Texas oilman pushes for US energy independence

Current Event#5
Texas oilman pushes for US energy independence (Taipei Time)

What is this article about?
Who? Texas oilman T. Boone Pickens
What? Pickens add a wrinkle to his push for Us energy independence: spent US$60 million on a high-profie campaign t oboost the use of wind power and natural gas. He said that he will updates to remind Americans how much money they're paying for foteign oil. "Americans are sending billions of dollars to foreign country while domestic programs ar home remain severely inderfunded" said Pickens.
Where? U.S.
when? Tuesday.

Significance of article?
It shows that how bad the economic is right now in the U.S. People there cannot afford the daily use, but the government still pay lots of money to foreign country to buy oil. although some of the energy that U.S. can afford them self.

Bias?
I think there's no bias in this article, because it's true that U.S. has many nature resources that can be used. There's no need to buy form other counties.

California dad sold 14-year-old for cash, beer: police

Current Event #4
California dad sold 14-year-old for cash, beer: police (Taipei Time)

What is this article about?
A California man named Marcelino de Jesus Martinez sold his daughter for cash, beer, and meat. The police in Greenfield, said Marcelino de Jesus Martinez asked them for help to get his daughter back after the payment wasn't made. Martinez was arrested on Sunday. He was scheduled to be arraigned on felony charges of procuring a child under age 16 for lewd and lascivious acts, statutory rape and cruelty to a child by endangering health.
The police also arrested the groom Margarito de Jesus Galindo on suspicion of statutory rape, but prosecutors have not decided whether to charge him.

Significance of article?
Girls under 18 being sold into marriage is against California law. This is certainly not the first case of the marriage involving an underage girl. As the economic going worse more and more girls were being sold.

Bias?
I think there's no bias in this article, because underage girls should not been sold for money. It's not good for her physical and mental health.

Nearly 30% of Taiwanese teenagers are overweight or obese: survey

event blog#3

What is this article about?

Nearly 30% of junior and senior high school students are overweight or obese, base on the result of surveys by Cabinet-level Department of Health (DOH). This surveys on junior and senior students' health habit conducted in 2006 and 2007.

The

 surveys shows that every one of four students was overweight or obese. It also shows that nearly 80% drank sugar-filled beverages and 30% ate fast food more than twice per week. 40% of them exercised less than three times a week, while 20% of them watched TV and 10% of them worked with computer or play video games more than 2 hours  a day.

Bureau Deputy Director Wu shin-ying said that schools should prepare more health informations for students. Teachers should teach them to maintain balanced and healthy diets and cultivate good health habit. Encourage them to control their diets and exercise regularly to  regain their health.

What is its significance? 

We should care more about our kids' health. As the survey by DOH, we know that most of the children don't really care about their health, this lead to other disease such as diabetes. This article reminded that we need to pay more attention to what our children eat and drink.

Is there any bias?

I think there's no bias in this article, because the author used percentage when he gave us all the informations.

Science---Energy Bar#1

I think that our first energy bar was really successful. Using chocolate as glue to sticked things together really worked and it makes the bar taste batter than using honey. But it didn't worked out when we tried to melted really well, it was still solid. I think we should melt our chocolate last, so the chocolate won't be cold and hard. After we finished making, I think we suppose to wait until it cool down, but we all can't wait. Instead, we finished it even before we walked out the kitchen!!!! I want to add more things into our bar, something that makes the bar more healthy (we now only have cereal, chocolate, peanut.... which are all not really good for our health). 

I think our group worked together, we each have a job. Ray prepared all the ingredients and he is in charge of mixing all the ingredients together, Melody is our photographer, Stephanie and I melted the chocolate. 

Reflection Questions on DongMen

First, I would like to say every one did a great job at DongMen, and nobody complains (well... we did say that the escalator is really dirty, but we all sit on it finally :P).

How did the site of DongMen alter the choreography that you created in the classroom?

I think our choreography didn't change much, because we created ours on the stairs. It looks quiet similar except that the stair is way shorter than the escalator. So it is empty when we are not moving. Besides, I think that when Cindy and Terence carried people down the escalator is too long. Anyway, the escalator is really old and dirty, makes the scene really cool and complementary.  

Now that you know this site better; it you were to go back to DongMen, what would you add or subtract form you choreography to make it stronger?

I have two different ideas. First, it would be better to have more scary, because as we saw, DongMen place looks really scary and dark. So, what I thought from that place is that it will be better to show how does human looks like when we are in dark place by adding some scary movements.  

Second, it would be cool to express some brightness form image of dark. Because if we only shows dark and scary, it represents black and depress. However, if we add some bright part form inside of dark place, that can represent ambition, which give us energy.

I know that this two ideas is totally opposite, but I think to have either of them would make our theme more clearly.

Beijing calls on Obama to oppose Taiwan independence

What is this article about?

China on Thursday urged U.S. new president---Barack Obama to oppose Taiwan independence. Saying that the proper handing of the issue was key to good relations between Beijing and Washington.

"We urge the United States  to honor its commitment..... honor the one-China policy and stop selling weapons to Taiwan," foreign ministry spokesman Qin Gang said when asked to comment on U.S.-China relations after Obama's election win. The "one-China principle" states that there's only one China which includes China mainland and Taiwan. The two split at the end of a conflict in 1949. The "three communiques" lay out of the ground rules between Beijing and Washington. One of the main communiques us that U.S. not to officially recognize Taiwan. Beijing wants Washington to oppose Taiwan independence by not selling the weapons to Taiwan.

What is its significance?

This article gave really important meaning especially after Chan Yenlin came to Taiwan. This article shows that China still isn't friendly to Taiwan. I would really want to know what China really thinks about Taiwan and what will people think about this after this news been posted on the site.

Can you detect any bias?

I think that there's alway a lot of bias when the topic is somehow related to China and Taiwan. People think different about the relationship between Taiwan and China.  I think that this article is more to the side of China, the "one-China principle" is one of the example. In Taiwan we don't think that there's only one China, we believe that Taiwan and China is separate or keep this kind of relationship (kind of like "cold war"?!).

Current Event

Top Chinese official in Taiwan for historic visit

What is this article about?

This article is about chen Yenlin(陳雲林), China top negotiator on Taiwan affairs, visits Taiwan for a week. In a sign of a further relationship between China mainland and Taiwan.  In the first talk, the two side are expected to agree on expending direct weekend chartered flights to weekdays and shortening the flight time, further opening up sea and air cargo links and cooperation on food safety issues. 

During Chen Yenlin's visit, Tsai Yingwen(蔡英文) as a chairwoman of  Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), question the government " ..... Overconfidence that economic ties with China could save Taiwan's economy..... Even if this economic benefit exists it is controlled by China, and our government seems ready to exange our sovereignty for that...." she said.

What is its significance?

The significance of this article is a big step of both Taiwan and China. Both side of Taiwan Strait hasn't been in a good relationship since the civil war in 1949. After Chen Yenlin's visit, the relationship between Taiwan and Chin, and Taiwan's economy will get better. Even the flight can be cheaper because the flight time has been shorten, which is good because many of Taiwanese and people in China fly a lot  for work or family and even travel can be more convenient.

Can you detect any bias?

I can detect many bias in this article. Tsai Yinwen as a chairwoman of DPP (which aim is  to make Taiwan independent) said that we shouldn't get so close to China. It's a bias because that having a good relationship with China is good for our economy. China is a big country and fill with a lot of natural resources some of them we probably don't even know.