A modern twist will be put on Taiwanese opera during upcoming performances at The Metropolitan Hall in Taipei.
New elements for this show include projection lights and an animated LED background. An orchestra will perform using a mixture of eastern and western instruments. Producers want to give the audience an entirely new performance.
資料來源：
http://englishnews.ftv.com.tw/read.aspx?sno=A2F77A64382AA2AE7178A5B043287DAE
Costlier Medicine
Medicine isn’t immune to the rising prices. Among the products that will cost more from next month are painkillers from leading brand Panadol, which will increase by about NT$25 a package, or more than a fifth, and Mentholatum, which cost NT$5 to NT$15 more an item.
Weather Improves
Temperatures have gradually started to rise. The weakening of a cold surge and reduction in moisture led to good weather across Taiwan today. But this weekend, another wet weather system will begin to have an impact on the island. And forecasters predict sharp temperature differences between the daytime and nighttime.
Lin Stays Put
The NBA trading deadline passed without a move by the Taiwanese-American point guard Jeremy Lin. Lin was the subject of many rumors over the past couple weeks, with speculation that even his past team, the New York Knicks, could be interested. But in the end, Lin remained a Houston Rocket.
資料來源：
http://englishnews.ftv.com.tw/read.aspx?sno=5A869DB9B3E6637951072C3969C0D7F8
Wave after wave of cold weather hasn’t seemed to dampen the demand for ice cream. On the heels of high-profile promotions of soft serve ice cream at local convenience stores, well-known ice cream brands from Japan and South Korea will also enter the market.
FamilyMart, the first convenience store to enter the soft serve ice cream wars, introduced strawberry ice cream on Valentine's Day. It saw lines at many stores.
7-Eleven introduced soft serve ice cream last October, and now a premium Japanese brand has also joined the battle.
Shiroichi Spokeswoman
When deciding when to launch, we didn’t take into consideration whether it was winter or summer.
A cone at Shiroichi will cost NT$185, much more than the NT$30 charged at FamilyMart or NT$35 at 7-Eleven. This was the reaction of the general public to Shiroichi’s relatively high price:
“It’s a little expensive, but I will probably try it once.”
“I think it is a little more high-end and would like to give it a try.”
Not to be left out, a well-known South Korean ice cream maker will open in Taiwan in mid-March. At a price of NT$150 per cone, it too is targeting the high end of the market.
資料來源：
http://englishnews.ftv.com.tw/read.aspx?sno=4BEB4C393F8D04380D26C1715130D724
A ceremony was held to celebrate National Chung Hsing University’s merger with the National Senior High School of Agriculture and Technology and National Dali High School. It is the first time in Taiwan that a university is merging with a high school and a vocational school.
The merger of the three schools in Taichung today led to the formation of the Affiliated Taichung Agricultural Senior High School of National Chung Hsing University. The university donated 300 young chicks to the high school to symbolize the spirit of agriculture that lives at its school.
Putting these chicks aboard an ox-cart, they depart from the university and are warmly welcomed by the high school students.
The merger is due to funding allocation. Before it took place, the Ministry of Education promised that total funding would not be cut.
Lee De-tsai
National Chung Hsing University President
(K-12 Education Administration) Deputy Director Huang promised no change in education funding, so I think that merging the resources of National Chung Hsing University and these other two schools will produce results greater than the individual parts. In other words, one plus two will be greater than three.
With the three schools sharing financial resources, the university will have more of an opportunity to cultivate and recruit talented high school students.
資料來源：
http://englishnews.ftv.com.tw/read.aspx?sno=B953305F49FDB36C20CE36BEE91F17CD
an Tang, the chairman of the Foundation of Universal Design Education. Tang vigorously promotes the concept of universal design so that disabled people like him and anyone with special needs can lead easier, more fulfilling lives.
Dan Tang
Foundation of Universal Design Education
I respect bike lanes, and when I come across a cyclist, I say hello. With more bike lanes, those in wheelchairs have another road we can travel. This perfectly demonstrates the concept of universal design.
For the past eight years, Dan Tang has promoted the Universal Design Award competition to spur innovation and greater convenience.
