Canadian Finance Minister Jim Flaherty almost brought the house down when was felled by a block of snow as he toured an igloo on the sidelines of G7 talks in Canada’s far north.
Flaherty was unscathed when the igloo archway slab got snagged on his parka hood and fell onto his back as he exited the demonstration snow house. The bricks made of packed snow can weigh up to 9kg.
Its Inuit builders said not to worry, that they would quickly repair the damage to the igloo that had only been erected hours earlier. Flaherty, meanwhile, laughed off the incident.
Finance ministers and central bankers from the world’s seven richest nations were gathered for two days in Iqaluit, just 300km from the Arctic Circle to discuss keeping a tentative global economic recovery on course as fresh turmoil roiled financial markets.
Igloos are usually associated with the Inuit people of Canada’s frozen northern region. Large igloos can house up to 20 people and the temperature inside can get as high as 15°C from body heat alone. (AFP WITH STAFF WRITER)
加拿大財政部長吉姆．弗萊赫堤到加拿大北極區參加七大工業國財金首長會議，在參觀會場外一座冰屋時被一塊冰磚砸到，差點拆了人家房子的小插曲讓全場哄堂大笑。
弗萊赫堤爬出示範冰屋時，身上穿的厚重毛皮連帽外套勾住冰屋的拱門板，結果拱門板掉下來砸到背，所幸並無大礙。由積雪壓製成的冰磚可重達九公斤。
搭建此屋的因紐特人說不用擔心，他們很快就可以修補好這座數小時前才搭好的冰屋。弗萊赫堤對這段小插曲則是一笑置之。
全球七大工業國的財政部長和中央銀行總裁齊聚在距北極圈僅三百公里的伊夸努召開兩天的會議，會中研討在近日經濟市場動盪不安之際，繼續推動全球經濟復甦的計畫。
冰屋通常和居住在加拿大北部冰天雪地地區的因紐特人有關聯。大型冰屋可容納多達二十人，室內溫度單靠人的體溫就可高達攝氏十五度。（法新社╱翻譯：袁星塵）
Photographer Franziska Stuenkel likes to take spontaneous urban shots, so she needs a nimble camera that is ready to go when inspiration strikes: her German-made Leica M11. “I have to be very quick and discreet,” said the Berlin-based artist who captures reflections of people walking past windows, their contours merging with the shapes behind the glass. Stuenkel’s compact Leica is the perfect camera for the job, the 51-year-old told AFP. Famous for its pocket-sized and retro-style devices, the Leica brand is celebrating a milestone as it marks 100 years since its first commercial camera was presented to the public. The
Picture a 45-foot-long animal with a 5-foot-long skull and 3-foot-long arms. It may not seem strange until you realize that a human with those proportions would be 6 feet tall with 5-inch arms. Although the Tyrannosaurus rex went extinct 65 million years ago, the mystery of its unusual body __1__ has fascinated scientists for over a century. Barnum Brown, the paleontologist who first discovered T. rex fossils, initially found it hard to believe that the tiny arms belonged to such a __2__ creature. One of his colleagues speculated that the short forelimbs might have been used to hold the
A: Actually, Brazilian jiu-jitsu is particularly good for small people like you. B: Really? How so? A: According to Diana Wang, a US doctor of physical therapy, the BJJ’s purpose is to help smaller, weaker people defend themselves by using various techniques, such as leverage. B: That sounds interesting. What time does Dr Wang’s BJJ seminar begin tonight? A: The event is scheduled for 7:30pm at PMA Brazilian Jiu-jitsu in Taipei. Admission is free, but donations are welcome. A: 其實你的個子比較小，很適合練巴西柔術呢。 B: 真的嗎？為什麼？ A: 據美國理療醫師王幼瑞博士說，巴西柔術的概念是讓弱小的人，也能利用槓桿作用等技巧防身。 B: 真有趣，王醫師的巴柔研討會幾點開始？ A: 今晚7點半在「台北巴柔運動館」，免費入場自由樂捐唷！ （By Eddy Chang, Taipei Times／台北時報張迪）
Dogs’ noses are incredibly keen. They can even detect changes in cortisol levels in human sweat and breath. Known as the “stress hormone,” cortisol increases when humans are under pressure. Recent research indicates that the smell of human stress can influence a dog’s behavior and emotions. In the study, human volunteers were exposed to the stressful tasks of preparing and delivering a speech on the spot and then solving math problems. __1__ Researchers collected sweat and breath samples from the volunteers on pieces of cloth during both their stressful and restful states. Meanwhile, other researchers worked with 18
RSS