The Korea Herald

France to pay for removal of risky breast implants

PARIS (AP) -- France took a costly and unprecedented leap Friday in offering to pay for 30,000 women to have their breast implants removed because of mounting fears the products could rupture and leak cheap, industrial-grade silicone into the body.Tens of thousands of other women elsewhere in Europe

Dec. 25, 2011

Apple unlikely to win German ban on Samsung Galaxy 10.1N

Apple Inc. is unlikely to win a ban on sales of Samsung Electronics Co.’s Galaxy 10.1N tablet computer, a modified version introduced after sales of the original tablet were blocked, a German court said.The Dusseldorf court that banned sales of the Galaxy 10.1 on Sept. 9 is unlikely to grant Apple an injunction against the Galaxy 10.1N, presiding judge Johanna Brueckner-Hofmann said at a hearing Thursday. Samsung has changed the device’s design sufficiently to distance it from the iPad, she said

Dec. 23, 2011

HIV trial is 'breakthough' of 2011

WASHINGTON, Dec 22, 2011 (AFP) - A landmark clinical trial that showed HIV drugs can be as effective as condoms in preventing transmission of the virus that causes AIDS was declared Science magazine's breakthrough of the year on Thursday.Other top achievements of 2011 included a Japanese spacecraft'

Dec. 23, 2011

Apple unlikely to win German ban on Samsung Galaxy 10.1N

Dec. 22 (Bloomberg) -- Apple Inc. is unlikely to win a ban on sales of Samsung Electronics Co.’s Galaxy 10.1N tablet computer, a modified version introduced after sales of the original tablet were blocked, a German court said.The Dusseldorf court that banned sales of the Galaxy 10.1 on Sept. 9 is un

Dec. 23, 2011

Dutch no-smoking drive on the wane

AMSTERDAM (AP) ― It’s getting surprisingly easy to light up in the Netherlands these days ― cigarettes, that is.Even as the Dutch government hardens its famous tolerance policy on marijuana, it is taking an increasingly relaxed stance toward tobacco, bucking the trend in nearly every other developed country.Last year it exempted some bars from a smoking ban and now it has unveiled plans to reduce spending on anti-smoking advertising campaigns and end funding for health care programs to help peop

Dec. 22, 2011

Vaccine attacks breast cancer in mice: study

WASHINGTON (AFP) ― Scientists in the United States said Monday they have developed a vaccine that attacks tumors in mice, a breakthrough they hope will help fight breast, colon, ovarian and pancreatic cancer in humans.Although studies on mice often do not translate directly into remedies that work for human subjects, researchers are hopeful because of the strength of the vaccine and the particular approach it takes.“This vaccine elicits a very strong immune response,” said study co-senior author

Dec. 22, 2011

Opting to track, not treat, early prostate cancer

WASHINGTON (AP) ― John Shoemaker visited six doctors in his quest to find the best treatment for his early stage prostate cancer ― and only the last one offered what made the most sense to the California man: Keep a close watch on the tumor and treat only if it starts to grow.Very few men choose this active surveillance option. Yet Shoemaker is one of more than 100,000 men a year deemed candidates for it by a government panel. That’s because their prostate cancer carries such a low risk of morph

Dec. 22, 2011

Opting to track, not treat, early prostate cancer

Ewha med center buys new PET device

Ewha Womans University Medical Center said it has been equipped with a positron emission tomography scanner, a first for Korea.The device produces medical imaging while halving patients’ exposure to CT radioactivity, the hospital said.“It will lessen people’s anxiety regarding radioactivity, which is essential in medical imaging devices,” said Dr. Kim Bong-san, in charge of the device operation.(baejisook@heraldm.com)

Dec. 22, 2011

The facts about heart attacks

Cardiac disease Koreans’ third-biggest cause of death; best prevention includes not smokingThe news of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il’s death of myocardial infarction has brought the disease into the public view again. According to Statistics Korea and the Ministry of Health and Welfare, cardiac disease is the third-biggest cause of death for Koreans behind cancer and cerebrovascular diseases. In 2010, 23,407 people, or 9.2 percent of all fatalities, died of heart disorders. The U.S. National I

