Focus Taiwan
Date: 2018/08/13
By: Flor Wang and Chen Yen-chun

Taipei, Aug. 13 (CNA) Well-known German pianist Rolf-Peter Wille (魏樂

富) received his Republic of China (Taiwan) ID card Monday, officially making him an ROC citizen.

“I’m not feeling like a stranger here. Thank you all for treating me as a son of Taiwan,” Wille said at an award ceremony organized by Taipei’s Da’an Household Registration Office. Lina Yeh (葉綠娜), Wille’s wife, also a famous pianist, was also present.

Wille is the sixth foreign national to be granted ROC citizenship in Taipei because of his remarkable professional performance. He is also the first foreign musician to receive an ROC ID card.    [FULL  STORY]

The Sun Daily
Date: 12 August 2018
By: Amar Shah Mohsen

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysians longing to get their hands – and tongues – on

Taiwanese foods and products may now be able do so at their convenience with the opening of the first-ever overseas Taiwan’s One Town One Product (OTOP) here.

The country’s first showcase store, with more planned ahead, is at the Sunway Velocity Mall in Cheras. It began operations today with over 300 products on sale.

The OTOP project – which was started in 1989 by Taiwan’s Economic Affairs Ministry’s Small and Medium Enterprise Administration – is as an initiative to promote the development of specialty products in the 368 different townships across Taiwan.

Among the unique products available, that bring modern twists to traditional goodies, include Yuanlin Cincao (grass jelly), honey twist crackers and the popular Taiwan Rou-Guan micro-towel which combines moisturising and massaging effects.    [FULL  STORY]

RT
Date: 12 Aug, 2018

While its opponents are investing in wars, Beijing is investing in infrastructure. China seeks to build a tunnel that would connect its mainland with Taiwan.
If realized, shuttle trains would run through a 135km undersea section of the tunnel at up to 250kph by 2030 from China to Taiwan, which Beijing considers a renegade province rather than an independent state.

The gigantic project would be dug under the ocean, at a depth of 200 meters. In order to have enough fresh air in the tunnel, Chinese engineers are planning to heave two artificial islands halfway to pump air into the tubes, the South China Morning Post reports.

According to the plan, the trains will travel from Fuzhou province’s Pingtan county and arrive in Hsinchu city, southwest of Taipei, in 32 minutes. The Chinese were inspired by the Channel Tunnel which links England and France.

The 50.5km project, which was hailed as a masterpiece of engineering, would pale in comparison if Beijing manages to complete the project. The Chinese tunnel would be nearly one-third wider, allowing trains to be sent at higher speeds and with heavier cargo.    [FULL  STORY]

Chinese netizens mock sloppy Photoshop job by Sina Military showing hovercraft assaulting Taipei’s Tamsui District

Taiwan News
Date: 2018/08/12
By: Keoni Everington, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A poorly doctored image of Chinese military hovercraft supposedly assaulting the shores of Tamsui and the Tamsui River in Taipei has drawn heckles from even Chinese netizens for such a sloppy attempt at propaganda.

On Friday (Aug. 10), Sina Military News posted an image of a poorly photoshopped aerial photograph of Taipei’s Tamsui District with disproportionately large Chinese hovercrafts superimposed on top, seemingly landing on the shores and floating up the Tamsui River. Rather than arousing nationalist fervor among Chinese netizens, it was rebuffed with criticism.

After photos of the new Chinese-made Type 726 LCAC hovercraft at a shipyard recently surfaced, Sina Military News posted an article titled “How our army’s ‘Mustang’ hovercraft can cross the Taiwan Strait like a whirlwind.” Instead of the usual obedient waves of praise, the photos included in the article caused Chinese netizens to chuckle due the overly simplistic way a couple photos of the hovercraft were copied and pasted multiple times on an aerial image of Tamsui.

In addition to the absurd image of Tamsui, the article also included a photo of a Lego model meant to mock an old American Landing Vehicle, Tracked (LVT) amphibious landing craft, which again only drew sarcastic responses from Chinese netizens.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2018/08/12
By: Liu Kuan-ting and William Yen

Taipei, Aug. 12 (CNA) A nonprofit organization founded by Taiwanese students

studying in the United States has been active in trying to raise awareness of the education gap in Taiwan’s rural areas and get more involved in teaching children in those areas.

