태어나서 처음 들은 음악을 기억하고 있는가? 대부분의 사람들이 그러겠지만 나 또한 기억하지 못한다. 그러나 엄마 말로는 내가 태어난 날, 할머니가 나에게 동요 ‘나비야’를 불러주셨다고 한다. 악기를 전공하지도 않았고, 밴드부에서 보컬을 담당하거나 그럴듯한 노래를 작곡한 적도 없지만, 어쩌면 나는 음악과 함께 태어나고 자라왔다고 생각한다. 행복할 때도 음악을 들었고, 괴로울 때도 음악을 들었다. 심지어 아무런 생각 없이 멍하게 있을 때도 음악을 듣곤 한다. 신이 나거나 새벽 감성에 사로잡히면 노래를 흥얼거리고, 친한 친구들을 만날 때는 항상 노래방에 간다. ‘Music is my life’라는 말이 너무나도 거창하거나 유치하게 들릴지도 모르지만, 실은 나도 그 말을 부정하진 못하겠다. 음악이 없었다면, 나는 지금 이 세상에 ‘온전한 나’로 존재하지 않았을지도 모른다. 때때로 눈물의 역치에 대해 생각하곤 한다. 사람마다 눈물의 역치가 다르고, 나는 그 역치가 매우 높은 편이라고 생각한다. 하지만 그만큼 눈물이 한번 터지고 나면 우울함은 이미 걷잡을 수 없이 커진 상태다. 그리고 그 역치에 다다르기 전까지 눈물로써 우울감을 어느 정도 해소하고 싶어도 그러지 못해

요즘 들어 새파란 하늘에 낮게 흩뿌려진 구름을 보면 가끔 수업을 그만두고 어딘가로 떠나버리고 싶다고 생각한다. 이런 생각을 하는 것이 비단 나만은 아니리라. 창가에 앉으면 종종 눈 틈 사이사이 내려앉은 봄볕에 꾸벅꾸벅 졸기도 하고, 출석 확인만 한 채 수업 중간에 몰래 사라지는, 이른바 ‘출튀’에 대한 열망도 커지고 있다. 역마살이 낀 듯, 한곳에 오래 앉아있지 못하고 이리저리 옮겨 다니려는 충동을 억누른 채 강의실에 앉아있는 것은 확실히 고역이다.그래서 나는 소소한 일탈을 하기로 결심했다. 모두가 잠든 밤 조심스레 기숙사 밖으로 나선다. 자정을 넘긴 시각 얼굴에 스치는 차가운 공기는 낮 동안 부담의 무게에 억눌려 숨 쉬지 못하던 내가 살아있음을 한 번 더 일깨워 주는 것만 같다. 낮에는 볼 수 없었던 낯선 풍경에 당황한 것도 잠시, 익숙함으로부터 한 발 한 발 멀어져갈 때마다 차오르는 기대감에 부풀어 한 발 한 발 발을 옮기다 보면 어느새 폭풍의 언덕을 넘어 학생회관에 도달한 것을 깨닫는다.칠흑 같은 어둠에 제 색을 빼앗긴 학교를 보면 낮과는 상반된 모습에 놀랄 때가 많다. 애써 빛을 붙들어 놓으려는 듯 처연히 점멸하고 있는 가로등과는 대조적으로 어두운 회

올해 4월 30일은 우리나라 최초의 연구중심대학으로서 우리대학을 설계하고 개교 이후 8년간 초대 총장으로 재임한 무은재(無垠齋) 김호길 박사의 서거 30주기가 되는 날이다. 아직은 할 일이 많았던 향년 61세의 나이에 불의의 사고로 너무 허망하게 떠나버렸지만, 그가 남긴 혁신과 창의의 족적은 단기간에 우리대학이 한국은 물론 세계적 대학으로 도약하는 데 밑거름이 됐다. 언론사에서 발표하는 국내/세계대학 순위가 한 대학의 연구와 교육의 수준을 반드시 정확하게 포착하지 않는다는 점을 참작하더라도, 1998년 아시아 과학기술대학 1위, 2010년 세계대학 28위 등을 차지하며 싱가포르 난양이공대학(NTU)과 홍콩 과기대학(HKUST) 등 신흥 유명 대학 설립 시 벤치마킹 대상이 됐다는 점은 분명 우리 대학의 연구와 교육의 수준이 세계적인 수준에 들어섰음을 보여줬다. 그러나, 최근 몇 년간의 지표를 살펴보면 우리대학의 위상이 흔들리고 있음을 어렵지 않게 알아챌 수 있다. 영국의 타임즈고등교육(THE)이 개교 50년 이하의 세계대학들을 대상으로 산정한 2023년도 세계신흥대학 평가에서 우리대학을 벤치마킹해 설립된 난양이공대학과 홍콩과기대학이 나란히 1, 2위를 차지한

