What adults get wrong about girls and diagnosing autismBy Lisa Jarvis / Bloomberg OpinionFor decades, autism was believed to overwhelmingly affect boys. Why do so many autistic girls fly under the radar? In the past few years, experts have particularly focused on girls’ ability to “mask” or “camouflage” their autism traits. More so than boys, the desire to blend in is strong in young girls, and might be even more powerful in autistic girls, said Gina Rippon, a British neurobiologist whose book, The Lost Girls of Autism, chronicles the ways science has overlooked girls with autism. Teachers viewed boys as having significantly more traits than girls — and consistently said girls had fewer traits than their parents identified.

Starlux embraces WBC with baseball-themed flightsBy Shelley Shan / Staff reporterStarlux Airlines passengers flying to Tokyo until Sunday would receive a World Baseball Classic (WBC)-themed tea bag as a gift and can watch sports-related movies on board, the Taipei-based airline said yesterday. A baseball and a baseball-themed tea bag lie on an airline seat in a photograph released yesterday by Starlux Airlines. Photo courtesy of Starlux AirlinesIt has also prepared baseball-themed inflight entertainment, featuring sports films such as 42, Moneyball and The Rookie, the airline said. Former Major League Baseball pitcher and WBC veteran Kuo Hong-chih (郭泓志) joined Starlux to film social media videos in support of the national team. Leveraging his wealth of international experience, Kuo rallies fans to unite in cheering on the Taiwanese team, the airline said.

The US possesses an extraordinary capacity to destroy centralized state power from the air, but no comparable capacity to manage what follows. Because power vacuums cannot be targeted by precision munitions or mapped by satellite imagery, US strategic thinking systematically underestimates the danger they pose. If they secure weapons-usable nuclear material, the logic of nuclear deterrence itself would be broken. Destroy it, and you make resolving the nuclear threat both more urgent and effectively impossible. Meanwhile, lower-grade nuclear material could be repurposed into radiological dispersal devices (“dirty bombs”) capable of contaminating urban areas.

The six cities recorded a total of 10,480 property transfers last month, down 42.5 percent from January and marking the second-lowest monthly level on record, the data showed. “The sharp drop largely reflected seasonal factors and tighter credit conditions,” Evertrust Rehouse Co (永慶房屋) deputy research manager Chen Chin-ping (陳金萍) said. Photo: CNAThe nine-day Lunar New Year holiday fell in February this year, reducing the number of working days for the market. Taipei transactions fell 27.3 percent month-on-month, while New Taipei City saw a 38.8 percent drop. Last year, the holiday fell mostly in January, leaving more working days in February for the market and land offices.

At least 15 dead in Bolivia plane crashMONEY GRAB: People were rushing to collect bills scattered on the ground after the plane transporting money crashed, which an official said hindered rescue efforts A cargo plane carrying money on Friday crashed near Bolivia’s capital, damaging about a dozen vehicles on highway, scattering bills on the ground and leaving at least 15 people dead and others injured, an official said. Bolivian Minister of Defense Marcelo Salinas said the Hercules C-130 plane was transporting newly printed Bolivian currency when it “landed and veered off the runway” at an airport in El Alto, a city adjacent to La Paz, before ending up in a nearby field. Firefighters managed to put out the flames that engulfed the aircraft. Fire chief Pavel Tovar said at least 15 people died, but

Breast screenings rose 36.3 percent last year, HPA saysBy Lee I-chia / Staff reporterThe number of women who underwent breast cancer screenings last year rose 36.3 percent from the previous year, after eligibility for publicly funded breast cancer screenings was expanded, the Health Promotion Administration (HPA) said on Monday. Ahead of International Women’s Day on Sunday, the agency is encouraging women to make their health a priority and invite their mothers, sisters and friends to get breast cancer screenings together. A woman is screened for breast cancer in Kaohsiung in an undated photograph. After the expansion, the number of women who underwent breast cancer screenings last year increased by 36.3 percent, the agency said. Mammography is globally recognized as the most effective evidence-based breast cancer screening tool, as it can detect microcalcifications and early-stage tumors before symptoms appear, the HPA said.

