Most Popular
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Tensions heighten ahead of first president-opposition chief meeting
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Seoul to provide housing subsidy to married couples with newborns
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New celebrity-endorsed therapy for face contouring requires only a pair of rubber bands
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Rapper jailed after public street fight with another rapper
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[KH Explains] No more 'Michael' at Kakao Games
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Nominee for chief of anti-corruption body pledges 'independence, effectiveness'
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Woman gets suspended term for injuring boyfriend with knife
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Med schools expect 1,500+ new admission slots next year
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Samsung chief bolsters ties with Germany’s Zeiss
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KT launches new mobile plans for foreign residents
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[Herald Interview] Expedia seeks to change Korean vacation perceptions
Koreans take the fewest vacations in the world, according to a survey by Expedia, the world’s largest online travel company.They go on a vacation for about eight days a year, well below the world average of 20 days. The French take about 30 days of vacation.The company’s 2014 survey showed that this was mostly because of the negative perception of vacation by Korean bosses, and their tight work schedule.Faced with Korea’s longstanding rigid labor policy, Expedia seeks to change this by increasin
TravelMay 18, 2015
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[Herald Interview] ‘Indian P.M.’s visit aims to cement Korea partnership’
With evolving business ties and increasingly similar strategic perspectives on world affairs, South Korea is one of the most important Asian partners for India, according to India’s ambassador to Seoul, Vikram Doraiswami.In an interview with The Korea Herald last week, the envoy noted that elevating India’s partnership with Korea was a crucial “prerequisite” to ensure the success of New Delhi’s “Act East” policy ― a core foreign policy initiative to deepen the country’s engagement with East Asia
Foreign AffairsMay 17, 2015
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[Herald Interview] Agency calls for health care support for North Korea
When Lee Soo-ku, president of the Korea Foundation for International Healthcare, visited a dental facility in North Korea for the first time in the early 2000s, he was almost speechless. “There was literally nothing except a few very basic instruments,” he said. “There was a mouth mirror and an extractor. That’s about it.”Lee, who is also a practicing dentist, has been serving as the head of the KOFIH since 2012. His organization is the only South Korean public agency that provides health care s
Social AffairsMay 14, 2015
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[Herald Interview] Jang Hyun-seung hopes to show new side through solo debut
When onstage as a member of Beast or half of the duo Trouble Maker, Jang Hyun-seung exudes charisma and sex appeal. But offstage, at a group interview on Monday at a cafe in Cheongdam-dong, Seoul, Jang was soft-spoken and shy as he talked about his first solo EP, “MY.”“I wanted to come without any makeup, but I was afraid you’d think I didn’t really care about the interview,” he said as he sat down in a red flannel shirt and torn jeans, running a hand through his hair.According to Jang, he wante
PerformanceMay 12, 2015
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[Herald Interview] True devotion in ‘With or Without You’
Choi Mag-gi and Kim Chun-hee are two old ladies living together in Yeongdeok-gun, North Gyeongsang Province. Their relationship is difficult to explain at first. After Mag-gi lost her two sons to a typhoon and measles, respectively, she and her husband brought in Chun-hee, who has a slight mental impairment, to live with them and to bear them a son. Although Mag-gi’s husband died decades ago, the two women ― the wife and the concubine ― still live together and look after each other.They are the
FilmMay 11, 2015
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[Herald Interview] Pushing emotional extremes with a story of urban hell
A young mother with an autistic child is chased by a loan shark who demands that she pay off her husband’s gambling debt. She is beautiful and doting; her husband is well-meaning but plagued by his addiction; the loan shark is ruthless and psychotic. “Coin Locker,” which made its world premiere in the Korean Competition section of this year’s Jeonju International Film Festival, is a parade of cliches and extremes. That was what director Kim Tae-kyung intended. “I began with the thought that toda
FilmMay 11, 2015
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[Herald Interview] Candy Crush game creator eyes Korea for growth
King Digital Entertainment, the British creator of the massively-popular Candy Crush franchise, is betting big on the Korean market to repeat its success story in Asia. The company recently launched Candy Crush Soda, the sequel to Candy Crush Saga, one of the most successful digital games in the world, to lure Korean gamers. Its star-studded TV commercials in particular are garnering attention as they feature a slew of Korean celebrities, including ballerina Kang Soo-jin and baduk master Cho Hun
TechnologyMay 6, 2015
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[Herald Interview] ‘Diversity helps improve education’
At the student lounge of Nyenrode Business Universiteit in the Netherlands, students of different nationalities, appearance and accents are often seen together, pitching their opinions as they participate in an animated debate about the latest class they attended.This scene is familiar in many universities across the Netherlands, representing one of the Dutch’s biggest strengths in education, said Han Dommers, head of the education promotion department at EP-Nuffic, which works for international
Social AffairsMay 4, 2015
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[Herald Interview] Bringing Christianity, Islam closer together
