NEW YORK -- Vitamin C may protect against osteoporosis -- a disease in which the bones of the elderly become brittle and can fracture, U.S. researchers say.  Dr. Mone Zaidi, director of the Mount Sinai School of Medicine Bone Program, and colleagues removed the ovaries of mice, a procedure -- ovariectomies -- known to reduce bone density, and compared them with control mice that had “sham” operati

TechnologyOct. 14, 2012

The Yomiuri Shimbun concluded Friday that a Japanese researcher's claim that his team had successfully conducted the world's first clinical application of induced pluripotent stem cells was false and that its reports based on the man's accounts were incorrect.Hisashi Moriguchi, 48, who claimed to be a visiting lecturer at Harvard University, told The Yomiuri Shimbun that a Harvard University team

TechnologyOct. 14, 2012

Samsung Electronics Co. plans to invest $700 million into a new mobile phone factory soon to be built in Vietnam as part of efforts to expand its global production lines, company officials said Saturday.Samsung Electronics Vietnam Co. (SEV), a wholly-owned subsidiary of the world's top mobile phone maker by revenue, is weighing two locations in northern Vietnam -- a farming region of Thai Nguyen a

IndustryOct. 14, 2012

TOKYO -- South Korea's top central banker said Saturday that emerging countries must beef up their domestic consumption via free trade agreements to maintain stable growth and help spur the global economy."Following the global financial crisis, the rapid growth rate in Asian and Latin American countries has played an important role in the recovery of the global economy," Bank of Korea (BOK) Gov. K

Oct. 13, 2012

South Korea's top central banker said Friday that the country's potential growth rate is estimated at around 3.8 percent following the global financial crisis and the eurozone debt crisis.South Korea's potential growth rate, or the maximum possible rate at which an economy can grow without triggering inflation, reached around 6.1 percent between 1991 and 2000 and has largely continued to decline,

Oct. 12, 2012

South Korea’s Hanwha Life Insurance Co. has purchased a premium office building in London in an effort to beef up its return from asset management, industry sources said Friday.Hanwha Life Insurance acquired the Wood Street headquarters building of international law firm Eversheds in London’s financial district for 250 billion won ($224 million) in August, according to the sources.“We will try to minimize investment risks by purchasing properties overseas for lease and seek stable investment ret

Oct. 12, 2012

The government’s plan to open foreigners-only duty-free shops across the nation was aborted in the face of opposition from a government regulation committee, officials said on Friday.The committee expressed opposition to the plan based on the potential for discrimination against Korean nationals and concerns about future earnings.The Korea Customs Service had pushed for the project designed to serve foreigners in cities instead of at airports or harbors, for the convenience of the rising number

IndustryOct. 12, 2012

South Korean stocks closed almost unchanged on Friday as investor sentiment remained tepid despite an improvement in U.S. jobs data, analysts said. The local currency gained against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index inched up 0.17 points, or 0.01 percent, to 1,933.26, snapping a four-session losing streak. Trading volume was moderate at 390.4 million shares worth 3.72 trillion won ($3.35 billion), with gainers outnumbering decliners 448 to 371. “There were some opti

Oct. 12, 2012

A lawmaker said Friday the state-run Incheon International Airport spent 18.7 million won ($16,840) on a customer survey exclusively for the French fashion house Louis Vuitton, which opened its first duty-free shop last year at the nation’s main gateway. According to Rep. Shim Jae-cheol of the ruling Saenuri Party, Incheon Airport questioned 500 Korean, Chinese and Japanese passengers using the Louis Vuitton store in November and December on their favorite item, purpose of purchase and service s

IndustryOct. 12, 2012

With sales ban lifted on Galaxy Tab 10.1, Galaxy Nexus follows trackSamsung Electronics is gaining more strength in its global patent battle with Apple Inc., winning a bid to continue selling the Galaxy Nexus smartphone in the U.S. market.The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on Thursday granted Samsung’s request to lift a lower court’s ban on sales of its Galaxy Nexus.With a feature in the handset that assists data searches becoming the center of controversy, the appeals court said

IndustryOct. 12, 2012

Brain scans can predict children‘s reading ability and the finding may eventually influence the way pre-elementary children learn to read, U.S. researchers say.Scientists at Stanford University scanned the brain anatomy of 39 children once a year for three consecutive years. The students then took standardized tests to gauge their cognitive, language and reading skills.In each case the rate of dev

TechnologyOct. 12, 2012