Inner Journey

  Here, the popularity of highball is still soaring up with no sign of abating. Due to the high ball boom, the import of mid- to low-priced whiskey has increased, and whiskey's status is growing day by day. According to the Korea Customs Service's trade statistics, imports of whiskey such as Scotch, bourbon and so on from January to October this year were 26,937 tons (ton), up 26.8% from the same period last year. The increase in whisky imports is due to the steady popularity of highball, which is combination of sparkling water or tonic water and whisky. It is said that major consumers are the MZ generation (born in the 1980s and 2000s), but my observation is that the trend spills over to the whole generations of Koreans. Of course, I am also drinking these beverages more often than ever. Above all, the number of whiskies imported has increased significantly compared to the past. Whisky, which used to be "expensive alcohol," is gradually changing into popular al...

  The weather got cold, and I missed my furry friends, cats again. We went to a local cat café to meet furry cuties. And to talk about cat, purring is the most fascinating thing. I remember especially in cold nights; purring is the best lullaby I have ever heard, a simple low frequency vibration with repeating beat. Although you can always hear such delightful sounds whenever you stroke your furry friends, the mechanism of purring has been surrounded in the mystery. Here, I want to share the efforts of scientists conducted interesting study to crack secrets of purring. According to these studies, our feline friends have pads embedded within their vocal cords, which add an extra layer of fatty tissue that allows them to vibrate at low frequencies. The article was published in ‘Current Biology’. Larynx or voice box (Hereafter I use voice box because this is easier word for laypersons) of cats doesn’t need any input from the brain to produce purr. Scientists involved this rese...