Ko Han-wen (柯涵文), a co-founder of the Students for Taiwanese Educational Progress (STEP), told CNA in an interview that the idea behind the group was motivated by the sizable education gap between rural and urban areas she noticed during her high school days in Taiwan.

After starting her studies at the University of Southern California, the 20-year-old Ko said she hoped Taiwanese students in the U.S. could be made aware of the education problems in Taiwan’s rural areas and have the opportunity to return to Taiwan to lend a helping hand.

That’s why she established STEP with a number of friends who were also studying in the U.S., she said.    [FULL  STORY]

EDM Identity
Date: August 11, 2018
By: Cassey Varvel

Phase two of the ULTRA Taiwan 2018 lineup has been released with headliner Axwell /\ Ingrosso added to the mainstage!

ULTRA just recently announced that ULTRA Taiwan will expand to two days this year and will take place on September 8-9. Making its debut at Taipei Dajia ULTRA Park, the festival is anticipated to have over 50,000 ULTRAnauts in attendance. Coming off of a highly anticipated phase one lineup announcement, ULTRA shocked attendees again by adding headliner Axwell /\ Ingrosso to the mainstage.

Making the jump from being part of the Road To Ultra event series to a standalone Ultra event, the debut year for Ultra Taiwan is sure to be better than ever! A huge variety of world-class talent will be part of the festival and will play sets on one of the multiple stages that will be at Taipei Dajia ULTRA Park. Headling the event include huge names like Galantis, Marshmello, and Steve Angello, as well as some sick b2b performances like Tchami x Malaa: No Redemption and NGHTMRE + Slander presents Gud Vibrations!

House and techno lovers will be stoked on the brand new RESISTANCE stage which is set to bring some unreal performances from underground artists Pan-Pot, Nicole Moudaber, and Eats Everything.  Support for the event includes artists Julian Jeweil, Cash Cash, Ferry Corsten, and Oliver Heldens, with more to be announces as we arrive closer to the festival!    [FULL  STORY]

Design Boom
Date: Aug 11, 2018

to decrease the pollution in taiwan and optimize the production of electricity, MEPM lab proposes ‘recrystallization’, an alternative way to build a power plant as part of hsints ecological power plant competition.while now 50% of energy in the state is generated by coal firing, the architects’ concept is to create a new balance by decomposing the system and its energy flows.

‘for us, our concept of recrystallization is keeping the local, natural, social and historical elements of the site,’explains the team. ‘letting the habitat develop naturally, purifying the environment, and changing the system to one where local communities get greater benefits from the operations of the plant.’

Heat left over from the turbine generators will go into the economic cycle to warm the local fish farms, or into the social cycle to be reused by the local community. there will be no CO2 or particles, such as PM2.5 or PM10 released from the plant — they will be captured on site. even though it is impossible for the site to be carbon neutral, because the energy generated is transmitted and used off-site, our proposed plan utilizes virtually the entire plant as a carbon sink to maximize carbon sequestration naturally. a next-generation power plant should play the role of ‘recrystallizing’ the original elements of its location, including habitat, nature, and social welfare.    [FULL  STORY]

The government of Taiwan will look into the case and assess the health hazard of the weedkiller

Taiwan News 
Date: 2018/08/11
By: Huang Tzu-ti,Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – In response to the verdict where a former U.S. school

groundskeeper was awarded US$289 million in a lawsuit accusing Monsanto’s “Roundup” weedkiller of contributing to his terminal cancer, the Bureau of Animal and Plant Health Inspection and Quarantine (BAPHIQ, 農委會防檢局) noted the use of the herbicide is discouraged but not banned in Taiwan, reports said Saturday.

The top three most commonly used selective herbicides in Taiwan are Roundup (年年春), Glufosinate (固沙草), and Paraquat (巴拉刈), Director General Feng Hai-tung (馮海東) of BAPHIQ was quoted by UDN as saying.

Paraquat has been prohibited since February 2017 and Glufosinate has been promoted as an alternative with an increase in global supply that helps bring down prices, Feng said, adding that the government has yet to impose restrictions on the use of Roundup, but only suggested limited use of the weedkiller.
[FULL  STORY]