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KAIST's Moon Soul Graduate School of Future Strategy Names Recipients of Science Journalism Awards
The Science Journalism Masters Program of the Moon Soul Graduate School of Future Strategy at KAIST named the winners of the 2015 Science Journalism Awards on October 17, 2015. The award ceremony took place at KAIST’s Seoul campus.
The awards were created in 2011 to recognize exemplary journalism that has contributed to the advancement of science and technology in Korea.
This year, the Korean Broadcasting System’s science show called the “Jang Yeong-Sil Show” received the Grand Prize. Yeong-Sil Jang was a Korean scientist and astronomer during the Joseon Dynasty in the 14th century.
A television documentary on challenges facing farm-raised chickens, which was produced by the Munhwa Broadcasting Corporation in Jeonju City, won the TV Award, while news coverage by Dong-A Daily on the outbreak of the Middle East respiratory Syndrome (MERS) in Korea received the Print Award.
After the award ceremony, students and professors of the Science Journalism Program hosted a conference to review and discuss major issues covered by the news media in the past year.
2015.10.15 View 7701 -
Professor Junehwa Song Appointed as the General Chair of the Organizing Committee of ACM SenSys
Professor Junehwa Song from the Schooling of Computing at KAIST has been appointed the general chair of the organizing committee of ACM SenSys—the American Computing Machine (ACM) Conference on Embedded Networked Sensor Systems.
ACM SenSys held its first conference in 2003 to promote research on wireless sensor networks and embedded systems. Since then, it has expanded into an influential international conference especially with the increasing importance in sensor technologies. Recently the committee has expanded its field of interest to mobile sensors, the Internet of Things, smart device system, and security.
Professor Song is considered a world-renown researcher in mobile and ubiquitous computing system. He presented numerous research papers at various conferences organized by ACM. He is also a member of the editorial committee of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Transactions on Mobile Computing journal. For his achievements in the field and flair for coordinating and planning conferences, he is now the first Korean researcher to be appointed the chair of ACM SenSys.
Professor Song said that, as the chair, he would help discover new technology in and applications of networked, wireless sensors that would meet the demands of our modern society.
The 13th ACM SenSys will take place in Seoul—the first one to be held in Asia. The event will begin on November 1, 2015 and last four days. More information about this year’s event can be found at http://sensys.acm.org/2015/.
2015.10.02 View 8789 -
KAIST and Chongqing University of Technology in China Open an International Program
With the help of KAIST, Chongqing University of Technology (CQUT) in China established an electrical engineering and computer science program and admitted their first 66 freshmen this fall semester.
The joint program was created to foster skilled engineers in the fields of electrical engineering and computer science, which are necessary for the development of the Korean and Chinese Industrial Complex located in Chongqing City.
KAIST has provided CQUT with a majority of the program’s curricula currently offered to its students in Daejeon, Korea.
Under the jointly administered program, KAIST takes on education and research while CQUT is responsible for student selection and administration.
KAIST has dispatched eight professors to teach the related fields in English, and 17 CQUT professors will teach the rest of the curricula.
In August 2014, KAIST and CQUT singed a cooperation agreement for education and research exchange and created the CQUT-KAIST Education Cooperation Center, which is headed by Professor Young-Nam Han of the Electrical Engineering Department at KAIST.
The two universities will expand their collaboration to include graduate programs by 2016.
In the picture below, President Steve Kang of KAIST (right) shakes hands with President Shi Xiaohui of Chongqing University of Technology (left).
2015.09.17 View 12192 -
KAIST holds the 2015 KAIST-MIT-Technion International Symposium on Nano Science
The 2015 KAIST-MIT-Technion International Symposium on Nano Science was held on August 11, 2015 at the KAIST campus. The event took place under three subtopics: Materials for Production and Storage of Renewable Energy, Functional Materials, and Multiferroic Materials.
The joint symposium invited more than 300 experts in material science and engineering including ten speakers and panelists. From MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology), Professors Harry L. Tuller and Geoffrey S. Beach in the Department of Material Engineering, as well as Professor Gregory Rutledge in the Department of Chemical Engineering joined the symposium. Professor Avner Rothschild in the Department of Material Engineering and Professor Yair Ein-Eli in the Department of Chemical Engineering at Technion Institute of Technology in Israel also participated.
