While millions of people die of hunger in developing countries, genetically modified organisms are an essential tool to fight malnutrition and, most importantly, to help them age well, Nobel laureate Richard Roberts said Monday at a forum in Seoul. Speaking at Nobel Prize Dialogue, hosted by Nobel Media in partnership with the Korean Academy of Science and Technology, the acclaimed scientist in genomics and molecular biology said good quality foods are a great source of “good bacteria” that can

Technology Oct. 30, 2017

Around 30 world-leading scientists, thinkers and opinion leaders, including five Nobel laureates, gathered in Seoul for an international forum on ageing. Under the theme of “The Age to Come,” the Nobel Prize Dialogue kicked off its three-day run at Seoul’s COEX Convention and Exhibition Center on Monday. Packed with lectures and panel discussions on the issue of human ageing, a perennial question for scientists and a common social problem in many developed countries, the event is part of the ann

Social Affairs Oct. 30, 2017

Police are investigating the real motive behind the killing of a tech mogul’s father-in-law, suspecting the crime may have been premeditated.  A suspect in the alleged homicide of NCsoft founder and CEO Kim Taek-jin's father-in-law is arrested Thursday, few hours after the incident. YonhapA suspect, surnamed Heo, was arrested Thursday hours after he admittedly killed NCsoft founder and CEO Kim Taek-jin’s father-in-law near the victim’s home in Yangpyeong, Gyeonggi Province. The suspect attested

Social Affairs Oct. 29, 2017

A private tablet PC containing over 200 presidential documents was seen by many as the smoking gun that proved alleged outside interference in state affairs and led to President Park Geun-hye’s ouster. Choi Soon-sil is escorted to the courtroom at the Seoul Central District Court to attend her hearing on Oct. 19. YonhapPark’s confidante Choi Soon-sil was identified as its owner by JTBC, the TV network that had obtained the abandoned gadget. But a year after it was unearthed, questions still rema

Social Affairs Oct. 29, 2017

Police arrested a man Thursday afternoon who they believe was involved in the killing of online game mogul Kim Taek-jin’s father-in-law.Police confirmed earlier Thursday that Kim had been found dead in his garden in the morning near his home in Yangpyeong, Gyeonggi Province. The 41-year-old suspect was arrested at 5:45 p.m., on a highway bound for Jeonju, North Jeolla Province.After alleged killing, the suspect fled in the victim’s Mercedes before switching to his own vehicle, police said.  Yonh

Social Affairs Oct. 26, 2017

Online game mogul Kim Taek-jin’s father-in-law was found dead in an apparent homicide Thursday morning near his home in Yangpyeong, Gyeonggi Province. CEO of South Korea-based NCSoft Kim Taek-jin (Yonhap)The 68-year-old victim was discovered by police at around 7:17 a.m. in his garden next to the garage. Police found external wounds on his neck and suspect a murder, according to officer Kang Myong-ju at Yangpyeong Police Station who is heading the investigation.“The wounds on the victim’s neck l

Social Affairs Oct. 26, 2017

Police are hunting for a man suspected of killing his mother, step-father and 14-year-old half brother. The 35-year-old suspect is believed to have taken a flight to New Zealand shortly after the murders, Yongin Dongbu Police said. According to investigators, the suspect was last spotted on CCTV footage entering the victims’ apartment on Oct. 21 at around noon, before leaving at around 5 p.m. The footage showed that the victims arrived home at around 2 p.m., and did not leave until their bodies

Social Affairs Oct. 26, 2017

Park Chung-nam has decided to refuse medical care for life extension if he becomes terminally ill. “I believe it’s not up to doctors to decide whether to prolong suffering in my final days. If I become terminally ill, medical aid options could extend my life, but not save it,” said Park, 72, adding that as a church elder, he has seen several members of his church die in hospitals. “I’d rather die with dignity.”Park Jung-nam, 72, signs an end-of-life care agreement at Kakdang Social Welfare Found

Social Affairs Oct. 25, 2017

Lee Kyong-hee, The Korea Herald’s editor-in-chief from 1999 to 2004, was announced the sixth winner of the Korea Foundation Award on Monday. Koreana managing editor Lee Kyong-hee (left) and the Koreana magazine (photo: The Korea Foundation)Korea Foundation, a non-profit public diplomacy organization which organizes events to promote citizen diplomacy and enhance international relations, awards the prize biannually to an exceptional person who has made significant contributions in spreading under

Social Affairs Oct. 23, 2017

Over 100 teenagers kill themselves every year in South Korea, but the funding for state-run and provincial suicide prevention programs was cut at least 35 percent from 2016, according to a lawmaker. 123rfRep. Cho Hun-hyun of the main opposition Liberty Korea Party cited the Ministry of Education’s data for a parliamentary audit, which showed that the ministry’s budget for the country’s School Mental Health Resources and Research Center declined 538 million won to 1 billion won ($883,000) this ye

Social Affairs Oct. 22, 2017

Gyeonggi English Village, which was South Korea’s first residential English camp, has rebranded itself as Change Up Campus as part of efforts to nurture and promote high-quality and future-oriented education for students, according to the province Tuesday. The Change Up Campus run by Gyeonggi Province will provide programs designed to help students to better prepare for the coming “fourth industrial revolution” on top of learning the English language, the province said.  Key panelists pose befor

Social Affairs Oct. 17, 2017

Former President Park Geun-hye, who is standing trial over the corruption scandal that led to her ouster in March, unleashed pent-up frustration during a court hearing Monday, calling her case a “political vendetta.”  Former president Park Geun-hye is escorted to the courtroom at the Seoul Central District Court to attend a hearing on Oct. 16, Monday, 2017. (Yonhap)Speaking at length for the first time since her trial began in May, Park said she could not “accept the court’s decision to extend”

Social Affairs Oct. 16, 2017

Former top aides of ousted President Park Geun-hye, who were convicted of running a blacklist of culture figures deemed critical of the Park administration, will begin court appearances this week to appeal their jail terms for abuse of power. Former presidential chief of staff Kim Ki-choon and former Culture Minister Cho Yoon-sun are escorted to the courtroom at the Seoul Central District Court to attend their sentencing hearing on July 27. YonhapThe Seoul High Court on Tuesday will begin appeal

Social Affairs Oct. 15, 2017

The Seoul Administrative Court on Thursday lifted a departure ban against John Lee, a former head of Oxy Reckitt Benckiser Korea and current CEO of Google Korea, upholding his petition to end it. Former head of Oxy Reckitt Benckiser Korea and current CEO of Google Korea John Lee (Yonhap)The court said while the ban would cause him “irreparable damage,” there is insufficient evidence to believe that allowing him to leave the country would adversely affect the public welfare.Thursday’s decision ca

Social Affairs Oct. 12, 2017

Around 56 percent of South Korean teenagers who are put on juvenile probation have at least one sexually transmitted infection, a new medical study shows Thursday.  123rfThe study, released Thursday by Hallym University Kangnam Sacred Heart Hospital in Seoul, is based on a urinalysis test in 2014 of 237 teenagers, aged from 12 to 19, who were on supervised probation or at a youth detention for juvenile offenses. According to the researchers, 56.1 percent, or 133 teenagers, tested positive for at

Social Affairs Oct. 12, 2017