“Did you have lunch today?” as a greeting and “Let’s have dinner together sometime” as a farewell show the significance and how much having a decent meal is interweaved in the everyday life of Koreans. However, having a good meal on campus has been nearly impossible recently. With overwhelming numbers of customers, cafeterias – mainly the Haedong-Aurum Hall and the Oasis – are crowded with people lining up and searching for places to sit. Lengthy queues and few options for dining halls have been continuously mentioned as problematic for years, and finally, the university has taken some noticea

Shared electric kickboards, easily seen all around the campus ground, are now an inseparable part of Postechians’ daily lives. It saves you time, energy, and sometimes your attendance score. Exactly when these electric kickboards were installed on campus is unknown, but they were likely introduced around the Fall semester of 2020, gradually becoming an integral part of campus life. However, issues such as improper parking, reckless driving, and safety concerns have emerged among the members of POSTECH, prompting the need for proactive measures to mitigate these problems. Improper parking of sh

A joint research team led by Professor Soojin Park (CHEM), Sangyeop Lee (Integrated Candidate, AMS), Dr. Sungjin Cho (CHEM), Hyunbeen Choi (Combined MS/PhD program Candidate, CHEM), and Dr. Jin Hong Kim and Dr. Hongyeul Bae of POSCO Holdings N.EX.T Hub has recently succeeded in enhancing performance and durability of “All-Solid-State battery.” The research has been published in the international academic journal Small. Secondary batteries generally use liquid electrolyte that are inflammable, entailing fire hazards. Therefore, the replacement of liquid electrolytes with solid electrolytes and

A research team led by Professor Kangwoo Cho (DESE) and Jiseon Kim (DESE Ph. D. Candidate) has developed a new catalyst to increase the efficiency of hydrogen production reactions using contaminated domestic sewage. This research was recently published in the international academic journal Advanced Functional Materials. As environmental pollution problems caused by fossil fuels become serious, interest in hydrogen is increasing. Water electrolysis technology, which produces hydrogen by electrolyzing water, is a sustainable process using Earth’s abundant water. However, the rate of oxygen evolu

On March 13, local time, the European Union (EU) passed the world’s first AI regulatory law in the European Parliament. Roberta Metsola, president of the European Parliament, stated, “This is a pioneering law that will foster innovation while protecting fundamental human rights.” The law is set to take effect in stages starting early next year and is anticipated to significantly influence the development and application of AI technology globally. The core of the legislation is its tiered regulatory approach, which classifies AI applications based on its potential risks, imposing varying degree

On Feb. 13, MBC reported the suspicion about Coupang’s blacklist. The blacklist included 16,450 people, not only workers who had applied for industrial accident insurance but also reporters for each broadcasting studio. The blacklist has a vast amount of names, phone numbers, birth dates, and brief reasons for listing. The list was based on the personal information collected only for employment. According to the Personal Information Protection Act (PIPA), the company must destroy information about an employee leaving the company. In fact, according to a report by Newstapa (an independent media

The first time I came to the campus, The Postech Times newspaper welcomed me. As I looked through it, I was not just reading words. I was diving into the lively life at POSTECH. That is when I realized I wanted to inspire others with my writing, just like those articles inspired me. Now, on my journey to make that dream come true, I aim to write exciting and intricate articles about campus events and the latest engineering topics as an assistant reporter. As part of the university community, I plan to record our challenges and successes. I want to proudly present innovative research and projec

