Campus/People
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Dr. Ryu of KAIST Receives the S-Oil Outstanding Paper Award
Dr. Je-Kyung Ryu of KAIST’s Department of Physics has been awarded the S-Oil Outstanding Paper Award for his doctoral dissertation’s originality and applicability.
Professor Tae-Young Yoon of Physics is his doctoral advisor.
The award ceremony took place on November 25, 2015 at the Press Center in Seoul.
This S-Oil Outstanding Paper Award, jointly sponsored by the Korean Academy of Science and Technology (KAST) and the Scholastic University Presidential Association, was established to foster young talented scientists in basic science and to advance the field.
The award is given every other year for each of the fields of physics, chemistry, mathematics, biology, and earth sciences.
With the award, Dr. Ryu received a research grant of USD 8,600.
He discovered, for the first time in the world, how NSF (N-ethylmaleimide-sensitive factor), a protein involved in a vesicular transport in cellular activities, disassembles a SNARE (soluble NSF attachment protein receptor) complex, using a unimolecular biophysics method.
Unlike the existing studies, he proposed a model in which NSF disassembles SNARE complexes at one step, and as a result, provided evidence of how the SNARE complex influenced the fusion of biological membranes.
His research was published in the scientific journal Science issued on March 27, 2015. The title of the paper is “Spring-loaded Unraveling of a Single SNARE Complex by NSF in One Round of ATP Turnover.”
2015.11.27 View 7587 -
KAIST and Four Science and Technology Universities Host a Start-up Competition
KAIST and four other science and technology universities, such as Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology (GIST), Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST), Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology (DGIST), and Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH), hosted a startup competition on November 27, 2015 at the Dongdaemun Design Plaza in Seoul.
Approximately 150 participants including students from the five universities, "angel" investors, and entrepreneurs attended the competition.
The competition was held to promote startups that are based on research achievements in science and technology and to foster entrepreneurs with great potential.
Two hundred and sixty applicants from 81 teams competed this year. Only ten teams made it to the finals.
KAIST students presented two business plans: an experience-centered education platform and mobile taxi-pooling service. Students from other universities presented a brain-stimulating simulation software (GIST), handy smart health trainer (GIST), real-time reporting system for luggage (DGIST), a flower delivery system (UNIST), surveillance and alarm system for stock-related events via machinery studies (UNIST), augmented emotion toys using augmented reality (POSTECH), and a nasal spray for fine dust prevention (POSTECH).
KAIST also displayed an exhibition of “wearable haptic device for multimedia contents” and “next generation recommendation service platform based on one-on-one matching system with high expandability and improved user experience system.”
The winning team received an award from the Minister of Science, ICT and Future Planning of Korea, as well as an opportunity to participate in overseas startup programs over the course of ten days.
Joongmyeon Bae, Director of the KAIST Industry and University Cooperation, who organized the contest, said, “The alumni of Stanford University (USA) has annually created over 5.4 million jobs through startup activities. Likewise, we hope that our event will contribute to job creation by fostering innovative entrepreneurs.”
2015.11.26 View 9305 -
Professor Keon-Jae Lee Lectures at IEDM and ISSCC Forums
Professor Keon-Jae Lee of KAIST’s Materials Science and Engineering Department delivered a speech at the 2015 Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) International Electron Devices Meeting (IEDM) held on December 7-9, 2015 in Washington, D.C.
He will also present a speech at the 2016 International Solid-State Circuits Conference scheduled on January 31-February 4, 2016 in San Francisco, California.
Both professional gatherings are considered the world’s most renowned forums in electronic devices and semiconductor technology. It is rare for a Korean researcher to be invited to speak at these global conferences.
Professor Lee was recognized for his research on flexible NAND chips. The Korea Times, an English language daily newspaper in Korea, reported on his participation in the forums and his recent work. An excerpt of the article follows below:
“KAIST Professor to Lecture at Renowned Tech Forums”
By Lee Min-hyung, The Korea Times, November 26, 2015
Recently he has focused on delivering technologies for producing flexible materials that can be applied to everyday life. The flexible NAND flash memory chips are expected to be widely used for developing flexible handsets. His latest research also includes flexible light-emitting diodes (LED) for implantable biomedical applications.
