The Internet has made it possible for fans to feel closer to their favorite artists, stars, and athletes, regardless of the country they come from. For instance, K-pop artists and bands now enjoy worldwide popularity because of the help of media, especially the Internet.

Fans can connect with the rest of the world through their gadgets. With just a tap or a click, they are able to know the latest news and trends about music and the artists whom they follow. Through the Internet, they can also attract the attention of their favorite artists. The exposure of artists and bands to their fans make fans crave for a more direct interaction with them. This is why concert tours are more crucial now, more than ever. 

A concert tour is a lineup of concerts by an artist or group of artists held in various cities or localities. A concert tour can last for months or years and bring in huge profits through ticket revenues. Concert tours may have been popularized even before the advent of the Internet. However, they are an absolute must for any artist or band that wishes to have long years of fame and success. 

Concert tours are no longer limited to a city, a region, or a country. World tours are now very popular. They are avenues for artists to meet their fans and promote their music in different places around world. They also allow fans to experience music from other countries or places. An example of this is EXO’s “EXO Planet #2 – The EXO’luXion[dot].” It is EXO’s largest tour to date and it is one of the largest tours by a Korean act in recent history, with concerts held in Seoul, Taiwan, Beijing, Philippines, and North America.Additionally, with high hopes of outdoing The EXO’luXion[dot], this year’s ongoing “EXO Planet #3 – The EXO’rDIUM” is now recorded as the longest solo concert series at the Seoul Olympic Gymnasium.

All artists, solo or bands, who aspire for stardom need concert tours to showcase their talent and promote albums to the rest of the world. Internet exposure is simply not enough for artists especially that consumers these days demand for more live and interactive experiences with their music idols. In fact, tours and festivals arequintessential to the music industry especially because the Internet is bombarded with different promotions of music genres, events, albums, and artists. Concert tours allow artists to make a personal and localized connection with their fans, a connection that cannot be established in virtual spaces.

皆(みな)さん、立(た)って下(くだ)さい。: 여러분, 일어나 주세요.

立(た)たないで下(くだ)さい。: 일어나지 마세요.

母(はは)が立(た)った。: 엄마가 일어났다.

The farm-to-table movement is a practice where farms and restaurants or food suppliers have a direct sales relationship. This means that dishes served in homes or those that are sold in restaurants use raw materials that come directly from a farm which is usually located within their vicinity. In the farm-to-table movement, there are no markets, distributors, and stores involved in the process of moving farm goods to the consumers.

The farm-to-table movement is believed to have a lot of benefits for the producers and the consumers. The direct relationship of producers and consumers allow farmers to get the most profit they can get from their goods without having to deal with hagglingwholesalers or distributors. For consumers, they are guaranteed that the products they get are new or fresh and the price of the products they get may be significantly cheaper because there are no middlemen involved in the transactions. Restaurants that order by the bulk can also be guaranteed that they get a steady supply of quality goods for the right price.

This practice also benefits society as a whole because it contributes to strengthening the local economy, and it establishes social relationships. The farm-to-table movement generates income for local farmers, and the continuous demand for farm products allow them to have something they can consider a stable job. Buying directly from farmers also creates a certain level of rapport between the farmers and the consumers. In terms of economy, the support for locally produced products also guarantees the circulation and maintenance of funds within the community, hence improving its economic status. Since this is the case, there may be no financial losses for that specific place.

The farm-to-table movement also helps society by contributing less to pollution and greenhouse gas emissions which are among the leading causes of climate change. In the practice of the farm-to-table movement, the delivery of goods from the producer to the consumer is shortened, so there are lesser resources exhausted, lesser waste produced, and lesser harm brought to the environment. 

Although the farm-to-table movement is now surrounded by controversies because there are a lot of businesses that use it as an advertising ploy, a lot of farmers and restaurants still believe in its future. They say that it is a very good practice that brings a lot of benefits to people, and if more communities would adopt the farm-to-table movement, many of the world’s problems would decrease.

