The elimination of China’s decades-old “one child” policy is expected to create new opportunities for Korean toy and children’s product makers, while the worldwide emphasis on environmental protection is expected to generate more demand for electric cars and environmentally-friendly buildings, which could benefit Korean manufacturers. These are just some of the strategies and trends outlined in the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency’s annual report for how Korean companies can take advantage of newly emerging opportunities across the world next year, based on data collected from its 33 trade offices in different countries. 

The end of China’s population control policy, perhaps the most infamous in the world, in 2015 is expected to be a boon for Korean manufacturers of children’s products, as the younger population of its giant neighbor will grow in coming years. “As the safety of children’s products made in China is dubious after the melamine-tainted powdered milk scandal [in 2008], parents are looking for quality import products,” said Ro Hyun-joo, who works at the Korean trade agency’s Hangzhou office in southeastern China. As China’s third-largest trading partner, Korea has a good chance of banking on the opportunity. Exports of Korean children’s products amounted to $230 million in 2015, a jump of 5.8 times from five years prior, according to data from the Korea Customs Service. “The popularity of Korean pop culture in China and the influence of successful television programs like ‘Dad! Where are We Going?’ [a reality show where children and their fathers go on trips together] may have spurred Chinese interest for Korean child care goods,” Ro said. 

Prospects are also good for Korean companies hoping to enter countries like Paraguay, the Philippines and Vietnam, the report said. In particular, Paraguay’s “Maquila Program,” which allows foreign factories to import certain materials and equipment tariff-free and then export finished goods, is a notable business opportunity that could help Korean companies’ entry into Latin American markets. In terms of worldwide trends, the trade agency pointed to increasing demand for environmentally-friendly products, including electric bicycles, vehicles and green buildings. Germany, with its strong automakers, has accelerated development of electric cars. Volkswagen is working toward releasing over 20 electric vehicle models by 2020 and replacing 25 percent of its cars with electric ones. 

Korean automakers Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors have released the Ioniq and Niro but they are still in the early stages of development. Korea itself lacks the infrastructure to ramp up development. While there are around 80,000 electric vehicles registered in Korea, the number of fast charging stations nationwide is less than 500 units. Compared to the United States, where there are 6.6 vehicles per charging station, and China, where the number is 3.8, there are a whopping 17 electric vehicles per station in Korea. “Koreans have a competitive edge in battery-making technology and so we expect Korean companies to leap into the electric mobility business in the future,” said Lee Ho-bin, a Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency employee in Germany.

Korea’s start-up scene lacks diversity in gender and nationality compared to the world’s leading regions for start-ups and innovation, according to a study on Korean start-ups. Women are just 9 percent of start-up founders in Korea, versus 24 percent in Silicon Valley, 20 percent in Tel Aviv and 19 percent in Singapore, according to a white paper released Wednesday by the Korean Startup Ecosystem Forum, a private think tank. Gender imbalance is rampant worldwide, even in Silicon Valley where just 10 percent of founders of so-called high-growth firms are women. But start-ups in Korea hire more women than other cities. Female employees make up 32 percent of Korean start-ups, while just 29 percent in Silicon Valley and 24 percent in London. “Despite low entrepreneurship among women, overall participation of women in Korean start-ups is at a globally competitive level,” said Lee Ji-eun, professor of business information at Hanyang Cyber University and one of the co-authors of the study, at a news conference Wednesday at Google Campus Seoul. 

The white paper is based on surveys and interviews with 295 start-ups in Seoul and Gyeonggi. The results were compared with four other technologically advanced regions, or start-up hubs. Foreign participation in the Korean start-up ecosystem is much lower than in the other locations. Whereas London start-ups fill as much as 53 percent of their workforce with non-British nationals, and the percentage in Singapore stands at 52 percent, just 17 percent of Korea’s workforce is foreign. Korean regulations that place a 20 percent cap on the number of international employees in any company and a complicated and difficult visa system limits international diversity, the study says. These factors have been previously noted by countless entrepreneurs and experts who have pointed out that President Park Geun-hye’s administration has set “creative economy” as a key policy imitative but hasn’t eased regulations for foreigners. Investments in Korean start-ups, however, have risen in the past two years. The number of rounds of investments made in start-ups that are less than a year old increased 73 percent to 88 and investments in two- to three-year-old start-ups also rose 81 percent to 62. 

