Thursday, May 15, 2008
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
口譯=應召 ?
http://tw.myblog.yahoo.com/michelle-corner/article?mid=10960&prev=10961&next=10945
http://tw.myblog.yahoo.com/jw!8DuYMCWVERChr8mEU6kjGA--/article?mid=10961
Friday, April 11, 2008
Saturday, March 22, 2008
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
Is the World Running Out of Oil?
A Texas oil wellThe idea that oil reserves are finite was broached by U.S. geologist M. King Hubbert, who in 1956 theorized that oil production peaks before falling sharply as the amount of oil in a particular field declines.
Industry experts building on Hubbert's work predict that global oil production will begin to fall by three or four percent within a few decades. One of them is journalist David Strahan, a trustee for the London-based Oil Depletion Analysis Center, a non-profit organization that raises awareness about the issue.
"Peak oil is not about running out of the last barrel of oil on the planet. 'Peak oil' is so-called because the expected profile of global oil production on a graph looks like a fairly symmetrical mountain, so therefore it has a peak in the middle. But what it really means is that we are accustomed at the moment for oil production to keep on growing every year, but that growth will hit a peak and then go into decline so that, in the coming years, we are going to have a steadily shrinking oil supply," says Strahan. "It's almost certain that peak oil will happen before 2020. There are people who believe it's happening right now. I am not sure about that, but I cannot see any set of circumstances in which the world does not hit peak oil before 2020."
Tight Supplies
An off-shore oil platform in the Caspian SeaSome analysts accuse oil-producing countries of keeping supplies tight despite rising demand to maximize their profits as record prices surge past $100 per barrel. Others say a weaker U.S. dollar against other currencies has contributed to the price surge, particularly in the United States. Kenneth Medlock, an economist and energy expert at Rice University in Texas, says that, and supply and demand, are shaping today's oil market.
"Production and consumption are basically the same because the market has to balance. But global crude oil production, the last number I saw was on the order of 84-and-a-half-million barrels a day. In the past decade, demand has risen faster than it has at any point in time in the previous 30, 40 years," says Medlock. "So it's been rising very rapidly and supply was rising with it. But in the past three years, when we've seen this very rapid run-up in prices, we've also seen supply not continue to increase. And so basically what's been happening is the pressure is there for demand to continue to rise, but because the supply is ever more difficult to get to, we've seen the price go up with it."
Some analysts maintain that after large oil fields are explored, it becomes harder and more expensive to drill deeper for increasingly smaller amounts of oil. But chemical and bio-molecular engineer Michael Economides of the University of Houston says oil will not run out anytime soon.
"The first time that people said we were running out of oil was in 1866, four years after the first purposeful well was drilled in Pennsylvania. The whole concept that we are running out of oil has been repeated on at least six major occasions in the last 150-some years. Peak will happen," says Economides. "But my calculations suggest that peak oil may happen around 2040, perhaps 2050. And then after that, it will linger on for decades -- perhaps two, three centuries. We are still going to be producing commercial quantities of oil."
Technology to the Rescue?
Deep drilling equipmentEconomides says technology and new drilling techniques have extended the world's known oil reserves. As a result, many experts say estimates for oil reserves have been rising, with this year's global reserves estimated at one-and-a-third trillion barrels.
"The introduction of modern geo-sciences has probably added 20 percent [more oil] to the United States' reserves. Fifteen years ago, it was a good strike if we drilled ten wells and one well was good. Today, seven out of ten drilled wells are commercial successes. All of that is because of technology," says Economides. "We have gone below 10-thousand feet of water, which would have been unthinkable 15 years ago. So all of these things extend reserves and world production capacity."
Even if the world reaches a point when it can no longer extend the life of proven oil reserves, Economides says necessity will lead to the development of energy alternatives. Geologist Eric Cheney of the University of Washington in Seattle agrees. He says the global economy will cope with shortages before oil runs out.
"Science, technology and economics are going to provide more oil. And we're going to start manufacturing oil from non-conventional sources like the tar sands of Alberta [in Canada], possibly even the shale of the western United States. And with increased money, we can afford to produce oil that we could not pump out of the ground before," says Cheney.
When the End is Near
If oil begins to run out, most analysts agree that the consequences would be dire for the world's economy and its political stability. But Rice University's Kenneth Medlock reasons that the consequences depend on the rate of depletion.
"So if there's a very slow, gradual decline, then that's not as bad as if we sort of fall off a cliff. If we sort of run out of oil very quickly, then there are pretty large adjustment costs in the sense that countries like China, India, the U.S. -- which is the world's largest oil consumer -- really have to adjust very rapidly to maintain even the status quo," says Medlock. "And that is probably not likely to happen. What's more likely to happen, if we run out of oil quickly, is a pretty deep global recession."
Other experts say soaring oil prices and a diminishing supply will likely encourage exploration and a shift to cheaper alternative fuels such as coal and natural gas. What will run out, says geologist Eric Cheney, is cheap oil. He says oil will never go back to ten dollars-a-barrel, but it will be there - - for those who can afford it.
Debate Intensifies on Boycott of Beijing Olympics Over Tibet Crackdown
Chinese riot police patrol in Tongren, in China's Qinghai province, 17 Mar 2008 A proposal to boycott the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics has gained support following reports of China's response to Tibetan protests.
French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner said Tuesday that the proposal is "interesting" and could be discussed by a meeting of European Union foreign ministers next week.
But China's ambassador to the United Nations, Wang Guangya, said Kouchner's views are "not shared by most people in the world."
Earlier Tuesday, president of the European Parliament Hans-Gert Poettering encouraged political leaders to consider boycotting the opening ceremonies if the violence in Tibet continues.
