Virtual currency has been a worldwide hot potato. Virtual currency is unregulated digital money which is usually issued, developed and controlled by developers. Blockchain security technology enables the transaction without the certification of others. In other words, it allows anyone with access to its distributed ledger to track what product is sold and who handled this process. The stance of the Korean government on bitcoin is somewhat negative and regard bitcoin investment as speculation, and so do many countries such as China, Germany and France. Because our government published the appro

There was a huge fire in Jecheon’s Sports Center on Dec. 21, 2017, and it was a disaster, with 37 people injured and 29 people dead. The fire started on the first floor parking lot ceiling, and it spread to the cars, becoming a conflagration. There are some serious problems that have been highlighted, and caused this fire to become a tragedy. The first is the “piloti” structure of the building. Piloti structure only has pillars on the first floor and there is no wall, so it can be used as a parking lot. However, because of this structure, the fire could spread through the building’s main passa

“I got hemolytic uremic syndrome after I ate a happy meal.” Last July 2017, the parents of a four-year-old accused McDonald’s for violating the Food Sanitation Act. Hemolytic uremic syndrome is a rare disease that occurs mostly in children and affects 5-15% of infected patients in 0157:H7 (Escherichia coli, E.coli). The E.coli releases toxins into the blood cells through the intestine, enters into the kidney, and causes acute kidney damage. In this way, it can affect the brain and the pancreas, and cause convulsions, coma, and diabetes. HUS is called the hamburger disease because it occurs col

Contrail (2016) by MoonMoon is a song that is loved by many listeners. However, as this song was becoming renowned, a plagiarism controversy was constantly posed. The point of controversy was that the song borrowed a certain line from the novel ‘Contrail’ by Kim Ae-ran without any permission from the author. There was a dispute whether the song is a homage or not, and finally, MoonMoon apologized for unauthorized borrowing and asked the original author’s permission. As human’s creative activity grows quantitatively as well as qualitatively, the boundary between creation and plagiarism becomes

The opening of the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics is just around the corner, and at this point, the Republic of Korea (S. Korea) and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (N. Korea) has made an agreement to march in together at the opening ceremony, using the Korean peninsula flag. Also, in women’s ice hockey, 23 S. Korean players and 12 N. Korean players will form one team, the first-ever joint Korean Olympic team. There were three joint marches in the previous Olympics, 2000 Sydney, 2004 Athena, and the 2006 Torino Olympics, but a joint team in the Olympics is unprecedented.On Jan. 17,

Of all the experimental equipment in POSTECH, the accelerators are arguably the most important asset. To use the accelerators, scientists throughout the world visit POSTECH, and collaborate research with our professors. Since there are only three fourth-generation accelerators throughout the world, having one of them inside the campus is a tremendous advantage.The accelerator is a valuable piece of equipment that accelerates minute particles like atom nuclei, to collide the accelerated particle with a sample. Through the collision, humanity can peer into the microstructure of a specimen. Accel

The Postech Times went to Hong Kong from Jan. 14 to 17. On the second day in Hong Kong, we met Professor Kim Ji-tae at the University of Hong Kong (HKU), who earned a M.S. and Ph.D. in materials science and engineering at POSTECH. He has worked as a postdoctoral fellow at POSTECH (2011.8~2012.2), at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (2012.3~2014.11), the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems (2014.11~2015.11) and as a senior researcher at Korea Research Institute of Standards and Science (2015.11~2016.5). Presently he is a mechanical engineering professor at HKU.He recei

Located on the beautiful shoreline of eastern Hong Kong, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) was established in 1991. Similar to POSTECH, the university is rather small and research-oriented. A notable aspect of HKUST is that it is possible to graduate with a degree unrelated to science or engineering. Students can enroll in business and management or humanities and social sciences, unlike the two-track road at POSTECH.At HKUST, reporters of The Postech Times interviewed Kim Dong-bum, the president of the Korean Students’ Association (KSA) of HKUST.What inspired you to go to

▲ Lee Cook-jong, a trauma surgeon at Ajou University HospitalA trauma center is a hospital equipped and staffed to provide care for patients suffering from major traumatic injuries such as falls, motor vehicle collisions, or gunshot wounds. Although South Korea has designated a regional trauma center, each year, more than 100,000 people suffer from major traumas and preventable mortality rates account for 35.2%. Currently, the Ministry of Health and Welfare (WOHW) sets the standard for medical practice or pharmaceutical treatments, and if the hospital does not comply with the criteria for the

▲ People cherishing the memory of student Lee Min-hoLast November, Lee Min-ho, a student of a specialized high school in Jeju-Island died due to an accident during a field placement. He was working in a beverage factory, and was pressed in a product loader press. Another student working in a Styrofoam factory attempted suicide, and is in critical condition. Last April, a student working in a customer service center committed suicide because she could not bear the huge amount of work, and stress from the customers. There are many more examples, and along with these accidents, people are asking

