Synergy Team members

Shin
Age: 18
Birth date : July 23, 1981
Hobbies: Reading, painting, swimming, and hanging out with my friends.
Special talents: Translating, designing costumes for theatrical productions
Goals in life: to be able to define ¡°success¡± and ¡°happiness¡± and to achieve both.  

How did you get involved in synergy? 
  I was featured in Korean newspapers for translating two English novels into Korean.  One day, I got a call from Dong-gyu and Man-su, who had spotted me in the newspaper and wanted me to join their team.  I was hesitant at first, for I was completing my final year at Seoul Foreign High School, but I couldn¡¯t resist after getting to know what sweet, hardworking people they are,  

1.    Since I am comfortable with both Korean and English, I agreed to translate all written material (which was in Korean ) into English.  After Dong-gyu gathered necessary information and wrote the text, I received it via e-mail and translated it.  I am very interested in linguistics; besides Korean and English, I am in my fifth year of learning French.

2.    In an extensive project like this, it is a fatal mistake to procrastinate.  Although our team did not leave everything off to the last minute, we still found ourselves panicking as the due date approached.  As in all long-term undertakings, it is important to divide the project into manageable portions and work on it over a scheduled period of time.  

3.   Translating Korean into English is hard enough as it is, for they are two vastly different languages.  There are certain Korean expressions and feelings that just can¡¯t be translated into English, and the same applies the other way around.   But to translate historical text was sheer terror.  Since I had never learned Korean history, I found myself struggling with special terminology and certain concepts.  I had to research on my own by reading Korean textbooks and surfing the web to gain some background knowledge about the Korean War.  Another difficult part was to maintain an unbiased voice throughout the text.  For example, I made sure not to sound unreasonably harsh towards the North Koreans.       

4       Like I mentioned above, I am proud to have completed my task within the team.  Everyone worked so hard, and I didn¡¯t want to spoil it for everyone by making mistakes.  Also, I¡¯m glad I got a chance to learn more about Korean history.

5.      Like the other members, I wish we just had one more day to submit our entry.  Then I could¡¯ve edited the text one last time, making sure all terminology is accurate.  Also, I regret not being more sympathetic towards my fellow team members.  There were times when I got frustrated and vented my stress on them.  

6.      Participating in TQ proved to me the power of cooperation.  If we had worked as individuals, or as a smaller team, it would have been impossible to submit a high-quality entry.  In Synergy, each member brought a unique contribution, and together, we were indefatigable.  I would like to thank all members for their tireless energy and warm friendship.    

Name : Kim Dong-gyu
Age: 17

Hobbies: Listening to music
(I love listening to music nowadays, but when I was little, I hated all kinds of music.  Maybe it¡¯s because I was forced to take music lessons without having much of an appreciation for it first.  But as I entered middle school, I quit all my music lessons, and my daily life came to revolve around academics.  Music no longer became a part of my life.  But this is when I truly began to appreciate music.  Now that I am mature enough to appreciate it, I¡¯d like to thank my parents for introducing me early on to the musical world.)

Special talents:  Computer programming
I started tinkling with the computer when I was in 3rd grade.  My dad brought home a lot of computer books  so naturally, I became interested in computers.  
In 4th grade, while flipping through computer manuals, I came across a page printed with strange letters that were actually programming codes.  I asked my dad what those cryptic symbols were, and my interest in programming ignited.  
This is how I got to learn Basic, and later, I started programming by using the more sophisticated Quick Basic.

Goals in life:
I am young, and I have many dreams.  Sometimes I want to become a movie director; sometimes I envision myself as a lawyer.  But my goal for the near future is to successfully complete our TQ entry and receive positive comments on it.  

How did you get involved in synergy?
Last fall, when our coach Mr. Shin first told us about TQ, I was intrigued by the idea of competing with students from around the world.  

What was the hardest part¡¦.?
By far, the most difficult part was composing the text that would go into our homepage.  Writing history demands accuracy, so I always had an encyclopedia open next to me, along with 10~20 historical documents.  It was really, really hard.  

What do you feel most confident about¡¦.?
I am especially proud of the written portion of this entry.  It was a painstaking process to compose the text, but I feel very confident about it.  

Talent¡¦¡¦.?

Although I was in charge of the written material and computer graphics in this entry, my strongest abilities reside in computer programming.  I use Visual Basic, and I¡¯ve won 1st place in a national programming competition before.

Regrets¡¦.?
There are always regrets, big and small, after submitting an entry, but this time, I must say I am fairly satisfied.  We tried our best, and I know this will be reflected in the final results.  

How has TQ affected your life?

