http://press.gnu.ac.kr No.

144 DECEMBER 2008

PIONEER
THE

Raise Your Job Spec!

Gyeongsang National University Campus English Magazine
The PIONEER, Gyeongsang National University Campus English Magazine

CONTENTS
No.144 DECEMBER 2008

EDITORIAL ............................ 1 TRAVEL ............................. 14

The Loving Season Begins The Grace of Land

FOCUS ................................ 2
Farming by the Day and Studying by Night
CAMPAIGN .......................... 3
How We Live Is Important, Not How We Were Born
CAMPUS WORLD ................... 4
GNU Students Partook in Their Joys
CAMPUS BRIEFING ............... 6
The‘Geonganghan(Healthy)’Students’Union Won the Election
The Current State of the English Only Zone Program
Jinju City Implements Flexible Transit System
SURVEY .............................. 7
The Stress of GNU Students
REVIEW ............................ 16
6mm Camera,Little Theater,……, and‘Passion’!
PHOTO ESSAY .................... 17
Myth of Winter Life
CARTOON .......................... 23
A Son of Mother’s Friend, ‘Eom-chin-a’
PEOPLE ............................. 30
GNU through the Eyes of Foreign Professors
LETTERS TO THE PIONEER .... 32
I Hope We Can Exchange Warm Greetings
Our University, Our PIONEER
NOTICE .............................. 33
Enjoying International Festival

SOCIAL EXPLORER COVER STORY

18 21C, It’s Time for
the Environment! 8
ESSAY CONTEST

24
1st Prize : A Short Story of My Mother
2nd Prize : How I Overcame My Difficulties
3rd Prize : Dear My Season in the Sun

The PIONEER is Gyeongsang National University Campus English Magazine.

The PIONEER, Gyeongsang National University, 900 Gajwa-dong, Jinju Si, Gyeongsangnam-Do, Korea.

Publisher President Ha Woo-song Executive Editor Im Gyu-hong Faculty Advisor Oh Sei-rang English Advisor Kolon Burnham
Editor-in-Chief Kim Ji-young Deputy Editor-in-Chief Park Gun-hee Academic News Editor Lee Young-a Cover News Editor Cho
Ah-ra Social News Editor Kim Tae-jin Reporters Dong Yong-ho Lee Young-joo Nam Young-woong Cub-Reporters Jeong Ki-
hyung Park Ji-hae Shin Myung-soo Layout&Design The PIONEER Printed by Seorin Design(055)756-5151, 5152

THE PIONEER, NO. 144, DECEMBER 2008

 E D I T O R I A L

The Loving Season Begins.

Kim Ji-young Editor-in-Chief

Dear Readers,

D
ecember. The weather is growing colder. Something warm is essential. We may
be looking for something truly worthwhile to warm us up. Let’s see... Warm
foods from the snack carts probably occur to everyone. Right. The cold street is
lined with snack carts; we get warm with the smell of warm food.
Besides, it feels great to meet people who have warm hearts, especially when the
weather is bitterly cold. For this reason, how about looking for something worthwhile to
warm your heart? We feel lonesome these days, on cold days, without any reason.
Moreover the cold feeling is not just a physical feeling. We feel empty and gloomy
inside. So that is why we look for some warmth.
Anyway, do you have something warm in your heart? We will endure the cold
weather well with a worthwhile warm up. Well, do you wait for Santa Claus with no
special plan in your mind, like a child? Oh, you must believe Santa Claus will give you a
present, something warm. It makes sense, but you know all too well that is just a fantasy.
The truly worthwhile warm-up does not come suddenly on special days like
Christmas. I mean that never be a changeability, that is present in the world as the highest
good. That goes by the name of ‘love’. Love flowing out of our hearts makes the cold
place warmer. We do love and help each other without being paid for it, of course,
because we want to do it.
The best warm thing is ‘love’ in the world, and the best worthwhile warm up is ‘love’.
So winter is the best season for ‘love’. Today is also too cold, that means now is the time
for us to ‘love’. Shall we ‘love’? Oh, I skipped over another important point: Love is not
the result of doing, but the result of being. I am sure you will read between the lines. In
addition, I have to say this magazine will be my last magazine.

From the Outgoing Editor-in-Chief p jy123@gnu.ac.kr

P.S. I had a good time with you,

and I love you with all my heart.

Merry Christmas!

THE PIONEER, NO. 144, DECEMBER 2008 1

 F O C U S

Farming by Day and

Studying by Night
Dong Yong-ho Reporter (Pictured by Dong Yong-ho)

T
here is a proverb: ‘farming by day and
studying by night’. This means that
although students are placed in
difficult circumstances for studying, they study
very hard. The proverb suits GNU students.
They apply themselves closely to their studies Farming by day
by day and work hard by night. Of course,
studying and working are their main activities.
How about applying this proverb to our life?
As competition for employment becomes more
Studying by night intense, students have difficulty earning
money, and with the realities of life. At this
time, we must remember this lesson. We must
make an effort to achieve our dreams. p
bestdong@gnu.ac.kr

2 THE PIONEER, NO. 144, DECEMBER 2008

 C A M P A I G N
How We Live
Is Important,
Not How We Were Born.
Lee Young-joo Reporter
Prof.Kwon Soon-Ki
Dept.of Nano and advanced Material Engineering
Pictured by Lee Young-joo
9
A.M. It was time for my interview
with Kwon Soon-ki, a professor in
the School of Nano and Advanced
Materials Engineering. Considering the
early time for our meeting, I understood
how he made the amazing achievements
he has. Actually, he wasn't feeling well
and he was tired of the media, but he
answered my questions sincerely.
As I asked what was difficult for him. He replied with a smile
and told me about the 'pleasure of experiments'. However, he
worried about his students. He paid careful attention to them just
as he did his experiments. Sometimes he felt sorry for those who
gave up because of the difficult material and endless studying.
He believes that if they focus their energy, they will be able to
get a good job and be acknowledged in their field. Then, he told
me a story for GNU students.
The hero of the story is Matsusita Gonoske who was called
THE PIONEER, NO. 144, DECEMBER 2008
The story of Masushita Gonoske and
the bloomed flowers regardless trials
the 'God of management'. He was poor, weak and couldn't study.
However, he didn't lose hope, but instead, pushed himself more
and more and believed that his weaknesses were gifts from God.
As a result of his perseverance and hard work, he became the
CEO of Matsushita Electric. If ordinary people have any of these
weaknesses, they might be discouraged. I think that the most
important thing in people's lives is not how they are born but
how they live.
Finally, he gave me some advice to give to GNU students.
We don't need to care about prejudices against regional
universities. We have only to believe that we can do everything
wherever we are with positive thinking. Also, he said, don't give
up easily and remember the saying 'Light come, light go.' The
things we suffered to get are more precious and valuable than the
things we achieved without effort.
After the interview, I recollected a poem 'Blooming Flowers
with Shaking' written by Do Jong-hwan. I hope GNU students
won't fear the trials of their lives, as the shining flowers that aren't
afraid of being wet and shaking. I believe troubles make people
stronger. p yjlee0710@gnu.ac.kr
3
 C A M P U S W O R L D

GNU Students Partook in Their Joys

Cho Ah-ra Cover News Editor

Autumn tinges the GNU campus with a thousand beautiful colors. We had a number of university events this autumn. It was a
good chance for students because they had new and pleasant experiences. They escaped from their prosaic lives in which they were
absorbed in studying and preparing for a job. A variety of events took place at GNU during the four days from October 14-17. From
now on, you can look around and see the diversity of student activities at all the university festivals.

T
he first event that caught my eye
was ‘rolling 60m Gimbab’ which
was in commemoration of GNU’s
60th Anniversary. The event took place
in front of the Central Cafeteria. There
was prepared laver, rice, and other
ingredients on the tables. The students
showed their interest in the event as they
prepared to roll the Gimbab wearing
hygienic gloves. Of note, the president of
GNU and students worked together. They
rolled in harmony and completed the
Gimbab perfectly. They divided their
Gimbab among the students. A
harmonious atmosphere lasted for a good
while. It was heartwarming because the
event meant cooperation and harmony.
Other heartwarming events were
Sharing Guksu (noodles) and a
Jajangmyeon Eating contest (noodles
with stir-fried bean paste). The Sharing
Guksu (noodles) event was held at
lunchtime and many students wanted to
participate. The president of the student
council judged the Guksu as students
watched. The Jajangmyeon Eating
contest also took place in front of the
Central Cafeteria. When the Jajangmyeon
was brought out, the contest began. Each
team was composed of eight participants.

4 THE PIONEER, NO. 144, DECEMBER 2008

 Some of them ate the Jajangmyeon very
quickly, others ate with gusto. Although
the quantity of Jajangmyeon diminished,
the number of participants increased
compared to last year. The Jajangmyeon
looked difficult to eat, but the
participants’ enjoyment was good to
watch.
Another is the off-line cart rider
contest which took place at the Hanbek
square. My eyes were glued to the event
because of its well-attended and
interesting progress. A number of students
showed their interest in the event before
the event began. The participants’
amusement was increased by exciting
music. The rule of the game was simple:
participants had to ride children’s
tricycles and then turning back on regular
Pictured by Jung Ki-hyeoung
time. They looked ridiculous because they
There were a variety of new festivals at GNU. All of them commemorated the founding of GNU sixty years ago. I worried about
the possibility of low participation because the midterms were approaching. Contrary to my worry, there were a variety of events that
were usually well-attended. p
were riding children’s tricycles. The
course imitated real on-line cart rider
game as it had obstacles to ride around
which also enhanced the humour. The
barriers consisted of banana peels and
balls in the middle of the course. The
event progressed well due to the help of
many volunteers. Spectators were joyful
as well as participants. The spectators
gave the participants a big hand for their
ridiculous performances. Was it a good
chance for students to escape from the
stress of preparing for midterms?
Another event which caught my eye is
Stress ZERO. Participants shouted ‘I
LOVE GNU!’ into the microphone in
turns. Participants shouted as loud as they
could, their cheeks were flushed. The
event offered a prize so participants were
full of passion. Older and younger
THE PIONEER, NO. 144, DECEMBER 2008
students, men and women all participated.
Everyone reduced their stress by engaging
in the event. Spectators cheered their
friends as the lively, active atmosphere
continued for a good while.
At last, I introduce to you the other
event. Have you ever seen the TV
program book! book! book! Let’s read the
book!? Reading waves were created
nationwide by the program. The event
imitated the program in order to create
reading waves at GNU. Let’s run away
with books took place in front of the
Central library. Each team was composed
of three members who fetched the books
in turns. The team that was the first to
bring sixty books was the winner. There
was a scuffle among the participants to
bring the books. The winners partook in
their joys.
bokshalabong@gnu.ac.kr
5
 C A M P U S B R I E F I N G

