quoted from AFP 28/04/2008 08h21

SEOUL (AFP) - China's close ally North Korea staged an elaborate welcome Monday for the Beijing Olympic torch, mobilising tens of thousands of cheering citizens and criticising protests elsewhere in the world.

TV footage showed crowds dressed in their best clothes packing the streets of Pyongyang as the torch began its 20-kilometre (12 mile) relay route. It was the first time the Olympic flame had been carried in North Korea.

"Cheer for Beijing, Cheer for Pyongyang and Cheer for the Olympic Games," read one banner.

The relay finished on time at 0600 GMT when former marathon champion Jong Song-Ok kindled the Olympic cauldron in the Kim Il-Sung Stadium, named after the nation's founding president, China's Xinhua news agency reported.

"Holding the last torch and running to the cauldron reminded me of making a final dash in the marathon," Jong told Xinhua. She won the event at the 1999 World Athletics Championships.

Spectators burst into a storm of applause when the relay ended, Xinhua said, estimating the total number of relay spectators in the hundreds of thousands.

In some other cities the event has sparked rowdy protests against China's policies on Tibet and other issues. North Korea, a hardline communist state, clamps down sharply on dissent.

Reclusive leader Kim Jong-Il was absent from the launch ceremony at the Tower of the Juche Idea. Juche or self-reliance is the impoverished state's guiding ideology.

But Kim "is paying great interest in the success of the Olympic torch relay," Pak Hak-Son, chairman of the country's Olympic committee, was quoted by Japan's Kyodo News as saying.

"We express our basic position that while some impure forces have opposed China's hosting of the event and have been disruptive, we believe that consists of a challenge to the Olympic idea," Pak said.

De facto head of state Kim Yong-Nam handed the torch to the first runner, a hero of one of the nation's greatest sporting triumphs.

"This will be a beautiful memory that will be left with me," Pak Du-Ik, 71, told Kyodo after his 250-meter jog. "I will never forget this."

He scored the only goal in North Korea's famous 1-0 win over Italy which secured their place in the 1966 football World Cup quarter-finals.

Eighty bearers had been scheduled to carry the torch, mostly North Koreans but about a quarter of them Chinese nationals working or studying in the North.

Men in dark suits and women in traditional hanbok gowns waved artificial bunches of kimjongilia, a national flower named after their leader, as the relay got under way at 10:15 am.

Banners reading "Beijing 2008" were hung on both sides of the route.

The torch has been dogged by demonstrators since the Olympic flame was lit last month. Critics of China's crackdown in Tibet and its general human rights record severely disrupted the Paris and London legs.

Organisers in many other countries have been forced to surround the torch with unprecedented security to ensure a smooth passage.

During the South Korean leg Sunday, demonstrators including North Korean defectors staged protests against China's forced repatriation of refugees from the North.

There were sporadic clashes in Seoul between the protesters and thousands of Chinese students. The Seoul government on Monday expressed "strong regret" to Beijing's ambassador about the behaviour of some students.

China sends back all those North Koreans it catches as economic migrants, a policy strongly criticised by rights groups. Refugees face severe punishment, or even death in some cases, on their return.

The flame will be now be taken to Vietnam and then to Hong Kong and Macau, before starting the final leg of the relay in mainland China.

quoted from AFP 28/04/2008 11h53

ZIBO (AFP) - Seventy people were killed and 420 injured early Monday when a passenger train from Beijing careered off the rails and slammed into another train in eastern China, state media reported.

Ruling out terrorism, the official Xinhua news agency said preliminary investigations found human error was to blame, without elaborating.

The first train was travelling to Qingdao -- the coastal city that will host the Olympic sailing competition in August -- when it derailed, causing a train coming in the opposite direction to leave the tracks also.

Nine carriages derailed, China news service said, and the second train crashed into those still on the track.

The rail accident, the worst in China in more than a decade, happened near the city of Zibo in Shandong province, the news service said.

Xinhua reported 70 people killed in the accident, quoting officials at the rescue headquarters. It said there were no foreigners among the dead.

The news agency said four French nationals were among those injured. They included three family members and one of their friends.

Pascal Boisson, 54, suffered multiple fractures to his ribs and may have another fracture in the chest, Xinhua reported, quoting Zhang Jun, head of the orthopaedics department at one of Zibo's hospitals.

"We were still sleeping when the accident occurred," a 38-year-old woman who escaped from the wreckage told Xinhua.

"I suddenly woke up when I felt the train stopped with a jolt. After a minute or two it started off again, but soon toppled."