Dec. 22, 2011

Saccharin to be allowed in more foods

The Korea Food and Drug Administration is to allow the use of saccharin in gum, soju, makgeolli and other foods. The substance has been off the list of food additives except in a limited number of cases due to its health risks.According to the KFDA, the substance will be allowed for use in eight food categories: sauce, unrefined rice wine (commonly referred to as makgeolli), chewing gum, soju, soy sauce, tomato ketchup and coffee. It is currently used in kimchi, some beverage products and pickle

Dec. 22, 2011

Housewife’s eczema

Housewife’s eczema is a type of hand eczema named for its frequent occurrence among housewives. In particular, it affects mothers who regularly engage in a wide range of chores that involve putting hands in water. The most common factor leading to this dermatitis is repeated exposure to and chronic irritation from water and synthetic detergents. Housewife’s eczema, unlike other types of eczema, is not normally accompanied by itching. However, the affected skin at the fingertips may become thinne

Dec. 22, 2011

Switch to iPhone 4S or LTE?

Customers hesitate to make choice with introduction of LTE handsetsCho Yoon-ah, 30, is hesitating over whether to buy the newest version of Apple’s smartphone, the iPhone 4S, or one of the LTE handsets now that her two-year mobile contract is almost over.Cho even signed up in advance to get the iPhone 4S, but local mobile carriers’ aggressive move to introduce smartphones that run on the fourth generation Long Term Evolution network has left her confused.The 4G LTE network technology is reported

Dec. 21, 2011

Samsung becomes world’s 7th largest laptop maker

Samsung Electronics Co., the world’s top memory chipmaker, is also becoming a major supplier of laptop computers, more than quadrupling its global market share in just four years, market observers said.The company’s global market share rose from 1.4 percent in 2007 to 6.5 percent in the third quarter of this year, they said.The third-quarter figure is the world’s seventh largest, placing Samsung ahead of other major suppliers including Japan’s Sony Corp. and United States’ Apple Inc.Samsung’s do

Dec. 21, 2011

France may order 30,000 women to remove implants

Up to 30,000 French women and perhaps tens of thousands more around the world may have to have defective breast implants removed after several suspicious cases of cancer, officials said Tuesday.A decision on whether to order the removal of the implants, produced by the Poly Implant Prothese (PIP) co

Dec. 21, 2011

2 Earth-size planets spotted around distant star

NEW YORK (AP) — Scientists have found two Earth-sized planets orbiting a star outside the solar system, an encouraging sign for prospects of finding life elsewhere.The discovery shows that such planets exist and that they can be detected by the Kepler spacecraft, said Francois Fressin of the H

Dec. 21, 2011

2 Earth-size planets spotted around distant star

Apple EU design may lose reach in Samsung case over tablets, court says

A European Union design Apple Inc. (AAPL) used to win a sales ban on Samsung Electronics Co.’s Galaxy 10.1 tablets may be of limited value after new evidence was introduced in an appeal of the decision, a German court said. Samsung introduced as evidence a U.S. utility patent using a type of flat sc

Dec. 21, 2011

Samsung becomes world's seventh largest laptop maker

SEOUL, Dec. 20 (Yonhap) -- Samsung Electronics Co., the world's top memory chipmaker, is also becoming a major supplier of laptop computers, more than quadrupling its global market share in just four years, market observers said Tuesday.The company's global market share rose from 1.4 percent in 2007

Dec. 20, 2011

Korea’s IT gurus to gather in Las Vegas for electronics show

Hynix CEO Kwon to make appearance in the U.S. event early next monthHynix chief executive Kwon Oh-chul is expected to attend the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas next month to meet with top officials of its U.S. business partners, industry sources said.Hynix chief executive Kwon Oh-chulKwon, t

Dec. 20, 2011

Korea’s IT gurus to gather in Las Vegas for electronics show

Strict diet could save brain from aging: study

WASHINGTON (AFP) - Eating less may keep the mind young, according to Italian scientists who reported Monday they have discovered the molecular process by which a strict diet may save the brain from the ravages of age.The research, published in the US journal the Proceedings of the National Academy o

Dec. 20, 2011

Saudi prince invests $300 million in Twitter

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) _ Saudi billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal and his investment company said Monday they are investing a combined $300 million into Twitter, increasing the microblogging site's cash cushion as its user base expands.Alwaleed's joint investment with his Kingdom Holdin

Dec. 20, 2011