“Korea’s start-up ecosystem has grown rapidly in the past four years,” said Hwang Byung-sun, managing director of Big Bang Angels and co-editor of the study. “China and Southeast Asia have been posting growth but Korea doesn’t fall behind. But the excellence of our ecosystem isn’t that much publicized internationally, which led us to publish this white paper.” The study shows that the average start-up entrepreneur in Korea is a man in his 30s who has an engineering degree, is fluent in English and had at least five years’ work experience. More entrepreneurs with degrees at the master’s level or above have joined start-ups this year. The percentage of master’s degree holders is now 25 percent, up from 15 percent two years ago, and those with doctorate degrees more than tripled to 10 percent in the same time frame. In Silicon Valley, the percentage of master’s degree holders was 30 percent and doctorate degree holders was 10 percent in 2014, the latest year data was available for. The cost of launching a start-up in Korea is $27,000 and the number of starting members is 2.78 on average. It takes about four years for a start-up to receive a Series A investment, or the first round of venture capital financing. 

By region within Seoul and Gyeonggi, Gangnam in southern Seoul, accommodated the largest portion of start-ups at 39 percent, followed by Seongnam in Gyeonggi at 22 percent. “Gangnam is where the investment and networking are,” said Back Sang-hoon, professor of digital media at Kyungsung University and one of the study’s co-authors. “Over 3,000 start-up related events take place a year and 81 percent of all venture capital firms are located in Gangnam."

“E.T. the Extraterrestrial,” “Avatar,” “The Martian,” “Artificial Intelligence,” and “Jurassic Park” are only some of the most famous science-fiction or sci-fi movies that tickled the imagination of audiences. They are popular because they take viewers to a different realm that is not as enchanted or bizarre as the supernatural world. They provide a suspension of disbelief long enough to leave audiences entertained.

Science fiction is a subgenre of speculative fiction, a broader category that involves elements, settings, and characters created out of imagination and speculation far from reality and everyday life. Sci-fi usually tackles the possible consequences of scientific and other innovations. The imagined aspects of sci-fi movies include futuristic science, space travel, time travel, faster than light travel, parallel universe, and extraterrestrial life. 

Writers usually base their writing on alternative worlds or possible futures, but they are not the same as worlds portrayed in fantasy movies and stories. The fictional element of science fiction stories are based on scientifically established physical laws or hypothesized ones.

Science fiction originated in the 1600s. However, some authors argue that the first true works of science fiction are Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein” and “The Last Man.” Edgar Allan Poe, another celebrated author, wrote a story about a flight to the moon. Following these works, many examples of science fantasy have emerged all throughout the century.

Science fiction has two categories. One is hard science fiction which pays attention to physics, astrophysics, and chemistry. Films of this category include “Gravity” and “The Martian.” The other is soft science fiction which is characterized by its focus on social sciences such as psychology, economics, political science, sociology, and anthropology. Examples of soft science fiction films are the “Planet of the Apes” franchise, the “Star Trek” franchise, and “Terminator.”

Aside from the two categories, science fiction also has several subgenres. A famous subgenre is time travel which is very common in films. Time travel stories focus on the consequences of traveling into the past or the future. Good examples time travel theme are “Inception” and “Interstellar.” Other subgenres are alternative history, space opera, climate fiction.

Science fiction as a category of literature is still a growing genre in South Korea. To date, there are only a few science fiction writers, but the number is growing.