Dan Tang
Foundation of Universal Design Education
Universal design implies ease of use, with the first consideration being fairness. The second is a variety of methods can be used, and the third is that the item is easy to understand. The fourth is that when you are using it, it teaches you a simpler way, and the fifth is if you use it improperly, it won’t result in an accident and can be easily restored to its original condition. The final consideration includes required storage space and the item’s dimensions.
Twenty-five years ago, Tang took to the streets to push for a disabled friendly environment. He surveyed all potential barriers and sought to promote policies which could overcome them.
Dan Tang
Foundation of Universal Design Education
In 2006, when I began speaking about universal design, I was in a wheelchair. Everyone thought I was speaking about something specific to wheelchair users. I wanted to strengthen my message by saying I was helping cyclists, pregnant women and the elderly. Still, it was very difficult to convince them.
One way Tang began to try and persuade people was by hosting the Universal Design Award.
Dan Tang
Foundation of Universal Design Education
I began with education. By working with industrial design and product design departments, I pushed the concepts that we were using for the universal design competition. I hoped that big prize money would allow students to understand that their design shouldn’t just look cool or be visually stunning but should actually meet the requirements of users and help solve their problems.
Chien Yi-ru簡伊汝, a student at National Taiwan Normal University’s Department of Industrial Education, participated in the competition. She undertook exhaustive research, later discovering that scooter barricades used in local parks also inadvertently prevented entrance by wheelchairs and baby strollers. She designed a new type of barricade which she submitted to the competition.
The Universal Design Award hopes to change design concepts among students. After impacting academia, it can change government policies and finally attract the attention of the construction industry
Kao Wen-ting
Taipei Dep’t of Urban Development
An important part of universal design is eliminating differences in flooring height. From the door and throughout the entire interior, the height should be uniform, including all the way to the balcony.
Door thresholds in the home should also be smooth, making it easy for anyone to move between the kitchen, bathroom and other parts of the interior.
Kao Wen-ting
Taipei Dep’t of Urban Development
In the bathroom, making the flooring a uniform height presented a problem of how to deal with water drainage. As you can see, there are two specially designed water drains, one by the shower area and one between the bathroom and the bedroom
Universal design is now common when it comes to designing interiors. It’s also applicable to furniture and cabinets.
Kao Wen-ting
Taipei Dep’t of Urban Development
The hardest place to design is kitchen space because items up top are hard to reach. We therefore designed these moveable racks which make it easier to grab items.
Taipei currently has 83 public housing rental units that were built using the concept of universal design.
Dan Tang
Foundation of Universal Design Education
For example this door used to be very heavy to the push. Now I can use just one finger and lightly push it open. Making items lightweight is one concept of universal design.
Many people spend their savings to buy a house which is typically used for decades, covering all phases of life, ranging from child rearing to pregnancy and old age. The home must accommodate everything from strollers to wheelchairs. All of these considerations should be taken into account when building a new residence.
Dan Tang
Foundation of Universal Design Education
A button like this should be placed in an area that makes it easily accessible to everyone. Even more special is the expanded area. Rather than just using one finger, I can press it with my arm. This small change uses universal design to make people’s lives more convenient.
From changing the way designers think to creating barrier-free environments for Taiwan’s aging society, universal design is quickly becoming a reality and making life more convenient.
資料來源：
http://englishnews.ftv.com.tw/read.aspx?sno=3E7D21B277AFD78AEC8590B896067960
The Kaohsiung Spring Arts Festival is now in its fifth year. Last night, a special outdoor concert was held in front of the Kaohsiung Museum of Fine Arts. The concert commemorated the 228 Incident, as the Kaohsiung Symphony Orchestra performed with 4 choral groups along with Italian trumpet virtuoso, Andrea Giuffredi.
資料來源：
http://englishnews.ftv.com.tw/read.aspx?sno=1BC835C0D43937CD655B986A128D3E55
With the benefit of excellent weather this weekend, the Taoyuan County Government and the Taiwan Cyclist Federation sponsored a 42.9 km cycling trip on the Northern Cross-Island Highway.
All ages participated in this event, including the eldest cyclist who was 73 years-old. Cyclists who completed the whole route and arrived at the La-la-shan Visitor Information Center were given a special certificate showing they completed the difficult course.