Kim Ah-young, director of the Center for Islamic Studies, often finds herself in the middle of a tug-of-war between Christianity and Islam.As a devout and open-minded Christian who seeks deeper understanding of Islam, her action is sometimes branded as “dovish” by hawkish Christians. Muslims don’t always find her stance convincing and trustworthy either, given centuries of hostility between the two religious groups.But her mission is clear ― to bring the two religions closer together through mut
PeopleMay 4, 2015
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[Herald Interview] ‘Be tenacious, commit, execute’
Lee Seung-hun’s career story is filled with failures. But when he looks back and adds all those failures up, Lee said, it equals success.He is now living his dream, working as a creature technical director at the world’s biggest special effects movie company, ILM, with his family in San Francisco. “Star Wars” producer George Lucas founded ILM, which is currently part of the Walt Disney Company.“Be tenacious, commit and execute. It’s really hard, but that’s the best advice I can give to the young
PeopleMay 4, 2015
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[Herald Interview] ‘Pyroprocessing not answer to spent fuel problem’
Though the recent revision to an atomic energy pact with the U.S. allows South Korea’s study of pyroprocessing, the nascent technology will likely increase electricity costs while failing to reduce the stockpile of spent fuel here, a leading nuclear scientist has said. Under the amendment, Seoul secured Washington’s consent to carry out electroreduction, the first stage of pyroprocessing, which Korean experts have touted as a possible solution to deal with its mountain of used fuel rods. The tec
Foreign AffairsMay 3, 2015
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[Herald Interview] ‘Korea is ready for McLarens’
Buying a McLaren vehicle is buying “technology and craftsmanship,” according to David Mclntyre, the newly appointed Asia-Pacific director of the British supercar maker.The “small” U.K.-based supercar maker is finally making inroads in the Korean market, having launched its first showroom in southern Seoul on Wednesday. McIntyre has long experience in Korea’s high-end auto import market. Until recently he headed the local branch of Jaguar Land Rover, and the brands saw massive sales rises under h
IndustryMay 3, 2015
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[Herald Interview] MapleStory ― 12 years old and still growing
Koo Kyo-seong has a lot on his mind these days.Whether riding his skateboard during lunch hour or sitting at his office desk surrounded by animated figurines, all Koo thinks about is how to make “MapleStory” more visually engaging and entertaining.As the chief concept artist for MapleStory, Nexon Korea’s fantasy adventure multiplayer online role-playing game, he is faced with the heavy burden of making the company’s all-time favorite PC game sustainable in this rapidly-changing mobile environmen
CultureMay 3, 2015
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[Herald Interview] Finance clearing institute seeks to reform corporate payment system
In such a conglomerate-dominated Korean economy, small and medium-sized subcontractors and ventures cannot thrive without a healthy business-to-business payment system. Without one, the Asian financial crisis and the global financial crisis doomed countless SMEs to bankruptcy.“Most unfair practices in business come from inappropriate payment systems,” said Rha Moon-soo, president and chief executive of the Korea Electronic Finance Clearing Institute, in an interview with The Korea Herald last we
April 30, 2015
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[Herald Interview] Korea to defend rice market in TPP talks
Korea’s top agriculture policymaker has emphasized that the government would not further open its rice market, even when the nation participates in the U.S.-led Trans-Pacific Partnership to establish a free trade zone among Pacific Rim countries. “Our government is firmly set on excluding rice from the TPP’s list of tariff concession,” said Lee Dong-phil, minister of agriculture, food and rural affairs.“As regards to joining the TPP, our government’s position is that we will do so after carefull
April 27, 2015
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[Herald Interview] ‘Data-driven agriculture is on our doorstep’
Agriculture and information technology may seem far apart, but in fact the latest smart technology could help increase productivity in the primary sector, said the vice president of the world’s leading weather data agency. For centuries, farmers have depended on their empirical instinct in farming, but the so-called big data can help them make more efficient decisions by suggesting numbers and direction, said Anthony Osborne, vice president of marketing at the Climate Corporation. “Data-driven a
IndustryApril 27, 2015
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[Herald Interview] From teacher’s podium to center stage
After one live performance and just one email, the life of English teacher Micah Hein took a dramatic turn. A little over a year ago, the 24-year-old American theater major arrived in Korea ― traveling abroad for the first time ― to teach English through performing arts. Little did he know that in this alien country, he would realize his dream of becoming a professional actor and debut with a title role.It all started when the theater lover found himself crossing off what is on the to-do list of
CultureApril 26, 2015
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[Herald Interview] Restaurant puts halal touch on Korean cuisine
At a cozy restaurant in the multicultural district of Itaewon, Eid serves one of its staple dishes ― bibimbap, a bowl of rice mixed with red chili paste and a variety of vegetables.It is accompanied by side dishes of kimchi, stir-fried anchovies, salad and cabbage soup.The food may look like any other served at Korean restaurants nationwide. But it’s not. Eid cooks its meals, including samgyetang (ginseng chicken soup), bulgogi (marinated beef) and grilled fish, with ingredients and techniques i
FoodApril 24, 2015
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[Herald Interview] Navigation app Kimgisa goes global
The hot-selling navigation app Kimgisa is going global with its Japanese launch planned for May. Industry watchers are paying keen attention to what will be the first export of Korea-made navigation software. Korea is an advanced market for mobile-based navigation apps. Locally developed software is more favored, while global services like Google Maps struggle to gain a footing. But even for Korean developers, going global is another issue considering localization is the key to success. “Most co
TechnologyApril 22, 2015