Cho Yoon-ji, a Korean professional golfer in her eighth year at the KLPGA, claimed her first season title on Sunday at the ADT CAPS Championship 2016. During the final round of the ADT CAPS Championship, the final championship of the season, which took place on Sunday at the South Spring Country Club in Incheon, Cho shot 4-under to wrap up the entire event 11-under 205. Cho, an overnight leader who was ahead by two shots after the second round on Saturday, started out the day strong on Sunday, carding three straight birdies from the first to third hole. Although she hit a brief bump at the seventh where she took a bogey, the win from the championship looked guaranteed for the golfer. 

Even at the 15th, when her ball trickled into a hazard, she still managed to remain at the top, nabbing a par despite the difficulty. She then almost recorded an eagle on the next hole, but settled for a birdie instead. But others steadily narrowed the gap between them and the leader, and by the latter half of the day, Cho was ahead only by one shot. At the final hole, Cho’s tee shot fell into a bunker, which allowed one of the runners-up, Lee Min-young, who was tied at second then, to catch up. But fortunately, Cho’s second shot fell through and found the green while Lee’s approach shot landed just outside the green. Cho’s birdie putt, a long way from home, came up short of the pin, still leaving a slim chance for Lee to tie the match and force the tourney into a playoff. Lee would still be able to take a crack at the title if she nailed a birdie approach. Instead of a wedge, she chose a putter and took a shot beyond the green but eventually failed to tally a birdie, giving Cho a clear line of sight between herself and the trophy. 

Cho capitalized on the chance by sinking in the par putt to finish the competition at the top of the leaderboard, marking her third career win. During the Winner’s Interview after the tournament, Cho said, “I didn’t even think of winning the title. But I do have some good memories from this course so I decided to go at it lighthearted.” During the 2015 E1 Charity Open played on the same course as the ADT CAPS Championships, Cho tallied eight birdies in a row from the first to the eighth hole of the third round. “I got nervous stating at the 15th hole [of the final round] when the ball fell into the hazard,” Cho said. “I may not have shown it but I was really on edge. But I am glad to conclude the event with good results.” 

Also at this year’s KLPGA, Ko Jin-young claimed the Player of the Year award, accumulating a total of 562 KLPGA points, one point ahead of the runner-up, Park Sung-hyun. Park, who ended her season at the KLPGA early to prepare herself for the U.S.-based LPGA tour next year, still managed to claim several honors, topping the Official Money rankings as well as the Scoring Average and taking the most number of wins this season. Lee Jeong-eun captured the Rookie of the Year award with a total of 1997 Rookie Point from this year’s KLPGA.

South Korea was assured of a “steadfast and strong” alliance with the United States by U.S. President-elect Donald J. Trump in a phone conversation with President Park Geun-hye Thursday. According to the Blue House, Park spoke with Trump for about 10 minutes Thursday morning. “We are with you all the way and we will not waver,” the Blue House quoted Trump as saying in describing Washington’s policy toward Seoul under his presidency. 

After congratulating Trump on his victory, Park stressed the importance of the Korea-U.S. alliance, calling it the “cornerstone for peace and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific region,” the Blue House said. She also expressed her hope to further strengthen and develop the alliance for the common interests of the two countries. Concerns were high in Korea that the military alliance, started in 1953, will face radical changes under Trump. During the presidential campaign, he repeatedly said South Korea doesn’t pay enough for its own defense and the presence of U.S. troops in Korea doesn’t guarantee peace. He also said he was open to South Korea and Japan having their own nuclear weapons to defend against North Korea, indicating that the American nuclear umbrella in the region could be withdrawn if allies don’t pay the United States more. He has consistently emphasized a will to consider withdrawing U.S. troops from the region. 

