Having started the morning with two hours of crucial talks with US President Barack Obama, some might have expected Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin to have spent the rest of the day in the office.
But not so for the increasingly multi-tasking Russian strongman, who spent the afternoon in casual dress visiting a Moscow motorbike club known as the “Night Wolves,” television pictures showed.
Perhaps the transformation of Putin — whose varied activities over the last months have ranged from scolding oligarchs to singing Soviet-era songs at a school to touring a supermarket — should be no surprise by now.
But still, there was a world of difference between the besuited premier who met Obama for sensitive talks over a working breakfast and the black-clad bike enthusiast who surfaced later at the motorbike club.
Putin was received by a giant pony-tailed Russian biker named Alexander Zaldostanov, who answers to the name of “the surgeon” and is reportedly a legend in Russian biking circles.
The prime minister admitted a rare mishap when he said he recently got on a motorbike “but ended up doing a wheelie and going into another car. I let the clutch go too much.”
“I hope that doesn’t put you off, it would be a shame if you gave up the motorbike and left it in a garage,” boomed “the surgeon,” towering over the diminutive Putin but reassuring him that this was a common mistake.
The biking enthusiasts were about to set off for a major bike festival in the Ukrainian Black Sea region of Crimea that will be dedicated to Russia’s Crimea-based Black Sea fleet and the victory over Nazi Germany. (AFP)
俄羅斯總理弗拉基米爾．普廷一早與美國總統巴拉克．歐巴瑪關鍵會談了兩小時後，有些人可能以為普廷接下來的時間會留在辦公室裡。
但這位愈發多才多藝的俄國強人可沒有這樣安排，電視畫面顯示，他下午穿著休閒服出現在莫斯科的「夜狼」重機俱樂部。
也許普廷的轉變不足為奇，他過去幾個月來參與了各式各樣的活動，從打擊寡頭財閥、到學校高唱蘇聯時期歌謠，到超級市場巡視。
然而，這位早餐會上穿著西裝和歐巴瑪總統討論敏感議題的總理，稍晚竟搖身變成重機愛好者，穿著一襲黑色勁裝出現在重機俱樂部。
接待普廷的是一位綁著馬尾的高大俄國騎士，名叫亞歷山大．扎爾多斯坦諾夫，但大家都稱呼他「外科醫生」，據說他是俄國重機圈中的傳奇人物。
普廷自爆他最近騎車時發生了一場罕見的意外，「我前輪離地撞上另一輛車。我踩檔踩過頭了。」
外科醫生俯視著身材嬌小的普廷，用低沉的嗓音說：「我希望你不會因此打退堂鼓，如果你就此放棄、把摩托車停在車庫裡，就太可惜了。」他並保證這是個一般的意外。
這群重機愛好者正準備啟程前往烏克蘭黑海地區的克里米亞半島，參加一場大型摩托車慶典，這場慶典是要向駐紮在該地的俄國黑海艦隊，及其擊敗納粹德軍的勝利致意。（法新社╱翻譯：袁星塵）
A Cameroon-flagged cargo vessel “Shunxin-39” was believed to have caused damage to an undersea cable of Taiwan telecoms operator Chunghwa Telecom on the morning of Jan. 3. It was suspected that the Chinese merchant ship, which was registered with the nationality of another country, deliberately cut off the cable by dragging the anchor over it. While the incident is still under investigation, China has a long history of using maritime tactics to sabotage Taiwan’s infrastructure. In February last year, two cables linking Taiwan to its outlying Matsu Islands were damaged within days of each other by a Chinese fishing
Have you ever dreamed of using an entire city as your training ground, effortlessly moving across walls, buildings, stairs, and obstacles? This is not just a fantasy from the movies. In cities around the world, a group of enthusiasts practice this seemingly impossible sport — “parkour.” The origins of parkour can be traced back to 20th-century France. A military officer named Georges-Hebert witnessed the incredible physical abilities of local residents in Africa, which inspired him to create the Methode Naturelle, or natural method. This training method cleverly combined climbing, running, and swimming with artificial barriers to mimic nature. Later, David Belle
Continued from yesterday（延續自昨日） https://www.taipeitimes.com/News/lang Using a device to isolate a section of the seafloor, the researchers aimed to measure oxygen levels in the enclosed water. Normally, oxygen rates would decrease as marine organisms consume it, but the result was contrary to expectations. The unexpected outcome prompted the team to further investigate the phenomenon. Researchers found the lumps emitted an electric charge similar to that of a AA battery. This charge is believed to trigger a process that splits seawater into hydrogen and oxygen, accounting for the increase. Traditional perspectives propose that oxygen production began around three billion years ago through photosynthesis by ancient
疫情期間，許多國家的課程改成網路授課，或用直播、或用預錄的方式，考驗老師對科技的熟悉程度。台灣教育部則推動「安心就學」方案，讓無法返校就學的學生，可以利用實時授課或線上課程修課。有讀者詢問，「安心就學」的英語應該怎麼說、怎麼翻譯比較適合。是Study at Ease Project好，還是Project of Reassured Study比較合適？ 我認為「安心就學」方案，可譯為：Stay Home Stay Safe Study Program。「就學」一詞就是study，言簡意賅；而「安心」，則不必試著直翻，而是將此專案的內涵翻譯出來較為恰當，也就是──待在家、安全地學習。此外，六個字中有四個字是S開頭，押頭韻(alliteration)，唸起來比較鏗鏘有力。相關用語也可以在國外見到，比如加拿大有針對偏遠地區原住民有類似的「在家就學」方案(Stay at Home Learning Program)。 Ms. Massie: We have a very active stay-at-home learning program. Some of them are doing long-distance education right in the home. (Standing Senate Committee on Aboriginal Peoplessencanada.ca) 至於program和project，中文一般都譯為「計畫」，但有何不同？我們可以在網路上找到以下解釋：project一般是指為達成一項目標的單一的行動／努力過程，而program則是由一系列projects所組成。 A project represents a single, focused endeavor. A program is a collection of projects – together all the projects form a connected package of work. The different projects complement each other to assist the program in achieving its overall objectives. (“What is a Program in Project Management?,” Wrike) 所以，可以視program為project的上位詞，是更複雜的計畫和方案。安心就學包含很多種措施，每個學校也有各自施行的指導細則，可以將每個學校所實施的方案視為單一的project，而教育部統籌的計畫，是這些projects的集合，是以稱之為program。 防疫必備詞彙：疫情因應 暫停或延後大型集會 postpone or suspend mass gatherings 延遲開學 to postpone back to school 確診病例 confirmed case /
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