The‘Geonganghan(Healthy)’Students’Union Won the Election

Park Gun-hee Deputy Editor-in-Chief
The GNU student council elections were held on November 20th. All candidates of the 4

Pictured by Park Gun-hee

student councils - The Students’ Union, The Female Students’ Union, The Clubs’ Union and The
Great Students’ Union - ran candidates. They all got more ayes and won each election.
In the Students’ Union election the ‘Geonganghan (Healthy)’ students’ union got 5,661 ayes
and 2,313 noes. With their Presidential candidate Jung Jae-wook (Urban Engineering, 02) and
Vice-Presidential candidate Huh Jung-jae (Physics, 02) they won by 3,348 votes out of 8,291
ballots cast. The ‘Misogonggam (Smile sympathy) female students’ union won in the Female
Students’ Union election. With their Presidential candidate Cha Ji-hye (Biochemistry, 2) and Vice-
Presidential candidate Jung So-young (Food and Nutrition, 2) they received 2,496 ayes and 756
noes. In the Clubs’ Union election, Presidential candidate Kim Hyun-woo (Majors in History, 4)
and Vice-Presidential candidate Jung Hye-min (Food and Nutrition, 3) of the ‘Dangdanghan
(Imposing)’ won the race with 101 ayes and 4 noes.
In the Great Students’ Union race, Presidential candidate Choi Young-hoon (Ethics Education, 3)
and Vice-Presidential candidate Park Ki-hyuk (Aerospace Engineering, 3) of the ‘Oneuldo
malguem (Today is also clean)’ great students’ union are returning with 62 ayes and 5 noes. p beebi@gnu.ac.kr

The Current State of the English Only Zone Program

Kim Tae-jin Social News Editor
The number of students who took the English Only Zone (EZ) program, in which students

Pictured by Kim Tae-jin

study English with foreign instructors for 3 hours every day, was lower with only 407 students this
semester. The maximum enrollment of 454 students was short by 47 students. Previously, the
dormitory administration had assigned the rooms of 6th and 7th dormitory building only to EZ
students. But this semester, in order to reduce the impact of the lower enrollment, it also assigned
some rooms to general students. When questioned about this change, the EZ administrator
explained that it wasn’t considered as a shortage of EZ students. He said that fewer students usually
enrolled in fall semester than in spring semester, when freshmen entered the university. It should be
noted that in previous semesters the EZ administration accepted non-credit students in the program
although it proved to be disruptive to the classroom atmosphere. Accordingly, they decided not to
admit such students this semester. What is more, it has planned to reduce the number of EZ students
in order to provide a higher quality of education.
A student who is currently taking the EZ program said, “I’m very confused because the policies
of the EZ program are always changing. I think the EZ program has to be improved substantially, in
content and structure, not simply by restricting the number of students.” p taejin417@gnu.ac.kr

Jinju City Implements Flexible Transit System Dong Yong-ho Reporter Pictured by Dong Yong-ho

Since September 8, Jinju city has implemented a flexible transit system for all bus routes in
Jinju. This system’s main benefit is that passengers can get a bus ride for free if they transfer from
one bus to a second bus within 30 minutes. To benefit from the new practice, you swipe your
transit card in the card reader when you get on the bus and also when you get off the bus. A time-
stamp is recorded on your transit card and will allow you to transfer to another bus within 30
minutes. However there are four situations in which passengers can’t transfer to other buses. First,
when passengers pay their fare with cash. Second, when they got off the bus they do not swipe
their transit card in the card reader. Third, when they get the same number bus as their first trip.
Finally, when two passengers pay their fares with a single transit card. Jinju city expects this new
system will encourage citizens to use public transportation more often because they’ll want to take
advantage of the ‘free ride’. p bestdong@gnu.ac.kr

6 THE PIONEER, NO. 144, DECEMBER 2008

 S U R V E Y

The Stress of
GNU Students
Dong Yong-ho Lee Young-joo Nam Young-woong Reporters

T
hese days, many people are thinking about the social
problem of suicides. Suicides can be regarded as a
result of extreme depression and extreme stress.
Therefore, we asked GNU students when they are under stress
and how they get rid of stress. (Please choose one answer.)
*What grade are you in? 1 )freshman(61.9%) 2) sophomore(17.4%)
3) junior(12.4%) 4) senior(8.3%)
*What is your gender? 1) female(56.4%) 2) male(43.6%) 4. When do you experience the greatest stress
about your financial circumstances?
1. When do you experience the greatest stress When your activities are
about your personal relationships? limited by a lack of money.
When you are obligated to (51.6%)
participate in club or When you feel guilty for accepting
department events. (43.6%) pocket money from your parents.
When your friends, lovers, or parents (37.6%)
don’t understand you. (29.1%) When you have to work due to economical
When your seniors give you orders. (24.3%) difficulties. (10.8%)
5. What problems cause you the greatest stress?
2. When do you experience the greatest stress Personal relationships (32.8%)
about your grades?
When you worry about Grades (28.4%)
score but don’t study.
(54.6%) Employment (25.2%)
When you get bad school scores
although studied hard. (29.8%) Money (13.5%)
When you think about parents who will be 6. How do you manage or reduce your stress?
disappointed at school scores. (15.6%)
Chatting with friends (30.0%)

3. When do you experience the greatest stress Sleeping (21.1%)

about your future job?
When you feel the sense of Singing or dancing (13.3%)
distance between your
situation and job you want. Exercising (12.2%)
(45.0%)
When you can’t find the work that you Shopping (10.3%)
want. (35.0%)
Excessive eating or drinking (7.6%)
When you feel burdened by expectations.
(20.0%) Travelling (5.5%)

This survey shows that GNU students experience the most stress from personal relationships. Especially, forced participation in club
or department events cause the most excessive stress. In addition, most GNU students get rid of stress by chatting with friends. Find
your own major stress release, then you can recharge yourself. p bestdong@gnu.ac.kr yjlee0710@gnu.ac.kr namsee2008@gnu.ac.kr
THE PIONEER, NO. 144, DECEMBER 2008 7
 C O V E R S T O R Y

Raise Your Job Spec!

Gyeongsang-ans,
Challenge Whatever You Want to Get with HRDC!
Kim Ji-young Editor-in-Chief

Pictured by Cho Ah-ra

U
niversity students persevere in their efforts to get jobs.
We should enhance our abilities. As we call that we
may raise the standard of ‘job spec’. ‘A job spec’ is
kind of a Korean slang for ‘a job specification’. It define what
qualifications, requirements and skills are needed to get a job,
and how they will be tested, for example in an interview, on an
application form, or on a vocational test. Educational
specifications would include your GPA (grade point average),
certificates of qualification, prizes, volunteer activities, and so
on. In essence, a job specification is what is required of us to get
a job.
You must do your best now to enhance your employment
future. If so, could you be more specific? Each of us engages in
many types of complex activities. It is good for us to join study
groups and academic groups, and to meet other people in related
fields of study. These groups are constructed on our own
initiative, or with the support of the university. As ever, there are
intern systems under the auspices of the university. Student
intern programs provide various opportunities for us to gain
experience in our field, or to gain credit toward our degree.
Human Resource Development Center (HRDC) located in
Student Union Building, 3rd floor, provides a wide variety of
services related to finding jobs. We should make the best use of
this center as it will help us develop lots of skills for the future.
We want that we will get satisfied application information from
these activities, such as internship program, or academic society.
Therefore, we, the PIONEER reporters cover various groups
organized for getting jobs, and interview professors and staff
who can help students develop their skills. In addition, we also
cover special lectures for female students. Let’s look at these
various Gyeongsang-ans’ activities!

If we have an interest in a particular career, then create the career with HRDC. Don’t complain about not being able to get job
experience when nobody will give you a job. We should seize any opportunity and always make our best effort.
Finding the perfect opportunity depends on obtaining information about a job. We may search the job boards to find that perfect
job for us. It is necessary to gather important information such as the minimum job specifications. This is just the beginning.
However, remember this: ‘a good beginning is half done.’

8 THE PIONEER, NO. 144, DECEMBER 2008

 INTERVIEW Park Gun-hee Deputy Editor-in-Chief

On November 12th, we, the PIONEER

Pictured by Jung Ki-hyung

reporters, interviewed Park In-sung, President of
Human Resource Development Center (hereafter
HRDC).

PIONEER : GNU is the major national

university in GyeongNam province. Compared
with universities in Changwon or Masan, however,
GNU doesn’t hold many job fairs. Currently, what
is the HRDC doing to try to attract job fairs? Are
there currently any plans for job fairs?

Park In-sung : It is difficult to conclude that

job fairs increase the employment rate, but it is
necessary to improve the image of GNU. If job
fairs do not have strong relations with companies in
their community then they are useless and
meaningless for GNU students. So the HRDC needs to consider
and prepare more carefully for successful job fairs. For
example, through the efforts of HRDC, the number of campus
recruitments have doubled since last year.
PIONEER : To improve the quality of education, each
university has to reveal information like annual employment
statistics. In this situation, what does the HRDC put the most
emphasis on?
Park : Actually, the HRDC is under pressure to increase
employment rates in each category - regular jobs, non-regular
jobs, gender and so on. Before analyzing the indicators, the
HRDC teaches people in charge, checks what data is missing
and plans thoroughly.
PIONEER : The HRDC changed locations from the third
floor to the fourth floor of the Student Union Building to
improve accessibility. Unfortunately, few students understand
the role of the HRDC yet. Please give advice to GNU students
who hesitate to visit the HRDC.
Park : Not long ago, few students visited the HRDC.
Nowadays more than 5 students come here for advice each day.
They consult with our staff about their courses and
employment. The HRDC offers all services related to
employment. To all GNU students: Come to the HRDC!
Prepare for your future!

contributed by Kim Dae-hwan

Challenge university students-oriented
contests! It is a good way to upgrade our
abilities and have more experiences. Also,
the contests are sort of a good indicator of
our specific professional level.
The challenge is mostly done by
university students that are in their last year.
They must want to take aim at their ability
with the entering a profession a few days
ahead. With some contests, the students who
won the prizes received preferential
treatment when entering a company. If you
have an interest in a particular career and
contest, create your field and challenge
contest like them, MVP team.

