Taiwan consumes 1 billion pairs of chopsticks annually

The China Post - The 1 billion pairs of disposable chopsticks used in Taiwan every year, or 2.7 million pairs per day, comes at the cost of depleting 700 soccer fields of forests, the local Delta Electronics Foundation reported yesterday in a joint press conference with cable channels Animal Planet and Discover. Full Story

Mayor Hau leads bicycle tour in Car Free Day

The China Post - To mark Saturday's Taipei Car Free Day, city mayor Hau Lung-bin will lead a bicycle tour from the Taipei County Government in Panchiao to Taipei City Hall. The event was organized to stimulate public awareness about environmental protection and join the international campaign to reduce carbon dioxide emission. Full Story

12 students injured on Hualien trip

The China Post - Twelve students were injured following a traffic accident while on their graduation trip in Hualien, local media reported yesterday. Full Story

Three robberies involving toy guns reported in Taipei

The China Post - At least three cases of armed robbery involving toy guns have been reported recently in Taipei City, local media reported yesterday. Full Story

Taoyuan goose found to contain banned animal drug

The China Post - A goose from a fowl farm in the northern county of Taoyuan has been found to contain salbutamol, a banned drug that is similar to ractopamine, used to promote the growth of lean meat in livestock, the director general of the Department of Health's Bureau of Food Sanitation said yesterday. Full Story

Shuttle service to be offered for 2010 flower fair visitors

The China Post - The Taipei city government has decided to offer shuttle bus services for visitors to a horticultural fair slated to take place in the city in 2010, Chen Wen-hsiung, director of the city's Department of Economic Development, said yesterday. Full Story

Once-banned pop star makes curtain call in China

The China Post - Taiwan's top pop singer Chang Hui-mei, once banned from performing in China, is leveraging off a new album to build her reputation in Asia's biggest market, while Beijing officials use her name to improve political ties. Full Story

Possible silver lining seen for lost, injured rare bird

The China Post - Authorities of the city zoo in the South Korean capital of Seoul sent an import license to the Taipei City Zoo yesterday, bringing a silver lining to the story of a lost, injured red-crowned crane, which has been stranded in Taiwan for over three years. Full Story

Researchers join stem cell experiment on spinal injuries

The China Post - China Medical University Hospital (CMUH) in Taichunghas joined the China Spinal Cord Injury Network (ChinaSCINet) to take part in the network's experiments to determine whether stem cell therapy is effective in treating patients with spinal damage, hospital sources disclosed yesterday. Full Story

Gene-modified eucalyptus ingests more CO2

The China Post - Eucalyptus trees genetically modified by a team of Taiwanese and U.S. biologists have proven capable of ingesting up to three times more carbon dioxide than normal strains, indicating a new path to reducing greenhouse gases and global warming, team members said yesterday. Full Story

New Alishan railway station opens after reconstruction

The China Post - The brand new Alishan Railway Station in the southern county of Chiayi was inaugurated Thursday after years of reconstruction since being destroyed by the devastating 921 earthquake in 1999. Full Story

Taipei City residents the happiest in Taiwan: poll

The China Post - Taipei City's residents ranked themselves the happiest of all cities and counties around Taiwan, closely followed by those in Hsinchu City and Taichung City, according to a recent survey published yesterday by CommonWealth magazine. Full Story

CWB monitoring tropical depression near Guam

The China Post - The Central Weather Bureau (CWB) is monitoring closely whether a tropical depression located northwest of Guam might develop into a tropical storm or typhoon, CWB meteorologists said yesterday. Full Story

300 protest destruction of leprosy sanatorium

The China Post - More than 300 protestors rallied against the resumed construction of a mass rapid transit (MRT) subway maintenance depot in Hsingchuang, Taipei that would put the structure in the yard of the Losheng ("Happy Life") leper sanatorium and destroy the 75-year-old medical facility. Full Story

No sign of 'sudden freeze' in domestic manpower

The China Post - Local companies' manpower demands have been on a steady rise and show no signs of an abrupt decline, a Council of Labor Affairs (CLA) official said. Full Story

Kinmen to celebrate Moon Festival with fireworks display

The China Post - The Kinmen County government will celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival with a 40 minute fireworks display, county government officials said yesterday. Full Story

Detection for geological survey started in Penghu

The China Post - Magnetic field detection operations for a nationwide geological survey started this week on the island of Penghu, the fourth and final stage of the project, academic sources said yesterday. Full Story

Man kneels in market to avoid jail

The China Post - A Yunlin County man who committed adultery was required by the husband of the adulteress to kneel in front of a grocery market for four hours to avoid prosecution and a possible jail term. Full Story

Hau kicks off '07 Beef Noodle Festival

The China Post - Taipei City Mayor Hau Lung-bin officially launched yesterday the 2007 Taipei International 'Neo-ro Mien' -- beef noodle -- Festival to be held from September until November. Full Story

