Deployment Plan

[Anchor Lead]



The Korean government is considering sending U.N. peacekeeping forces to Haiti to help maintain order there. Korea has also sent its second emergency relief team to the earthquake-ravaged nation.



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The Haitian government is no longer functioning. Law enforcement in the island country has long reached its limit in restoring order. The Korean government is thus considering sending peacekeeping forces to maintain order in Haiti.



[Soundbite] Cheon Yeong-u (Min. of Foreign Affairs & Trade) : “We can’t ignore what’s going on outside the county. The Haitian disaster can’t be someone else’s affair.”



The Foreign Ministry and the Defense Ministry are leading inter-departmental discussions on the proposed deployment. The idea is to send 200 or 300 troops. The government will seek parliamentary approval after finalizing its dispatch plan with the U.N. The security situation in Haiti is worsening by the day, so Seoul will speed up the process as much as possible. If approved, Korean peacekeeping forces are expected to leave for Haiti as early as late next month. Korea’s second emergency relief team has also left for Haiti. The 18-member delegation will replace the first team sent last week. The second team is comprised mainly of medical staff to treat the injured rather than search for survivors buried in the rubble.



2. Celebrity Charity



[Anchor Lead]



Celebrities in Korea are donating to help Haiti recover from the earthquake. They’re putting up large amounts of money to be used in helping with relief and reconstruction.



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A celebrity couple Cha In-pyo and Sin Ae-ra says the Haiti earthquake is heart breaking news. This is because the couple has been supporting a Haitian girl named Westerine for the last five years. They had even visited the girl last year in Haiti.



[Soundbite] Cha In-pyo (Actor) : “Children are the most vulnerable victims of poverty.”



They donated around 89,000 dollars at the sad news of Westerine’s home country. Figure skating star Kim Yu-na is also pitching in to help. Though she is busy training for the Winter Olympics opening next month, she also donated around $89,000.



[Soundbite] Chae Jeong-a (Unicef) : “She wanted to donate the money after hearing the news.”



Pro golfer Choi Kyung-ju has donated his prize money from the Sony Open of roughly $23,000. Actor Sin Yeong-gyun donated $100,000 saying the movie industry should take the lead in supporting the Haitian people. Korea pop group Tiara also donated around $8,900 for those suffering in Haiti. More and more celebrities are taking part to help out the victims in Haiti.



3. Universal Studio



[Anchor Lead]



Universal Studios has agreed to build a theme park in Korea. The plan is to create Asia’s largest theme park and resort in a southern suburb of Seoul.



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This rollercoaster takes passengers through Jurassic Park and shows characters from the Hollywood blockbuster film. Universal Studios will build a theme park in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province. This bare land will house Asia’s largest theme park and resort by 2014 covering more than four square kilometers. Universal has four other theme parks and resorts in Los Angeles; Orlando, Florida; Osaka, Japan; and Singapore. But the Korean park will be more like a resort with lodging facilities, a large discount mart, and even an 18-hole golf course. Director Steven Spielberg will also serve as a consultant to the project.



[Soundbite] Thomas Williams (CEO, Universal Studios)



Gyeonggi Province says the theme park and resort will draw about 15 million visitors a year after completion. The project is expected to cost at least 2.6 billion U.S. dollars. The venture’s 15 investors including the Lotte Group and POSCO will raise most of the needed amount by selling condos.



4. Alzheimer’s Drug



[Anchor Lead]



A Korean venture company has developed a new substance that’s effective in treating Alzheimer’s disease. The drug has been sold to a leading pharmaceutical firm for 290 million dollars.



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This is a substance for treating Alzheimer’s disease developed by a local venture company. The substance was injected into only one out of two mice with Alzheimer’s. Then the mice were stimulated with electric signals and noise to generate fear. The mice were placed in the same place the next day. The mouse with the disease-caused memory loss has forgotten about the fearful experience and moves about actively. But the one treated with the drug doesn’t make a move. Its previous memory is still intact, because beta-amyloid is blocked from entering the brain. Beta-amyloid is toxic protein that causes Alzheimer’s disease.



