Georgia Asian Times August 1-15, 2014

Covering The Multicultural Asian American Community in Georgia

www.gasiantimes.com

August 1-15, 2014

How Ebola is spread: Taxis, boats, & planes

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August 1-15, 2014 Georgia Asian Times

Georgia Asian Times August 1-15, 2014

Publisher: Li Wong Account Manager: Adrian West Contributors: Andrian Putra, May Lee, Mark Ho

Tel: 678-971-9388 Advertising: gat@gasiantimes.com Editorial: info@gasiantimes.com URL: www.gasiantimes.com Mailing Address: P.O. Box 4502 Suwanee GA 30024 Copyright Georgia Asian Times 2004-2014

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All Rights Reserved: including those to reproduce this printing or parts thereof in any form without permission in writing from Georgia Asian Times. Established in 2004, the Georgia Asian Times is published by Asiamax Inc. All facts, opinions, and statements appearing within this publication are those of writers and editors themseleves, and are in no way to be construed as statements, positions, endorsements by Georgia Asian Times or its officers.

Georgia Asian Times assumes no responsibility for damages from the use of information contained in this publication or the reply to any advertisement. The Publisher will not be liable for any error in advertising to greater extent than the cost of space occupied by the error and will only be made for a single publication date.

The Publisher reserves the right to reject any ad or articles submitted for publication that may not be in good taste for a free publication.

GAT Calendar of Events GAT welcome submission of announcement pertaining to community related events.

Please email event, date, venue, and time to gat@gasiantimes.com.

GAT does not guarantee insertion of event announcement and has the right to deny any posting.

Laotian American National Alliance (LANA) Conference “Next generation Leadership: Connections and Building Bridges�

Date: August 1-2, 2014 Venue: UPS World HQ, 55 Glenlake Parkway, NE, Atlanta GA 30328 For more info: Anasone Silivongxay, email: anasone.lana@gmail.com Gwinnett Center International Film Festival Date: August 1-3, 2014 Tickets: starting at $8.00 Venue: 6400 Sugarloaf Parkway, Duluth GA 30097 3rd Annual Back to Business Conference for Metro Atlanta Presented by Atlanta City Council President Ceasar C. Mitchell, U.S. Small Business Administration, U.S. General Services Administration Date: Tuesday, Aug 19, 2014 Time: 9:00 am - 1:00 pm Venue: Atlanta City Hall, 55 Trinity Avenue, SW, Atlanta GA 30303 Admission: Free & registration required

For more info: www.backtobusiness2014.eventbrite.com or 404-3306052 International Food Festival featuring Taste of Taiwan Date: Saturday, Aug 30, 2014 Time: 11:00 am - 6:00 pm Venue: Duluth Festival Center, 3142 Hill St., Duluth GA 30096 Facebook: Taste of Taiwan in Duluth Hong Kong Dragon Boat Festival Atlanta Date: Saturday, September 13, 2014 Time: 7:00 am - 5:00 pm Venue: Clarks Bridge - Kayaking Facility, Lake Lanier, Gainesville For more info: www.dragonboatatlanta.com JapanFest 2014 Date: Sept 20-21, 2014 Time: 10:00 am - 6:00 pm Venue: Convention Center at Gwinnett Center 6400 Sugarloaf Pkwy, Duluth, GA 30097 Cost: $8 / Children under 6 free

Taste of Chamblee 2014 Presented by City of Chamblee and The Georgia Lions Lighthouse Foundation Date: Saturday, October 4, 2014 Time: 12 noon - 7:00 pm Venue: Downtown Chamblee Admission: Free 10th Atlanta Asian Film Festival Date: October 10-24, 2014 Venues: Lefont Sandy Springs GSU-Cinefest, Georgia Gwinnett College, University of West Georgia-Caroollton For more info: www.atlaff.org

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August 1-15, 2014 Georgia Asian Times

METRO ASIAN NEWS

Honoring the sacrifices of Georgia’s Korean War Veterans Atlanta, July 25, 2014 — An official ceremony honoring Korean War Veterans in Georgia and in the memory of 740 Georgians killed in the Korean War was held at the Georgia State Capitol earlier today. The ceremony was organized by the American Korea Friendship Society and the Good Neighboring Foundation.