New program to improve human rights protection: justice minister

The China Post - If lawyers were allowed to accompany crime suspects during their first questioning by prosecutors or law enforcement officers, it would further protect their human rights, Justice Minister Shih Mao-lin said yesterday. Full Story

Bakery fined NT$100,000 for bread's smell

The China Post - A bakery shop received a fine of NT$100,000 after neighbors complained to local environmental protection authorities of the bread's smell. Full Story

Taipei City Hospital official questioned for procurement

The China Post - Taipei City Hospital deputy superintendent Wu Chen-lung was questioned yesterday by prosecutors for his connections with a construction company which won a bid for a reconstruction project for the hospital's Jen Ai Branch and Branch for Women and Children years ago. Full Story

Ex-Linkou chief questioned over embezzlement

The China Post - Former chief of Linkou Township in the northern Taiwan district of Panchiao was questioned by prosecutors for allegedly diverting NT$6 million (US$182,000) in public funds for private use and personal favors, the United Evening News reported yesterday. Full Story

Taiwan teen arrested for operating illegal online game site

The China Post - Taiwan's Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB) yesterday took into custody a teenager suspected of running a profitable online game site on copied software and costing the original game operator NT$20 million (US$600,000) in lost revenues. Full Story

The Criminal Investigation Bureau cracks down on power-stealing group

The China Post - The Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB) yesterday said they have cracked down on a criminal ring that rigged power meters to cheat the Taiwan Power Company (Taipower) out of an estimated NT$100 million. Full Story

Disgruntled Taipei teacher held for hate mail, threats

The China Post - A teacher who disapproved of a Taipei City school's new principal sent in as many as 18 anonymous letters threatening to harm the students, local media reported yesterday. Full Story

Cloud Gate announces list of 'wanderer' program winners

The China Post - Taiwan's renowned Cloud Gate Dance Theater unveiled the list of eight winners under its "wanderer" program which provides subsidies to artists for their travels abroad for artistic enrichment and inspiration, a spokesman for the theater said Tuesday. Full Story

Wang Chien-ming earns his 18th win

The China Post - Alex Rodriguez homered for the fifth straight game, connecting for the seventh time during that span and sending the New York Yankees past the Kansas City Royals 6-3 on Sunday for a three-game sweep. Full Story

Wang EasyCards to come out September 22

The China Post - Taipei Smart Card Corporation announced yesterday that it will introduce a commemorative "Yankees Ace 2007" Wang Chien-ming EasyCard collection, which will feature the Yankees pitcher in different uniforms over the 2007 season. Full Story

Taiwan pair fall short in United States Open final

The China Post - It was heartache once more for Taiwan's Chan Yung-Jan and Chuang Chia-Jung in their bid to win their homeland's first Grand Slam title as they lost the U.S. Open women's doubles final Sunday. Full Story

China Air to provide Moon Festival charter flights

The China Post - China Airlines (CAL) and unit Mandarin Airlines would offer four round-trip charter flights to Shanghai during the upcoming Moon Festival, a CAL spokesman said yesterday. Full Story

Red light countdown devices to begin

The China Post - The Taipei City Government plans to install red light countdown displays on a trial basis at two major intersections in downtown areas shortly, as part of its efforts to improve traffic conditions. Full Story

Vet released on bail of NT$80,000

The China Post - A veterinarian, who concurrently serves as a hog farmer, in southern county of Chiayi was released on a bail of NT$80,000 yesterday on charge of using ractopamine, a banned drug, to stimulate the growth of his hogs, according to Chiayi prosecution authorities. Full Story

Number of private guesthouses booming

The China Post - The number of legal private guesthouses had increased to 2,108 as of the end of July, up 40 percent from the same month of last year,the Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) said yesterday. Full Story

The Public Television Service documentary series to focus on visual arts

The China Post - The Public Television Service (PTS) will broadcast a series of eight documentaries from Monday on the development of visual arts in Taiwan over the past 100 years. Full Story

Trees turn out to be root of Taipei drainage problem

The China Post - Green trees provide shades and oxygen for a better environment, but some of these trees have become hazards pestering residents in Taipei. Full Story

1st Hakka pop music festival to be held

The China Post - Officials from various Hakka associations and Minister Lee Yung-te of the Hakka Affairs Council announced yesterday the opening of the first Hakka pop music festival to be held on Sept. 22 in Taipei. Full Story

Family tree of Confucius being compiled in Taiwan, China, Hong Kong

The China Post - Millions of descendants of Confucius are being listed in an international updating of the Chinese philosopher's 2,556-year-old family tree, a Taiwanese newspaper reported Monday. Full Story