Lee is currently running a special laboratory focused on developing new flexible nano-materials. The research group is working to develop what it calls “self-powered flexible electronic systems” using nanomaterials and electronic technology.
Lee’s achievement with flexible NAND chips was published in the October edition of Nano Letters, the renowned U.S.-based scientific journal.
He said that flexible memory chips will be used to develop wearable computers that can be installed anywhere.
2015.11.26 View 9202 -
Academic Award Established in the Honor of Professor Jae-gyu Lee
An academic award has been established to celebrate the academic achievements of Jae-gyu Lee, a chair professor at KAIST’s Business and Management Department.
The Korean Society of Management Information Systems (KMIS) created the “Safe Internet Jae-gyu Lee Academic Award” at the 2015 KMIS Fall Symposium held on November 21, 2015 at the Business and Management building of Yonsei University in Seoul.
The award will be presented to researchers operating both in and outside Korea, who strive to achieve a clean and safe Internet environment by preventing cyber terrors, attacks, and crimes.
Appointed as the President of the Association for Information Systems (AIS), a global academic organization to advance the field of information systems, in July 2015, Professor Lee has adopted the “safe and clean Internet culture” as the official vision of the AIS. During his inaugural speech, he urged the international community including AIS to work together for better solutions to cyber problems.
For the implementation of the Safe Internet Jae-gyu Lee Academic Award, KMIS plans to form a committee to select winners through evaluations and recommendations. The award will be presented from 2016 forward.
Also, Professor Lee has recently donated USD 87,000 to KMIS to fund research in safe Internet culture and cyberspace security.
2015.11.25 View 6826 -
A KAIST Student Donates USD 26,000 to His Alma Mater
A KAIST undergraduate student who developed and sold a smart phone application donated USD 26,000 to his alma mater.
Seung-Kyu Oh of the School of Electrical Engineering gave his donation to President Steve Kang of KAIST on November 24, 2015. This is the largest amount donated by an enrolled undergraduate.
In 2010, at a time when android smart phones were just being released, Mr. Oh decided to develop a subway app because existing subway apps were not user-friendly.
Mr. Oh’s “Subway Navigation” app checks the current operation hours and gives users the shortest path when the user selects points of departure and arrival. The calculation for the shortest path involves factors such as which train comes first, where and to what train to transfer, the first and last trains of the day, transfer passageway usage time, etc.
To make the app useful to the largest number of people, Mr. Oh distributed it on the open market. Currently, the app is ranked the second most downloaded subway app, and has even made considerable advertising profits, having accumulated more than 5,000,000 users. This year, Mr. Oh received an offer from Kakao, an Internet company based in Seoul, Korea, to take over the app and sold it to them.
Mr. Oh said that making a donation KAIST was the first thing that came to his mind when he earned this profit.
Mr. Oh, who graduated from the Korea Science Academy, a science magnet high school, said that he felt a sense of responsibility for receiving support from Korea since high school, and that he decided to donate to KAIST as a way of returning the support that he had received so far.
He further said that “if an individual’s efforts and talents created some profit together with what he or she learned from school, then the school that supported the student in furthering his studies has also played a significant role,” and that “likewise, our stellar alumni can contribute more to our younger classmates’ growth and development.”
Mr. Oh, who is at his last semester, plans to join Kakao and will take on a job managing his subway app.
President Kang said he hopes that “all KAISTians will emulate Mr. Oh’s example to support the school” and that “the university will use the money to invest further in its future.”
2015.11.24 View 4117 -
KAIST Receives a Donation of USD 6.41 Million
“We’ve made a real effort to save our money, but can’t spend it all just on ourselves. Please use it to foster talented students in the field of science, who will enrich our country,” said donors at the donation ceremony held today on campus.
A married couple in their 70s donated their real estate, worth approximately USD 6.41 million, to KAIST on November 16, 2015. Seung-Woong Lee, the husband, and Jeong-Ja Cho, his wife, turned over three properties, including buildings in Seoul and Uijeongbu, to the university.
The couple made a promise to themselves to return their assets back to the Korean society since the beginning of their marriage life. They decided that KAIST was the institution with the most potential to contribute to Korea’s growth. This spring they took that step.
