Science and Technology Korea's prowess in science and technology has been growing steadily since the 1980s, as the country's rapid economic development created demands for more advanced and dynamic research and development activities across all sectors. Investments in R&D have increased 45-fold from US$430 million in 1981 to US$19.38 billion in 2004, while technology investment per gross domestic product has soared from 0.62 percent to 2.85 percent during the same period. This growth has led to an increasing number of international patent applications and research papers registered with science citation indices. In addition, Korea ranked fifth in the world on the science and technology achievement indicator developed by the UN. Development Program which takes into account patent registration, technology exports and overall education levels. The number of people working in the field of science and technology surged from 18,500 in 1980 to 210,000 in 2004. In order to lead an economic upsurge through emphasis on science and technology, the Government promoted the Minister of Science and Technology to Deputy Prime Minister in October 2004 and launched the Science and Technology Innovation Office as a center for establishing the nation's science and technology innovation system.


http://www.kotrasf.org

Korea

Over the past four decades, Korea's impressive economic growth was part of what has been described as the East Asian miracle. Intensive growth transformed Korea into the 12th largest economy and trading partner in the world. It was driven by high savings rates and investment and a strong emphasis on education, which boosted the number of young people enrolled in a college or university to one of the highest levels in the world (81.3% in 2004). During those years, Korea's industrial structure was drastically transformed. Major industries were diversified to include automobiles, petrochemicals, electronics, shipbuilding, textiles and steel products. By applying lessons from centuries of development in the West, Korea was able to make a similar transformation from an agricultural to manufacturing and on to a service-centered economy in just 50 years time. The GDP growth rate was 9.5 percent in 1999, 8.5 percent in 2000, 3.8 percent in 2001, 7.0 percent in 2002, 3.1 percent in 2003, 4.6 percent in 2004 and 4.0 percent in 2005. Thanks to the GDP growth driven by boosted exports and increased investments in plant and facilities, Korea emerged as the world's 11th largest economy in terms of GDP size in 2004, reaching US$680.1 billion.

http://www.kotrasf.org

In Korean Business world

Welcome Topics of Conversation:


South Korea's cultural heritage
South Korea's economic success
South Korea's international accomplishments
sports [especially the Olympics]
The South Korean socccer team's performance at the 2002 FIFA World Cup
the health of the other's family [just general well-being, such as 'Is your family well?']
personal hobbies

( www.executiveplanet.com )

South Korea Business Dress

Guidelines for business dress
Conservative dress prevails in South Korean business culture.
Subdued, conservative colours are considered the most appropriate choices for the initial meetings. You can slowly introduce bright colours after you build credibility and relationships.
In business settings, standard attire for men includes a dark suit, white shirt, and conservative tie.
Women typically wear very conservative skirt and blouse combinations or business dresses. Since many people sit on the floor in homes and restaurants, tight skirts are best avoided.
Sleeveless tops and miniskirts are considered unprofessional in most business settings. As a guest, dress conservatively even for very informal occasions, although some Koreans have started wearing sleeveless shirts and shorts for their outings.

( www.executiveplanet.com )

korean monks praying

countryside in korea

This is what Bulgogi looks like !

Korean food!

I love korean food. they are delicious and very tasty. i used to eat korean food everyday while i was in korea but not anymore. whenever i miss korea food, i go to the Korean resturant and ordered the dish that i like. i am not saying that those korean resturants are bad in here in Fort Wayne, but the tast is very different for me. i am sure you guys know what i mean. Anyway my point is among those korean dishes, Bulgogi is my favorite dish. thinly sliced or shredded beef marinated in soy sauce, sesame oil, garlic, sugar, green onions and black pepper, cooked on a grill (sometimes at the table). Bulgogi literally means "fire meat". Variations include pork (Dweji bulgogi), chicken (Dak bulgogi), or squid (Ojingeo bulgogi).

English instructors in korea!

English instrouctors are very well-favored in Korea. Below is the details of the post of needing the english instructor that i found out on the website. I think it sounds great and i would recommand to my friends to go and teach in Korea.


Description:
Pukyung National University needs English Instuctors. The details of the position are as follows :
1. 18 hours a week
2. 2.10 million won ( $ 2,215.56 )to start ( negotiable depending on qualifications)
3. teaching university & elementary school students and adults.
4. two weeks' paid vacation (6 monthly)
5. vacation bonus(200,000 won ) and other attractive incentives (maximum 400,000 won twice a year)
6. opportunities to work at English Cafe at PKNU campus
7. opportunities available to teach on our winter and summer programs
8. professional environment
9. on-campus housing provided.
10. full staff support

If you wish to apply for this positions, please supply the following items,
1. Resume
2. Cover letter
3. Two copies of transcript
4. A photocopy of your University Degree
5. A photocopy of the information page of your passport
6. A security clearance certificate ( a letter from your country's police service stating that you have never been convicted of a crime; this is a mandatory requirement of all national universities)...

