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THE SCALE model of El Helicoide stands hauntingly in the middle of the exhibition room. Featuring a two-and-a-half-mile long helix of ascending and descending circular ramps*, the futuristic edifice was to become the first drive-through shopping mall in the world and a monument of Venezuela’s 1950s oil prosperity. However, the concept of a panoptical mall was as fleeting as the Venezuelan oil dream. By the time of El Helicoide’s completion, Venezuela was mired in a political turmoil, so the to-be mall was transformed into a prison and torture facility. With its iconic panoptic structure lookin
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Nguyen Thi Lan Phuong
2019.10.06 20:35
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THE FOLLOWING is a quick quiz on Korean cultural codes: ( ) is a place where many choose to go on their first date, to hang out with friends, and to visit with family members on holidays. The answer is... the cinema. According to IHS Markit, South Korea is the fourth largest movie market in the world, which is quite impressive considering its relatively modest population. Despite movies being part of pop-culture, only a select few, usually professional film critics, were entrusted with evaluating a film’s artistic value. In contrast to this highly elitist past, the manner of consuming movies h
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Kwon Do-in
2019.10.06 20:30
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THIS YEAR’S Yon-Ko Games is rather peculiar because its irregular schedule places the event on the first week of September, or more surprisingly, the first week of school. The hype is nonetheless the same, but the shortened time frame places greater pressure on the athletes to perform well. Out of the five sports, ice hockey is one of the more uncommon sports in Korea, yet also a main highlight of the Yon-Ko games. The Yonsei Annals interviewed this year’s team captain, Ahn Jae-in (Sr., Dept. of Physical Education), and three dedicated players—Lee Tae-kyung (Jr., Dept. of Sport Industry
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Nam Hyun-jin
2019.09.04 20:33
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JUNE 16, 2019—Korean soccer history was made when the Korean national team came runner-up in the FIFA U-20 World Cup for the first time. In the middle of it all was Choi Jun (Soph., Dept. of Sport Industry Studies), scoring one of the best goals of the tournament nominated by FIFA and proudly representing both Yonsei University and college athletes amid the professional players. The Yonsei Annals interviewed Choi Jun to hear about how the U-20 World Cup transformed his life as a professional soccer player. Annals: How did you start playing soccer? Choi: Since my older brother played socc
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Noh Ruby
2019.09.04 01:05
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ON JUNE 1, 2019 the Seoul Queer Parade took to the streets of Seoul Plaza, the political center of Seoul. On the same day, the Queer Ceremony Opposition Festival took place in front of Daehanmun just across the street from the Seoul Queer Parade. Korean society is deeply divided in its views towards the LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer) community, and such division is causing Korean LGBTQs, their family and friends to suffer from many misconceptions and prejudice, which in turn makes them conceal their identities. In commemoration of the 20th anniversary of the Seoul Queer Par
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Lee Chae-wan
2019.06.02 23:52
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“UNTIL THE spirit of the People rules the world with freedom, I shall wade on even through darkened waters,” sings An Chi-hwan in his song “Pine, pine, the ever green pine*.” During the 1980s democratization movements, a voice could be heard singing the song of the people, above the chaos of daily student protests and police brutality. In remembrance of the 5.18 Gwangju Uprising**, which embodies the Korean struggle for justice, The Yonsei Annals interviewed An Chi-hwan, a singer and Yonsei graduate of the Department of Social Welfare, to know more about his music career from the times of poli
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Lee So-jung, Yang Ji-weon
2019.05.07 14:43
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MR. KANG Chul-chung, a deliveryman under CJ Logistics, begins his day at 6.20 a.m., leaving his house in haste to the logistics warehouse in Yong-san. After hours of unpaid package sorting and distribution in the warehouse, it is only slightly after noon when Kang starts his delivery. With around 400 packages that need to be delivered within the day, Mr. Kang spends another 8 hours delivering packages, just making a commission of approximately 770 per package delivered. The legal limit of 52 working hours per week implemented by the government does not mean anything to Kang who works 70 hour
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Jo Beom-su, Lee Chae-wan
2019.04.04 01:46
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FEB. 14, 2019. Unlike its usual emptiness during winter break, Baekyang-ro was filled with people scurrying their way toward the Centennial Hall of Yonsei University, emblazoned with a huge blue banner that signaled the opening of the second annual Global Engagement & Empowerment Forum (GEEF). The time was 9:30 a.m., an hour away from the opening ceremony, but the lobby was already packed with people queuing up for registration, sharing their excitement in different languages. Proudly wearing their badges around their necks, attendants entered the hall and took their seats one after another un
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Park Jae-ha, Yang Ji-weon
2019.03.06 11:21
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EYES SQUINT into a rainbow shape as pink and red hues bloom on each side of the lovely cheeks. The corners of the lips begin to tug upwards into a cheeky grin. Each one of us has a distinctive smile, all equally endearing. After all, there are a million reasons to smile—even the most trivial things that happen in the walks of our lives can come to shower us with a new motive to smile. With the year 2018 now drawing to an end, a special kind of warmth is elicited in our bodies as we relive in our heads the happy memories of the year. So, The Yonsei Annals decided to take to the streets of
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Yoon Young-seo
2018.12.02 19:29
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MORE LIKELY than not, chances are that you must have encountered Google Books when researching or browsing online. Thanks to Google Books, the process of finding research materials and gathering sources has been extremely expedited—it not only removes the need to meticulously pore over book by book at the library, but also provides access to books that are physically inaccessible. This comfort is only made possible due to the Library Project that Google Books initiated in 2004. This project is a visionary undertaking, partnering with more than 60 libraries around the world to digitize ov
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Yang Ji-weon
2018.11.04 21:51
