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After "Taiwan Flower Tourist Train" started at Kaohsiung Station on Oct. 30, the main show - 2007 Taipei International Flower Exhibition (2007 TIFE), supervised by Council of Agriculture, Executive Yuan, R.O.C. (COA Taiwan) and organized by Taiwan Floriculture Development Association (TFDA), opened from yesterday (Oct. 31) at Taipei World Trade Center Exhibition Hall (TWTC). This show had more than 200 participating companies and organizations exhibiting products, solutions, and international specialists in flower industry. At the opening cere

Japanese fishermen in Taiji, Japan clashed with surfers from Australia and the United States. The location where dolphins are culled was moved to a secluded cove this year to hide the activity from television crews and protesters. After successfully defending the hunt, by using boat propellers and boat hooks against the group of surfers, who were joined by actress Hayden Panettiere, the fishermen have started their annual cull. Whaling in Taiji usually yields 2,000 dolphins per year using the dolphin drive hunting method. The dolphins are di

The Westboro Baptist Church has lost a lawsuit and has been ordered by United States District Court: District of Maryland to pay US$11 million to the family of Marine Lance Cpl. Matthew Snyder, a fallen soldier, who was killed while serving in Iraq. The lawsuit was filed by Snyder's father, Albert, after the church held a protest across the street from the cemetery where funeral services were being held. The church was sued for, "defamation of character, invasion of privacy--intrusion upon seclusion, invasion of privacy--publicity given to pri

Washoe, a chimpanzee that became famous for being taught to use American Sign Language (ASL), has died at the age of 42. Washoe was the first chimpanzee to learn sign language, although whether or not Washoe's and many other great apes' communication is actually language is still a subject of controversy. In the early 1960s, attempts to teach apes to speak had consistently failed. Allen Gardner and Beatrix Gardner hypothesized that this was due to physical constraints on the vocal apparati of the apes rather than a lack of brain power. To test

London's Metropolitan police force has been found guilty of endangering the public during an anti-terrorism operation that lead to the death of an innocent Brazilian man in July of 2005. The British jury at Old Bailey convicted the police force of violating the Health & Safety legislation because the operation was deemed an excessive threat to the public. They also stressed that no individual culpability should be placed on Cressida Dick, the officer in charge of the operation. The police force was fined £175,000 and ordered to pay £385,000 fo

A Mandala Airlines Boeing 737-200 overshot the runway at Abdul Rachman Saleh Airport, East Java, Indonesia after a domestic flight from Jakarta. Five passengers were injured in the incident, none seriously. The aircraft's nose landing gear is understood to have separated in the incident, in which the aircraft skidded 260 feet from the end of the runway. Five of the 89 passengers and seven crew on board received cuts and bruises during the emergency evacuation that followed. It was raining heavily at the time, although it is not known if this i

Chicago Fire advanced to the Eastern Conference Final after a 3-2 aggregate win against DC United on a pair of goals that were scored within two minutes of each other. Chicago Fire plays the winner of the New England Revolution/New York Red Bulls 2 Leg affair which is currently tied 0-0.

League leaders Bayern Munich advanced to the 3rd round of the DFB Cup after defeating 2nd division leaders Borussia Mönchengladbach 3-1. Luca Toni opening the scoring early in the 2nd half with a pair of goals. Substitute Miroslav Klose sealed the victory in the 82nd minute to make it 3-1. Bayern Munich next game is against Eintracht Frankfurt who they play on Saturday at home while Borussia Mönchengladbach are at home to Carl Zeiss Jena.

Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty said today that Essar Global has committed to fully comply with all U.S. and international law, including those prohibiting certain investments in Iran, and that he will support continued state assistance for Essar’s proposed steel project on the Iron Range. A few days after Indian company Essar Steel Holdings Limited acquired Minnesota Steel LLC, the governor of Minnesota announced that he "will strongly oppose any effort to provide state financial assistance to companies or entities that engage in prohibited b

United Kingdom's most senior traffic police officer faces charges of speeding at 90 mph in a 60 mph speed limit zone (the equivalent of speeding at 144 km/h in a 96 km/h zone). The Chief Constable of the South Yorkshire Police, Meredydd Hughes was allegedly caught speeding on the A5 road near Chirk in north Wales. Hughes was caught by a camera that takes photographs of speeding cars. He is known as one of the main advocates for nationwide installation of such cameras. Hughes is set to appear at Wrexham Magistrates Court on November 21, 2007.

Canadian Finance Minister Jim Flaherty announced a five-year program that could reduce taxes by a total C$60 billion. The planned tax reduction measures include: Low-end personal income tax rates would be reduced from 15.5% to 15%, taking retroactive effect to the start of 2007; The basic personal exemption, the amount at which income is taxable, is raised from C$8,929 to C$9,600, also backdated to January 2007; Business tax rates are expected regularly drop from the current 20.5% to 15% in 2012; The Goods and Services Tax that applies t

The centenary celebrations of Indian freedom fighter Pasumpon U.Muthuramalingam Thevar begin in Tamil Nadu amidst tight security arrangements. The Chief Minister, M.Karunanidhi as well as the AIADMK supremo J.Jayalalithaa have organized functions in Thevar's native village Pasumpon in Ramanathapuram district in commemoration of this event. Sporadic instances of violence and group clashes have been reported. U.Muthuramalinga Thevar, prominently known as Pasumpon Muthuramalinga Thevar after his native village Pasumpon in Ramanathapuram district,