New York yellow cabs to highlight Taiwan’s gender equality pushStaff Writer, with CNATaiwan is enlisting New York’s iconic yellow taxis to help promote an event advocating gender equality that will coincide with a United Nations session in the city on women’s empowerment, a diplomat overseeing the campaign said Tuesday. To promote the event, which has been held annually since 2020 to back Taiwan’s efforts to advance gender equality, Taiwan’s representative office in New York is running an ad campaign featuring an animation display atop yellow taxis from March 6 to 19, Kang said. Deputy chief of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Department of NGO International Affairs Kang Chia-chi ,left, and MOFA spokesperson Hsiao Kuangwei showcase the key visual for this year’s Taiwan Gender Equality Week on Tuesday. As for Taiwan Gender Equality Week, a highlight of the program will be "Taiwan Cultural Night" on March 13, featuring remarks by invited guests and a performance by a Taiwanese jazz singer, he said. More than 30 non-governmental forums will also be held during the series of activities, bringing together representatives from over 30 NGOs and government agencies to share Taiwan’s gender equality initiatives with the international community, Kang said.

US imposes sanctions on Rwanda’s militaryAFP, WASHINGTONThe US on Monday said that it was imposing sanctions on Rwanda’s military, taking action against a longtime partner it accused of breaching a peace agreement in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DR Congo). US President Donald Trump, left, shakes hands with Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi during a signing ceremony at the US Institute of Peace in Washington on Dec. 4 last year. “The continued backing from the RDF and its senior leadership has enabled M23 to capture DR Congo sovereign territory and continue these grave abuses,” the statement said. The peace deal had also been hailed by Trump as a way to secure critical minerals from the DR Congo. The sanctions would block any assets that the RDF or the four officers hold in the US and criminalize any financial transactions with them.

US officials urge Honduras over TaiwanSWITCH INCOMING? Photo: AFPAsfura, who was sworn into office in January, had said on the campaign trail that his administration would seek to reverse Castro’s switch of diplomatic recognition from Taiwan to China. On Feb. 7, during a meeting with US President Donald Trump at the Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, Asfura again said that he was considering switching diplomatic ties to Taiwan. Shrimp exports have been a core industry for Honduras since the 1990s, and the slump led to the closure of 60 companies and the layoff of about 14,000 workers, reports said. The Spanish-language La Tribuna last month reported that Honduran First Vice President Maria Antonieta Mejia said restoring diplomatic ties with Taipei would be a gradual process.

S Korean travel system still using ‘China (Taiwan)’By Lee I-chia / Staff reporterTaiwanese travelers to South Korea can choose to fill out a paper arrival card instead of using the country’s electronic system, which still uses the name “China (Taiwan),” despite Taipei having requested a correction, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday. The South Korean government confirmed that it has not set a schedule to phase out the paper arrival card, ministry spokesman Hsiao Kuang-wei (蕭光偉) said yesterday. “The ministry suggests that people fill out the paper arrival card for entry,” Hsiao said. The ministry and Taiwan’s representative office in South Korea continue to communicate with South Korean authorities on the issue, he said. “Based on the friendly relations between the people of Taiwan and South Korea, we hope the authorities respond positively to Taiwan’s request as soon as possible,” he added.

Six Nations rugby trophy destroyed by fire in crashAFP, PARISThe Six Nations trophy is being “retired from ceremonial use” and replaced after suffering fire damage in an accident during transit, tournament organizers said on Monday. The trophy was damaged when the vehicle transporting it was involved in a motor vehicle crash in Ireland after the third round of matches. No passengers were injured but it was decided that the trophy could not be restored to its original state, according to the manufacturer. The Six Nations Championship Trophy is displayed ahead of rugby match between France and Italy in Villeneuve-d’Ascq, France, on Feb. 22. A new trophy would be commissioned for 2027, organizers said.

