Day of dance
Young dancers perform during National Day celebrations in central Taipei, Taiwan on October 10. — AP
Storm warning
Parts of India evacuated
Pudimadaka, India — About 150,000 people were evacuated on India’s eastern seaboard on October 11 as cyclone Hudhud bore down and grew in force, threatening to devastate nearby farmland and fishing villages.
The India Meteorological Department rated Hudhud as a very severe cyclonic storm with gusts of 195 kilometres per hour.
The Global Disaster Alert and Coordination System, run by the United Nations and the European Commission, forecast even higher peak wind speeds of 212 kilometres per hour, making Hudhud a Category 4 storm capable of inflicting catastrophic damage. — Reuters
Science swindle
Scientist arrested over funds
Beijing — Chinese authorities arrested a leading scientist in transgene biology on the charge of swindling state scientific research funds.
The Chinese Ministry of Science and Technology said on October 10 that Li Ning, a professor at the Chinese University of Agriculture and member of the elite Chinese Academy of Engineering, was suspected of stealing money for his transgene biology project.
His arrest came after national audits found seven professors from five universities obtained research funds of more than 25 million yuan (132 million baht) through false means. — AP
More money
Cambodian workers protest at Freedom Park in Phnom Penh on October 12 to demand a pay rise for their monthly minimum wages. — AFP
Wild weather
Okinawa hit by typhoon
Tokyo — A powerful typhoon was bearing down on the southern Japanese island of Okinawa on October 11, bringing heavy rains and strong winds to the region, weather authorities said.
The Vongfong typhoon was projected to directly strike Okinawa, Japan’s Meteorological Agency said. Tens of thousands of households suffered power outages on Okinawa and other neighbouring islands, while the agency warned of flooding, mudslides, high waves and swollen rivers in the region.
Airlines also cancelled about 350 flights scheduled to take off on October 11, Okinawa’s Ryukyu Shimpo newspaper reported. — DPA
Art anger
Exhibition cancelled after complaints
Buenos Aires — A provocative art exhibition featuring Barbie dolls as religious figures such as the Virgin Mary and her boyfriend Ken as a crucified Jesus Christ has been cancelled amid complaints and threats by angry believers.
The exhibition, called Barbie: The Plastic Religion by Emiliano Paolini and Marianela Perelli, had been scheduled to open on October 11 at the Popa gallery in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
The artists said they decided to cancel the show so as not to offend people. — AP
Physics prize
LED developers awarded
Stockholm — Three Japanese-born researchers on October 7 won the Nobel Prize for Physics for inventing the LED lamp, a boon in the fight against global warming and aiding people in poverty. The researches — Isamu Akasaki, Hiroshi Amano and Shuji Nakamura — are currently based in the United States.
“This year’s Nobel Laureates are rewarded for having invented a new, energy-efficient and environment-friendly light source — the blue light-emitting diode (LED),” a jury spokesperson said. — AFP
EASY NEWS FOR M1-3
Dengue fever
Virus kills six in China
Beijing —The dengue virus killed six people in China. Chinese authorities reported the news on October 7. More than 23,000 Chinese people were infected with the virus. The worst affected area was Guangdong province. — AP
Exercises
1. What was Li Ning arrested for?
a. Studying transgene biology.
b. Inventing the LED lamp.
c. Swindling state scientific research funds.
2. About 150,000 people were evacuated on India’s eastern seaboard on October 11 because of a volcano eruption. True or false?
3. Who is the Minister of Transport in Thailand?
Vocabulary
- seaboard (n): the part of a country that is along its coast
devastate (v): to completely destroy a place or an area
catastrophic (adj): causing great damage, danger, destruction, etc.
swindle (v): to cheat somebody in order to get something, especially money, from them
outage (n): a period of time when the supply of electricity, etc. is not working
provocative (adj): intended to make people angry or upset
crucify (v): to kill somebody as a punishment by fastening them to a wooden cross
