Most Popular
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Korean labor force to shrink by 10 million by 2044: report
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[AtoZ Korean Mind] Does your job define who you are? Should it?
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Allegations surrounding BTS resurface, enraged fans demand apology
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Students with history of violence will be barred from becoming teachers
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Top prosecutor pledges 'speedy, strict' probe into first lady's luxury bag allegations
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Medical feud leaves hospitals in financial crisis
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'Super Rich in Korea' will leave viewers appreciating Korea more: producers
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'Queen of Tears' riding high on Netflix chart
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Samsung mocks Apple over iPhone alarm glitch
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Chip up cycle won’t stay long: SK chief
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650,000 students take annual college entrance scholastic test
More than 650,000 students took the annual college entrance exam Thursday. Public offices and the stock market opened an hour later than usual, and airport runways closed temporarily for the nationwide test.This year, 650,747 high school students and graduates applied for the state-administered College Scholastic Ability Test, better known as the Suneung, according to the Ministry of Education. The number of test takers dropped by 17,775 from last year, due to a decline in the overall number of
Nov. 7, 2013
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Seoul pushes for global city network
Seoul and seven other cities agreed Thursday to form a global consultative body next year to push for sustainable socio-economic development.The annual Global Social Economy Forum in Seoul adopted a declaration pledging to cooperate on a range of projects for inclusive urban development, including social enterprises, micro-financing and cooperatives. Seoul will host the provisional secretariat of the envisioned global network and its inaugural conference next year.Representatives from cities inc
Nov. 7, 2013
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Former Moon aide guilty of election law violation
A famed poet was found partially guilty Thursday of election law violations in connection with his campaign for an opposition presidential candidate last year, despite a jury acquittal late last month.The Jeonju District Court convicted Ahn Do-hyun of slandering President Park Geun-hye, then ruling party candidate, but found him not guilty of spreading false rumors.He was sentenced to a suspended fine of 1 million won ($942), the minimum imposable sum for such transgressions, while both the pros
Nov. 7, 2013
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650,000 students take college entrance exam
More than 650,000 high school seniors and graduates in South Korea took the state-administered annual college entrance exam Thursday, the most crucial test of their academic careers seen as the deciding factor in their choice of college and future professions.A total of 650,747 people applied to take the nine-hour standardized College Scholastic Ability Test that was administered at 1,257 test centers across the country, the education ministry said.The exam, which consists mostly of multiple-cho
Nov. 7, 2013
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‘English proficiency in Korea unimproved’
Despite huge investment and educational zeal, the English language skills of Korea’s adults have not improved and have remained at a moderate level over the past six years, according to a global survey released on Tuesday.Korea is ranked 24th among 60 countries where English is not a native language, according to the English Proficiency Index compiled by Education First, an international education company based in Switzerland.Korea was below Asian neighbors like Malaysia (11th) and Singapore (12
Nov. 6, 2013
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[Graphic News] Regional patients head for big hospitals in Seoul
The portion of regional patients visiting five major hospitals in Seoul exceeded 60 percent last year, indicating a deepening imbalance in medical care nationwide.
Nov. 6, 2013
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Pension fund gets more assertive
Choi Kwang, the new chief of the National Pension Service, is committed to a drastic reform of investment strategy and governance of the world’s fourth-largest pension fund as it seeks to support payouts for Korea’s fast-aging population by improving profitability. Priority will be given to bolstering in-house fund management expertise and securing a bigger say in making decisions on its investment portfolio, the NPS chairman said in an interview with The Korea Herald. “It is my mission to lay t
Nov. 6, 2013
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Seoul City to expand welfare budget next year to 7 trillion won
Seoul City said Wednesday that it would expand its welfare budget to 6.9 trillion won ($6.5 billion) next year, a 2.8 percent rise from this year. The city submitted its budget plan for next year to the city council for approval. The overall budget is 24.5 trillion won, a 997 billion won increase from this year.Mayor Park Won-soon has promised to gradually increase the welfare budget to around 30 percent of the overall budget at the beginning of his term. He said that the increase was unavoidabl
Nov. 6, 2013
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KECO wins award for excellence in sustainable development
The state-run Korea Environment Corp. won the International Green Apple Environment Award for the second consecutive year, KECO officials said Wednesday. The company was announced as the bronze award winner in Asia by the London-based Green Organization, with an real-time online system that monitors air pollutants from smokestacks at industrial sites. Named CleanSYS, the program collects data from installations on smokestacks and sends it to its control center. The corporation launched the syste
Nov. 6, 2013
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‘Inspire students to become scientists’
