression-era South won the Pulitzer Prize in 1961, was adapted for an award-winning film with Gregory Peck and became a staple of high school English curricula. But Lee shunned publicity and never published another novel, fueling occasional rumors that her friend Truman Capote ― a childhood neighbor in the
Novel tells tale of ‘Unknown Americans’

BooksJul 17, 2014

“The Book Of Unknown Americans”Cristina Henriquez (Alfred A. Knopf)A dilapidated cinder-block apartment complex surrounded by a chain-link fence is the setting for Cristina Henriquez’s second novel, “The Book of Unknown Americans.” What at first appears to be a no man’s land is actually Delaware. Welcome to the U.S.A., where every whistle stop has an immigrant story to tell.The novel opens as the Riveras, a newly arrived Mexican family ― Arturo, Alma and teenage daughter Maribel ― are settling i
Boys will be boys (and sometimes girls)

BooksJul 17, 2014

AdamBy Ariel Schrag (Mariner)In Ariel Schrag’s audacious coming-of-age novel “Adam,” an inexperienced teenage boy falls in love with a lesbian and tricks her into believing he’s transgender so she’ll go out with him. Yes, I know: So many things could have gone wrong with this premise. The sheer number of potential missteps is enough to daunt any novelist, let alone a first-timer like Schrag.But Schrag, best known for her series of graphic memoirs about her adolescence, has found compassionate an
Ancient dragon boating gives cancer survivors a workout

CultureJul 16, 2014

If you’ve been in Portage Lakes State Park in Ohio recently you just might have spotted some dragons. Not the long-toothed Loch Ness kind that live under the sea, but dragon boats that glide across the water.Members of the Dragon Dream Team, all wearing pink life jackets, have been practicing their strokes on recent warm summer evenings. The women remained in sync when paddling the 12-meter watercraft. They were beautiful, strong, energetic and breast cancer survivors.The team, which hones its s
Older Americans take ‘encore’ jobs

PeopleJul 16, 2014

After Fred Wallace was laid off from a high-paying job in 2011, the 56-year-old knew the odds of landing a comparable position were slim.He polished his LinkedIn profile and networked like crazy. But his yearlong job search yielded only a handful of interviews and no offers.So he shifted gears, embarking on an “encore” career by working part time at a child and family services organization in San Bernardino, California.Wallace is among millions of older Americans launching professional second ac
Little libraries build community, love for books

CultureJul 16, 2014

SACRAMENTO, California ― Some parents buy a dog or cat when their children leave home. When her son Jack Gavron heads to college in the fall, Mindy Fox will get a library.The library, a handbuilt wooden box decorated to look like the family’s Craftsman-style home, already sits in Fox’s front yard in the Land Park neighborhood in Sacramento, but Gavron is the primary steward. When he built it for his senior high school project this spring, he joined a community of approximately 15,000 Little Free
Businessman behind retrieval of artifact

CultureJul 15, 2014

Shin Sung-soo, chairman of Korea Industries Co., a local manufacturer of animal feed, is the man behind the latest retrieval of a rare Goryeo lacquerware artifact to its birthplace. “I’ve seen it in photos and newspapers, but the moment I encountered it … it was just overwhelming,” the businessman and art collector said, stopping briefly to hold back tears. He was speaking at a press conference as a senior member of the Friends of National Museum of Korea on the group’s donation of the artifact
Cricketers hit for six in Suwon

Expat LivingJul 15, 2014

If on a summer afternoon in Suwon you hear the thwack of wood on leather, don’t assume it’s just another game of baseball. The field could be round, the bats could be made of willow, and two batsmen could be playing at once. Just be on the lookout for stray balls (red ones, not white) says Korean Cricket Association secretary Owen Wibberley.“We get a lot of locals who don’t understand the game walking around the field, so you have to tell them that the ball’s very hard, and it’s very dangerous t
International busker a hit on the subway

Expat LivingJul 15, 2014

Busker Aancod Zaccarelli (www.facebook.com/aancod)It’s rare to hear anything louder than a station announcement in the subdued environment of the Seoul metro system, but one musician’s attempt to introduce a little funk to the daily commute has received an overwhelming response on social media. Traveling busker Aancod Zaccarelli is dodging surveillance cameras and evading station security in his quest to bring music directly to the people. A video of him singing g.o.d’s “One Candle” in perfect
Busan to host International Children’s Film Festival

Expat LivingJul 15, 2014

The 9th Busan International Kid’s Film Festival opens next week for a five-day run.The festival, based on the theme “With Fairytales, With Film,” features children’s films from across the world, mostly in English or with English subtitles, from July 23-27.Classic films to be shown include “The Goonies” and “Harry Potter and the Sorcerers’ Stone,” along with subtitled Korean animations including “Approved for Adoption,” a more mature film about a Korean boy who was adopted to Belgium. Two films f
Free weekend Korean courses for expats

Expat LivingJul 15, 2014

The Seoul Global Center will be running its second term this year of free Korean language classes from July 26 to Nov. 20.The 15-week courses are open to all foreigners living in Korea, including those holding Korean dual citizenship. The courses will cater to beginner through to intermediate skill levels. Weekly two-hour classes will take place between the morning and afternoon on either Saturday or Sunday. Students must pay a 40,000 won ($39) deposit in their first week, which will be returned
Fashion KODE kicks off Wednesday

FashionJul 15, 2014

Fashion KODE, an annual trade show for Korean fashion designers, kicks off Wednesday at the AT Convention Center in Seoul. It is one of the largest fashion fairs in Korea with more than 400 local and foreign buyers and 120 Korean fashion brands attending.The fair has invited buyers from major fashion stores in Hong Kong, Japan, France, Italy and the United States. Among them are Harvey Nichols Hong Kong, Free’s Shop in Japan, L’Eclaireur Paris and Tomorrow Ltd in Italy. A large number of top fas
Stories of ‘comfort women’ revived on stage

CultureJul 15, 2014

Two plays explore challenges of former wartime sex slaves