Taiwan News Quick Take

■ SAFETY

Carbon monoxide warning

National Fire Agency Director-General Huang Chi-min (黃季敏) urged the public yesterday to take precautions against carbon monoxide poisoning as a coming cold front was likely to keep many people indoors. Despite the cold weather, it is important to maintain air circulation, Huang said. He said people should only buy water heaters that had been safety tested and have them installed by certified technicians. The heaters should be installed in a ventilated area, he said. This month, 14 incidents of carbon monoxide poisoning were reported in which two people were killed and 27 injured, Huang said, citing agency statistics. Improper installation of water heaters was blamed for the incidents, Huang said, adding that lives were lost when water heaters were installed in unventilated areas.



■ EDUCATION

Firms make donations

Twelve high-technology firms on Tuesday donated laboratory equipment to four higher education institutions to help cultivate young talent, Southern Taiwan University (STUT) president Tai Chein (戴謙) said. The donation ceremony was held by the Ministry of Education alongside the presentation of awards to students who won the 2007 Taiwan Micro Mouse Contest and the 2007 Digital Signal Processing Creative Design Contest. The Micro Mouse Contest is a competition in which college students use knowledge of microcontroller units to design robots that can negotiate a maze. Laboratory equipment worth NT$4 million (US$123,977.19) was donated to STUT, the Lee-Ming Institute of Technology, the Technology and Science Institute of Northern Taiwan and Minghsin University of Science and Technology, Tai said.



■ HEALTH

Enterovirus type 71 warning

The Centers for Disease Control yesterday issued a warning against enterovirus type 71, predicting an epidemic is possible. Since Tuesday, 19 suspected cases of enterovirus infections leading to serious complications have been reported, six of which have been confirmed. All six confirmed cases were enterovirus type 71. The centers said that at least 90 percent of infants under the age of three do not have antibodies protecting against type 71, the enterovirus type most likely to cause serious complications and death. Although this is not the peak season for enterovirus infections, the centers are recommending family members avoid infection by washing their hands before holding or feeding babies. Families should be on the lookout for symptoms such as excessive sleepiness, lack of energy, muscle spasms, continuous vomiting, fever, stiffness of the neck and delirium, the centers said.



■ SOCIETY

County leans on litterbugs

Litterbugs in Taipei County will be fined as much as NT$6,000 after the county government decided to strictly enforce waste disposal regulations. The Waste Disposal Act (廢棄物清理法) stipulates fines between NT$1,200 and NT$6,000 for littering. The county government decided, however, to impose the maximum fine of NT$6,000 for each offense. The county's Environmental Protection Bureau said 67 cases of littering had been reported in the past month, with some tip-offs including "solid evidence" such as photos of offenders flicking their cigarette butts onto the street. Bureau officials said, however, that no fines had been issued.



■ CULTURE

Museum to open in 2011

Chiayi County Commissioner Chen Ming-wen (陳明文) said on Tuesday that despite serious construction delays, the southern branch of the National Palace Museum will open in 2011. Because of the delays in the construction, there has been criticism that the project might never take off, but Chen said that the project would "definitely be accomplished." Chen said the southern branch of the National Palace Museum is being built on a site of 70 hectares with a total budget of more than NT$6 billion (US$192 million). The budget for clearing the land alone was NT$450 million. The land-clearing work includes digging an artificial lake, planting trees, irrigation and water-release systems. As of Jan. 7, construction should have been 20.81 percent complete. However, the actual rate is just 11.9 percent.



■ TRADE

Bakery show announced

The 2008 Taipei International Bakery Show, a biannual event, will take place between March 6 and March 9 at the Taipei World Trade Center. The organizers, the Taipei Bakery Association, said bakery suppliers from all over the world will use the opportunity to exhibit their finest products and seek orders from bakers in Taiwan and neighboring countries. The exhibitors will include manufacturers, distributors, traders and organizations selling bakery machinery and whole plant equipment, as well as companies supplying bakery tools, packing machinery, deep-freezing equipment, bags, gift boxes and packing materials. Separate areas will also be provided for bakery machinery and whole plant equipment, as well as various food products, including bread and pastry, cakes, confectionery, cookies, beverages, frozen dough and raw materials.