When you see somebody with a tattoo, what do you think of him or her? Lots of people think that people who have tattoos are bad, dangerous or criminals, but you might be surprised to find out that tattoos used to be very popular among the upper class in some places.
In the 1800s, many rich people all over Europe had tattoos. After fancy dinner parties, people liked to take off some of their clothes and show off their tattoos. In fact, there were two British kings who had tattoos, and one American president in the 1900s had a tattoo as well.
Tattoos were also popular among sailors in the 1800s, but for a different reason. Back then, sailors used to be punished by being hit on their back. To keep from being hit there, they had a Christian cross tattooed on their back because people thought it was bad to hit a picture of the cross. (Marc Langer, Staff writer)
PHOTO : AFP
當你看到某人有刺青時,你對這人有怎樣的觀感?許多人認為有刺青的人是壞蛋、危險份子或罪犯,不過,了解到某些地方的上層階級以往相當流行刺青後,你可能會感到訝異。
一八八○年代,歐洲各地有許多有錢人去刺青。豐盛的晚宴過後,人們喜歡將部分衣物脫掉,展示自己的刺青。事實上,曾有兩位英國國王有刺青,一九○○年代也有某位美國總統曾刺青。
刺青在十九世紀相當風行於水手之間,不過理由大不相同。當時,水手經常被鞭打背部當做處罰。為了不讓人鞭打那裡,水手就在背部刺上基督教十字架,因為人們認為鞭打十字架的圖形並不吉利。 (翻譯:賴美君)
A: Apart from the musical Sunset Boulevard, Japanese pop diva Ayumi Hamasaki is also touring Taiwan after a 17-year wait. She’s holding two concerts starting tonight. B: Ayu has the most No. 1 hits of any Japanese solo artist, with 33 total. A: “Time” magazine even crowned her as “The Empress of Pop.” B: She staged shows in Taipei back in 2007 and 2008, causing an “Ayu fever” across Taiwan. A: Unfortunately, the singer has been deaf in her left ear since 2008, and is gradually losing hearing in her right ear. I’m so excited to see her singing in Taipei again. A: 除了音樂劇《日落大道》,日本歌后濱崎步睽違17年,今晚起在台北熱唱兩場。
Denmark’s state-run postal service, PostNord, announced that it would cease letter deliveries at the end of 2025 due to the impact of digitalization. As 95% of its residents now use the Digital Post service, Denmark has seen a 90% decline in letter volumes since 2000, from 1.4 billion to 110 million last year. On top of that, the Postal Act of 2024 removes the government’s obligation to provide universal mail service and puts an end to postal exemptions from value-added tax, raising the cost of a single letter to 29 Danish krone (US$4.20). As a result, PostNord is switching
A: After touring Taipei, the play Life of Pi is now heading to Taichung. You wanna go? B: Did you forget? We’re going to Taipei this weekend to see the musical Sunset Boulevard and go to Japanese pop diva Ayumi Hamasaki’s concert. A: Oh yeah, that’s right. The classic composed by Andrew Lloyd Webber is touring Taiwan for the first time. B: I heard that it’s adapted from a 1950 film with the same title. A: And the show will feature legendary soprano Sarah Brightman, who is finally returning to the musical stage after 30 years. We can’t miss it. A: 在台北巡演後,戲劇《少年Pi的奇幻漂流》本週起將移師台中。要去嗎?
Although sending you an SMS (Short Message Service) verification code provides some security, many apps now use code-generating apps and two-factor authentication instead. But more recently, passkeys now use a biometric approach to logging in. Biometrics can offer an even more secure alternative. Following this trend, Google is reportedly planning to replace SMS verification codes with “QR code” scanning. SMS codes are currently used to verify user identity and prevent fraudsters from creating fake Gmail accounts to distribute spam. However, these codes present several challenges. They can be phished through suspicious links, and users may not always have access