The woman, who only gave her family name as Yu, managed to escape from the wreck with her 13-year-old daughter through a huge crack in the floor.

"I suddenly felt the train, like a roller coaster, topple 90 degrees to one side and all the way to the other side," a passenger surnamed Zhang, on the train from Beijing, told Xinhua.

"When it finally went off the tracks, many people fell on me and hot water poured out of the thermos flasks."

The news agency described chaotic scenes in the minutes after the disaster, the ground littered with blood-soaked sheets and shattered thermos flasks, as passengers sought to save themselves and their loved ones.

"I saw a girl who was trying to help her boyfriend out of the train, but he was dead," Zhang said.

The second train was on its way to Xuzhou in eastern Jiangsu province, from Shandong's Yantai.

At one point so many survivors tried to make phone calls that the mobile communications network was congested and no one could get through, Xinhua said.

Hu Weidong, a coach of China's national sailing team, was also among the injured, and was transferred to a hospital in Jinan, the capital of Shandong province.

"He didn't lose consciousness, but there were grave injuries to his neck and spine, which we fear could cause paralysis," Zhang told Xinhua.

Witnesses said many passengers were able to climb out of the wrecked train carriages shortly after the crash, some wrapped in bed sheets from the sleeper cars to guard against the early morning chill.

More than 700 medical staff and 130 ambulances were involved in rescue efforts, Xinhua said.

A total of 19 hospitals were treating those hurt in the accident, Xinhua reported, while hotels prepared to accommodate the victims' families.

"We have received around 40 injured passengers but nobody died," a nurse at one of Zibo's hospitals told AFP.

"Some of them are seriously injured."

The accident happened at 4:41 am (2041 GMT Sunday), Xinhua said, quoting a spokesman from the Shandong provincial government.

Railway Minister Liu Zhijun and Vice Premier Zhang Dejiang have arrived at the scene to oversee rescue efforts, according to the news agency.

Liu has demanded an investigation.

The accident has disrupted trains on a major rail route linking Jinan, the capital of Shandong, to Qingdao.

This is the second serious train accident in Shandong province.

In January, a high-speed train ploughed into a group of railway workers in the province, killing 18 people.

In one of the worst rail accidents in recent times in China, 126 people were killed and more than 200 injured when two trains collided in central Hunan province in 1997.

 

Page last updated at 09:30 GMT, Wednesday, 16 April 2008 10:30 UK

Could they be doing more harm than good?

Research has suggested vitamin supplements do not extend life and could even lead to a premature death.

A review of 67 studies found "no convincing evidence" that antioxidant supplements cut the risk of dying.

Scientists at Copenhagen University said vitamins A and E could interfere with the body's natural defences.

"Even more, beta-carotene, vitamin A, and vitamin E seem to increase mortality," according to the review by the respected Cochrane Collaboration.

The research involved selecting various studies from 817 on beta-carotene, vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin E, and selenium which the team felt were the most likely to fairly reflect the benefits of the supplements.

It has been thought that these supplements may be able to prevent damage to the body's tissues called "oxidative stress" by eliminating the molecules called "free radicals" which are said to cause it.

This damage has been implicated in several major diseases including cancer and heart disease.

'Just eat well'

The trials involved 233,000 people who were either sick or were healthy and taking supplements for disease prevention.

After various factors were taken into account and a further 20 studies excluded, the researchers linked vitamin A supplements to a 16% increased risk of dying, beta-carotene to a 7% increased risk and vitamin E to a 4% increased risk.

Vitamin C did not appear to have any effect one way or the other, and the team said more work was needed into this supplement - as well as into selenium.

In conclusion, "we found no evidence to support antioxidant supplements for primary or secondary prevention," they said.

It was unclear exactly why the supplements could have this effect, but the team speculated that they could interfere with how the body works: beta-carotene, for instance, is thought to change the way a body uses fats.

The Department of Health said people should try to get the vitamins they need from their diet, and avoid taking large doses of supplements - a market which is worth over £330m in the UK.

"There is a need to exercise caution in the use of high doses of purified supplements of vitamins, including antioxidant vitamins, and minerals," a spokesperson said.

"Their impact on long-term health may not have been fully established and they cannot be assumed to be without risk."

A 'stitch-up'

But the Health Supplements Information Service, which is funded by the association which represents those who sell supplements, said many people were simply not able to get everything they needed from their diet.

"For the millions who are not able to do that, vitamins can be a useful supplement and they should not stop taking them," said spokeswoman Pamela Mason.

