I had nearly perfect vision. I had no problem reading fine print. I was able to read paperbacks whose font size was deemed too small for average readers. I often read books on the bus or in rooms with poor lighting, which would surely make eye doctors frown. But I was fairly confident about my excellent vision, and I enjoyed the privilege. I bet you have already noticed that in the previous paragraph I used a past tense about my eyesight. As with many other middle-aged people, my eyesight bega

Viewpoints May 17, 2020

모국어 이외의 외국어를 배우는 이유는 다양합니다. 해당 외국어로 쓰여진 자료를 직접 읽고 해독하고 싶거나 원어민과 대화를 하고 싶기 때문에 열심히 단어도 외우고 문장도 반복해서 읽으며 외국어를 학습합니다. 최근에는 외국어를 열심히 배우는 과정에서 생기는 부가적인 효과에 대해서 언어학자, 심리학자, 뇌과학자 등이 연구를 많이 하고 있습니다. 이중언어 사용자(bilingual speaker)가 의사소통을 넘어 추가적인 장점을 가질 수 있다는 것이죠. 외국어를 배워서 두 가지 이상의 언어를 자유롭게 사용할 수 있게 되면 뇌에 긍정적인 효과를 준다는 것이 학술적인 논점의 핵심입니다. 사실 외국어뿐만 아니라 학교에서 새로운 학문을 배우거나 하면 당연히 뇌 발달에 좋은 영향을 준다는 것은 그냥 상식적인 추론으로도 알 수 있는 것인데요, 이중언어나 다중언어(multilingual) 사용자의 경우는 좀 더 구체적인 측면이 부각되고 있습니다. 일단 뇌에 큰 영향을 줄 수 있으며, 특히

양승진 기자의 English Cafe May 3, 2020

Children’s books, especially those with lots of illustrations, are generally short in length. Despite this, the genre offers a treasure trove of creative imagination and wonderful pictures. Sadly, some Korean bloggers are exploiting the genre in the name of sharing information and knowledge with their friends. Once they buy a picture book, they scan it through an app on their smartphones and upload the digital copies on their personal blogs or online communities. Since some picture books

Viewpoints May 1, 2020

South Korea is implementing an unprecedented educational experiment for remote learning due to the coronavirus pandemic that is sweeping the entire world. The question is whether the country can get something positive out of its massive experiment, instead of losing hope in the face of loud complaints about the still fledgling virtual learning environment. On Wednesday, some 3.12 million students across the nation started the new semester through online learning. They were the second group

Viewpoints April 18, 2020

When I got out of my apartment and took the elevator down to the first floor, I happened to stand with a neighbor who did not wear a face mask. I got a little nervous about his apparent violation of basic guidelines to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus, but tried not to express such a feeling. But the thought of getting infected in an enclosed space made me feel uneasy during the brief elevator ride. Is this too much? Perhaps I overreacted a bit. But a number of people in South K

Viewpoints April 3, 2020

About three weeks ago, I watched a news segment online showing Japanese shoppers rushing to buy toilet paper. Shelves were stripped bare quickly across Japan. The reason for the panic buying was allegedly linked to the fatal coronavirus pandemic. A sense of urgency hit my brain. Wait, what if I run out of precious toilet paper at home? If an emergency happens in relation to my bodily functions, should I hail a taxi and speed through the now eerily quiet Seoul streets to go to the office wher

Viewpoints March 20, 2020

As the novel coronavirus spreads, a growing number of office workers in South Korea and elsewhere are being pushed out of their cozy cubicles and forced to work remotely. However, if you’re working remotely, your humble abode is not always home sweet home. My general perception of working from home is mixed. As a journalist, I have spent most of my career working remotely. I usually commuted to and from the government agencies or companies that I covered, and returned to the newsroom o

Viewpoints March 6, 2020

What is called a “subscription economy” is not so far removed from the everyday life of ordinary Koreans. A growing number of Korean consumers, especially those in their 20s, are embracing this new model that favors subscriptions over ownership. For digital services and software, this makes sense. Netflix is a case in point. Korean viewers, who once preferred downloading video files from online hard drive service operators, are signing up for the global video streaming platform. Th

Viewpoints Feb. 21, 2020

Former Apple CEO Steve Jobs famously said at the iPhone launch event in 2007, “Who wants a stylus?” As of February, most iPads come with a stylus called the Apple Pencil. So, my quick answer to Jobs’ rhetorical question is, “At least millions of Apple device users across the world.” And millions more, if I may add Samsung’s stylus-enabled Galaxy Note smartphones. The point is not that Jobs failed to see a new digital culture blossoming about a decade later.