CDC reports year’s first severe enterovirus casesFLU SURGE: Hospital visits for flu symptoms jumped 59.4 percent last week from the previous week, but the CDC said it expects flu activity to fall in the next two weeksBy Lee I-chia / Staff reporterThe year’s first two cases of enterovirus infection with severe complications were reported last week, including a child younger than five who is being treated in an intensive care unit (ICU), the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday. Enterovirus A71 is more severe because it has a higher risk of causing severe neurological complications, but enterovirus 68 can also cause severe complications, Lin said. However, as enterovirus 68 infection often begins with mild cold-like respiratory symptoms, it might easily be overlooked, he said. Enterovirus activity remains relatively low, with 2,743 hospital visits for enterovirus infection reported last week, CDC Epidemic Intelligence Center Director Guo Hung-wei (郭宏偉) said. Surveillance data showed that coxsackievirus A6 was the most commonly detected enterovirus strain in the past four weeks, followed by coxsackievirus A4 and coxsackievirus A16, he said.

2026 Dajia Mazu pilgrimage to start on night April 17Staff Writer, with CNAThe annual pilgrimage honoring the sea goddess Mazu at Dajia Jenn Lann Temple in Taichung, one of Taiwan’s most important religious events, is scheduled to begin at 10:05 p.m. on April 17. The date and time were decided Tuesday after Yen Ching-piao (顏清標), chairman of the Jenn Lann Temple board, cast a pair of crescent-shaped divination blocks in front of a statue of Mazu in a traditional rite seeking the deity’s approval. The theme of this year’s pilgrimage is "kindness" (善), Dajia Jenn Lann Temple said, adding that the annual procession showcases the "best things" in Taiwan, with people along the route offering snacks, water, massage services and medical assistance. A crowd of devotees in Taichung welcome a statuette of sea goddess Matsu during her annual pilgrimage in 2022. The night-day, eight-night pilgrimage route includes stops at several temples in Taichung, Changhua County, Yunlin County and Chiayi County before returning to Dajia, according to the temple.

Labor pension accounts increase by $NT20,000Staff writer, with CNAMost people enrolled in the new Labor Pension Fund had more than NT$20,000 (US$632.73) added to their pensions following the distribution of record gains from fund investments, the Bureau of Labor Insurance said yesterday. About 13.1 million people enrolled in the fund had their pension accounts boosted yesterday, when the earnings were distributed, it said. Photo: Taipei TimesOf those, about 7.72 million people, or 59 percent of accounts, received more than NT$20,000 each, while 4.93 million accounts, or 37.7 percent, received more than NT$50,000 each, it said. People seeking to check the balance of their Labor Pension Fund can do so by logging into the e-Service System on the Bureau of Labor Insurance Web site, at an ATM or at a local bureau office, it said. The labor pension system requires employers to contribute at least 6 percent of their employees’ monthly wages to individual pension accounts at the bureau.

TAO probe of Liu Shyh-fang nephew harms ties: MACBy Chen Yu-fu and Jake Chung / Staff reporter, with staff writerA vow by China’s Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO) to investigate Minister of the Interior Liu Shyh-fang’s (劉世芳) nephew is a case of transnational repression and is detrimental to cross-strait interactions, Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said in an interview published yesterday. On Friday, Hong Kong newspaper Ta Kung Pao (大公報) reported that Liu had received political donations from her nephew Yen Wen-chun (顏文群). Mainland Affairs Council Minister Chiu Chui-cheng is pictured in an undated photograph. The office in January listed Liu as a “diehard Taiwanese independence separatist,” and banned her and members of her family from entering China and its territories. The guidelines grant Beijing the pretext to launch investigations into people it suspects of supporting Taiwanese independence, he said.