Over several dozens Georgia Korean War veterans attended the ceremony led by Mr. Robert McCubbins, President, Korean War Veterans Association-Davis Chapter. Each of the veterans were handed a rose flower by young Korean American children in gratitude over their sacrifice and service.

Ms. Bok-ryeol Rhyou, Deputy General, Republic of Korea, led a wreath laying ceremony to remember the 740 Georgians victims of the war.

“We will always remember the supreme sacrifice by these brave soldiers in defending our country from the enemy,” said Deputy Consul General Rhyou.

Additional wreaths were laid by Mr. Robert McCubbins, representing Korean War Veterans Association, and Mr. Galen Oelkers, representing Rotary Club of Atlanta.

Several officials including Sam Olens, Georgia Attorney General, Major General Jim Butterworth, Georgia Adjutant General, Tim Lee, Commission Chairman, Cobb County, and General (Retired) Larry Ellis, Chairman of American Korea Friendship Society.

“This ceremony always bring back powerful memory of witnessing those brave American soldiers serving in the war torn Korea. I was only a young child then and will always be grateful for their sacrifice to help the Koreans,” said Sunny K. Park, the lead organizer of the event in his remarks.

This year also marks the 61st anniversary of the Korean War Armistice.

The special bond was “forged in blood” during incredible acts of heroism, courage and sacrifice by the United States military after suffering 33,686 battle deaths, 2,830 non-batlle deaths, and 8,176 missing in action.

Today, South Korea is a free and vibrant democracy and remains a strong committed partner of the United States. It stands as the 15th largest economy in the world.

Meng Lim win seat for Tallapoosa Superior Court Judgeship Tallapoosa, July 23, 2014 — Haralson County attorney Meng Lim won the majority of vote in a run off election against Polk County attorney Chuck Morris on Tuesday. Lim’s accomplishment accorded him as the first Asian American to be elected as Superior Court Judge in Georgia.

Haralson County turned out more than 2 to 1 in favor of Lim’s favor where 2,174 to 927 in favor of their hometown candidate, according to northwestgeorgianews.com.

Lim was the favorite in both Haralson and Polk counties. The final tally was 3,986 to 2,471.

Lim, an immigrant from Cambodia ran his campaign in memory of his late brother who is a veteran of the United States Navy. Lim’s family moved to Bremen when he was 9 years old, was the Bremen High School valedictorian of 1991 and a graduate of Emory University and the Mercer Law School.

“I want to thank my brother for being in my mind. I’m doing all this in his memory,” he said. “It’s been a good part of this campaign in trying to remember him in all of this.”

Lim also thanked his core group of supporters and their handwork over the campaign which started in March 2014.

“I do want to thank so many people who supported me during this process, including my family, friends, volunteers and so many people who I met during the campaign who were so kind to me and supportive of my ideas I had on the direction I wanted to see the court go in,” he said.

Meng already has specific ideas for his newly elected position, where he would like to hear more cases more than once a week in order to remove court backlogs.

Lim remains humble despite his victory and said that he will remain “someone that the people can believe in, that people in our judicial system can trust.”

He was recently honored as GAT 25 Most Influential Asian Americans in Georgia at a banquet dinner on July 10.

Georgia Asian Times August 1-15, 2014

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PROFILE

Meet Gwinnett’s first Asian American women Fire and Emergency personnel

Stella Kim Community Risk Reduction Public Information and Education Gwinnett County Department of Fire & Emergency Services

Stella Kim was two years old when her parents immigrated to the U.S. She grew up assimilated to the American schools and its way of life.

“A friend had told me of a job posting

by Gwinnett Fire Department seeking bilingual expertise in training,” said Kim.

Stella attended the University of Georgia and graduated with a major in Comparative Literature. Upon graduation, Stella decided to try her hand in teaching as she enjoys parting her knowledge with others.

Stella applied and was hired for her Korean bilingual language skills along with her teaching experiences in February 2013.

An opportunity came in the form of employment as an English teacher in Korea.

She has been happy experiencing life as an overseas Korean teaching English in her parents native land.

