Activities commemorating the 921 earthquake last year were launched by the National Science Council (NSC) yesterday.
There will be one-week exhibitions in Taipei and Kaohsiung, a longer exhibition in Taichung, and a three-day international workshop in Taipei attended by scientists -- specializing in the scientific, technological and social aspects of earthquakes -- from all over the world.
At the opening ceremony of the exhibition in Taipei, titled "2000 Science Week -- Learning About Earthquakes" (2000
Guided by students of geology from NTU and National Central University, students from elementary schools and high schools can learn about plate tectonics and the geology of Taiwan.
The 921 or Chi-chi (after the small town in Nantou county nearest its epicenter) Earthquake (
Scientists have confirmed the earthquake was due to movement of the Chelungpu fault (車籠埔斷層), causing vertical displacements in disaster areas, some as high as five meters.
At the exhibition, every visitor is encouraged to take part in exercises designed to teach them how to protect themselves in the event of an earthquake.
Participants, for example, hide themselves inside a model of a house after packing an earthquake kit (
"Pick up important things which you can carry easily, such as whistles, lighters, bottled water and cookies," a guide told children from kindergartens.
Kindergarten teachers told the Taipei Times that children learned from playing games and these could be important lessons for people living in earthquake-prone areas.
In addition to the exhibition, the science council's National Center for Research on Earthquake Engineering (
The Chi-chi Earthquake, with a magnitude of 7.3 on the Richter scale, has had an enormous impact on scientists and engineers internationally.
NSC Chairman Weng Cheng-I (
The exchange of opinions at yesterday's workshop was initiated by research papers given by Japanese scientists Kojiro Irikura and T. Iwata on simulating the ground motion and rupture process of the Chi-chi quake.
Some Taiwanese seismologists said the debate on which model best explained the quake was taking up a lot of time.
During the remainder of the workshops, today and tomorrow, more than 300 scientists will discuss a range of earthquake-related topics, ranging from hydraulic engineering, to damage data analysis, to recovery following Japan's 1995 Kobe Earthquake.
CRITICAL MOVE: TSMC’s plan to invest another US$100 billion in US chipmaking would boost Taiwan’s competitive edge in the global market, the premier said The government would ensure that the most advanced chipmaking technology stays in Taiwan while assisting Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) in investing overseas, the Presidential Office said yesterday. The statement follows a joint announcement by the world’s largest contract chipmaker and US President Donald Trump on Monday that TSMC would invest an additional US$100 billion over the next four years to expand its semiconductor manufacturing operations in the US, which would include construction of three new chip fabrication plants, two advanced packaging facilities, and a research and development center. The government knew about the deal in advance and would assist, Presidential
‘DANGEROUS GAME’: Legislative Yuan budget cuts have already become a point of discussion for Democrats and Republicans in Washington, Elbridge Colby said Taiwan’s fall to China “would be a disaster for American interests” and Taipei must raise defense spending to deter Beijing, US President Donald Trump’s pick to lead Pentagon policy, Elbridge Colby, said on Tuesday during his US Senate confirmation hearing. The nominee for US undersecretary of defense for policy told the Armed Services Committee that Washington needs to motivate Taiwan to avoid a conflict with China and that he is “profoundly disturbed” about its perceived reluctance to raise defense spending closer to 10 percent of GDP. Colby, a China hawk who also served in the Pentagon in Trump’s first team,
SEPARATE: The MAC rebutted Beijing’s claim that Taiwan is China’s province, asserting that UN Resolution 2758 neither mentions Taiwan nor grants the PRC authority over it The “status quo” of democratic Taiwan and autocratic China not belonging to each other has long been recognized by the international community, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday in its rebuttal of Beijing’s claim that Taiwan can only be represented in the UN as “Taiwan, Province of China.” Chinese Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi (王毅) yesterday at a news conference of the third session at the 14th National People’s Congress said that Taiwan can only be referred to as “Taiwan, Province of China” at the UN. Taiwan is an inseparable part of Chinese territory, which is not only history but
INVESTMENT WATCH: The US activity would not affect the firm’s investment in Taiwan, where 11 production lines would likely be completed this year, C.C. Wei said Investments by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) in the US should not be a cause for concern, but rather seen as the moment that the company and Taiwan stepped into the global spotlight, President William Lai (賴清德) told a news conference at the Presidential Office in Taipei yesterday alongside TSMC chairman and chief executive officer C.C. Wei (魏哲家). Wei and US President Donald Trump in Washington on Monday announced plans to invest US$100 billion in the US to build three advanced foundries, two packaging plants, and a research and development center, after Trump threatened to slap tariffs on chips made