I say this every year and I'll say it again: I love Thanksgiving. I view it as the purest of American holidays. What do we do on Thanksgiving? We gather with family (or friends, if family is absent), we feast, we relax, and we give thanks for the good things in our lives. Thanksgiving is the one holiday that hasn't been commercially corrupted - excluding the turkey and cranberry industries. But other than buying foodstuffs and some booze, capitalism has managed to generally stay out, and we get deep with the folks we love.

Globalization became very important in this world. People are trying to be globalized by the way they act,communicate and do businesses. Since Korea became developed country, Korea is always looking for a way to globalize with other people. As we see in America, Samsung products became very popular and a lot of people are using those products. Also, they exchange culture for example not too long ago, we had a Korean cultural break in walb union ballroom. Which is why, we can say that Korea became one of the globalized countries in the world.

Teacher Assaulted by Angry Grandmother

A student's grandmother battered a teacher as stunned students watched at an elementary school in Seoul last week. According to the Seoul Office of Education on Tuesday, the third grade teacher, identified as Bae, was attacked while teaching class at a school in Songpa district in eastern Seoul on Thursday. The parents and maternal grandmother of a student identified as Kim barged into the classroom while Bae was teaching and began a loud quarrel about whether the teacher has discriminated against Kim. During the argument, the grandmother began pulling the teacher's hair and the quarrel turned into a scuffle. Alarmed students notified other teachers who subdued the attacker. Bae was taken to a nearby hospital and discharged a week later. "Kim's family was unhappy about his teacher's allegedly negligent attitude, which they saw when Kim was absent from school and the teacher failed to call to ask why," the school said. The parents of another student said, "It seems Kim's parents couldn't control their anger when they complained to the teacher that their son had received fewer tickets for the school bazaar held the previous day than other students." According to the school, Kim's family visited the teacher in the hospital and reconciled with each other on Monday. Kim has transferred to another school. The school appears to have tried to cover up the incident as it neglected to report it to the Gangdong District Education Office. The district office said it hadn't received any specific information about the incident from the school.

( www.pusanweb.com )

Visions of the Future in Korea

Korea likes to present itself as a technological nirvana to the outside world, and things like phones you can watch TV on the subway with or really fast downloading of porn are certainly all well and good, but anyone spending more than a week can tell you that Korea still has a lot of unglamorous but simple bread and butter issues to deal with that won’t get mentioned on CNN any time soon. Having said that, there is enough of a cyberpunk, Blade Runneresque feel to Korea that it more than adequately qualifies as a fantasy of the future.

Shocking new! cont-

American Teacher Deported for Past Crimes
"Past crimes cause teacher to be deported"
For the first time in Korea, an English teacher has been deported for a crime he committed before coming here, the Justice Ministry announced yesterday.An American whose name was not released was deported, the Justice Ministry said, after a previous conviction in Los Angeles of possessing and distributing child pornography was uncovered.The 55-year-old had been on a watch list of sex offenders in the United States. He entered Korea on Oct. 24 to teach in Changwon, South Gyeongsang, with a valid E-2 visa.Shortly after his arrival, the ministry received information about the man’s criminal history, but it did not reveal how.The government announced recently that starting in December, all foreign teachers applying for a teaching visa must submit their criminal and health records.That follows the arrest of an alleged pedophile, Christopher Paul Neil, who is now in the hands of Thai authorities. Neil taught in Korea for a total of about four years and fled to Thailand after he became a suspect.Currently, 17,020 native English speakers are working as language teachers in Korea on E-2 visas, according to data from the ministry. Through August of this year, 100 teachers were caught on visa violations or felonies committed in Korea. Eighteen were deported, but 82 were allowed to remain here.


Joongang daily.com

Shocking new!

In Korea, English Institutes are very popular. They are many institutes like math institute, english institute, music institute and you name it. Most parents send their kids to english institutes every day. Institues are like small private schools.
Because english institues are very popular in Korea, Korean people are always looking for native english speakers from english speaking countries.
But today i read a new saying " American Teacher Deported for Past Crimes ".

Accoriding to pusan website, " Past crimes cause teacher to be deportedFor the first time in Korea, an English teacher has been deported for a crime he committed before coming here, the Justice Ministry announced yesterday.An American whose name was not released was deported, the Justice Ministry said, after a previous conviction in Los Angeles of possessing and distributing child pornography was uncovered."

continue--

Korean singer,actor

Nowadays, Korean movies,songs and dances are consuming people attention not only in Asia but also in Europe and America. Not too long ago, Korean entertainer "Rain" came to US and had a concert in New York. That shows Korean music is spreading around the world. Korean music is catching up the US music industry.