When her contract as an English teacher completed, Stella actively seeks out new opportunities.

“My duties included disseminating important information and educating the minority communities in Gwinnett County on all aspects of fire safety,” said Stella.

Stella spent countless hours getting in touch with community leaders through churches, cultural events, fundraising, dinners, and gatherings.

Her objective is to introduce free programs including fire safety classes,

CPR, day care safety, and car seat inspections to the growing multicultural communities in Gwinnett.

“I would like for the community to benefit from the wonderful programs that we offered including the free smoke alarm installations.”

Stella had the distinction being the first Asian American woman fire personnel working in Gwinnett County.

“It has been a lot of fun working here. I also have witness many “eye-opening” situations that prevent injuries during training to the public.”

With the Summer season in full swing, Stella is working closely with Safe Kids Gwinnett, a non-profit organization, educating safety programs to children under the age of fourteen.

“Water safety and drowning prevention are the key topics that we teach to the kids.”

Stella has also been working hard to educate Asian American businesses in Gwinnett to embrace fire safety and programs.

“Many businesses had realized that the programs not only protect the assets but increase the values in the long run,” adds Kim with a broad smile.

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METRO ASIAN NEWS

Carter Center celebrates 35th US-China anniversary of diplomatic relations Atlanta, July 17, 2014 — The Carter Center’s China Program organized a Chinese art exhibition in commemorative of the 35th US-China diplomatic normalization. The exhibit was organized in partnership with The Chinese Artists Association.

President Jimmy Carter spoke about the relevance of Chinese art to him and recalls the historic visit by Chinese Vice Premier Deng Xiao Ping to the U.S. in January 1979.

“The love of art transcend the international boundaries. It helps normalize the relationship between the two countries,” said President Carter.

31 masterpieces with vivid images and styles were on displaced at the exhibition. Works by by 31 famous Chinese painters were especially selected for the commemorative exhibition.

Ambassador Qiangmin Li, Consul General of People’s Republic of China, Houston and Mr. Changjie Li, Chairman, Golden Dragon Precise Copper Tube also spoke at the event.

“It is very special for us to be part of the celebration. NACA has been very involved in promoting understanding and building bridges between the Chinese and American since 1979,” said Lani Wong, Chair of National Association of Chinese Americans (NACA), who also spoke at the panel presentation.

A delegation of over 30 artists representing the Chinese Artist Association participated at the event.

August 1-15, 2014 Georgia Asian Times

David Perdue defeat Jack Kingston in Republican Senate runoff Atlanta, July 22, 2014 — Businessman David Perdue has defeated longtime Rep. Jack Kingston in a Republican runoff for Georgia’s U.S. Senate nomination, setting up a general election matchup against Democrat Michelle Nunn.

On Tuesday night, unofficial returns showed Perdue with a lead of more than 6,000 votes, with about 93 percent of precincts reporting.

In a concession speech in front of supporters, Kingston expressed support for Perdue in November’s general election.

“We will win in November, we will keep Georgia in the Republican column,” Kingston said. “But far more importantly, let’s keep at it, let’s do our homework, so we can turn this country around.”

In another closely watched race, Barry Loudermilk beat Bobb Barr to take Republican Rep. Phil Gingrey’s seat in Congress.

Loudermilk, a state senator from Cassville who represented Floyd County before redistricting, defeated former congressman Bob Barr in a GOP runoff for Gingrey’s House seat in the 11th District.

The district was shifted east following the 2010 census to cover Bartow, Cherokee and parts of Cobb and Fulton counties.

No Democrats ran for the seat, essentially giving Loudermilk a free pass to Washington in the fall.

Georgia Asian Times August 1-15, 2014

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BUSINESS “Being technically strong, I was made supervisor to oversee over 100 technicians in the company,” said Van proudly.

The owner of the company later decides to retire and closed the company.

Van had to seek new employment - he later joined DirecTV and was overseeing Alabama, Georgia and Missouri markets.

“I wasn’t happy with the travel out of states and being away from home from my family. I decided to quit after about seven months.”

Van’s positive attitude and hard work reputation is well known in the industry. Comcast later came calling and offered Van a job as an in-house technician.

