■ Education
New English test introduced
The National Development Initiatives Institute, a local organization promoting the study of English, presented a new English proficiency test yesterday. Based on the Common European Framework (CEF), a standardized scale of English proficiency, the examination has been tested at some middle and senior high schools, colleges and universities and would be introduced at all schools nationwide, institute officials said yesterday. The "Global English Test" focuses on active communication skills, as well as listening comprehension, they said.
■ Transportation
Fog delays flights
Thick fog at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport delayed more than 30 departing flights yesterday morning, leaving hundreds of passengers stranded, an airport official said. The foggy conditions were created by a humid maritime airstream, reducing visibility to less than 200m, according to the Central Weather Bureau. Hundreds of people were stranded at the airport due to the delayed flights to Japan, Hong Kong and Southeast Asia, an airport official said. Five flights arriving from the US and Europe were diverted to Kaohsiung, the official said.
■ Weather
Cold front on the way
A cold front will approach Taiwan tomorrow, which will bring to an end this week's warm weather, the Central Weather Bureau said yesterday. The bureau said temperatures in northern and northeastern areas will drop tomorrow because of the influence of a southbound cold front in the region. Chances are high for rain in northern Taiwan this weekend, the bureau said, adding that the weather would improve by Monday.
Taiwanese paleontologists have discovered fossil evidence that pythons up to 4m long inhabited Taiwan during the Pleistocene epoch, reporting their findings in the international scientific journal Historical Biology. National Taiwan University (NTU) Institute of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology associate professor Tsai Cheng-hsiu (蔡政修) led the team that discovered the largest snake fossil ever found in Taiwan. The single trunk vertebra was discovered in Tainan at the Chiting Formation, dated to between 400,000 and 800,000 years ago in the Middle Pleistocene, the paper said. The area also produced Taiwan’s first avian fossil, as well as crocodile, mammoth, saber-toothed cat and rhinoceros fossils, it said. Discoveries
Taiwanese paleontologists have discovered fossil evidence that pythons up to 4m long inhabited Taiwan during the Pleistocene epoch, reporting their findings in the international scientific journal Historical Biology. National Taiwan University (NTU) Institute of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology associate professor Tsai Cheng-hsiu (蔡政修) led the team that discovered the largest snake fossil ever found in Taiwan. A single trunk vertebra was discovered in Tainan at the Chiting Formation, dated to between 800,000 to 400,000 years ago in the Middle Pleistocene, the paper said. The area also produced Taiwan’s first avian fossil, as well as crocodile, mammoth, sabre-toothed cat and rhinoceros fossils, it said. Discoveries
Whether Japan would help defend Taiwan in case of a cross-strait conflict would depend on the US and the extent to which Japan would be allowed to act under the US-Japan Security Treaty, former Japanese minister of defense Satoshi Morimoto said. As China has not given up on the idea of invading Taiwan by force, to what extent Japan could support US military action would hinge on Washington’s intention and its negotiation with Tokyo, Morimoto said in an interview with the Liberty Times (sister paper of the Taipei Times) yesterday. There has to be sufficient mutual recognition of how Japan could provide
UPDATED TEST: The new rules aim to assess drivers’ awareness of risky behaviors and how they respond under certain circumstances, the Highway Bureau said Driver’s license applicants who fail to yield to pedestrians at intersections or to check blind spots, or omit pointing-and-calling procedures would fail the driving test, the Highway Bureau said yesterday. The change is set to be implemented at the end of the month, and is part of the bureau’s reform of the driving portion of the test, which has been criticized for failing to assess whether drivers can operate vehicles safely. Sedan drivers would be tested regarding yielding to pedestrians and turning their heads to check blind spots, while drivers of large vehicles would be tested on their familiarity with pointing-and-calling
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