The Lee couple said, “We strove to be frugal to gather such a sum of money. We engaged in all sorts of jobs after we left for Seoul from the countryside when the nation was impoverished.”
Mr. Lee said, “On one snowy winter day, I was riding a bicycle on my way back home. Then I saw a restaurant and, at that moment, I yearned for a bowl of soup in such cold weather. But I just rode past because the whole family could eat with the money that I would spend for the soup.”
Ms. Cho said, “At the beginning, I was rather unhappy with my husband’s very frugal personality. But as time passed, I noticed I had become just like him.” She added, smiling, “I often wandered around the market to get even the smallest discounts, and the shops sometimes refused to sell me the goods.”
Their assets are the result of that work ethic and humility. The couple said, “Today is definitely the happiest day of our life because we would keep our promise. We hope that KAIST will foster outstanding talents in the field of science and technology, students who will advance our nation in the future.”
President Steve Kang of KAIST said, “I would like to express my most sincere gratitude toward to this generous couple who have donated their lifetime assets so willingly to KAIST. Their invaluable support will surely become our springboard to continuously pursue our excellence in science and technology.”
In the picture from left to right are Ms. Jeong-Ja Cho (wife), Mr. Seung-Woong Lee (husband), and President Steve Kang.
2015.11.18 View 3788 -
HUBO to Present at the 2016 World Economic Forum
KAIST researchers will lead an IdeasLab on biotechnology for an aging society while HUBO, the winner of the 2015 DARPA Robotics Challenge, will interact with the forum participants, offering an experience of state-of-the-art robotics technology.
Representatives from KAIST will attend the 2016 Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum to run an IdeasLab and showcase its humanoid robot.
With over 2,500 leaders from business, government, international organizations, civil society, academia, media, and the arts expected to participate, the 2016 Annual Meeting will take place on January 20-23, 2016 in Davos-Klosters, Switzerland. Under the theme of “Mastering the Fourth Industrial Revolution,” global leaders will discuss the period of digital transformation that will have profound effects on economies, societies, and human behavior.
President Sung-Mo Kang will join the Global University Leaders Forum (GULF), a high-level academic meeting to foster collaboration among experts on issues of global concern for the future of higher education and the role of science in society. He will discuss how the emerging revolution in technology will affect the way universities operate and serve society. KAIST is the only Korean university participating in GULF, which is composed of prestigious universities invited from around the world.
Four KAIST professors, including Distinguished Professor Sang Yup Lee of the Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering Department, will lead an IdeasLab on “Biotechnology for an Aging Society.”
Professor Lee said, “In recent decades, much attention has been paid to the potential effect of the growth of an aging population and problems posed by it. At our IdeasLab, we will introduce some of our research breakthroughs in biotechnology to address the challenges of an aging society.”
In particular, he will present his latest research in systems biotechnology and metabolic engineering. His research has explained the mechanisms of how traditional Oriental medicine works in our bodies by identifying structural similarities between effective compounds in traditional medicine and human metabolites, and has proposed more effective treatments by employing such compounds.
KAIST will also display its networked mobile medical service system, “Dr. M.” Built upon a ubiquitous and mobile Internet, such as the Internet of Things, wearable electronics, and smart homes and vehicles, Dr. M will provide patients with a more affordable and accessible healthcare service.
In addition, Professor Jun-Ho Oh of the Mechanical Engineering Department will showcase his humanoid robot, “HUBO,” during the Annual Meeting. His research team won the International Humanoid Robotics Challenge hosted by the United States Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), which was held in Pomona, California, on June 5-6, 2015. With 24 international teams participating in the finals, HUBO completed all eight tasks in 44 minutes and 28 seconds, 6 minutes earlier than the runner-up, and almost 11 minutes earlier than the third-place team. Team KAIST walked away with the grand prize of USD 2 million.
Professor Oh said, “Robotics technology will grow exponentially in this century, becoming a real driving force to expedite the Fourth Industrial Revolution. I hope HUBO will offer an opportunity to learn about the current advances in robotics technology.”