THE PIONEER, NO. 144, DECEMBER 2008 9

 C O V E R S T O R Y

Till They Won the First Prize in Marketing Contest

H
ere is the team that won the first prize in the national
MOOO (a product name, hereafter M) marketing
contest for university students which was sponsored by
a large food company. The team calls themselves MVP (which
stands M is Valuable Product) and is composed of Kim Dae-
hwan (Business Administration, 02), Kang Kyu-min (Business
Administration, 02), Park Jung-ill (Business Administration,
02), Sun-young Kim (Computer Science, 05). The team leader,
Kim Dae-hwan told GNU students to have confidence and to
participate in any contest you’d like to. Let’s listen to his story.
Decided to Participate
contributed by Kim Dae-hwan
showed them where GNU is located. In addition, we went to
Jin-hae and bought M because there was no M in Jin-ju. To
give the judges a good impression, we arrived at the contest
location about 2 hours before we were due to give our
presentation. With hard work and luck, we made the next cut.
The real race started then. We used 14 marketing techniques
including teaser posters and placards, giving out public relation
cards, holding sampling parties and promoting the product on
MBC radio.
People Who Supported Us
Kim : We would like to thank

Kim : In January, a marketing everyone who helped us.

contest poster on a bulletin board Especially, our many friends who
in my department. I first thought I gave us a big hand, and the
could add a line to my resume. I professors of the Department of
posted an ad on the GNU home Business Administration, too. The
page to invite team members to President and Vice-President of
join me. Our team was composed the Students’ Union, The
of 4 people: my two friends Kang President of Clubs’ Union, and
Kyu-min and Park Jung-ill, Kim The President of Dormitory
Sun-young who applied after Students’ Union gave us
seeing my ad on the GNU home encouragement and positive
page, and myself. support.

Went through the Contest After We Won the Prize

Kim : The contest was held nationwide, so about 200 teams
entered. After submitting their documentation, 20 teams were
selected to continue to give presentations from which 10 teams
were finally chosen. We gave our presentation to the four
judges, including a professor of Seoul National University and
the chief executive of the sponsoring company. They didn’t
know where GNU is and even laughed at us but we were
prepared for a chilly reception. We brought a 1:50,000 map and
Kim : Through the contest, I realized how valuable friends are. I
was really moved by our friends who helped us and gave of
themselves. A good side effect of winning the prize is that our
juniors have more confidence and knowledge for entering
contests. Well, now I study English all day long to enter a good
company. If I were a junior, I would participate in another
contests. Do not be afraid of failure. Just do it. When you do
your best, your efforts will be rewarded. Pictured by Park Gun-hee

It is also important to improve our self-image. Well, then, how do we improve

and change our self-image? Choose a role-model, someone you admire and try to
imitate. All we have to do is pretend to be the person we want to be, and then you
will find you have become that person in the end.
This is easy if you believe in the power of the imagination. We can become
anyone. If I workout, I become strong; if I treat others with kindness, I become
kind; if I lead the crowd, I become full of confidence. How simple these are!
Before long we come to believe we are powerful. We would become the person
we wanted to be. Actually, we became the person we were meant to be. Yes, our
image is made by ourselves. Special lectures such as ‘The Way to Improve Self-
image’ are offered by the HRDC.

10 THE PIONEER, NO. 144, DECEMBER 2008

 A Speech Lecture for Female Students

A
lecture program created by the Human Resource

Pictured by Park Gun-hee

Development Center is designed to help improve female
students’ competence. Speech was the topic of one
lecture held in the SOLEIP Pioneer Auditorium on November
5th. Young-hee Jung, Education Director of the Korea Human
Resource Development Research Institute, talked about interview
and presentation skills. Let’s listen to the voices of some students
who participated in the lecture.
Park Mi-sun, Koo Nam-in, Jung Sae-young (Department of
English Language and Literature, 06): We each learned of this
lecture from the internet site, the newspaper and a friend. It was a
really helpful experience to practice speaking in front of an
audience. We were a little bit embarrassed to speak in public at
first, but it got easier and we did better in time. Thanks to the
HRDC for providing an opportunity and encouragement to
female students to improve their competence. One disappointing
thing is the lack of active participation of female students.
Jung So-eun (Law, 06): I often check the HRDC web site and where I learned of this lecture. There have been many
opportunities to attend lectures offered by the HRDC but previously, they were all just theory without practice. But this lecture was
very useful and gave opportunities to practice in front of an audience and an instructor. The best thing about it was the quick
feedback about my speech. I learned to correct my bad habits when I talk to people. I hope the HRDC will hold many lectures that
let students practice for job fairs.
Kim Jong-gil, a HRDC officer, said, “There have been so many university lectures for female students, such as image making,
but GNU hasn’t had many. So, the HRDC began offering these training lectures to offer support to GNU’s female students. The
HRDC wants to continue these lectures and hopes many students will participate. Also, the HRDC will provide passes to students
who participate in the HRDC lectures allowing them to attend even though they may miss some of their regular classes.” p
beebi@gnu.ac.kr

Pictured by Cho Ah-ra

A study group is the best way to gain
intensive of knowledge in your field. Many
Gyeongsang-ans join various kinds of study
groups. Some study groups are supported by
HRDC such as our ‘Pioneer club’. We cover the
‘Pioneer club’ groups, Neulpum and BAB.
Also, we, the PIONEER reporters cover one
study group that is well run by a professor. It’s
purpose is to prepare students for the civil
service examination.
Study groups have been successful in the
university environment. Students gathering
together, sharing ideas, and preparing
procedures are a common part of the university
environment. They are also a helpful way to
expand one’s range of learning. So, take a look
of three study groups at GNU.

THE PIONEER, NO. 144, DECEMBER 2008 11

 C O V E R S T O R Y

Anounce of Practice Is Worth a Pound of Theory

Interview #1. Neulpum Cho Ah-ra Cover News Editor
-Interview with Kim Yang-gyu (Electrical Engineering)-

N
eulpum has studied since last summer. In case of the
Neulpum, the club already existed before HRDC (the
Human Resources Development Center) invited the
students. Neulpum’s structure has three components. First, they
practice interviews and presentations biweekly. The third
component is aptitude tests, such as Samsung’s SSAT and
Dusan’s DCAT. This third component is no longer part of the
program.
Three participants are chosen to be interviewers and two
participants are chosen to be the interviewees. The interviewers
read the interviewees’ resumes and cover letters and ask the
interviewees about their basic knowledge of the company, as
well as common sense questions, similar to a real oral test. They
photograph their actions to analyze their performance more
systematically.
Each session there are two presenters. The subjects of their
presentations are taken from current events. The members
research for a week using newspapers and magazines. With a
cover letter, they make brief comments and then they can
organize their ideas. They place a great deal of weight on
discussion. They divided the participants into two teams. There
are arguments for and against the measure and then they
express their opinions with appropriate reasons that they chose
for and against. When one team has finished their arguments,
the other team gives comments about their method of speech,
aptitude, etc., to help them improve their analytical ability. The
trial interview and presentation are hard to prepare by oneself.
They are more effective with others’ comments. Participants
improve their presentation skills through the PPT program.If
you prepare for the real thing, you’ll succeed!

Novelty Interview Questions

What kind of help did you receive from the HRDC?
1.Tell me your weak point.
1. HDRC has offered lecture rooms for PPT.
2.Try to likened you to things.
2. HDRC has given financial support of about 700,000 won
3.If one of your parents and the president of an enterprise are
(the money was used to buy materials, pay a visit of
drowning, who would you save first?
inspection, invite lecturers, etc.)
4.What is true about a day’s sales of Jajangmyeon in Seoul?
3. HRDC has provided equipment (for example, WIA
5.He likened virtue to gold.
Cooperation which offered automobile parts to HYUNDAI
6.How many gas stations does Korea have?
automobile company, Kyungnam Energy Co.)
7.Why is a manhole cover round?
4. HDRC has offered a letter of recommendation (members
8.If you compared colors, what color would you choose?
of GPP are acquired a priority)
9.How many stairs are in this building?

Make hay while the sun is shining

Pictured by Cho Ah-ra

Interview #2. BAB (Become A Banker)

-Interview with Yoon Sung-gwang (Dep. of Agricultural Economics)-
[club.cyworld.com/BecomeABanker]

What help did you received from the HRDC?

1. HDRC has offered a letter of recommendation (members of GPP are
acquired a priority) For example, five members were offered to take place
to the Bank of Gyungnam took an interview academy.
2. HDRC has announced the employment exposition to the members.
3. HDRC supported financial support of about 700,000 won (the money
was used to buy materials, pay a visit of inspection, invite lecturers, etc.)

12 THE PIONEER, NO. 144, DECEMBER 2008

 BAB consists of 13 members who have gathered to become
bankers. Most people have heard that the GPP (Global Pioneer
Program) is good for them or have experienced employment
exposition. The president of BAB said that such expositions had
been held at other universities. For example, Dong-a University
had been promoting employment groups. They elected students
and let the students prepare the certifications and share
information about applying enterprises.
BAB members have studied twice a week, meeting on
Mondays and Thursdays. BAB’s structure is the same as
Neulpum’s. BAB operates trial interviews, PPT and discussion.
The president of BAB posts official announcements on their
home page. For example, information about employment,
contests, materials etc. They gain experience and confidence by
having trial interviews. They will develop a positive attitude by
practicing repeatedly. There are two presenters and their topics
are based on the last subject. They can improve their
presentation skills through PPT program. There are arguments
for and against the measure and then they express their opinions
with appropriate reasons that they chose for and against. When
one team has finished giving their arguments, the other team
gives comments about their method of speech, aptitude, and so
on.

INTERVIEW
Interview #3. a study group of government officials students study

Pictured by Kim Ji-young

(Interview with Min Byeong-ik, a Professor of Administration) English. If they
master English,
“I have a dream. All students are offered a warm and stable they will study
place for studying.” Korean, History,
P u b l i c
He started a study group. The group’s purpose is to prepare Administration
to enter the public service. a n d
He has spontaneously offered lectures to students. He Administrative
motivates students to study with his scholarship. If one of the Law. They study
members gets a high score on a vocabulary test, he or she can reading in English
receive the scholarship. from 8:00 to 9:00
He was a graduate of the Department of Administration at every morning.
GNU. He has a dream that his juniors will earn a living for They memorize
themselves. He made the study group because he wanted to English words by
change students’ lifestyle. On entering university, many repeated reading during the day. At night, they study reading
students waste time playing. English and watch English grammar video clips.
The group has 30 members and is divided into five parts. The students are full of scholastic ardor. However, they
One part is juniors’, two are sophomores’ and the last is have suffered from poor surroundings. They need lecture rooms
freshmen. The government official employment market has where they can study every night. There are poor facilitates, the
gone from bad to worse because the demand for government students have studied shivering in the cold, even now. All
official jobs exceeds the supply. People seldom pass the exam students have to be provided with warm and stable places for
so students have to prepare more systematically. At first, studying. p bokshalabong@gnu.ac.kr

Employees are increasingly worried about their job security because the economy is suffering in the global financial crisis. At
this point in time, being a university student has become more stressful, with a huge backlog of unemployed graduates, and a tighter
job market. University students are focusing on raising our GPA, TOEIC score, and improving interview skills.
We, the PIONEER reporters conclude that lots of experience and practice will help prepare for the job interview process and
future career. Now, more than 1.35 million of those in their 20s and 30s are unemployed, the Korea Research Institute for Vocational
Education and Training’s data showed. Although our ailing economy slumps, we, the PIONEER reporters think the economic slump
will not affect our future dreams. p jy123@gnu.ac.kr