The Dalai Lama speaks to the media in Dharmsala, India, 18 Mar 2008An international media rights group, Reporters Without Borders, also is urging political officials to boycott the ceremony. The Paris-based group accused China of breaking the promises it made when it was chosen to host the Summer Games.
In Washington, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Thomas Christensen told lawmakers the United States is not threatening a boycott. The official said the Olympics are an opportunity for China to show progress on human rights and other matters.
Protesters demonstrate against the Olympic Games in Beijing in front of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) headquarters in Lausanne, 18 Mar 2008Also Tuesday, Tibet's spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, reiterated his opposition to a boycott of the Beijing Olympics. He said the Chinese people should not be blamed for the actions of their government.
Hundreds of pro-Tibet demonstrators gathered Tuesday at the International Olympic Committee headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland, where they appealed to the committee to halt the Tibet leg of the Olympic torch relay.
The president of the International Olympic Committee, Jacques Rogge, said not a single government has called for a boycott because of China's crackdown in Tibet. Rogge said boycotts do not work, and he said he is heartened that all major governments oppose a boycott.
Thursday, March 6, 2008
Lessons learned from the comic interpretation
Enjoy it!
Friday, February 22, 2008
VOA 15 US, Iraqi Defense Ministers Declare Notable Gains in Security
U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Iraq's defense minister say coalition forces have achieved notable security gains in Iraq. The two men on Thursday marked the one year anniversary of the Bush administration's decision to send more troops into Iraq. VOA's Jim Fry reports.
U.S. troops operating near Bagdhdad, 10 Jan 2008
U.S. and Iraqi soldiers are on the move northeast of Baghdad. It is an offensive known as Phantom Phoenix.
On Tuesday, 8 January, the Pentagon released a video that it said was an air strike against al-Qaida forces southeast of Baghdad. And then Thursday, the military announced similar strikes on an al-Qaida stronghold on the outskirts of Baghdad. The military called it one of the largest bombing campaigns in recent months.
Robert Gates, 10 Jan 2008
At the Pentagon, U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates appeared before reporters with Iraqi Defense Minister Abd al-Qadir.
He reminded the audience of the anniversary. "As you know, one year ago today the president announced a new way forward in Iraq, also known as the surge," noted Gates.
Gates and al-Qadir said security gains have cut the number high profile attacks by 60 percent and civilian deaths by 75 percent.
The Iraqi government's stated goal is to replace with Iraqi troops the multi-national forces, including U.S. troops. The defense minister did not say when.
He says, "We work in full coordination and we believe we are capable of filling the gap."
US President George W. Bush speaks during a joint press conference with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, 10 Jan 2008
Earlier this week, President Bush praised the progress in Iraq.
"Improvements on the ground are allowing some forces on the ground to return home. Strategy is called, 'Return on Success.' It has now begun," President Bush said.
Mr. Bush gave some of the credit to Iraqi citizen groups.
Such groups have signed pledges to oppose terrorists and insurgents, leading to more peaceful neighborhoods and open markets. But critics say underlying conflicts in Iraqi society have not disappeared.
Stephen Biddle, with the private Council on Foreign Relations in Washington says, "These negotiated agreements are, therefore, not inherently stable or self-policing."
Biddle says that lasting peace can be achieved only if an outside force is maintained in Iraq. He says the number of U.S. troops has already fallen below what experts say is needed for a peacekeeping mission in a country like Iraq. "And if we leave ourselves without sufficient forces for a peacekeeping and enforcement role, I am concerned that we could create a self-defeating prophesy in Iraq, and lose the things that we have gained at such cost and such sacrifice," added Biddle.
Meanwhile, as U.S. troops hunt down insurgents in Iraq's northern provinces, two explosions near Baghdad claimed at least three lives and wounded eleven others.
"There will continue to be tough days and tough weeks. We are not done yet, by any means," Gates said.
Gates says insurgents now have fewer places to hide in Iraq, but he says the current offensive does not represent the last major battle.
VOA 14 Rice Makes Unannounced Visit to Baghdad, Praises Steps Toward Reconciliation
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has made a surprise visit to Baghdad where she praised recent steps toward national reconciliation. VOA White House Correspondent Paula Wolfson reports Rice slipped into Iraq from Saudi Arabia, where she was accompanying President Bush on his Mideast tour.
In this photo released by Iraqi Government, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, right, and U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, talk during meeting in Baghdad, 15 Jan 2008
Rice arrived in Baghdad with no advance notice, and went quickly into talks with Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and other officials.
In praising the Iraqi government the secretary said national reconciliation efforts were moving along "quite remarkably."
"A democratic and unified Iraq is here to stay and while it may have challenges, it has passed through some very difficult times and is now moving forward in a way that is promising, if still fragile," she said.
The secretary of state was referring to a new law that Iraq's parliament passed Saturday that allows members of Saddam Hussein's Baath Party to reclaim government jobs. The bill is one of several steps the Bush administration has been urging the Iraqi government to take to ease tensions between once-dominant Sunnis and majority Shiite Muslims in Iraq.
Rice said passage of the new law is a sign that reconciliation is moving along.
"This law ... is clearly a step forward for national reconciliation, it is clearly a step forward for the process of healing the wounds of the past," she said.
While welcoming the new law, Rice noted that much more work remains, including passage of a bill on sharing oil revenues and another on provincial elections.
During her brief stay in Baghdad, Rice also briefed Prime Minister Maliki on President Bush's Middle East tour.
Throughout his stay in the region, the president has been urging Arab countries to support the young Iraqi democracy. He also visited a U.S. military base in Kuwait where he met with the top U.S. commander in Iraq, General David Petraeus, and the senior American diplomat in Baghdad, Ambassador Ryan Crocker.
