Most Popular
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Psy's touch or new trend in music? P Nation’s solo stars lose their shine
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Seoul to hold grand military parade on Tuesday, disrupting major city routes
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Park Zi-a, the actor who played 'The Glory' heroine's mother, dies
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Yoon warns North Korea against nuclear attack attempt
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Shut up and dance
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NewJeans fans corner Hybe amid PR backlash, looming National Assembly audit
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Israel targets Palestinian group in first strike on Beirut center
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Miss Universe Korea names 80-year-old model 'best dressed'
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Brit pop legend Oasis to perform in Seoul next year
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[KH Explains] Is Hyundai-GM partnership win-win to beat Tesla, Chinese rivals?
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S. Korea, Japan defense chiefs to hold phone talks on N. Korea's nuke test
Defense Minister Han Min-koo and his Japanese counterpart will hold a telephone conference Friday to discuss ways to jointly react to North Korea's recent nuclear test, government officials said.Han plans to have phone talks with Japanese Defense Minister Gen Nakatani at 9:30 p.m. over how to coordinate against North Korea's nuclear threats, according to the Defense Ministry.The North claimed Wednesday that it successfully conducted a hydrogen bomb test for the first time, posing a threat to sec
North KoreaJan. 8, 2016
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Seoul denies U.S. spotted nuke test early
The Defense Ministry on Friday refuted U.S. media reports that Washington was aware of Pyongyang’s preparations in the run up to Wednesday’s fourth nuclear test. NBC News reported Wednesday, Washington time, that the U.S. had perceived the movement for two weeks and launched drones to collect air samples near the site, citing a senior military official. “The report appears to be based on assumptions,” a ministry official told reporters on customary condition of anonymity. “Normally a U.S. drone
North KoreaJan. 8, 2016
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[Weekender] Tragic and extraordinary stories of Korean prodigies
When Heo Nanseolheon (1563-1589) was just 8 years old, she wrote her iconic piece “Inscriptions on the Ridge Pole of the White Jade Pavilion in Kwanghan Palace,” a poem filled with a unique imagination about the world of spiritual beings. Today, the piece is still considered as the work of a poetic genius -- who later died at age of 27, after suffering an unhappy marriage and the deaths of her two children. Heo is one of very few women writers from Korea’s Confucian Joseon kingdom (1392-1897), w
Social AffairsJan. 8, 2016
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Troops on high alert as Seoul starts anti-N.K. propaganda
YEONCHEON/SEOUL ― Tension prevailed across the Demilitarized Zone after South Korea reactivated sets of loudspeakers for anti-Pyongyang broadcasts on Friday in a first punitive step against the North’s fourth nuclear test two days ago. At noon, the “Voice of Freedom” show began with the host calling for soldiers to quit smoking as a New Year’s resolution, followed by the 1980s rock band Gun Son’s popular song “No Smoking” and Rimi and Potato’s “Baby I’m Cold.”Unfolding at 11 locations along the
North KoreaJan. 8, 2016
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From Ethiopia to Colombia: On a quest for ethnic jewelry
Director of the World Jewelry Museum Lee Kang-won remembers vividly an Ethiopian woman she saw 37 years ago in the corner of a local market in Addis Ababa. The woman, dressed in a white cotton dress, was wearing a meticulously detailed, “ultramodern looking” silver necklace. Her necklace captivated Lee, who had just arrived in the country. “Her necklace was breathtaking,” said Lee, in an interview last month at the museum in Hwa-dong near Samcheong-dong.The handcrafted silver necklace was the wo
CultureJan. 8, 2016
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Korea’s culinary zeitgeist
Korean food and the city of Seoul are having a culinary moment. Globally Korean cuisine has reached the heights of popularity and here, in Korea, a new style enveloping local and foreign flavors has gained strong foothold. Mingles Restaurant in Gangnam, Seoul, is representative of all that is cutting edge about eating in the capital. Its chef patron, Kang Min-goo, is one of the most talked about chefs in Seoul today, taking top spots on restaurant rankings with his beautifully modern take on Kor
FoodJan. 8, 2016
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Ahn names new party People’s Party
Independent Rep. Ahn Cheol-soo announced Friday that his new party would be named People’s Party (English name provisional), as preparations for the launch gained momentum.Earlier in the day, two cochairmen for the preparatory committee were named. Yoon Yeo-joon, a former health minister and senior conservative lawmaker, became the latest to join Ahn’s faction after accepting his request to head the preparation committee for a new opposition party to be launched early next month. Yoon, who has h
PoliticsJan. 8, 2016
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[Weekender] From prodigies to geniuses: the 'gifted' fascination
“Mediocrities everywhere, I absolve you. I absolve you, all,” uttered Antonio Salieri in the 1984 film “Amadeus,” loosely based on the real life of the Italian classical composer and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. As Mozart’s less-capable archrival, the movie version of Salieri was forced to shudder in jealousy, marvel with wonder, and bear witness to the immortal genius of a man many consider to be one of the greatest musical talents of all time. Throughout history, tales of those with exceptional c
Social AffairsJan. 8, 2016
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Lotte opens 7th premium business hotel in Seoul
Near the shopping district of Myeong-dong, cultural street of Insa-dong and Gwanghwamun in downtown Seoul, Lotte City Hotel Myeongdong seeks to “kill two birds with one stone.”Launched as Lotte Hotels & Resorts’ biggest Lotte City Hotel brand hotel in Myeong-dong Jan. 6, the “premium business hotel” aims to attract both business travelers and foreign tourists to Seoul’s well-known travel sites.With 430 rooms, including 140 Superior Double-Bed rooms and 70 Standard Double-Bed rooms, the hotel is
CultureJan. 8, 2016