資料來源：
http://englishnews.ftv.com.tw/read.aspx?sno=400C1B72CC9B1B84D2450A86B515D1CF
Today, both expert and amateur dancers participated in a warm-up competition for the World Dance Council’s Ballroom Dance Taipei Open which begins on Feb. 28. Even a few young contestants participated such as this brother and sister pair who were just three and four years old.
This brother and sister pair are just three and four years old, appearing much shorter than their competitors, though they are quite charming and have become the focus of many in the audience.
The professional category had 16 pairs of dancers competing, each pair demonstrating a sexy and nimble dance style.
Yang Rong-jye
Dancer
It’s such a beautiful stage, and the feeling is really great as it will give me confidence when I perform, making me feel young again.
Jane Chen
Taiwan International Dance Sport
A (total) of nearly 400 pairs of dancers will participate in the Asian Tour Taipei Open which begins on Feb. 28. This is a warm-up competition, giving all of the dancers an opportunity to improve.
Today’s competition is just a small taste of what will occur at the main event which brings 142 pairs of foreign competitors from 31 different countries, becoming the biggest and grandest ballroom dance competition in Taiwan.
資料來源：
http://englishnews.ftv.com.tw/read.aspx?sno=77D5BDE75C3F2F4AC8C1DE4003833D83
Kaohsiung recently held a robot competition that featured a number of challenges associated with emergency response to natural disasters. For example, robots were given the task of breaking through barricades and performing other critical functions which tested each team’s creativity and programming ability.
The playing field upon which these robots are competing mimics the scene from a natural disaster. Students are asked to design a robot that can maneuver this dangerous course which includes multiple obstacles. And ultimately, arriving at a designated finish line within a certain amount of time.
The teams of students that are able to complete this task within an allotted time are quite happy, though a few teams are unable to overcome difficult obstacles.
This robot competition is jointly hosted by the Kaohsiung City Government Department of Education and the National Science and Technology Museum along with other groups under the general theme of disaster response.
Hsu Zheng-he
Judge
One goal is how to respond to disasters, and how to prevent disasters as well.
Another part of the competition is moving these building blocks, discovering which team can place the most yellow building blocks into their basket. Another test is this hanging horizontal bar, as the team that works the best together, as well as writes the best program, and achieves the top score is the winner.
Our strategy and preparation before the event was very good so we were able to get the top score.
The top team in this competition also wins the right to represent Taiwan in an international competition in the United States or Australia.
資料來源：
http://englishnews.ftv.com.tw/read.aspx?sno=422BDA51D8683388C9EAF57F76875A8D
A new installation at the Taitung Art Museum offers visitors a chance to enter what appears to be a moving pigeon house. Inside the house is devoid of pigeons and looks more like a human inhabitance, conveying the designer’s conception of a longing to fly free.
From the exterior this wooden building looks like a pigeon house. Located on the end of a green belt outside Taitung Art Museum, it is small but well furnished. Inside there is a kitchen and bathtub, and most astonishing are the wheels underneath. These bring a freedom of movement that makes it possible to bring the home on trips.
Hsiao Yu-chih
Shih Chieh University
My idea was to bring people back to the fundamentals of architecture. Or you could say I wanted to show them a more intrinsic structure. In fact, architecture is something you experience with the five senses.
The building was designed by Hsiao Yu-chih, a professor in the Architecture Department of Shih Chieh University. It acts as a stage standing in a green field where structure, activity and people interact. The county’s culture director described the meaning behind the design.
Liu Jheng
Taitung Cultural Affairs Dep’t
It symbolizes a pigeon-free pigeon house because when pigeons fly away they are free. When we are in a building, we are like a pigeon that longs to fly freely away. We can fly out of the building and away from this world to travel in another place.
There are few large-scale art installations in Taitung, making the introduction of this unusual building a popular topic of discussion.
資料來源：
http://englishnews.ftv.com.tw/read.aspx?sno=DE3E22FBAF49453C67C1C90D490E6E01
Students from National Nantou Senior High School are world champions in the 560-kilogram men’s category of the World Indoor Tug of War Championship. While competing in Ireland over the weekend the boys beat a team from England to take gold.
hese images are from 2012. The Taiwan team was disqualified from competition for having applied cleaning solution to the soles of their shoes. A couple days ago, the team returned with a vengeance.
