Ancient customs 고대의 풍습 On Sept. 27, an artisan works on a clay idol of Hindu goddess Durga, ahead of the Durga Puja festival at Kumartoli in Kolkata, India. Every year in Kolkata, the world’s oldest trade gets fleeting respect from an ancient custom -- when soil outside brothels is considered sacred and collected for Hindu rituals. (AFP) 두르가푸자 축제를 앞둔 지난 27일, 인도 콜카타의 쿠마르톨리구에서 한 장인이 힌두교 여신 두르가의 흙 우상을 만들고 있다. 고대의 전통에 따라 콜카타에서는 매년 “세계에서 가장 오래된 직업 (매춘업)”이 잠시나마 존경을 받게 된다. 매춘업소 바깥

Oct. 1, 2024

Autumn, at last 드디어 가을 On Oct. 1st, as it rains across the country, a citizen is seen walking with an umbrella at the Open Songhyeon Green Plaza in Jongno-gu, Seoul. Some climatologists have warned that after experiencing record-breaking heatwaves this year, the Korean Peninsula may also face record-breaking cold waves as winter approaches. (Yonhap) 전국으로 비가 내린 1일 서울 종로구 열린송현녹지광장에서 한 시민이 우산을 쓰고 이동하고 있다. 일부 기후학자들은 올해 기록적인 폭염을 경험한 한반도는 겨울철에 들어서면서 역시 기록적인 한파가 찾아올 수도 있다고 경고하였다. (연합)

Oct. 1, 2024

Pack of robot dogs 로봇개 무리 On the 25th, robotic dogs and other unmanned combat equipment are on the move during a media day rehearsal before the 76th Armed Forces Day, at Seoul Airport in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province. Quadrupedal “robotic dogs” are receiving attention for their potential use as future automated unmanned combat equipment, attracting significant interest from militaries around the world. (Yonhap) 25일 경기도 성남시 서울공항에서 열린 제76주년 국군의 날 미디어데이 리허설에서 로봇개를 포함한 무인전투체계 장비들이 이동하고 있

Oct. 1, 2024

Mexico has just elected its first female president, following a rare contest between two women. But while this result represents welcome gains for gender equality, it was an outlier. The broader picture is disheartening. Consider, for example, another recent election. Thirty years after the end of apartheid and the first free vote -- and despite impressive strides (led by women) toward gender equality in other domains -- the people of South Africa still have not had a chance to elect a woman to

Viewpoints June 4, 2024

President Joe Biden’s decision on Thursday to order a wave of strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen was inevitable the moment the Yemeni militia disregarded Washington’s warnings a week earlier and sent a swarm of 18 drones and three anti-ship ballistic missiles in the direction of US warships. Last week’s strikes, which took place with the cooperation of the United Kingdom and were aimed at 60 locations, were designed to degrade the Houthis’ capabilities and hopefully

Viewpoints Jan. 18, 2024

The Founding Fathers of the United States asserted that elected officials should listen to and be influenced by the views of the electorate. As James Madison said, “It is the reason, alone, of the public, that ought to control and regulate the government.” However, the means for government officials to hear from the people are limited. Elected officials receive emails, letters, phone calls and input at town halls, and some agencies occasionally ask for public comments on complex regu

Viewpoints Dec. 28, 2023

Tiger Woods stumbled out of the gate before finding his footing with four of his five birdies on the front nine to finish 1-under-par 71 after the third round of the Hero World Challenge on Saturday. He's tied for 16th in the 20-man field at even par. Woods said the "touch and feels" of his short game are the most difficult to get back so far. "But when you're chipping off Bermuda like this, and this is probably one of the hardest golf courses we face all year round to

Golf Dec. 3, 2023

It happens occasionally, but only rarely. All the good options suddenly seem to have failed at once. The only thing left is to just spread your cards across the table -- and play this hand faceup. The truth is, this happens far more at a negotiation table than a card table. Another truth is it has just happened to Israel -- and Israel’s forever kibitzer and guarantor, the United States – in yet another cruel crisis in Gaza. Israel and its staunchest ally must now show their most conv

Viewpoints Nov. 20, 2023

The Google antitrust trial has finally shown just how much the world’s dominant search engine is willing -- and able -- to pay to be the default on smartphones and other devices: $26 billion in 2021 alone, $18 billion of which went to another tech giant, Apple. While Google has long tried to guard this number, it was always known to be large -- and so it is. What is Google paying for? When you set up a new iPhone, Apple could prompt you on which search engine to use as the default in its

Olympic Games Nov. 13, 2023

Brussels Ommegang 브뤼셀 오메강 People take part in the "Ommegang Oppidi Bruxellensis" parade in the city center of Brussels on June 28. Originally, the Ommegang was the largest procession of Brussels, taking place once a year on the Sunday before Pentecost. Since 1930, it has become a historical reenactment of the 1549 parade of Holy Roman Emperor Charles V. (AFP) 지난 28일, 벨기에 브뤼셀의 도심에서 브뤼셀오메강 행진이 이루어지고 있다. 원래 오메강은 오순절 전 일요일에 열리는 브뤼셀 최대의 연례행사였으나 1930년 이래로 신성로마제국 황제 카를 5세의 1549년 행진을 재현하는

June 29, 2023

As an international group of agencies investigates why the Titan submersible imploded while carrying five people to the Titanic wreckage, US maritime officials say they'll issue a report aimed at improving the safety of submersibles worldwide. Investigators from the US, Canada, France and the United Kingdom are working closely together on the probe of the June 18 accident, which happened in an "unforgiving and difficult-to-access region" of the North Atlantic, said US Coast Guar

June 27, 2023