[Soundbite] Kim Yeong-ho (Alzheimer’s Research Center) : “The amount of beta-amyloid is reduced in the brain by blocking its influx while maintaining its outflow. That’s how the drug works.”



The world-leading pharmaceutical company Roche has purchased the technology on the condition of research collaboration. It paid 290 million dollars for the technology alone. Once the drug is commercialized, the Korean developer will receive royalty. Unlike the conventional drugs that simply alleviate the symptoms, the latest drug goes straight to the cause. Its commercialization is expected to revolutionize the treatments for Alzheimer’s disease.



5. Heart Attack Aid



[Anchor Lead]



Heart attacks are the leading cause of sudden death in Korea. The condition requires immediate medical attention to prevent death. A study shows that a heart attack over the weekend can prove more dangerous than having one on a weekday.



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This 50-something man has come to the emergency room complaining of sudden chest pain. Doctors discover he’s suffered a heart attack. He felt the pain Saturday evening, and debated whether to go to the hospital. But he rushed to the emergency room after the pain worsened.



[Soundbite] Jo Yong-hyeon (Heart Attack Patient) : “Who goes to the hospital on the weekend? I just take a painkiller.”



Studies show that if a heart attack strikes over the weekend, the risk of death is 21 percent higher than on a weekday. A survey has been conducted on 97-thousand heart attack victims. Those who suffered heart attacks on a weekday had a 17 percent chance of death within a month. The death rate rose to 20 percent when heart attacks hit over the weekend. This is because even patients who show symptoms are unlikely to go to the hospital on weekends. Even if they go, treatment is slower than on weekdays. Without timely treatment, blood vessels in the heart will get clogged and heart muscles begin to die after 30 minutes. So, immediate aid is crucial.



[Soundbite] Dr. Park Seung-u (Samsung Medical Center) : “The blood vessels must be unclogged within 3 hours and within 2 hours since arriving at the hospital for the heart muscles to recover.”



The number of patients with clogged blood vessels in the heart has nearly tripled in Korea over the past decade.



6. Phone WiFi



[Anchor Lead]



The popularity of smart phones is driving rapid growth in the wireless internet market. It appears that the era of hand-held computers has begun.



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Smartphone is called a PC in your hand. That’s because smartphones can access the Internet anywhere, anytime. It’s strongest merit is allowing users to access the wireless Internet network without paying expensive data transfer fees.



[Soundbite] Yi Ji-na (College Student) : “I couldn’t access the Internet because the data transfer was too expensive. Now I can use it for free as long as there’s WiFi.”



Trying to capitalize on the popularity of smartphones, mobile service providers are expanding their wireless Internet networks. KT will double its 13,000 wireless LAN zones and install more cell phones with inter-operable wireless Internet platform.



[Soundbite] Lee Suk-chae (CEO, KT) : “We plan to install WiFi on over 50% of 45 mobile phones on the market.”



SK Telecom plans to put the wireless LAN function in regular cell phone models. It will also adopt a wireless Internet payment plan for Internet accesses by laptops, cell phones and other IT devices. The rising popularity of smartphones is fueling the competition in the wireless Internet market.



7. Balmy Busan



[Anchor Lead]



More Korean movies and dramas are being shot in the warmer south due to the recent snowfall and cold spell in the central region. The country’s largest port city of Busan will see more movies shot there this year.



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A TV series is being shot at a high school playground in Busan. The series is one of the most popular in Korea. Production companies almost never shoot a first-run TV series in a rural area. The production crew has gone all the way down to Busan to shoot. This is because of poor set conditions in the central region due to the recent heavy snowfall.



[Soundbite] Yu Hyeon-gi (Director, "Master of Study") : “We need to shoot all four seasons and the scene we’re shooting is early summer. We decided to come to Busan, away from the snow.



