Diplomats
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South Korea to scrap mask mandate for most indoor places January 30
SEOUL -- South Korea plans to lift the mask mandate for most indoor places from January 30 as part of efforts to return to normal life three years after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Prime Minister Han Duck-soo said on January 20 that the mask guidelines will be eased from “mandatory” to “optional” except for some vulnerable indoor facilities as the daily caseload of coronavirus infections continues to fall. He added that the mask mandate, howe
January 20, 2023 -
Seoul becomes world's first city to provide metaverse-based administrative services
SEOUL -- Seoul became the world's first city to provide administrative services using metaverse, a virtually created world accessible using smart devices or PCs, in various sectors, including education and tax. Seoulites can communicate with their mayor regarding public policies by creating avatars in the virtual world. The municipal authorities unveiled their scheme in November 2021 to provide metaverse-based services in every administrative sector by 2026 through a 3.9 bill
January 17, 2023 -
Marine ministry to promote migration of young people to fishing villages via support program
SEOUL -- In an effort to encourage young city people to migrate to under-populated fishing villages, the marine ministry will roll out a promotion program that will include various government-funded supports such as a fishing boat rental service, house rental service, and the operation of incubation curriculums of fishermen. According to the state statistical information service, South Korea's fishermen population is decreasing rapidly. There were about 121,700 people working i
January 17, 2023 -
Elderly lone diners more prone to accelerated frailty and aging: study
SEOUL -- Old people who eat alone are more likely to show a higher frailty scale than those who eat with others, a joint study by South Korean doctors showed. Doctors said the feeling of social isolation felt during meal times affected the aging process by causing depression and malnutrition. The term frailty normally refers to an aging stage that could develop into elderly diseases. The clinical frailty scale is decided by measuring the functional status of the body and mind of
January 17, 2023 -
Convenience store GS25 targets "home-aloners" with Lunar New Year festival gourmet menu
SEOUL -- South Korean convenience store franchise GS25 has released a premium lunchbox menu for "home-aloners," single-person households who chose to stay at their homes rather than to visit their families in their hometown. The premium meal box consists of traditional Korean menus including Tteokguk, a rice cake soup consumed during the Korean Lunar New Year holidays called "Seol." Seol, a three-day festival that celebrates the Lunar New Year, is the largest tr
January 16, 2023 -
Southern port city to operate incubation programs to beef up workers' big data capability
SEOUL -- The southern port city of Busan will kick-start an incubation program for its workers to improve their capability to understand and utilize big data in their administrative work processes. South Korea has been collecting public data from various sectors for the last decade. Big data is a collection of data sets that is too large for conventional tools or methods to process. While the vast amount of information has extremely high statistical power, it could also have a high
January 16, 2023 -
Busan to create smart indoor gardens to purify air in multi-purpose areas
SEOUL -- To help urbanites heal their mind and take a break from busy life, smart gardens with plants capable of removing indoor air pollutants will be established in South Korea's southern port city of Busan. The small-sized indoor gardens with automatic water supply systems will be provided to multi-purpose areas such as welfare centers and educational service centers. Using internet of things (IoT) technology, smart gardens control air quality, wind speed, and water distri
January 13, 2023 -
Southern port city to invest $4 mln to create urban forests in 22 areas
SEOUL -- The southern port city of Busan will invest five billion won ($4 million) to create urban forests over 22 areas that are equivalent to some four football fields. Busan, South Korea's second-largest city, has a population of 3.4 million over an area of 770 square kilometers. However, about 47 percent of the city consists of mountains, making the city very cramped with a small number of green areas that are easily accessible by citizens. The port city famous for it
January 12, 2023 -
Seoul to utilize drones to monitor tile roofs of traditional Hanok buildings
SEOUL -- Seoul will adopt a safety inspection service using drones to manage traditional Korean houses called "Hanok." The drone safety inspection service will check the condition of tiled roofs instead of having human inspectors climb up the old buildings. Any Hanok residents in Seoul can request the city government for a drone inspection service if they find maintenance issues such as water leaks. Seoul currently has about 8,000 Hanok buildings. According to the city,
January 12, 2023 -
Rare ginseng worth some $545,000 found in S. Korea
SEOUL -- An extremely rare ginseng which is estimated to be about $545,000 has been found in a mountainous area in South Korea's southwestern region by a mountain hiker. The ginseng weighing some 0.9 pounds has a high proportion of Rg3, a biological component used to treat cancer. Rg3 is a type of saponin that inhibits the growth of cancer cells, improves blood circulation and lowers blood pressure. It is easily absorbed in the body compared to other saponin substances. The i
January 11, 2023
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PHOTOS: Railway workers threaten strike
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SK bioscience's influenza vaccine approved in Indonesia
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LG Electronics unveils software kit for AI home robot at global conference
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Kim Jong-un inspects missile base, citing growing US nuclear threat
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Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang to offer insights at AI forum in Mumbai
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CJ Olive Young expands rapidly growing live-streaming commerce
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OPINION: Canada's tariff strategy on Chinese EVs- A misstep in trade and climate policy
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Korea to raise industrial power rates by 9.7%
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OPINION: North Korea and Russia - Alliance of the weak
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Ex-president Lee Myung-bak's elder brother dies at 89