■Invoices
Lottery chances reduced
The Department of Taxation announced yesterday that winning numbers for the first prize in the bimonthly Uniform-Invoice Lottery (統一發票) will be reduced from four sets to three sets starting this month. The chance of winning the lottery will drop from 0.4 percent to 0.3 percent. Those who match all eight digits of any of the three sets of numbers will receive NT$200,000. The department says the reduction is necessary because of its financial difficulties in this fiscal year. It says it will review the policy next June or July and may increase the numbers if the government's finances have improved by then. The winning numbers for the months of September and October will be announced on Monday.
■ Government
Ma says no local taxes
Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday ruled out the possibility, at least for the time being, of the city government levying local taxes as a means of raising funds to replenish the municipal coffers. Under two revised laws passed by the Legislative Yuan on Tuesday, local governments will be allowed to levy taxes of their own. Ma said that even if the city were to make use of the tax-levying power, the prospective revenues would be extremely limited and insufficient to make up the city's ever-increasing deficit, currently at about NT$40 billion (US$1.16 billion) per year. Ma called for the Executive Yuan not to use the new law as a reason to intentionally lower central government fund allocations to local governments.
■ Education
Scientist wins prize
Academia Sinica member Ray Wu (吳瑞) was recently honored by the Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation of the US, the Academia Sinica announced yesterday. Academia Sinica said that Wu, 74, received a Frank Annunzio Award in the science and technology field in a ceremony held Oct. 14 in Washington, in recognition of his work in genetic engineering and the development of new cereal crops. According to the news release by Academia Sinica, Rosalyn Queen Alonso, chairwoman of the foundation, said that Wu's research in developing new cereal crops may lead to the end of hunger worldwide and that his "pioneering efforts epitomize the spirit of the Frank Annunzio Awards." Wu, one of the four Frank Annunzio Award recipients this year, is currently a professor of biochemistry/molecular biology at Cornell University. He received his bachelor of science degrees in Chemistry and Biology from the University of Alabama and his doctorate in biochemistry from the University of Pennsylvania.
■ Conservation
Zoo wins conference rights
The Taipei City Zoo has won the rights to host two large-scale international conservation conferences in 2004, a zoo official announced yesterday. Both the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums (WAZA) and the Conservation Breeding Specialist Group (CBSG) have commissioned the city zoo to organize their 2004 annual congresses, the official said. "The WAZA and CBSG annual conferences will be held in Taipei separately in September 2004, " the official said, adding that the exact dates have yet to be decided. Representatives from more than 40 countries are expected to attend the two conferences, including the heads of some 200 zoos in various major cities, the official said.
A tropical depression in waters east of the Philippines could develop into a tropical storm as soon as today and bring rainfall as it approaches, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday, while issuing heat warnings for 14 cities and counties. Weather model simulations show that there are still considerable differences in the path that the tropical depression is projected to take. It might pass through the Bashi Channel to the South China Sea or turn northeast and move toward the sea south of Japan, CWA forecaster Yeh Chih-chun (葉致均) said, adding that the uncertainty of its movement is still high,
TAIWANESE INNOVATION: The ‘Seawool’ fabric generates about NT$200m a year, with the bulk of it sourced by clothing brands operating in Europe and the US Growing up on Taiwan’s west coast where mollusk farming is popular, Eddie Wang saw discarded oyster shells transformed from waste to function — a memory that inspired him to create a unique and environmentally friendly fabric called “Seawool.” Wang remembered that residents of his seaside hometown of Yunlin County used discarded oyster shells that littered the streets during the harvest as insulation for their homes. “They burned the shells and painted the residue on the walls. The houses then became warm in the winter and cool in the summer,” the 42-year-old said at his factory in Tainan. “So I was
THE TOUR: Pope Francis has gone on a 12-day visit to Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, East Timor and Singapore. He was also invited to Taiwan The government yesterday welcomed Pope Francis to the Asia-Pacific region and said it would continue extending an invitation for him to visit Taiwan. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs made the remarks as Pope Francis began a 12-day tour of the Asia-Pacific on Monday. He is to travel about 33,000km by air to visit Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, East Timor and Singapore, and would arrive back in Rome on Friday next week. It would be the longest and most challenging trip of Francis’ 11-year papacy. The 87-year-old has had health issues over the past few years and now uses a wheelchair. The ministry said
Discounted 72-hour Taipei Metro passes are to be offered to China Airlines passengers until Feb. 28 next year, the airline announced today. China Airlines passengers may present their boarding pass for a discount of up to 34 percent when buying a Taipei Metro 72-hour unlimited travel pass. The offer is available to international travelers on international flights bound for Taipei. Within seven days of arrival, travelers can present their boarding pass, passport and proof of flight payment at an EZfly counter in Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport or Taoyuan MRT Taipei Main Station to obtain the discounted passes, the airline said. One 72-hour pass
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