The Korea Herald

Apple prepares thinner laptops with Intel chips

World BusinessMay 15, 2012

Apple Inc. is preparing a new lineup of thinner MacBook laptops running on more powerful chips made by Intel Corp., people with knowledge of the plans said. The MacBook Pro machines, to be unveiled at Apple’s annual developers conference starting June 11, also will feature high- definition screens like those on the iPhone and iPad, as well as flash memory to cut startup times and extend battery life, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the plans haven’t been made public. Appl
‘Sony, Panasonic eye TV tie up’

World BusinessMay 15, 2012

TOKYO (AFP) ― Japan’s cash-bleeding electronics giants Sony and Panasonic are looking to join forces to produce next generation televisions in a bid to claw back market from South Korean rivals, a report said Tuesday.The firms want to speed up the development of large-screen organic electroluminescence televisions, which consume less power and offer a sharper picture than conventional flat panels, the Nikkei daily said.OEL is widely expected to be the dominant technology in the next generation o
Israel braces for unrest ahead of ‘disaster’ day

World NewsMay 15, 2012

Palestinian prisoners reached a deal with Israel to end a mass hunger strike in exchange for better conditionsJERUSALEM (AFP) ― Israel is bracing for possible unrest on Tuesday, when Palestinians commemorate the exodus of hundreds of thousands of their kin following the foundation of the Jewish state in 1948.Nakba Day, marked annually on May 15, is normally marked by protest, and often by clashes with Israelis in the Palestinian territories.“We are coordinating with the military and border polic
Hollande sworn in as French president amid euro turmoil

World NewsMay 15, 2012

PARIS (AFP) -- Socialist leader Francois Hollande was sworn in as president of France on Tuesday at a solemn ceremony overshadowed by the catastrophic debt crisis threatening to unravel the eurozone.After brief ceremonies in Paris, the 57-year-old career politician was to dash to Berlin to confront Chancellor Angela Merkel over their very different visions as to how to save the single currency bloc.“Power will be exercised at the summit of the state with dignity and simplicity,” Hollande declare
Heavy snow surprises Bosnians after a hot weekend

World NewsMay 15, 2012

SARAJEVO (AP) ― Sunbathing one day, snowstorm the next: Bosnians are getting whiplash from the latest crazy weather to hit the Balkans. Weeks after Bosnians had stashed away their winter clothes and their memories of last winter’s unbearably heavy snow, residents had to drag out the shovels Monday after waking up to a blanket of snow in the middle of an otherwise unusually hot May. Some 50 remote villages in a mountainous area near the Bosnian capital of Sarajevo lost power due to the snow. The
Three astronauts blast off for ISS on Russian rocket

World NewsMay 15, 2012

AIKONUR, Kazakhstan (AFP) ― Two Russians and an American on Tuesday blasted off for the International Space Station aboard a Soyuz-FG rocket from Russia’s Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.Gennady Padalka and Sergei Revin and American Joseph Acaba started their journey in the Russian Soyuz TMA-04M capsule under crystal clear skies from the Kazakh steppe to the space station, an AFP correspondent said.Their capsule was delivered into orbit as planned and all the crew were feeling good, mission co
Obama on gay marriage: Right thing to do

World NewsMay 15, 2012

NEW YORK (AP) ― President Barack Obama on Monday defended his view that gay couples should have the right to marry, saying that the country has never gone wrong when it “expanded rights and responsibilities to everybody.”“That doesn’t weaken families. That strengthens families,” he told gay and lesbian supporters and others at a fundraiser hosted by singer Ricky Martin and the LGBT Leadership Council. “It’s the right thing to do.”The remarks were his first to such an audience since he announced
Teen arrested after homework left at crime scene

World NewsMay 15, 2012

An 18-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of burglary after police say he left his homework at the crime scene.Police in Orem, Utah, say they tracked a USB drive found at the burglarized home to Dallas Naljahih. They say the computer hard drive contained his homework and was in a backpack abandoned in the backyard.A 75-year-old man and his wife reported their home had been burglarized early Sat
Urine kills fish

World NewsMay 15, 2012

Swimmers’ urine is killing the fish stocks in a German lake, according to a spokesperson from the local fishing association.The organization said phosphate in human urine is causing problems in Eichbaum Lake near Hamburg, Germany.Each swimmer is releasing an estimated pint of urine each time they urinate, which poisons the fish stocks. So far 500 dead fish have been found and the deaths look likely to continue. But some are blaming ice-skaters for the deaths, saying skaters are waking up the fis
Bride, in wedding gown, stabbed to death

World NewsMay 15, 2012

A woman in suburban Chicago was found stabbed to death in her bathtub, in the gown she wore at her wedding, officials said.Estrella Carrera, 26, was found in her home in Burbank, southwest of Chicago, Sunday afternoon, police said. She had apparently suffered stab wounds and was discovered in her unfilled bathtub, wearing her wedding gown, the Chicago Tribune reported Monday.Carrera was last seen
Moody's downgrades ratings of 26 Italian banks

World BusinessMay 15, 2012

Moody's Investors Service downgraded the debt ratings of 26 Italian banks Monday as they struggled with the effect of the weak economy and government austerity measures.The move means Moody's now ranks Italy's banks lower than most of their Western European peers.The ratings agency said the banks are suffering because Italy is back in recession and government measures are cutting demand for loans.
Canon seeks full automation in camera production

World BusinessMay 14, 2012

Company moving toward robots-only full automation in digital camera productionTOKYO (AP) -- Canon Inc. is moving toward fully automating digital camera production in an effort to cut costs -- a key change being played out across Japan, a world leader in robotics.If successful, counting on machines can help preserve this nation’s technological power -- not the stereotype of machines snatching assembly line jobs from workers, Jun Misumi -- company spokesman, said Monday.The move toward machine-onl
Wozniak to buy Facebook regardless of price

World BusinessMay 14, 2012

Apple Inc. co-founder Steve Wozniak said he will buy shares in Facebook Inc. when the social networking company sells stock to the public in what may be a record initial public offering for an Internet business. Wozniak, who built the first Apple computer with Steve Jobs and co-founded the company with him in 1976, said he would buy Facebook’s stock regardless of its valuation. Facebook plans to raise as much as $11.8 billion in an IPO scheduled for May 17 in what would be the biggest in histor
Yahoo CEO to step down amid resume miscue

World BusinessMay 14, 2012

Company names Ross Levinsohn interim CEO, replacing embattled Scott ThompsonNEW YORK (AP) ― Yahoo swept out Scott Thompson as CEO Sunday in an effort to clean up a mess created by an exaggeration about his education that destroyed his credibility as he set out to turnaround the long-troubled Internet company. Ross Levinsohn, who oversees Yahoo’s content and advertising services, is taking over as interim CEO. He becomes the fourth person to run Yahoo in eight months. Yahoo hired Thompson, the fo
JPMorgan executive expected to resign

World BusinessMay 14, 2012

3 execs may depart after $2 billion trading loss, source saysNEW YORK (AP) ― JPMorgan Chase is expected to accept the resignation of one of the highest-ranking women on Wall Street after the bank lost $2 billion in a trading blunder, a person familiar with the matter said Sunday. The bank will accept the resignation of Ina Drew, its chief investment officer, the person told The Associated Press, speaking on condition of anonymity because the person was not authorized to discuss the decision pub