THE PIONEER, NO. 144, DECEMBER 2008 13

 T R A V E L
The Grace of ‘Land’
Pictured by Lee Young-a
D
o you know where Hadong is? As you may have
guessed, it’s not far from here. It’s located near Jiri
Mountain, and the Seomjin River flows beside the
village as ‘Ha(河)’ which means river in Chinese. It’s not only
famous as a tourist spot but the background of the book ‘Land’
written by ‘Park Gyeong-li’. Why did the author choose
‘Hadong’ as the setting, and spend over 10 years writing the
novel? There’s an annual literature event at House Choi-champan
(champan; Korean word for a deputy governor in history) in
October, and we went there to find the answer.
An endless chain of adversity. It would be the proper
expression to describe her hard life from birth to death. She was a
single mother who lost her husband and three-year-old son during
the Korean war. She also lost her son-in-law who was a
resistance poet. Maybe that’s the why she wrote many novels that
deal with the pain of humanity. In 1969, at the age of 43, Park
Gyeong-li started to write the novel. In the interview with Joong-
ang monthly press, she confessed that it was not until Korean
liberation that she learned Korean. That’s why she started to write
when she was in her thirties. Although some scholars criticized
her misuse of Korean and expressions mixed with Japanese, she
devoted 25 years of her life to ‘Land’. What did she want to put
14 THE PIONEER, NO. 144, DECEMBER 2008
Lee Young-a Academic News Editor
into the novel? She said in a 1994 interview, “I didn’t have a
specific idea when I started writing it, but I wanted to re-tell the
history of ‘Dong-hak’ because it’s becoming buried as time goes
by. We, writers can dig it up with our imagination, and
understand it more accurately.” By preserving the historical event
in her literature, she wanted us not to forget the history of Korea.
Right. ‘Land’ includes hundreds of people and much history from
the late 19th century to the middle of the 20th century. The
residence of Choi-champan, a grandfather of Seohui and a main
character of the novel, is the background of novel. Though it was
later settled after she had finished the novel, we went there
because it was the author’s first imaginary house.
What do you think the difference is between ‘living’ and
‘being living’? On the way to the literature event, as high as I
went up, I could see more of the green rice fields spread below
my eyes. There were many trees laden with persimmons. There
were three contests that day; writing letters, composition, and
recitation. We didn’t have very much time so we quickly decided
which we would attend. Some participated in only one, while
others were able to participate in two because the deadline for
writing and recitation were different. I choose two: composition,
and recitation. We were given the theme of the composition, Life.
 Pictured by Jeong Ki-hyeong
Pictured by Lee Young-a
The choices for subtitle were living and being living; we had to
choose one. ‘How on earth they are different?’. As I was thinking
about what to write and how to start, there was a soap opera-like
performance in which people acted like real characters in the
book ‘Land’. It was an inspiration! There were lines that said
‘People believe that they are the owner of the land, but the land
itself cannot belong to people. There were lines that said ‘People
believe that they are the owner of the land, but the land itself
cannot belong to people. We are just wanderers who stay on the
land for short time, and the land is an affectionate mother who
always stays in one spot, and raises living things’ I realized that
living meant living itself, and being living is the notion of
continuation, like the land that continuously produces products
and makes people live. Gazing at the wide, green field that was
below me, I thought back on my life. I had memories full of
agony, but also happy memories. Sometimes I acted selflessly,
while at other times I was very greedy. I organized those in order,
and that helped me think about life, being living, and myself once
again. Fortunately, the script we chose for recitation was what the
performers did while we were writing. I tried to imitate what I
had heard before, and tried to focus on the emotion of a character
Seohui, but it was more difficult than I thought.
Several works seemed to be collected to honor the writer’s
spirit. Each work was printed on cloth, and they fluttered in the
wind. It was an impressive exhibition. There were many grass-
roofed houses and we knew whose house it was by reading the
post in front of the house. There was a rice cake and uncurdled
bean curd demonstration inside the house. Also for the exhibition,
several scarecrows were placed in the rice paddy. I was happy to
THE PIONEER, NO. 144, DECEMBER 2008
smell the scents of tradition everywhere. I saw the vast field that
lay before us, and the land that had been the source of our lives. If
it had not been for the land, it would have been impossible for us
to live; it has given us air to breathe, space to live, and food to eat.
In a prologue of the book, she said, ‘I write not just to transmit
information about the old days and to remind people of older
times. Why not think about the absurdity of the living things in
the world, the appearance of surviving fighting against it, and the
essence of existence.’ Someone asked me why I thought that
Koreans climb Jiri Mountain. At the time I couldn’t answer, but
now I can. I think the reason Jiri Mountain has been loved by
many people is because Korea’s bitter sweet history sleeps there.
Many farmers struggled to the death fighting against injustice and
foreign power. The city of Hadong bounded by Jiri Mountain and
the Seomjin River would be the proper place for her. Also, the
special place, House Choi-champan is the place where villagers
gathered together to work. Fortune came from farmers’ sweat and
their efforts were steamed near there. We can read of their joys
and sorrows through many of her works, especially ‘Land’. She,
who devoted her whole life to literature, went back to the land
this year, at the age of 72. We should also remember the writer’s
soul to preserve their lives.
Be sure to visit their homepage (http://www.hadong.go.kr)
before you go. If you want to go to House Choi-Champan call
055-883-2663. There are a few buses each day. p lzeroa@gnu.ac.kr
Tip Jinju -> Hadong terminal ->House Choi-champan
Time 1hour(by bus, train) 30min(by bus)
Cost 4,300won(by bus), 1,400won(by bus)
3,100won(by train)
15
 R E V I E W
Pictured by Park Gun-hee

6mm Camera,
Little Theater,
……,
and‘Passion’!
Park Gun-hee Deputy Editor-in-Chief

W
hat comes to mind after
reading the title of this article?
Some of you might not know
what this article is about. Some of you
might see a hint in the first word, 6mm
Camera. If you don’t know yet, let’s
consider what the title suggests: few
characters, stories reflecting a director’s
thinking, sometimes confusing, shaky
images, and taking films with small
capitals. It is an artistic genre that attracts
smaller audiences in a world of big
budget films. But the phrase that also has
a lot of possibilities is Independent Films.
An independent film, or indie film, is
a film that is produced outside of the main
Pictured by Park Gun-hee
cinema system. Near GNU’s main
entrance is the Jinju Media Center which
shows indie films and teaches how to
critique indie films. If you look carefully
on the bulletin boards around GNU, you
might see yellow posters advertising films
at the Jinju Media Center’s Indie Cine
where indie films are shown every Friday.
Each month has a new theme of movies.
November’s theme was ‘work
people’. Three movies, Ordinary People
(2007), One Day of OO (2007) and Art of
War (2006) were shown on the 7th and
14th while Phill Soong Ver 2.0 - The
Song On The Road (2007) was shown on
the 21st and 28th. On the 28th, Young-
Jinju Media Center
seok Yeon, a main character of Phill
Soong Ver 2.0, visited the Indie Cine and
talked with the audience.
In December the Indie Cine plans to
show films about family. Shocking
Family (2006) will be shown on the 5th
and 12th and Big Girl, Little Girl and a
Guy in Between (2007) will be shown on
the 19th and 26th.
If you are interested in indie films and
want to see the films by yourself, don’t
hesitate. How about going to the Indie
Cine this Friday instead of going to one of
the expensive theaters? You will
definitely fall happily in to the world of
indie films. p beebi@gnu.ac.kr

where... 3F of Buldon-sangdon building, across from GNU’s main

entrance
when... on Fridays, December (except holiday)
ticket cost... adults : 2,000 won, students : 1,000 won
phone...055-748-7306/010-2361-5112
homepage... http://cafe.daum.net/imjinju
notice... ・All indie films shown at the Jinju Media Center have
English sub-titles. So foreigners who can read English can enjoy
many Korean indie films.
・If you want to be a member of the Jinju Media
Center, the cost is only 5,000 won per month. Members enjoy free
movies and use of the Jinju Media Center facilities.
16 THE PIONEER, NO. 144, DECEMBER 2008
 P H O T O E S S A Y

Myth of Winter Life Nam Young-woong Reporter

T
he time of year that is cold and chilly has already arrived. The
season reflects the roles of the gods and the goddesses. This
season has opposite meanings like two-headed Janus.
The beginning of winter is like the final time for Demeter, who is the
goddess of agriculture and the land, and the beginning time of Hades,
who is the god of the underworld. Hades makes thick mist and blows
strong wind which hardens and freezes all living things. All of the leaves
fall as they suffer from Hades’ cold influence, and the thin branches of
trees shake under his unfriendly influence.

Demeter’s time is
over, but Demeter’s
warmth won’t disappear
under the influence of
Hades. It’s frozen and
hard outside under the
influence of Hades but
peoples’ hearts aren’t
frozen and hard. They are
beginning to share their
warm heart with their
neighbors through warm
cups of tea. Demeter’s
warmth walks around in
the hearts of people.

December 25th is Christmas, and Hades’ influence and Demeter’s warmth in

people’s hearts are at their peak. Couples give their hearts to their lovers, and
charitable people help the poor who can’t protect themselves well enough to defend
Hades’ influence. Everyone is sharing their warmth, families are enjoying a harvest
by the stove in Demeter’s time. In the church, many Christians and priests are
blessing each other, wishing a happy new year to all as they celebrate the birth of
Jesus Christ and they share their food each other.

The world is under the Hades’ influence,

but Demeter’s warmth is still alive in people’s
hearts. Prosperity is shared as she stokes the
fire in our hearts. It is already cold outside, but
she warms our hearts like a roaring fire. p
namsee2008@gnu.ac.kr

THE PIONEER, NO. 144, DECEMBER 2008 17

 S O C I A L E X P L O R E R

21C, It’s Time for the Environment.

The Clock Is Ticking Rapidly!

Contributed by Jeong Seong-gyeong

Kim Tae-jin Social News Editor

It’
s 9:33pm!

