Social Media Minute

1. Speculation builds over this year’s Nobel Prize in Literature 2. Nobel Literature Lounge to open in Seoul, honoring 120 years of prize history 3. Jane Goodall, conservationist and chimpanzee expert, dies aged 91

1. Seoul expands ‘365 Challenge’ to fight loneliness with bingo-style activities 2. ‘K-Pop Demon Hunters’ craze linked to rise in cup noodle burns among children 3. Passenger remembers leaving gas on at home mid-flight, but quick action prevents disaster

1. Gangneung’s signature food and beverage festivals resume after drought setback 2. Everland debuts Panda Second House as twin cubs take first steps toward adulthood 3. Study: Children of fathers who started smoking during adolescence show signs of faster ageing

1. Seoul suspends Han River bus just 10 days after launch 2. National treasures take human form at Korea’s heritage cosplay festival 3. Mullae-dong joins global top 10 as Time Out names World’s Coolest Neighborhoods 2025

1. Tattooing by non-medical professionals has been legalized in Korea for the first time in 33 years. 2. What 3 hours with a masterpiece by Velázquez reveals in an age of short attention spans 3. “Less salty, less sweet” trend expands to bread and chocolate

1. PC bangs are becoming an unexpected tourist attraction in Korea 2. Shilla Hotel cancels November weddings for state event, offers full compensation 3. Korean scholar calls out hypocrisy in Chinese backlash over Jun Ji-hyun drama

1. Seoul International Fireworks Festival returns this weekend with dazzling displays 2. Korea’s first “Humanities Garden” opens in Yangpyeong 3. Virginia woman wins $150,000 lottery with ChatGPT numbers and plans to donate it all to charity

1. Gyeongbokgung Palace invites visitors to enjoy a royal surasang meal and moonlit stroll this fall 2. Chicagoans swim in their river for the first time in nearly a century 3. Macrons say they plan to present scientific evidence in a U.S. court to refute conspiracy claims about Brigitte Macron

1. As animal rights concerns rise over donor dogs, pet owners join the push for voluntary canine blood donation 2. Japanese researchers win Ig Nobel Prize for painting cows like zebras to keep flies away 3. Some American tourists are posing as Canadians, and Canadians are not amused

1. Explosive demand for weight-loss drug Wegovy followed by mounting complaints over side effects 2. ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off air after remarks about Charlie Kirk shooting spark backlash 3. Egypt's 3,000-year-old pharaoh’s bracelet melted after its disappearance from Cairo museum

Prof. David Tizzard of Korean Studies at both Seoul Women University and Hanyang University and a columnist for the Korea Times will talk about  changes in Iran three years after Mahsa Amini's death and Iranian women’s liberties.

1. Seoul bus driver’s kindness returned with a passenger’s gift 2. Beijing hit by hundreds of lightning strikes, followed by surge in asthma cases 3. Pilot left circling for an hour as air traffic controller falls asleep in Corsica

1. Busan Film Festival 2025 brings world cinema to Korea’s port city 2. UAE becomes first-ever country to license Korean medicine practitioners 3. Elderly Austrian nuns leave care home, go viral after returning to convent

1. Study finds generational gaps in how Koreans view the meaning of work 2. Students turn to 'retro' gadgets as schools crack down on smartphones 3. Lee Hyori brings star power to Seoul’s yoga scene

1. Koreans debate pouring iced Americano over rice and what it says about a rice-first food culture 2. 1,000-won college campus stores prove a hit with students 3. Young Koreans turn to fortune-telling and AI for comfort in uncertain times

1. U.S. ends duty-free allowance on small parcels, sparking backlash from people mailing to America 2. U.S. detention of 300 Koreans sparks anger and boycott movement at home 3. Go legend Lee Sedol warns that in the AI era, it’s not enough to just “use” AI; we must learn to truly harness it

1. After 33 years, Korea moves to legalize tattooing by non-medical professionals 2. Climate change fuels surge of “autumn mosquitoes” in Korea, raising disease concerns 3. Finding a hurt wild animal? Here’s what experts say you should — and shouldn’t — do

1. Supreme Court ends decades-long dispute over Chun Kyung-ja painting “Beautiful Woman” 2. South Korea tops world in higher education for 17 years, but wage gaps are growing 3. Banksy unveils High Court mural in London amid crackdown on pro-Palestine activism

1. Rosé makes history at the VMAs as first K-pop artist to win Song of the Year 2. Two winners share $1.8 billion Powerball jackpot, the second-largest in U.S. history 3. Why the “Gen Z Stare” is sparking debate about modern communication

1. Once-in-200-years downpour batters Gunsan(군산) and Seocheon(서천), raising fears of more extreme autumn rains 2. Gangneung residents struggle with sudden water shutoffs as record drought worsens 3. Vatican canonizes teenager Carlo Acutis, the first millennial saint known as “God’s Influencer”

1. Kim Jong-un arrives in Beijing under unusual safeguards ahead of “Victory Day” parade 2. Cheap supermarket baguettes spark outrage among French bakers 3. Seoul parents alarmed by kidnapping scare that turned out to be false

1. Park Chan-wook’s No Other Choice Wins Raves in Venice and Emerges as an Early Oscar Contender 2. Daegu’s abandoned Gachang quarry becomes viral hotspot amid rising safety concerns 3. Australian state to ban iconic fish-shaped soy sauce bottles

1. A popular YouTuber’s bakery pop-up sparks debate over bread prices in Korea 2. ROKA (Republic of Korea Army) t-shirts move from military bases to coveted fashion item across generations 3. Polish CEO identified in US Open hat-snatching scandal, tennis star later reunites with young fan to make amends

1. Netflix hit KPop Demon Hunters sparks global interest in Korean tourism and bathhouse culture 2. Woman wearing a large cat costume head arrested after brandishing knives in Geoje supermarket 3. Japan uses AI video to show what a Mount Fuji eruption could mean for Tokyo

1. Shares in Monami rise after Trump receives Korea-made pen from S.Korean president — made by another brand 2. On Korean TV, Bill Gates credits luck, shares daily life, and looks to AI to shape the future 3. Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s engagement sends jewelry stocks soaring and breaks social media records