From KAIST, Professors Il-Doo Kim, Byong-Guk Park, and Yeon-Sik Jung in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Professor Chan-Ho Yang in the Department of Physics, and Professor Doh-Chang Lee in the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering spoke at the event. The list of topics included “Next Generation Lithium-Air Battery,” “Nano Materials for High Performance Energy Storage System,” and “Iron Oxide Nanoparticles Photoelectrode for the Conversion and Storage of Solar Energy.”
In its efforts to promote cooperation among the three universities, KAIST plans to send six students to MIT and one student to Technion for joint research.
Professor Il-Doo Kim, who organized the symposium said, “We believe this kind of international gathering will serve as an opportunity for scholars from leading universities to share their expertise in material science and help them better understand on the recent trends in nanoscience and its related technology.”
2015.08.12 View 9551 -
KAIST Operates a Summer School with Imperial College London
KAIST and Imperial College London jointly hosted a summer school on the KAIST campus on July 14-17, 2015. Twenty-five students from both universities, 11 from KAIST and 14 from Imperial College, participated in the summer program.
KAIST and Imperial College agreed to hold academic and research exchange programs in 2013; this year’s summer school represented the first effort.
Participants were divided into a few cohorts of four or five students. They conducted a series of activities to implement joint research projects involving team building, networking, joint study, discussions, and presentations.
Among the projects the summer school ran, Professor Hoi-Jun Yoo of the Electrical Engineering Department at KAIST was invited to teach students about the mobile healthcare system, Dr. M, that he had developed.
Sung-Hyon Myaeng, Associate Vice President of the International Affairs Office, KAIST, said, “This summer school is yet another example of KAIST’s ongoing efforts to make the campus more global and to interact actively with members of the international community.”
2015.07.29 View 9102 -
A Technology Holding Company Establishes Two Companies Based on Technologies Developed at KAIST
Mirae Holdings is a technology holding company created by four science and technology universities, KAIST, DIGIST (Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology), GIST (Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology), and UNIST (Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology) in 2014 to commercialize the universities’ research achievements. The company identifies promising technologies for commercialization, makes business plans, establishes venture capitals, and invests in startup companies.
Over the past year, Mirae Holdings has established two venture companies based on the technologies developed at KAIST. In September 2014, it founded Cresem Inc., a company used the anisotropic conductive film (ACF) bonding technology, which was developed by Professor Kyung-Wook Paik of the Material Science and Engineering Department at KAIST. Cresem provides a technology to bond electronic parts ultrasonically. The company is expected to have 860,000 USD worth of sales within the first year of its launching.
Last June, Mirae Holdings created another company, Doctor Kitchen, with the technology developed by Professor Gwan-Su Yi of the Bio and Brain Engineering Department at KAIST. Doctor Kitchen supplies precooked food, which helps diabetic patients regulate their diet. The company offers a personalized diet plan to customers so that they can effectively manage their disease and monitor their blood sugar level efficiently.
The Chief Executive Officer of Mirae Holdings, Young-Ho Kim, said, “We can assist KAIST researchers who aspire to create a company based on their research outcomes through various stages of startup services such as making business plans, securing venture capitals, and networking with existing businesses.”
Young-Ho Kim (left in the picture), the Chief Executive Officer of Mirae Holdings, holds a certificate of company registration with Sang-Min Oh (right in the picture), the Chief Executive Officer of Cresem.
Young-Ho Kim (left in the picture), the Chief Executive Officer of Mirae Holdings, holds a certificate of company registration with Jae-Yeun Park (right in the picture), the Chief Executive Officer of Dr. Kitchen.
2015.07.29 View 14448 -
KAIST Startups Annually Engage 33,000 People, and Their Sales Total Nearly 10 Billion Dollars
According to a recent study, KAIST startups annually engage 33,000 people, and their sales total nearly 10 billion US dollars. Also amongst 1,245 companies, 50 were listed in stock markets including KOSDAQ and KONEX. President Kang of KAIST commissioned an evaluation of KAIST startups last year. The report consisted of six chapters: current status of entrepreneurs and companies, cross analysis based on individuals’ background and academic degree, annual performance analysis, and current status of startup assistance.
