British sailor Pete Goss will set sail across the world to Australia aboard a simple wooden boat he built himself, following a route taken by seven men more than 150 years ago.
The ex-Royal Marine and his three crew will sail an 11.3m wooden boat from Newlyn in Cornwall, southwestern England, to Melbourne, using nothing but the stars to guide them.
They hope to recreate the 17,700km journey undertaken by the crew of “Mystery”, who left Newlyn on Nov. 18, 1854, to make their fortune in Australia’s gold rush.
PHOTO: EPA
Stopping only once for repairs and food in Cape Town, South Africa, the seven men made it safely to Melbourne in 116 days, arriving on March 14, 1855. Goss believes he can accomplish the trip in the same time.
“This project has been a long time in the making and now we cannot wait to set sail. We just want to slip our lines and head for the freedom of the ocean,” he said.
Apart from a few safety modifications, the boat crewed by Goss, his 14-year-old son Eliot, his brother Andy and brother-in-law Mark Maidment, has no modern electrical or navigational equipment.
The boat is fitted with a satellite tracking device to allow the team at home to keep an eye on them, but those on board will have to rely on the stars.
“A lot of brushing up will be needed for this but I have always wanted to complete a long ocean passage using only the heavenly bodies,” Goss said.
(AFP)
英國航海家彼特.高斯將搭乘自己打造的簡易木船,沿著一百五十多年前七名男子航行過的路線,繞過整個地球前往澳洲。
這位前皇家海軍陸戰隊成員和他的三位組員,將駕駛一艘十一點三公尺長的木船,從英格蘭西南部康爾沃的紐蘭出發,前往墨爾本,航程中只依靠星象指引方向。
他們希望能重現一八五四年十一月十八日,「神秘號」船員從紐蘭出發,航行了一萬七千七百公里,到澳洲去實現淘金夢的航程。
這七位船員經過一百一十六天的航行,於一八五五年三月十四日平安抵達墨爾本,途中僅為了修補船隻和補充食物在南非開普敦停靠了一次。高斯相信,他也能在一樣的時間內完成旅程。
他說:「這個計畫已籌劃多時,現在我們等不及要啟程出海了。我們只想啟航,航向自由的大海。」
這艘由高斯、他十四歲的兒子艾略特、他的兄弟安迪和連襟馬克.麥德曼所駕駛的船上,除了做了一些安全上的修正外,並沒有裝置現代電子或導航設備。
船上裝有衛星追蹤裝置,讓家鄉的團隊能隨時觀察他們的位置,但船上的船員們只能仰賴星象辨識方向。
高斯說:「這趟旅程需要溫習很多東西,但我一直就想單靠天象完成一段長途航海之旅。」
(法新社�翻譯:袁星塵)
The strongest earthquake to hit Taiwan in 25 years killed at least 16 people and damaged dozens of buildings, but the destruction was largely contained thanks to decades of preparedness work. Taiwan sits on the “Ring of Fire,” an arc of intense seismic activity along the Pacific Rim, and — much like neighboring Japan — has a long history of catastrophic quakes. How does April 3 compare with other recent quakes? The April 3 earthquake, which measured 7.4 on the moment magnitude scale, was felt across Taiwan. It was the most severe since a 7.6 magnitude quake in 1999 killed
Around the time of the Dragon Boat Festival in June, the streets of Taiwan are filled with the delightful aroma of zongzi, a traditional snack made of sticky rice wrapped in leaves. The leaves are folded into a cone and then filled with sticky rice and other ingredients such as braised pork belly, peanuts and salted duck egg yolks. The filled leaves are then tightly tied with kitchen twine and ready for cooking. 每到六月端午時節,街頭巷尾就會飄出粽子的香氣。粽子是將糯米包進粽葉的傳統美食,先將粽葉折成圓錐狀塞入糯米,以及紅燒肉、花生、鹹鴨蛋黃等配料,用棉線綁緊後即可烹煮。 Dragon Boat Festival (n. phr.) 端午節 aroma
Everyone has seen a piece of fruit turn brown after being cut. Have you ever wondered why that happens? It is a common phenomenon that occurs due to a chemical reaction called enzymatic browning. The appearance, flavor and nutritional value of the fruit are all affected by this reaction. Some fruits, such as apples, pears, bananas, avocados and peaches, are more prone to enzymatic browning than others. These fruits contain high levels of an enzyme called polyphenol oxidase, or PPO for short. __1__ This causes a chain of chemical reactions that ultimately transforms the phenolic compounds into
There are several methods to prevent or slow down enzymatic browning in fruit. __3__ This lowers the pH level of the fruit tissue, causing the PPO to be far less active. Another method is to store the fruit in an airtight container or to wrap it tightly with plastic wrap. Doing this will reduce its exposure to oxygen. __4__ Although fruit that has undergone enzymatic browning may look less appealing, it is still safe to eat. However, by using one of these simple methods, you can enjoy fresh-looking fruit for a longer period. 有一些方法能避免或減緩水果的酶促褐變。其中一個有效的方式就是在切片水果的表面塗上酸性物質,像是檸檬汁或醋。這樣做能降低水果組織的酸鹼值,讓 PPO 更不為活躍。另一個方式是將水果存放在密封的容器內,或用保鮮膜將其緊緊包住。這樣做會減少水果與氧氣的接觸。快速蒸一下切片水果或將其短暫浸泡在滾水中也能使PPO失去活性,並終止 PPO 與空氣的作用。 雖然經歷酶促褐變的水果可能看起來較不吸引人,但仍然可以安全食用。然而,藉由採用這些簡單方法中的其中一個,你就能在更長的一段時間享用看起來新鮮的水果。 What Did You