The Blue House said Park stressed that the North’s nuclear and missile threats are the biggest challenge to the Korea-U.S. alliance, and close cooperation between Seoul and Washington is crucial to prevent Pyongyang’s provocations. She also reminded him that the North has a history of carrying out provocations during the transition period between U.S. administrations. According to the Blue House, Trump said he agreed with Park’s remarks “100 percent,” and promised that the United States “will be steadfast and strong with respect to working with [South Korea] to protect against the instability in North Korea.” Park said she looks forward to meeting Trump in the near future for a more in-depth discussion and invited him to visit Korea soon. The Blue House said Trump expressed his appreciation. “I am with you,” he was quoted as saying. 

The Blue House also said Trump stressed the importance of the alliance by saying, “We will all be safe together.” The conversation also included some icebreakers. Trump said he has a high appreciation of Korean products as he had a lot of experience purchasing appliances for his real estate business, the Blue House said. He also said he has many good friends in Korea.

The word fusion means the process of combining two or more distinct entities into a whole new one. Fusion cuisine refers to the combination of various kinds of cuisine exhibited in various methods. For example, an American dish can be prepared with influences from Mexican and Texan cuisines, giving rise to a hybrid cuisine called “Tex-Mex.” Dishes based on one culture can also be prepared using ingredients and flavors native to another culture. For instance, pizza (an Italian food) can be made using taco ingredients (from Mexican cuisine).

Many tourists are now interested in visiting restaurants because of their fusion cuisine, a trend that makes food tourism even more mainstream. It is now also customary for chefs to go to countries to learn how to make authentic dishes from other countries. A perfect example is David Chang, a Korean-American chef who went to Japan to learn about noodles and came back to the U.S. to build a culinary empire.

In the United States, many chefs reintroduce dishes local to them by adding Asian twists to the dishes to cater to evolving American tastes as well as Asian palates. For instance, Mexicans find kimchi (a famous Korean dish) a good ingredient for burritos (a Mexican dish common in the U.S.) while curry and basmati rice (both common Indian ingredients) are now used for sushi (a Japanese dish that has become popular around the world). American ingredients can also be incorporated in foreign dishes to make them more familiar to American palates like David Chang’s recreation of ramen (a Japanese staple) using bacon (an American food) to prepare the broth.

Although fusion cuisine seems relatively new, it is a social phenomenon that resulted from many forces. In fact, ancient cultures that have come in contact with each other did experience fusion cuisine under various circumstances. A country’s cuisine can be influenced by a country’s neighbors or previous colonizers. For instance, many dishes in Malaysia are fusion cuisines between Malay, Javanese, Chinese, and Indian cuisine with light influences from Thai, Portuguese, Dutch, and British cuisines. Fusion cuisine can also be a result of cultural assimilation which is perhaps one of the biggest drivers of all. A perfect example is the United States, especially California and New York, which is a melting pot of diverse cultures from around the world. 

These days, however, fusion cuisine is usually a deliberatecombination of cookeries to create something new for the market especially for culturally diverse consumers and tourists. It has become a craft that many aspiring chefs hope to master to make a name in the culinary industry.

After dominating the local KLPGA tour with seven titles just this year alone, Korean power hitter Park Sung-hyun announced Monday that she would join the U.S.-based LPGA tour next year. Park, currently ranked ninth in the world according to the latest Rolex Rankings, has had her best season since her pro debut. She finished at the top of the KLPGA circuit in various categories including scoring average, driving distance and official money rankings. In the middle of her busy Korea-circuit schedule, Park even managed to play abroad in various U.S.-based tour events under invitation, including the U.S. Women’s Open in July and Evian Championship in France in September, where she finished third and second respectively. “It was a fruitful year for me,” Park said during a press conference in Seoul on Monday. “Going to the LPGA has been my dream since I was little, and I have decided now is time. “I have mixed feelings, anxiety and excitement all at the same time about going to the United States next season, but I am going to take things one step at a time.” 