The heavy snowfall has forced the crews of about five movies and TV series to move production to Busan within the last ten days. Provincial organizations are also helping production company film in their regions.



[Soundbite] Yang Seong-yeong (Busan Film Commission) : “We’ll cooperate with related institutes because we have seasonal or climate advantages. It’ll help publicize the city.”



More than 30 movies will be shot in Busan this year, including five big-budget features costing nearly 9-million U.S. dollars.



8. Eco Bath



[Anchor Lead]



A public bath using heat from incinerated trash is getting a good response from residents. Incineration plants that had been detested are now being welcomed in many neighborhoods.



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This small island village is located two hours away by boat from Mokpo. Around 3,000 residents live on the island. The one and only public bath has recently opened. Villagers prepare to go for a bath.



[Soundbite] Go Seon-dan (84) : “I heard it was good. What could be better in a small village like this?”



The facility measuring 50 square meters is operated by heat from the village trash incineration plant. Burning 1.6 tons of trash allows a daily operation. About a month after it opened, residents no longer dislike the incineration plant.



[Soundbite] Jeong yeong-seop (Head, Sinan County) : “The residents didn’t want the plant in the neighborhood. But now they want them in other regions.’



Heating up the bath water with heat from burning trash has provided a useful facility for the local residents and also helped preserve energy and save the environment.



9. Sled Creations



[Anchor Lead]



There are lots of ways to enjoy the ice in winter. Among them, ice sledding is one of the most loved in Korea. Today we’re going to take you to a place where the ice sleds are not your everyday items. It’s a sled design contest, where contestants showcase their one of kind sleds.



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This is an ice plaza in Hwacheon, Gangwon province. People begin to arrive, carrying big bulky sleds of all shapes, such as tigers, airplanes and seagulls. This is a contest to see whose sled design is the most creative. More than 40 teams have gathered from around the nation.



[Soundbite] Park Yong-gi (Contestant) : “We made it using leftover materials and tools.”



Some teams have a hard time just bringing in their sleds because they’re so big. Some didn’t quite survive the trip.



[Soundbite] Jang Su-hui (Contestant) : “The saddle fell off.”



[Soundbite] Contestant : “We’re putting wings on it.”



Having foreseen this problem, some teams bring theirs in pieces and assemble them on the spot.



[Soundbite] Yi Yeong-dae (Contestant) : “We had no room in the car, so we brought the parts to assemble them here.”



Each team gets about four minutes to get on stage and show off their sled to the judges and the audience. Some have their sleds pulled by bicycles or motorbikes. Some sleds look great but don’t steer properly or even go forward at all.



[Soundbite] “They made a serious mistake. He can’t see anything.”



But the audience has fun all the same checking out the interesting designs. Some sleds wish for the Korean national soccer team to do well in the 2010 World Cup or cheer for Pyeongchang’s bid to host the Winter Olympics. Performances by each team out in the chilly weather draw great applause from the audience.



[Soundbite] Jeong Gwang-hae (Adience Member) : “It’s really fun. They have lots of great idea. It’s really brilliant.”



[Soundbite] Yi Su-bok (Audience Member) : “I thought the contest will feature regular sleds. But the performance was really fun.”



After the event, the audience is allowed to try out the sleds themselves.



[Soundbite] “It’s fun!”



[Soundbite] Won Hyeon-suk (Audience member) : “I feel seventeen again. I feel great!”



The judges scored each sled based on design, scientific value, and new ideas for enhancing mobility. First prize went to the team that had designed their sled like a flower palanquin that traditionally carries a bride on her wedding day, and even performed a traditional wedding ceremony to raise awareness of Korea’s low birth rate.



[Soundbite] Yi Sang-geun (Contest Winner) : “I’d like to thank my team who worked so hard. I want to celebrate it with everyone on my team.”



Each team’s creative ideas have made the contest an amusing and exciting winter event.