Poseco Housing at forefront of sustainable social enterprise

Sustainability is key for the future of a company. Social enterprises, better known as “good companies” in Korea, are no exception. Management of social enterprises has to develop a sustainable business model ahead of making other business decisions. According to the law on social enterprise promotion, a social enterprise in Korea is defined as a company that, while doing its business activities, pursues a social purpose of enhancing the quality of people’s lives by providing social services and

IndustryDec. 4, 2012

Distant solar systems eyed as home to life

A study of eight "solar twins" of our sun suggests any planets orbiting those stars may very well be hotter and more dynamic than Earth, U.S. researchers say.Scientists at Ohio State University, searching for alien life in a new way, studied stars that very closely match the sun in size, age, and overall composition to measure the amounts of radioactive elements they -- and their planets -- may contain.Elements such as thorium and uranium are essential to Earth's plate tectonics because they war

TechnologyDec. 4, 2012

Hand gestures for in-car controls?

Japanese carmaker Toyota says it is developing technology to allow drivers to control certain in-car functions such as radio volume with simple hand gestures.The head of Toyota‘s U.S. division said the company is working on new hand-motion technology that could have in-car applications to help limit distracted driving by keeping a driver’s eyes on the road.“We believe the driver must always be engaged,” Jim Lentz told The Wall Street Journal at the Los Angeles Auto Show. “It‘s really, really cri

TechnologyDec. 4, 2012

Study reveals many lipsticks contain lead

Many of the lipsticks in the market today contain lead, according to recent research, and some scholars said they may pose a threat to the health of the general public.Underwriters Laboratories, a global safety and quality certification company, did random testing on 22 different lipsticks and lip glosses and found that 12 of them contained lead, with the highest levels at 3.22 parts per million. The study was commissioned by U.S. broadcaster ABC’s “Good Morning America.”While this is below the

TechnologyDec. 4, 2012

Snow cover in Northern Hemisphere shrinks

Snow cover in Earth‘s Northern Hemisphere is shrinking with the level last June the lowest since satellite observations began 45 years ago, researchers say.Satellite data shows the maximum amount of snow across the Northern Hemisphere is slowly decreasing while spring snow, particularly at high latitudes, is melting significantly earlier, the European Space Agency reported Monday.The data shows record lows in Eurasia for June each year since 2008, while three of the past five years have seen rec

TechnologyDec. 4, 2012

AMCHAM hopes for business-friendly Korean president

The head of the American Chamber of Commerce in Korea expressed hope that the country would elect a business-friendly leader during the Dec. 19 presidential election.AMCHAM chairman Pat Gaines said Korea’s next president should be someone who is able to create an environment that helps bring down barriers for foreign business. “When you take a look at the amount of jobs created in Korea by foreign investment, the numbers are phenomenal. It means jobs. It means careers. It means money,” he said i

IndustryDec. 3, 2012

Consumer inflation slows on food price stability

Consumer inflation slightly slowed in November to 1.6 percent on-year, dipping below 2 percent for the first time in three months. On a monthly basis, the consumer price index dropped another 0.4 percent in November after shedding 0.1 percent in October as prices of vegetables and fruits stabilized after a jump in September due to a typhoon. The Finance Ministry forecast an annual inflation in the low 2 percent range, provided that prices maintain the current stability. The slowing inflation can

Dec. 3, 2012

Workers oppose CCTV use in nuke plant control rooms

A plan to install CCTV in the main control rooms of nuclear power plants across the nation is facing opposition from workers concerned about privacy.“We are reviewing the policy in a bid to reduce human errors in the main control room, which will help to rebuild public trust in nuclear power plants,” an official from the Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power said.CCTV has already been adopted in many areas of power plants except for their main control rooms, where workers oversee the operations. The offic

Dec. 3, 2012

Lee to ponder Samsung’s next move in Hawaii

Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Kun-hee is expected to spend the remainder of the year in Hawaii, reportedly to mull over Samsung’s next step, industry sources said on Monday.Earlier in the day, Lee headed out to the island, accompanied by his wife. He is to stay in Hawaii for around a month. In particular, Lee is said to be concerned about Samsung’s next move, despite the fact the electronics company posted record-high earnings this year.He has warned several times that Samsung is in crisis, a

IndustryDec. 3, 2012

Audi Volkswagen Korea names new chief

Audi Volkswagen Korea said Monday that it has named Johannes Thammer as the new Korean representative of Volkswagen Group, seller of the Audi, Volkswagen and Bentley brands. He will also have the role of managing director of Audi Korea, while Park Dong-hoon remains managing director of Volkswagen Korea, said the Korean unit of the German carmaker. Thammer, born in Germany in 1955, is an automobile expert with more than 30 years of extensive experience ranging from product control to marketing, b

MobilityDec. 3, 2012