Wednesday’s Link Attack: Esther Kang, Kenneth Choi Q&A, Lady Gaga

‘MasterChef’ contestant eliminated after cocktail party challenge
Digital Spy

Esther Kang has become the latest contestant eliminated from the MasterChef kitchen.

Gordon Ramsay, Joe Bastianich and Graham Elliot sent Kang home after she failed to impress in either a layer cake pressure test or an hors d’oeuvres challenge at an exclusive rooftop cocktail party.

Kibot: South Korean Robot Reads, Sings and Teaches Toddlers English
ABC News

The Kibot is designed to be part tutor and part babysitter for South Korea’s hard working parents who are intent on making sure their children grow up bilingual in a country where English has become a prerequisite for admission at prominent private schools.

The Kibot, built Korean telecom giant KT Corp., is perfect for Gina Kim, 36, a working mom who puts in a 12 hours a day and sometimes on Saturday. The grueling work schedule makes it hard for her to spend time with her two toddlers Joey, 4 and Juwon, 1.

Three more defendants admit roles in Palisades Park-based ID-theft ring
Bergen County Record (N.J.)

Three more Bergen County men have admitted their roles in a large-scale identity-theft ring that ensnared 53 suspects last fall, authorities said.

Sung-Rok Joh, 53, and In-Sook Lee, 33, both of Palisades Park; and Jong-Hoon Kim, 50, of Ridgefield pleaded guilty to a variety of fraud charges in federal court in Newark on Tuesday, said Rebekah Carmichael, a spokeswoman for U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman.

Kim was accused of the most serious charges among the three. Authorities said he admitted to fraudulently obtaining two Illinois driver’s licenses in 2008 and using them to apply for credit cards from a number of banks, eventually racking up more than $100,000 in purchases and cash, Carmichael said.

‘Inexpensive Hawaii’ can be found in Belize
Chicago Tribune

Kenneth Choi, who stars in the upcoming “Captain America,” is big on Belize.

N. Korea eyes sharing Olympics in S. Korea
AFP via Yahoo News

North Korea would consider sharing some events in the 2018 Winter Olympics in South Korea — but only if the situation between the two countries improves, a Pyongyang sports official said Wednesday.

The Father of the PlayStation and Japan’s Secret Koreans
Kotaku

Akiko Wada, one of Japan’s most famous singers and personalities, admitted her Korean background a few years back. The very Japanese sounding Wada (和田) is not her pass name; before she naturalized, it was “Kaneumi” (金海). The Korean last name “Kim” is often written as “Kane” (金) in Japanese. Tomoaki Kanemoto, the great Hanshin Tigers outfielder, also admitted his Korean background—though, his admission was less of a surprise. Tech mogul Masayoshi Son, the richest man in Japan, is a third generation Korean Japanese who rejected his family’s pass name, Yasumoto.

Lady Gaga’s BFF – Korean Chef Bo Kyung
allkpop

Lady Gaga was recently interviewed on a popular KBS entertainment news program that aired on the 9th earlier this month. She briefly introduced herself and then went on to talk about her best friend from childhood, a Korean Chef by the name of Bo Kyung.

Jury deadlocks in officer shooting of mom after chase
Orange County Register

A federal judge declares a mistrial in the civil rights suit brought by the family of Susie Young Kim, 37, of Irvine, who died at the scene of a 2009 shooting with her 1-year-old daughter in the back seat of her car.

LG Pops Out a Glasses-free 3-D Monitor
The Wall Street Journal

On Wednesday, LG Electronics Co. said it would start selling a 20-inch computer monitor that displays 3-D images without needing any glasses at all.

The monitor, called the D2000, will go on sale in South Korea first at a price of 1.29 million won, or about $1,200. It will be available in other countries in October, after the IFA electronics industry convention in Germany in September.

S. Korea to raise minimum wage 6 percent in 2012
Yonhap

A trilateral council comprised of the government, labor and management on Wednesday agreed to raise the country’s minimum wage 6 percent to 4,580 won (US$4.30) an hour next year.

Super typhoon may hit Korean Peninsula
The Korea Herald via AsiaOne

The Korean Peninsula is expected to face a mega typhoon of disastrous proportions this summer, according to the state’s weather agency on Tuesday.

The Korea Meteorological Administration predicts that two or three more typhoons could hit the two Koreas up till September, after analyzing computer simulations.

Korean man burns down own home to spite noisy neighbor
The Korea Herald

A man who set fire to his own home to retaliate against his noisy neighbor was sentenced to two years by Changwon District Court.

The 46-year-old arsonist, who lives in an apartment, said the neighbor upstairs was too noisy and he could not stand it. He said in the hearing that despite frequent remonstrations, the situation did not change.

Frozen Street Food Meal Hits Costco
SF Weekly

The Korean beef taco is now available for bulk purchase. Yay!