The Korea Herald

Fossilized dinosaur nest designated as natural monument

Jun 27, 2012

A fossilized nest of a theropod dinosaur on Aphae Island off Mokpo, South Jeolla Province, 410 kilometers south of Seoul, has been designated as a natural monument, the Cultural Heritage Administration announced Wednesday.The three-ton nest is the largest of its kind ever found in Korea with a diameter of 2.3 meters and height of 6 meters. In the nest are fossils of 19 dinosaur eggs of various sizes ranging from385 millimeters to 430 millimeters in diameter.The fossil was discovered in September
Remains of East Asia’s oldest agricultural site found in Goseong

Jun 26, 2012

Remains of agricultural tools used in the Neolithic period as well as a farming site, which are presumed to be East Asia’s oldest, have been found in Goseong, Gangwon Province, according to the National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage.According to the institute, the discovery of the archaeological traces, which mostly consist of pieces of earthenware, proves people living on the Korean Peninsula started cultivating crops during the Neolithic period. Along with the stoneware pieces, the i
Traditional funerals dying out in Korea

Jun 26, 2012

In the lobby of the Samsung Hospital Funeral Center in Seoul, clusters of mourners dressed in black confer solemnly ― a common sight in mortuaries everywhere. But Samsung is one of South Korea’s technology leaders, so it is not surprising to also see an electronic screen with high-resolution pictures of the deceased and information on which of the 20 halls their services are being held in.Whereas several cultural causes have been revitalized in recent years ― hanok, makgeolli, even Confucian wed
AD STARS 2012 sees surge in entries

Jun 26, 2012

The number of advertisements submitted to AD STARS 2012, an international advertising festival to be held in Busan, surged dramatically compared to last year, making the festival a key advertising event on the international stage. According to the organizing committee of AD STARS 2012, the number of advertisements submitted to the committee totaled 10,431, a 46 percent jump from last year’s 7,130 entries.It is the first time the committee has seen the number of entries exceed 10,000 since the ad
Pakistan: Buddha attacked by Taliban gets facelift

Jun 26, 2012

JAHANABAD, Pakistan (AP) ― When the Taliban blew the face off a towering, 1,500-year-old rock carving of Buddha in northwest Pakistan almost five years ago, it fell to an intrepid Italian archaeologist to come to the rescue.Thanks to the efforts of Luca Olivieri and his partners, the 6-meter-tall image near the town of Jahanabad is getting a facelift, and many other archaeological treasures in the scenic Swat Valley are being excavated and preserved.Hard-line Muslims have a history of targeting
British pooch new world’s ugliest dog

Jun 25, 2012

A Chinese Crested dog from Britain defeated an international group of competitors to win the title of World’s Ugliest Dog.Mugly won the grand prize Friday at the Sonoma-Marin Fair in Petaluma, Calif., Bay City News Service reported.“I couldn’t speak when they announced Mugly’s name,” the dog’s owner, Bev Nicholson, said. “I didn’t know which way to look. I was shaking as much as the dog.”The prize carries a number of perks. In addition to a trophy, Mugly and Nicolson get $1,000, a stay at the Sh
Singles try to sniff out love at pheromone parties

Jun 24, 2012

Sniff your way to love? Singles who attend so-called pheromone parties haven't ruled it out.The get-togethers _ which have been held in New York and Los Angeles and are planned for other cities _ ask guests to submit a slept-in T-shirt that will be smelled by other participants.Then, voila! You can pick your partner based on scent, or so the theory goes.The parties started as an experiment in matc
Calendar

Jun 22, 2012

Theater"Hairspray”: Broadway musical “Hairspray” is returning for its third run in Seoul. Having premiered in Seoul in 2007, the musical had another successful run in 2009. "Hairspray" has won a total of eight Tony Awards, including Best Musical in 2003, since it first opened in Broadway in 2002. It takes place in the early 1960s, and tells the story of Tracy Turnblad, an overweight yet optimistic teenager who dreams of becoming a star dancer by appearing on a dance-themed TV show. The role of T
Contacts on order for Carolina elephant

Jun 21, 2012

Veterinarians at a North Carolina zoo say they are crossing their fingers as a pair of jumbo contact lenses are made for one of their elephants.C’sar nearly went blind at the N.C. Zoo in Asheboro, but cataract surgery saved the day and has the 38-year-old bull African elephant pretty much back to normal after some harrowing months of bumping into things and being unable to eat.　The next step is to fit C’sar with a custom-made set of soft contacts that will not only protect his eyes but also comp
Quebec girls' school regrets hypnotism act

Jun 20, 2012

A Quebec private girls' school that held a hypnotism demonstration which left several students dazed says that in retrospect it should have taken the activity more seriously. The demonstration by a young hypnotist at Quebec's College Sacre-Coeur on June 7, left one girl in a four-hour trance, five more students in a daze and 13 students feeling nauseous and with headaches. The hypnotists mentor ha
Legendary lost city ‘found’ by laser mapping

Jun 17, 2012

U.S. scientists recently claimed to have found the remains of the legendary lost city of Ciudad Blanca (“White City”) in Honduras, according to news reports.Using laser-based light detection and ranging technique, researchers from the University of Houston and the National Center for Airborne Laser Mapping have managed to locate ruins of the ancient city, hidden deep within the jungle for centuries.Scientists flew over Honduras’ Mosquitia region shooting laser pulses that hit the ground and the
Calendar

Jun 15, 2012

Theater“Wedding”: Popular musical producer Song Seung-hwan, whose 1997 non-verbal piece “Nanta” made a global hit, has made a comeback with another foreigner-friendly work. Titled “Wedding,” Song’s latest musical is also non-verbal; its actors and actresses sing, dance, act and play over 20 musical instruments. The one-of-a-kind performance is specifically designed to draw foreign audiences. The show is a comical theatrical portrait of an ordinary Korean wedding, where the bride‘s father isn’t
Legendary Magnum photographers’ works on exhibit in Seoul

Jun 14, 2012

Perfectly timed shots by Henri Cartier-Bresson and Marc Riboud captivate viewers Every photographer dreams of capturing a perfect moment that becomes the iconic image of the time. Separate photo exhibitions of work by two acclaimed Magnum photographers of the 20th century ― Henri Cartier-Bresson and Marc Riboud ― present a series of perfect moments that leave a lasting impact. Looking at photos by Cartier-Bresson makes viewers wonder how long the photographer must have waited and how carefully
Chinese block Tibetans at Buddhist event in Yeosu

Jun 13, 2012

A Chinese delegation abruptly left a religious conference in Yeosu on Wednesday morning after Tibetans attending the event refused to acquiesce to demands they leave. The Chinese delegation, consisting of Buddhist officials and monks, had walked out of the opening ceremony of the World Fellowship of Buddhists in Korea the previous evening. The Chinese had complained about the Tibetans’ participation, claiming that they represent Tibet’s government-in-exile. Saying they did not want to share the
Discovery of fossilized dinosaur footprints gets int’l recognition

Jun 13, 2012

Fossilized footprints of a quadrupedal ornithopod dinosaur found in South Korea have been recognized by an international research society, the National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage (NRICH) said Tuesday.The institute said in a press release that research papers on the fossils, discovered in Duhori, Goseong, South Gyeongsang Province, 446 kilometers southeast of Seoul, have been published in the latest issue of Ichnos, an international academic journal about fossil research.The fossils