TV shows always evolve to become more stimulating. A reality program that borrows an audition format is probably the peak of stimulation. Watching malicious editing and unnecessary tension that nearly all reality shows have, viewers may feel emotionally drained.Here is a reality competition TV series for those who need a mild show: Blown Away. Blown Away is a reality show that features glassblowers competing to be the world’s best. The series is structured similarly to former competition TV shows: 10 contestants engage in a different challenge each episode, with the least successful dropping o

On Oct. 22, Woowahan Youths, a subsidiary of Woowa Brothers and the operator of its delivery agents, known as Baemin riders, and the service union of the Service General Union of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU), signed a collective agreement on improving the treatment of delivery agents (also referred to as riders). For a person to be recognized as a worker under the current Labor Standards Act, specific and considerable command and supervision of the employee is required. However, riders are classified as “personal operators” as they do not meet these criteria. It is the first

Interest in stock investment has soared during the COVID-19 pandemic. Individual investors (also known as retail investors) in Korea are commonly referred to as “ants”, because they are usually inexperienced and invest small sums relative to institutional or foreign investors. The amount of new investment accounts, online customer assets, and stock trading activity of “ants” has increased due to COVID-19 across the securities industry. For example, the number of new online investment accounts created at Kiwoom Securities in the first half of 2020 is 1.44 million, an increase of 364% compared t

Hidden Figures (2016) is a film loosely based on a non-fiction book of the same name by Margot Lee Shetterly and is about three African American female mathematicians who worked at NASA during the Space Race. At that time, due to racial segregation, everything was separated into “for colored” and “for white”; even for bus seats. However, what made the situation worse is that women were discriminated against in many fields as well. The movie shows how they behaved and got credit for their ability in that period.Main storyKatherine Johnson, Mary Jackson, and Dorothy Vaughan are three African Ame

The stock price of SK Biopharmaceuticals (SK Biopharm) is sharply rising. After being listed on the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) on July 2, SK Biopharm’s stock price jumped more than 5-fold, from 49,000 KRW (July 2) to 269,500 KRW (July 7), in only five days. The stock price has maintained a high price as it evaluated 187,000 KRW on July 29. Even though SK Biopharm is expected to be celebrating such stock price increase, this victory is not good news for them. In fact, quite a lot of employees are considering quitting.SK Biopharm was founded in 2011, splitting from SK. Despite its

The popularity of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) is soaring in Korea as an aftereffect of people’s boredom due to the COVID-19 quarantine. Since spring, feeds about MBTI can be easily found on Facebook, Instagram, and other social media. Starting with rather common topics such as “the strengths of each MBTI type”, peculiar features such as “how each MBTI type would react to an airplane delay” emerged. On June 14, an MBTI-focused Instagram page mbti_lab even updated a post titled shower habits of each MBTI type. What is MBTI exactly, and is it a dependable source of understanding oursel

Green Book (2018) is a film based on a true story of existing figures: Donald Shirley, a renowned African American pianist, and Tony Vallelonga, an Italian American bouncer. Nick Vallelonga, son of Tony Vallelonga, shares this touching tale with the audience as the screenwriter of the film. The movie has been praised with a total of 57 awards and 119 nominations. SummaryTony “Lip” Vallelonga, a bouncer at a New York nightclub, is recommended to work as a chauffeur for a doctor during an eight-week break due to the club’s renovation. Tony heads for the job interview to find out that this “docto

As the social distancing campaign to prevent the spread of COVID-19 continued around the world, a trend called “Untact (non-face-to-face)” has emerged. Sports and art markets, which faced a period of stagnation due to the inability to attract audiences due to the virus, found a turning point through untact.In March, the kickoff of the Korean Professional Sports League was postponed due to COVID-19. However, in May, the league started despite the absence of the audience, and people watched games through online media at home. Reflecting the audience’s strong desire to watch sports media, the ave

Little Women(2019) is the seventh film based on a novel of the same name by Louisa May Alcott. Four sisters from the March family are the main characters of the movie, modeled after the author's sisters. While Alcott’s Little Women unfolds in a linear timeline, Little Women(2019) has two distinct timelines: the first is when the girls are teenagers, and the second unfolds years later as the sisters go about their separate lives.It is quite dangerous to produce a film with multiple remakes of the original. The film has to follow the plot of the original and have a singularity that surpasses

As social media has developed to become parts of daily lives, the power of “influencers”, people who have a reputation through social media for their knowledge and expertise on a specific topic, is increasing. However, some influencers’ greed for fame and wealth lead to deceiving and immoral behaviors. Here are some cases showing it.From the end of 2019, YouTuber “I’mTourette”, appealing that he is suffering Tourette syndrome, attracted people’s attention. He posted videos about hardships due to the syndrome while doing everyday tasks, such as going to a hair salon or eating instant noodles. M