Another nutritionist who has formulated supplements described the review as a "stitch-up" and only reviewed studies which examined the effect they had on reducing mortality, rather than other advantages.

"Antioxidants are not meant to be magic bullets and should not be expected to undo a lifetime of unhealthy habits," said Patrick Holford.

"But when used properly, in combination with eating a healthy diet full of fruit and vegetables, getting plenty of exercise and not smoking, antioxidant supplements can play an important role in maintaining and promoting overall health."

一段初中时期的青涩甜蜜回忆，今天却在这阴雨纷飞的时节，又重现。。。

而且近得真实得让我无法呼吸。。。shock~

I won't let you know I loved you, and I am still loving you...

directed by Steven Spielberg

As you can see in the picture, The Terminal starring by Tom Hanks and Catherine Zeta-Jones who both won the Acadamic Award for many times...

This film was directed by Steven Spielberg and producted in 2004 which was absolutely a sensation to all the audience in the world.  

As for me, I was a litter bit moved when Viktor figured out the war taking place in his original country on TV, however Viktor knew nothing about English, and he would be "unacceptable".

Life is waiting...

Synopsis:

While Viktor Navorski is en route to the U.S. to fulfill a wish of his late father's, there is a coup in the Eastern European country in which he lives. When he lands at JFK, he learns that his country is no longer recognized by the U.S., because of a domestic rebel war, so he cannot enter - and he can't go home either, for all planes to his country are canceled. While waiting in this limbo, Viktor takes up residence in JFK Terminal and learns another definition of home.

Cast:

Tom Hanks ...  Viktor Navorski

 Catherine Zeta-Jones ...  Amelia Warren

 Stanley Tucci ...  Frank Dixon

Awards for Terminal:

In 2005, The Termianl has been nominated in the Golden Reel Award as Best Sound Editing in Domestic Features - Dialogue & ADR, in Golden Trailer as Best Romance. It also won BMI Film Music Award and Excellence in Production Design Award in the same year.

Trivia:

While this is not technically a remake, the film Tombés du ciel (1993) is based on the same true story.

Inspired by the story of Merhan Nasseri, an Iranian refugee. In 1988, he landed at Charles de Gaulle Airport near Paris after being denied entry into England because his passport and United Nations refugee certificate had been stolen. French authorities would not let him leave the airport. He remained in Terminal One, a stateless person with nowhere else to go. He has since been granted permission to either enter France or return to his own country. He instead chooses to continue to live in the terminal and tell his story to those who will listen. Reportedly, his mental health has deteriorated over the years. When given the opportunity to live in France, he refused because the documents did not name him as "Sir, Alfred", and he claims to have forgotten his native Persian language. Reportedly, he left the terminal in August 2006 to be hospitalized for an unspecified illness.

Directed by
Darren Aronofsky   
 
Writing credits
Hubert Selby Jr.   (novel)
Hubert Selby Jr.   (screenplay) and  Darren Aronofsky   (screenplay)
 

Summary:

A film paralleling the lives of Sara Goldfarb, a lonely, TV obsessed widow, and her son Harry, his girlfriend Marion, and his drug dealer friend Tyrone. After learning that she will make an appearance on a TV game show, Sara tries to lose weight so that she can fit into her prized red dress, and becomes hooked on diet pills. Meanwhile, Harry and his friends are taking heroin and cocaine. We then witness the disasterous consequences and the downward spiral their lives take as a result of their addictions.

Cast:

Ellen Burstyn ... Sara Goldfarb

Jared Leto ... Harry Goldfarb

Jennifer Connelly ... Marion Silver

Marlon Wayans ... Tyrone C. Love

The film depicts the lives of four different people living in Brooklyn on their quest for satisfaction in life. It shows the direct and indirect effects that drugs and various addictions have on each of the individuals, and then portrays their downward spirals from the hopes of blossoming dreams into the helpless state of moral and physical decay.

