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Thursday, 13 August 2026 Reading Room

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At 11:30 a.m. on the 30th, President Lee Myung-bak had a 20-minute conversation with four reporters at the Blue House. During the conversation, which was not pre-announced, President Lee burst out laughing at a certain question. The scene was as follows. A reporter asked, “So did ‘that person’ mention the quantum (computer)?” President Lee, who had been sipping coffee, suddenly burst out laughing at the reporter’s question. The reporter continued, “I heard that at the dinner meeting with the staff on the 28th, you mentioned that you had talked with ‘that person’ about quantum (computer).” President Lee, who had been holding back his laughter, could not help but show his burst of laughter. The reporter then asked, “Did you really have a conversation about quantum (computer)? And what did ‘that person’ say?” President Lee, still smiling, replied, “No, I was just making conversation. I was just saying that I had heard about it.” When asked, “Who is ‘that person’?” President Lee replied, “You know who I mean.” The reporter pressed, “Is it the person who was elected as the Nobel laureate in Physics?” President Lee just smiled and did not respond further. The reporters who witnessed the scene said, “President Lee seemed to enjoy the conversation a lot.” Another reporter said, “President Lee seemed to be in a very relaxed mood, which was a rare sight.” On the 28th, President Lee had dinner with his staff at a restaurant in Hongdae, Seoul. At the dinner, President Lee reportedly mentioned that he had talked with a renowned physicist about quantum computers. It is not confirmed who the person is, but it appears that the reporter was referring to the Nobel laureate in Physics, Dr. Gerard ‘t Hooft, who visited Korea on the 27th. Dr. ‘t Hooft, who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1999, visited Korea to attend the 2011 Seoul Science Festival. On the 27th, Dr. ‘t Hooft had a short conversation with President Lee at the festival. At the meeting, President Lee reportedly mentioned that he had been paying attention to the development of quantum computers. Dr. ‘t Hooft is known to have expressed his interest in cooperating with Korea in the development of quantum computers.

·hani.co.kr

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