Lynne Pang and Van Huynh, owners of Premier Telecommunication Services (PTS) and Pacific Watch.

Hard work and determination brings success to wiring specialist The Vietnam War brought famine and economic destructions that Vietnam takes several decades to rebuild.

Millions of its people desperate for better life escaped to neighboring countries by planes, boats, and any means of available transportations.

Van Huynh was a young man who witnessed hardship and economic struggles in the post-war country.

Like millions of Vietnamese people, he dreamed of a better life for himself and his family. He made the daring escape by boat and was rescued at sea

by Thai authorities.

Huynh was one of the lucky ones who survived the ordeal as many others had perished in their journey to freedom. “I knew that I had to leave my country for a better life. Otherwise, I would end up being dead,” recalls Van Huynh vividly.

He ended up in refugee camps from 1981 to 1984 in Thailand and Bataan, Philippines. “I was processed and chosen to come to America. I landed

at San Francisco with nothing much except the clothing on my back,” said Van with a smile.

“The thing I remembered most was the cold weather in San Francisco — I don’t have any appropriate winter clothing to keep warm.”

Being a new immigrant, Van struggled to find jobs as his skills are not relevant to the job market. Nevertheless, he persisted until a friend suggested that he try his hand as an electrical wiring technician.

“I was very reluctant in the beginning as I was afraid of electricity and heights,” said Van with laughter.

Van, being a studious person, learns fast and quickly mastered the skills required for the technician job.

He decided to relocate to Atlanta in 2000 as there are more economic and growth opportunities in this city. Van joined TCI Cable as a technician contractor and later promoted to become a supervisor.

While working at Comcast, he stumbled across an interesting program offered by Comcast to minority contractors.

Comcast is fast expanding its scope of services especially the lucrative business market segments. The company also seek to expand its diversity program to offer opportunities to minority contractors.

“Comcast offers me an opportunity to be my own boss,” said Van with a smile. Van and his wife, Lynne set up a company - Premier Telecommunication Services (PTS) in 2004 offering wiring and technical services.

PTS officially became an authorized Comcast contractor in 2008. They focus on commercial works specializing in phone, internet, security, cable installations.

PTS has experience double digit growth every year - doubling every year since its founding. PTS became the second largest Comcast commercial installer in Georgia and sixth largest residential installer in 2013.

The company had experienced a remarkable 40 percent growth in 2013.

“It has been an amazing journey so

far. We started the company with 2 only people — our company now hires 70 technicians and 30 office staffs,” said Van proudly.

Van and Lynne are grateful to their dedicated employees. “We’re lucky to have good people who are committed to their work and works hard everyday.”

They are not resting on their laurels yet. Recently, they have formed another company - Pacific Watch to provide security monitoring services to commercial business and residential.

Pacific Watch specializes in fire & burglary alarm monitoring, data cabling, access control, CCTV services, and home theater automation.

“We are just extending our scope of services that we’re already have the expertise. This new business is an extension of what we do best,” said Van. As for the new business, there are untap pockets of opportunities in the marketplace.

“We believe that we can help other Asian American communities tap into these growth opportunities. We want to share our success with those who are willing to work hard,” said Van. Van and Lynne have been generously donating their money and services to non-profit groups and charitable celebrations in the Vietnamese community in Georgia.

“We believe in giving back. Someone has given us a chance earlier in our path to success, now is the time for us to do the same,” said Van with a twinkle in his eyes.

Premier Telecommunication Services (PTS) Comcast Business Class - Authorized Contractor Tel: 678-691-9094 Pacific Watch Commercial and Residential www.PacificWatchSecurity.com Tel: 404-436-2222

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August 1-15, 2014 Georgia Asian Times

LIFESTYLE

In-flight WiFi more important than ever to travelers Line your bar shelf with these award winning spirits London, July 24, 2014 - If you’re looking to add more bottles of spirits and liqueurs to your bar collection, consider consulting the list of winners from the latest edition of an international spirits competition, that aims to highlight the crème de la crème.

Winners of the 45th edition of the International Wine and Spirit Competition out of the UK have been announced, including trophy winners in categories like best gin, liqueur, bourbon whiskey and cognac. All spirits were sampled in blind tastings.