Busan, South Korea

Busan Metropolitan City, also known as Pusan[2] is the largest port city in the Republic of Korea. With a population of about 3.65 million, Busan is also South Korea's second largest metropolis, after Seoul. The most densely built up areas of the city are situated in a number of narrow valleys between the Nakdong River and Suyeong River, with mountains separating some of the various districts.
Busan was the host city of the 2002 Asian Games and APEC 2005. It was also one of the host cities for the 2002 FIFA World Cup, and is the center for international conventions in Korea. Administratively, it is designated as a Metropolitan City. On November 14, 2005, the city officially announced its bid to host the 2020 Summer Olympics Games.[3]

( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Busan )

Today i saw a korean movie on youtube. that movie is about a guy who came to study to the United States. In the movie, he was very shy at first talking to the americans. He was very upset in the first place because he could't speak enough english to communicate with other people. later, he began fluent in english and became a lawyer and went backe to korea to work for the country. i am very impressed with his motivation to study english. what i learned from him was you can get anything in life and you can be anyone if only you set your mind on it.
today is a good day for me and i learned a new thing about world.

Korea

Today i met my korean friend. She is an exchanged student from Seoul. I met her on campus by chance. Now, we meet her two or three times a week.
we plan to go to the korean resturant on weekend. she has never been to the korean resturant in Fort Wayne. i love hanging out with her. she is so sweet and very beautiful.
one time, she mentioned that in korea, there are a lot of private institutes that teach english. when i was in korea, there are a lot of foreigners from englsih speaking countries teaching english in korea. korea is very fascinated about learning english.
The salary is good and they provide the accommondition. they even send you the airplane ticket once you signed the contract to teach english with the company.

South Korean Business and Social Culture

Despite outside influences from its neighbouring countries, South Korea has maintained a distinct and homogeneous identity influenced by its religious beliefs and breathtaking landscapes. The people of Korea share a common pride in the country’s unique cultural and linguistic heritage that has emerged during her long and turbulent history. As a result, Korea boasts an enriched cultural outlook that is reflected in its current business culture.

what is the matter ?

today, i went down to the korean store on coldwater road. There are two korean stories in town owned by korean people. They know me since i shop at their stores once or twice a month. They are korean and they have been in US for at least 20 years. Out of the blue, i asked how the business is. they answered me with the smiling face that the business is doing much better than last 2 years ago. I am glad to hear the good news from them. In the store, you can get every korean groceries of course, the price is a bit higher than korea. But all the groceries was imported from Korea. so, if you want to eat authentic Korean food, i would recommand you the korean grocerise on Coldwater Road.

people in korea are very fascinated about their country. korean people value their ancestors' hardships to become a new KOREA. Once you are in Korea, you will know what i am talking about. Throughout the whole country, you will hear old people saying how they love country.

business

Korean people think about business very seriously. they love being the investors and they love to create new technolgies very day. there are a lot of young adult who train to be technicians when they grow up. korea became one of the fastest developed country in the world. korea is where it is today because of their working hard.

about korean ( cont )

An important point to keep in mind concerns the nature of reaching an agreement with a Korean firm. Westerners attach great importance to a written contract that specifies each detail of the business relationship. Koreans, on the other hand, value a contract as a loosely structured consensus statement that broadly defines what has been negotiated, but leaves sufficient room to permit flexibility and adjustment. The Korean Government has attempted to address this dual perception by formulating "model" contracts for licensing technology and other arrangements. Both parties must be assured that the obligations spelled out in a negotiated contract are fully understood.

about korean

Most Koreans have three names. These names usually follow the Chinese pattern of a surname followed by two given names. In a Korean household, all brothers and sisters have the same last name and a common given name; the only distinguishing mark is the remaining given name. In addressing Koreans, foreigners should observe the use of surnames (e.g., Mr. Kim; Ms. Lee), using formal titles if possible (e.g. Dr. Yoo; Director Song). The most common last names are Kim, Lee, and Park. In the use of formal titles as appropriate, one should always be familiar with the complete name, including the two given names, for identification purposes, as there may be several Mr. Park's or Dr. Lee's in the same company and even the same work space.

Even though there are incremental changes in Korean attitudes and women are making progress, women professionals at the highest levels are still very rare. In Korean companies, the majority of working women, many with top university degrees, are still relegated to secretarial jobs, accounting or educational work. Many qualified women welcome the opportunity to work as a professional with a foreign company whose attitudes toward gender equality and professional respect and responsibility prevail.

