WEATHER
No threat of storm: CWB
A tropical storm that formed over the Pacific late on Tuesday will not immediately threaten Taiwan, but it could turn into a typhoon as it moves closer to the nation, the Central Weather Bureau (CWB) said yesterday. As of 8am yesterday, Chan-hom, the ninth storm of this year’s Pacific typhoon season, was centered about 4,140km east-southeast of Taiwan’s southernmost tip and moving at 18kph in a west-northwesterly direction. Chan-hom had sustained winds of 72kph and maximum sustained winds of 101kph, the bureau said. The storm is not likely to affect the nation’s weather in the coming days, as a high-pressure system continues to produce clear skies with high temperatures, forecasters said. However, the storm’s ultimate course remains unclear and might not be known until next week. Chan-hom is Laotian for a type of tree.
WEATHER
High UV levels persist: EPA
The Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) yesterday warned of high ultraviolet radiation amid clear skies, urging people to avoid outdoor activities until after 2pm. Hsinchu and Miaoli counties, where the UV index hit 13, were at the greatest risk yesterday, the agency said. The UV index in parts of Hualien and Taitung counties reached 12 in the morning, while most other areas of the nation recorded ultraviolet radiation levels of 11 at some point and ranged from 8 to 10 as of 11am, EPA data showed. The agency said readings of 8 or higher are considered “very high,” with anything above 11 seen as “dangerous.” A dangerous reading means a sunburn can occur after standing in sunlight for just 15 minutes.
POLITICS
Tsai tuning campaign music
The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) yesterday invited Internet users to vote for songs to be included in DPP Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) presidential campaign CD. DPP spokesperson Juan Chao-hsiung (阮昭雄) said that netizens can select 20 songs from more than 100 submitted by professional and amateur musicians, alongside a panel of 14 judges — including experts in Mandarin, Hoklo (commonly known as Taiwanese), Hakka and Aboriginal music — set to choose 10 songs to be included on the CD. The final selections are to be broadcast live online on Thursday next week. Ballots can be cast online at melody.iing.tw/songs.
TRANSPORTATION
Tigerair to add Macau flights
Tigerair Taiwan, a joint venture between China Airlines and Singapore’s Tiger Airways, yesterday said it would increase the number of flights on its Taoyuan-Macau route beginning on Aug. 1. The budget airline said it would add an extra flight per day to its Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday schedules, which currently offer two round-trip flights. Tigerair also operates two return flights on Saturdays and one on Mondays and Wednesdays on that route. Starting next month, the new service will depart Taiwan at 6:05am and return from Macau at 8:35am, offering more flexible options for travelers seeking a short and inexpensive getaway, the carrier said. While Tigerair is optimistic about demand for travel between Taoyuan and Macau, V Air, a low-cost carrier owned by TransAsia Airways, is about to halt operations on the route. V Air said in May that it would suspend flights between Taoyuan and Macau on Friday next week, three months after it launched the route.
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
Taiwan-Japan Travel Passes are available for use on public transit networks in the two countries, Taoyuan Metro Corp said yesterday, adding that discounts of up to 7 percent are available. Taoyuan Metro, the Taipei MRT and Japan’s Keisei Electric Railway teamed up to develop the pass. Taoyuan Metro operates the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport MRT Line, while Keisei Electric Railway offers express services between Tokyo’s Narita Airport, and the Keisei Ueno and Nippori stations in the Japanese capital, as well as between Narita and Haneda airports. The basic package comprises one one-way ticket on the Taoyuan MRT Line and one Skyliner ticket on
Many Japanese couples are coming to Taiwan to obtain donated sperm or eggs for fertility treatment due to conservatism in their home country, Taiwan’s high standards and low costs, doctors said. One in every six couples in Japan is receiving infertility treatment, Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare data show. About 70,000 children are born in Japan every year through in vitro fertilization (IVF), or about one in every 11 children born. Few people accept donated reproductive cells in Japan due to a lack of clear regulations, leaving treatment in a “gray zone,” Taichung Nuwa Fertility Center medical director Wang Huai-ling (王懷麟)
PROXIMITY: Prague is closer to Dresden than Berlin is, so Taiwanese firms are expected to take advantage of the Czech capital’s location, the Executive Yuan official said Taiwan plans to boost cooperation with the Czech Republic in semiconductor development due to Prague’s pivotal role in the European IC industry, Executive Yuan Secretary-General Kung Ming-hsin (龔明鑫) said. With Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) building a wafer fab in the German city of Dresden, a Germany-Czech Republic-Poland “silicon triangle” is forming, Kung said in a media interview on the weekend after returning from a visit to Prague. “Prague is closer to Dresden than Berlin is, so Taiwanese firms are expected to take advantage of the Czech capital’s location,” he said. “Taiwan and Prague have already launched direct flights and it is
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