Muhammad Ali

Ali ‘the Greatest’ dead at 74 after breathing ailment
Reuters

Former world heavyweight boxing champion Muhammad Ali, whose record-setting career, unprecedented flair for showmanship and controversial stands made him one of the best-known figures of the 20th century, died on Friday aged 74.
Ali’s death was confirmed in a statement issued by family spokesman Bob Gunnell late on Friday evening, a day after he was admitted to a Phoenix, Arizona-area hospital with a respiratory ailment.
The cause of death or the name of the hospital where he died were not immediately disclosed.
Ali had long suffered from Parkinson’s disease, which impaired his speech and made the once-graceful athlete almost a prisoner in his own body.
Few could argue with Ali’s athletic prowess at his peak in the 1960s. With his dancing feet and quick fists, he could — as he put it — “float like a butterfly and sting like a bee.”
He was the first person to win the heavyweight championship three times.
Ali was more than a colorful and interesting athlete. He spoke boldly against racism in the 1960s, as well as the Vietnam War.
During and after his championship reign, Ali met scores of world leaders and for a time, he was considered the most recognizable person on Earth.
Once asked about his preferred legacy, Ali said: “I would like to be remembered as a man who won the heavyweight title three times, who was humorous and who treated everyone right. As a man who never looked down on those who looked up to him ... who stood up for his beliefs ... who tried to unite all humankind through faith and love.”
“And if all that’s too much, then I guess I’d settle for being remembered only as a great boxer who became a leader and a champion of his people,” he said. “And I wouldn’t even mind if folks forgot how pretty I was.”

who:former world heavyweight boxing champion Muhammad Ali
what:record-setting career, unprecedented flair for showmanship and controversial stands
how:made him one of the best-known figures of the 20th century died
when:on Friday aged 74
where:not given
why:not given

keywords
1.ailment (n.)疾病
2.flair (n.)天賦
3.respiratory (n.)呼吸
4.disclose (v.)揭發
5. impair (v.)受損
6.prowess (n.)實力


http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2016/06/05/2003647907

Obama's Cuba visit

Fidel Castro scorns Obama's Cuba visit

Fidel Castro has broken his silence over President Obama's Cuba visit in a damning letter published in state-run newspaper Granma.

Fidel, who handed power to his brother Raul a decade ago, said Cuba did not need any gifts from the "empire".
He described Mr Obama's words of reconciliation as "syrupy" and warned they could give Cubans a heart attack.
Mr Obama had suggested that it was time to bury the last remnant of the Cold War in the Americas.
In his 1,500-word letter, Fidel Castro also reminded readers of the Bay of Pigs invasion of 1961, in which a CIA-sponsored paramilitary force of Cuban exiles attempted to take over the island.However, the 89-year-old ex-leader also said his "modest suggestion" was that Mr Obama "reflects and doesn't try to develop theories about Cuban politics".
During his visit, Mr Obama invoked "a future of hope" for Cuba in an unprecedented live TV address delivered from the Grand Theatre in Havana.
He told President Raul Castro that he did not need to fear a threat from the US nor from "the voice of the Cuban people".
He also called for the lifting of the 54-year old US trade embargo against Cuba, a remark which was met by loud applause.
The embargo remains one of the main sticking points in US-Cuban relations but can only be lifted by the US Congress.
Mr Obama's visit to Cuba was the first by a president since the Communist revolution in 1959.

who:Fidel, who handed power to his brother Raul a decade ago
what:said Cuba did not need any gifts from the "empire".
when:not given
where:not given
why:not given
how:not given

keywords:
1.scorn(v.)鄙視/輕蔑
2.damn(adj.)譴責的
3.applause(n.)喝采
4.reconciliation(n.)和解
5.remnant(n.)殘餘
6.paramilitary(adj.)輔助軍隊的
7.exile(v.)流亡/放逐
8.embargo(n.)禁運
9.unprecedented(adj.)史無前例的
10.modest(adj.)謙虛的

 http://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-35911423

Alphago

Machine beats man, wins go series

‘POWERLESS DISPLAY’:South Korea’s Lee Sedol said that he felt extreme pressure heading into the third match, but remained optimistic for the final matches

AP, SEOUL

Google’s go-playing software yesterday defeated a human champion for the third straight time to clinch the best-of-five series and establish its superiority in an ancient Chinese chess-like game long thought to be the realm of humans.

