Others

Lesson 127: Opening Evolution (3)

By Nam Chi-hyung People often think that an opening does not belong to the realm of reading, but rather a skill to memorize. They choose an opening formation without any specific reason, and follow a joseki sequence automatically. However, as in all other phases of a Baduk game, there is logic to follow, also in the opening. Let's see how an opening develops according to logic with a simple example. Diagram 1 The opening with Black 1, 3, and 5 is the well-known 1-3-5 opening of Shusaku. It is said that Shusaku never lost a game with this opening. At that time, White approached at 7 as a rule, and Black answered with A, the famous Shusaku's diagonal. Times have changed, and in the modern games, White usually approaches with the one-space high approach, and the joseki sequence up to 8 is most common. The question is where should White's next move be? Diagram 2 When this opening was first introduced, the most often played move by White was White 1 here. After the joseki sequence of Black 2 and White 3, Black 4 is a good move to extend his framework in sente, an

Tips on Boots & Feet

By Bae Ji-sook Staff Reporter Winter fashion here is all about skinny jeans, leggings and boots. Especially when it comes to boots, their tight fit makes your legs look slimmer and longer. However, these boots are as bad as killer heels when it comes to health. They can cause athletes foot and other skin troubles as well as varicose veins and inflammation in worst-case scenarios. Here are some tips as to your choice of boots from Choi Gwang-ho a dermatologist. Long Boots: Some women tend to wear these boots all day long. However, this results in poor air circulation in the foot area, causing irritation and athletes foot. Once at the workplace, change into shoes that are comfortable ― for example slippers or sneakers. If you get athletes foot, try to change your socks often and wash your feet regularly. Try not to wear boots that come above the knees. If the boots are too long they can put too much pressure on the upper part of your legs. Tight fitting boots: Some women choose these to make their legs appear slimmer. However this can hinder blood circulatio

Lesson 126 : Opening Evolution (2)

By Nam Chi-hyung The selection of a joseki depends heavily on the circumstance. The meaning of this sentence is not as simple as it appears. In a certain circumstance, even a joseki, which has been discarded for a long time can be revived. Diagram 1 Black's two-star formation on the right side, and the moves Black 1 and 5, are often used to build up a large framework on the upper side. White's approach with 4 is one of the most often used moves and so is the joseki choice of Black with the pincer as corresponding to the original intention to make influence on the upper side. Of course, the resulting position up to 12 cannot be said to be bad for White, but it is not satisfactory to do what the opponent wants. This kind discontent makes White think up something new, which can substitute for White 2. Diagram 2 White's pincer with 2 is the best way so far to prevent Black from constructing framework on the upper side. The interesting part of this is the fact that the result of this joseki has been considered to be unfavorable for White for a long time, beca

Tips on Contraception for Women

By Bae Ji-sook Staff Reporter The importance of contraception is bigger than ever. The Ministry of Health and Welfare implied that it may allow abortion, which is banned by law in Korea expect for few occasions. The government also reported that the number of abortion in the country in 2005 marked more than 340,000 while the number of new born babies was little over 460,000. Still, abortion can critically damage the women's body, and the contraception to prevent pregnancy from the first place has become quintessential. Also, women's conducting the contraception is becoming important. However, still not many people are aware of methods of contraception or using contraceptives. According to a research conducted by Study Group for Contraception, 20.5 percent of 1,000 women aged from 19 to 34 said they use the coitus interruptus, withdrawing penis from the vagina prior to ejaculation, or fertility awareness, measuring basal body temperature, to make a birth control. The reason to using the rather low-successful methods or none was mostly because they didn't want to feel bot

Lesson 125 : Opening Evolution (1)

By Nam Chi-hyung An opening formation is a patterned sequence of moves in the opening stage. Since it is usually composed of josekis, people often have difficulty in understanding the difference between an opening and a joseki. However, the opening formation is a much larger concept, composed of not only josekis, but also extensions, enclosures, etc. In Baduk history, there have been a lot of famous opening formations, such as the ``New Opening,'' ``Shusaku's Opening,'' ``Three-Star Formation,'' ``Chinese Opening'' and many more. They were extremely popular when first invented, and some of them are still the objects of professional study. Their frequent use in many games at the time can be explained, not only by the players' preference of new things, but also by the logics guaranteeing their power and efficiency. However, they are not insurmountable, and players have been trying hard to build new methods in order to overcome the dominant formations. I want to call this kind process in which an opening formation is invented and modified by new ideas, the evolution of a form

