For the fourth year running, Stanford University tops Reuters' ranking of the World's Most Innovative Universities, a list that identifies and ranks the educational institutions doing the most to advance science, invent new technologies and power new markets and industries.　While a few UK- and Asia-based schools have ascended, American universities continue to lead the ranking. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology, for example, places second on the list, and Harvard University comes in thi

Social Affairs Oct. 25, 2018

　The number of female executives at South Korea's top 100 companies doubled from five years ago to more than 200, but the increase in the ratio to the total number was still paltry, at 3.2 percent, the latest figures showed.　Analysis by market researcher Korea CXO Institute counted 216 women in the C-suite. Members from corporate ownership families and outside members of boards of directors were excluded from the count. 　The number marks a doubling from over 100 reached in 2013, and the first ti

National Oct. 24, 2018

　Online shopping sites are losing visitors, whose numbers have fallen some 14 percent over the past two years, industry data showed.　The six major online shopping malls had 77.97 million visitors in September, down from 83.86 million in the same month last year. Compared with 90.89 million in September 2016, the latest figure represents a 14.2 percent drop.　Of all the companies, TMON showed the biggest decline during the two-year period, with a loss of 25.6 percent. This was followed by 11st, wh

Business Oct. 23, 2018

　The economic cost of climate-related disasters hit $2.25 trillion over the last two decades, an increase of more than 150 percent compared to the previous 20 years, the UN said Wednesday. 　The United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction noted that "climate change was increasing the frequency and severity of extreme weather events" such as floods and storms.  　Between 1978-1997, total losses from climate-related disasters was $895 billion, UNISDR said in a report based on data compiled by

World News Oct. 22, 2018

　Life expectancy in 2040 is set to rise at least a little in all nations, but the rankings will change dramatically, with Spain taking the top spot while China and the United States trade places, researchers said.　With a projected average lifespan of nearly 85.8 years, Spain - formerly in fourth place - will dethrone Japan, which sits atop the rankings today with a lifespan of 83.7 years, and will drop to second place in 2040.　In a shift that will be seen by some to reflect a superpower changing

World News Oct. 21, 2018

　South Korea's rice output is expected to fall slightly in 2018 from the previous year due to bad weather conditions during the harvest season and a decline in rice paddies, government data showed.　The country's rice production is forecast to decline to some 3.87 million tons this year, down 2.4 percent from a year earlier, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea. The 2018 estimate is well below the five-year average of some 4.2 million tons.　A total of 738,000 hectares of rice paddie

National Oct. 18, 2018

　The overall number of hospital beds and medical equipment in South Korea exceeded other major economies, while the number of doctors was lowest, data has showed.　South Korea had an average of 12 beds per every 1,000 people in 2016, compared with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development average of 4.7, according to data provided by the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the National Health Insurance Service.　On the other hand, Korea had just 2.3 doctors per every 1,000 people in

Technology Oct. 17, 2018

　The number of single-person households continued to rise in South Korea last year.　According to data compiled by Statistics Korea, households consisting of a single member totaled 5.62 million in 2017, compared with 5.39 million the previous year. This accounted for 28.6 percent of all households in the country, up 0.7 percentage point from a year earlier.　The percentage of those living alone has been on a sharp rise for decades, hitting 20 percent in 2005 for the first time, compared to 4.8 pe

Social Affairs Oct. 16, 2018

　The proportion of children using national and public kindergartens and child care centers is expected to remain far short of 40 percent, the government's target, official data showed. 　President Moon Jae-in earlier set a goal to expand government support for parents with young children, vowing to more than triple the proportion of infants and toddlers looked after by publicly run centers within his term in office.　As part of the effort, the government increased the number of centers by 373 in 2

Social Affairs Oct. 15, 2018

　At least 73 journalists and media staff were killed around the world in the first 10 months of the year, according to the International Federation of Journalists.　The deadliest countries were Afghanistan with 15 killed and Colombia with eight. In addition, the deaths of journalists have recently gone beyond war zones and areas of conflict.　The number of journalists who have been killed, detained, held hostage or have disappeared has risen steadily.　

World News Oct. 14, 2018

　According to the data compiled by Statistics Korea, the number of people aged 65 years or older reached 7.38 million in 2018, accounting for 14.3 percent of the country's total population.　The employment rate for those aged between 55 and 59 was 72.6 percent in 2017, compared to 70.6 percent in 2015 and 66.5 percent in 2010.　The comparable figure for those aged between 60 and 64 stood at 60.6 percent in 2017, rising from 59.6 percent in 2015 and 53.7 percent in 2010, the latest findings showed.

Social Affairs Oct. 11, 2018

　The number of online advertisements for illegal loans rose sharply in 2018, government data showed.　According to data submitted by the Korea Communications Standards Commission to the National Assembly, 4,569 complaints were lodged about unauthorized ads posted on blogs or social media between January and September, compared with 1,755 reported in 2014.　Separate government data showed that 11,122 phone numbers were blocked by authorities between January and July this year, as they were being us

Social Affairs Oct. 10, 2018

　Samsung Electronics was among the top 10 employers preferred by college students majoring in engineering and information technology, according to a survey.  　The South Korean tech giant ranked ninth, up one notch from last year, in the 2018 survey on the world’s most attractive employers conducted by human resources researcher Universum. 　Samsung was included among the top 10 for the third consecutive year.　Amazon was in 10th place, while Facebook and Huawei Technologies ranked 23rd and 40th, r

World Oct. 9, 2018

　A recent string of natural disasters, the latest a deadly earthquake and tsunami in Indonesia, have exacted a severe toll both in economic damage and human lives throughout Asia. The UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction, or UNISDR, says up to 1.6 million people could be affected by the magnitude 7.5 earthquake and the tsunami it created in a central region of the island of Sulawesi. 

World Oct. 8, 2018

　US scientist Frances Arnold became the fifth women to win a Nobel Prize in chemistry on Oct. 3, a day after Canada’s Donna Strickland became the third woman -- and the first in 55 years -- to clinch the Nobel Prize in physics.　Twelve women have won the Nobel Prize in medicine. There have been 19 female winners -- Marie Curie received two separate prizes -- out of more than 600 laureates across the three scientific categories. (AFP)

World News Oct. 7, 2018