It may be difficult and costly to invite Nobel Prize winners to a forum. But for Bengt Norden this is a half day’s work with just a few phone calls.The 68-year-old Swedish chemist invites scores of Nobel laureates to meet young college students every year in an annual symposium. The purpose is to change the mindset of youths who are becoming less interested in science and more keen on “profitable” careers.“We bring Nobel laureates and other eminent scientists together with students to show how i
Nov. 6, 2013
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Use online games in classroom learning
In 1990, the Internet was released to the world. In my country, the United States, we accessed the Internet using dial-up or our household phone line. At first it was adequate since about all you could do was check email and chat by texting in chat rooms. One country got it and declared that everyone would access the Internet via cable. That country was Korea. In comparison it would be like Lionel Messi playing soccer against a man who never got up. Dial-up was so slow you could click on a webpa
Nov. 6, 2013
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Chadwick to host info session
Chadwick International in Songdo is hosting information sessions and school tours for new applicants looking into admission for the 2014-2015 school year.Two information sessions will be held at its campus in Songdo, Incheon. The first session is slated for Nov. 14 for prospective students from pre-kindergarten to Grade 5, and the later is scheduled on Nov. 19 for Grade 6 to 11 students, the school announced.The school will also hold an open house for all grades on Dec. 7, inviting prospective s
Nov. 6, 2013
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Court extends Hanwha chairman's custody suspension
A Seoul court on Wednesday extended the suspension of imprisonment of disgraced Hanwha Group Chairman Kim Seung-youn by another four months, citing his poor health, court officials said.The custody suspension of Kim, who has been staying at a Seoul hospital after being temporarily released from prison in January, will be extended until Feb. 28, said the officials at the Seoul High Court.The 61-year-old tycoon, who is charged with embezzlement, will stand a retrial without physical detention, the
Nov. 6, 2013
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KT&G CEO booked on corruption charges
Police on Tuesday booked Min Young-jin, president and CEO of KT&G, the nation’s largest tobacco maker, and five other senior executives, on charges of breach of trust in connection with a real estate development project. They are suspected of overpaying a subcontractor hired last year, inflicting financial damage on their own company. The National Police Agency sent the case to the prosecution recommending indictment without detention.The contractor, identified by the initial N, was commissioned
Nov. 5, 2013
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SNU Hospital workers agree to end strike
The labor union at one of the largest general hospitals in Seoul reached a tentative collective agreement with the management on Monday, ending a 12-day strike.Union officials of the Seoul National University (SNU) Hospital said that the agreement, among other things, calls for a 1.3 percent wage raise and a transition of 100 nonregular workers to regular employees by 2014. The deal requires approval from union members.The trade union said all striking workers will return to work at 5 a.m. Tuesd
Nov. 4, 2013
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Asia-Pacific cities look to sustainable development
Leaders from some 50 Asian Pacific cities agreed Monday to boost cooperation for sustainable development, disaster response and poverty reduction around the world. They adopted the Seoul Declaration during the 7th CITYNET congress which started Sunday for a four-day run. CITYNET is the regional network of local authorities for the management of human settlements. Seoul was elected the same day as the chair city for a four-year term, succeeding Yokohama. Its secretariat moved to Seoul last March
Nov. 4, 2013
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One in four Korean adults have high blood pressure
South Korea's health authorities said Monday that high blood pressure and diabetes are among the most common diseases affecting South Korean adults.The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) said one out of every four people aged 30 or older suffered from high blood pressure as of last year, while one out of every 10 people had diabetes.The findings are based on a survey of 3,840 households across the country in 2012, according to the KCDC.Diseases caused by high blood pressure
Nov. 4, 2013
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KT executives grilled over chairman's corruption allegations
State prosecutors questioned several executives of telecom giant KT Corp. as part of their ongoing corruption probe into the company's chairman, prosecution officials said Monday. Chairman Lee Suk-chae, who tendered his resignation Sunday, is under suspicion of inflicting huge losses to KT, the country's top fixed-line operator and No. 2 mobile carrier, through poor investments and dubious business deals, they said.The executives, including the firm's official handling employee welfare only iden
Nov. 4, 2013
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[Graphic News] Level of toxic smog from China
The level of fine particulate matter in the air, known as PM2.5, on Saturday stood at between 31-80 micrograms per cubic meter in Seoul city areas. But meteorologists say this week it will exceed the daily safe level of 100 micrograms per cubic meter due to smog blown in by northwesterly winds from China.
Nov. 3, 2013
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Local court orders Mitsubishi to compensate forced laborers
A local court on Friday ordered Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd. to compensate five former Korean employees who were forced into hard labor during Japan’s colonial rule.The Gwangju District Court ruled that the engineering and aviation giant should provide each of four complainants, including 82-year-old Yang Kum-duk, with 150 million won ($141,000) and the family of a deceased laborer with 80 million won in overdue salary and other damages. The ruling marks the third victory for former conscrip
Nov. 1, 2013