Professor Hak-Soo Suh earned his bachelor's degree, masters and doctorate in the Department of Agriculture at Seoul National University. From 1988 to 2006, Professor Suh collected some 400 species of weedy rice from 28 different countries weedy rice can be described as being somewhere between wild rice and cultivated rice. He has published two books in which he investigates 42 properties of weedy rice, including its DNA. His name is recorded in The Who's Who of the World due to his achievements in weedy- rice research from the year 2000.

YNO: Hello Prof. Suh. Congratulations on your success in the development of brown-colored rice. Please give us your impressions on the success of your research and a brief explanation of brown-colored rice for our readers who may not be familiar with it.

Dr Suh: In order to talk about brown-colored rice I must first talk about weedy rice. Wild rice grows by dispersing its own seeds, and when the seeds are ripe, they breed by themselves. If you lightly beat the plant some seeds will drop early, and if you hybridize these red weedy rice seeds with white cultivated rice, 3 classes will be produced: red, white, and brown. Of these classes, brown-colored rice produces the best seeds. As a researcher, I feel as if I have accomplished something worthwhile when a good rice variety comes out of the research and the farmers' profits grow. Also, if the nation eats the rice, it will bring nutritional benefits.

YNO: Why were you conducting gene research on weedy rice; an area which hardly anyone is familiar with?

Dr Suh: I started my research from a memory of my childhood curiosity. As a child, I lived in the country, and there was a lot of weedy rice in my hometown. But then, after a while, only tongil rice still survived in Korea. At the end of 1980, japonica started to be raised so weedy rice started to spread again. I recalled the strong subsistence-potential of weedy rice and, knowing that rice plants have existed in Korea for nearly 4000 years, and believing that weedy rice has grown naturally in Korea for several thousands of years, I started my research. Rice plants from that time have existed constantly in same place, which reflects the fact that weedy rice has adapted to Korean conditions for a long period of time.

YNO: So, what are the features of brown-colored rice?

Dr. Suh: The research shows that brown-colored rice contains higher percentages of many more significant ingredients than do brown or black rice. For example, brown-colored rice contains high percentages of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), which exists in only mammalian brains. GABA prevents palsy and imbecility, strengthens the ability to concentrate, promotes memory, and cures sleeplessness through its effect on cerebral cells. GABA has an inhibitory action on the central nervous system and is used in medicines in some foreign countries.

YNO: Brown-colored rice is so useful! So then, when was your most difficult time, the 18 years of collection or the 9 years of research?

Dr. Suh: The collecting-phase was very interesting but I suffered various difficulties because of the difficult terrain that I was forced to work in. While collecting weedy rice, I often risked being bitten by snakes because I had to walk in rice fields. I was also frequently wounded by prickly plants. So, wherever the temperature was very high, I suffered hardships. I also had to use my wits because every country protects its wild rice.

YNO: What is your next plan for your research?

Dr. Suh: Seed companies which sell strawberry and rose seeds in Korea do so without any limitations and, therefore, the person who develops a new seed receives the benefits of selling it at a high price. However, the Big-5 main-food crop seeds: rice, barley, bean, corn, and potato, are grown and distributed by the nation. This means that the Big-5 crop seeds are sold at the same price. Therefore, researchers who develop new crops find it difficult to claim a development-right. My next project will be to spread hybrid rice not only in Korea but also in other foreign countries. I want to develop first-generation hybrid rice in China and I also want to distribute the rice.

YNO: I hope your next plan succeeds. So, could I ask you for your advice for any future botanists among our readers?

Dr. Suh: The sources of plant life are being continually exhausted, and this trend will continue into the future. It is, therefore, important that we protect existing sources of plants, collect more sources, and utilize those sources as best as we can. I fear that Korea has begun this process rather too late. I hope that your readers are in good health and grow wise through eating brown-colored rice. I also want to relieve farmers of their anxieties by enabling them to produce plentifully. If the rice trade is liberalized, the situation will become even more difficult than it is now. Let's understand the rice of our shores and let's eat that rice!

YNO: I heard that you have set yourself an age- limit. May I make so bold as to ask you your feeling on age limits?

Dr. Suh: Actually, as long as I have the framework of Yeungnam University, I can continue my researches successfully. Although we don't yet know how much brown-colored rice will contribute to society, I would like to extend special thanks to YU for its help in the development of brown-colored rice.