T
he right figure represents the Clock of the Environmental
Crisis. Have you heard of it? It shows how aware
respondents are of the current crisis. That is, it identifies
the perception of the global environmental crisis.
The Asahi Glass Foundation has surveyed governments,
businesses, NGOs and global intellectuals every year since the
1992 UNCED (United Nations Conference on Environment and
Development). The foundation has appealed the result of survey.
The clock symbolizes the various degrees of crisis. From
12am till 3pm is 'no anxiety', 3pm till 6pm is 'some anxiety', from
6pm till 9pm is 'significant anxiety' and from 9pm till 12am is
'extreme alarm and heightened anxiety'. The symbolic 'death' of
the global environment is 12am.
In 1992 it was 7:49pm, in 1997 it was 9:04pm, and in 2006 it
Let's turn back the hands of the Clock.
was 9:17pm. Since 1997, the clock has been at 'extreme alarm What environmental time will it be next year will be? Many
and heightened anxiety' level. As the figure above shows, the people don’t know of this clock. However, we witness the effects
Clock currently reads 9:33pm, the most dangerous time we have of a warming climate in disasters, large scale typhoons and
ever had. especially big rainfalls. Can we turn back the hands of the Clock
The experts who answered this year's survey considered of Environmental Crisis? Whatever your answer, we must do it.
global warming (68%) as the main contributor to the Here, I'll tell you about two green lobbies in our city, Jinju
environmental crisis, followed by water shortages, food Federation for Environmental Movement, and Civic
problems, deforestation, desertification and threats to biological Environmental Center of Jinju YMCA. Both organizations are
diversity. working hard to turn back the hands of the Clock.

The Jinju Federation for Environmental Movement

Citizens who were worried about environmental problems
established the Jinju Federation for Environmental Movement in
1991. After that, it gained the trust of the public through it's
activities aimed at protecting our local environment such as the
Namgang River, Jinyangho Lake, and the movement against
building a dam on Jirisan Mountain. The Federation was
successful in fighting against the construction of the Duncheol
Golf Link, and became one of the strongest local green lobbies.
The Federation has been constantly promoting many
activities: environment education for children and teenagers,
wildlife protection, energy conservation, and the expansion of
new and renewable energy sources to prevent global warming.

The Civic Environment Center of Jinju YMCA

The Civic Environment Center of Jinju YMCA was
established in 1947 as a department of Jinju YMCA. The Center
has been holding many activities: creating a movement to save
the Gajwacheon Stream, monitoring and investigating of streams,
holding a drawing contest, hosting an organic food class to
supply healthful food, education for environment commentator,
monitoring traffic movement, educating citizens about climate
change and how to reduce greenhouse gases, etc. This year the
Center campaigned for the Carbon Neutralization Movement
from July to October.
The Center's many activities focus on improving our present
and our future, helping citizens work towards creating a
sustainable environment.

18 THE PIONEER, NO. 144, DECEMBER 2008

 Main Activities of the Two Green Lobbies
# The promotion of cycling
A bicycle, a method of
transportation ideal for short-distances,
is pollution-free. The revitalization of
cycling is a new plan not only for
making the city cleaner, but also for
saving energy and preventing global
warming. Jinju is an ideal city for
cycling. For 7 years, the Federation has
been behind the Riding Bicycle
# The protection of the Nam River and Jinyang Lake
Nam River is like an artery of
Gyeongnam Province, and Jinyang Lake
is like a lifeline of local residents.
Therefore, as two of our precious
resources, they are the world to us.
Several activities are being held to help
protect them from pollution and to
enhance their ecological stability.
Among the events, 'Walking
Pilgrimage for Loving Nam River' is an
# Saving energy and reducing greenhouse gas emissions
As time goes by, the amount of fossil
fuel used is increasing, petroleum
resources are drying up, and the earth is
getting warmer. Global warming and
desertification make human's future
dark. For the global environment, saving
energy is our common mission. The
Federation and the Center carried out
some activities: recommending using
new and renewable energy such as solar
heat and light energy at universities,
reducing energy use by 20%, etc.
Chosun University is a good example of
how a campus can use new and
renewable energy. Chosun University is
equipped with solar thermal panels on
roof tops which are used for producing
heat for the dormitories and for
Contributed by the Jinju Federation for Environmental Movement
Movement using the slogan, 'If you ride
a bicycle, happiness comes to you'. The
various activities are popular with
citizens: free bicycle repair, bicycle
classes for housekeepers, a grand
bicycle parade on Earth Day,
monitoring the condition of bicycle
paths, etc.
Contributed by the Jinju Federation for Environmental Movement
event held every summer. By walking
from the beginning to the end of the
river, participants can become familiar
with it and learn the importance of it in
person. Many families participate in the
event. Children aren't educated by an
instructor's bookish explanations, rather
they learn about the River from their
parents, so this event is also an
educational opportunity.
Contributed by the Jinju Federation for Environmental Movement
generating electric power in the Main
Building.
Their goal was to reduce energy
consumption by 20% and it is confirmed
that many apartment dwellers
participated in the movement with
eagerness. The Federation and the
Center helped the residents monitor their
Contributed by the Civic Environment Center of Jinju YMCA
energy consumption, but also offered
programs to encourage people to
participate in other ways: energy-saving
education, a tour through energy
facilities, holding the charity bazaar,
showing movies about the environment,
etc. In addition, the blackout event for 5
minutes held in August shows that a
large amount of energy can be saved
through the small actions.
THE PIONEER, NO. 144, DECEMBER 2008 19
 S O C I A L
“I’
m So Sorry.”
A child who participated in the
World Water Day event stroked the
river and said,
“River, I'm sorry for throwing
stones. You had pain, didn't you?”
Messages from the Ecoactivists
“ It is necessary to change our perception of the
environment.”
It is said that people's eyelashes become longer. You may
think that having long eyelashes is good because they look pretty,
but the hidden truth is that it is by no means good. It is evidence
that there has been an increase of minute dust in the air. To
prevent such dust from entering the eyes, the body responds by
growing longer eyelashes. In addition, we can see atopy, the
disease that did not exist in the past but is more prevalent as our
air becomes more polluted. Before we know it, our body has
reacted to our environmental problems.
On the other hand, I think people cling to superficial
cleanness but are actually unaware of the hidden problems. For
instance, people think that the whiter the cloth is, the cleaner.
They are not likely to question the power of bleach. In addition,
they consider the water of the pool is much cleaner that the one
of the valley. Is water that is sterilized with sodium hypo chloride
(bleach) better for our health or the health of the environment?
This is a difficult question. These days, when climate change and
energy problems are serious, Jinju does not have any laws
respecting climate change and energy issues. Yet ironically, Jinju
has been named a Green City three years in a row. It means that
Jinju has focused on landscape architecture only, thinking that a
clean appearance is all that is necessary. This is evidence that city
administrators are unenlightened about the environment.
From Jang Hyo-yeon,
Manager of the Jinju Federation for Environmental Movement
20 THE PIONEER, NO. 144, DECEMBER 2008
E X P L O R E R
Contributed by the Jinju Federation for Environmental Movement
“ Shake off the extreme egotism and think of the
environment!"
Humans are no greater than grass, trees, insects, birds, fish, etc.
We, humans, are just a part of nature. Yet we have destroyed
nature for our profit and comfort. In other words, we have used
nature as an instrument for profit. The state of nature has now
reached a critical stage, or almost irrecoverable stage. Today's
unusual climate is showing that the destruction of the
environment is brought upon humans themselves. As long as the
capitalistic system exists, destroying the environment is
unavoidable, and the damage that humans suffer will be
multiplied. It sounds skeptical, but it's true. We, humans, have
been too indifferent to the environment. Although it sounds like
an exaggeration, humans have been extremely egocentric. That
is, we have taken the right of living in a clean environment away
from our own offspring. Of course, we don't have any right to
deprive them of an environment they need to exist. We must try
to preserve our environment as our living grounds so that future
generations my have a better life. In order to do that, we must
know that nature and humans are very closely related to each
other. Above all, we need to feel friendly towards nature. I
recommend you eat food fresh from nature and go on a picnic in
the forest with your family. p
From Chae Yeong-sin,
Manager of Civic Environment Center of Jinju YMCA
taejin417@gnu.ac.kr
For a Clean Campus, Clean Your Mind From the Inside
Lee Young-a Academic News Editor
Do you know what Ecomoney is? It is said to be a combination of ecology, economy, and community. It is a kind of coupon that
can be used as real cash in a community. We can find the origin of Ecomoney in the Local Exchange Trading System (LETS). It
was first started in a small community called the Comox Valley, in Canada. The villagers had hard times because of the economic
slump and high unemployment. In the mean time, Micheal Linton, a computer programmer who also had experienced economic
challenges, devised LETS. His plan considered economics and ethics. First, reduced the burden on households because they didn’t
need to pay interest when they borrowed from LETS. Second, many transactions were possible because of the inclusion of many
products and service. Third, it gave stability to the community as it became more economically independent by using LETS. Finally,
it protects the environment as it incorporates recycling, efficient use of resources, and zero waste. Japan developed the idea for those
purposes and emphasizing the last effect. In a certain village in Japan, there is a committee to incorporate Ecomoney using the
famous character ‘Atom’. The money is called ‘Atom’ and there are various pictures of Atom on the money. The local people
receive Atom if they bring their own chopsticks to cafeterias, bring a shopping basket to a market or do some volunteering for the
environment. The Atom functions the same as real money in the community, so the locals have the greatest benefits in both the
environment and the economy. Do you think it’s possible to use such a system at GNU and in Jinju? Why not?
What goes on at GNU? It’s important to see the actual condition of GNU first.

# 1. To reduce waste, take only as much food as you can eat.

Have you heard about cafeterias where
people have to pay a fine if they waste
food? There are lots of cafeterias that have
implemented that rule. Nowadays, it seems
to shade away. There are an average of
1,000~1,500 people who use the Central
Cafeteria at GNU every day, and around
500 people use the Professor’s Cafeteria.
There is an average of 110kg of food trash
everyday (excluding bones, 600~700kg if
included). Although it doesn’t seem like
very much, if there are fewer people who
regularly waste food then we can reduce
the amount of food waste. In the Dormitory
Cafeteria, 150kg of food trash is thrown
out (bones not included). “The food trash
goes to a farm everyday, however, we can’t
say it doesn’t pollute the environment at
all. If students only take as much food as
they are able to eat, there will be less food
waste. Consequently, it would be reflected
on the menu.” said a dietitian at the
cafeteria. If we impose a penalty on
students who waste food and give the
Ecomoney to students who don’t waste
food, then the amount of food waste will be
reduced. Have you seen the poster
‘Thursday is no wasted food day’ in the
Dormitory Cafeteria? Let’s not waste food
at least on that day.