As an amateur programmer, I am always sitting in front of a computer screen.  So I never thought that a computer would actually get a person to get up and move around.  But through this experience, I realized that a computer could motivate a person to do so much.  To prepare for this competition, I became a more active, enthusiastic person, and I will cherish this experience for a long time.

This is when he was a little boy

Name : Kim
Age: 16
Birthdate: February 20, 1983
Hobbies: Playing computer games such as the Three Kingdoms series from KOEI and StarCraft from Blizzard.  Battle.net id: kms83
Special talents: Making homepages.  I¡¯m not very skilled at it, but I still enjoy it.

Goals in life: To become a skilled web master rather than a famous web master.

How did you get involved in Synergy?

I teamed up with Dong-gyu, a classmate in our school¡¯s computer club.  

How did you contribute¡¦.

I have always been interested in learning HTML, JAVA, and CGI.  I took this opportunity to learn these skills from my teacher, Mr. Shin, and upperclassmen from our class helped me out as well.  Eventually, I became skilled enough to be in charge of all technical details of our entry.  

How do you feel about this entry?

Creating a homepage is NOT an easy task.  I also learned that a good homepage must incorporate accurate, useful text as well as pleasing graphics.  

What was¡¦.hardest part?

Since there was so much information out there, it was difficult to decide what was really necessary and what was superfluous.  In addition, I took special pains in creating an easy-to-use interface for first time users.  

What do you feel most confident about?

I am very proud to have created my own program.  It was hard studying the concepts of CGI for 3 months, but it was totally worthwhile in the end.  

Regrets, if any?
I feel that if I had just one more month-no, just one more week-I could¡¯ve done a better job with our homepage. Time flew by so quickly.

How has TQ affected your life?

Before we met Young Yee, Dong-gyu and I used to roam around the IRC server, trying to look for new members.  Though we didn¡¯t find anyone that way, I did end up meeting 8 new friends from around the world.  Also, I chatted in English for the first time in my life, and that was pretty fun.

In the process of gathering information with Dong-gyu, we got to meet a lot of new people.  It was tiring at the time, but now I¡¯m glad we did so.
Lastly, I¡¯d like to thank all team members for their incredible dedication.  

Name : Son Sung-il
Age: 27
Birthdate: December 8, 1972
Hobbies: Performing and listening to music.  
Special talents:  Drawing cartoons
Goals in life: To live an active, worthwhile life doing something I enjoy

1. I got to join Synergy by a mere coincidence.  I became acquainted with Man-su and Dong-gyu by surfing the web, and this is how I joined their team.  

2. My job involves advertisement and design.  In the team, I am in charge of the general appearance and design of the homepage.  I also give advice regarding the interface and computer graphics.  

3. At first, I must admit I took this competition rather lightly.  But as time progressed, I became awed by the sheer passion and zeal that seemed to spew out of the younger team members.  I became fully engaged in the team, and I realize that a good homepage requires time, patience, as well as enthusiasm.  

4. What I found to be the most difficult was not being able to see the other team members frequently.  Since all of us led active, busy lives, it was difficult to organize an actual face-to-face meeting.

5.  As in all cases, when the due date looms closer and closer, I find myself wishing we had a little more time.  I wish we hadn¡¯t put things off until the last minute.  Procrastination is truly the kiss of death.

6. For the first time, I participated in a non-commercial project with people who had once been perfect strangers.  It was definitely a challenge at first, but I have no doubt that it was a worthwhile experience.  

Name: Shin Bu-shik
Age: 38
Birthday: December 19, 1961
Hobbies: Playing chess
Special talents: Computer programming (C & PERL)

Goals in life: To work hard.  To leave something behind.  

How did you join the team ¡°Synergy¡±?
I was a history major in college, and right now, I am an advisor for the computer club at Osan High School.  My students, Kim Dong-gyu , Kim Man-su, asked me to be their coach for the 1999 TQ entry.

In what ways do you contribute to the team?
I felt that the Korean War was a difficult topic to tackle for high school students.  I advised them with collecting and organizing information.  I also counseled them in getting an overall picture of the project.  I was interested in seeing a bulletin, a discussion room, and CGI on the homepage.  

How do you feel about this entry?
I think the quality of a homepage depends on how much time and effort you put into it.  In creating ¡°Time Travel to the Korean War,¡± Kim Dong-gyu and Kim Man-su , Shin Young yee spent hours collecting necessary data and information.  They visited public libraries, war memorials, broadcasting stations, and newspaper offices.  Condensing and arranging this information took them a tremendously long time as well.  Shin Young Yee, who was in charge of translating the text, showed remarkable dedication in completing her task despite physical illness.  She was especially careful to maintain a clear, impartial tone in her translations.  Based on its content, I believe that this homepage is definitely top-notch.  However, as in all cases, we needed more time for fine-tuning details.  To submit a better entry, we would need a more generous time limit.  In a nutshell, the whole process was a battle against time itself.  

