Focus Taiwan
Date: 2019/05/23
By: Tsai Peng-min, Liao Yu-yang and William Yen 
Taipei, May 23 (CNA) More than NT$310 billion (US$9.82 billion) in investment has been pledged by Taiwanese firms planning to invest at home as of Thursday, when six more firms responded to government efforts to attract investment from overseas Taiwanese firms, according to the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA).

The six companies — manufacturing service provider Pegatron, hardware and software solutions provider Adlink Technology Inc., air-conditioner maker Rechi Precision, air compressor manufacturer Fusheng Co., Ltd, an unnamed communications company and an unnamed molding company — are expected to invest over NT$22.1 billion and create about 1,640 new jobs, the ministry said.

As the United States-China trade dispute continues to intensify, the world’s second largest electronics original equipment manufacturer Pegatron is actively diversifying risk by expanding its presence in Taiwan, the MOEA pointed out.

The company is establishing a research and development facility in Taipei’s Guandu area, purchasing production facilities in New Taipei’s Xindian District and expanding existing production lines in Taoyuan’s Guishan District, which will bring in up to NT$14.9 billion in investment and create more than 1,000 new jobs, the MOEA said.
[FULL  STORY]

Radio Taiwan International 
Date: 22 May, 2019
By: Shirley Lin

Taiwan is known for its many relaxing hot springs. But did you know that hot spring water has other uses besides soaking? One hot spring in Yilan County recently reopened a special area for boiling food in the waters.

Yilan’s Jioujhihze Hot Spring is famous not just for its water, but also for its eggs. The alkaline sodium bicarbonate spring water is particularly good for soft-boiling eggs to salty perfection.

Last year, the Forestry Bureau spent US$476,000 on renovating two pools used just for boiling these eggs and building 14 new pavilions to enjoy the eggs in.

If cooking eggs is not your thing, why not soak in the dreamy light blue hot spring water or take a refreshing walk on the beautiful hanging bridge nearby?    [FULL  STORY]

Forbes
Date: May 22, 2019 
By: Bonnie Chiu

On May 17, the Taiwanese parliament passed a bill that would allow same-sex couples to apply for marriage registration. This followed the decision by the Constitutional Court two years ago that same-sex couples should have the constitutional right to marry.

This has not been a smooth journey, as the Taiwanese electorate voted in referendums last year not to implement teaching about LGBT issues, and to restrict marriage under the Civil Code to heterosexual couples. On the latter, in fact 72% of the electorate voted to restrict marriage to one man and woman.

So, what led to Taiwan becoming the first in Asia to take this step? The government’s supportive attitudes are crucial. After the referendum in 2018, the government responded to the results by stating that the court’s original ruling would be implemented regardless.

A Taiwanese LGBT rights promoter, Leslie Li, said that the LGBT movement has gained more traction since the 2000s, after some unfortunate incidents. In 2000, the tragic death of 14-year-old Ye Yong Zhi, who has been bullied due to his sexuality, had sparked widespread outcry and led to recognition of LGBT issues. Yet, it still took close to two decades of sustained activism to achieve a change in public opinion and government’s stance. She added that Taiwan’s democratic political system has led to a vibrant civil society and a culture of the public speaking out on social issues.    [FULL  STORY]

Video shows hot pot explode in woman’s face as she tries to pluck out lighter dropped by customer at Chinese Haidilao

Taiwan News
Date: 2019/05/22
By: Keoni Everington, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Video has surfaced of a vat of boiling hot pot broth explode on a waitress as she tries to fish out a lighter a customer had dropped in the scalding hot cauldron.

On May 15, three guests were enjoying a spicy hot pot at a branch of the popular hot pot chain Haidilao in the city of Kunming in Yunnan Province, reported ETtoday. According to the person who uploaded the video, a male customer had apparently accidentally dropped their cigarette lighter inside the hot pot and the waitress offered to try to fish it out.

In the video, a woman dressed in white can be seen calmly and methodically trying to scoop the lighter up with two ladles. Suddenly, the lighter explodes, and the entire scorching contents of the hot pot vat fly into the air

The two customers on the left are also struck by a tidal wave of spicy, searing soup, while the third customer makes a run for it. Other similar videos of lighters causing explosions at hot pot restaurants have popped up recently.   [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2019/05/22
By: Tang Pei-chun and Evelyn Kao 

Geneva, May 21 (CNA) A total of 13 allies and like-minded countries have spoken up for Taiwan’s participation at the World Health Assembly (WHA), as of Tuesday, the second day of the the World Health Organization’s (WHO) annual meeting.