Here are some of the trophy winners for 2014: Bourbon Whiskey: Blanton’s Gold Edition Bourbon Whiskey

Liqueur: Mozart Gold Chocolate Cream Rum: Rhum Agricole Vieux Niesson Single Malt Scotch Whisky-15 years: The Balvenie Single Barrel First Fill Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky 12YO Single Malt Scotch Whisky-no age statement: Glenfiddich 125th Anniversary Edition Single Malt Scotch Whisky Single Malt Scotch Whisky-over 15 years: Bowmore Islay Single Malt Scotch Whisky 25YO Tequila: El Tesoro Anejo Tequila Vodka: Adnams Longshore Vodka

Cognac: Delamain Cognac XO Contemporary Gin: Bourbon Barreled Big Gin London Dry Gin: See-Gin Bodensee Dry Gin

Worldwide brandy: KWV Grape Brandy 12YO Worldwide whiskey: Kavalan Single Malt Whiskey

Staying connected while off the ground is as important to travellers as in-flight beverage service, according to a recent study conducted by Honeywell Aerospace.

From its survey of 1,000 Americans who used WiFi on a plane within the past 12 months, the company concludes that the majority of passengers view connectivity as a key factor when choosing an airline.

Two thirds of respondents (66%) said that the availability of in-flight WiFi influences their choice of air carrier. Furthermore, 22% said they have spent more on airfare just to have WiFi, and 17% chose not to fly with their former preferred airline because a competitor offered better WiFi options.

Nowadays, the ability to connect to the internet is regarded by many as just as essential as in-flight refreshments, or perhaps even slightly more so.

Thirty-seven percent of respondents said they would be upset if there was no WiFi on their next flight, compared to 35% who would be upset if they were not offered food or beverages for purchase.

Beyond the mere ability to connect to the web, passengers have come to expect a high-speed connection that allows them to quickly download large

files, stream videos and communicate with their contacts on the ground.

Many of them would even be willing to go through airport security twice (45%) or to arrive three hours before boarding (34%) if it meant they could enjoy a faster connection during the flight.

However, while they want to surf freely and quickly, over half of travelers (54%) say they would be embarrassed if their in-flight neighbor caught a glimpse of what they were doing online to pass the time, such as looking at dating websites (50%), watching cat videos (32%) or watching children’s movies (30%).

Delta, Air France, KLM, Emirates and Japan Airlines are some of the names on an ever-growing list of airlines that already offer WiFi on certain flights, often for an extra fee.

Georgia Asian Times August 1-15, 2014

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FEATURE

went to a market in Guinea before returning, unwell, to her home village in neighboring northern Liberia.

The woman’s sister cared for her, and in doing so contracted the Ebola virus herself before her sibling died of the haemorhagic fever it causes.

Feeling unwell and fearing a similar fate, the sister wanted to see her husband - an internal migrant worker then employed on the other side of Liberia at the Firestone rubber plantation.

How Ebola is spread: Taxis, boats, & planes London, July 31, 2014 — For scientists tracking the deadly Ebola virus in West Africa, it’s not about complex virology and genotyping, but about how contagious microbes - like humans use planes, bikes and taxis to spread.

So far, authorities have taken no action to limit international travel in the region. The airlines association IATA said today that the World Health Organization is not recommending any such restrictions or frontier closures.

The risk of the virus moving to other continents is low, disease specialists say. But tracing every person who may have had contact with an infected case is vital to getting on top of the outbreak within West Africa, and doing so often means teasing out seemingly routine information about victims’ lives.

In Nigeria, which had an imported case of the virus in a Liberian-American who flew to Lagos this week, authorities will have to trace all passengers and anyone else he may have crossed paths with to avoid the kind of spread other countries in the region have suffered.

The West Africa outbreak, which began in Guinea in February, has already spread to Liberia and Sierra Leone.

With more than 1,200 cases and 672 deaths, it is the largest since the Ebola virus was discovered almost 40 years ago.

Sierra Leone has declared a state of public emergency to tackle the outbreak, while Liberia is closing schools and considering quarantining some communities.

