Blue lights as the new caffeine?

Students and adults alike resort to coffee for their regular dose of caffeine but new findings shed light on a possible alternative without the common side effects accompanying coffee. “Using blue lights in right amounts can have a positive effect on health,” a research team led by Mid Sweden University said. The research findings show blue lights have an effect that’s similar to caffeine intake. Habitual coffee drinkers can be freed from sleeping disorders, heart palpitations, fretfulness and c

Nov. 25, 2013

South Korea ranks 10th in 2013 Web Index

South Korea ranked 10th in the 2013 global Web Index on the strength of its solid broadband network and e-government services, the World Wide Web Foundation said on Sunday. Korea’s overall ranking at 10th among 81 countries this year marks an improvement from last year’s 13th. Korea’s Web Index score was 87.4, outpacing other Asian countries such as Japan (86.4), India (32.4) and China (31.1). Among the criteria, Korea ranked fourth in the “universal access” index and sixth in “relative content,

Nov. 24, 2013

Xbox One sales hit 1 million on first day

Microsoft Corp. says more than 1 million Xbox One consoles have been sold worldwide since their midnight launch.The company says that surpasses first-day sales of the Xbox 360, the previous-generation model that went on sale eight years ago.The new console was launched in 13 markets. The software giant said Friday that it sold had out at most retailers. Microsoft added that in the first day of game play, fans killed more than 60 million zombies in ``Dead Rising 3'' and drove more than 3.6 millio

Nov. 23, 2013

Korea’s new satellite makes contact with ground control

YASNY, Russia ― South Korea’s new scientific satellite has made its first contact with a ground control station in Daejeon, beginning a two-year mission to search for clues about the evolution of the universe. The Satellite Technology Research Center at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology in Daejeon received the first communication contact with the Science and Technology Satellite-3, or STSAT-3, at 10:10 p.m. Korea time on Thursday, the center said.“We had received signals for

Nov. 22, 2013

Qualcomm unveils new mobile processor

Chipmaker Qualcomm Technologies has unveiled the Snapdragon 805, a next-generation mobile processor in the Snapdragon 800 lineup, the company said Friday.The new Snapdragon 805 mobile processors are designed to offer an upgraded experience for both ultra-high-definition TVs and devices by delivering top-quality mobile video, imaging and graphics experiences. This means the chip offers system-level Ultra HD support, 4K resolution video capture and playback, and enhanced dual camera image signal p

Nov. 22, 2013

Industry shrugs off jury verdict against Samsung

Analysts and industry watchers here shrugged off the latest jury decision on the patent dispute between Samsung Electronics and Apple, with some even calling the suit “meaningless.” “I don’t think there is much meaning in the legal dispute between the two. Especially for Samsung, the impact of the case will likely be small as it is already the No. 1 smartphone maker in the world, raking in more than 20 trillion won ($18.8 billion) in operating profit per year,” said Park Hyun, an analyst at Dong

Nov. 22, 2013

U.S. jury orders Samsung to pay Apple $290 million

A Silicon Valley jury on Thursday added $290 million more to the damages Samsung Electronics owes Apple for copying vital iPhone and iPad features, bringing the total amount the South Korean technology titan is on the hook for to $930 million.The verdict covers 13 older Samsung devices that a previous jury found were among 26 Samsung products that infringed Apple patents.The previous jury awarded Apple $1.05 billion. But U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh ordered the new trial and tossed out $450 mill

Nov. 22, 2013

Domestic smartphone market remains stagnant

Despite the release of flagship handsets by major smartphone makers in recent months, the Korean smartphone market posted stagnant sales for a fourth consecutive month, according to market analysts.The total shipment volume of smartphones in October stood at 1.5 million, slightly up from 1.4 million last month, but the figure shows little change from those in August and July at around 1.5 million units, market sources said Thursday. They said customers did not respond strongly to attempts to sti

Nov. 21, 2013

Korea counts down to science satellite launch

YASNY, Russia ― South Korea’s new science satellite will be launched from a Russian launch base Thursday, beginning a two-year mission to tease out the earliest clues about the evolution of the universe. The team in Russia said Tuesday that the Science and Technology Satellite 3, or STSAT-3, was “full-ready” for the launch after completing a simulation test. This marks the culmination of a month of work testing and preparing the country’s first satellite equipped with an infrared space telescope

Nov. 20, 2013

Korea lags in ‘open government data’ index: data

South Korea’s policies and efforts to enable publicly-available government data to be easily accessible still has a long way to go with the country coming in 12th among the surveyed 77 nations, data showed on Wednesday.The so-called Open Government Data Barometer ranked Britain as the most advanced country for open data readiness, implementation and impact with a score of 100. The United States came in second with a score of 93.38, followed by Sweden with 85.75 and New Zealand with 74.34, accord

Nov. 20, 2013

Jury set to decide how much Samsung owes Apple

A Silicon Valley began its second day of deliberations Wednesday in a trial to determine damages owed by Samsung Electronics for infringing on Apple's patents. The jury asked the judge for calculators Tuesday to help it determine how much Samsung owes for copying key features of the iPhone and iPad.The federal judge presiding over the patent trial granted the jury's request before the smartphone rivals' lawyers delivered their closing arguments. The one-week trial is being held to determine dama

Nov. 20, 2013

Samsung's Galaxy S4 finishes 2nd in Sept. smartphone sales: data

Samsung Electronics Co.'s Galaxy S4 was dethroned by Apple Inc.'s iPhone 5S, which became the best-selling smartphone in the world in September, data showed on Wednesday.According to the data compiled by Hong Kong-based Counterpoint Technology Market Research, Apple's iPhone 5S became the bestselling phone last month in just 10 days of its release, ending the Galaxy S4's several month reign.Samsung took the No. 1 position in the premium smartphone market of phones above the US$400 price point in

Nov. 20, 2013

Samsung expected to release 64-bit smartphone

Samsung Electronics and ARM, a mobile application processor designer, fine-tuned their plan to equip the upcoming Galaxy S5 smartphone with a 64-bit processor, sources said on Tuesday. “Executives from Samsung and ARM had a meeting today. They discussed the ARM 64-bit chip, which is expected to be used in Samsung’s smartphone next year,” said a senior manager from the U.K.-based firm.He added that “Cortex-M processors, which are used for products in the smart home system, might have been on the

Nov. 19, 2013

Walking may reduce the risk of stroke: study

Maintaining an active lifestyle is one of the best ways to prevent strokes for the elderly at high risk, according to research reported by HealthDay News.British professor Barbara Jefferis at University College London conducted a 10-year experiment on 3,435 men aged between 60 and 80, and divided them into five groups: those who walked zero to three hours a week, four to seven hours a week, eight to 14 hours a week, 15 to 21 hours a week and more than 22 hours a week. The data shows that men who

Nov. 18, 2013