SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — An annual hush descended upon South Korea Thursday as hundreds of thousands of students sat the crucial national college entrance exam, delayed for a week by a rare earthquake. Educational authorities had to change four exam sites at Pohang, affecting about 2,000 candidates, after a 5.4-magnitude quake shook the southern city a week ago. More than 60 minor aftershocks have hit Pohang throughout the past week, forcing 1,500 residents to […]
Other News
Simple water test could prevent crippling bone disease
OLDONYOSAMBU, Tanzania (Reuters) — A fast color-changing test that detects fluoride in drinking water could help prevent the crippling bone disease of skeletal fluorosis in developing countries, say UK researchers. “Fluoride is often added to drinking water, and a little bit is beneficial. It can lead to reduced levels of tooth decay but too much fluoride in drinking water is actively harmful and can lead to a disease called skeletal fluorosis, a devastating, crippling condition […]
Senator Poe says she doubts “delicadeza” is sole reason Transport Undersecretary Chavez resigned
By Meanne Corvera Eagle News Service Senator Grace Poe said that while she “admire(s)” Transport Undersecretary Cesar Chavez’s “sense of delicadeza,” she “doubt(s) that this is the only reason that prompted him to resign.” Poe, chair of the Senate committee on transport services, did not elaborate, and only noted that Chavez “seemed to be one of the (Department of Transportation) officials who was determined to fully address all the issues plaguing the MRT.” “I […]
Watch: Snake on a train: Indonesian kills serpent with bare hands
JAKARTA, Indonesia (AFP) — An Indonesian man who used his bare hands to kill a snake that was discovered slithering on a busy commuter train has become an Internet hero. The train made an emergency stop after the reptile was spotted lurking on a baggage rack in a carriage headed to Jakarta from Bogor, south of the capital. Smartphone footage, which quickly went viral, showed the bespectacled man casually snatch the snake’s tail […]
Taylor Swift bucks streaming trend
Reuters — Taylor Swift on Tuesday is proving she’s the rare artist who can defy the digital age. Her latest album, “Reputation,” is smashing sales records in part by selling physical ones. The album is bucking the streaming trend in its first week of release with over half a million copies sold on CD. That’s the biggest week for a physical album since Adele’s “25” in 2015. “Reputation” blasted to Number One on the Billboard […]
Malacanang unfazed by UN human rights spokesperson’s rebuke of Duterte over threat vs Callamard
(Eagle News) — Malacanang has dismissed the United Nations’ human rights spokesperson’s rebuke of President Rodrigo Duterte over his remark against UN special rapporteur Agnes Callamard. In a statement, Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said that Rupert Colville should “do well not to judge the colorful language the President is known for, but by what he stands for and the values he holds dear” instead. “We need to point [out] that the President’s remarks on Callamard […]
Citizen scientists asked to record rather than repel mosquitoes
CALIFORNIA, United States (Reuters) — When you next hear the high pitched whine of a mosquito, researchers from Stanford University in California, are hoping you’ll reach for your smartphone, not the repellent. The idea is to put mosquitoes under a world-wide surveillance operation using the recording device in nearly everyone’s pocket. Mosquitoes can be differentiated by the frequency of their wingbeats, which is what produces their characteristic whine. The team are calling for citizen scientists […]
Mexico’s ‘heaviest man’ has surgery to halve his weight
GUADALAJARA, Jalisco, Mexico (Reuters) — A Mexican man who weighed more than half a ton had surgery in Guadalajara on Wednesday (November 22) in a bid to halve his weight. Juan Pedro Franco, 33, has been dubbed the world’s heaviest man. Earlier this year he reportedly weighed as much as 595 kilos (1,311 pounds). But after a three-month diet Franco has reportedly shed 175 kilos in a special clinic to allow him to have the […]
North Korea: Terror relisting “disgraceful behavior” by Trump
Reuters — North Korea denounced on Wednesday (November 22) United States President Donald Trump’s decision to relist it as a state sponsor of terrorism, calling it a “serious provocation and violent infringement,” North Korean state media reported. Trump put North Korea back on a list of state sponsors of terrorism on Monday (November 20), a designation that allows the US to impose more sanctions and risks inflaming tension over North Korea’s nuclear weapons and missile […]
British embassy in Jordan appoints ‘chief mouse catcher’
AMMAN, Jordan (Reuters) — Meet Lawrence of Abdoun, a furry feline who is the first “diplo-cat” to be appointed by the British Embassy in Amman. Rescued from an animal shelter in October, Lawrence was chosen as the first overseas envoy to Palmerston, the chief mouser at the United Kingdom Foreign Office in London. The black and white fur-ball is named after T.E. Lawrence – also known as Lawrence of Arabia – a British military officer […]
China’s first cross-ocean biofuel flight lands at Chicago airport
CHICAGO, United States (CCTV) — After flying over 11,000 kilometers, Hainan Airlines Flight 497, which took off from Beijing, landed at Chicago O’Hare International Airport on Tuesday local time. The Boeing 787 Dreamliner of Hainan Airlines flew with biological aviation fuel that is produced from waste cooking oil, signaling the first Sino-U.S. green route demonstration to use aviation biofuel. The use of biofuel can reduce carbon emissions while ensuring flight safety and efficiency, according to […]
NBA: Dragic gores Celtics as Heat pull off upset
MIAMI, United States (AFP) — Goran Dragic scored 27 points as the Miami Heat ended Boston’s 16-game winning streak on Wednesday with an upset 104-98 victory. Dion Waiters added 26 points for Miami as the Heat improved to 8-9 to stun the Celtics, who had not lost since the opening two games of the season. Slovenian star Dragic contributed five assists and five rebounds while Waiters had six assists. Tyler Johnson was the only other […]