Park gained membership to the LPGA after earning $682,000 this year from the U.S.-based events in which she participated under invitation. That puts her within the top 25 on the LPGA Money List. According to LPGA regulations, a non-member who earns an amount of money “equal to or greater than the amount of official money won by the member who was in 40th place on the Money List at that time” may be given full LPGA membership even without a win from the tour or having to go through the LPGA qualifying school. Park is the first Korean golfer to join the LPGA by exploiting this rule. “I’ve been saying all year long that I was not entirely sure whether I should join the LPGA, but frankly, I leaned toward joining the tour,” Park said. “I asked players who are on the tour already, and all of them told me to come, which put me at ease.” 

Park, who averaged 265.6 yards this year in driving distance, will join the power-hitting club that includes golfers Joanna Klatten of France and Lexi Thompson of the United States, who are ranked first and second in this year’s LPGA tour with average driving distances of 281.37 yards and 277.606 yards, respectively. Park’s compatriot, Kim Sei-young, is listed fourth in the category with 271.977 yards on average. In order to maximize her competitive edge in the LPGA, Park is taking time off to prepare for next year and focus on perfecting her plays. “The LPGA season starts early next year, which is why I decided to end the year early even though the season in Korea is still ongoing,” Park said. “I was on the verge of crying on Sunday [the final day of the Fantom Classic, her last KLPGA event of the year].” “I am going to make my debut in January at the Pure Silk Bahamas LPGA Classic,” Park said. “I will try to win the rookie of the year award, which I did not get in the KLPGA.” The golfer cited her comfort with playing in the United States as the reason behind her success thus far. Still, she is without a title from the LPGA, and a trophy is part of Park’s ambitions. She says she wants to compete against players like No.1 Lydia Ko of New Zealand and No.2 Ariya Jutanugarn of Thailand to win her first title on the U.S.-based tour. 

Sema Sports, a Seoul-based agency, has already prepared a home for her in Orlando, Florida. “Park will leave Korea this weekend with her coach, caddy and English tutor, who will help her settle in the United States,” the agency said. Park will join a pool of Korean players already competing on the American pro golf tour, considered the most talented bunch in the golf world. Korea has 24 players ranked in the top 50 on the Rolex Rankings, and out of the 30 LPGA tour events played this year so far, Korean golfers have won nine titles, the most out of any country.

When there is a problem, whether it be little things like arguments to car accidents, people say “Let’s call the police.” When they arrive, the quarrels stop and everything is settled by law. 

Not only in disputes are the police needed. Many are also there to control the traffic in busy roads and look for drunk drivers or speeding vehicles. They are also called the ‘canes of the public,’ since they help the public live a comfortable life. 

A problem related with the police is being talked about. The law that allows the police to arrest anyone who insults them is the problem. Incidents of these arrests are increasing, with 86 per month last year to 110 this year. The law gives power to the police, who are sometimes mistreated by people. 

Due to this law, many are not as aggressive to the police as before and now look up to them. It also helps them carry out their duties more easily, with less people arguing and giving insults. All in all, it seems that the overall problem solving process is going about more swiftly. 

The abuse of the law is what is creating the fuss. With the power of the law behind them, some police are abusing it for their personal purposes. Some have used it for revenge for past quarrels. This is not illegal, since the law allows it and no legal punishments are made for such policemen. 

There being no exact guidelines to the limit of ‘insulting’ is also problematic. The police arrests people when they feel insulted and there are no exact standards for insulting an officer. If a person looked oddly at an officer and he thought badly of this, the innocent civilian is eligible for arrest just because he looked at the police. 

A third problem is related to these officers’ behaviors. The law gives them supreme power over the ordinary citizen. Many feel uncomfortable, since some policemen are not treating them kindly, but are aggressive toward problem makers. Though this has resulted in fast problem solving, it has also led to unjustly arrested people and a more negative image of the overall police system.

Samsung BioLogics, a producer of complex biologic drugs for international pharmaceutical companies, offered its shares for sale to the public on Wednesday, a week ahead of its IPO. One out of 4.1 investors grabbed the chance to purchase shares Wednesday, which seems to be relatively less popular than its affiliates, Cheil Industries and Samsung SDS, both of which were listed in 2014. “Investors seem to be taking a wait-and-see attitude given it’s the first day,” said a brokerage house spokesman. 

