Sleep is not just rest, but a very important process for performing mental and physical activities. Getting enough good-quality sleep is also necessary for maintaining mental and physical health. Chronic sleep deficiency or poor quality of sleep significantly increases the risk of depression, diabetes mellitus and coronary heart disease.Human sleep consists of 20-25 percent REM (rapid eye movement) and 75-80 percent Non-REM sleep. During REM sleep, the eyes move rapidly and most people experienc

Seoul’s population, which currently ranks 29th in the world, will drop by 14 notches by 2030, according to the United Nations’ Department of Economics and Social Affairs.The U.N. body predicts that Seoul’s population, which is 9.77 million this year, will edge up to 9.96 million by 2030. Despite the increase in population, Seoul is projected to drop to 43rd place in 2030. The drop in ranking would be the biggest among the top 30 cities on the list. Tokyo remains the world’s most populous city wi

The state weather agency issued the year’s first heat wave warning for Seoul on Wednesday. (Yonhap)The warning is issued if the temperature is expected to remain above 33 degrees Celsius.On Wednesday, the temperature in Seoul was 32.6 degrees Celsius as of 1 p.m., according to the Korea Meteorological Administration. Seoul and a number of other regions nationwide have also experienced “tropical nights” since Wednesday, defined by nighttime lows above 25 degrees Celsius. The agency also issued a

More than half of the 100 most used medicines worldwide will be biologics by 2018, experts said on Wednesday, stressing the need for developing the local biopharmaceutical industry.“As the world market for biomedicine is getting bigger, we think it will create a lot of future opportunities for local companies,” said Jang Byung-won, vice minister of the Food and Drug Safety Ministry, during the Global Biopharmaceutical Forum in Seoul.“Medical biology is the key business that will directly affect

While South Korea is known for its culture of binge drinking, the country also offers a lot of ways to have fun while staying sober.When they are not hitting the pubs and karaoke bars that stay open until sunrise, some Koreans choose to watch films in 24-hour cinemas, check out evening art exhibitions or enjoy bindaetteok ― Korean mung bean pancakes ― at a night food market.Here are some of the ways to have fun in Korea at night, from movies to the dance club scene in Itaewon.Classy Who says art

A group of some 1,000 single parents are protesting against the Defense Ministry’s “soldier observation” program, after it was revealed that children from single-parent households are automatically put in the system regardless of their social skills and mental health.The program began in 2009 to protect soldiers who may have difficulty adjusting to military life while serving their mandatory duty. Those who are under close watch include soldiers who are mentally unstable, including those who hav

The number of foreign nationals in Korea increased by 8.6 percent this year from the previous year, comprising slightly over 3 percent of the country’s population, according to government data.According to the data released by the Security Ministry, the number of foreigners here reached 1.57 million as of Jan. 1 of this year, accounting for 3.1 percent of the country’s population of 51 million. The number of foreign residents has been on the rise for the past eight years. A growing number of eth