里約奧運

IOC says 2016 Rio Olympics were 'most perfect imperfect games'

Tue, Dec. 6, 2016
Writer was not found

LAUSANNE, Switzerland (AP) — A few months after the closing ceremony in Rio de Janeiro, IOC officials have a new tagline for South America's first Olympics: "The most perfect imperfect games."

The International Olympic Committee held a news conference on Tuesday to accentuate the positives of the Rio Games, which were held amid Brazil's political and economic crisis and experienced problems with empty seats, budget cuts, green water and other organizational issues.

"The games worked," said Christophe Dubi, the IOC's executive director of the Olympic Games. "Were they perfect? No. The organizers faced immense difficulties. But, in the end, you have to take your hat off. It's extraordinary what they have delivered."

The IOC has been going out of its way to publicly defend the Rio Games, seeking to blunt any lasting criticism and encourage potential future host cities at a time when many have been turning away because of concerns over high costs.

"As you remember in the lead-up to the games, we are all going to die of Zika or poisoned water or we were all going to be mugged in the streets," IOC spokesman Mark Adams said. "As it turns out we find out that the games were the most universal, the most consumed ever."

"Were they perfect games?" he added. "No. Someone described them as the most perfect imperfect games, which I think is actually quite a good characterization. There were problems, but what is fantastic is the way those problems were overcome."

The IOC released a stream of facts and figures to showcase the success of the games, including global broadcast figures, record number of national Olympic committees, the first ever refugee team and performances by stars such as Usain Bolt, Michael Phelps and Mo Farah.

Dubi insisted the Olympic venues would all have long-term use and that the city had been transformed with a new transport system and other infrastructure improvements.

Dubi said the organizing committee's final operational budget — the cost of running the games, not the construction or infrastructure spending — would be announced in the next few weeks and would come in close to the original $2.9 billion figure.

"We had glitches," Dubi said. "But when everyone comes back with a big smile, you know the games have been a success."

https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/olympics/2016/12/06/ioc-rio-olympics-were-perfect-imperfect-games/95033198/

Structure of the Lead：
WHO-The International Olympic Committee
WHEN-Tuesday
WHAT-The International Olympic Committee held a news conference on Tuesday to accentuate the positives of the Rio Games
WHY-not given

WHERE-not given
HOW-not given


Keywords：
1. conference:會議

2. accentuate:強調

3. blunt:減弱

4. mug:搶劫

5. characterization:描述

6. showcase:展現

7. infrastructure:基礎建設

8. glitch:差錯

美同性婚姻合法

Same Sex Marriage Legalization May Have Cut Teen Suicide Attempts

Wed, Feb 22, 2017
By Sy Mukherjee

Policies legalizing same sex marriage are correlated with fewer youth suicide attempts, especially among teenagers who are sexual minorities, according to a new study.

Researchers from Johns Hopkins' Bloomberg School of Public Health analyzed data from both states that had and hadn't legalized same sex marriage prior to 2015, when the Supreme Court issued a decision legalizing it across the country. "After same-sex marriage laws were implemented, the proportion of high school students reporting suicide attempts in the past year decreased by 0.6 percentage points, equivalent to a 7% decline," wrote the authors. States that had not legalized same sex marriage did not see these declines.

The analysis is based on government surveys of more than 700,000 public high school students. Since the suicide attempt and sexual orientation data is self reported, the researchers warned that there may be some shortcomings to the analysis.

But the results were striking. Not only did suicide attempts fall 7% among all students in the 32 states that had already legalized same sex marriage - it fell 14% among gay, bisexual, transgender, and other sexual minority teens.

Teen suicide is already a major public health scourge and one of the leading causes of death among young people (other than automobile accidents). But it's a bona fide crisis among lesbian, gay, and bisexual youth, 40% of whom have seriously contemplated suicide, according to the CDC.

While the new study doesn't point to any definitive cause-and-effect between same sex marriage and reduced suicide attempts, it does suggest that a generally more accepting policy environment could help reduce bullying and stigma.

"As countries around the world consider enabling or restricting same-sex marriage, we provide evidence that implementing same-sex marriage policies was associated with improved population health," wrote the study authors. "Policymakers should consider the mental health consequences of same-sex marriage policies."


http://fortune.com/2017/02/21/same-sex-marriage-teen-suicides/


Structure of the Lead：
WHO-not given
WHEN-not given
WHAT-same sex marriage are correlated with fewer youth suicide attempts
WHY-not given
WHERE-not given
HOW-not given


Keywords：

1. correlate:關聯

2. implement:實行

3. proportion:比例

4. orientation:傾向

5. scourge:災難；禍害

6. bona fide:真實的

7. contemplate:打算

8. stigma:汙名

翁山蘇姬

Aung San Suu Kyi 'utterly failed' to address Rohingyas' plight, says Obama-era human rights envoy

Mon, Feb 27, 2017
Writer is not found

GENEVA (REUTERS) - The UN Human Rights Council must set up a commission of inquiry into Myanmar's human rights record, as it has done for North Korea and Eritrea, and not spare its leader because of her iconic status, a former US human rights envoy said on Monday (Feb 27).