Americans should be ready to mix business with social life as the Koreans base their business relationships on personal ones. The heavy drinking of the Korean alcohol, Soju, beer, scotch, or other liquor is commonplace in establishing a personal, business relationship. Also commonplace is the "no-rae-bang" where a group of businesspeople go to an establishment to drink and sing along to a video machine playing music. As most no-rae-bang machines come equipped with songs in English, a businessperson may want to be prepared to sing at least one song in order to gain social favor with their Korean counterpart. Although not as common as the no-rae-bang, businessmen should also be aware of “room salons” where Korean women serve food and drink to their patrons.

Though Koreans have transitioned greatly into Western society, the traditional ways of thinking in many areas are still practiced. Koreans have a great respect for the family and hierarchy. Extended families (i.e., parents living with middle-aged married “children” and their grandchildren) are still commonplace, although this is rapidly changing. Among the older generation, the father is the primary wage earner, while the mother stays at home. Due to changing social mores and economic pressures, the necessity for families to have double incomes is rapidly growing in Korea. Although fathers are the primary income earners, in the majority of cases, salaries are entrusted to their wives and most day-to-day consumption decisions are at the discretion of the female spouse. US companies may wish to take into consideration these traditional family roles when marketing to Korean consumers.

Seoul ( cont )

picture ( seoul )

doing business in korea

At first glance, Korea appears to be "just like any other nation." Its capital city, Seoul, is a modern, thriving metropolis with all of the latest technology the world has to offer. All over Korea, you'll find first-class telecommunications, the requisite five-star hotels, Western restaurants, modern transport systems (including very efficient subway networks in Seoul and Busan), innovative architecture, and so forth. Nonetheless, it is still very Korean and it is imperative that any American doing business in Korea realizes that Seoul is not Los Angeles (even though the latter, in fact, has a sizeable Korean community). Every year Korea becomes more and more modern, but it is important to recognize that modern does not equal Western. Koreans will not expect you to be an expert on the nuances of their culture, but they will appreciate a show of interest in matters that are important to them. Koreans generally appreciate a foreigner's effort in expressing a thank you (gam-sa-ham-ni-da) or a hello (an-yong-ha-say-yo) in the Korean language.

One of the differences between here and Korea, and I didn't find this out until the bill came, but they actually charge you extra for things like the coals, 6 Kuai (about 75 cents). It's not really a big deal, but why not just add the price in with the meat. I mean, who's going to order raw Chicken heart and not cook it?
Also, and I can't see this going over well with the Korean population - you have to buy kimchi for 8-10 kuai (over a dollar) and even the leaves are not free, another 10 kuai. My favorite extra charge was 2 kuai, for the dipping sauce which we dodn't order but came with the meal. We were shocked they didn't charge us when we asked for more garlic!

one day i asked my korean professor about foreign investment in korea. he said he is welcomed all the foreign investors and he is glad to meet different people from all over the world. he thinks because of all these foreign investors, Korea became one of the well-known countries in the world and he thanks all these investors. He told me about korea before it got developed how korean people were poor and sometimes got nothing to eat.

eating out in korea!

i love korean food. They are spicy but very delicious. but sometimes, i enjoy eating out with my friends. In our group, most of my friends are korean and some are foreigners including me. We love eating. whenever we meet the first thing we talked about is a place to eat. Surprisingly, my korean friends love " Hamburger ". they love Mcdonald. one of my koren friends told me that mostly young adults think that eating Hamburger shows that person being modernized.

i got this one from online about people in subway in korea.

funny story!

one day, i took a subway on my way back from school. Subway is very essential for most korean people. It's much cheaper and can save time unlike driving because of traffic.

so,i was on the subway and all of a sudden, i heard a noise. it's like someone's snoring. so, i look around and didn't see nobody sleeping deep. So, i thought i misheard and continued reading my book. But i heard the snoring again and it came from ontop of me. This time, i looke up and i saw an old man sleeping. here is the picture! enjoy

korea ( cont )

let's continue about Korea.

So, here i am very proud of being a Burmese. But on the other hand, Korea is the place where i would go back and visit there again.

I lived in Korea for about 5 years. I experienced about their life style. As a foreigner, life in korea was so uneasy. it's not that the people are making your life uneasy. it's just the language problem that is making your life uneasy. even though korean people are very fascinated about learning English language, you wouldn't see any sign that is written in bilingual. For instance,, underground restroom.

Korea,eh?

Gosh, I love korea. It is a country with full of natures. i was born in burma. but i lived in korea and studied there. It's not that i don't love my mother country. of course i love my country and i am very proud of being a burmese. But korea attracts me with its beautiful people and their amazing new country. Like all people know, Korea was colonized by Japan. korean people worked hard to build a country which every korean people dreamed of.