The star of the Toy Story movies, Buzz Lightyear, got a hero’s welcome when he returned to Earth after spending more than a year on the International Space Station.
The 30-cm tall figurine who launched into space in May 2008 was on board the US space shuttle Discovery when it returned to Earth last week.
Lightyear was only supposed to spend six months in space, returning home in November on board space shuttle Endeavor, but Disney said his stay was extended because his educational mission there had been such a resounding success.
“The education program that was put in place for kids had really worked out well. So by keeping him up there, it kind of kept the stories and educational pieces relevant,” said Todd Heiden, Disney World’s strategic planning director.
Disney has brought Lightyear back to Earth just in time to attend and help promote the opening of a remastered double feature of Toy Story 1 and 2, which will be in cinemas next month.
Walt Disney World was also planning a ticker-tape parade for the toy which is now “the longest-tenured crew member in space — and that even surpasses the Russians,” Heiden told AFP.
In total, Lightyear spent 467 days in space, which is 30 days longer than Russian cosmonaut Valeri Polyakov who spent 437 days on board the Mir space station in 1994. And while such a feat would be a huge undertaking for a human astronaut, it was child’s play for the ever-popular plastic toy.(AFP)
電影《玩具總動員》的主角「巴斯光年」結束為期一年多的國際太空站之旅返回地球時,受到英雄般的熱烈歡迎。
二OO八年五月,這個三十公分高的玩具搭乘美國太空梭「探索號」上太空,直到上週才返回地球。
巴斯光年本來只計畫在太空待六個月,應於去年十一月搭乘「奮進號」太空梭返回,不過迪士尼公司表示,他的教育任務成效卓著,因而順延了他停留的時間。
迪士尼世界的策略規劃主管陶德•海登說:「他的任務是配合一項孩童教育計畫,結果非常成功,因此讓他繼續留在上面,可以使這些太空故事和教育題材緊密結合。」
迪士尼公司把巴斯光年召回到地球,剛好趕上出席《玩具總動員》一加二集重新錄製版的首映宣傳,該版本將於下個月上映。
海登對法新社表示,華特迪士尼世界也正在計畫舉辦一場盛大歡迎會,來迎接這位目前「在太空停留最久的太空人──他甚至打破了俄國太空人的紀錄」。
巴斯光年總計在太空停留了四百六十七天,這比一九九四年俄國太空人瓦勒利.保利耶可夫,在俄羅斯和平號太空站停留四百三十七天的紀錄還多了三十天。雖然這項英勇事蹟對人類太空人來說是一個極大的挑戰,但對這個紅遍全球的塑膠玩具而言,卻是輕而易舉之事。(法新社╱翻譯:袁星塵)
A: Artificial intelligence technology has been causing controversy lately: a student was caught cheating with AI to win the grand prize in an art contest. B: That’s so absurd. Does this mean that AI paints better than humans? A: Maybe. Luckily, the student was later disqualified. B: And more absurdly, it’s becoming more and more popular to use AI technology to “resurrect” people. A: Yeah, some netizens even posted videos featuring the late singer CoCo Lee, who was “resurrected” by them with AI software. A: 人工智慧的爭議不斷,有學生違規使用AI參加美術展,甚至贏得首獎。 B: 真誇張,這是不是代表AI比人類還強大? A: 或許吧,幸好得獎資格被取消。 B: 還有更誇張的︰讓死者重現的「AI復活」技術越來越熱門。 A: 對啊,還有網友製作已故歌后李玟「復活」的影片呢! (By Eddy Chang, Taipei Times/台北時報張聖恩)
It’s no secret that Japanese people have a deep affection for noodles. Like in the rest of East Asia, noodles are an important staple food, second only to rice. Japanese people have enjoyed noodles for over 1,000 years. The first noodles came from China and were introduced around 800 CE. As time passed, noodles in Japan not only became widespread but also developed some unique Japanese characteristics. The three most popular types of noodles in Japan are ramen, soba, and udon. Ramen, typically made from wheat flour, is usually thin and firm. The dough is kneaded and left to
Rice is an essential ingredient in Taiwanese cuisine. Many foods are made of rice, adding more variety to our cooking, such as rice cake, or “gui.” Wagui is made by steaming rice flour batter in a bowl. The term “gui” refers to a type of food made from rice, while “wa” refers to a bowl. The pronunciation of “gui” in Taiwanese Hokkien is similar to the word for “nobility” in Chinese, so it is common for people to prepare various types of gui, including wagui, as offerings to the gods or ancestors,. 米是台灣重要的主食,用米製成的食品十分多元,豐富我們的飲食,如米做成的「粿」。粿的意思是米做成的糕點,碗粿是將在來米漿倒入碗中蒸熟,因而得名。粿因為音同「貴」,因此碗粿等粿食常用作供品祭拜神明和祖先。 nobility (n.) 高貴,高尚;貴族 offering (n.) 供品 While Taiwan may not be
Continued from yesterday(延續自昨日) https://www.taipeitimes.com/News/lang As with many aspects of Japanese culture, there is etiquette to follow when you enjoy noodles. To fully experience noodles like a local on your next visit to Japan, consider these simple guidelines. First, be careful where you put your chopsticks. Don’t leave them sticking up in the broth or set them at the side of the bowl. When you have finished eating or if you’re taking a break, place them on the chopstick rest next to the bowl. Also, it is impolite to wave chopsticks around or bring them above mouth-level. Second, don’t take too