EARTHQUAKES
Quake hits eastern Taiwan
A magnitude 4.4 earthquake jolted eastern Taiwan at 3:38pm yesterday, the Central Weather Bureau said. The earthquake’s epicenter was 44.2km southwest of Hualien County Hall at a depth of 9.1km, on the border between Hualien and Nantou counties, bureau officials said. The strongest tremor, with an intensity of 4, was felt in Hong-ye Village (紅葉) in Hualien. Three moderate quakes shook the east earlier in the day, with the strongest one occurring at 4:29am. It measured 4.7, with the epicenter 57.8km beneath the sea, 15.5km southeast of the Taitung County Government, the bureau said. Before that, a magnitude 4 earthquake hit at 00:50am, with the epicenter 22.1km beneath the sea, 39km southeast of the Yilan County Government building, it said. An earthquake measuring 3.4 in magnitude also occurred at 3:14am, with its epicenter 22.1km beneath the surface, the bureau said.
DOCUMENTARY
Show highlights innovation
The nation’s achievements in industrial, agricultural and medical innovations are highlighted in a three-part documentary titled Taiwan Revealed produced by the Discovery Channel. The first episode focuses on industrial innovation and highlights examples such as the development of the world’s first transparent smartphone. It premiered in Taiwan on Monday and is to be replayed on Saturday. The second episode features agricultural innovation, including the use of coffee grounds to produce clothes that can remove odors and a water filtering device that can filter seriously polluted water, the channel said, adding that it would air on Monday. The third episode, which is still being filmed, will focus on issues such as minimally invasive surgery, Discovery said, and is set to air next year.
Nipah virus infection is to be officially listed as a category 5 notifiable infectious disease in Taiwan in March, while clinical treatment guidelines are being formulated, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday. With Nipah infections being reported in other countries and considering its relatively high fatality rate, the centers on Jan. 16 announced that it would be listed as a notifiable infectious disease to bolster the nation’s systematic early warning system and increase public awareness, the CDC said. Bangladesh reported four fatal cases last year in separate districts, with three linked to raw date palm sap consumption, CDC Epidemic Intelligence
The manufacture of the remaining 28 M1A2T Abrams tanks Taiwan purchased from the US has recently been completed, and they are expected to be delivered within the next one to two months, a source said yesterday. The Ministry of National Defense is arranging cargo ships to transport the tanks to Taiwan as soon as possible, said the source, who is familiar with the matter. The estimated arrival time ranges from late this month to early next month, the source said. The 28 Abrams tanks make up the third and final batch of a total of 108 tanks, valued at about NT$40.5 billion
Two Taiwanese prosecutors were questioned by Chinese security personnel at their hotel during a trip to China’s Henan Province this month, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. The officers had personal information on the prosecutors, including “when they were assigned to their posts, their work locations and job titles,” MAC Deputy Minister and spokesman Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) said. On top of asking about their agencies and positions, the officers also questioned the prosecutors about the Cross-Strait Joint Crime-Fighting and Judicial Mutual Assistance Agreement, a pact that serves as the framework for Taiwan-China cooperation on combating crime and providing judicial assistance, Liang
A group from the Taiwanese Designers in Australia association yesterday represented Taiwan at the Midsumma Pride March in Melbourne. The march, held in the St. Kilda suburb, is the city’s largest LGBTQIA+ parade and the flagship event of the annual Midsumma Festival. It attracted more than 45,000 spectators who supported the 400 groups and 10,000 marchers that participated this year, the association said. Taiwanese Designers said they organized a team to march for Taiwan this year, joining politicians, government agencies, professionals and community organizations in showing support for LGBTQIA+ people and diverse communities. As the first country in Asia to legalize same-sex
RSS