VOA 13 Writers' Strike Adds Drama to Oscar Nominations
The American motion picture industry has announced this year's nominations for best picture and other Academy Awards. And the Academy for Film Arts and Sciences says the ceremony will go on as usual even if an ongoing writers' strike puts a wrench扭傷in the works. VOA's Ruth Reader reports on the nominees and the effect of the strike on the ceremony next month.
Daniel Day-Lewis and Paul Thomas Anderson in 'There Will Be Blood'
Two films tied for the most Oscar nominations, and one of them -- "There Will Be Blood" (香港：【黑金風雲】 國內：【血色將至】 台灣：【會有血】)-- is not only up for the best picture award and direction, but also best actor with Daniel Day-Lewis as its star. Still, "No Country for Old Men"險路勿近also has eight nominations, including for best picture and direction.
Another best picture nominee -- "Atonement"贖罪-- has seven nominations, as does "Michael Clayton全面反擊," including best direction and best actor, with George Clooney in the lead role. No film dominates the nominations and eager movie buffs迷,愛好者[ will just have to wait until the big night for answers.
Writers on strike
That is, if there is a big night. The Writers Guild is still on strike and the walkout has already stolen much of the glitz from two other Hollywood awards shows -- the People's Choice Awards觀眾票選獎and the Golden Globes. And while television viewers miss the opportunity to watch their favorite stars wearing inspiring fashions, the big loser is the advertising industry.
This year the Golden Globes, pared down to a glamourless newscast, drew in roughly a quarter of the viewers it did last year. Advertising Age's TV Editor, Brian Steinberg, says with advancements in technology advertisers cannot afford to lose their audience. "Advertisers last year spent about $28 million on Golden Globes. So it's a good chunk of change, not a huge amount for networks' bottom line by any means, but you know you don't want to lose that kind of money especially at a time when people are using DVRs to skip past advertising."
NBC television network lost an estimated 10 to 15 million dollars in advertising after the show was reformatted to accommodate strikers.
Brian Steinberg
Steinberg says that advertisers rely on big events like the Oscars to captivate large audiences for new product launches and big brand campaigns. Without them, options for advertising to large audiences are few. "It's tougher to get the ratings points you need if you have fewer people watching TV, so people who are marketers are worried as well. They turn to TV, and they long have, for millions of people in one fell swoop攫取,抓去-- Super Bowl, Oscars, that kind of thing, and the events that get them those things are being taken away."
One major market to lose advertising opportunity is fashion. Many designers cash in on free advertising by loaning out dresses to stars for such celebrity-driven events. Without the red carpet, designers, especially smaller independent designers, lose a major advertising venue.
And for the Oscars, the stakes are raised. ABC charges $1.6 million per 30-second television spot. Last year advertisers spent $80 million for advertising during the Oscars -- more than double the amount spent on the Golden Globes. But, if the strike continues, the Oscars could suffer the same fate as the Golden Globes.
Steinberg says the advertising industry was having problems with television before the writers' strike. "Before the strike came along there had already been concern of erosion of ratings, of people watching TV in other places like the Web, and iTunes aren't measured well for advertisers. There are concerns about people time shifting with DVRs and passing through ads and not watching them. This is one more chink弱點;漏洞in the armor of the TV business."
For now, the Academy of Film Arts and Sciences美國動畫電影藝術學院的會員says the show will go on as planned. Already the Writers Guild of America美國編劇公會has denied the Academy's request for show clips from the previous year. The guild also is not allowing Jon Stewart to cross picket lines to write or host the show. Talks between the writers and the studios are planned to resume this week.
VOA 12 White House, Congress Agree on Economic Stimulus Package
President Bush and Congressional leaders from both political parties have reached agreement on $150 billion in tax relief in an effort to help stimulate the U.S. economy. VOA White House Correspondent Scott Stearns has the story.
President Bush, accompanied by Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson (l), tells reporters that he Congress have agreed to work together on an economic stimulus package, 24 Jan 2008
The agreement includes provision食物;糧食;給養to give up to $600 in tax rebates退還;對...給回扣;對...貼現 to millions of wage earners and an additional $300 refund for each child. It allows businesses to immediately write off 50 percent of capital資本equipment purchases.
President Bush says it is an effective, robust強健的;茁壯的;健全的and temporary set of incentives刺激的;鼓勵的,獎勵的that will boost the economy and create new jobs.
"This package has the right set of policies and is the right size," he said. "The incentives in this package will lead to higher consumer spending and increased business investment this year."
The president says he knows Americans are concerned about their economic future, with the challenges of higher energy prices and a falling housing market slowing growth.
Mr. Bush is urging the House and Senate to pass the agreement as soon as possible.
"We have an opportunity to come together and take the swift, decisive action our economy urgently needs," he added.
Stock markets around the world dipped sharply early this week amid widespread fears of a U.S. recession (經濟的)衰退;衰退期and its potential to drag down foreign markets as well.
The stimulus deal was an unusual display of bipartisanship in Washington, with Democrats and Republicans in the House making concessions讓步;讓步行為to get the deal done quickly.
Republicans dropped a provision that would have allowed businesses to reclaim taxes previously paid. Democrats dropped their demands for increases in food stamps and unemployment benefits.
House (大寫)議院[the S] Speaker Democrat Nancy Pelosi says she is not totally pleased with the package, but knows it will help stimulate the economy.
"This bipartisan package should be acted upon rapidly and can help alleviate the economic pain felt by millions of Americans," she said.
John Boehner is the leader of Republicans in the House of Representatives眾議院. He says it was not easy for Republicans and Democrats to agree on a plan, but he is confident it is in the best interests of the nation.
"This agreement is a big win for the American people," he said. "It will stimulate our economy in the most direct and effective way possible by putting money in the hands of middle income American families and by giving businesses incentives to create and build new jobs in our country."
Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson was the president's lead negotiator with Congress.