President Kang pointed out, “KAIST has participated in the Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum since 2011 and has engaged with a broad spectrum of global leaders through numerous presentations and demonstrations of our excellence in education and research. Next year, we will choreograph our first robotics exhibition on HUBO and present high-tech research results in biotechnology, which, I believe, epitomizes how science and technology breakthroughs in the Fourth Industrial Revolution will shape our future in an unprecedented way.”
2015.11.18 View 11002 -
A KAIST Alumnus Is Appointed the President of Seoul National University of Science and Technology
Jong-Ho Kim, graduated from the master’s program in the mechanical engineering department of KAIST in 1980, has been appointed the 11th president of Seoul National University of Science and Technology (SeoulTech) on November 9, 2015.
Upon receiving his doctoral degree in production engineering from KAIST in 1986, President Kim began his career as a professor at SeoulTech. He served in many senior posts at the university including Dean of Planning and Academic Affairs, and of the Engineering College.
2015.11.15 View 4085 -
Open KAIST 2015
KAIST’s research environment and its most recent achievements were open to the public.
KAIST hosted “Open KAIST 2015” over two days from November 5-6, 2015 in which its 17 departments and three research centers were open to the public. The event is one of the largest events that KAIST holds, which permits such public viewings of its facilities. It is the eighth time it has taken place.
During this event, the departments and centers offered 64 programs including laboratory tours, research achievement exhibitions, department introductions, and special lectures.
The “Motion Capture System”of Professor Jun-Yong Noh’s lab (Graduate School of Culture Technology) drew particular attention.
The “Motion Capture System” expresses human and animal motion in three-dimensional (3D) space using infrared cameras and optic markers, which can then be applied to various industries such as movies, games, and animation. During the program, researchers themselves demonstrated the recording of the movement and its conversion into 3D characters.
Professor Yong-Hoon Cho’s laboratory introduced the scientific mechanism behind the Light Emitting Diode (LED) as well as its manufacturing process under the topic:“A to Z of LED Production.” The reserachers explained that how green LED is much more efficient compared to previous light sources and presented applications that how it is widely used in everyday life in smart phones, electronic displays, and other mobile gadgets.
Professor Jun-tani of the Department of Electronic and Electrical Engineering introduced “Humanoid Robot Nao’s Imitation of Human Motions.” Nao is an autonomous, programmable humanoid robot developed by a French robotics company based in Paris. Nao has an artificial neural circuit, which is the functional equivalent of a human brain, and can thus mimic the subject’s motions through learning.
In addition, Professor Hyo-Choong Bang (Department of Aerospace Engineering) in his lecture on “Unmanned Vehicle Research and Nano Satellites” and Professor Hyun Myung (Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering) on his lecture on “Future Civilization Robot System: the Jellyfish Elimination Robotic Swarm and the Wall-Climbing Drone” provided information on the progress of their respective research.
KAIST also displayed its most recent research achievements. A lecture on “Information Technology Convergence” offered a showroom for “Dr. M,” which is a mobile healthcare platform. Dr. M is a mobile healthcare system that collects and analyzes biosignals via a smart sensor attached to the human body that shows around 20 advanced technologies.
The Satellite Technology Research Center introduced the public to its “Get to Know Satellites” program on Korea’s first satellite “Our Star 1” in addition to showing the satellite assembly room and the satellite communication center.
Special lectures were also held for visitors. Professor Min-Hyuk Kim and Hye-Yeon Oh of the School of Computing talked about “Computer Graphics and Advanced Video Technology” and “Man and the Computer,” respectively, from the perspective of non-experts.
Another interesting feature was the “Wearable Computer Competition” in which college students held fashion shows with computers attached to their clothes.
Professor Jung Kwon Lee, the Dean of the College of Engineering, who led this event, said that “the Open KAIST, which is being held for the eighth time this year, is an excellent opportunity for the general public to experience KAIST’s research environment.” He hoped this could motivate young adults to widen their spectrum of scientific knowledge and raise affection for science.
2015.11.13 View 9185 -
Public Lectures by KAIST's Humanities and Social Sciences Research Center
The Humanities and Social Sciences Research Center at KAIST offers public lectures at the International Seminar Hall of the Humanities and Social Sciences building on campus from November 12, 2015 to December 10, 2015. There will be four lectures, all of which will be available in Korean only.
