■ WEATHER
Nation gets first snowfall
PHOTO: CENTRAL WEATHER BUREAU
Visitors to Yushan (玉山) yesterday afternoon had a half-hour glimpse of the nation's first snowfall this winter. The Central Weather Bureau said the snowfall began at about 2:05pm and ended at 2:35pm. The depth of snow was less than 1cm. The temperature yesterday morning hit minus 3oC. At 3:30pm, however, the temperature rose slightly to minus 1oC. The bureau said the snowfall was brought by the accumulation of humidity and the arrival of a cold front. It said the weather would become drier once the frontal system had left Taiwan, with lower chances of snow.
■ CRIME
Smuggled cigarettes seized
Kaohsiung Port police seized more than 500 cases of smuggled foreign cigarettes, including some rare brands, aboard a local fishing boat at Kaohsiung Port on Sunday, police said yesterday. Police detained the ship captain and four crew members for questioning after discovering that the fishing gear on the boat had not been used during their 20-day fishing journey, police said. The captain, surnamed Tsai (蔡), claimed that all the fish caught over the past 20 days had been sold before they returned home. However, he could not say who the fish had been sold to or where the cigarettes had come from, police said, adding that they were still investigating.
■ CRIME
High Court rejects appeal
The Taiwan High Court yesterday rejected a request by Taipei prosecutors that a former agent of the Investigation Bureau arrested last Tuesday for allegedly sending threatening mail to the first family and a number of legislators and government officials be detained. The Taipei District Court on Friday rejected the request against Yang Ching-hai (楊清海) and released him on NT$100,000 bail. Taipei prosecutors immediately appealed the case, but the high court yesterday turned down the appeal. Yang was arrested last Tuesday at his residence in Taipei County, where police also found two pistols and 45 bullets. Police said Yang had sent a postcard threatening to sexually assault President Chen Shui-bian's (陳水扁) daughter and to kidnap his grandsons.
■ EDUCATION
Fu Jen receives big donation
The Department of Chemistry at Fu Jen Catholic University in Taipei County received a donation of US$1.5 million from alumni earlier this month, the biggest donation ever made by alumni to any privately run university in Taiwan. Hsu Wen-hsien (許文賢), director of the university's Department of Chemistry, expressed his appreciation to the donors -- several Fu Jen alumni who preferred to remain anonymous -- and said the donation would be used to finance a foundation for the development of the department. Hsu said the interest from the donation would be used toward scholarships and to meet the costs of improving the department's teaching materials and research facilities. He said that his department has already received US$300,000 of the donation, which will be paid over five years.
Weather conditions across Taiwan are expected to remain stable today, but cloudy to rainy skies are expected from tomorrow onward due to increasing moisture in the atmosphere, according to the Central Weather Administration (CWA). Daytime highs today are expected to hit 25-27°C in western Taiwan and 22-24°C in the eastern counties of Yilan, Hualien, and Taitung, data on the CWA website indicated. After sunset, temperatures could drop to 16-17°C in most parts of Taiwan. For tomorrow, precipitation is likely in northern Taiwan as a cloud system moves in from China. Daytime temperatures are expected to hover around 25°C, the CWA said. Starting Monday, areas
A Taiwanese software developer has created a generative artificial intelligence (AI) model to help people use AI without exposing sensitive data, project head Huang Chung-hsiao (黃崇校) said yesterday. Huang, a 55-year-old coder leading a US-based team, said that concerns over data privacy and security in popular generative AIs such as ChatGPT and DeepSeek motivated him to develop a personal AI assistant named “Mei.” One of the biggest security flaws with cloud-based algorithms is that users are required to hand over personal information to access the service, giving developers the opportunity to mine user data, he said. For this reason, many government agencies and
The National Fire Agency on Thursday said a series of drills simulating a magnitude 8.5 earthquake would be held in September to enhance the government’s emergency response capabilities. Since earthquakes cannot be predicted, only by continuously promoting disaster prevention measures could Taiwan enhance its resilience to earthquakes, agency Director-General Hsiao Huan-chang (蕭煥章) said in a news release. The exercises would be held to mark annual National Disaster Prevention Day on Sept. 21, the aim of which is to test Taiwan’s preparedness and improve its earthquake resilience in case of a major temblor, Hsiao said. As part of those drills, an earthquake alert would
DEFENSE: The National Security Bureau promised to expand communication and intelligence cooperation with global partners and enhance its strategic analytical skills China has not only increased military exercises and “gray zone” tactics against Taiwan this year, but also continues to recruit military personnel for espionage, the National Security Bureau (NSB) said yesterday in a report to the Legislative Yuan. The bureau submitted the report ahead of NSB Director-General Tsai Ming-yen’s (蔡明彥) appearance before the Foreign and National Defense Committee today. Last year, the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) conducted “Joint Sword-2024A and B” military exercises targeting Taiwan and carried out 40 combat readiness patrols, the bureau said. In addition, Chinese military aircraft entered Taiwan’s airspace 3,070 times last year, up about
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