The Korea Herald

S. Korea's jobless rate edges down in Oct.

South Korea's jobless rate inched down in October from a month earlier but job creation slowed sharply, raising worries that the labor market conditions remain sluggish, a government report showed Wednesday.According to the report by Statistics Korea, the jobless rate stood at 2.8 percent last month, down from 2.9 percent tallied in the previous month. The number of jobs added to the economy, however, decelerated markedly. About 396,000 jobs were added last month compared with a year earlier, do

Nov. 14, 2012

Seoul to ban smoking in all indoor facilities by 2020

The Seoul government aims to make the capital a smoke-free city by 2020 in line with the World Health Organization’s policy encouraging its members to reduce smoking.The Seoul office plans to ban smoking in all public and multi-purpose facilities, in addition to bus stops, and restaurants and bars whose size exceeds 150 square meters, officials said.Seoul made the announcement with Dr. Susan Mercado, team leader of the tobacco free initiative for WHO Western Pacific Regional Office, and Domilyn

Social Affairs Nov. 13, 2012

Oxford chooses 'omnishambles' as word of the year

Britain's media are in a meltdown and its government is gaffe-prone, so Oxford Dictionaries has chosen an apt Word of the Year: ``omnishambles.''Oxford University Press on Tuesday crowned the word _ defined as ``a situation that has been comprehensively mismanaged, characterized by a string of blunders and miscalculations'' _ its top term of 2012.Each year Oxford University Press tracks how the English language is changing and chooses a word that best reflects the mood of the year. The publisher

Culture Nov. 13, 2012

Study: Drought pushed Mayan decline

Scientists say they‘ve seen clues to the reason for the rapid decline of the Maya civilization that once occupied much of modern-day Mexico and Central America.The Mayan civilization, known for its sophisticated calendar system and pyramid construction, sprang up in 300 A.D. but seemed to collapse between 800 and 1000 A.D.A study published in the Journal Science suggests the Maya civilization perished from the effects of extreme changes in climate.Unusual rainfall patterns doomed the Maya people

Technology Nov. 13, 2012

New Zealand school bans hugging

A New Zealand middle school has banned hugging because of students repeatedly arriving late to classes.Teachers at Takapuna Normal Intermediate School suggested last week to students that they keep the hugs outside of the school, deputy principal Sue Cattell said.“It’s just a little thing that they’re doing. It got out of hand toward the end of morning tea time especially. There would be groups that got back to class 10 to 15 minutes late because they were going around making sure they’d hugged

World News Nov. 13, 2012

S. Korea's central bank likely to freeze key rate till next year: IBs

Global investment banks (IBs) have forecast South Korea's central bank will likely keep its key policy rate steady through the first six months of next year as the economy regains steam at a gradual pace in the second half, a report showed Tuesday. Major IBs including Goldman Sachs expect the Bank of Korea (BOK) to freeze its key rate at 2.75 percent till the first half of 2013, citing their overall outlook that protracted global jitters are less likely to further aggravate, according to the rep

Nov. 13, 2012

Online bookstores fined for commercial infringement

South Korea’s online bookstores were slapped with a collective 25 million won ($22,984) in fines and corrective orders for deceiving customers with fabricated data, the nation’s antitrust watchdog said Monday. The country’s major online bookshops -- Yes24, Interpark, Kyobo Books and Aladin -- allegedly displayed newly released publications on their websites’ section called “new this week” and “IT’S BEST” in return for receiving advertising fees ranging from 500,000 won to 2.5 million won per bo

Industry Nov. 12, 2012

Online bookstores fined for commercial infringement

Special counsel team begins raid on presidential office at third-party place

A team led by special counsel Lee Kwang-bum raided Cheong Wa Dae's Presidential Security Service (PSS) at a third-party place in connection with the presidential retirement home deal that critics say misused taxpayer money, officials said Monday.At a training institute of the country's financial regulator located near the presidential office in central Seoul, five members of the special counsel team began at 2:00 p.m. to search and seize relevant data and proof randomly submitted by the PSS, the

