LOS ANGELES ―Treatment drugs can do more than improve the health of people with HIV: If administered early, medications can also reduce the spread of the disease to sexual partners and may help stem the AIDS epidemic.But many logistical hurdles stand in the way of making this strategy feasible, affordable and effective, according to experts writing in Tuesday’s edition of the journal PLoS Medicine.The medications in question are antiretroviral therapies, which prevent HIV from multiplying and dr

Technology July 12, 2012

LOS ANGELES ― A wily parasite well known for influencing the behavior of its animal hosts appears to play a troubling role in humans, increasing the risk of suicide among women who are infected, new research shows.Chances are you or someone you know has been infiltrated by the parasite, called Toxoplasma gondii. Researchers estimate that T. gondii is carried by 10 percent to 20 percent of Americans, who can get it by changing litter used by infected cats or eating undercooked meat from an animal

Technology July 12, 2012

Here is a list of helpful emergency medicines and medical supplies you should prepare for your summer vacation:Medicines: antipyretic-analgesics, digestive medicine, antacids, anti-inflammatory agents, skin ointment containing antibiotics, antiseptic agentsMedical supplies: thermometer, dressing sets, plasters, tweezers, scissors for medical purposes, cotton Also, it is good to have sunscreen agents, Vaseline and other skin ointments for burns.Antipyretic-analgesics and digestive medicine can be

Technology July 12, 2012

Korean scientists found that an enzyme suppressing protein aging also causes and accelerates cancer growth, which could open a new door to treating the fatal disease.Sunkyunkwan University professor Han Jeung-whan and his research team found that an enzyme, called Protein L-isoaspartyl methyltransferase or PIMT, negatively regulates another protein, known as protein 53.P53 plays an important role in reducing the growth of cancer cells and killing them. It was previously thought that PIMT only he

Social Affairs July 10, 2012

A 31-year-old middle school teacher has been convicted of sexual harassment for using his mobile phone to record about 240 women largely in the school and on subways for more than two years.He was caught secretly photographing a woman under her skirt on the stairs of a Seoul subway station. Police found more than 500 indecent video files saved on his memory card. Victims included students, parents and even female teachers he knows well. The teacher was dismissed from his post immediately. In May

Social Affairs July 9, 2012

 Mayor says Seoul will set up city management research centerSeoul City is to embark on a project to spread its urban development and management know-how overseas, especially to developing countries.The metropolitan government plans to establish a new institution in charge of cooperation with foreign cities in areas including environment, transport, infrastructure and information technology-based governance. The globalization program is also aimed at helping developing countries boost the compet

Social Affairs July 3, 2012

Seoul Metropolitan Government on Thursday unveiled a plan to install solar panels on around 10,000 buildings, schools and houses by 2014.The city aims to increase the use of photovoltaic energy to 320 megawatts of electricity by that year. Half of the energy will be generated from rooftops or idle facilities of public offices and schools, while the other half from private buildings and houses. The city will also make an online solar map that shows the expected generating capacity of the solar po

Social Affairs June 21, 2012

Students from different races, countries still face discrimination despite society’s effortsAn American English teacher recently led her class in a ball game to help them learn. Whoever had the ball had to throw it and exchange seats with the classmate who caught it. They all enjoyed themselves, except for one ― a Japanese-Korean child, whom the other students called “dirty.” “If we passed a ball around in a circle, it would stop with him, (and) no one wanted to touch the ball after him. They’d

Social Affairs June 18, 2012