"I know the work isn't done yet," he noted. "As the Speaker said, we've got more to do. And I am looking forward to working with the Senate and working with the House to get a package as soon as possible, because, again, speed is of the essence."
Senate Majority Leader Democrat Harry Reid says he wants to get the plan to the president for signature by February 15. But changes in the Senate may slow passage of the package, as Reid says senators may consider restoring provisions to extend unemployment benefits.
VOA 9 Scientists Chart Life on Antarctic Ocean Floor
A major international effort to explore and document deep sea life in the Antarctic Ocean and the effects of climate change there is underway. It is part of International Polar Year activities that continue through 2008. VOA's Paul Sisco has more.
The Aurora Australis, now cruising the Antarctic Sea, left the Australian port of Hobart last month to assess the effects of climate change on the many life forms in Antarctica.
Martin Riddle is leading the discovery voyage. He says, "We're hoping to find many things never known, never seen before, never documented before. There will be fishes. There will be sponges, starfish海星[C], even corals down there."
With trawling nets, underwater cameras and an onboard laboratory, researchers are taking a census (經調查而得的)統計數,記錄of the various forms of life that thrive on the ocean floor and in waters as deep as 2,000 meters below the surface.
Martin Riddle
"They are living really on the edge of existence for their metabolism and we know that some of the processes that are changing with climate change are going to make it harder for them to survive in the future," Riddle said.
The Aurora is an Australian research vessel, one of three ships involved in Antarctic marine census expeditions遠征;探險;考察. A French and a Japanese vessel will begin collecting Antarctic marine samples over the next few months.
Graham Hosis
"We have people onboard those ships from America, Norway, Alaska, if you count that as a separate country for the United States, as well as Japan, Spain, Argentina and Belgium," says Graham Hosis, who is with the Australian Antarctic Division.
The missions are aimed at discovering, cataloging, and protecting the great diversity of life in Antarctic waters.
VOA 8 One Man's Passion Renewable Energy Projects
Wing Power, wave power, people power. Italian inventor Lucien Gambarota tries to capitalize利用on all three. VOA's Paul Sisco explains in this week's Searching for Solutions report.
Lucien Gambarota
Lucien Gambarota is a visionary好幻想的人;空想家, 有遠見卓識者and his vision is a cleaner world.
He founded Hong Kong-based Motor Wave Limited in 2006. He explains, "Everything we are doing is related to one subject -- energy. How do we transform the available energy around us?"
One of Gambarota's current projects involves recycling and reinventing fluorescent lights. He says he has developed a system for breathing new life into spent tubes.
"I don't know how to explain it, because it is so amazing that it works. The first time that I realized that we can do it, I was really amazed. It is possible that if we can make this system more available, there may be no more need for recycling of tubes because these tubes can last for thousands of years."
Gambarota says he hopes to begin marketing a fluorescent tube, generator and mini-turbine package for about $200 later this year.
Gambarota has formed a partnership called "Powered by You" with a fitness chain to demonstrate his alternative lighting system.
Gambarota opens a cabinet, located in a fitness center, that houses his alternative lighting system
"This is how we use it. We start with two batteries and then we have, same as we have with the wind turbine渦輪(機),, we have an inverter【電】反用換流器that converts DC power into AC power and then it goes into the lights," he said.
Dylan Wade is a director of operations for California Fitness. He says the partnership with Gambarota is a perfect match. "... a good marriage as far as, 'Hey, I'm not just going to be healthy when I'm inside of California Fitness, but I'm also going to be responsible and making sure my environment is going to be healthy for the future as well.' "
"California Fitness is a very typical example," says Gambarota. "Human energy -- how do we transform it and use it into something else and not just wasting it?"
Micro-wind turbines are credited with providing up to 90 percent of the power to a school
At the Hong Kong Sea School, Gambarota's patented micro wind turbine technology generates electricity at minimal wind speeds. He says, "Each turbine's power is added to the next one, so here at the end is what we collect. (It) is the sum of all the energy collected there. This is like an addition machine. That is why it works."
School principal William Hutchinson adds, "If we get about 10 knots of breeze, which is reasonable average breeze, we can power about 90 percent of this building."
Gambarota says the conditions have to be right, the breeze sufficient and the roof large and flat. If that is the case, the company says Gambarota's environmentally friendly turbines, made from recycled plastic, can cut energy expenses in half.
Thursday, February 21, 2008
VOA 7 American Drug Company Pfizer Fights Nigerian Lawsuits
The world's largest drug company is embroiled in a global controversy over whether it tested an unapproved drug on sick children in Nigeria without their full understanding. The case involving Pfizer raises questions about how to protect human subjects as American companies conduct more and more drug trials around the world. VOA's Leta Hong Fincher has this report.
Child receiving injection
In 1996, a meningitis [ ]腦膜炎epidemic hit the Nigerian state of Kano. Researchers from the American company, Pfizer, treated 100 Nigerian children with the experimental drug, Trovan. The Nigerian government and the Kano state government are suing Pfizer over the drug trial. They say it caused the deaths of 11 children and seriously disabled others.
The Plaintiff's [ ]起訴人,原告[C] Attorney, Peter Safirstein says, "What Pfizer did here is despicable and reprehensible and what they did here was to take advantage of young children and use them for an unauthorized and unapproved medical experiment."
Peter Safirstein, attorney for plantiff's
Safirstein, of the law firm Milberg Weiss, is representing 30 Nigerian families in a lawsuit filed in New York. He says Pfizer did not inform the children that they were taking part in a medical experiment and that there were other alternative medications available at the time.
Pfizer has filed its own lawsuit, charging that the report on which the Nigerian government based its claims against the company is illegal and inaccurate. And the company says on its Web site that any deaths during the clinical trial were the direct result of the illness and not the treatment provided to patients.