Keith Harper, who served as US President Barack Obama's ambassador to the Geneva-based council from 2014 to January this year, said Myanmar's de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi had "utterly failed" to address the plight of the Rohingya Muslim minority in Myanmar's Rakhine State.

But he said Western diplomats and human rights advocates saw her as a hero and might let Myanmar off the hook, and he feared the new US administration, which has not yet named his replacement in Geneva, might seek to play down the situation.

"For far too many, her iconic status as pro-democracy crusader makes it difficult to hold accountable a Suu Kyi-led government no matter the well-documented human rights violations," Harper wrote.

"Her Nobel Prize has become a most awful kind of shield from proper scrutiny."

The Human Rights Council is expected to debate Myanmar during a three-week session starting on Monday, and Harper said it should order a full inquiry, which he described as "heavy medicine reserved for the most horrendous human rights cases".

A report by the UN human rights office, based on testimony of Rohingya Muslims who had fled to Bangladesh, said Myanamar's security forces had probably committed crimes against humanity with a campaign of killings and gang rape.

Senior UN officials later told Reuters they believed more than 1,000 people had been killed.

Harper, writing on the Just Security online forum, said many had hoped Suu Kyi, the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize laureate, would tackle the human rights crisis when she took power a year ago.

But it had become clear that although she was happy to be lauded as a pro-democracy icon, she was not prepared stand up for an unpopular and persecuted Muslim minority, and it would be wrong to spare her from scrutiny.

"Even accepting that Suu Kyi does not sufficiently control the military, she has utterly failed to utilise her considerable bully pulpit which would undoubtedly be impactful," he wrote.

http://www.straitstimes.com/asia/se-asia/obama-era-human-rights-envoy-says-aung-san-suu-kyi-utterly-failed-to-address-rohingyas

Structure of the Lead：
WHO-a former US human rights envoy
WHEN-Feb 27
WHAT- The UN Human Rights Council must set up a commission of inquiry into Myanmar's human rights record
WHY-As it has done for North Korea and Eritrea, and not spare its leader because of her iconic status
WHERE-not given
HOW-not given

Keywords：
1. plight:誓約

2. advocate:提倡

3. crusader:改革者

4. horrendous:可怕的

5. testimony:證言

6. persecuted:迫害的

7. utilise:使用

英國脫歐

UK may face a ‘very hard Brexit’: Norway’s Solberg

Sat, Jan 07, 2017
Writer was not found

Britain lacks experience in international negotiations due to its long membership of the EU and this could slow talks on its departure from the bloc, the premier of non-EU member Norway said, adding that she feared “a very hard Brexit.”

British Prime Minister Theresa May intends to launch by the end of March the two-year process of negotiations to leave the EU.

In an interview with Reuters, Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg said she hoped Britain would be able to negotiate an agreement that keeps it very close to the EU, but it would be a difficult task.

“And we do feel that sometimes when we are discussing with Britain, that their speed is limited by the fact that it is such a long time since they have negotiated” alone on such issues, she said late on Wednesday.

“I fear a very hard Brexit, but I hope we will find a better solution,” Solberg said.

Although not in the EU, Norway is part of the bloc’s single market and allows free movement for EU workers. It also contributes to the EU budget and participates in Europe’s open-border Schengen agreement.

Some Britons favor a Norway-style close relationship with the EU after Brexit. Others argue for a “hard Brexit” that would take Britain out of both the single market and the bloc’s customs union. Britain has never been included in the Schengen scheme.

May has so far said little publicly about her negotiating position, arguing that to do so would weaken London’s hand in the talks.

A spokesman for the British Department for Exiting the EU said the government was preparing for a “smooth and orderly exit” and was confident a deal could be reached that worked in the interests of both sides.

“We have been clear that we are seeking a bespoke arrangement that is unique to Britain, one that gives our businesses the maximum freedom to trade with and operate in the single market but also allows us to make our own decisions on immigration,” the spokesman said.