The report categorized the startups with respect to the founders’ background. Of 1,245 companies, KAIST alumni founded 929 (74.6%) of the companies under study: 191 (15.3%) were located within the KAIST campuses, 91 (7.3%) were founded by enrolled students, and 74 (2.7%) by professors. The startup founders had different levels of education: 515 (41.4%) founders had master’s degree, 443 (35.6%) Ph.D. degree, and only 213 (17.1%) had only bachelor’s degree as the highest level of education attained. The reason behind the majority of founders having a master’s degree or higher degree is that many people established a startup after obtaining specialized knowledge and skills.
Focusing on the founders’ college majors, 719 (70.6%) founders were from the engineering department, 111 (10.9%) from the business administration department, 103 (10.1%) from the natural science department, and 86 (8.4%) from other departments. Looking at the companies' locations, 462 (37.5%) were placed in Seoul, 355 (28.8%) in Daejeon, and 273 (22.2%) in Gyeonggi.
By the end of 2013, the total asset of 1,069 companies came to 12 billion and 444 million dollars. Their total sales figure was 10 billion and 13 million dollars, and annual employments summed up to 33,000 people. The companies generated a significant portion of gross regional domestic product (GRDP) in each region. They formed 0.49% of GRDP of Seoul, took up 1.67% GRDP of Gyeonggi, and 5.53% of that of Daejeon.
Along with the performance analysis, the report also took a survey of suggestions on future startup assistance and opinions on current startup assistance policies. To a question asking what constituted the most difficult part of startup, 31.7% of respondents answered “attraction of investment,” 22.8% chose “a lack of human resources,” and 16.8% said “consulting” amongst 214 respondents. The study showed that major and medium enterprises face difficulty in finding human resources whereas small businesses experience obstacles attracting investment. Some startups had help from KAIST: 44 startups were provided with the office space, 21 had educational supports, and 18 were supported in research and development.
The report demonstrates that startups established by KAIST alumni and members play a key role in the South Korean economy despite KAIST’s short startup history, which began only since the end of 1990s. Based on this report, KAIST plans to listen continuously to the needs of alumni founders, and use those responses as a guide to entrepreneurship education for current students.
The Dean of the Office of University and Industry Cooperation, Joongmyeon Bae, who oversaw the publication of this report, said, "As this report is the first in Korea to study the status of alumni startups, it will be incredibly valuable in modifying the startup assistance policies.”
To spread an entrepreneurial spirit and start-up cultures in the campus and enhance the startup supporting system, KAIST has founded various startup centers on and off the campus.
2015.07.14 View 9419 -
KAIST Undergraduate Students Volunteer in Ethiopia
World Friends (WF), one of the undergraduate student clubs at KAIST, offer students opportunities to volunteer in underdeveloped regions and countries. This year the World Friends team travels to Ethiopia from July 9 to August 17, 2015.
The aim of this trip is to help Ethiopian students fill gaps in their knowledge of information technology and encourage KAIST students build leadership skills through volunteer activities. Twenty-eight students will make the trip.
KAIST students will visit the Addis Ababa Institute of Technology and the Adama Science and Technology University, as well as some local high and elementary schools in Addis Ababa, where they will run computer classes related to the basics of information technology such as C Language, Java Programming, Photoshop, MS Office, and Windows.
The volunteers will offer Adama Science and Technology University students an advanced computer course to prepare them to participate in the ACM-ICPC, an international computer programming competition for university students.
KAIST students will also introduce Korean culture to Ethiopian students including K-pop, Korean cuisine and fashion, Korean language lessons, and traditional Korean art.
The Dean of Student Affairs and Policy at KAIST, Professor Young-Hee Kim said, “I hope the students from two very different cultures will cherish this opportunity to interact with each other and contribute to narrowing down the regional disparities in the IT field.”
2015.07.10 View 9226 -
The Minister of Education of Kazakhstan Visits KAIST
The Minister of Education of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Aslan Sarinzhipov, and his delegation visited KAIST on June 30, 2015.
Dr. Young-Suk Ji, the Chairman of Elsevier, an academic publishing company that publishes medical and scientific literature, arranged the visit.
The Kazakh delegation showed great interest in KAIST’s educational system and research programs during their meeting with President Steve Kang of KAIST. In particular, the delegation was most impressed by the startups and entrepreneurship programs established at the KAIST Pangyo Innovation Center.