“All citizens shall be assured of human worth and dignity and have the right to the pursuit of happiness.” Human rights are the most fundamental, yet highest of all values. It is a universal value of humanity and in no case shall it be compromised, deprived nor relinquished. But in history, especially in times of war, there have been countless incidents in which human dignity was infringed upon. During these times, a violation of one’s human dignity was not only confined to the living but also to the dead. The perception of the rights of the dead was callous in ancient and medieval times. The

“The online platforms became a rubbish bin for anger and raw emotions for many Koreans. They just do not see the suffering they inflict on victims with a simple, short comment,” said Kawk Geum-goo, a psychology professor at Seoul National University. Comments have gone beyond the free expression of opinions. Another celebrity has cut her life short after battling cyberbullying and attacks. The news section is one of the most popular services for the portal site, but questions have been raised over whether the comments section should be kept alive due to a number of malicious comments and their

As the millennial generation emerge as the center of the Korean consumer market, many confectionery and food products that millennials enjoyed as children are being re-launched.Orion is one of the most active companies in re-launching discontinued products. Orion has so far released a total of three re-launching snacks, “SUN”, “Chicken Pop” and “BaeBae”, all of which were successful. Orion re-launched (Descendants of the) SUN in April 2018 in the name of (Returned) SUN. SUN has halted production in 2016 due to a fire at the company’s Icheon factory. Last year, the product was so popular that i

For those who are going through rough times in their lives, The Postech Times recommends ‘The Pursuit of Happiness’ for motivation and encouragement. The film is biography based on true story about a salesman struggling to take care of his son and pursue a career of which he always dreamed.SummaryChristopher Gardner, in hopes of making a fortune, put all-in in a device called a “bone density scanner”. However, the device turns out to be slightly better than X-ray for twice the price, and finding a doctor who wants the device was a challenge. Because he invested everything into the machine, the

Throughout Europe’s history, nations have waged war, battled, and formed alliances to establish power in their region. Bringing Europe under one nation was several historical figures’ biggest ambition. However today, there is not a country, nor figure in Europe that would risk their own benefits to accomplish hegemony. Within Europe there are a few countries that want Germany to establish more of a leadership role, hoping they could also have their own “German success”. Germany, however, is somewhat reluctant to take more responsibility in the European community.Germany, having the largest pop

During a parliamentary audit of the Korea Media Rating Board (KMRB) by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism on Oct. 17, it was pointed out that the KMRB judges violence and selection of movies and other video clips with an overly lenient yardstick. Citing the movies “Joker (2019)” and “PARASITE (2019),” which were judged to be 15+, ruling and opposition party lawmakers criticized that the rating of the KMRB’s decision on the ratings was far from the public’s perception.The boundary between “rather-high” and “high” that separates 18+ and 15+ is persistence and specificity, according to t

After starring in the highly successful movie 8 Mile, American rapper Eminem is back at it again–but this time, as a producer. Bodied, the movie featured in this edition of Postechian’s Pick, is a 2018 American battle rap comedy-drama film that digs deep into the themes of aggressive humor and cultural sensitivity. SummaryAdam Merkin is a white graduate student at UC Berkeley. He is writing a thesis on the use of the n-word in battle rap and attends a freestyle rap battle to research. He tries to interview rapper Behn Grymm, who performed in the rap battle, but is made fun of instead. Later in

U.S. President Donald Trump is continuing in his efforts to lower drug prices, especially targeted at prescription drugs. Having already faced two major setbacks: a killed proposal that would have reduced out-of-pocket costs for older consumers and a blocked rule requiring drug prices in TV ads by the federal judge, Trump has now signed an executive order aimed at improving Medicare–a definite step towards lowering health-care costs. Further actions directly targeting drug prices are still to come.The Rise of Drug PricesAccording to National Health Expenditure data, the U.S. spent about 333 bi

With global warming, environmental issues are being considered more seriously than ever. And environment damaging aspects of traditional sources of nutrients, especially protein, has come under scrutiny. With such scrutiny has come a need for an alternative source, leading to food engineering gaining popularity and attention. Presently, the most common source of protein is slaughtered animal meat, but three alternatives are trying to change the narrative.In 2013, the concept of cell-based meat, also called cultured meat, was made public. The introduction of cell-based meat for the first time i

Anna Karenina is a Russian novel written by Leo Tolstoy. After it was published in 1878, it has been considered as one of the best novels that Russia has ever produced. William Faulkner described it as “the best novel ever written,” and Fyodor Dostoevsky described it “flawless.” Many Anglo-American writers also see Anna Karenina as the greatest novel ever written in Russia. It is a complex novel composed of eight parts. It features dozens of characters and various themes that richly portray Imperial Russian society. SummaryAnna Karenina, a married noblewoman and socialite, did not feel loved b