今日在網路上看到兩則消息，對個人或者生活範圍內的人們頗有意義，摘錄于此——

---

壹、閤肥三裏菴Carrefore購物廣場，有學生引髮的示威和現場觝製。

個人小意：觝製法貨完全可以用和平的方式，暴力手段有失大國風度。

 

貳、閤寧鐵路通車，時刻錶如下圖：

车次 始发站 发站 发点 到站 到点 里程 运行时间 类型 票价(单位：元) 定票

5066 上海 南京 02:04 合肥 03:52 33 1小时58分钟 普快 21(硬座)72(硬卧) 订票 酒店 N434 上海 南京 02:26 合肥 05:17 33 3小时1分钟 快速 39(硬座)90(硬卧)134(软卧) 订票 酒店 N406 宁波 南京 03:53 合肥 05:50 33 2小时20分钟 快速 39(硬座)90(硬卧)134(软卧) 订票 酒店 T756 南京 南京 08:23 合肥 09:48 33 1小时25分钟 特快 59(软座) 订票 酒店 T758 南京 南京 12:28 合肥 13:53 33 1小时25分钟 特快 59(软座) 订票 酒店 T760 南京 南京 16:34 合肥 17:59 33 1小时25分钟 特快 59(软座) 订票 酒店 K59 扬州 南京 18:12 合肥 22:22 266 4小时19分钟 快速 42(硬座)93(硬卧)139(软卧) 订票 酒店 T772 上海 南京 19:30 合肥 21:08 33 1小时38分钟 特快 39(硬座)59(软座) 订票 酒店 K569 南通 南京 19:37 合肥 23:47 266 4小时18分钟 快速 42(硬座)93(硬卧)139(软卧) 订票 酒店 K464 上海 南京 20:33 合肥 23:05 33 2小时42分钟 快速 36(硬座)81(硬卧)120(软卧) 订票 酒店 K381 泰州 南京 20:58 合肥 01:28 266 4小时48分钟 快速 42(硬座)93(硬卧)139(软卧) 订票 酒店

 

 

Man has searched the skies for centuries and has never come up with conclusive evidence to prove the existence of other f r o m s of intelligent life. What if we have been looking in the wrong place? What if there were other f r o m s of intelligent life already living among us? What if perceived natural disasters were really diversions created to conceal clandestine alien activities?

When a small town at the edge of the Florida Everglades is threatened by a raging hurricane, U.S. Park Ranger Russell Varon must go to great lengths to protect the small community and his family safe. During the storm his young daughter claims to have seen mysterious lights, seemingly unaffected by the gale-force winds, floating near the water. Varon dismisses the sighting, but begins to wonder if there really was some truth to the story after his missing ex-wife turns up naked and her memory of the storm is completely gone.

While the community begins to clean up after the storm and piece their lives back together, Varon begins to investigate the strange happenings as he tries to make sense of what is happening.

 

Writer: Shaun Cassidy
Director: Thomas Schlamme
Show Stars: William Fichtner (Sheriff Tom Underlay), Tyler Labine (Dave Groves), Lisa Sheridan (Larkin Groves), Kari Matchett (Dr. Mariel Underlay), Evan Peters (Jesse Varon), Eddie Cibrian (Russell Varon), Ariel Gade (Rose Varon), Alexis Dziena (Kira Underlay)
Guest Stars: Jeanetta Arnette (Ruth) , Bryan Anthony (Guardsman) , Phe Caplan (Young Woman) , Holmes Osborne (Mayor Littles) , Rich Skidmore (Anchorman) , Robert Standley (Pilot) , Ryan Honey (Navigator) , Gwen Mihok (Weather Officer) , Mesan Richardson (Dropsonde Operator) , Juan Ramirez (Hispanic Man) , Lorena Mena (Hispanic Woman) , Aramis Knight (Hispanic Boy)
Production Code: 47528T

 

William Fichtner (Sheriff Tom Underlay): 

 

Eddie Cibrian (Russell Varon)：

Tyler Labine (Dave Groves) & Alexis Dziena (Kira Underlay)：

Kari Matchett (Dr. Mariel Underlay)：

Lisa Sheridan (Larkin Groves)：

Evan Peters (Jesse Varon)：

Ariel Gade (Rose Varon)：

Season 1
1x01 Pilot Sep. 21, 2005
1x02 Lights Out Sep. 28, 2005
1x03 Watershed Oct. 05, 2005
1x04 Alpha Male Oct. 12, 2005
1x05 Unnatural Selection Oct. 19, 2005
1x06 The Hunt Oct. 26, 2005
1x07 Fish Story Nov. 09, 2005
1x08 The Cradle Nov. 16, 2005
1x09 The Dredge Nov. 23, 2005
1x10 Origin of Species Nov. 30, 2005
1x11 Us or Them Jan. 11, 2006
1x12 Power Jan. 18, 2006
1x13 Redemption Jan. 25, 2006
1x14 All God's Creatures Feb. 08, 2006
1x15 The Nest Feb. 15, 2006
1x16 The Fittest Mar. 08, 2006
1x17 The Key Mar. 15, 2006
1x18 Re-Evolution Apr. 19, 2006
1x19 The Son Also Rises Apr. 26, 2006
1x20 Run and Gun May. 03, 2006
1x21 Round Up May. 10, 2006
1x22 The Last Wave Goodbye May. 17, 2006

 

sexy guy~so hot~even in his fifties!! lol~OMG

 

It is a pity that, after May 2006, Invasion was canceled. And then, William Fichtner joined in Prison Break Season 2 as Special Agent Alexander Mohone.