Viewpoints Feb. 7, 2020

When Eric Cartman in the animated TV series “South Park” came up with an evil plan to fake Tourette syndrome, the chief purpose was to say whatever he wanted. He took advantage of the fact that some people with Tourette syndrome have what is called coprolalia, or involuntary swearing. By faking Tourette syndrome, Cartman successfully got away with shouting obscenities, at least initially in the episode titled “Le Petit Tourette” aired in 2007. There’s a typical Sout

Viewpoints Jan. 17, 2020

Professor Kim Chi-hyoun spoke at a slightly slow pace and pronounced every Korean word clearly when she explained the meaning of Chinese words and sentences selected from “The Mencius,” a classical Confucian text. Her unusual teaching style was designed to better deliver her lecture to seven international students who are on the AKS Hanmun (classical Chinese) Fellowship program.The Academy of Korean Studies started the 16-week fellowship this year in order to help foreign students in

Social Affairs Dec. 4, 2019

　Drawing and retaining the attention of high school students armed with smartphones in a big class is not an easy task. However, Kim Hyeon appeared relaxed and confident in delivering a special lecture on digital storytelling to students at the art center of Hana Academy Seoul (also known as Hana High School) located in Jingwan-dong, Seoul, Wednesday.　His secret was the creative mix of digital technology and humanities knowledge in a way that captures and stimulates the curiosity of students. 　K

Social Affairs Sept. 29, 2019

In Korea’s sluggish publishing industry, YouTubers are emerging as new power players through their personal book recommendations, which translate into real sales figures at both offline and online bookstores.As with other product placement deals on YouTube channels, however, book recommendations are rarely delivered free of charge. Publishers have to pay for such advertising. The question is, how much can you trust a YouTuber’s pitch for the book in question?For Pi Eugene, an up-and-

People Aug. 28, 2019

Do you find it difficult to feel a sense of achievement and self-fulfillment at work? Are you considering a career switch to freelance work? If so, you might get some useful information from Seo Eu-ra, who has transformed herself from an office worker into a freelance translator, author and YouTuber. Seo, also known as Seo Merry on social media and YouTube, is gaining in recognition for her tips and guidance to Korean workers interested in exploring new opportunities beyond their current jobs.&n

People July 26, 2019

영어공부를 나름대로 열심히 하면서 느끼는 함정은 바로 스스로 독해에 대한 자만심에 빠지기 쉽다는 것 입니다. “난 독해는 어느 정도 되니까 회화나 청취, 영작에 신경을 써야지”라는 생각을 한번이라도 해 보신 분들은 이러한 독해력 자만심에 빠지고 있거나 이와 비슷한 경험을 하고 있다고 생각합니다.혹은 독해자료를 읽을 때 대부분 아는 단어고 내용도 대충 파악이 된다라는 생각이 들면 독해에 대한 게으름이 시작될 수 있습니다. 문제는 이러한 게으름이 시작되면 독해자료를 꼼꼼히 보지 않게 되며, 자료 속에 숨은 여러 가지 좋은 표현도 놓칠 수 있다는 것입니다.영문 기사를 꾸준하게 읽으면 비슷한 표현들이 많이 나오고 해당 구문에 대한 이해도가 높아집니다. 그렇다고 해서 모르는 표현이나 구문들을 그냥 넘어가거나 내용을 안다고 대충 읽으면 시간투자 대비 효율이 떨어지게 됩니다.예전에 제가 듣던 영문학 과목 시간에 외국인 교수님들이 강조, 또 강조한 사항은 “독해&r

양승진 기자의 English Cafe July 7, 2019