“The most important thing is good surveillance of everyone who has been in contact or could have been exposed,” said David Heymann, a professor of infectious disease epidemiology and head of global health security at Britain’s Royal Institute of International Affairs.

The spread of this outbreak from Guinea to Liberia in March shows how tracing even the most routine aspects of peoples’ lives, relationships and reactions will be vital to containing Ebola’s spread.

The original case in that instance is believed by epidemiologists and virus experts to have been a woman who

She took a communal taxi via Liberia’s capital Monrovia, exposing five other people to the virus who later contracted and died of the Ebola. In Monrovia, she switched to a motorcycle, riding pillion with young man who agreed to take her to the plantation and whom health authorities were subsequently desperate to trace.

“It’s an analogous situation to the man in the airplane (who flew into Lagos and died there),” said Derek Gatherer of Britain’s Lancaster University, an expert in viruses who has been tracking the West Africa outbreak closely.

Liberia’s Ebola case count is now 249 including 129 deaths, according to latest data from the World Health Organization - although not all are linked to the Guinea market case.

Gatherer noted that while Ebola doesn’t spread through the air and is not considered “super infectious”, cross-border human travel can easily help it on its way. “It’s one of the reasons why we get this churn of infections,” he said.

The risk of the Ebola virus making its way out of Africa into Europe, Asia or the Americas is extremely low, according to infectious disease specialists, partly due to the severity of the disease and its deadly nature.

Patients are at the most dangerous when Ebola haemorhagic fever is in its

terminal stages, inducing both internal and external bleeding, and profuse vomiting and diarhoea - all of which contain high concentrations of infectious virus.

Anyone at this stage of the illness is close to death, and probably also too ill to travel, said Bruce Hirsch, an infectious diseases expert at North Shore University Hospital in the United States.

“It is possible, of course, for a person to think he might just be coming down with the flu, and to get onto transport and then develop more critical illness.

That’s one of the things we are concerned about,” he said in a telephone interview.

He added, however: “The risk (of Ebola spreading to Europe or the United States) is not zero, but it is very small.”

Heymann noted that the only case in which an Ebola case was known to have left Africa and made it to Europe via air travel was in 1994 when a Swiss zoologist became infected with the virus after dissecting a chimpanzee in Ivory Coast.

The woman was isolated in a Swiss hospital and discharged after two weeks without infecting anyone else.

“Outbreaks can be stopped with good infection control and with understanding by people who have been in contact with infected cases that they have to be responsible,” Heymann said.

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August 1-15, 2014 Georgia Asian Times

FOCUS

Why did the Peking Duck cross the country?

Beijing, July 29, 2014 - Where does Peking Duck come from? It is a trick question: the dish named for China’s capital has its origins in Nanjing, hundreds of kilometers to the south.

China’s then capital in the eastern province of Jiangsu, and the dish only came to Beijing when the Ming dynasty Yongle emperor moved his seat north in the 15th century.

The tidbit is one of the revelations in a museum opened earlier this month to mark the 150th anniversary of the Quanjude restaurant, now the seven-story flagship of a chain with franchises as far away as Australia.

Fuchsia Dunlop, a British writer who specializes in Chinese food, describes today’s Peking duck as “a more recent innovation”.

Statues of roasters, photos of officials dining and menus going back 100 years trace the duck’s route from humble waterfowl to culinary institution.

No secret ingredients are revealed, but around 20 models detail each stage of the duck’s journey to the plate.

Slaughtered when it weighs around three kilos, pumped full of air to separate skin from fat, the bird is gutted and filled with boiling water to help a sweet basting syrup penetrate the meat before being dried, coated and roasted.

“The baking time is about 50 minutes,” a museum panel reads. “The roast duck coming out of the oven looks plump, in a color of jujube red all over its body, full of oily luster, with a crisp skin, a fresh and tender mouthfeel, tasting delicious but not oily, bearing a subtle fragrance of the fruit tree.”

A roast duck style was first developed in the court kitchens of Nanjing,

“When Quanjude was set up, in 1864, the guy who started it employed some chefs who worked in the imperial palace and they used this hanging up technique from imperial kitchens to roast the duck,” she said.