Lee Sedol of South Korea, who is one of the world’s best go players, remained winless against AlphaGo, Google DeepMind’s artificial intelligence machine, after another close match in Seoul. Despite losing the series, Lee is scheduled to play twice more against AlphaGo, today and on Tuesday.

The showdown between human and machine has crushed the pride of go fans, many of them in Asia, who believed go would be too complex for machines to master. Some thought it would take at least another decade for computers to beat human go champions.

Many top go professionals commented that AlphaGo displayed unorthodox, questionable moves that initially befuddled humans, but made sense in hindsight.

Lee looked shaken in the post-match news conference, apologizing to his fans for what he said was a “powerless display” against the game-playing machine.

He said he felt extreme pressure heading into the third match, but that with the series now decided, he might have a better chance in the final two matches, because “the psychological part matters to humans.”

Google cofounder Sergey Brin, who was in Seoul to watch the third match, described go as a “beautiful game” and said he was excited that the company has been able to “instill that kind of beauty in our computers.”

In go, which is considered to be far more complex than chess, two players take turns putting black or white stones on a 19-by-19 square grid. The goal is to put more territory under one’s control by surrounding vacant areas with the stones.

who: google's go-playing  software

when:yesterday

what:defeated a human champion for the third straight time to clinch the best-of-five series and establish its superiority in an ancient Chinese chess-like game long thought to be the realm of humans.

why:not given

how:not given

where:not given 

keywords:

1.clinch(v.)最終贏得

2.realm(n.)領域/領土

3.showdown(n.)最後的決戰

4.unorthodox(adj.)非正統的

5.grid(n.)格子
6.territory(n.)領土
7.vacant(adj.)空的

http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2016/03/13/2003641450

White Helmets

Syria's White Helmets nominated for Nobel Peace Prize

The group of volunteers who brave daily bombings to carry out search and rescues missions across war-torn Syria have been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.

A group of volunteers who carry out search and rescue operations inside rebel-held bombarded territories in Syria have been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.
Syrian Civil Defence units, also known as the White Helmets, have been recognised for saving around 60,000 people facing bombardments by the Syrian regime and Russian war planes since 2013.
The White Helmets have received backing from more than 130 international organisations to win the prestigious global peace prize.The Syria Campaign, a global advocacy group calling for the protection of civilians in Syria, has launched an online initiative backing the White Helmets for the prize.
The campaign helped bring to the world's attention to the work of the volunteers from the White Helmets, who could not sit and watch people die under the rubble. Instead they chose to work endlessly to save lives on all sides of the conflict.

The volunteers, compromising of former bakers, tailors, engineers, pharmacists, painters, carpenters, students and many more, have pledged their commitment to the principles of "humanity, solidarity, impartiality" as outlined by the International Civil Defence Organisation.

"In a place where public services no longer function, these unarmed volunteers risk their lives to help anyone in need – regardless of their religion or politics," the White Helmets say.
They have grown from 20 to around 2,900 members but have lost dozens of their volunteers during rescues missions, including most recently, Khaled Omar Harrah.
Harrah, best known as the rescuer in the "Miracle Baby" video who spent 14 hours digging through cement to rescue baby Mahmoud, was killed earlier this week during a rescue mission in Aleppo.
The White Helmets' nomination comes after a difficult week that saw rescue missions intensified as air raids continued to fall over besieged and desperate parts of Syria.
The Nobel Prize winner will be announced on October 7.

who:a group of volunteers who carry out search and rescue operations inside  rebel-held bombarded territories
where: in Syria
what: have been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize

keywords:
1.regime(n.)政權
2.advocacy(n.)擁護
3.rubble(n.)瓦礫
4.compromise(v.)妥協,和解
5.pharmacists(n.)藥劑師
6.pledge(v.)保證
7.unarmed(adj.)徒手
8.besieged(adj.)被圍攻的
9.desperate(adj.)危急的





https://www.alaraby.co.uk/english/society/2016/8/18/Syrias-White-Helmets-nominated-for-Nobel-Peace-Prize

Brexit

British Prime Minister Cameron Rules Out Another Vote on Leaving EU

Nigel Farage, leader of UKIP, suggested a second referendum if the June vote is close

By

NICHOLAS WINNING

Updated May 17, 2016 1:16 p.m. ET

LONDON—U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron on Tuesday dismissed the possibility of a second referendum on Britain’s membership in the European Union if the results next month are close, saying the coming plebiscite is a once-in-a-lifetime event.Mr. Cameron indicated that the result would be final. “If you vote to stay we stay and that’s it—and if we vote to leave, we leave, that’s it. You can’t have ‘neverendums,’” the prime minister said at an event here, hosted by the World Economic Forum.