Investor sentiment in biopharmaceutical shares worsened recently largely due to a recent trading scandal involving Hanmi Pharmaceutical. The company, listed on the Kospi, is accused of leaking inside information about its termination of a contract with German drugmaker Boehringer Ingelheim to enable some investors to dump their shares ahead of the announcements. Its share prices have nearly halved since Sept. 30, the day the company announced it was ending the deal. The drug-manufacturing unit of Samsung has offered 3.38 million shares, or 20 percent of the shares it will debut on the benchmark Kospi, to interested investors during the two-day sale. Shares are priced at 136,000 won ($118), the top end of the company’s range, after 97 percent of institutional investors expressed willingness to pay 113,000 won to 136,000 won. 

The biologic drug manufacturer, one of the world’s largest, aims to raise 2.25 trillion won through its IPO, which could become the second largest in the world this year after Dong Energy’s $2.6 billion listing on the Copenhagen Exchange in June. Following the IPO, the market cap of Samsung BioLogics is expected to reach as much as 8.99 trillion won, landing it among the top 30 listed companies on Korea’s main bourse. Samsung C&T owns 52.1 percent and Samsung Electronics has a 47.8 percent stake in Samsung BioLogics. Samsung, the world’s top producer of smartphones, TVs and memory chips, is now betting on biopharmaceuticals for growth. The global market for biosimilar products, the lower-cost copies of complex biotech drugs, was $2.29 billion last year but is forecast to skyrocket to $6.22 billion by 2020, according to market researcher MarketsandMarkets. 

With capital raised through the IPO, Samsung BioLogics plans to build a factory with the additional annual manufacturing capacity of 360,000 liters by 2018. Private investors may purchase shares through six brokerage houses: Korea Investment & Securities and NH Investment & Securities are handling the IPO. The shares are also available from Samsung Securities, Shinhan Investment, KB Investment & Securities and Hana Investment.

The monthly pay of contract and part-time workers rose 1.8 percent in August from last year, while the figure for salaried employees grew even faster at 3.7 percent, further widening the gap between those holding stable and unstable jobs, according to the latest data released by the country’s statistics agency on Thursday. The average monthly pay of part-timers was 1.49 million won ($1,306) in August and 2.79 million won for salaried employees. 

“The wage gap between full-time and part-time workers recorded 10.5 percent, a rise of 0.3 percentage points compared to last year,” said Shim Won-bo, a director at Statistics Korea. “There are more contract workers enrolled in health and employment insurance programs from their companies, while fewer people are enjoying national pension benefits compared to the past.” The data suggests that contract workers are accepting any job available regardless of the type of benefits they receive from the employer. These part-timers are getting more retirement benefits and overtime payment, but other benefits like bonuses and amount of paid vacation have been dropped. The number of contract workers and part-timers hit 6.44 million in August, a 2.8 percent increase from last year, and they now account for 32.8 percent of the total working population in Korea. 

Around 53 percent of such workers said they chose to work at their current jobs voluntarily, which is 2.8 percentage points higher compared to last year. They worked an average of two years and five months at their jobs, a month longer than last year. Women make up a majority of part-timers, close to 55 percent, and the number continues to rise each year. Statistics Korea data suggested this might be because women were more willing to settle for less pay, as 54.2 percent of economically inactive women seeking work said they want to make 1 to 2 million won a month. Other government data released Thursday showed that the economically inactive population, including students and retirees, fell 0.5 percent in August year on year to record 15.94 million. 

Around 35.9 percent of those not currently working said they were focusing on housework, and another 24.9 percent are currently in school. About 16 percent of the economically inactive population are thinking about getting a job or starting a new business within a year. Of those who said they would like to do so within a year, 46.9 percent said they were fine with earning less than 2 million won a month. The portion of those who felt they were too old to work rose 0.7 percentage points from last year to reach 13.4 percent.