皆(みな)さん、座(すわ)って下(くだ)さい: 여러분, 앉아 주세요.

座(すわ)って話(はな)しましょう。: 앉아서 이야기하자.

座(すわ)らないで下(くだ)さい。: 앉지 마세요.

The Pittsburgh Pirates’ third baseman Kang Jung-ho enjoyed a two-homer night and matched his rookie season record and then some as he cranked out his 15th and 16th home run of the year. One of Kang’s solo jacks of the day came against his fellow Korean, Oh Seung-hwan, the closing pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals. But while momentarily it seemed Kang was the winner of the two in their matchup, at the end of the day, it was Oh who came out smiling as he locked down his 16th save of the season with the Cards taking down the Pirates 9-7. 

Playing at home at the PNC Park in Pittsburgh on Tuesday, Kang’s first solo jack came at the bottom of the fourth inning when he belted an 82-mile-per-hour changeup by Pirates starter Luke Weaver. The righty had kept the Pirates’ run to one throughout the first three innings while grabbing five strikeouts. After Kang, Weaver kept a steady pace on the mound and didn’t toss out anymore runs before he was relieved by Matt Bowman. Kang added another hit for the Pirates and tallied an additional run batted in (RBI) when he singled a ground ball to center field at the bottom of the fifth. The Pirates narrowed the gap after the play, trailing only by one run at 4-5. Two plays later, in the fifth, Kang drove home to score a go-ahead run when Jordy Mercer ripped a double for the Pirates. The Pirates took the first, and the last, lead of the game at 5-6 after Kang’s run. Kang’s second solo homer of the game, and the 16th of the season, came at the bottom of ninth after the Cards took back the lead earlier in the inning. The Cards made an improbable comeback by piling in three homers at the top of ninth alone to make the score 9-6 and cement the win. 

Going against his compatriot, Kang smacked Oh’s fourth pitch at the 0-2 count. The ball went over the center fence and while Kang rounded the base, Oh stood on the mound looking dumbfounded. It had been Oh’s fourth home run conceded this season. This was the third matchup between Kang and Oh in the Major League. Against Oh, Kang went 4-for-13, batting .308 with one home run and three RBIs while the two played in Korea. But during the first two matchups this year, Kang flied out every time and had no notable hits to speak of. After going 3-for-5 with two homers, Kang topped his home run record set during the rookie season last year. While it took Kang 126 games to tally 15 homers, he reached that number much faster this season, drilling his 15th and 16th homers by his 79th game. His home run is the first one in 21 days since August 16. Kang had been on the team’s disabled list after injuring his shoulder and returned to the big league after a brief rehab stint just a few days ago. 

Kang and the Pirates left the dugout with their heads hung low as the team fell into an eight-game skid after the loss. On the other side of the ground, however, Oh and the Cards were jubilant. Oh had just carded his 16th save of the season after striking out two batters in the ninth while grounding out one. As a rookie, Oh is leading the Cards as its frame thrower since late June.

もうすぐご飯(はん)の時間(じかん)です: 곧 식사시간입니다.

ちょっとまって、もうすぐ終(お)わるから: 잠깐만, 금방 끝나.

もうすぐ始(はじ)まります: 곧 시작합니다.

In the recent years, the participation of women in the government has been observed to be increasing. There are more women being elected to fill different political positions in the government. In 2015, the global participation rate of women in the national parliament is 22 percent. It increased from 11.3 percent in 1995. Rwanda, a country in Africa, has the highest number of women in the parliament with 63.8 percent of positions in the lower house. 38.5 percent of positions in the upper house are also filled by women. 

A number of major cities around the world are now headed by women. Paris elected its first female mayor, Anne Hidalgo, in 2014. Anne Hidalgo was a councilor of the city before she ran for the mayoral position. Victoria Raggi, the current mayor of Rome, is also the city’s first female mayor. She was a practicing lawyer before she was tapped by the Five-Star movement political party to become its first female mayoral bet.

