Farrell wants more from Ireland
Ireland were impressive in their 24-14 bonus-point victory over Wales in Dublin on Saturday as they dominated territory, the breakdown and set-piece play, and scored four tries to two. “We said it wasn’t a brilliant performance, but we had a good preparation this week with an improved performance,” Farrell told reporters. England captain Owen Farrell was repeatedly jeered by home supporters when taking his time over goal-kicks at the rainswept ground. We had a bump in the road last week and people were saying we were not good enough. “We go away and win in Scotland in the rain and they are full of praise again.
Source:Taipei Times
February 09, 2020 15:56 UTC
Light festival draws 190,000 to Longci in its opening year
By Wu Chun-feng, Yan Hung-chun and William Hetherington / Staff reporters, with staff writerThe Longci Light Festival attracted 190,000 visitors over its seven-week run, the Tainan City Government said yesterday. The festival, which ended yesterday, was praised online, with a post on its Facebook page calling it “the most beautiful outdoor light festival nationwide.”Organizers said that they were surprised by the public’s interest in the festival, which was held for the first time. The event in the small mountain town of Longci attracted more than 18 times the number of local residents, they added. To avoid light pollution in the city, organizers held the festival in Husingshan Park in Longci, and invited artists to build installations using aluminum wiring and fluorescent lights. Visitors to the festival, which also ended yesterday, took in the sight of colorful flower displays during the day and viewed a light festival in the evenings, it added.
Source:Taipei Times
February 09, 2020 15:56 UTC
Taiwan shadows Chinese aircraft
Reuters, TAIPEIThe air force yesterday scrambled to intercept Chinese jets that flew around Taiwan in a move denounced by the Ministry of National Defense as a threat to regional peace and stability. “During this period, the national military used air reconnaissance aircraft and air defense forces in accordance with combat readiness regulations,” it said. The ministry provided a picture of a Taiwanese F-16 shadowing one of the Chinese H-6 bombers. “The Chinese communists’ long-range far-out-at-sea missions have impacted regional security and stability, and endanger the peace and welfare shared by all parties in the region,” the ministry said. There was no immediate comment from the Chinese Ministry of National Defense.
Source:Taipei Times
February 09, 2020 15:56 UTC
Virus Outbreak: Anti-Chinese mood reflects more than outbreak: report
If the impact of the 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV), which originated in Wuhan, China, worsens, it could result in a new wave of anti-Chinese sentiment worldwide, the Institute for National Defense and Security Research said in the report released on Friday. Xi responded to the outbreak on Jan. 20, but has yet to visit Wuhan, thereby failing to create an image of “the people’s leader,” the report said. Anti-Chinese sentiment had already been seen by stores and hotels in many countries refusing Chinese customers, and petitions calling for Chinese visitors to be barred from entry to several countries, the report said. Friction between China and other countries that had led to this sentiment has been caused by Chinese military expansionism, and Beijing’s economic influence, it said. Recent statements from the WHO praising China’s handling of the outbreak has made many people aware of China’s influence over that organization, as well as many others, the report said.
Source:Taipei Times
February 09, 2020 15:56 UTC
Naomi Osaka suffers thrashing in Fed Cup return
ReutersNaomi Osaka’s return to Japan’s Fed Cup team after a year’s absence on Friday turned sour as the world No. 78 who claimed only a second Fed Cup singles win. Canada were also unable to call upon US Open champion Bianca Andreescu for Friday’s singles. Later the US, who have won a record 18 Fed Cup titles, attempt to book their place in Budapest, as they begin their tie against Latvia. Newly crowned Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin leads the team, with Serena Williams relegated to second singles spot.
Source:Taipei Times
February 08, 2020 15:56 UTC
Chiefs topple Crusaders
AFP, WELLINGTONA Sean Wainui try yesterday set up a 25-15 victory for the Waikato Chiefs over the Canterbury Crusaders, while winger Mark Telea scored a second-half hat-trick as the Auckland Blues beat the Waratahs. The Chiefs won a bruising clash between the two New Zealand heavyweights in Hamilton, while the Blues had too much firepower for the Waratahs, winning 32-12 in Newcastle. They denied the Crusaders a bonus point with an Aaron Cruden penalty goal just before the final whistle, stretching the margin to 10. It was defending champions the Crusaders who dictated terms in the first half and they turned with a 12-8 advantage. Weber managed to slip the ball around the back of the Crusaders scrum-half to Wainui, who ran 30m for the decisive try.
Source:Taipei Times
February 08, 2020 15:56 UTC
Research shows defects plagued last mammoths
The genome of one of the last mammoths from Wrangel Island off Siberia’s coast showed that the population was riddled with deleterious mutations, they said. The Wrangel Island population was the last, disappearing roughly 4,000 years ago. The researchers compared the Wrangel mammoth’s DNA to that of two older mammoths, as well three Asian elephants, a close relative. They pinpointed a collection of genetic mutations in the Wrangel Island mammoth and synthesized these genes in the laboratory to test their functionality. “Mammoths were literally huge and globally distributed, and this massive range was reduced to a tiny island in the Arctic Ocean before their extinction.
Source:Taipei Times
February 08, 2020 15:56 UTC
Sun probe to launch today
The Solar Orbiter spacecraft is to lift off from a Florida launch pad today at 11:03pm and autonomously unfold an array of solar panels and antennas before carrying on toward the sun for a 10-year mission mapping its polar regions. Mapping the sun’s poles could allow scientists for the first time to observe the concentrated source of solar wind — a stream of plasma and charged particles that beam outward and sustains the solar system’s protective outer bubble that breathes in and out in harmony with the solar wind. “Where did that plasma, the solar wind come from? Scientists are also expected to learn how space weather wreaks havoc on satellites and electronics on and around Earth. In 2018, NASA launched the Parker Solar Probe to journey closer to the sun than any other human-made object, 6.1 million kilometers, and find out how the sun churns space weather in our solar system.