What and right now, I am an advisor for the computer club at Osan High School.  My students, Kim Dong-gyu , Kim Man-su, asked me to be their coach for the 1999 TQ entry.

In what ways do you contribute to the team?
I felt that the Korean War was a difficult topic to tackle for high school students.  I advised them with collecting and organizing information.  I also counseled them in getting an overall picture of the project.  I was interested in seeing a bulletin, a discussion room, and CGI on the homepage.  

How do you feel about this entry?
I think the quality of a homepage depends on how much time and effort you put into it.  In creating ¡°Time Travel to the Korean War,¡± Kim Dong-gyu and Kim Man-su , Shin Young yee spent hours collecting necessary data and information.  They visited public libraries, war memorials, broadcasting stations, and newspaper offices.  Condensing and arranging this information took them a tremendously long time as well.  Shin Young Yee, who was in charge of translating the text, showed remarkable dedication in completing her task despite physical illness.  She was especially careful to maintain a clear, impartial tone in her translations.  Based on its content, I believe that this homepage is definitely top-notch.  However, as in all cases, we needed more time for fine-tuning details.  To submit a better entry, we would need a more generous time limit.  In a nutshell, the whole process was a battle against time itself.  

Whatnd because the two seemed like capable students, I agreed to do so.  

Specialty and responsibility within the group?

 I have studied Korean history, especially postwar Korean history, for a long time.  In fact, the Korean War is my ¡°specialty,¡± and I have written a book regarding this matter.  Within the team, I provided Dong-gyu with various resources, and I also advised them on the general flow of the project.    

Name: Park Myung lim (Professor of Korea University)

 How did you join Synergy?

Two Osan High School students, Dong-gyu Kim and Man-su Kim, visited me at Korea University, where I teach, and asked me to be their team advisor.  Since I have extensive knowledge of the Korean War, and because the two seemed like capable students, I agreed to do so.  

Specialty and responsibility within the group?

 I have studied Korean history, especially postwar Korean history, for a long time.  In fact, the Korean War is my ¡°specialty,¡± and I have written a book regarding this matter.  Within the team, I provided Dong-gyu with various resources, and I also advised them on the general flow of the project.    

Thanks to :

Mr. Shin :Thanks to my wife and a daughter. Especially, Won Jong Pil

Kim Mn su : thanks to my family , Lee Tae hun

Kim Dong gyu  : Thanks to each of our team members especially, I really thanks to Our coach Shin bu sik if we were not his student , we couldn't complete this entry. I thank to my aunt Michele and his husband Brian, they help me to visit U.S military lbrary and give many advices. Furthermore, my father and my mother encourage me. Thanks mother~ and father!!

 Many friends help me : Jung Sung Hun , Kang Ho Chul,

Shin Young yee : Thanks to  father,mother and my friends

Park Myung Lim : Thanks to my family and my students

Son Sung ill : Thanks to each of our team members.

Special thanks to :

Name : Won Jong pil 
Age :
 Birth date : 1983. 10. 6
 Hobby : Listening music and Reading books
 Special talents : HTML

We, Synergy team members really thanks to Won Jong Pil. Through all course, he advises and criticize us. And he really want us to win a prize. We like you Won Jong Pil, you are wonder guy~!!Good luck

 Reference

Picture Copyright

->Pole Lym.1000 sceneries of the world history.1990.  

->The war in Korean [1950 - 1953] (Presido)

Reference Books

Documentary "The Korean War" from KBS

1000 sceneries of the world history (Pole Lym)

The Korean war -War, Truce and the way to the unification (Author : Lee Won Bok  Painter : Park Hyung yong Studio)

The Korean war (Summary) - Ministry of Military

Time magazine

The Korean war - Korean Ministry of Military

U.S.A  Marine Corps

Story of the History ( Ku Hak Su)

Korean history textbook (Part 1)

Korean history textbook (Part 2)

The war in Korean [1950 - 1953] (Presido)

"Forgotten War"

Rideway's Korean War

Modern History

Origin of the

History of Korea -South Korea : From liberation to the 1960s
(Han gil sa)

The Korean War : Origin and out brake (Park Myung lim)

War story ( Nam Tae Kyung)

Doo-san Encycropedia 99

Korean War (Picture Book) (Kim Hang bok and Kang Chang ku)