President Kang said, “I hope the Minister’s visit will help inspire more Kazakh students to come to Korea and study at KAIST.”
Kazakhstan, located in the northern part of Central Asia, gained its independence in 1991 after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Currently, there are 22 Kazakh students studying at KAIST.
2015.07.03 View 5648 -
Professor Jae Kyu Lee Appointed the President of Association for Information Systems
Chair Professor Jae Kyu Lee of KAIST’s College of Business was appointed the President of Association for Information Systems (AIS) on July 1, 2015. Professor Lee will serve a one-year term, which will end in June 2016. With four thousand members researching information systems from 90 different nations, AIS is the largest academic society in the fields of information system and business process engineering.
Professor Lee has proposed his idea of “the Bright Internet” as the official vision of AIS. Employing this vision, AIS will create technology and systems, as well as sponsor international cooperation to solve fundamental issues of the Internet including concerns over hacking and cyber-related crimes.
The extent of damage from cyber-related crimes grows each year. Every day, 56 billion junk emails are sent to computers which are hacked and become “zombie” computers. The social cost of such crimes is estimated to be 400 billion US dollars annually.
Based on "the Bright Internet," AIS will build a preventative Internet security system by adopting ground rules that make attackers responsible for the damages from such crimes. The system will also modify technology and other systems to minimize privacy infringement while maintaining security. Finally, the Bright Internet proposes to adopt an international standard for this security system through collaboration with the International Telecommunications Union (ITU).
Professor Lee said, “The vision of the Bright Internet started from an awareness that we needed to resolve issues such as Internet addiction, indiscriminate media exposure, and verbal violence. This vision developed by the experts from all around the world will not only bring a revolution of a reliable Internet platform to a global scale but also reshape the Korean Internet platform.”
2015.07.02 View 8897 -
KAIST Professor Sung-Ju Lee Appointed a Technical Program Chair of INFOCOM
Professor Sung-Ju Lee of the Department of Computer Science at KAIST has been appointed to serve as a technical program chair of IEEE INFOCOME. The computer communication conference, started in 1982, is influential in the research fields of the Internet, wireless, and data centers.
Professor Lee is the first Korean to serve as a program chair. He has been acknowledged for his work in network communications. In the 34th conference, which will be held next year, he will take part in selecting 650 experts in the field to become members and supervise the evaluation of around 1,600 papers.
Professor Lee is the leading researcher in the field of wireless mobile network systems. He is a fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and served as the general chair of the 20th Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) SIGMOBILE Annual International Conference on Mobile Computing & Networking (MobiCom 2014). He is on the editorial boards of IEEE Transactions on Mobile Computing (TMC) and IEEE Internet of Things Journals.
Professor Lee said, “I hope to continue the traditions of the conference, as well as integrating research from various areas of network communication. I will strive to create a program with high technology transfer probability.”
The 34th IEEE INFOCOM will take place in San Francisco in April 2016.
2015.07.02 View 9844 -
Professor Naehyuck Jang was Appointed Technical Program Chair of the Design Automation Conference
Professor Naehyuck Jang of the Electrical Engineering Department at KAIST was appointed as the technical program chair of the Design Automation Conference (DAC). He is the first Asian to serve the conference as the chair. At next year’s conference, he will select 150 program committee members and supervise the selection process of 1,000 papers.
Founded in 1964, DAC encompasses research related to automation of semiconductor processes, which usually involve billions of transistors. More than seven thousand people and 150 companies from all around the world participate, of which only the top 20% of the submitted papers are selected. It is the most prestigious conference in the field of semiconductor automation.
The Design Automation Conference also introduces optimization and automation of design processes of systems, hardware security, automobiles, and the Internet of things. Professor Jang specializes in low power system designs. As an ACM Distinguished Scientist, Professor Jang was elected as the chairman after contributing to this year’s program committee by reforming the process of selection of papers.
Professor Jang said, “This year’s conference represents a departure, where we move from the field of traditional semiconductors to the optimization of embedded system, the Internet of things, and security. He added that “we want to create a paper selection process that can propose the future of design automation.”
The 53rd annual DAC will take place at the Austin Convention Center in Texas in June 2016.
2015.07.02 View 7993