 

Personal statement for nutrition

 

I'm in my third year in Nan Jing University of Finance and Economics as a student majoring on Food Quality and Safety. Admittedly, mentioning "food safety" to most chinese will result in misunderstanding because it is not longer than ten years since this concept has become systematic in China. So many evidences prove that chinese are taking rising living standards and trend to lifestyles based on health and comfort into account, in resent years. There is, undoubtedly, a great lack of people with professional knowledge of this field in China, whereas many western countries have founded sophisticated systems for analysing what people eat. I began to realise and think about this fact when I engaged in food science at university. Food science encompasses a wide range of subjects which are closely related to mankind, including the chance of applying my knowledge and exploring, rather than merely understanding, therefore I find that nutrition is such a field I would like to pursue and devote all my efforts to. And at that moment, I definitely dicided to be a nutritionist.

 

When I initially attended in the chemistry class in the secondary school many years ago, I was thoroughly attracted and fascinated by the numerous reactions and willing to find out their mechanisms. When I learned more about biochemistry, organic chemistry and nutrition, and when I knew human body could never be free from disease, I became keen on figuring out the reasons. Why human become sick after eating contaminated or spoiled food? Why people recover by intaking some particular nutrients? How can we provent ourselves from pathogens? Over the studying period, I have read many reference books relative to my subujects, which give me inspirations and enable me to be innovative in reserach.

 

What else has stimulated interest in my study comes from my family. My grandmother has suffered diabetes for many years. Although she intakes enough carbohydrates as well as other structural materials such as protein, she still becomes thinner and easier to get syncope. Medical researchers have devoted themselves to cure patients of diabetes, however no treatment is completely successful. Tens of thausands of people around the world suffer the same disease as my grandmother, what if they receive advice on diet; maybe they would prevent from diabetes, furthermore, other presently incurable diseases. That is my goal as to be a nutrition.

 

As I stated, food science in China is developing, and not as sophisticated as that in most western countries. So it is undoubted that lots of books relating to this are written in English. My study in technical English has allowed me to recognise situation of food science on a worldwide scale, expectation of food production and marketing as well. It is incontrovertible that no one can deny that English language has being used widely and would be more extensively. To be a excellent user can benefit not only to my study but also to my career and life in future. This has contributed to my independence in learning and my competence in foreign languages is invaluable, as it will be an asset in communication within a team. I constantly seek new challenges and science provides life-long learning, and I relish the fact that I will never know it all, which means there is always something new for me to discover.

 

Being college students what we should do is not just to focus on what textbooks say, but to learn some other practical skills, like communication, collaboration , and computer operation etc. Nowadays, more and more subjects can be assisted by computers, it would seem to be less and less people can avoid using them. I have proceeded to improve skill base with self-learning in advanced using Microsoft Office System, such as Word, Excel and Powerpoint, and advanced processing database. After attending classese for C language(a computer language) in my university, I became very interested in it and displayed good aptitude in programming. Recently, I am learning to process three-dimensional image on screen with processing software as a computer relevant interest and skill. All of what I learned contribute to my logical thoughts and make me became sophisticated to solve problams.

 

I also heavily invovled in extra-curriculum activities in these years on campus. During the first summer holiday, I investigated the effects of diet, with several classmates, in a town located in ChangJiang River delta. Although this essay was not eventually published, it did reflect our endeavour. As a result of my interest of arts, my room mate, who soonly became my best friend, and I set up a painting league, where we originally taught members basic brushwork and provided them equipements and place to draw. After I went down from presidential position, two years later, it was delighted to see this group still well operated by my successors. Over last term, I worked as a volunteer in association, called "Green Revolutionists", which appeals people to protect the environment. There I had opportunity to let others know their surroundings would reflect adverse effects caused by humans. And I finished my secound year within praxis at the Food Sanitation Department in local Health and Epidemic Prevention Centre, where I learned more about food regulation and food processing practices which are critical respects for ensuring food safety.

 

I am a self motivated, determined individual and I look forward to the academic and social challenges of university and foreign country.