Standing between Taiwan and gold in the men’s 560-kilogram category in the World Indoor Tug of War Championship was England. The Taiwanese team stuck in to prevent the advance of its strong opponent. When England seemed on the verge of surrender a burst of energy from the Taiwan side led to victory.
When the news reached National Nantou Senior High School, the athletes’ classmates were delighted.
Chiu Ming-huang
Nantou Senior High School
To become accustomed to cold weather, they trained together on Hehuan Mountain. The calluses each team member developed on his hands also helped beat the cold.
The hard work this team put in has been rewarded with world championship gold.
資料來源：
http://englishnews.ftv.com.tw/read.aspx?sno=C6084B589154E04D2C08685B19D22746
A press conference was held today ahead of Thursday’s theatrical release of the local baseball drama “Kano.” Two Japanese films stars portraying an on-screen couple, Masatoshi Nagase and Maki Sakai, were present.
資料來源：
A new smart bracelet will make it easier to find and identify lost elderly and disabled people. The Federation for the Welfare of the Elderly cooperated with a local telecom to create the technology, which reveals information such as emergency contact numbers after just a quick scan using a smart phone.
In the past, when elderly people disappeared, the only information that could be used to retrieve them included the clothes they were wearing and their hairstyles. This information often wasn’t enough to bring them back.
Now, as long as an elderly person wears this special smart bracelet, he or she can be identified by someone with a smart phone. Scanning the bracelet reveals information such as phone numbers of family members and the address of their residence. The new technology impressed artist Ann Lang, whose father suffers from dementia.
The telecom company that contributed to the bracelet says by utilizing GPS tracking, the bracelet will dramatically increase the recovery rate of lost elderly people.
James Cheng
Telecom Employee
Without this bracelet, the recovery rate for lost elderly people was about 60 percent. If they wear this bracelet then I believe that the recovery rate will be near 100 percent.
The smart bracelet is expected to be officially launched this week, with 4,000 being issued to Taipei, New Taipei and Pingtung residents. Those suffering from dementia or people with disability cards can apply for a free bracelet.
資料來源：
http://englishnews.ftv.com.tw/read.aspx?sno=AB293BD1B15F489CE9F8C0177DB3F9E3
Sony launched a new tablet and phone today. The devices will compete against devices from Samsung and HTC.
Being able to choose different photo modes is a function that Sony hopes will attract people to its new tablet. It also hopes that a slimmer shape and being waterproof will be major selling points.
There is also this new high-end phone from Sony, the Z2. Its excellent photographic capabilities have been extended into video recording. It includes a special stereo microphone and noise-cancelling headphones.
Jonathan Lin
Sony Mobile Taiwan GM
We think that growth of the Z2 will be better than the Z1. I think it will become the best-selling model on the market.
Cell Phone Analyst
I think Sony is the first choice if you want a phone that is waterproof. For cameras, HTC M8 is a good choice, and if you want a large display and good color, then LG G Pro 2 is a good. Samsung’s S5 combines many of these (functions).
There are many devices to choose from for customers looking for a new smart phone.
資料來源：
http://englishnews.ftv.com.tw/read.aspx?sno=CAED545E415F13EDB0C5CBB38B6D1381
Spring training exhibition games are beginning for Major League Baseball. While some Taiwanese players like Chen Wei-yin will use the time as a tune-up, others like Yang Yao-hsun and Wang Chien-ming will be fighting for a roster spot on their respective teams.
The Baltimore Orioles Chen Wei-yin is expected to pitch the first inning of an intrasquad scrimmage on Friday, though his appearance in warm-up games for the rest of spring training is uncertain.
More certain is that Yang Yao-hsun will get his first major league test on Friday. Yang is scheduled to pitch the first inning when his Pittsburgh Pirates take on the New York Yankees at the Yankees Florida spring training facility.
As for Wang Chien-ming, he’s currently at the Cincinnati Reds spring training facility preparing for the upcoming season with his teammates.