# 2. Tab water, you can save water.

Korea is a country which is classified
as water shortage country by UNESCO
(United Nations Educational, Scientific,
and Cultural Organization) and the WMO
(World Meteorological Organization). Do
you know how much water we use
everyday? According to Junju City Hall,
GNU people used 704,706 tons of water
last year, and it cost 704,523,000 won
(Gajwa, Chillam, and Tongyoung Campus
included). To monitor and reduce the
amount of water we use everyday,
headquarters has installed water meters
inside every building to check if their water
use is excessive. To prevent inefficient use
of water, we should turn off the taps tightly
because if drops of water fill a bottle in two
minutes, it means we waste 6,000 liters of
water a year. We can also deal with the
problem by taking showers instead of
taking baths, because a shower takes one
third the amount of water compared to
bathing in a tub. In addition, if we brush
our teeth without a cup and leave the tap on
for about 3 minutes, we waste 18 liters
during that time.
THE PIONEER, NO. 144, DECEMBER 2008 21
 S O C I A L
Water shortage is not the only
problem. The midstream and downstream
of the stream Gajwa are graded 4 in
water, 5 in environment. Isn’t it
surprising? Although, GNU is not totally
responsible for the grade, because the
exhausting water through filter in GNU is
5~7 PPM (20PPM limited), but it does
contribute to the pollution. A change in
# 3. Turn off the lights that aren’t needed.
Last year, we used 27,203,400 kw of
energy and it cost 1,980,056,000 won.
The average quantity of electricity used in
the dormitory is 80,000 kw this year.
Headquarters has made several attempts
to reduce the use of electricity. First, they
encourage us to use the stairs to get to the
lower floors. The second is turning off the
lights between the GNU Main Entrance
and the Central Library at night. Last,
replacing fluorescent lights with high
efficiency lights. Students turn on the
lights in a day, air conditionals in
Summer, and heaters in Winter above the
necessity.
# 4. Use your strong feet and take public transportation.
Since the price of oil is going up, there
are fewer people driving to school.
However, the campaign of two-shift
system of driving isn’t really activated. As
you can see, GNU has a gentle slope, and
Pictured by Lee Young-a
22
E X P L O R E R
consciousness is needed by GNU staff
and students. You may feel like it’s a
nuisance, but we must take the right steps
to dispose of our waste. Also, using
natural detergents would be better for the
environment. We can give Ecomoney to
GNU people who make it a rule to save
and preserve water in their daily life.
The administrator of electricity in the
dormitory talked about the students’
awareness. “They may feel they have to
enjoy all of the benefits because they paid
the money.” However, the government
has supported us with 1500 million, but
the total cost of water and electricity was
3900 million, so the rest is on our tuition
fee. Be sure to turn the light off when you
go out, or when you don’t need them.
Unplug your electronics when you are not
using them. The school should to give
penalty to people who overuse electricity,
and give Ecomoney to who save energy.
many people ride bicycles around
campus. It deserves praise, and we can
give Ecomoney to people who use a
bicycle instead of a car or a motorcycle.
Ecocampus. It’s one of the slogans GNU has
adopted to make our campus greener and cleaner.
Everything seems to be clean because there are green
images of the school. However, what’s inside? A few
days ago, there was an accident in which all the
garbage cans in the men’s dormitory toilet burned. It
happened because someone threw a cigarette butt into
the garbage can. If it hadn’t been noticed quickly, the
accident could have ended in tragedy. The goal of
saving energy and protecting the environment from
contamination is much more important than the
beautiful sight, for a real Ecocampus. p
lzeroa@gnu.ac.kr
THE PIONEER, NO. 144, DECEMBER 2008
 C A R T O O N

A Son of My Mom’s Friend, ‘Eom-chin-a’

