Space rocket ready for lift-off Friday

The Korea Space Launch Vehicle-1 is scheduled for liftoff at 3:30 p.m. Friday with Koreans hoping it will open a new chapter in the nation’s space technology. The rocket known as the Naro-3 was placed on the launch pad next to the launch platform pointing straight to the sky at the Naro Space Center in Goheung, South Jeolla Province. Final preparations were performed from the control tower on Thursday.Naro-3 is a two-stage space launch vehicle. It stands 33.5 meters tall, has a maximum diameter

Oct. 25, 2012

Truth about depression

Concerns over depression are rising after a series of news reports associated the mental illness with recent random violent crimes. A number of reports highlighted the fact that some offenders had been suffering from depression, claiming that the crimes could have been prevented if they had had proper treatment to deal with their psychiatric problems. Experts also raised concerns that the number of people with symptoms of depression is growing due to complex personal, familial and social problem

Oct. 25, 2012

Slap to the face removes wrinkles, claims therapist

A Thailand-trained therapist says anti-aging treatment is possible just by slapping and massaging the face, according to U.S. news sources.Tata Sombuntham, who claims to be the first face-slapping practitioner in the western hemisphere, says she can remove wrinkles and tighten skin with this unusual treatment. She and her husband Mawan run a beauty salon in San Francisco where they charge clients $350 (385,000 won) for each 15-minute session of face-slapping. Sombuntham says this is “ancient Tha

Oct. 25, 2012

Study: Cat colors can affect adoption rate

 Domestic cats are often judged by color and stereotypes that go with the color, say U.S. researchers looking for a link between cat color and adoption rates.University of California, Berkeley, researchers surveyed 189 people with experience of cats as pets and found they were more likely to assign positive personality traits to orange cats and less favorable ones to white and tortoiseshell animals.And black cats have always had the misfortune to be associated with bad luck and witches.The study

Oct. 25, 2012

SNU professor finds new role of stem cell protein

Professor Kim V-narry of Seoul National University is once again in the headlines producing research results published in the online version of the leading biological journal Cell for the second time in less than two weeks.In her most recent research, Kim and her team proved that the protein Lin-28A is closely involved in suppressing protein expression in stem cells. Until now, the Lin-28 protein’s only known function was suppression of specific microRNA molecules, which in turn regulate gene ex

Oct. 25, 2012

Nanotechnology can change color of gold

Gold doesn‘t have to appear gold in color, and in fact a new nanotechnology technique can turn it red or even green, British researchers say.A University of Southampton team has found they can change the color of the world’s most iconic precious metal by embossing tiny raised or indented patterns onto the metal‘s surface that can change the way it absorbs and reflects light, so to the human eye it doesn’t appear “golden” in color at all.The technique, equally applicable to other metals such as s

Oct. 25, 2012

Naro rocket ready for launch on Friday

Korea has started its countdown for the expected launch of the Korea Space Launch Vehicle-1, also known as the Naro rocket.There is slight chance of rain on the day of its third attempt to shoot it into space, but officials said the launch schedule remains set for Friday at 3:30 p.m.This will be the first and last launch of Naro using Russian technology including a liquid-fueled rocket engine, should it succeed.Korea has an agreement with Russia in which the latter will provide three engines tak

Oct. 24, 2012

Samsung expects to beat counterparts with ATIV PC

Samsung Electronics said Wednesday that it expects to beat top global makers of personal computers with its new smart PC which operates on the upcoming Windows 8, named ATIV PC. The world’s largest tech firm unveiled ATIV PC at a media event in its Seoul headquarters. The new product maximizes convertibility in design, portability in use and compatibility with smartphone apps, the company said.“The vendors of personal computers will jump into the war by the end of this year to take more market s

Oct. 24, 2012

2012 AIPPI Congress presents roadmap for its future

The International Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property, the world’s biggest intellectual property association, presented a roadmap for the future of its organization during the 43rd AIPPI Congress in Seoul which ended Tuesday after a four-day run. AIPPI’s vice president John Bochnovic, who will serve AIPPI as president for 2013-2014, made the presentation based on a recent report published by a consulting firm on Tuesday. The report consisted of a strategy and recommendations

Oct. 24, 2012

‘Game fiction has huge potential as creative content’

Many people stick to the misperception that game fiction writers are some sort of anti-social hermits who spend days and nights playing games, be it at home or in dark, sketchy PC rooms.However, the testimony of a 22-year-old Korean game fiction writer Lee Byung-ha poses powerful counterevidence to such an illusion. The young game fiction prodigy is a senior majoring international economics at the University of Heilongjiang in Harbin, China, whose mother never saw him spending hours in front of

Oct. 24, 2012

Game meets literature for perfection

In the past, games were just all about clearing the given quests. Nobody really cared about the game characters or storylines ― let’s take online games “Fortress” and “Lineage” for example.When playing these games, people focused on targeting their competitors with the given weapons to score the most points or get the items that boost their ranks within the online gaming world.However, that trend is changing and many people are now in search of games with a strong and appealing storyline, which

Oct. 24, 2012

Dogs react to yawning after 7 months

LUND, Sweden (UPI) -- Dogs, like humans, are susceptible to contagious yawning, but it develops gradually and puppies younger than 7 months seem immune, Swedish researchers say.Researchers at Lund University, writing in the journal Animal Cognition, report a developmental, age-related trend in susceptibility to contagious yawning seems to operate in both humans and dogs.Previous research has demonstrated contagious yawning in humans, adult chimpanzees, baboons and dogs, and suggests it is eviden

Oct. 24, 2012