The comments come after Nigel Farage, the leader of the anti-EU UK Independence Party, said a narrow win for Mr. Cameron’s campaign to stay in the EU would justify another vote on the issue. A 52%-48% result in favor of remaining in the EU would be “unfinished business by a long way,” but a two-thirds to one-third victory would end it, Mr. Farage told the Mirror newspaper.

Mr. Cameron said that arguing for a second referendum even before the first has been held demonstrated that those in favor of withdrawal from the EU, or Brexit, “are losing the argument.”

The differing views of Mr. Cameron and Mr. Farage underscore a question about whether the long-running EU debate in Britain—and within the prime minister’s Conservative Party—will be settled by the referendum on June 23.

Polls generally suggest U.K. voters are divided, although the picture is mixed, with a significant number of potential voters still undecided.

The Scottish National Party lost a 2014 referendum on whether Scotland should split from the rest of the U.K. by a margin of 55% to 45%, but the party and its supporters remain determined to push for another vote.

SNP lawmakers have also argued that a vote to leave the EU should trigger a second independence referendum in Scotland because the country is predominantly pro-EU.

Some of those campaigning for Britain’s exit from the EU have floated the idea there could be two referendums: one to reject the current relationship with Brussels, followed by a second after a better EU deal has been negotiated. Mr. Cameron has also rejected that idea.

Also on Tuesday, two large U.S.-based technology companies, Microsoft Corp. and Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co., voiced their support for the pro-EU campaign, which is being spearheaded by Mr. Cameron.

“Our commitment to our staff and business here remains firm, but we also believe the U.K. remaining in the EU supports important criteria for continued and future investment by Microsoft and others,” said Microsoft’s U.K. chief executive, Michel Van der Bel. The company employs some 5,000 staff in the U.K.

And in a letter to U.K. employees Tuesday, Hewlett Packard Enterprise said EU membership brought a range of benefits to its business and the economy as a whole. Leaving the EU would probably have a “detrimental impact on the long-term prospects for employment, research, investment and innovation in this country,” the letter said.

While many executives of large international businesses have expressed support of Britain’s continued EU membership, those backing Britain’s exit from the EU, or so-called Brexit, say they have the support of many of Britain’s smaller and medium-size businesses.

One of Mr. Cameron’s most prominent rivals, former London Mayor Boris Johnson, has seized on this theme, writing in a column Monday that the “FTSE100 fat cats” support remaining in the EU because it makes them richer at the expense of the average worker, and that voting to leave will support “the entrepreneurs, the grafters, the workers, the innovators, the burgeoning and dynamic business of Britain.”

who:U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron 

when:on Tuesday

what:dismissed the possibility of a second referendum on Britain’s membership in the European Union if the results next month are close, saying the coming plebiscite is a once-in-a-lifetime event.

why:not given

how:not given

where:not given

keywords:

1.dismiss(v.)屏除

2.referendum(n.)公投

3.plebiscite(n.) 公投

4.withdrawal(v.) 退出

5.grafters(n.)貪污分子

6.lawmakers(n.)國會議員

7.spearhead(v.)帶頭

8.criteria (n.)標準,規範

9.detrimental(adj.)有害的 

http://www.wsj.com/articles/british-prime-minister-david-cameron-rules-out-another-vote-on-whether-to-leave-eu-1463492823

 

 

Paris Climate Change Conference, COP 21

Taiwan heats up climate change conference

Despite being banned from direct participation at the UN Climate Change Conference in Paris, NGOs from Taiwan have made their voices heard.