Dr. Jack Watters
Pfizer vice president Dr. Jack Watters also released a video statement. "This trial was conducted with the full approval of the Nigerian government, with the consent of the parents, the guardians of the children, and in consistency with the laws of Nigeria," he said.
Whatever the outcome of the lawsuits, the Pfizer case illustrates the difficulty in protecting human subjects as more and more drug trials are conducted around the world.
International standards such as the Declaration of Helsinki govern the ethics of drug trials. But some health experts say these regulations are weak and have no enforcement mechanism.
"It will always be tempting for any for-profit corporation to go to that place where regulation is the weakest, to that place where human subjects' protections are the worst, really going to the place with the lowest ethical standards, a kind of race to the ethical bottom," says, Dr. Peter Lurie, who is deputy head of health research at the advocacy group, Public Citizen, in Washington. "That temptation will always be there until such time as we have strong international standards. We don't have them now."
Dr. Lurie argues that many citizens of developing countries with poor health infrastructures are desperate for medical treatment and vulnerable to exploitation. "To the extent that they [trial participants] are motivated by desperation [ ]絕望;不顧一切,拼命[U] and needing to get treatment, to the extent that they believe that they will benefit from being in the trial even though that may not be the case, those are bad reasons for people to be in trials."
Alan Goldhammer is a regulatory official for the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, a lobbying group in Washington.
He says drug trials in developing countries are critical to researching treatments for diseases such as bacterial meningitis, which is rare in the United States. "Our companies are developing new pharmaceuticals for a worldwide market. They are also trying to make every effort to address diseases that are common in developing countries and certainly many new antibiotics that are being developed will have good therapeutic use in those countries."
Goldhammer says another reason American companies conduct trials in developing countries is to try to cut the time and cost required for drug development. "It's running now [at] about 800 million dollars to develop a new drug and it's anywhere from 12 to 14 years and clearly for patients who need new therapies this is too long and too costly. So we're looking at a variety of ways to try to shorten the time period and reduce the cost."
Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel is head of clinical bioethics at the National Institutes of Health, the primary U.S. medical research agency.
He says the vast majority of drug research does not exploit human subjects. But he says researchers should provide what he calls "fair benefits" to the participants in a drug trial. "Is the community in which you're doing a trial getting other health benefits? Are there economic benefits? Are you preparing the community to be able to do a lot more research and maybe engage in the research enterprise? Are you training people?" he said.
As for Pfizer's 1996 trial of Trovan in Kano, the Nigerian government says the drug company did not behave ethically. It is seeking compensation for the children and families of those involved.
VOA 6 US Choreographer Blends Egyptian and Western Dance
In a time of war in the Middle East, when scholars study what some call "the clash of cultures," there is an American dancer whose career has run counter to that notion. American dancer and choreographer [ ]編舞者Diana Calenti, now a celebrity in Egypt, has spent two decades blending Western dance with traditional Egyptian dance. Mohammed Elshinnawi explains.
Dancer Diana Calenti
Twenty three years ago, Diana Calenti went to Egypt to teach dance at the American University of Cairo. She says she was attracted to Egyptian folkloric dance, which tells a story through movement and music. And she combined the traditional approach with Western ballet and modern dance.
The Egyptian Ministry of Culture asked her to develop and modernize the performance of a famous folkloric dancing troupe. She explains, "I was a trained dancer when I went there, so my body was trained and skilled, so I just simply applied what my body was and absorbed the movements from Egypt."
Over several years of mixing various types of American and Egyptian dancing, Diana Calenti became a celebrity in Egypt. She was granted Egyptian citizenship and was appointed as director and choreographer of the Modern Folkloric Egyptian Dance Company.
Her love for the land of the Pharaohs, she says, began with Egyptian music when she was a child. "My first exposure really came in New York when I was growing up. I grew up in a very ethnic neighborhood, as a lot of New Yorkers have, so I heard a lot of kinds of music and I was fascinated with the sounds of the music from there."
With the help of her Egyptian-Canadian husband, Calenti co-produced a fictional movie called "Search for Diana." The movie tells a story of a young American woman who feels somehow she is drawn to Egypt by an archeologist who was uncovering Pharaohs [ ]法老(古埃及國王) tombs.
Diana Calenti
Now, Diana Calenti is in the eastern U.S. state of Maryland, where she has formed a troupe [ ](演員等的)一團;一班to teach young American dancers how to perform Egyptian folkloric dancing. "You talk to them about the music and the culture it comes from, because the music comes out from the society and the culture and they are very smart girls. Once they begin to understand, it is easy for them to get into the idea of the movement."
Alexia Whaley, a 16-year-old member of the newly-formed Calenti Dancing Troupe says her experience with the Egyptian dancing introduced her to a unique expression of human feelings. "I came to find out that the Egyptian dancing is more spiritual, it comes from your soul, you really have to put your mind into everything that you do."
The Egyptian Embassy in Washington hosted the first performance of the troupe, and American spectators say they liked the cultural connection. After watching the show, one American professional dancer, who called herself Stephanie, says she is more convinced now that dancing is a real cultural bridge. "Art, music and dance is a way of helping different cultures communicate themselves and to foster tolerance and understanding worldwide."
Diana Calenti agrees and says she deeply believes in her mission of connecting cultures through common expression of human feelings.
VOA 5 One Man's Unique Art Draws Roadside Attention
Driving by Highway US-400, west of the small town of Mullinville, Kansas, visitors are greeted with hundreds of metal sculptures, flapping使(上下,前後地)拍動,飄動;(鳥)振(翅) [ ] and twirling[ ]快速轉動;快速旋轉 against the blue sky on the prairie [ ]大草原;牧場[. For producer Joseph Mok, Elaine Lu has more on 76-year-old grassroots artist M.T. Liggett.