Source:Taipei Times
February 08, 2020 15:56 UTC
Virus Outbreak: Mask rationing likely to be temporary: NHIA head
Staff writer, with CNAAmid people having difficulties acquiring surgical masks under the government’s rationing system, the National Health Insurance Administration (NHIA) said it hopes that the situation will improve soon. NHIA Director-General Lee Po-chang (李伯璋) on Friday said that he did not expect the rationing system to last long, as supplies are expected to increase soon. The government published a general description of how the system works in English that can be found at https://www.ntl.edu.tw/ct.asp?xItem=70081&ctNode=604&mp=2. However, those apps are not available in English and Lee acknowledged that there was a real-time information gap for those who cannot read Chinese. About 40 to 50 customers have been unable to get the cards, Su aid, adding that she spends much of her time explaining how the system works and providing instructions.
Source:Taipei Times
February 08, 2020 15:56 UTC
Taiwan issued nearly 600 gold cards over two years
Staff writer, with CNATaiwan has issued nearly 600 Employment Gold Cards in the two years since the program to attract foreign professionals to the nation was launched, the National Development Council (NDC) said yesterday. The NDC said 318 professionals obtained their cards based on their economic expertise, accounting for about 55 percent of the issued cards issued. Professionals from the US accounted for 23 percent of the gold cards issued, the largest group ahead of Hong Kong (15 percent), the UK (8 percent), Malaysia (6 percent), Denmark (6 percent) and Singapore (4 percent), it said. Professionals from France, Germany, Japan and South Korea have also been granted gold cards, it added. Most recently, NDC Minister Chen Mei-ling (陳美伶) issued a gold card to Formosa Renewable Power chief executive officer Frank Hojerslev of Australia.
Source:Taipei Times
February 08, 2020 15:56 UTC
Charity’s lantern sales plummet over virus fears
As of yesterday, sales at stalls nationwide stood at about NT$1.8 million, down 45 percent from last year’s NT$3.1 million, it said. This year, people are avoiding going outdoors due to the coronavirus outbreak, which has negatively affected all 40 stalls set up by the fund nationwide, he said. At some stalls, volunteers sometimes outnumbered customers, he added. The bazaar’s revenue typically amounts to about NT$3 million nationwide, he said. Due to the outbreak, people just stayed home or passed by the stalls without stopping, which has made the fund a “victim” of the virus, he said.
Source:Taipei Times
February 08, 2020 15:56 UTC
Virus Outbreak: Officials elaborate on CECC warning
Japan yesterday said that 64 people on the Diamond Princess have tested positive for the 2019 novel coronavirus. The ship was put under 14-day quarantine in Yokohama, Japan, after a man who disembarked in Hong Kong tested positive for the disease. The warning message included a link to a map with more than 40 locations that the passengers visited between 6am and 5:30pm that day. The risk of infection when wearing a mask or in an open environment is very low, so people should not be too worried, Chou said. Thirty-eight of the 1,500 passengers were denied entry after they were found to have fevers, the CECC said.
Source:Taipei Times
February 08, 2020 15:56 UTC
Virus Outbreak: Water caltrop seller says bat rumor is a misunderstanding
By Chen Yan-ting and William Hetherington / Staff reporter, with staff writerA water caltrop vendor in Pingtung County has been receiving unwanted attention after a foreign tourist commented that the vendor appeared to be selling bats as food. The rumors about his stall appeared to have started after the tourist mistook an image of a water caltrop on signage as being an image of a bat, he said. The fruit of the water caltrop curves downward on two sides, resembling the silhouette of a flying bat. There are numerous sellers along 10km of Kanding Township’s (崁頂) Nanjhou Road, all of whom have signs featuring water caltrops, the vendor said. Many foreign visitors are unfamiliar with the water caltrop — an aquatic plant native to temperate parts of Eurasia and Africa that has been cultivated in China and the Indian subcontinent.
Source:Taipei Times
February 08, 2020 15:56 UTC
Aston Martin test for fashion mogul
Aston Martin badly needs a savior. However, the comparison quickly evaporated, with a string of profit warnings, lackluster sales and dwindling financial reserves weighing on Aston Martin’s stock, which has lost 75 percent of its value. While Stroll has not laid out his plan for Aston Martin in public, the stakes could not be higher. At the same time, Aston Martin would be wise not to pursue a single-model strategy, he said. Deliveries of the model are to begin in May, Aston Martin has said.
Source:Taipei Times
February 08, 2020 15:56 UTC
Hsinchu City temple offers fortunes in four languages
By Hung Mei-hsiu and Jake Chung / Staff reporter, with staff writerPutien Temple (普天宮) in Hsinchu City this year began offering multilingual fortunes, which the temple on Thursday said would help foreigners understand their fortune and promote Taiwanese culture abroad. The temple also features a deity for relationships, which draws tourists, as well as employees from the nearby Hsinchu Science Park, the temple said. Templegoers report that they find it easier to enter and maintain relationships after worshiping there, the temple said. Temple chairman Cheng Yi-chen (鄭逸榛) said that the temple should take lessons from the science park and become more modernized. The temple hopes that more visitors will experience Taiwan’s traditional temple culture, she added.
Source:Taipei Times
February 08, 2020 15:56 UTC