Following the United States, Germany, and the United Kingdom, which voiced direct and indirect support for Taiwan on the first day of the assembly in Geneva, Switzerland, more countries spoke out Tuesday for Taiwan during the second day of the gathering.

During the fourth plenary meeting of the 72nd WHA, the decision-making body of the WHO, Palau’s Minister of Health Emais Roberts thanked many countries, including the U.S. and Japan, for providing health and infrastructure support for Palau, and took time to single out Taiwan’s contribution.

“There is one partner not present in this room. And over the past three years since I’ve been here, I have not seen them. They have helped Palau achieve its SDG goals (sustainable development goals) and also supported Palau for the past 20 years,” Roberts said.    [FULL  STORY]

FIRST TIME EVER: A team of researchers controlled a bismuth ferrite memory unit using laser illumination, reducing delay in data access and energy consumption

Taipei Times
Date: May 23, 2019
By: Lin Chia-nan  /  Staff reporter

A team led by National Cheng Kung University (NCKU) physicists yesterday announced a

major breakthrough regarding a next-generation memory storage material that is expected to multiply the efficiency of memory units and pave the way for quantum technology development.

Traditional memory devices process information based on two logic states — zero and one — while their efficiency can be improved only by increasing the density of components and reducing their size, department of physics assistant professor Yang Jan-chi (楊展其) said.

To eliminate the bottleneck in memory development, the team turned to an alternative material — bismuth ferrite (BiFeO3), a material that can record eight logic states and keep the stored information for up to a year even when it is not powered or is heated up to 400°C, Yang said.

The main breakthrough involves controlling the material through laser illumination, which helps reduce delays in the reading of data and energy consumption, while boosting calculation efficiency, he said.    [FULL  STORY]

Radio Taiwan International 
Date: 21 May, 2019
By: Paula Chao

Master Kinmen knife-maker Wu Tseng-dong is as tough and steely as his products. After decades of laboring at his art, he is now passing on his skills to a younger generation.

For decades, the Wu family has made use of the shell casings that litter the off-shore island of Kinmen- their home. The island sits within sight of the Chinese coast, and so it has a long history of shelling. Some shells have been there since 1958, when China fired more than 470,000 shells at the small island over a stretch of 44 days.

For generations, the Wu’s have taken these shells and turned them into fine kitchen knives that have become a symbol of Kinmen.

Mr. Wu, now in his 60’s, belongs to the family’s third generation of shell-knife makers. He knows all the secrets of how to make a perfect knife from one of these shells.
[FULL  STORY]

VOA
Date: May 20, 2019
By: Lisa Schlein

GENEVA — Taiwan is protesting China’s decision to exclude the island from participation

in the annual World Health Assembly, calling such action an unjustified political move that could harm global health.

The 72nd session of the World Health Organization’s World Health Assembly takes place May 20-28 in Geneva, Switzerland.

This move is particularly ironic this year, as the theme of the assembly is universal health coverage. Taiwan’s national health system is widely considered one of the best in the world.Taiwan’s minister of health and welfare, Chen Shih-chung, says the island is ready to share its experiences on how to achieve affordable, efficient universal health coverage with the global community.    [FULL  STORY]

Japan was willing in 2016 to move forward with FTA talks: Kawashima

Taiwan News
Date: 2019/05/21
By: Matthew Strong, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – The Democratic Progressive Party government missed an opportunity to sign a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with Japan when it came to power in 2016 because it failed to resolve the issue of the ban on food imports from Japanese regions hit by the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster, a Japanese academic said Monday (May 20).

Tokyo University Professor Shin Kawashima was speaking about recent developments in Taiwan-Japan relations at a seminar hosted by the Foreign Press Center Japan, the Liberty Times reported.

The Fukushima disaster was followed by large-scale donations from Taiwan and by bilateral agreements, leading to new opportunities, according to Kawashima. However, when President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) was elected in 2016, the government of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe hoped she would end the import ban on food from five prefectures affected by the nuclear disaster, the academic said. The ban was seen as going counter to Taiwan’s earlier generous offers of relief aid to the region, according to Kawashima.
[FULL  STORY]