In a move that highlighted tensions at the heart of the British government over how to handle Brexit, the British ambassador to the EU, Ivan Rogers, resigned this week.

http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/world/archives/2017/01/07/2003662693

Structure of the Lead：
WHO-UK
WHEN-not given
WHAT-UK may face a very hard Brexit
WHY-Britain lacks experience in international negotiations due to its long membership of the EU
WHERE-not given
HOW-not given


Keywords：

1. negotiation:協商

2. scheme:計畫

3. bespoke:訂製的；定期的

ISIS伊斯蘭國

ISIS' finances drying up but extremists still pose danger

JAN 2, 2017
Writer was not found

The Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) starts the new year with a drastically depleted bank account, counterterrorism officials say, following months of intensified efforts to deprive the militants of oil profits and other revenue used to finance military operations and terrorists attacks abroad.

Coalition aircraft in the past 15 months have destroyed more than 1,200 tanker trucks - including 168 vehicles struck in a single air raid in Syria in early December - while also using new weapons and tactics to inflict lasting damage on the terrorists' remaining oilfields, US and Middle Eastern officials say.

The military strikes are being paired with new measures intended to shut down financial networks used by ISIS to procure supplies and pay its fighters, according to the officials. Two weeks ago, the US and Iraqi governments announced the first coordinated effort to punish Iraqi and Syrian financial services companies used by the terrorists to conduct business.

The campaign has slashed profits from oil sales, traditionally the biggest revenue source for ISIS, US officials say, and deepened the economic pain for a terrorist organisation that until recently was regarded as the world's wealthiest.

One sign of the financial strain, the officials say, is a shrinking payroll: After cutting salaries by half a few months ago, ISIS now appears to be struggling to pay its workers and fighters.

"We are destroying ISIL's economic base," Mr Brett McGurk, the US administration's special envoy to the 67-nation coalition arrayed against ISIS, said at a news briefing recently, using one of the common acronyms for the militants.

Just a year ago, the militants were luring foreign fighters with promises of generous pay cheques, but today "that is not happening", he added. "Their fighters are not getting paid, and we have multiple indications of that."

Coalition planes have been bombing the group's oilfields and tanker fleet for more than two years, but the most notable successes in recent months have come from military operations that targeted individual oil wells, including well casings and other underground infrastructure, according to US and Middle Eastern officials familiar with the new strategy.

The tactics make it all but impossible for ISIS to repair the wells or extract oil through makeshift techniques, the officials said.

A more challenging target for American and Iraqi officials has been the network of small, loosely regulated exchange houses traditionally used by Iraqis and Syrians to wire funds and exchange local dinars for Western currency.

US Treasury officials have been working with their Iraqi counterparts for more than a year to identify and shut down key exchange houses used by ISIS to make purchases, collect oil receipts and pay its fighters and employees.

Keeping up the pressure on the extremist group's financial networks is particularly critical at a time when ISIS is suffering military defeats and territorial losses in Iraq and Syria, according to counterterrorism officials.

Even in a depleted condition, the militants' financial assets are judged to be more than sufficient for carrying out terrorist operations abroad. Indeed, ISIS' signature terrorist strikes - including the attacks in Paris on Nov 13, 2015, that killed 130 people - are believed to have cost no more than a few thousand dollars each.

Separately, ISIS yesterday claimed responsibility for twin blasts that tore through a central Baghdad market last Saturday that left at least 27 people dead and more than 50 wounded.

The terrorist group also claimed another bombing yesterday at a police checkpoint in southern Iraq that killed at least seven people, officials said.

Gunmen wearing suicide vests and driving an explosives-laden vehicle opened fire on the checkpoint near the town of Qadisiyah, which lies around 180km south of Baghdad. "The security forces fought back, killing the attackers and blowing up the car," an Interior Ministry statement said.

http://www.straitstimes.com/world/middle-east/isis-finances-drying-up-but-extremists-still-pose-danger

Structure of the Lead：
WHO-The Islamic State
WHEN-not given
WHAT-starts the new year with a drastically depleted bank account
WHY-to deprive the militants of oil profits and other revenue used to finance military operations and terrorists attacks abroad

WHERE-not given
HOW-not given

Keywords:

1. depleted:耗盡

2. tactic:戰略

3. inflict:加強；使遭受

4. procure:獲得

5. coordinated:協調

6. strain:拉力

7. coalition:聯盟

8. infrastructure:基礎建設

9. counterpart:對應物；對手方

無人機

Insurance industry expanding drone use

Dec 14, 2016
By CHRIS LUSVARDI H&R / Staff Writer

DECATUR — The use of drones is enhancing the ability to spot issues developing in farm fields.

Country Financial is among the insurance companies looking for the most ways to benefit from the capabilities of drones, also known as unmanned aerial vehicles or UAV's. The company held a seminar Tuesday at the Macon County Farm Bureau office in Decatur to update area farmers on its latest uses for drone technology and possible changes to crop insurance coverage.

