CULTURE
AMPAS invites Taiwanese
The US Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), the group that hands out the Oscars, has invited three Taiwanese — actress-director Sylvia Chang (張艾嘉), screenwriter Wang Hui-ling (王蕙玲) and art director Hwarng Wern-ying (黃文英) — to join. Hwarng was listed in the designers category for Silence, a film directed by Martin Scorsese that was largely filmed in Taiwan, and Three Times (最好的時光), a film that she produced and was directed by Hou Hsiao-hsien (侯孝賢). Chang, who was invited to join the actors category, was cited for Love Education (相愛相 親) and 20 30 40. Wang was named in the writers category for Fleeing by Night (夜奔) and Ang Lee’s (李安) Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (臥虎藏龍). AMPAS on Monday issued 928 invitations to artists and executives who have made distinguished contributions to motion pictures. Those who accept the invitations would become members of the academy in autumn, the organization said.
TOURISM
Alishan train back on track
The Alishan Forest Railway in Chiayi County on Wednesday resumed normal operations, more than three months after part of the line was closed due to a series of derailments. Maintenance, safety inspections and improvements were completed on Monday on the section of the rail between Chiayi and Shizihlu (十字路) stations, the Taiwan Railways Administration said. The section was closed on March 12 following four accidents between Jan. 18 and Feb. 25. The railway, which runs through a scenic area to an elevation of 2,216m on Alishan, is popular among local and foreign travelers. It was built during the Japanese colonial period to transport timber and began operating in 1912.
Starlux Airlines, Taiwan’s newest international carrier, has announced it would apply to join the Oneworld global airline alliance before the end of next year. In an investor conference on Monday, Starlux Airlines chief executive officer Glenn Chai (翟健華) said joining the alliance would help it access Taiwan. Chai said that if accepted, Starlux would work with other airlines in the alliance on flight schedules, passenger transits and frequent flyer programs. The Oneworld alliance has 13 members, including American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific and Qantas, and serves more than 900 destinations in 170 territories. Joining Oneworld would also help boost
A new tropical storm formed late yesterday near Guam and is to approach closest to Taiwan on Thursday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Tropical Storm Pulasan became the 14th named storm of the year at 9:25pm yesterday, the agency said. As of 8am today, it was near Guam traveling northwest at 21kph, it said. The storm’s structure is relatively loose and conditions for strengthening are limited, WeatherRisk analyst Wu Sheng-yu (吳聖宇) said on Facebook. Its path is likely to be similar to Typhoon Bebinca, which passed north of Taiwan over Japan’s Ryukyu Islands and made landfall in Shanghai this morning, he said. However, it
Taiwan's Gold Apollo Co (金阿波羅通信) said today that the pagers used in detonations in Lebanon the day before were not made by it, but by a company called BAC which has a license to use its brand. At least nine people were killed and nearly 3,000 wounded when pagers used by Hezbollah members detonated simultaneously across Lebanon yesterday. Images of destroyed pagers analyzed by Reuters showed a format and stickers on the back that were consistent with pagers made by Gold Apollo. A senior Lebanese security source told Reuters that Hezbollah had ordered 5,000 pagers from Taiwan-based Gold Apollo. "The product was not
COLD FACTS: ‘Snow skin’ mooncakes, made with a glutinous rice skin and kept at a low temperature, have relatively few calories compared with other mooncakes Traditional mooncakes are a typical treat for many Taiwanese in the lead-up to the Mid-Autumn Festival, but a Taipei-based dietitian has urged people not to eat more than one per day and not to have them every day due to their high fat and calorie content. As mooncakes contain a lot of oil and sugar, they can have negative health effects on older people and those with diabetes, said Lai Yu-han (賴俞含), a dietitian at Taipei Hospital of the Ministry of Health and Welfare. “The maximum you can have is one mooncake a day, and do not eat them every day,” Lai