The Seoul-led international organization on green growth began its official operations on Tuesday.The Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) kicked off inaugural meetings of its assembly and council in the day for a two-day run in central Seoul, during which it will select its secretary general and permanent council members, according to the Secretariat.The GGGI was officially launched last week as an international entity, upgrading the Seoul-based think tank set up in 2010 to promote strategies f

International Oct. 23, 2012

Statins, a cholesterol lowering drug may lower the risk of esophageal cancer, especially in those with Barrett‘s esophagus, U.S. researchers say. Study author Siddharth Singh, a Mayo Clinic gastroenterologist, said squamous cell carcinoma and adenocarcinoma are two main types of esophageal cancer.Barrett’s esophagus, a complication of gastroesophageal reflux disease, raises the risk of adenocarcinoma, the more common type of esophageal cancer. Barrett‘s esophagus is a precancerous condition in w

Technology Oct. 23, 2012

Millions of people using Android apps are at risk of having their personal data revealed, security researchers in Germany report. Researchers at the University of Leibniz and Philipps University of Marburg tested 13,500 popular apps in Google‘s Play store and found almost 8 percent failed to protect bank account and social media logins. The insecure apps failed to implement standard scrambling systems, researchers said, allowing “man-in-the-middle” attacks to spy on data passed along when

Technology Oct. 23, 2012

Being shy or bold can be a matter of life or death for a trout, Canadian researchers say, with shyness being a better survival strategy.Fish respond to, and learn from threats, they said, and experiments show bold trout forget predator odor, and hence a potential predator threat, quicker than shy trout.As predators can be present in different locations and at different times, learning and retaining information about a predator threat, and being able to recall it at a later stage, is key to respo

Technology Oct. 23, 2012

The European Union (EU) has decided not to accept France's claim that its domestic auto market has been hit by a surge in imports of South Korean vehicles, Seoul's trade ministry said Tuesday.On Monday, the European Commission, the executive body of the EU, reviewed a request made in July by France, and decided not to put South Korean autos on a prior surveillance list. The move could trigger a safeguard measure against imports from South Korea in the worst-case scenario, according to the minist

Industry Oct. 23, 2012

North Korea suffered flood damage at its major nuclear test site but it has made good progress in restoration, security experts said Monday, citing satellite photos."Satellite imagery of North Korea's underground nuclear test site at Punggye-ri in the country's northeastern corner shows that significant repairs have been undertaken to mitigate damage caused by this summer's floods," said James Hardy and Allison Puccioni, analysts at IHS Janes, a London-based security information firm.South Korea

North Korea Oct. 23, 2012

A senior U.S. envoy on children's issues will travel to South Korea later this week for consultations on Seoul's long-overdue entry into an international treaty on adoption, officials here said Monday.Amb. Susan Jacobs, the special advisor for children's issues at the State Department, is scheduled to visit Seoul from Wednesday to Friday."She will review Korea's plans to accede to the Hague Adoption Convention," an official at the department said.Formally named the "Hague Convention on Protectio

Foreign Affairs Oct. 23, 2012

North Korea has unilaterally imposed hefty taxes on eight South Korean firms operating in the joint industrial complex in the North's border city of Gaesong, a Seoul government official said Friday."Eight out of 123 South Korean companies in the Gaesong complex were slapped with taxes totaling $160,000," the Unification Ministry official said, requesting anonymity.Of the eight firms, one was levied $87,000 and another was ordered to pay $30,000, the official said, adding another firm has already

North Korea Oct. 19, 2012

Singles, especially those without children, will need to budget more money for healthcare in old age than those who are married, U.S. researchers say. The MetLife Mature Market Institute's monthly Market Trends report said the 2010 Census revealed married couples are 48 percent of U.S. households. Those with children age 18 and younger comprised just 20 percent of households and those with two children were 8 percent. From a planning perspective it is harder to control costs when injured

Technology Oct. 19, 2012

A Croatian priest has run off with almost one million euros ($1.3 million) after illegally selling church property, officials said Tuesday, amid media reports the Catholic clergyman had fled with a married woman.Franciscan priest Sime Nimac earlier this year signed a deal with a local firm to sell a plot of church land, the Split archdiocese said in statement.Nimac, 34, the former parish priest of

World News Oct. 18, 2012

South Korean President Lee Myung-bak made a surprise visit to a front-line island near the tense western sea border with North Korea on Thursday, the scene of a deadly artillery attack by the communist nation two years ago.It is the first time that Lee has visited the island of Yeonpyeong near the Yellow Sea border with the North. The island was bombarded in the North's shelling attack in November

Politics Oct. 18, 2012

South Korea and China are moving to introduce a one-strike out system for their fishing boats caught fishing illegally in the other country's territorial waters, the Seoul government said Thursday.Currently, boats caught while fishing illegally in the other country's exclusive economic zone (EEZ) are banned from entering the other country's EEZ for three years.The so-called one-out, three-year sys

Foreign Affairs Oct. 18, 2012

Two Japanese ministers were part of a cross-party group of lawmakers who visited a controversial Tokyo war shrine Thursday, the day after opposition leader Shinzo Abe angered China by paying homage there.Dozens of parliamentarians were at Yasukuni Shrine, an AFP journalist witnessed, as part of celebrations for Japan's autumn festival.Among the lawmakers were transport minister Yuichiro Hata of th

World News Oct. 18, 2012