Tainan city government to build Ming dynasty sailing boat

The China Post - The Tainan city government will build a wooden sailing boat modeled on a Ming dynasty armed commercial vessel, known to Westerners as a sailing junk. Full Story

Brother foils kidnapper's plan, helps save sister

The China Post - The older brother of a five-year-old girl who was kidnapped in Taipei County foiled the kidnapper's plan to obtain ransom and helped police in rescuing his younger sister. Full Story

Travelers not allowed to bring in crabs: official

The China Post - Travelers arriving in Taiwan are not allowed to bring hairy crabs into the country from China or anywhere else, officials from the Kaohsiung Customs Office said yesterday. Full Story

No casualties reported in foreign laborer dorm fire

The China Post - A fire broke out yesterday at a dormitory for foreign laborers working for a construction company in northern Taiwan, but there were no reports of casualties, police said later that day. Full Story

Taiwan Railway Administration plans fare hikes for all classes

The China Post - Taiwan Railway Administration is planning on raising fares for all classes of its train services, including the Fuhsing class as well as the standard class which makes stops at every station, beginning this December along the western line. Full Story

Yao Ming shows skills in friendly game at National Taiwan University

The China Post - An all-star team from Taiwan's professional basketball league, Super Basketball League, defeated a celebrity team led by mainland China's NBA star Yao Ming in a friendly game yesterday at the National Taiwan University Sports Center. Full Story

Taipei Artists Village welcomes southeast Asia artists

The China Post - Five artists from southeast Asia will be invited to take up residence in the Taipei Artists Village to promote cultural interaction with other artists from Taiwan and abroad, Taipei city government officials in charge of cultural affairs said yesterday. Full Story

Police crack snakehead ring in Miaoli County

The China Post - Police busted a human smuggling and prostitution ring yesterday in Miaoli County consisting of six members from the same family and took five Indonesian women into custody. Full Story

Yao to play friendly match at NTU gym this morning

The China Post - Hundreds of basketball fans showed up at a recreation center inside Hsinchu Science Park to see mainland China's NBA star Yao Ming during a public benefit event for aboriginal children. Full Story

Hsinchu kids impressed by NBA star Yao Ming

The China Post - Basketball fans who attended Yao Ming's public benefit event for aboriginal children yesterday marveled at the 2.29-meter player's size and said Yao possesses the skills to lead the Houston Rockets to an NBA Championship. Full Story

Taiwan's Teresa Lu shares lead in Arkansas

The China Post - Taiwan's Teresa Lu, Australian Katherine Hull and young American Kristy McPherson defied a rain delay to share the lead Friday in the weather disrupted LPGA NW Arkansas Championship. Full Story

Number of foreign laborers in Taiwan increases to 350,100

The China Post - The number of foreign laborers in Taiwan amounted to 350,100 as of the end of June, with nearly half of them employed as health care or household workers, according to statistics released by the Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) Saturday. Full Story

Quakes rattle Taiwan, damage undersea cable

The China Post - A magnitude 6.6 earthquake rattled Taiwan at 1:51 a.m. Friday, causing the concrete gate of a 40-year-old temple in Yilan, eastern Taiwan to collapse, according to the Central Weather Bureau (CWB). It was followed by another earthquake with a magnitude of 5.7. Full Story

Where is Dubai? 59.5% people don't know: poll

The China Post - Even though Taiwan has been striving for international recognition for many years, about 59.5 percent of Taiwanese adults were unable to identify the country next to Dubai in a multiple choice question, a survey found Thursday. Full Story

Annual sixes cricket tourney starts today

The China Post - The Fourth Taiwan Annual Sixes cricket tournament will be held at the Taichung Baseball Ground on Shansan Road in Taichung City today and tomorrow. And this year旧 renewal of one of the most popular events on the amateur cricketing calendar promises to be the biggest and best in its now well-established history. Full Story

Twelve Africans arrested for overstaying visas

The China Post - Twelve African people were arrested last Sunday in downtown Taipei after they were discovered having overstayed their visas and having been allegedly involved in criminal offenses, according to a news release issued Friday by the National Immigration Agency (NIA). Full Story

Youngest son of fugitive tycoon freed by court

The China Post - Wang Ling-hsing, the youngest son of fugitive business tycoon Wang You-theng, was set free yesterday by the Taipei District Court on a bail of NT$5 million, pending further probe into his possible involvement in the financial scams related to the Rebar Group founded by the elder Wang. Full Story

Guidelines for vascular disease appear in Chinese

The China Post - The Taiwan Society for Vascular Surgery published yesterday the first book in Chinese on clinical practice guidelines for vascular disease to help medical personnel as well as patients and their families better understand the disease and its treatment. Full Story

Depression near Guam may become tropical storm

The China Post - A low pressure system that formed northeast of Guam early Friday is likely to become a tropical storm, the Central Weather Bureau (CWB) said in a forecast. Full Story