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THIS COMING semester, Yonsei University will be offering a master’s program in artificial intelligence (AI) and a common elective in the College of Engineering encompassing AI, big data*, Internet of Things (IoT)**, and robotics. The establishment of these new academic courses is seen as the culmination of the university’s efforts to build an education curriculum befitting the era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Ever since the phrase “Fourth Industrial Revolution” was first introduced by the World Economic Forum in 2016, there has been much discourse regarding what it is and what innovati
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Kwon Young-sau
2018.11.04 14:50
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“WHEN YOU turn away from seeing me and go, gently, without a word, I shall send you away*.” Ask any Korean on the street about the poem “Azaleas,” and they are likely to easily recite the line written above. Or at least, they will be able to hum the melody of “Azaleas,” a song with the same title by Son Suk-woo, which was heavily inspired by the original poem. The very poet of the cherished poem is Kim So-wol. He published only one poem collection in his lifetime, titled Azaleas, but he remains the most beloved poet of Korea, as shown from the results of a reader’s poll conducted by Poet’s Wor
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Lee Chae-wan
2018.10.03 18:54
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“A WISE man can acquaint himself with them before the morning is over; a lesser man can learn them in the space of ten days,” says the Hun min jeong eum* Hae-rye (“Hun min jeong eum Explanation and Examples”). King Sejong invented the Korean alphabet, Han-geul (han refers to “Korean” and geul refers to “script”), to provide a means of writing for the illiterate. It was designed to be easy to learn and write even for the commoners of the day, and the underlying principles of Han-geul make it adequate for word processing even in the context of modern technology. Geoffrey Sampson, a renowned Engl
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Khangerey Alua, Lee Hyun-kyung
2018.10.03 18:33
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ON OCTOBER 9, South Korea joins together to celebrate Han-geul Day, a day to commemorate the invention and proclamation of Han-geul as the official Korean writing system. While most national holidays focus on specific historical events or figures, Han-geul Day stands out as being unusual. Living in Korea, we see Han-guel in every corner of our lives—in books, on buses, as subtitles, on posters and street signs, and even in contemporary artwork—what makes it worth commemorating? However, if one looks deep enough, Han-geul is not only a tool for writing but a symbol of Korean identit
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Sardina Eleni, Yoon Young-seo
2018.10.03 17:37
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AN ALUMNA of the Department of Political Science and International Studies of Yonsei University and the incumbent Foreign Minister of the Republic of Korea, Kang Kyung-wha is widely remarked as an eminent female leader in the contemporary Korean society. Former Editor-in-Chief of The Yonsei Annals, Minister Kang is the first woman to have ever led the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Korea. Her achievements as a Korean female national in the domestic and international realms of diplomacy continue to inspire countless young minds. In an exclusive interview with the The Yonsei Annals, Minister Kan
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Han Hee-ho, Shin Yesun
2018.09.02 11:41
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JUNE IS the month of ho guk bo hun, a Korean term that refers to the defense of one’s nation and redemption of patriotism. The term ho guk bo hun connotes the sacrifice of lives for the sake of national security and democracy. As the dates of the outbreak of the Korean War, June pro-democracy movement, and Memorial Day all happen to be in June, this month is referred to as the month of ho guk bo hun. To commemorate the souls of the fallen heroes who served as the guardian of peace and democracy of this nation, the national commemoration ceremony is annually held in the Seoul National Cemetery.
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Lee Hyun-kyung
2018.06.04 11:10
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A NEW wind blows in the Korean Peninsula. After decades of conflict and hostility, South Korea, North Korea and the United States prepare to open a forum for discussion and begin a new phase of relations. In late April, the third South-North Korea summit will be held in Pan-mun-jeom; not long after, the very first North Korea–U.S. summit will take place in the summer. It is expected that these summits will bring the long-waited peace in the Korean Peninsula. The question is: Can we bring permanent power to the Korean Peninsula? What should we do?From threats to talksIn January 2018, Lead
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Kim Bo-dam, Song In-jun
2018.05.08 14:23
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WALKING AROUND the streets of Beijing, it is hard not to notice one particular face, slightly pudgy and aging, on a bulk of posters rife with socialist slogans. It takes a glance at the front page of any local newspaper to be updated on the latest endeavors of one of the world’s most powerful rulers. This man, President Xi Jinping, recently removed the two-term limit on the Chinese presidency, allowing himself to rule China as its lifelong leader. In other words, China is preparing to embrace a new political era shaped by the limitless power of Xi Jinping. Background After assuming office in 2
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Julius Hulshof
2018.05.07 22:25
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THERE EXISTS a kind of person who radiates an inexplicable level of gravity. Even if they are not doing anything of particular significance, their presence is enough to win the attention of an entire crowd. Professor John Joseph Mearsheimer is one of those people. His entrance proved powerful enough to replace a chatty atmosphere of an auditorium full of spectators with a silenced air of anticipation. In the special lecture that was hosted by the Graduate School of International Studies (GSIS) on March 22, Mearsheimer spoke about how the aggressive rise of China is as unavoidable as the ebb an
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Shin Yesun
2018.05.07 22:04
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DO YOU know that you do not need to travel to the Seoul Museum of Art or the D Museum for an eye-opening exhibition if you are a Yonsei student? Although many students regularly visit the Centennial Hall for musical concerts, only a few are aware of the Yonsei Museum that is housed in the same building. Emblazoned with national treasure, a prestigious collection of prehistoric relics, the Lee Han-yeol Memorial, and 12 zodiac animals crafted in white jade, the Yonsei Museum offers a fulfilling experience for museum-lovers. As Korea’s first institution to unearth the peninsula’s prehistoric reli
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Kim Min-jung, Lee Ha-eun
2018.04.09 18:01