By Jeong Seong-gyeong, Dept. of Biochemistry, 07

THE PIONEER, NO. 144, DECEMBER 2008 23

 E S S A Y
The 22nd English Essay Contest
A Shout to the World
Contributed by Hong Eun-seop
The First Prize
A Short Story of My Mother
I
was looking at the picture of a young
woman. It was a black and white
picture where the woman, beautiful
and young, gently smiles at me. Lying
beside her now, I was tracing the wrinkles
that make deep and sharp lines to every
edge of her face. Especially my eyes fixed
on the wrinkles, at both ends of her
mouth, curved downward; making her
look a little bit worried. “Mom, make a
smile,” said I, fingering her mouth up in
order to give her a big smile. Then she
made a smile at me. Even though it
seemed to be a false smile, I like to see
my mom smiling before me. She is my
princess.
Yes, I have a ‘Princess’;
24
C O N T E S T
By Park Myeong-hwa, Dept. of English Language and Literature, 06
unfortunately, it has nothing to do with a
fairy story. It is the name of the shop,
where my mother is dressing hair. Right,
my mom is a hairdresser. Thanks to that
name, my mom is often called ‘Gong-ju’.
The word in Korean refers to a princess in
English. Thus, it is a common scene that
customers ask me, “Where is Gong-ju?”
for my mom is so busy that the shop is
often empty, only with customers looking
for the owner. It seems strange to you that
the busy hairdresser is not at the shop, but
can be found outside frequently.
Born to talented hands, she never lets
her hands lie lazily on her laps. During
weekdays, she works hard at her shop.
My mom, however, spends much of free
THE PIONEER, NO. 144, DECEMBER 2008
Faces of Glory
time outside of the shop doing this and
that, which I do not know for sure what
they are. Moreover, on weekends she is
still busy doing her chores at home and
helping her neighbors in countryside. She
is a hard-worker, emphasizing the
importance of the work. “Follow what
you want to do. Do not chase after
money.” “Do not let your life driven by
money. Instead, drive your work hard.”
That is the most important lesson to
which my mother always gives the
importance before her grown-up children.
Being a daughter of such a mom, I am
also a person, who hardly gives up
searching for what I really want to do and
goes for it. Maybe what I am now is
somewhat reflected in how my mother
has lived.
She was raised in a big family, where
3 sons and 4 daughters had to share
everything. Thus, she did not have an
opportunity to get higher education while
only sons were allowed to finish their
schooling. My mom worked as a librarian
in the high school, where her male
siblings were educated. And, she was the
second daughter among all of the
daughters who financially supported and
took care of her 3 little brothers until they
got their high school diploma. My mom
was a mom for my little uncles. I cannot
help respecting her even more for her
sacrifice to her family. Such her sacrifice
extends outside our home. She is not
participating in voluntary works
regularly, but in everyday life she shares
what she has with others and runs to help
any neighbor in need. Many people, in
turn, visit my mom’s shop to bring their
harvest : green tea and vegetables for
spring, watermelon with some seasonal
fruit for summer, chestnuts and rice for
autumn and warm stories for winter.
Every season I found my home full of
people’s warm hearts. Compared to her, I
am rather a stingy person. She always
says to me, “Share anything, whether it’s
a little or little. That is the virtue you
should have as a person in a society. No
one can live alone.” As growing older and
older, I have come to know the real value
of what I can share, that makes me happy
with others and, in turn, makes others
happy with me.
I think ‘the princess’ in my real story
is much lovelier than a princess in a fairy
story. Today I am going to interview my
dear princess to get her story. The other
day I, over the phone, asked her to be my
interviewee for my mid-term paper in
English composition class, and at first she
didn’t welcome it. However, she finally
said yes for my request. First, my
questions get evolved around a short
history of her family. She is now
travelling back to her memories about her
then-parents and her then-siblings as well
as living in a big family. She enjoys what
she is telling about. As I finish up my
questions prepared for the interviews, I
raise one more question.
“Okay, mom. Then tell me about your
daughter. What do you think about your
daughter?” Pretending what is going to be
talked about is nothing to do with me, I,
with innocent-looking eyes, look at her
face. “I come, over the years, to know
that my daughter is of a dogged
patience.” says mom, still with her hands
busy, now winding off the thread from
her almost-completed needlework, saying
she did math wrong as its size seems to be
THE PIONEER, NO. 144, DECEMBER 2008
smaller than she calculated before. I am
winding up the thread on a reel again
while waiting for her explanation further.
She is sometimes worried about me
starting all over again on campus. “I am
really happy to see that my daughter has
her own dream and runs for it”, says my
mom. I, with a bachelor’s degree, decided
to get one more to be an English teacher 3
years ago. “I respect my daughter’s
decision and I believe her”, says mom.
Then abruptly my mom asks back of me,
“What do you think of your mother?
What does it mean to you by the word
‘mother’? I wonder what my children
think about who I am as their mother.” I
am a little bit surprised to be asked about
mom, by the very mom. Of course, she is
the most important person in my life.
“Born to you, I can live what I am. I can’t
be what I want to be unless you wait long
enough for such a late comer like me to
come out to find my way. Much thanks
for you, with patience and love”, answer
I.
With the interview now done, I
conclude that it happens to be a journey
on her living story but also to face myself
reflected on her. Here I do not want to put
a full stop on her story since her life is
still going on now, and mine as well. p
25
 E S S A Y
The Second Prize
How I Overcame My Difficulties
I
went to the United States with my
family when I was three years old and
returned to Korea when I was eight. I
felt a serious culture shock at first when I
came back to Korea after having lived in
the United States for five years. The
moment my airplane took off and left
Minneapolis airport, which was covered
by clouds soon, I realized that I was
leaving the United States parting from my
American friends and teachers. I was so
sad that I could not help bursting into
tears.
As I arrived in Korea with my eyes
swollen, my grandmother and relatives
said to me, “Why do you cry?” “Stop
crying!” I felt bad because I thought they
scolded me. My mother also told me that I
should not cry. She said it is Korean
culture. It was very different from
26
C O N T E S T
By Lee Hyun-jeong, Dept. of English Education, ’06
American culture, where I could express
myself frankly and find consolation. I was
confused because I could not comprehend
many things. However, my mother said
that I should try to understand Korean
culture, because I am Korean and must
live in Korea. At that time I found it hard
to believe the fact that I am Korean. It
was difficult for me to understand Korean
culture. Other people around me appeared
very strange to me.
I had much more serious trouble at
my Korean school. Korean teachers told
me that I had to make new friends
unconditionally as soon as possible,
thinking that it is a good way to change
me. They said that if I could not make
new friends, it would be my fault. They
advised me to try to get along well with
other students no matter what they might
THE PIONEER, NO. 144, DECEMBER 2008
say or do. Other students who heard about
me from my homeroom teacher came to
me and asked me to let them borrow my
things. Some students returned me the
things they borrowed, but most other
students did not. So I had to go to them to
take my things back. My teacher said that
it is a good virtue to share my things with
other students. It was hard to understand.
However, my bad feelings toward the
students disappeared as they offered to let
me borrow theirs when I forgot to bring
my sports wear or spoon. (In Korean
schools students have to bring their
spoons or forks to eat lunch with.) Several
students offered me their chopsticks or
forks, saying that their chopsticks are
made of silver and so very good or that
their forks will be better for me, because I
came from the United States.
 I became a college student in Korea
last year. I have come to understand
Korean culture much better than before
through my own experiences and
conversations with my parents and
friends. I found that frank conversations
with my parents and others were of great
help in reducing culture shock. Once I
told my grandmother that I had felt very
sorry, when she scolded me for crying at
the Korean airport. Then she said that she
had not meant to scold me at all and that
she just told me not to cry, because she
was very sorry to see me crying. In Korea
there seem to be many cases where
people often talk in sullen tones even if
they are considerate of you. You should
try to understand their hidden
considerateness.
My sister and I can speak both
English and Korean freely now.
However, the two languages seemed to be
big obstacles hard for me to overcome for
about twelve years during my elementary
and secondary school days since my
family came back to Korea. My father
wanted me and my sister to keep up our
English skills to grow to be bilingual. So
he told us to speak only English at home,
even though I had to do my homework in
Korean.
I experienced a great deal of trouble,
as I had to do a lot of homework and take
tests in Korean. Even though my mother
helped me to prepare for the tests, giving
me explanations in English and Korean, I
could not help making many errors
because of the language problem. I often
felt frustrated and upset after the tests
because I could not do well on the tests,
even though I knew the correct answers.
So I often thought that it would be really
nice if there were someone who could
translate Korean questions into English
for me during the exams. I felt at a loss
because I did not have enough time to
learn Korean, which was too difficult for
me, and I had to keep using English at
home. It was hard for me to understand
why I must study both English and
Korean. I wanted to give up one of the
two languages.
However, one day when I was doing
my writing assignment about my dream, I
THE PIONEER, NO. 144, DECEMBER 2008
realized that I forgot about my dreams of
studying at a great American university
like MIT for graduate degrees and
becoming a scholar like my father. I could
vividly recall the images of the
classrooms and campus of MIT where I
wished to study while traveling in the
eastern states of the United States. I
realized that I must have a good
command of English so that I can make
my dreams come true. Then I could keep
studying English hard and even Korean,
which was like a foreign language,
became interesting to me. As a result, I
came to be able to understand differences
and similarities between the two
languages very well. I studied Chinese
very hard too, which makes up a large
part of Korean. Even though the
languages were big obstacles to my life
causing me a great deal of trouble when I
returned to Korea from the United States,
they became important foundations for
the realization of my dreams after I made
up my mind what to do in the future. p
27
 E S S A Y
The Thrid Prize
Dear My Season in the Sun
T
he shadows are long, another day
has gone. Has time ever run this
fast before? Tomorrow comes long
before I remember what happened
yesterday, and today keeps going before I
can plan for tomorrow. Why do the things
of yesterday linger in my mind amid
awkward? It is probably because that I
have nowhere to place my mind. These
days, I often recall my adolescent period,
which reminds me of the smell of moist
grass right after the rain. At that time, I
had a white grand piano, which I called
the ‘white whale’. The white whale used
to flash a smile with his white keyboard
teeth and let me sit in front of him. During
the third year of high school, I used to sit
in front of my desk past 2 a.m., but I
didn’t finish one volume of an exercise
book without knowing what to do first
amid a pile of study materials. Even
though there were many days when I
wasted valuable time like that, I always
28
C O N T E S T
By Jeong Se-mi, Dept. Public Administration, 07
liked to hum piano melodies on the way
to and from school. After I got scolded by
my teacher because of poor grades, and in
spite of my painstaking effort, I became
helpless like a scolded puppy.
Nevertheless, I went to the roof-top of the
school building with my friends to fight
sleepiness, and we could rest and laugh
there, while enjoying the open view of
cherry blossoms spread over the campus.
Even when we attended a prestigious
university and was filled with school
pride, and the average class grade was
always a great distress to our teacher; we
still could laugh with all our hearts and
talk about our dreams with confidence.
We used to say, ‘In seeking what we
want, our parents’ pride and other
people’s eyes don’t matter at all. We
don’t have to follow in their footsteps, do
we?’ Recalling in retrospect, we might
have thought that our grades and winning
or losing were not important. Instead, we
THE PIONEER, NO. 144, DECEMBER 2008
used to seek our own happiness in our
small and humble dreams without caring
about what other people thought.
A couple of days ago, I got a call in
the evening from a friend of mine. We
had lost contact since graduating from
high school. I was just told by another
friend that she went to a renowned college
specializing in training professional
illustration. I managed to remember her as
a friend who loved cartoons and used to
tell friends with her sparkling eyes that
she would definitely become an illustrator
in the future. I asked her how she had
been doing. To my surprise, she said that
she dropped out of the illustration college,
and was preparing again to enter a 4-year
university to take the Public Teachers
Qualification Exam. Silence followed her
declaration. The silence was rather bitter,
as I vividly remembered her as a
passionate illustration lover who used to
talk endlessly about her favorite cartoon
writers and what types of cartoons she
would like to draw. At some point, the
bitterness hit my heart so hard that I was
crying without reason that night. The
starlight did not breathe. The silent night
sky felt as heavy and anxious as my heart.
That night, after hanging up, I was
thinking for a long time, while staring at
the night sky without feeling the cold
night air.
She was the first one who talked about
her dream with confidence and passion,
and prepared to enter the college of her
dreams to study illustration without being
swayed by the ever-changing college
entrance system in Korea. I was
wondering what on the earth made her
give up on such a passionate dream? Why
am I still confused about which career I
will pursue, while at this moment
studying at a university, which the Korean
people call ‘the Halls of Truth’? Why do
our various dreams converge to one type
of government officer career at university,
a place where we are supposed to extend
the horizons of our knowledge? Old folks
tell us that we must compete
painstakingly to survive or win in the
same dream. I asked my friend how she
would do, and she replied that she just
hoped to smile with all her heart at the
end of her chosen path, like we did in our
school times. Her last words still linger in
my head. All of a sudden, I wanted to ask
her how a teacher, who dropped her
dream by herself, could smile with all her
heart, and how students taught by that
unhappy teacher could possibly be happy.
As a matter of fact, the ultimate reason
for school is to teach us how to live in
harmony on our own based on finding our
own values and respecting others.
However, nowadays, we compete with
one another much more than is necessary
in our lives. The realities force us to
choose a reputed career which will shine
our name with fame in society rather than
our favorite field. We live daily in a world
which tells us that it is far better to
become a distressed or unhappy teacher
than an illustrator who is content with a
small dream. If somebody were to ask me
“What’s your dream?” I would probably
have to think for three days and nights to
answer such a simple question.
Unfortunately, this is what we are today
forgetting: our childhood dreams.
It is obviously fall now. The traces can
be found everywhere on campus. The sky
seems to have lifted up higher and it looks
clean and blue. During the day, hot
sunbeams ripen the cheeks of Chinese
quinces, while at the same time dyeing
them with a sweet taste. As part of
preparing for seeking a job from
government or big companies, we also get
busy with signing in a course for a license
and preparing for the TOEIC exam. It
THE PIONEER, NO. 144, DECEMBER 2008
seems that such images will not change
much the next fall or after. However, I
still hope that above all, dreams rest on
the shoulders of students who are busy
walking across campus to move from one
class to the next. I hope that everybody
will follow his or her dream for real
happiness, and are excited about reading
and listening to lectures as a way to
materialize those dreams. Therefore, in
the end, we don’t regret our decision
made at an intersection of two different
roads; one is the way I wish to go, and the
other seemingly the way I am forced to go
by others. Later, I would like to recall my
youth as a pleasant and memorable time
of my life, not a time filled with regrets
and bitter memories. Among all the times
of my life, I wish to select this very
moment as my ‘season in the sun’. Like
other university students, the sad reality
that I am also preparing for the public
officer exam makes me realize how
precious our high school times were, the
times when we felt the most happy with
our beautiful real dreams. We were all
sparkling with dreams like that. We were
just happy to have a shoulder to lean on,
and excited about our unforeseen futures
with our hearts beating fast. Is there still
the beautiful wind blowing on the roof-
top place like the day when the fresh wind
combed our hair with us standing there
side-by-side? p
29
 P E O P L E
GNU through
the Eyes of Foreign Professors
Most Important Thing Is Health
Yelena Baribaeba is a Russian professor from
Chita National University where many GNU
exchange students have gone. She especially likes
the Russian language and wants to show GNU
students the variety and beauty of the language.
I asked about her first impression of GNU and
GNU students. At first she was uncomfortable with
the size of GNU. However, as time goes by, she has
become more used to living here. Moreover, she
realized that GNU students were similar to the
Prof. Yelena students of Chita National University though they
Baribaeba (Dept. of don’t have same culture, language and customs.
Russian Studies) The students of both of these countries seem to
enjoy living, be open-hearted and curious. Perhaps
this is because they have a common denominator:
they are university students. In conclusion, I asked
Set Your Dream, and Search Ways to Realize It!
Hello! She, a professor in Dept. of German
Pictured by Lee Young-a
Language and Literature, welcomed us with a big
smile. She’s been in Korea since August 25th, 2008.
She heard of her acceptance at GNU in June, which
was about two months after she applied to work
here. She sent the application form without
hesitation not only because she was a student
approaching graduation, but also her dream had
been to spread her native language throughout the
Prof. Anika Bensch world. With the question ‘Have you learned
(Dept. of German English? Your English is fluent!’, she replied that
Language and she learned English as a second language in high
Literature) school. She has also wanted her native language to
become one of the famous in the times for about 10
years. Now her dream has somewhat come true.
She seemed satisfied with her decision.
“Everything here is very lovely and beautiful!” She
said that GNU students have shown enthusiasm and
a great interest in studying. “The pronunciation ‘d’
and ‘r’ in German are difficult to distinguish and
30 THE PIONEER, NO. 144, DECEMBER 2008
Lee Young-joo Reporter
her to give some advice to GNU students. She said,
“If you lose your health, you will lose everything.”
She emphasized the need to be healthy over and
over. Of course, the importance of health applies to
not only GNU students but also to GNU professors
and officials. In Russian, the greeting word
([zdrabstbyi(te)]) means ‘health([zdaroba])’. When
they greet, they say ‘I hope you are healthy.’ Like
this, they consider health is most important thing.
She advised us to not be conceited and to maintain
our physical health as well as mental health.
Although my Russian is poor, she kindly
answered my questions with a girlish smile. I
thanked her for the interview and her counsel. I
took pictures of her smile and engraved it in my
mind. p yjlee0710@gnu.ac.kr
Lee Young-a Academic News Editor
they asked questions to understand completely.”
She said she was happy to see the students
progressing. Rather than giving minus points, she
gives plus points when students complete their
homework. She considers homework a
measurement to judge whether students are
progressing well. She wants to focus on what
students find difficult. I could see her philosophy of
education.
She offered this advice: Don’t be shy to ask
someone for help because it really helps. “I really
didn’t know I became a teacher here. If you set your
dream, it doesn’t matter how big it is. Focus your
energy on achieving your dream. Find someone and
ask them for help. It really comes true.” As she
could get the useful information from her German
friend who has experienced an intern in GNU, it
really helped. I hope she continues to enjoy teaching
and stays here at GNU for a long time. p
lzeroa@gnu.ac.kr
With Hope for More Active Interchange
Through the interchange agreement with
Qingdao University, professors as well as students of
the university attend GNU on exchange. Wei
Shaohua is the most recent professor employed by
the Department of Chinese Language and Literature
at GNU this year.
I was a little bit nervous because it was the first
time sitting with a Chinese person. However, with
his kind smile and courteous pouring of tea into my
cup, he said the treed environment of GNU campus
is very impressive, compared to the Chinese one,
which was destroyed by abrupt modernization.
Moreover, he has taken many pictures of the
beautiful and well-maintained campus, he confessed.
As I took a sip of tea, I asked what he thought of
Build Systemized Exchange Student Programs
Mrs. Sugimoto Kaoru is a professor of Japanese
in the Education Department. She came from Osaka
Japan. She is a typical Japanese middle-aged woman.
She seems to be kind and good. She was familiar
with the previous professor of Japanese in the
Education Department, so she came to Korea on the
recommendation of that professor.
When she first came here she felt that GNU was
very large. However, the atmosphere of GNU is like
a Japanese university because they are similar in that
they have good environments for studying. And she
said, “Japanese students’ looks are outgoing and
gorgeous. On the other hand, those of GNU students
are ordinary, and they study very hard.”
You Have a Clear Goal in Mind
There are lots of foreign professors at GNU.
They have made an effort to improve Gyengsang-
ans’ language ability. I want to introduce to you one
of them. Have you ever taken his lecture? On the one
hand, discipline is a critical component of his
teaching, but also your language ability is improved.
Fredrik R. Stark is an English language and
literature professor who has plenty of experience in
English departments, both as a student and a teacher.
He majored in English in college and in graduate
school.
He came to the English department in 2006. He
came because he wanted to work with faculty and
students in his field and to do that in this part of
THE PIONEER, NO. 144, DECEMBER 2008
Kim Tae-jin Social News Editor
GNU students. He replied that GNU students seemed
Pictured by Kim Tae-jin
to be very energetic; they are very eager not only in
studying but also in self-administering and
participating in extracurricular activities. In addition,
the professor commented that they had good
manners towards superiors, so he was refreshed
whenever meeting them. He wanted to have more
opportunities to meet them.
In his view, the university can build a world-wide
reputation by producing great students and research Prof. Wei Shaohua
projects. He said, “If GNU pumps up the study more, (Dept. of Chinese
GNU will be watched with interest by the whole Language and
world.” Besides, he said that GNU can become Literature)
generally known through more exchanges with other
overseas universities. p taejin417@gnu.ac.kr
Nam Young-woong Reporter
The number of exchange students going to Japan
is too small compared with other competitive
universities. She says, GNU will need to build a
systematic program for Japanese students who are in
need of special Korean lecturers. That way, GNU
can share more exchange students with Japan. GNU
needs to strengthen the ties of sisterhood and build a
stronger relationship with Japanese universities.
GNU students hardly ever meet Japanese
students. If GNU wants to build a worldwide
Prof. Sugimoto Kaoru
reputation, it needs to broaden opportunities for
(Dept. of Japanese
exchanges and develop programs in cooperation with Education)
other countries. p namsee2008@gnu.ac.kr
Cho Ah-ra Cover News Editor
Korea. He was also attracted by the academic
reputation of a national university.
Pictured by Park Gun-hee
He wanted to learn how to develop the English
department: we could aim to cultivate a sense of the
importance of a well-rounded grounding in English
studies, one that includes more than just the
rudiments of using the language for practical ends.
He said that if you want to improve your skills
and aptitudes in a language it is like anything else - it
takes time, patience, and above all, a sense of
purpose. What is it that you want to achieve through Prof. Fredrik R. Stark
English studies? Once you can answer that question (Dept. of English
clearly, that is, once you have a clear goal in mind, Language and
then seek out ways to achieve that goal. p Literature)
bokshalabong@gnu.ac.kr
31
 L E T T E R S T O T H E P I O N E E R