The ability to use drones is helping to identify issues in fields more quickly than traditional scouting methods from the ground and share the gathered information with customers, said Todd Manning, a Country crops claims coordinator.

“We're still going to have boots on the ground,” Manning said. “What we see will ease the peace of mind that everything is being looked at. It keeps getting better but it won't replace people in the field.”

Manning said drones have been used to see areas of damage in the middle of corn fields that can't readily be spotted from the road and guide those interested to that area for further inspection.

“We didn't see any of this,” Manning said while showing a photo of a field with evidence from the air of grain snap and wind damage. “It looked like a healthy corn field.”

It's not always easy to reach some areas on the ground, as hazards such as flooding could get in the way, he said. Besides agriculture, Manning said other potential uses of drones for insurance companies include inspections on roofs of buildings.

Drones in general are increasing in usage as regulations of who can operate the systems has changed, Manning said. New regulations allow for system operators for commercial purposes to pass a test and receive a certificate rather than being a licensed pilot.

As the use of technology used in identifying claims expands, farmers also have more information to consider when choosing amounts crop insurance coverage.

Farmers have been protected by the ability to choose higher levels of coverage, said Doug Yoder, Country crop agency manager. More insurance plans now can be based on an enterprise level rather than relying on county numbers, Yoder said.

That allows for farmers to benefit from more cost savings, Yoder said.

“We know we need the coverage,” Yoder said. “We don't lose a third of the crop very often in this area. Farmers shouldn't voluntarily lower coverage levels. We're going to need every dollar we can get.”

Farmers have until March 15 to buy crop insurance for the next growing season.

Yoder said crop insurance will once again be in question as discussion on the next Farm Bill begins. The Farm Bill enacted in 2014 is due to expire in 2018.

http://www.salina.com/sections/farm_and_ranch/insurance-industry-expanding-drone-use/article_83651f7a-bc93-510b-879c-364088476209.html

Structure of the Lead：
WHO-not given
WHEN-Tuesday
WHAT-the use of drones is enhancing the ability to spot issues developing in farm fields
WHY-to update area farmers on its latest uses for drone technology and possible changes to crop insurance coverage.
WHERE-Macon County Farm Bureau office in Decatur
HOW-not given


Keywords：
1. seminar:研討會
2. coordinator:協調人
3. readily:迅速地
4. hazard:危險
5. certificate:執照
6. enterprise:冒險精神
7. enact:制定
8. expire:滿期

巴黎氣候高峰會

India to ratify Paris climate change agreement at UN

Sunday 2 October 2016
Writer was not found

India will ratify the Paris climate change agreement at the United Nations, an environment ministry official said.

Narendra Modi’s cabinet had given its approval on Wednesday to ratify the Paris agreement on Sunday. The date is the birth anniversary of India’s independence leader Mahatma Gandhi, who led a life of minimum carbon footprint, said Modi.

Environment ministry spokesman Himank Kothiyal said Indian officials would hand over the ratification instruments to UN officials in New York on Sunday.

India accounts for about 4.5% of global greenhouse gas emissions.

The Paris agreement will come into force when 55 countries contributing to at least 55% of total global emissions ratify the deal. So far, 61 countries have deposited their instruments of ratification, acceptance or approval, accounting for 47.8% of global emissions, an Indian government statement said.

The Paris agreement was adopted by 185 nations in December. It asks both rich and poor countries to take action to curb the rise in global temperatures that is melting glaciers, raising sea levels and shifting rainfall patterns. It requires governments to present national plans to reduce emissions to limit global temperature rise to well below 2C (3.6F).

India has committed that by 2030, at least 40% of its electricity will be generated from non-fossil sources. This includes 175GW renewable energy capacity by 2022.

Manish Bapna, executive vice-president and managing director of the World Resources Institute, said India “has one of the boldest renewable energy targets in the world, making it destined to be a major player in solar and wind markets”.

Money will be a big challenge for India, which says it will require over $2.5tn (£1.9tn) to meet all its targets. It says it will achieve the targets only if other countries give it money and discounts on new technology.

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/oct/02/india-paris-climate-change-agreement-un-narendra-modi

Structure of the Lead：
WHO-India
WHEN-Wednesday
WHAT-India will ratify the Paris climate change agreement at the United Nations
WHY-not given
WHERE-not given
HOW-not given


Keywords：
1. ratify:批准
2. emission:散發
3. deposit:放置
4. glacier:冰川
5. commit:作出保證
6. generate:產生
7. destine:注定