SCIENCE
LayV test developed
Taiwanese researchers have developed a polymerase chain reaction-based test to diagnose Langya henipavirus (LayV), a recently discovered animal-derived virus that has been detected in eastern China, the Centers for Disease Control said yesterday. LayV, which was first described by Chinese scientists in an Aug. 4 article in the New England Journal of Medicine, has infected dozens of people, mainly farmers, in China’s Shandong and Henan provinces. Many patients had symptoms such as a fever, fatigue and coughing. The virus is believed to have been transmitted to humans from shrews, but there is no evidence that it can be spread from person to person.
AVIATION
Tsai inaugurates R&D center
The research and development (R&D) of uncrewed aerial vehicles is crucial for the nation to achieve self-reliance and boost its asymmetric defense capabilities, President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) said on Saturday as she inaugurated a government-run drone R&D facility in Chiayi County. As part of the government’s efforts to develop drone technology, expand the market and foster talent, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications in March established an alliance of drone manufacturers to grow the industry and expand the scope of drone applications, she said. Chiayi is home to plains, mountains and coastal areas, making it the perfect testing ground for drones, Tsai added. Twenty companies have set up offices in the R&D center, and there are plans to establish a testing site, a drone operator licensing facility, a drone-related academy and a national arena for drone-related competitions, she said.
CRIME
Man held over murder
Police in Hsinchu County’s Jhubei City (竹北) early yesterday arrested a man on suspicion of killing his girlfriend after she rejected his marriage proposal. The Philippine man, who was identified only as Dioni, had previously dated the victim in the Philippines, although they broke up before traveling separately to Taiwan for work, police said. The pair resumed their relationship after a chance encounter in Taiwan, although the victim repeatedly refused Dioni’s proposals, they added. The couple were staying in a hotel in Jhubei on Saturday night, when the topic of marriage came up again, police said. They argued after the victim turned down Dioni’s marriage proposal and he allegedly strangled her in a fit of anger, they said. Dioni later called the emergency services, but paramedics arriving at the scene at about 6am yesterday found that the victim had died and reported the incident to the police.
SOCIETY
Student wins gold medal
A Taiwanese high-school student on Wednesday won a gold medal at the International Economics Olympiad. It was Taiwan’s first gold in the annual competition that began in 2019. This year’s Olympiad — a competition that tests high-school students’ knowledge of economics, business and finance — was hosted by China, but took place online. Other Taiwanese contestants won two silver, one bronze and a special award for best economic theory, placing the country in 11th place globally and fifth in Asia, said SimEd Taiwan, a group that promotes simulation-based learning in education. Gold medal winner Shih Chun-yu (施俊佑) is a student at the Taipei-based Dominican International School.
OFFLINE: People who do not wish to register can get the money from select ATMs using their bank card, ID number and National Health Insurance card number Online registration for NT$6,000 (US$196.32) cash payments drawn from last year’s tax surplus is to open today for eligible people whose national ID or permanent residency number ends in either a zero or a one, the Ministry of Finance said on Monday. Officials from the ministry revealed which days Taiwanese and eligible foreigners would be able to register for the cash payments at a joint news conference with the Ministry of Digital Affairs. Online registration is to open tomorrow for those whose number ends in a two or three; on Friday for those that end in a four or five: on Saturday
TECH PROGRAM: A US official said that an important part of the delegation’s trip would be to meet with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co executives The US is to send officials in charge of chip development to Taiwan, Japan and South Korea to promote cooperation in the global semiconductor supply chain, the US Department of Commerce said on Tuesday. Chips Program Office Director Michael Schmidt announced the visit, which marks the first time officials from the office are to visit the three nations since it was set up in September last year. “As semiconductors and technologies continue to evolve, the United States will keep working with allies and partners to develop coordinated strategies to ensure that malign actors cannot use the latest technologies to undermine our collective
Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA) officials are investigating why a Starlux Airlines flight to Penang, Malaysia, returned to Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport nearly two hours after takeoff yesterday morning. The airline said in a statement that Flight JX721 to Penang took off from Taoyuan airport at 9:20am. “After the dashboard showed a signal of an abnormality in the hydraulic system, the captain followed standard operating procedures and returned the flight to Taoyuan airport for safety precautions,” the airline said, adding that the flight landed safely at the airport at 11:04am. The airline arranged for the passengers to have lunch after the flight landed and
Seven senior faculty members, including the principal, of a high school in Taichung were temporarily suspended from their jobs on Friday, pending an investigation by the Taichung Education Bureau into alleged bullying and abuse that led to the suicide of a student last month. The city’s education officials were too slow to suspend those involved, the student’s father told a news conference on Wednesday, at which Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chang Liao Wan-chien (張廖萬堅) and members of the Humanistic Education Foundation were also present. The boy had been a good student and a high achiever during elementary and junior-high, and had
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