Humanity is the essence of any technology: Technology exists and thrives for humans, and the humanity behind it is what makes technology so important. This aspect of technology marks the importance of college press in science and engineering schools like our own. I used to imagine myself working as a journalist as a kid. This version of myself gradually disappeared from the world of academics I live in, but the passion I had for journalism still holds. To my knowledge, journalism is what makes communities thrive these days. If it were not for the power of journalism, the whole world would be i

A few weeks ago, in a chemistry class, the Professor asked, “If there were a cloned human that looked exactly like you, how would you tell the difference?” There could be several answers such as memories and sentience, but I think self-awareness is the most important point. Self-awareness is your unique ability to perceive and understand things. Then, what makes self-awareness? The originality of self-awareness derives from our challenges and experiences. Do you know how many challenges we face daily? Every day is a series of brand-new challenges. When you hear the word “challenge,” it is easy

When I was a kid, a compass was something of a novelty. No matter how I turned it, the needle always pointed in the same direction. Later, I found that the compass is one of the greatest inventions in history, as it enabled extensive maritime exploration and the discovery of new continents. Now, I realize how important it is to let people know the direction they should move to. During the matriculation ceremony for this year, the President mentioned that direction becomes a much more important factor than speed in life after university. I absolutely agree with that. Thus, as a reporter for The

How did you become interested in medical science and engineering? Since high school, I have been deeply interested in human cognitive function and intelligence. While in medical school, I encountered neuroscience and neurology, thus my determination to study the brain. During my medical studies, I explored various research methods such as growing nerve cells in the biochemistry laboratory during semesters or breaks. Throughout my residency, I was fortunate to be surrounded by neurology professors who were dedicated to both clinical practice and preclinical research. Their example naturally led

First of all, competitive programming is a mind sport in which competitive programmers solve algorithmic and computational problems within a specified time frame. In the contest, participants are given a set of problems to solve in a few hours and they must write a computer program that can solve these problems. My journey in competitive programming is a story of passion and earnestness. After entering POSTECH, I started on my journey in competitive programming. In my first year at POSTECH, I joined the campus club, POSTECH Computing Algorithms Team (POSCAT), where I solved many computational

College friends often start their tales with remarks like “Seasons change”, usually talking about the end of honeymoon phase or friends joining the military. Reviewing drafts from senior reporter Kim San, I found similar phrases such as “All good things come to an end” or “Experience loneliness as it is meant to be – alone.” These comments caught me off guard. Realizing I had experienced similar situations, I felt stirred to share it from hindsight. As a freshman, I had no friends to talk to but my roommate. Just then, I found a strange refuge, the “town hall”, as we used to call it. The town

In the realm of sociology and economics, the term “conspicuous consumption” looms large, describing the inclination of consumers to prioritize products based on their perceived status or prestige rather than practicality. This phenomenon is particularly pronounced among the younger generation, driven in large part by the pervasive influence of social media. The constant barrage of images and messages on platforms like Instagram and TikTok glorifies a lifestyle characterized by extravagant spending and indulgence, perpetuating the notion that happiness is synonymous with material possessions. T

The solar system has numerous satellites orbiting around the planet. Among them, Jupiter’s moon Europa, and Saturn’s moon Enceladus are the moons that draw special attention from scientists. Scientists are particularly interested in the oceans under the thick ice crust where life may exist, and they pay more attention to the larger moon, Europa. The primary goal of Europa’s exploration is to find traces of life in water vapor and ice particles erupting through Europa’s icy crust. “The Europa Clipper,” NASA’s Europa probe scheduled for launch this year, plans to reach Europa by 2030 to gather r

Buses glide swiftly through the dedicated lanes, effortlessly bypassing traffic jams and ensuring punctual arrivals – a welcome relief for commuters. In Curitiba, Brazil, the city’s innovative Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system boasts unique tube-shaped bus stops, a departure from traditional lonely stop signs or simple benches. This distinctive design not only enhances the city’s aesthetic appeal but also offers multiple functionalities. The elevated platform aligns seamlessly with the bus entrance floor, facilitating quick boarding and alighting for passengers, including those with disabilities