Virus Outbreak: Adimmune to use NHRI lab to test coronavirus vaccine
“However, as the novel coronavirus is highly contagious and more lethal than the flu, we believe our tests should be conducted in a BSL-3 lab,” Pan said. “As the genetic sequence we got is for the whole of the virus, we had to analyze the specific genes of the spike protein, a key protein that the coronavirus uses to invade human cells,” he said. It is important to find the spike protein to develop antigens for the vaccines, as the special protein induces immune responses in humans, he said. “Now, we have four different prototypes of the antigens and will run tests on them in the NHRI’s advanced lab,” he said. Adimmune aims to maintain its goal of running an animal test in the second quarter, Pan said.
Source:Taipei Times
March 02, 2020 15:56 UTC
Toplus to open banqueting hall at former Westin site
By Crystal Hsu / Staff reporterRestaurant operator Toplus Global Co (御頂國際集團) has signed a deal to lease basement space at the former site of the Westin Taipei (台北威斯汀六福皇宮) and turn it into banquet facilities. Toplus Global holds a different view and aims to open banquet rooms that can seat 110 tables priced at NT$14,000 (US$465) each on weekdays and NT$18,000 at weekends, the Chinese-language Commercial Times reported yesterday. Toplus Global operates three Ding Xian outlets and eight wedding halls nationwide. Japanese have become the largest source of tourist arrivals since September last year, after Beijing in August imposed a ban on independent tourists visiting Taiwan, lending support to the strategy, Toplus Global said. Toplus Global declined to elaborate on the rent, which the report said would be NT$1.5 million to NT$1.8 million a month.
Source:Taipei Times
March 02, 2020 15:56 UTC
Asia’s period problems
By Liz THOMAS / AFP, HONG KONGOlivia Cotes-James wants us to talk about menstrual health. She is not alone in wanting to change the conversation: Last year the UN warned that taboos around menstrual health were “disempowering” women worldwide, calling for action to end it. “Period stigma is the biggest barrier to the global advancement of women,” says Cotes-James, adding: “Periods can still cause us to feel dirty, ashamed and frustrated. Bloggers and vloggers lay bare the realities of how period products work on social media. In parts of South Asia, menstruating women are seen as unclean, spreading disease and are forbidden from touching communal food, while across the region having a period renders people too impure to visit temples.
Source:Taipei Times
March 02, 2020 15:56 UTC
Memorial hall should not be dismantled: minister
Staff writer, with CNAMinister Without Portfolio Lin Wan-i (林萬億) yesterday said that it would be best to give the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall new functions and meaning, instead of dismantling it. Lin, tasked with overseeing issues related to the transformation of the memorial hall, made the remarks after renewed calls from families of victims of the 228 Incident to dismantle the structure. The memorial hall, a 250,000m2 attraction in the heart of Taipei, was completed in 1980 in memory of Chiang, who moved the Republic of China government to Taiwan in 1949 after fleeing China following his defeat in the Chinese Civil War. However, families and relatives of victims persecuted during the Martial Law period have been calling for the memorial hall to be dismantled as they see Chiang as a violator of human rights who should not be treated as a national hero. Presidential Office spokesman Ting Yun-kung (丁允恭) on Friday said that the Legislative Yuan is working on a plan to remove the autocratic characteristics of the memorial hall.
Source:Taipei Times
March 01, 2020 15:56 UTC
Virus Outbreak: Gaming revenue in Macau experiences record decline
BloombergCasinos in Macau, the world’s biggest gambling hub, reported a record drop in gaming revenue as they grappled with the cost of closing down for 15 days to help contain the COVID-19 outbreak. Gross gaming revenue was 3.1 billion patacas (US$386.5 million) last month, down 87.8 percent from a year earlier, according to data from the Macau Gaming Inspection & Coordination Bureau. The closure only the second such instance after a typhoon in 2018 forced a 33-hour shutdown. Casinos are about to take “an extremely bumpy ride” this year, according to a Feb. 25 note by D.S. Kim estimated that gaming revenue would drop 24 percent and industry earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization would fall 30 percent this year.
Source:Taipei Times
March 01, 2020 15:56 UTC
Electronics makers face outbreak woes
“These companies could also face labor shortages and logistical difficulties even after the resumption of operations,” Taiwan Ratings said in a report on Wednesday. The adverse effects would extend to shortages in raw materials and key components for manufacturing facilities, the local arm of Standard & Poor’s (S&P) Global Ratings said. The Chinese government is also likely to assist key industries, including the technology sector, to maintain normal operations and minimize the economic effects of the coronavirus outbreak, it said. Taiwan Ratings said that the degree of risk facing Taiwanese companies varied by industry. “We expect more tech companies to diversify their reliance on China as a manufacturing hub and introduce reshoring plans or shift production to other countries in Asia,” Taiwan Ratings said.
Source:Taipei Times
March 01, 2020 15:56 UTC
Virus Outbreak: China manufacturing activity plunges
A measure of production fell to 26.1 among small enterprises, while the measure for bigger companies was 28.3. A separate PMI with more private companies and exporters is to be released today by a Chinese business magazine. Regulators say Chinese industry is reviving, but activity still is weak. The 18 million small, mostly private companies that account for the bulk of industrial activity and employment are back to operating at one-third of normal levels, officials said on Thursday. Chinese Deputy Minister of Industry and Information Technology Zhang Kejian (張克儉) said that activity is increasing by about 1 percent per day.