Wang Chien-ming
Reds Pitcher
Today, I continued to stay in the bullpen because there was no intrasquad scrimmage. I’m scheduled to pitch on March 1 and may have another bullpen session before then.
Wang is expected to get his first action on the mound against the Colorado Rockies. It will be his first competition of the year and he will enter the game with the Reds using him as a long reliever.
資料來源：
http://englishnews.ftv.com.tw/read.aspx?sno=6A563BED31DFD4D4A723B29538FDACDF
“That book is older and more fragile, so we need to ask you to wear a pair of gloves and view it carefully like this.”
This is the public library in Puli Township, where visitors are asked to wear white gloves before viewing books.
Library staff produce a book from a sealed plastic bag and ask visitors to be careful.
This Japanese language book, which lost its cover long ago, was published in 1936. It offers a traveler’s perspective of the Wushe Incident. The value of the book is estimated to be as high as NT$200,000.
“After learning about the value of these books, I felt they were quite special.”
Wang Ya-le
Librarian
Visitors who come here respect our concern for protecting these books, so they don’t complain about these requests.
Limited funding prevents these books from being digitized, and they must be stored in plastic bags because the library cannot afford humidity proof cabinet. A great deal of care is taken so that this priceless collection isn’t compromised.
資料來源：
http://englishnews.ftv.com.tw/read.aspx?sno=EDFA60381413B02BA4B515540EF97C4F
Kaohsiung’s Keziliao Harbor to host rock music festival this Friday (2014/02/25)
Kaohsiung’s Keziliao Harbor has traditionally been known for its seafood. But this Friday the area will receive an extra boost when a special concert funded by local residents takes place for the second year in a row.
Under the hot sun, staff are busy aboard this 40-ton abandoned boat which will serve as a backdrop for a rock and roll stage on Friday.
Over the past five years Taiwan Railways has increased its production of souvenirs and collectables. These items are the work of two young women who hope to make the railways a part of everyday life.
There is this toy train that encircles a map of Taiwan.
And a handheld vacuum cleaner that looks a lot like a train engine. These items are popular among workers and train enthusiasts.
Train Enthusiasts
There are many things that attract me. Actually, if my home was big enough, I would buy all of these items for my collection.
There are also children’s eating utensils and Puyuma Express train socks. The source of these creative, Taiwan Railways-inspired goods is a pair of young women named Shih Wen-tong and Lee Chih-ting.
Lee Chih-ting
Product Designer
When a child is eating something and uses this utensil, he or she will think about having taken the train and will keep thinking about Taiwan Railways. I think the railways should become a part of a child’s life from a young age.
The work of these two designers contributes about NT$10 million in annual revenues to the century-old railway system.
資料來源：
http://englishnews.ftv.com.tw/read.aspx?sno=EE5CD4ED45AABB628B8E308834FB58B3
Taiwanese chef Chen Lan-shu is celebrating having been named “Asia’s best female chef” at a competition in Singapore on Monday. Her restaurant was named one of the best in Asia.
Chen Lan-shu was elated to be entered in the competition for Asia’s top female chef, becoming the first Taiwanese cited for this honor. And soon after returning to her seat, her restaurant “Le Mout” was honored as the 24th best of “Asia's 50 Best Restaurants.” It was the only Taiwanese restaurant to be ranked.
Chen Lan Shu
Chef
Being included among this group, regardless of whether you are head chef, manager, or a food critic, is really quite difficult. For me, it happened quickly because our restaurant is in its fifth year. I am very honored to be able to share this award with my team.
Chen was a top student at National Taiwan University’s Department of Foreign Languages and had a childhood love of cooking. After graduation, she attended the Le Cordon Bleu before opening her own restaurant, which utilizes local ingredients and French cooking methods.
資料來源：
http://englishnews.ftv.com.tw/read.aspx?sno=4DD8D309F73B1B3A7DE49B2DD572D989
The Japanese singer Masaharu Fukuyama will serve as an ambassador for Taiwan tourism in Japan.
Fukuyama is highly popular in both countries. In June he will hold his first Taiwan concert. And in the future he will take part in promotional events aimed at encouraging his fellow countrymen to come visit Taiwan.
資料來源：