There are also women who currently serve as heads-of-states. Examples are South Korean President Park Geun-hye, President Tsai Ing-wen of Taiwan, and Aung San Suu Ky of Myanmar. The latest addition to these female leaders is Theresa May, the current Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. She assumed office on July 11, 2016, after David Cameron announced his resignation from the position on June 24, 2016.

The increasing representation of women in politics is seen by experts as a way to break the glass ceiling set for women in this sector of society. They add that it will allow the increase of opportunities for women because there is someone in office who can relate to their grievances and clamors. It is believed that since many countries are now exploring ways on how to increase female participation in local and national governments, people’s attitude towards leadership is no longer highly influenced by gender.

However, there are still some skeptics who say that women’s leadership and political participation are still growing at a very slow pace. Women are still underrepresented during elections, and there are still a lot of hindrances that aspiring female leaders need to face. They hope that in the near future, female leadership will be as welcomed and encouraged as male leadership is.

ゾウの足(あし)は太(ふと)い。: 코끼리 다리는 두껍다.

麺(めん)が太(ふと)い。: 면이 통통하다.

腕(うで)が太(ふと)い。: 팔이 두껍다.

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy is holding a national shopping promotion from Sept. 29 to Oct. 9 called Korea Sale FESTA. Last year’s grand sale, Korea Black Friday, also took place from late September to mid-October. Retail companies, manufacturers and traditional markets will participate in the promotion. On Aug. 4, the ministry started receiving applications from companies who want to take part. It has received over one hundred. Last year’s grand sale was labeled a success: quarterly sales of the 22 companies that participated increased an average of 20.7 percent year-on-year. However, the event was criticized by some consumers, who said the discounts overlapped with annual sales held by department stores. 

Some critics said the grand sale’s effect on business was exaggerated. “Even without the grand sale, an increase in private consumption around that time was predictable with the end of the outbreak of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome, and the sale was scheduled just before Chuseok, when consumptions reaches its high for the year,” said a source in the retail industry. Reactions to the plan from discount chains and online markets are generally favorable. “For online shops, preparing for a national sale is easy because all we have to do is make changes on our website,” said a spokesman for Gmarket. The website saw a 20 percent increase in sales during last year’s grand sale. E-Mart had a big success with sales of samgyeopsal (pork belly) at a 20 percent discount. Department stores are expressing concerns about this year’s event after enduring criticism after last year’s. “Certain products, such as luxury goods or cosmetics, never go on sale during the year, which is why a grand sale promoting ‘huge discounts’ can be a problem for us,” said one spokesman for a department store. 

The big difference with the Korea Sale FESTA is the participation of manufacturers. Samsung C&T’s fashion division will give a 10 percent discount on some men’s clothes, accessories and Bean Pole Outdoor and Eight Seconds brands. Cosmetic brands by LG Household and Health Care will also be discounted. Manufacturers of electronic devices are in the process of choosing products to be sold at discounts. Televisions, refrigerators, air conditioners and washing machines are said to be on the list of discount products from Samsung Electronics. LG Electronics also expressed an intention to participate, but hasn’t decided on specific details. Additionally, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy will hold a shopping festival at COEX in Samseong-dong from Sept. 30 to Oct. 3 called Enjoy! Korea Sale FESTA. The event will be divided into six sectors: brands, beauty, fashion, food, culture and tourism. Each sector will sell products, hold events or provide information relevant to their respective themes. 

To publicize the opening of Korea Sale FESTA, a concert will be held on Yeongdong Boulevard in Gangnam-gu on Sept. 30. The concert will be aired in 120 countries to attract customers. “Although the event is temporary, we view the decision as a positive move with private consumption being low for the last few months,” said Oh Jun-beom, a researcher at Hyundai Research Institute. “Nevertheless, the government should take fundamental measures to ensure stable net income, the greatest contributing factor for domestic demand.”

あの子(こ)は細(ほそ)い。: 저 아이는 말랐다.

糸(いと)が細(ほそ)い。: 실이 가늘다.

細(ほそ)くなりたい。: 마르고 싶다.