I Hope We Can Exchange Warm Greetings

D
o you recognize me from my picture? Hello! I’m Jang Kyeong lan. I work at the
stationary store in the student’s hall. I always meet GNU students who have pure
hearts. Most students say “Hello” to me very cheerfully. But sometimes someone
will bite my head off and be rude and grouchy. Next time, let’s say hello with a bright smile.
Then, we turn our attention to The Pioneer. I knew that is the English university
magazine but actually I haven’t read it closely. Although I don’t read English very well, the
pictures and design made an impression on me. It was remarkable.
I want to suggest three things to The Pioneer. First, I recommend that you should pay
attention to the economy, society and politics. That information will be useful to GNU
students. Second, I hope you will consider a broad variety of readers. Third, if you can, put
Jang Kyeong-lan
in a few Korean explanations for readers like me who don’t read English well. I’m always
Student’s Union Building,
happy when I find and read a new issue of The Pioneer on the campus. But I carefully ask
stationary store staff
you to write better articles. I hope everything will come out all right. Enjoy your youth.
Thanks for reading. p

Our University, Our PIONEER

I
’ve worked at our university library for 27years. Although I spend my time running
between the first and sixth floors, I check the newspapers everyday, every publication. I
naturally can be touched with the PIONEER as a record in the library. It’s one of my
pleasures to listen to your voices even it comes indirectly.
Since I started to work at the campus central building, I’ve read every newspaper and
magazine published at our university. In my opinion, the PIONEER has grown and
developed. The content is very abundant and the design is especially fantastic. The last issue
of the magazine was very good.
Because I work in the university library, I am naturally more interested in articles on
Kang Hong-goo universities and libraries. I was glad to see the campus briefing article which was related to
Library, lending our library.
information team leader However, there’s inconvenience. I personally think the last issue was a little biased
toward overseas stories that the authors had experienced. During the summer vacation, there
are many events and changes at GNU that are newsworthy. It would be better if those were
written up. I hope the English magazine pays more attention to GNU in the future.
I would like to make an additional comment. These days, students don’t seem to care
about our school. I wish that students would show their affection for GNU. This is your
university where you are studying. I hope you’ll take more of an interest in your alma mater
and think about it more often.
I will be in the library with you students anytime. I’d like us to get along and greet one
another with open arms. I wish that you often come to the library and read many interesting
books and get useful information. Do you know about ‘The lost & found center’ on the first
floor of the library? We’ll strive to be a library that works for you. Thank you for taking
time to read my words. p

32 THE PIONEER, NO. 144, DECEMBER 2008


Enjoying International Festival
O
n October 15th, an exciting
Variety Show was held at the
SOLEIP (The School of
Language Education and International
Programs) Pioneer Auditorium to
celebrate GNU’s 60th anniversary. It
provided an opportunity to many
foreigners to show their talents. The show
was open to international students,
teachers, and staff at GNU from China,
The U.S., Canada, Australia and so on.
The audience was happy and enjoyed
watching the participants sing songs,
dance, and play musical instruments, such
as guitar or violin. One participant wore
hanbok - traditional Korean clothes -, and
a few sang or danced to Korean songs like
moo-jo-gun. One participant dedicated his
unaccompanied song to his parents and
wife.
Pictured by Park Gun-hee
N O T I C E
Many Korean students enjoyed
watching the demonstrations of other
cultures. “Passing by the SOLEIP
building, I heard someone was singing a
Korean song well. I was curious to know
who the singer was. So I walked into the
Pioneer Auditorium. I was surprised that
the singer is a Chinese student. He really
sang the Korean song well, like a real
Korean,” said Kim Hyo-kyung (Bio-
Industrial Machinery Engineering
Department, 07).
When the show ended and everyone
was waiting for the winners to be
announced, Stacey Hoopes and Shaun
McAlpine who showed wonderful
harmony with a violin and guitar said,
“We had such a great time in the show.
We are happy to perform in front of an
audience. Of course, we want to get a
THE PIONEER, NO. 144, DECEMBER 2008
Pictured by Park Gun-hee
Park Gun-hee Deputy Editor-in-Chief
prize but we are satisfied with what we
did.”
Although everyone was satisfied with
the show, there was one disappointing
thing: the Sidewalk Sale was canceled.
The Sidewalk Sale was a small flea
market that was supposed to be held in
SOLEIP’s rear parking lot on the same
day as the Show. About the cancellation
of the event, SOLEIP officials said, “The
event was canceled because of a lack of
sellers. Only English teachers could be
sellers and they had classes at that time so
of course they couldn’t also be sellers. In
fact, SOLEIP is planning to hold flea
markets four times a year, at the start and
end of each semester. Flea markets allow
foreigners to share their stuff, but also
Korean students can experience shopping
in English. p beebi@gnu.ac.kr
Pictured by Park Gun-hee
33
 No.144 DECEMBER 2008

PIONEER
THE

Gyeongsang National Univesity

Whose woods these are I think I know. He gives his harness bells a shake
His house is in the vilage, though; To ask if there is some mistake.
He will not see me stopping here The only other sound’s the sweep
To watch his woods fill up with snow. Of easy wind and downy flake.

My little horse must think I queer The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
To stop without a farmhouse near But I have promise to keep,
Between he woods and frozen lake And miles to go before I sleep,
The darkest evening of the year. And miles to go before I sleep.

Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening

-Robert Frost-
The PIONEER
From 1. 이번 호에서 가장 관심 있게 본 기사는?
(Whici article do you like the most?)
Name :
Department :
Grade : 2. 그 이유는?(Why do you like it?)
Phone Number :

3. 다음 호에서 다뤘으면 하는 기사는?

(What would you like to see in the PIONEER magazine?)

To
Gyeongsang National University 4.‘파이오니아’에게 전하고 싶은 말은?
(Is there anythig to say to the PIONEER?)
The PIONEER, Campus English Magazine
학생회관 5층 파이오니아로 응모해주세요.
(정답자 중 추첨을 통하여 문화상품권을 드립니다.)
PUZZLE Guess it! DOWN
1
I 3
F 1. ‘________ flims＇stand for independant flims. (REVIEW)
2 2. Park Gyeong-li is the ________ of the book, ‘land’.(TRAVEL)
A 5
C
3. You can get useful information about employment in a job ________.
(COVER STORY)
W
1 4. Barack Obama won United States presidential ________. (CAMPUS
BRIEFING)
4
E 2
S 5. The Clock of the Environmental ________ (SOCIAL EXPLORER)

3
P ACROSS
1. ________ is the season between autumn and spring. (PHOTO
4
F ESSAY)
2. A Chinese student sang Korean ________ very well. (NOTICE)
3. Wei Shaohua is a foreign ________ of GNU. (PEOPLE)
5
P 4. The university ________ was held from October 14 to 17. (CAMPUS
WORLD)
5. There is a ________: ‘farming by day and studying by night’. (FOCUS)