Myron Thomas Liggett, who prefers to be called M. T. Liggett, creates art from junk like abandoned farm machines, car parts, and scrap iron. "If you are doing stone carving, if you make a mistake you're gonna start over," says Liggett. "But with metal, if you make a mistake you just patch it up and go on, and make it look better."
One of Liggett's more controversial 'totems', depicting Hillary Clinton
Liggett's most controversial pieces are his "totems." They are political cartoons carved in metal. Displayed alongside his windmills, they form a unique roadside gallery along the fence line of Highway 400.
Egyptian gods, Greek mythological figures, Hillary Clinton and Laura Bush, and many local celebrities - because he is opinionated, the figures are not always depicted in a flattering light.
Exaggerated portrayals of dozens of women in his life are an ongoing theme in his art. Liggett relishes[ ]喜愛,愛好 in telling his "Tokyo Rose" story. "I had a girlfriend that I met in Tokyo. She was lost and down in Ginza," he recalls. "I took her out to the airport on the monorail and I put her on a plane.
M.T. Liggett
"And she, you know the Japanese, they always have flowers on the table. Always! And so, when I got ready to leave, she picked a rose up and she handed it to me. She said I'll see you again. I was 40 years old and she was 19. Well! I come back to the States, and she come and found me," he said.
Fellow grassroots artists and friends, like Tess, Erika Nelson, and Larry Fixit, speak about him with admiration. "He is a very special guy. He loves women. He loves pretty things, simple things. He is a man of very high stature [ ]身高,身材. Big stature," Tess said.
"I am a little more timid than MT. I am still trying to make a living as an artist," said Nelson. "There is some luxury in being able to say, 'I own my own property. I am
More of Liggett's 'roadside art'
retired. I have a good income. I can say whatever the hell I want. And I am going to. I aspire to be like MT later on.' I just know that right now I can't."
"I think his art is great," said Fixit. "Many people in town don't, because they are jealous of him. They cannot do it. They did not like the idea of me associate with him, I guess."
To those who do not like or appreciate his art, M.T. Liggett beams a dismissive [ ]表示輕視的smile. "If you get bitter, you lose sight, if you get mad about it. You can't do that. Cause I believe only you can make you mad," Liggett said.
Student Self-modeling: This form of modeling may be done in any mode of interpreting. Students first work as a group to interpret and create a good interpretation model for the other students to learn from. After they have learned from the models, the students then are called at random to perform sight translation, consecutive interpreting, or simultaneous interpreting.
l Students are divided into groups and each group is assigned to interpret one paragraph. Their interpretation would serve as a model for the other students to learn from.
The second time around, students are asked at random to take turns interpreting the whole video. Those who react too slowly will have to continue interpreting until they can interpret normally.
VOA 4 Rights Watchdog Says Global Political Freedom is Declining
The independent Freedom House rights organization says political freedom is on the decline in large parts of the world, including Russia, Egypt, Iran, Kenya, Nigeria, Pakistan and Venezuela. The democracy watchdog group, based in New York, said the results of this year's annual survey point to a disturbing deterioration of freedom worldwide, with less than half of the Earth's population living in places that can be called free. VOA Correspondent Cindy Saine reports from Washington.
Freedom House has been around for 30 years, measuring the levels of political freedom and civil liberties in the world's 193 countries. The group's director of research, Arch Puddington, says 2007 saw profound setbacks for freedom.
"If you look at the record for the past two years, it represents the first time in the past 15 years that freedom has actually declined over a two-year period," said Arch Puddington.
Freedom House says the decline in freedom was most pronounced in South Asia, but it also reached significant levels in the former Soviet Union, the Middle East and North Africa, and sub-Saharan Africa. The report says many of those countries with declines are large and geo-politically significant countries. Some of them, it says, like the Philippines, were once considered an inspiration for freedom movements.
Research Director Arch Puddington cites another alarming trend.
"We have also seen what is called a "pushback" against democracy," he said. "Again, this is very often something you see with big, energy-rich countries like Russia, Kazakhstan [ ]哈薩克(原蘇聯共和國之一,1991年12月宣佈獨立,現為獨立國協之一員), Azerbaijan [ ]亞塞拜然(原蘇聯共和國之一,1991年8月宣佈獨立,現為獨立國協之一員)
, Venezuela [ ]委內瑞拉, also China, where you have got regimes that are worried about popular movements for democracy. They are taking every sort of measure, ranging from imprisoning dissidents to using the tax police and regulations to smother [ ]抑制;扼殺the work of NGO's."
Freedom House map, 2008
Freedom House labeled 90 countries as "free", 60 countries as "partly free", and 43 countries as "not-free." The Palestinian [ ]巴勒斯坦的Authority declined from "partly free" to "not free."
The director of studies at Freedom House, Christopher Walker, is an expert on the countries of the former Soviet Union.
"As a unit, the former Soviet Union is one of the most freedom-deprived regions of all the regions we examined in the survey," said Christopher Walker. "Among the features that we have found is really a hardening core of authoritarian states."
Walker cited parliamentary elections in Russia held under unfair conditions and democracy in Georgia stained by a violent police crackdown on demonstrators and the imposition of a state of emergency. He also said many of the countries in the region have orchestrated a methodical and systematic muzzling [ ]封鎖...的言論of the media. Research Director Puddington said there were also big disappointments in Africa."In Africa, Kenya [ ]肯亞(東非國家) and Nigeria [ ]奈及利亞(國名), two of the continent's most significant countries, largest countries, and in the case of Kenya, a country that we had regarded as something like a model for democratic improvement, both suffered declines, and in the case of Kenya a major one," he said.
In Kenya, hundreds have been killed in rioting after reports of vote-rigging by the government in the country's presidential election held last December.