By Jason Pan  /  Staff reporter in Paris

Taiwan’s government representatives may not have been allowed to participate in the negotiation process at the Paris Climate Change Conference, but civic society organizations made their presence felt.
A number of committed climate activists from Taiwan, along with environmental groups and researchers, represented the nation at the 21st UN Climate Change Conference of Parties (COP 21), which took place from Nov. 30 to Dec. 11.
Because Taiwan is not a member of the UN, activists had to use other means to garner international support in order to gain entrance.
“We represent young people in Taiwan who are concerned about global warming and its effects,” said William Cheng who spoke on behalf of an environmental organization from Canada.
Cheng’s organization is classified as part of the “Youngo” (Young People’s Organizations) — non-state entities given observer status.
Other non-state entity groupings include “Engo” (Environmental Organizations), “Tungo” (Trade Union Organizations) and“IPO” (Indigenous Peoples Organizations), among others.
Lindsey Wu, an environmental activist from Taiwan, who fell under the “Engo” category, has participated in climate change meetings in the past.
“It has been very difficult for someone from Taiwan to attend these UN climate forums because the Taiwanese government is excluded from the process, and this also precludes effective participation by us NGOs,” she said.
Wu added that at times, it was frustrating to see many small Third World nations entering COP 21 venues and engaging in climate negotiation.
“It’s like the world has invited everyone to a big party, but when mentioning that we are from Taiwan, the door is slammed shut to keep us out in the cold.”

Wu believes Taiwan should forge stronger bonds with its Pacific allies such as Kiribati, the Marshall Islands and the Solomon Islands — all who were well-represented at the COP meetings.
Ghazali Ohorella, an executive of Pacific Island Youth Network, said: “Taiwan is part of the global community, and they are suffering from the effects of global warming, just like other nations; Taiwan and its NGO representatives should be allowed to participate as an equal member in the COP 21 process.”
Instead, Taiwan’s government was only allowed to send a delegation of 50 people headed by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to Paris. However, they tried to make the most out of the circumstances. On Dec. 10, a press conference was held at the Representative Office of Taiwan to discuss future goals such as gaining observer status at upcoming COP 21 events.
In addition, the government delegation has co-sponsored programs and seminar talks at venues of the official COP 21 site.
While smaller NGOs fought tooth and nail to participate at COP 21, larger organizations, by contrast, filled up most of the booths at COP 21’s NGO halls; they included the Tzu Chi Foundation, the Tang Prize Foundation and Delta Electronics Inc.

who:Taiwan’s government representatives
what:may not have been allowed to participate in the negotiation process
where:at the Paris Climate Change Conference
how:civic society organizations made their presence felt
when:not given
why:not given

keywords:
1.civic(adj.)市民的
2.presence(n.)存在
3.garner(v.) 得…分[票]
4.indigenous(adj.)本土的
5. preclude(v.)排除
6.delegation(n.)代表團
7.seminar(n.)研討會
8.venues(n.)場館

 http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/feat/archives/2015/12/20/2003635208

unmanned aerial vehicle

Military extends UAV deployment area

US WORRY?A military official said that the US was concerned over the development of the drone program and asked that the defense ministry brief it on the project

By Lo Tien-pin  /  Staff reporter

The military said it is able to effectively detect military deployments in China through the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), after it expanded detection zones from airspace over eastern and southern Taiwan to airspace over the Taiwan Strait.

According to a military official, who wished to remain anonymous, the US has expressed concern over how the UAV project has developed and military missions the drones are commissioned to perform.

The US has demanded that the Ministry of National Defense send specialists to brief the US Department of Defense on the project before a delegation was to head to the US for a meeting about bilateral cooperation on military issues involving high-level officials from both countries, the military official said.

A UAV launched from a base in western Taiwan would be able to detect military movement in China’s southeast coastal area, he said.

Given Taiwan’s proximity to China, the capability of the UAVs to detect military deployments on the other side of the Taiwan Strait is highly valued by the US, he said.

Despite the US having sophisticated UAVs that can fly long distances to access the area, there are concerns within the US military that such missions would be costly, as well as there being political and military issues preventing its use of UAVs in the area, he added.

The UAV development program was undertaken by the National Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology. It has delivered 32 UAVs to the army.

In addition to Taimali (太麻里) in Taitung County, where the UAVs are based and training exercises are carried out, the ministry has been in talks with the Civil Aeronautics Administration over the possibility that part of the Hengchun airport in Pingtung could be used as another training base for the drones.

According to sources from the military, the air force’s airspace training area is within the range of missiles deployed in southeast China, making it impossible for the air force to carry out missions in the areas that the UAVs can access.

The military said it was still deliberating whether it would deploy the UAVs in western Taiwan.

 

who:the military

what:effectively detect military deployments in China

how:through the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs)

where:it expanded detection zones from airspace over eastern and southern Taiwan to airspace over the Taiwan Strait

when:not given

why:not given

 

 

keywords:

1.anonymous(adj.)匿名的

2.commission(v.)委任

3.specialist(n.)專家

4.delegation()n.代表團

5.bilateral(n.)雙方

 

http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2014/07/13/2003594974