Source:Taipei Times
March 01, 2020 15:56 UTC
Virus Outbreak: Australia, Thailand report first COVID-19 fatalities
He was later diagnosed with COVID-19 and on Feb. 5 transferred to the government’s main treatment center, Suwanchai said. China yesterday reported 35 more deaths from COVID-19, taking the toll in the country to 2,870. The Chinese National Health Commission also reported 573 new infections, bringing the total number of cases in mainland China to 79,824. Armenia yesterday confirmed its first case of COVID-19, an Armenian citizen who recently returned from Iran and who was in a stable condition in hospital. The British government said there were 12 new confirmed cases yesterday, increasing the total to 35.
Source:Taipei Times
March 01, 2020 15:56 UTC
Control Yuan urges ministry to boost Internet security
By Chung Li-hua and Jake Chung / Staff reporter, with staff writerThe Control Yuan on Friday last week urged the Ministry of Civil Service to tighten Internet security after an investigation into how the personal information of civil servants was leaked online. The Control Yuan said in a report that the leak began in June 2012, but was not discovered until last year. As an A-level security information unit, the failure of the ministry to comply with government endeavors to tighten information security, as well as its delayed inclusion of civil service data under the Internet Security Management System, placed the personal information of civil servants at risk, the report said. The report said that the ministry being classed as “medium” security was an overestimation, which the center concurred with. It called on the ministry to initiate changes, foster in-house information security personnel instead of relying on subcontractors and more strictly adhere to the Internet Security Management System.
Source:Taipei Times
March 01, 2020 15:56 UTC
Virus Outbreak: S Korea exports beat expectations
BloombergSouth Korea’s exports rose for the first time in more than a year on semiconductor sales, an increase that might be short-lived as the COVID-19 outbreak takes its toll on world trade. Exports increased 4.5 percent last month from a year earlier, the South Korean Ministry of Trade Industry and Energy said yesterday. South Korea is an important bellwether of global tech demand, because it is the biggest producer of the memory chips in everything from computers to smartphones. South Korean President Moon Jae-in on Tuesday last week called for “extraordinary” steps to shield the nation’s economy against the virus epidemic as the number of domestic cases increase. South Korean Minister of Finance Hong Nam-ki on Friday said that the government is compiling an extra budget with more than US$5.1 billion in spending aid.
Source:Taipei Times
March 01, 2020 15:56 UTC
US, Taliban sign deal to end war in Afghanistan
At the White House, Trump told reporters that the US deserves credit for having helped Afghanistan take a step toward peace. He spoke cautiously of the deal’s prospects for success and warned the Taliban against violating its commitments. “We think we’ll be successful in the end,” he said, referring to all-Afghan peace talks and a final US exit. He said he thinks they are serious about the deal they signed, but warned that if it fails, the US could restart combat. The deal sets the stage for intra-Afghan peace talks to begin next week, with the aim of negotiating a permanent ceasefire and a power-sharing agreement between rival Afghan groups.
Source:Taipei Times
March 01, 2020 15:56 UTC
Virus Outbreak: US tightens travel curbs after first COVID-19 death
The White House also announced new restrictions on international travel to prevent its spread. Travel to Iran was already quite limited, although some families are allowed to travel there on a visa. Trump said healthy Americans should be able to recover if they contract the virus, as he tried to reassure Americans and global markets spooked by the virus threat. Speaking at a rally in South Carolina, he accused Democrats of “politicizing” the virus threat and boasted about preventive steps he has ordered in an attempt to keep the virus that originated in China from spreading across the US. This is their new hoax,” Trump said of Democratic denunciations of his administration’s virus response.
Source:Taipei Times
March 01, 2020 15:56 UTC
Drone registration rules take effect from March 31
Until Sept. 30, drone owners can register for free, and registration is valid for two years. Starting on Oct. 1, drone owners would have to pay a registration fee of NT$50 per vehicle. Drone owners can register on the Web site for drone management at drone.caa.gov.tw, the agency said. The new UAV regulations require drone owners to be at least 16 years of age. All personal data entered on the drone management Web site would be protected by the Personal Data Protection Act (個人資料保護法), it said.
Source:Taipei Times
March 01, 2020 15:56 UTC
Virus outbreak: Restaurant apologizes over refused order
“During the disease-prevention period, Jengjong Spareribs vows to prioritize orders coming from medical staff or hospitals,” it said. Taichung Veterans General Hospital has also offered its thanks to people who have showed support and encouragement to the medical staff during this time. Four other Taichung hospitals yesterday said they have not encountered a similar problem. No staff hve had a food delivery canceled, Kuang Tien General Hospital said. Tung’s Taichung Metroharbor Hospital said some of its patients had prepared masks for doctors as a show of goodwill.
Source:Taipei Times
March 01, 2020 15:56 UTC
Orsted opens hub to help develop offshore wind in US
AP, PROVIDENCE, Rhode IslandAn offshore wind developer is opening a hub in Providence, Rhode Island, that its executives hope will help accelerate the takeoff of the industry in the US. Orsted US Offshore Wind, a division of the Denmark-based Orsted A/S, is to launch its US innovation hub in Providence today. Deepwater Wind began operating the first US offshore wind farm off of Rhode Island’s Block Island in late 2016. Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo said the hub’s opening further cements the state’s “status as America’s offshore wind capital.”Several offshore wind and renewable energy companies have offices in Providence. Driving down the pricing for offshore wind has been, and will continue to be, an important driver of innovation, Orsted Northeast markets head Matthew Morrissey said.
Source:Taipei Times
March 01, 2020 15:56 UTC