▲ Ajit Pai, the chairman of Federal Communication CommissionAjit Pai, the Chairman of the United States Federal Communication Commission (FCC) announced a plan that deregulates net neutrality from Nov.21. Through some modifications, the amendment was finally passed by a vote on Dec.14. Consequently, Internet Service Provider (ISP) can lower or increase the speed of certain traffic. It can even block access to traffic. The concept of net neutrality was first proposed by Tim Wu, a professor in Columbia’s Law School. He stated that unless there is no evidence that traffic is harmful to a user or

Moon Jae-in, the president of Korea has made a pledge to raise the minimum wage up to 10,000 KRW by 2020, and it seems that the first step has been made. In 2016, the minimum wage was 6,030 KRW, in 2017 it was 6,470, and it has been raised to 7,530 in 2018. The minimum wage in 2017 compared to 2016 increased by 7.3%, and compared to 2017, 2018’s minimum wage has increased by the rate of 16.4%. The increase rate has rose tremendously, and if this rate can be maintained, by 2020, the minimum wage can exceed 10,000 KRW, as promised. However, there are some arguments about this policy. The most ob

▲ 'Molar father' incident has evoked syndrome of donation phobiaThere is a growing negative perception of charitable donations as the virtuous mind that aid those in need will lead to misuse of the needy. Due to ‘molar father’ and ‘new hope seeds’, people distrust donations itself which may lead to ‘donation phobia’. Last August, a fraud case involving the new hope seeds became public. The chairman of this corporation and the CEO embezzled donations of about 128 billion KRW which was donated for underprivileged children and children from broken homes. The Chairman and CEO live in luxury with t

▲ Parts of Sanitary pads from supermarketFrom last August, a sanitary pad caused a social dispute. Last March, Total Volatile Organic Compounds (TVOCs) were found in domestic disposable sanitary pads including ‘Lilian’. This experiment was conducted by female-environment solidarity and Professor Kim Man-goo. Back then, it did not draw much attention. However, many women on the internet started to complain of inconveniences such as menstrual irregularity and severe premenstrual syndromes such as menstrual pain after using a Lilian sanitary pad. At first, KleanNara company, which produces Lilian

▲ President Donald Trump (left), President Moon Jae-in (middle), and Kim Jung-eunOverall Relationship Among Three NationsSince Kim Jung-eun, North Korea leader has seized power, the N. Korea regime has engaged in offensive provocation in the hopes of securing a position of being a nuclear power. They went through with a sixth nuclear test on Sep. 3 and launched an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) Hwasong-12. After this, on Sep. 21, they launched a submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) and declared combat arrangement. N. Korea is coming closer to the position of being a nuclear p

Recently, North Korea has launched numerous missiles into the East Sea and over the Japan archipelago. Not only launching missiles, but North Korea has also conducted a nuclear experiment as recent as Sep. 3. On the left side, there is a timeline for North Korea’s missile provocation. Since President Moon Jae-in's inauguration, North Korea has conducted a total of ten missile launches within five months. Specifically, the missile launches conducted on Jul. 4 and the 28 shocked the whole world. They were Inter-Continental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) Hwaseong-14, and its estimated flight distance w

Definition of ‘being analogue’ or ‘analog’ is to be in a mechanism in which data is represented by continuously variable physical quantities. However, people nowadays deal with this word a little bit different from its own meaning. We refer to analogue sentiment to cast back to the good old days and to feel nostalgia for the past. The retro style of the 1980’s and 90’s has found its way back into fashion again.One application of the iPhone called ‘Gudak’ is so popular that it was awarded first place amongst charged apps of App Store recently. 24 photos can be taken with one film which is resto

National universities in South Korea were established by the South Korean government to provide higher education for aiding the development of the country. There are a total of ten Flagship Korean National Universities, one for each metropolitan city: Seoul National University (SNU), Pusan National University (PNU), Kyungpook National University, Chonnam National University, Kangwon National University, Chonbuk National University, Chungbuk National University, Chungnam National University, Gyeongsang National University, Jeju National University. The South Korean government is now trying to i

In 2011, the Fukushima nuclear disaster broke out. Initiated primarily by the tsunami following the Tohuku earthquake, huge amounts of radiation was spilled. It was the most significant nuclear incident after the Chernobyl disaster in 1986 to be given the level seven event classification. Propelled by these risks, negating construction of new nuclear plants was a presidential election pledge of our president following the lead of other countries such as Germany.The Kori nuclear power plant unit one was permanently shutdown last June because of numerous safety accidents. Moon Jae-in, the presid

Eggs contaminated with insecticides were one the hottest issues in South Korea last month. The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) announced that there were none of the insecticide-tainted eggs found earlier in Europe in South Korea. However, as such eggs were continuously being reported even within the country, the issue became hotter.Laying houses went through inspection for insecticides. Out of 1,239 farms, a total of 876 places were tested for compatibility of use of insecticides. Eggs from 66 places showed insecticide and of those 66 places, 32 places showed unfit levels of insecticid