The report also cites a decline in freedom in a number of Asia's most important countries, including Afghanistan [ ]阿富汗, Bangladesh [ ], Pakistan [ ]巴基斯坦(國名) and Sri Lanka.
Freedom House's Karin Karlekar is a South Asia analyst. She says despite the negative trend, she sees reason for hope in the vibrant [ ]充滿生氣的;活躍的opposition by a number of groups, especially in Pakistan.
"Particularly and striking this past year was the case of Pakistan, where lawyers, journalists, human rights activists and students kept up a sustained protest campaign against [President] Musharraf's efforts to hold onto power," said Karin Karlekar.
Karlekar said the United States should support such efforts by dissidents and civil rights groups around the world.
VOA 2 'Ezra,' Tragic Tale of Child Soldiers in Africa
The plight of child soldiers, especially in Africa, has captured world attention through news reports and personal accounts. Last year, Ismael Beah's book, A Long Way Gone, about his experiences in Sierra Leone,( http://tw.dictionary.yahoo.com/search?ei=UTF-8&p=Sierra+Leone 獅子山(非洲西北部大西洋岸一國家)) was a bestseller. Now a film by Nigerian-born ([ 奈及利亞人) director Newton Aduaka explores the psychological and social face of the problem, by telling the fictional story of one young victim kidnapped into a rebel force. It will screen commercially in New York for two weeks in February, and also play at Los Angeles’s Pan-African Film Festival.
Newton Aduaka, writer-director of 'Ezra'
“I felt I had to do a film that not just showed you about war, but that put you in the center of what it was like,” Newton Aduaka says. His second feature film (正片;故事片), “Ezra,” opens on a peaceful scene: a small boy walking to school, his older sister already at her desk, gazing out the window occasionally, as if looking for her brother.
Suddenly, the school yard is invaded by fighters dressed in camouflage [ ] uniforms迷彩裝. They grab a number of children, including six-year-old Ezra, and march them into the bush to the rebel camp. One little boy will not stop crying, and in one of the film’s most horrifying moments, the rebel commander tells a subordinate to give him the “VIP” treatment. He is shot dead on the spot.
Mr. Aduaka says that incident was not in the screenplay(電影劇本)as he first wrote it. “That is something one of the children told me. I felt something was missing. There was no reason to show why these kids stayed on. But when you see that -- of course you fall in line, you don't ask questions any more from that point on,” he said.
The film moves from Ezra's ten years as a boy soldier until 2002, after peace, when he appears before a truth and reconciliation ([ ]調解,調停) tribunal ( [ ]法庭). It shows how Ezra and the other children are indoctrinated ([ ]向...灌輸(學說、信仰等)) into the cause of killing, and even injected ([ ]注射(藥液等)[(+into)];為(某人)注射[(+with)]) with methamphetamines（安非他命）, to energize and disorient ([ ]使失去判斷力)them.
The 16-year-old Ezra is played by Mamoudou Turay Kamara, who like most of the cast, had not acted before
“You can fight for four days nonstop,” Ezra tells the tribunal, about the nights when his commander drugged the child soldiers. “You have no fear, you feel nothing. You become the gun. You are the AK-47. Your conscience is not there. You are not human." The presiding investigator asks him, “So you don't remember how many or who you killed?” Ezra answers, “No.”
Ezra also remembers nothing about the night in which his rebel faction ([ ](政黨,組織等內部的)派別,宗派;小集團[C]) attacked his own village, an attack in which his parents were killed and his sister gravely injured. Much of the film is about the human relationships of the child soldiers, despite their brutalization([ ]獸性;殘酷). Ezra's sister is loyal to him despite her knowledge that he was among the attacking rebels. Ezra also falls in love and marries a girl soldier, eventually trying to flee the country with her and his sister.
'Ezra' tells the story of child soldiers in Africa through the fictional tale of one boy kidnapped by rebels
The cast includes Sierra Leoneans, Ugandans (http://tw.dictionary.yahoo.com/search?ei=UTF-8&p=Ugandan烏干達人), Rwandans (http://tw.dictionary.yahoo.com/search?ei=UTF-8&p=Rwanda [ ]) and Malians馬利(西非國家), as well as European and Americans of African descent. Most had not acted before, and two had actually been child soldiers. The director, who says the story is based on the Sierra Leone conflict, interviewed a number of child soldiers before he wrote his screenplay(電影劇本). They became a major source, he says, “especially three kids that I met that let me into their souls, so to speak. I met a lot of children, but a lot of them would tell me about exterior things, but not about what was going on in the inside."
Aduaka says the film tries to show that colonialism set the stage for the African conflicts in which 15 million have died in the past half-century. He notes that European powers carved (切開;切) Africa into artificial nations and armed all sides of the wars that followed. “I was interested in what brought about this violence,” he says. “Where is it coming from? It is being fed by arms dealers, by people who are mostly westerners. The AK-47 is not made in Africa,” he says.
“Ezra” makes the case that healing for individuals and societies can begin only after a truthful accounting is made, and forgiveness sought. But it does not end on a hopeful note, and the director says he is not optimistic for many of the former child soldiers. “I always say that if this happened to a child in the West, they would be in therapy ([ ]) for the rest of their natural lives,” he says. “They will cope, because they have to. But I know what they are carrying with them, they are carrying this thing with them, and they will have to deal with it.”
VOA1 Race,Gender Likely Keys to South Carolina Democratic Primary
On January 26, the Democratic Party presidential candidates compete in a primary election (預選;初選) in the southern state of South Carolina. It is the first primary in a state with a large African-America population, and that is expected to affect the outcome. VOA's Jeff Swicord reports.
Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama and John Edwards before the Democratic debate in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, 21 Jan 2008
The top Democratic Party front-runners 領先的人converged on South Carolina this week, attending the annual Martin Luther King Day rally at the state capitol in Columbia. They spoke warmly of the slain civil rights leader in a state with one of the largest per capita African-American populations in the country.
South Carolina is the first southern primary state, and often sets the tone for other southern states with significant African-American populations.
Scott Huffman is a professor of southern politics at Winthrop University in Rock Hill South Carolina. He says race and gender will play a significant role on primary day. "African-Americans make up about 30 percent of South Carolina's overall population but they will make up to about 50 percent of the Democratic primary vote on election day."
Early opinion polls show Senator Hillary Clinton had a significant lead in South Carolina prior to the Iowa caucuses (政黨等的)核心小組;政黨地方委員會. Both she and husband, former President Bill Clinton, have strong ties to African-American leaders across the country.
Professor Huffman says African-American support began to change in South Carolina when Senator Barack Obama won Iowa, a state with a 2.5 percent black population. "The black voters in South Carolina realized white voters will vote for Barack Obama. That caused a trickle滴;淌;細細地流of soft supporters of Hillary Clinton to begin moving over to Barack Obama. And his lead in the African-American community has been growing ever since."
Both campaigns have been working hard to overcome their demographic ([ ]人口統計學的)weaknesses. The Obama campaign flew in their chief operating officer, Betsy Myers, to hold events like one near Charleston, targeting women voters.
She spent most of her career working on women's issues and served as the director of women's initiatives([ ]首創精神;進取心) in Bill Clinton's White House. "Women make up more of the voters these days and actually there has been a gender gap all the way back to the Reagan election in 1980. So women vote and their voice matters. This campaign cares deeply about American women and making sure they have a seat at the table," she said.
Her message this night was about leadership, an issue that is important to many undecided voters like Ellen Elmaleh. She says, "I want strong leadership, I don't want to be a warring nation. I don't want to have a war against anything. I want to be for things, not against things."
The Clinton campaign has also brought in some well-known figures to try and shore up they're declining support in the African-American community. Democratic Congresswomen Sheila Jackson Lee of Texas told us, "I think that Senator Clinton would be the better presidential candidate for a number of reasons. It is important to have experience, deep-rooted experience. It is important to have strength of leadership. But you combine that with ideas passion and heart. I see that in her candidacy and her leadership," Jackson said.
Not all South Carolinians are thinking along race and gender lines. Many, like college student Jessica Gourdin, are simply looking for the best candidate. "I am just trying to stick with the issues. Because, race and gender, people are always going to look towards that to make their choice. I am trying to stick with the basic issues like who is the better candidate in the end," Gourdin said.
Recent opinion polls show Barack Obama with a 10 point lead over Hillary Clinton. South Carolina is a state with a lot of soft, or undecided, voters. Just one month ago, Clinton had a 10 point lead. But as the nation learned in New Hampshire, where Obama was expected to win but then lost by two percent, polls can be wrong.
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Making more memorable speeches
Here are some ideas you may like to draw on or add to.
Lists of three
Contrasts and paradoxes
Rhetorical questions
Adverbs to reinforce an argument
Use of metaphor / simile
Extended metaphor and analogy
1 Lists of three
For some reason, human beings seem to be hard-wired to use lists of three. There are numerous examples which we can draw from a range of languages.
'Veni, vidi, vici' (I came I saw I conquered) Julius Caesar 'Liberté , fraternité, egalité' motto of the French people'Government of the people, by the people, for the people' Abraham Lincoln'Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few.' Churchill on the pilots of the Battle of Britain 'My foundations support people in the country who care about an open society. It's their work that I'm supporting. So it's not me doing it. But I can empower them. I can support them, and I can help them.' George Soros (financier and philanthropist)
Remember that in English when we say lists we tend to use a rising intonation on the first items, and a falling intonation on the final item to denote completion.
2 Contrasts and paradoxes
Skilled communicators often bring two conflicting notions into collision.
'Man is born free and everywhere is in chains' Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Often this is used to humorous effect.
'On the Continent people have good food; in England people have good table manners.''Continental people have a sex life; the English have hot water bottles.'George Mikes (Hungarian writer and humorist)
3 Rhetorical questions
Rhetorical questions are a useful device for moving from the statement of a problem or situation, to your proposals.
'So what is to be done?' Lenin
4 Adverbs to reinforce an argument
Have you ever noticed that when politicians are giving opinions with little or no foundation in fact that they use adverbs to demonstrate the force of their convictions or sincerity?
I strongly urge you to act now...I sincerely/honestly believe...
5 Use of metaphor/simile
Speakers and writers need to use these sparingly unless they can come up with images which are arresting and memorable. Otherwise, it is easy to fall into cliché.
The office was a beehive of activity. (Metaphor: something is transformed into something else)His horse was as black as coal. (Simile: (with 'as/like') something is compared to something else)
6 Extended metaphor and analogy
Analogies and extended metaphors are a good way of reducing difficult concepts to more familiar notions which are easier for most of us to grasp. They are particularly useful for backing up, or illustrating big numbers or statistics.
Sales of her books could circle the globe/go to the moon and back etc. (More memorable than simply stating how many millions of books have been sold).The water wasted by farmers in unnecessary irrigation could fill ten Olympic swimming pools. (Better than giving a dry statistic.)A million dollars in $100 bills is nine feet high.
Metaphors are used in the world of business and finance. Metaphors associated with sport, war and conflict are often used. Water is popular too: we talk about cash flow, company liquidity and flotations. Sometimes it may be hard to sustain a metaphor through a speech or piece of writing and we should take care that we do not mix them. However; one metaphor which does work effectively is for money laundering.
'Money laundering takes dirty money with a criminal history and transforms it into clean money, which looks legitimate. We can talk about the pre-wash, heavy soaping and spin dry of money laundering.'