Health Tops Issues Among Office Workers

By Bae Ji-sook Staff Reporter Everyday the media issue thousands of news articles, but what actually catches the attention of office workers in Korea is information about their health. According to the online recruitment company JobKorea, 62.3 percent of 1,315 office workers found the news headline ``Two Out of Three Office Workers Get Chronic Illness From Their Workplaces,'' most interesting. The article said that 63.2 percent of workers suffer from ulcers, stomachache or insomnia. Coming in second for respondents who were allowed to give multiple answers, was the news ``Most Office Workers in Their 20s and 30s Prefer Civil Service or Teaching as the No. 1 Occupation.'' The news was based on another survey that showed 37.9 percent of 2,193 young workers wanted to enter public service or teaching. The third issue was employees having a hard time at work due to their lack of English proficiency. About 57.2 percent of the respondents picked the news that 64 percent of office workers think a lack of English made their life at work difficult. According to the article, many

Lesson 124: Coupon Baduk

By Nam Chi-hyung There is a modern mathematical field called ``Combinatorial Game Theory'' that has been successful in finding the optimal solutions for various games. The games studied in combinatorial game theory are mostly two-person perfect-information games, especially those for which classes of positions for winning strategies can be stated explicitly, or at least proved to exist. Examples include not only simple games like ``Dots and Boxes,'' but also the most complicated game of all, Baduk. Coupon Baduk, the topic of this lesson, is a sort of mathematical tool to learn the thoughts of professionals, about the size of the largest play at any time, and to quantify the sizes of specific moves, particularly toward the end of the game. It was devised by Elwyn Berlekamp, who has been a professor of mathematics and of electrical engineering/computer science at UC Berkeley since 1971, and who is better known to Baduk players around the world as the author of Mathematical Go. The idea of Coupon Baduk is to compel the players to make quantitative decisions. The special device

Lesson 123: The Power of a Bend (3)

By Nam Chi-hyung There are many Baduk proverbs about a bend, and ``a double-bend creates a liberty'' is one of them. It means that a bend is also useful in a capturing race. Before we go on to see examples of the usage of a bend in a capturing race, let's clarify the difference between a ``double-bend'' and a ``two-step-bend.'' A two-step-bend means two successive bends occurring in the same line of play, like a ``two-step-ko.'' The second bend is dependent on the first bend. Diagram 1 Black 2 and 4 compose a ``double-bend'' against White's attachment at 1 and the bend at 3. Black's bend with 4 cannot exist without the bend with 2. Diagram 2 Black 1 is the first step of the ``two-step-ko'' in the corner. The ko with A follows the winning of the ko with 1. In contrast, in a ``double-bend'' or a ``double-ko,'' the bends and the kos do not occur in the same line of play. Diagram 3 As White captures Black A with 1, Black captures White B with 2. Thus, the two kos are happening in the same situation and are related to each other, but each ko can be fought

Turtle marathon

How to Keep Your Liver Healthy

By Bae Ji-sook Staff Reporter From late November through December, many Koreans drink alcohol in excess to celebrate the end of the year and the start to a new one. However, few know the extent to which they are abusing their livers in the process. The liver is like a factory which filters the toxicity of the body. It also creates gall and contains immune tissues that rid the body of harmful germs. Liver cancer was the highest cause of death by illness for Koreans according to government research in 2006. It also showed that the number of men dying from the disease was 7.9 times that of women. It may due to the fact that men drink more alcohol and eat more nutritionally unbalanced food than women, Prof. Yeon Jong-eun of Korea University Medical Center said. The liver, according to Yeon, is an organ that does not give early warning signs when it is in bad shape. ``Once you feel sick in your liver side, it means it's already in a serious state and it maybe too late to bring back normal functioning,'' he said. Therefore, looking after your liver in life is extremely impo