Networks, epidemics and infodemics

Part of what makes the coronavirus outbreak in South Korea so interesting is the fact that this nation has some of the world's leading digital networks.   These digital networks, in turn, underpin and enhance the role of social networking in Korean society.  I've posted earlier (see these posts) on the subject of "infodemics" in Korea.  The term infodemic was coined in a 2003 Washington Post article by David Rothkopf.  The opening paragraph of that article notes that "SARS is the story of not one epidemic but two, and the second epidemic, the one that has largely escaped the headlines, has implications that are far greater than the disease itself. That is because it is not the viral epidemic but rather an "information epidemic" that has transformed SARS, or severe acute respiratory syndrome, from a bungled Chinese regional health crisis into a global economic and social debacle."
The current coronavirus outbreak offers yet another challenge to understand not only epidemics, but also the infodemics that accompany them.  An article by Reuters Graphics entitled "The Korean Clusters" is helpful in understanding the explosion of coronavirus cases in Korean churches and hospitals.  The map graphic in this post (click for a full size version) shows the number of  coronavirus cases as of February 26).  I recommend this article for some excellent explanatory graphics.  Oh yes, and I'm teaching networks courses at both graduate and undergraduate levels this semester.  At least for the first several weeks and possibly much longer, they will be delivered online, as South Korea seeks to minimize social gatherings to combat the spread of this coronavirus.

Samsung led global smartphone shipments in 2019

China and Korea dominate 5G smartphone market

As reported in the Korea Joongang Daily, the global market for 5G smartphones is dominated by Chinese and Korean firms.  As shown in the figure (click to see a full size version), Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics ranked second, together accounting for 41.7% of the global market.   The Chinese firm Huawei ranked number one in market share.  Together with Vivo and Xiaomi, Chinese firms accounted for 54.1 percent of the global market.

Academic publishing in 2019-2020

Caught up in a myriad of other activities as the Fall semester 2019 draws to a close at SUNY Korea, I've been neglecting my blog!  Since it was launched over a decade ago, I've posted multiple times every month, but not one single post this month (November 2019).  This post will keep the record of at least one post per month over the life of the blog intact. 
I'd like to use this post to draw attention to an issue that continues to bedevil scholars who pursue a livelihood through teaching and research in colleges and universities.  Simply put, should we publish online and make our contributions freely available or seek the most reputable journal and book publishers in an effort to advance our careers and protect our "intellectual property."  See  some of my prior posts on this topic (at this link).   Also, to what extent should we rely on platforms like ResearchGate or Academia.edu to promote our own research, versus publication in high-impact journals that developed their reputations during the 20th century mass media era?   This is a conversation in which I hope to engage my colleagues here at SUNY Korea and around the world.

Cyworld closes Korea operation

As documented in earlier posts, Cyworld was once South Korea's leading social media platform and was wildly popular with young people in this country.  It had over 30 million users at its peak popularity.  Earlier this month, as reported by The Korea Times, it suddenly closed down its operations in Korea, without advance notice to users or the  public.  As reported by the Korea Joongang Daily, Cyworld had already closed down its international arm in 2014 (click on the graphic for a full size version).  A major cause of Cyworld's demise was its failure to adapt to the mobile revolution.  That failure, in turn, may have been exacerbated by the two and one half year delay in allowing Apple's iPhone into the Korean market, a topic explored in this blog and my recent books (with Myung Oh).