• Enjoying traditional and modern Incheon

    A friend who has been to Incheon told me that it was a fascinating city. She said we could travel through time along the Gwandong modern architecture street or experience “Little China” in China Town. She talked about Shinpo Dakgangjeong, a restaurant that serves “dakgangjeong,” a sweet and spicy fried…

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  • Silence is not necessarily golden: a message to Korean reporters

    U.S. President Barack Obama offered a chance for Korean reporters to comment or to ask questions at the G20 Seoul conference in 2010. The Seoul conference was an opportunity to boost the morale of the Korean people and burnish the image of Korea to the world. I don’t know the…

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  • Korea must legislate plain language act

    Last week, spokespersons of government agencies agreed to use plain language in their documents and statements, with the help of the National Institute of the Korean Language. On Hangeul Day (Korean Alphabet Day) on Oct. 9, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (MCST) will award government agencies that use…

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  • Stop the brain drain

    When an unprecedented currency crisis hit Asia and Korea in 1997, domestic businesses first trimmed their R&D manpower, as they were of little use in making quick profits. Kim Jong-hoon, a Korean-American IT expert nominated by President Park as her first minister of future planning and science, gave up the…

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  • East Asia

    Girls’ Generation in crisis

    Scandals reveal management loophole, cracks in unity Is Girls’ Generation in crisis? Will it disband in the near future? Eight years have passed since the nine-member K-pop girl group burst onto the domestic music scene. During that time, it has grown up as undisputed K-pop kingpin adored by scores of…

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  • East Asia

    NK chooses stability over change

    North Korea apparently chose stability of its leadership and policies over change in its latest leadership reshuffle, experts said Thursday. During the first session of the newly formed Supreme People’s Assembly (SPA), Wednesday, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un was re-elected as head of the North’s powerful National Defense Commission. Kim…

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  • Flea markets booming

    If you find old clothes, toys or small home appliances during your spring cleaning, don’t throw them away. Take them to a flea market. Flea markets are gaining popularity in Korea, with several new ones popping up across the country in the last few years. They include the Songdo Good…

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  • ‘Apple should rather focus on innovation’

    A former Wall Street Journal reporter says that Apple should shift the focus of its business to “innovation” from patent disputes with Samsung Electronics. In a written interview with The Korea Times, Yukari Iwatani Kane said that Apple’s consistent claims that its design patents were copied by Samsung are rather…

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  • Top court rules for cigarette maker

    The Supreme Court upheld Thursday a high court ruling in favor of tobacco manufacturer KT&G against family members of smokers who died from “non-specific cancers.” The top court said the link between the “non-specific cancers,” of which two of the smokers died, was difficult to prove. It added that evidence…

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  • Ha tries to stare down new crisis

    Citigroup Korea Chairman Ha Yung-ku, a heavyweight in the Korean banking industry, is battling the biggest challenges of his career. Chief among them are reports that the parent company has left him to grapple with the fallout of recent troubles alone. It comes in the wake of the theft of…

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