The theme of the lectures is “social issues and strategic solutions.” Experts in various fields including women’s studies, criminal psychology, Go (a Chinese board game) and its philosophy, and Korean studies will participate, offering multifaceted analysis and solutions for social issues in Korea.
Joo-Hee Kim, a researcher at the Korean Women’s Institute of Ewha Women’s University, will lecture on “Problems of Loan Products Exclusively for Women” and discuss the background of "micro-loans" which are often targeted at women, while evaluating the logic of financial corporations behind marketing such products.
Lectures by Professor Ji-Sun Park from the Department of Social Psychology at Ewha Women’s University on “Understanding of Criminal Psychology from Letters,” Professor Soo-Hyun Jeong from the Department of Go at Myeongji University on “Life Lessons and Strategies from Playing Go,” and Professor Seung-Taek Ahn from Kyujanggak Institute for Korean Studies of Seoul National University on “Community Problems in Folk Culture” will follow.
The organizer of the lectures, Professor Jung-Hoon Kim of the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences at KAIST said,
“These lectures will provide local citizens and the KAIST family a wonderful opportunity to understand important social issues from the perspective of social science. It will also serve as a valuable time to think about how our social conflicts could differ from those of other countries, helping us to find solutions.”
To register for these free lectures, go to http://hss.kaist.ac.kr by November 9, 2015.
2015.11.06 View 6122 -
KAIST and University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Sign a MOU
KAIST and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) signed a memorandum of understanding on collaboration of research and education on November 5, 2015, at the UIUC campus.
The agreement was made at the request of UIUC, under which the two institutions will exchange students and faculty and implement joint research projects.
President Steve Kang of KAIST said, “With this partnership, KAIST and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign will move forward to advance the fields of medical engineering, life sciences, electrical engineering, and computer science.”
In the picture below, President Steve Kang (second from the right) and Associate Vice President of International Office, Sung-Hyon Myaeng (far right), hold the MOU with UIUC representatives.
2015.11.05 View 4747 -
KAIST Hosts the Wearable Computer Contest 2015
“What you see is a compact electronic system on a dust mask, which monitors the amount of dust taken in by a worker and lets other workers know if the person is injured in an industrial site,” said Bum Taek Jung, a Master’s candidate from Sungkyunkwan University during the Wearable Computer Contest 2015 held in KI building of KAIST on November 5, 2015.
He explained his interest in developing this system, “Dust-related respiratory diseases and falling accidents are still prevalent in industrial sites.” He added, “Using the smart dust mask helps monitoring workers’ physical condition in real time, allowing us to cope with accidents in a much more timely manner.” A smart dust mask is a portable device that alerts the user with orange or red light signs when the amount of dust inhaled by the user is higher than the threshold. Its application on a smartphone can also allow project managers to alert the risk of falling accidents to workers by employing a gyroscope and an accelerometer on the mask.
The Wearable Computer Contest 2015 met for the eleventh time at KAIST on November 5-6, 2015. A wearable computer refers to a portable device which users can wear directly on the body or on their clothes while moving. Products that can provide various services by connecting to a smartphone have become increasingly popular. The contest is an excellent opportunity for university students to design creative wearable systems similar to those often depicted in movies and comics.
This year 102 teams from universities all over the nation participated. After screening and evaluation of their presentations, only 8 teams in the product section and 3 teams in the ideas section were selected for the finals. Of the many entries to the contest, the ECG security system caught many people’s attention. The wearable, which attaches to a shirt, acts like an electrocardiogram. By comparing the ECG reading with the one stored in the data server, the wearable can authenticate the user. The system could be widely used by enterprises and financial companies where tight security and authentication are crucial.
The winners of the product and the ideas sections received USD 4,300 and usd 860 respectively along with Minister Prizes from the Minister of Science, ICT and Future Planning of Korea. The Chairman of the contest, Professor Hoi-Jun Yoo from the Electrical Engineering Department of KAIST said, “The contest will be a great opportunity for anyone to have a look at advanced wearable devices developed through close integration of state-of-the-art technologies and creative ideas from young minds.”
2015.11.05 View 6952