20131212 TIME_Pilots Need Special Qualification to Land in Beijing Due to Smog

With large swaths of dense smog blanketing much of eastern China, officials have informed pilots flying to Beijing that they must first undertake special qualifications for landing in low visibility.

According to the state-run China Daily newspaper, pilots flying from any of the country’s ten busiest airports to Beijing must be qualified to land using just their flight instruments in the event that excessive pollution slashes visibility to just 400 meters.

(MORE: Here Are Some Great Things About Toxic Air in China: Officials)

“It is part of a series of measures the administration took recently to raise the flights’ on-time performance,” read the article, according to Reuters.

China’s airports are infamous for massive delays, while the increased consumption of coal during the winter months in the country’s north is responsible for enveloping the area with thick clouds of smog.

TIME_Scenes of China's Heavy Smog

Read more: Pilots Need Special Qualification to Land in Beijing Due to Smog | TIME.com http://world.time.com/2013/12/12/pilots-need-special-qualification-to-land-in-beijing-due-to-smog/#ixzz2nkdyc5JK

20131213 TIME_One Map Shows You Why Pollution in China is So Awful

While the increased coal consumption that accompanies winter in northern China is known to fill the skies with more smog during the colder months, this year has been particularly bad. Smog has enveloped almost the entirety of China’s eastern coastline this month and blanketed the country’s financial hub Shanghai, shutting down schools and airports.

According to news outlet Quartz, the 22 coal plants in the area around Shanghai alone are responsible for more than 4,000 premature deaths a year. Currently, there are more than 2,300 coal-powered plants spewing out polluted fumes in China. To get a better idea of where the facilites are operating in China currently, check out a this map created by Greenpeace. A more interactive graphic can be found here.

Read more: One Map Shows You Why Pollution in China is So Awful | TIME.com http://world.time.com/2013/12/13/one-map-shows-you-why-pollution-in-china-is-so-awful/#ixzz2nkdUFUkF

20131208 TIME_China Bans Shark-Fin, Bird’s-Nest Soups From Official Events

In the latest crackdown on political extravagance, China is banning shark fin and bird’s-nest soups from official receptions, and prohibiting lower-level officials from staying in suites on business trips.

The document is aimed to “promote frugality, oppose extravagance and enhance the anti-corruption efforts among Party and governmental authorities,” according to Xinhua. Chinese President Xi Jinping has pledged to address public outcry over political corruption and fiscal waste.

Read more: China Bans Shark-Fin, Bird's-Nest Soups From Official Receptions | TIME.com http://world.time.com/2013/12/08/china-bans-shark-fin-birds-nest-soups-from-official-events/#ixzz2nkd1mY5k

20131110 TIME_Deadly Typhoon Haiyan Devastates the Philippines, Heads for Vietnam

http://world.time.com/2013/11/10/deadly-typhoon-haiyan-devastates-the-philippines-heads-for-vietnam/

23131217 TIME_Freak Snowfall Hits Vietnam; First Cairo, now this?

It’s strange enough that torrential downpours have been lashing Vietnam during its dry season, stranger still that temperatures in the north have dropped below the freezing point and blanketed the region in snow.

Local tourists piled into cars and drove north to see the freakish snowfall, forming five-hour traffic jams along mountain roads, according to Al Jazeera.

The news comes on the heels of another freakish snowstorm that swept through the Middle East and blanketed Cairo in snow for the first time in decades.

Read more: Snow in Vietnam | TIME.com http://world.time.com/2013/12/17/freak-snowfall-hits-vietnam/#ixzz2nkbmWjOK

20131213 Mirror_Cairo snow: Egyptian capital sees snowfall for the first time in 112 YEARS

It is a city known for being hot and stuffy.

But as these incredible pictures show, Cairo has an altogether different look today.

The Egyptian capital has seen snowfall for the first time in 112 years.

As reported by Buzzfeed, Egyptians who had witnessed snow for the first time in their lives were left amazed  - with the Arabic word for snow trending on Twitter.

Incredible pictures showing the normally sultry city were also posted. One of the more bizarre images showed a camel sitting down in the snow.

Other countries including  Turkey, Syria and Israel also experienced widespread snow.

Temperatures have dropped so much that in Turkey they have been below the monthly average by almost 10C.

越南北部下雪http://news.tvb.com/world/52aeb1306db28ca068000006/

20131128 【晴報】巨型基因三文魚 美將上架

【晴報專訊】美國首批基因改造的三文魚將推出市面，並成第一種可供食用的基因改造肉類。這批「科學怪魚」比野生三文魚體型大一倍，輿論擔心一旦流入大自然，會令野生三文魚絕種。

美食品及藥物管理局首度審批的基因改造三文魚已進最後階段，料基因改造鱒魚和非洲鯽魚也加快研發。這批基因改造三文魚由美國生物科技公司AquaBounty研發，加入大洋鱈魚和帝王鮭的基因，促使牠們體內的荷爾蒙快速增長，刺激食慾，全年都會生長。以十八個月大的基因改造三文魚體型作為例，一般可長至廿四吋長、重三公斤，部分重可五公斤，比野生或養殖三文魚大一倍。

憂野生三文魚絕種

目前AquaBounty研發的基因改造三文魚子已獲加拿大批准生產出售。有批評人士擔心，若基因改造的三文魚流入河流後，會搶奪野生三文魚的糧食，加上兩種魚類進行繁殖後，有機會令野生三文魚絕種。

AquaBounty強調有多項措施避免情況發生。初期魚子會運送到巴拿馬西部的內陸養魚場，遠離河流和海洋，經急凍後才運往美國和世界各地。