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[Weekender] ‘Elite education vital to help students reach their full potential’
The debate over gifted education in Korea is generally played out between two sides: Opponents argue the special education program is tailored for the select few and undermines the principle of equal opportunity, while others see the programs as a chance to foster smart minds who can lead the nation. (Chung Hee-cho/The Korea Herald)An expert in gifted education agrees with the latter. Suh Ye-won, director of the state-run National Research Center for Gifted and Talented Education, says such educ
Social AffairsJan. 8, 2016
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[Editorial] Uncoordinated policy
A well-intended policy often produces an effect opposite to what was intended due to a lack of coordination among the ministries involved. The latest example could be the government’s decision to exempt visa application fees for group tourists from Asian countries, including China, India, Indonesia and Thailand. The decision was reached at a meeting of economic ministers presided over by President Park Geun-hye last month. The Ministry of Justice proposed to implement the plan from Jan. 1 to ma
EditorialJan. 8, 2016
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Samsung profit to miss expectations
Samsung Electronics’ fourth-quarter earnings in 2015 are expected to remain below par, raising market concerns over its deteriorating businesses.Announcing its earnings guidance for the October-December period, the Seoul-based electronics firm estimated that its operating income would stand at 6.1 trillion won ($5.1 billion), down 17.46 percent from the previous quarter. The operating profit missed an average market estimate of 6.67 trillion won, announced by financial research firm FnGuide earl
TechnologyJan. 8, 2016
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[Weekender] TV depicts life of and around ‘child prodigy‘
Screengrab from the SBS show “Finding Genius.”A toddler, a little over 2-years-old, waddles in front of the camera and onlookers to look for a Chinese character on the screen. Still in diapers, the boy identifies the word.The screen changes to flash “I touch my eye” in English, which 27-month-old I-jun also reads out.The scene is from the 37th episode of “Finding Genius” from local broadcaster SBS, a weekly show dedicated to shining a spotlight on children with unusual talents or skills. In Kore
CultureJan. 8, 2016
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[Editorial] Turning up loudspeakers
The Seoul government has resumed anti-Pyongyang propaganda broadcasts along the heavily fortified border with North Korea. As the rogue state has crossed the red line again by testing what it claimed to be a hydrogen bomb, the South’s strong reaction is warranted. The South’s loudspeakers installed along the Demilitarized Zone began to blurt out messages critical of the North’s young leader at noon on Friday, two days after it carried out its fourth nuclear weapons test. The propaganda broadcast
EditorialJan. 8, 2016
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[Weekender] Past, present and future of educating ‘gifted’
Last month, 18-year-old Song Yoo-geun retracted his first academic paper “Axisymmetric, Nonstationary Black Hole Magnetospheres: Revisited” -- which would have made him the youngest-ever Korean Ph.D. -- after he was accused of plagiarism.The shattered legend of a science prodigy once dubbed “boy genius” by media -- and showered with government support from 2010 -- sent shockwaves across the country and stoked questions over whether Korea was headed in the right path in educating its “gifted” chi
Social AffairsJan. 8, 2016
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From Ethiopia to Colombia: On a quest for ethnic jewelry
Director of the World Jewelry Museum Lee Kang-won remembers vividly an Ethiopian woman she saw 37 years ago in the corner of a local market in Addis Ababa. The woman, dressed in a white cotton dress, was wearing a meticulously detailed, “ultramodern looking” silver necklace. Her necklace captivated Lee, who had just arrived in the country. “Her necklace was breathtaking,” said Lee, in an interview last month at the museum in Hwa-dong near Samcheong-dong.Lee Kang-won, director of the World Jewelr
CultureJan. 8, 2016
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Test draws attention to N.K. nuke strategy
North Korea’s dogged pursuit of nuclear armament is drawing attention to what kind of nuclear strategy it has been pursuing and whether it would ever use its atomic bomb in any conflict with its potential adversaries including the U.S. and South Korea. North Korea leader Kim Jong-un delivers his New Year`s address. (Yonhap)Pyongyang has so far been striving to nuclearize itself apparently to raise its bargaining power, fend off threats of a regime change, deter nuclear attacks or any blackmail f
North KoreaJan. 8, 2016
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Gifted education to help students reach their full potential
The debate over gifted education in Korea has often played out between two sides: Opponents argue the special education program is tailored for the select few and undermines the principle of equal opportunity, while others see the programs as a chance to foster smart minds who can lead the nation. A prominent expert in gifted education agrees with the latter. Suh Ye-won, director of the state-run National Research Center for Gifted and Talented Education says that the education can achieve
Social AffairsJan. 8, 2016
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Professor, ex-minister to head Ahn's party committee
A university professor and a former minister will head a preparatory committee for the new party of Ahn Cheol-soo, a former co-chairman of the main opposition party, his aide said Friday.Han Sang-jin, the emeritus professor of the country's top-notch Seoul National University, and former Environment Minister Yoon Yeo-joon will co-chair the committee that will play a key role in the party's establishment slated for March.The aide said the committee will be launched Sunday and field candidates in
PoliticsJan. 8, 2016
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Mutation detected in Korean MERS virus
The Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) virus that spread through South Korea last year underwent a mutation that could have affected its ability to infect people and the fatality rate, the government said Friday.The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) said bodily fluid specimens taken from eight people infected with the MERS inducing coronavirus, showed signs of slight genetic "variation" in spike glycoprotein when compared with previous documented cases. Spike glycoprot
Social AffairsJan. 8, 2016