Social Affairs Nov. 12, 2012

"A Werewolf Boy" draws 3 million viewers

Local romance movie "A Werewolf Boy" drew more than 3 million moviegoers last week, a rare feat for its genre, the Korean Film Council said Sunday.The film about a werewolf boy and his love interest who has a lung disease, starring Song Joong-ki and Park Bo-young, was watched by 537,948 audience members on Saturday alone, bringing the total to 3,067,651, according to the council.A daily number of over 500,000 is remarkably high for a movie of any genre shown in November, a slow season for movieg

Film Nov. 11, 2012

Self-interest without feeling guilty makes people happier

People are happier when a self-benefiting option is imposed upon them because it frees them from having to take responsibility for the outcome, U.S. psychologists have found. Jonathan Bermand and Debrah Small of The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania speculated that removing an individuals’ sense of agency would remove their feeling of responsibility for an outcome, leaving them free to enjoy their own interests without feeling selfish.The two scientists conducted a laboratory stud

Technology Nov. 11, 2012

Self-interest without feeling guilty makes people happier

Boy takes parents' savings, buys candy

A 9-year-old Ukrainian boy spent nearly $4,000 on candy in several days, the money coming from his parents' savings hidden in a couch."The disappearance [of the money] was first spotted by his father. He opened the stash and saw it was empty," said Tatyana Kushnerova of the Konotop, Ukraine police department.After an argument, the son admitted taking the money during his autumn school holiday, $3,300 in U.S. cash and about 600 euros ($635), converting it to Ukrainian hryvnas with the help of an

World News Nov. 11, 2012

Some microwaves may not cook food enough

People who use some lower-wattage microwaves may not be cooking food long enough, a U.S. official warns.Kathy Bernard, of the U.S. Department of Agriculture Food Safety and Inspection Service, said it is important to know the wattage of your microwave oven.“To find it, look on the inside of the oven door or in the owner‘s manual, or you can test how long it takes to boil a glass of water. If it takes 2 minutes or less it’s a very high-wattage oven, around 1,100 watts. Four minutes or longer it‘s

Food Nov. 11, 2012

Some microwaves may not cook food enough

Chris Brown denies he is dating Rihanna

U.S. singer Chris Brown, in an interview with a Los Angeles radio station, denied rumors he and singer Rihanna have rekindled their relationship.When asked by Power 106 host Big Boy whether he and Rihanna were back together, Brown said, “No.”“And that‘s just quick, a quick answer.”Brown echoed the denial Rihanna made on Bravo’s “Watch What Happens Live,” when she told Andy Cohen she was not dating Brown, despite their collaboration on her latest album, “Unapologetic.”Rihanna did, however, call

Performance Nov. 11, 2012

Dodgers bid $25.7 million for South Korean lefty

The Los Angeles Dodgers have bid nearly $26 million for a chance to sign South Korean pitcher Ryu Hyun-jin.The Hanwha Eagles of the Korea Baseball Organization said on Saturday they accepted a posting fee of $25.7 million for the 25-year-old left-hander. Major League Baseball later announced that the team was the Dodgers.``We are thrilled to have this exciting opportunity,'' Dodgers general manager Ned Colletti said. ``We have watched Ryu pitch for a long time and he is another option to consid

Baseball Nov. 11, 2012

Dodgers bid $25.7 million for South Korean lefty

Park takes Ochoa LPGA lead

Inbee Park, seeking a third victory of the year and trying to catch Stacy Lewis in the LPGA Player of the Year race, seized a two-shot lead at the Lorena Ochoa Invitational on Saturday.South Korea's Park had six birdies -- three on the front nine and three on the back -- in her six-under 66 for a 54-hole total of 15-under par 201 at the Guadalajara Country Club.She was two shots in front of American Cristie Kerr, who carded a 67 for 203. South Korea's So Yeon Ryu also posted a 67 for 204 and Ame

Golf Nov. 11, 2012

Articles by 박한나