The Korea Herald starts a special series of articles under the title, “Culture Power Korea,” reporting on how Korean culture and Korean studies are being promoted around the world. The series, to be published Tuesdays and Fridays for the next several weeks, comes as the Korean Wave, or hallyu, has become increasingly popular among the global audience, while efforts overseas for promoting deeper ...

Acting chair stresses use of hallyu to draw U.S. students BOSTON ― Boston University’s College of Arts & Sciences will appoint a scholar in Korean and comparative literature to enhance Korean studies, and strengthening the existing four-year Korean-language, cinema and media program, said a professor at BU. “Boston is a strong place for Korean studies. One reason that Korean studies has become ...

BOSTON ― Most Korean people must have memories from their school days of trying to memorize important dates and names from Korean history for exams. They may feel that learning about Korean history, especially early history, might be more boring than any other study. In Boston, however, the Korea Institute of Harvard University’s approach to helping students learn about early Korea can be curre...

VALENCIA (AP) ― They can defuse bombs, help decontaminate nuclear power plants, even vacuum the living room floor without bashing into the furniture or knocking over a vase. One thing you don’t see robots doing, though, is jamming with a live, human orchestra. Breaking into a 12-bar solo is something that’s still pretty much the province of people. Except at the California Institute of the Arts...

Korea sees hope in Venezuelan education model ‘El Sistema’ Eighteen-year-old Lee Jeong-wook doesn’t know where he was born. From the first moment he can recall from his childhood, he has lived in Busan Boystown, a children’s shelter where 700 orphaned children from toddlers to high school students live together. But unlike many other Korean teenagers undecided about their career path after high...

Korea’s biggest Buddhism sect “Jogye” is reportedly anxious about a decreasing number of people seeking to be monks. The religion prospered in Korea until the end of the Koryo dynasty and, although it has declined since, remains one of the major religions in Korea. But according to statistics the number of new monks is on the wane. There were 466 new Jogye monks in 2005, but just 274 in 2011. ...

MONTREAL (AFP) ― A museum in Montreal is showcasing the on-screen discoveries of Hollywood’s fictional adventurer Indiana Jones, in hopes of inspiring a new generation of young archaeologists. “Indiana Jones and the Adventure of Archaeology: The Exhibition,” marking the 30th anniversary of the famed character’s silver screen debut, takes visitors on a virtual tour of sites depicted in the advent...

The Australian Embassy is holding the “Meet Australia at Ewha” festival in May at Ewha Womans University, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Korea and Australia. “Ewha Womans University was chosen as it frequently hosts popular cultural events for the younger generation,” said Ambassador Sam Gerovich. “This exchange with the university will hopefully become a stepp...

An American couple -- Emre and Joya -- wanted something different for their wedding. The couple presented a MTV-version of wedding video, featuring the entire wedding party and guests. Set to the Black Eyed Peas' "The Time (Dirty Bit)," the groom plays the role of will.i.am, and the bride standing in for Fergie. Enjoy the full wedding party, made into five minutes of music video and compare wi...

Yachting gaining popularity among urbanites as marinas open along Han River Like many other sports fans, Lim Sang-hyun, a 31-year-old office worker living in Seoul, was excited to hear that a new marina had opened on the Han River near the National Assembly last month. Although he spends practically all of his winter vacations skiing, he was looking for a summer water sport to immerse himself i...

World’s leading writers will discuss globalization and its effect International literary events can be a great opportunity for writers not only to market their work to new readers, but also to foster creative ideas across borders, languages and cultures. This year’s Seoul International Forum for Literature is such an event, with writers from across the globe, including Nobel Prize winners Jean-...