“It’s a clay oven, with the ducks hanging inside, with a fruit wood fire in the mouth of the oven.”

Once cooked the bird is dissected at the table by a skilled chef, his hands usually protected from the heat only by a flimsy plastic glove as he reduces the carcass to precise sections of meat and slivers of crispy skin.

“If he has a good cut, he can cut it into a hundred slices,” says Dunlop.

At the restaurant, diner He Yufan said: “When I watch the chef cut it, he makes it look like art. That’s why it feels good to eat it.”

Her friend Guo Jin was indifferent to the birthplace of the dish. “Beijing is the only place in the world that has

authentic Peking duck,” she said. “You can’t get this anywhere else.”

Duck diplomacy According to Quanjude, which boasts of having sold 196 million ducks around the world, the dish has played its part in Chinese international relations.

Its chefs would accompany Chinese diplomatic missions and pictures in the museum show Henry Kissinger and Richard Nixon, who made a landmark visit to China in 1972, eating duck.

“Ping-Pong diplomacy, Maotai diplomacy and roast duck diplomacy were once called the three great diplomatic maneuvres of China by (former Premier) Zhou Enlai,” a panel says, referring to China’s pungent fermented sorghum spirit.

On one occasion, Zhou dined with Charlie Chaplin in 1954 in Geneva, where the British actor was living in exile from the US after questions were raised over his alleged Communist sympathies.

“I have a special feeling for ducks,” Chaplin is quoted as telling Zhou. “I created a character who is hilarious when walking, and his posture is from the duck, so I do not eat duck as a rule.

But I will break rules this time.”

Gastronomic traditions There has been talk of Beijing applying next year to have Chinese food included on UNESCO’s list of global intangible cultural heritage, which so far only includes a few culinary items, among them French haute cuisine and Japanese dietary customs called washoku.

According to Dunlop the Quanjude museum is part of a nationwide trend to showcase China’s gastronomic traditions.

She attributes the phenomenon to a hugely popular television program, “A Bite of China”, that highlighted different areas’ cuisines and dishes.

“Lots of their cooking techniques have existed for centuries and are very specific, depending on the region they are coming from in this huge country,” she said.

The show “encouraged people to stop taking it for granted, showed them it’s something to be proud of and learn about, and tell the outside world about”, she added.

It “seems to have really woken Chinese people up to the fact that they have an amazing food culture and it’s part of their heritage”.

Georgia Asian Times August 1-15, 2014

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ENTERTAINMENT

Hello Kitty designer defends cute character as cat turns 40 Hong Kong, July 18, 2014 – The flamboyant designer of Japanese cartoon and global mega-brand Hello Kitty defended the cute cat against new rivals yesterday as the character prepares to celebrate her 40th birthday. hellokittySpeaking on the sidelines of the Hong Kong Book Fair, Yuko Yamaguchi took the concept of life imitating art to another level, wearing a Kitty-style strawberry dress with dyed auburn hair piled into two buns topped with a red ribbon ? the cat’s signature accessory.

As Kitty enters her next decade, she faces increasing competition from more cutting-edge cartoons like Brown and Cony, the bear and rabbit mascots of Tokyo-based messaging app LINE, which has taken Asia by storm in recent months.

But Yamaguchi insisted Kitty would cope with growing older in a digital age.

has been the lead designer of Hello Kitty since 1980 and promotes herself as the character’s best friend.

“There are new cartoon characters that are coming out daily… (but) I think Hello Kitty is the only one that can adapt to the changes in the world,” Yamaguchi said.

“She is very motivated and open and wants to face the future,” she says of the character.

The moon-faced mouthless white cat first appeared in 1974 on a coin purse in Japan and has since built up a worldwide fanbase, appearing on everything from handbags to sex toys.

Her image is licensed by Japanese company Sanrio, which says on its website that it makes more than US$5 billion in retail sales each year. Hello Kitty is its flagship brand.

Yamaguchi, at the Hong Kong fair to tie in with its new Japan Pavilion,

There are plenty of detractors of Hello Kitty’s sweetness ? entire blogs are dedicated to tearing down the cute icon, with online spoofs depicting her like a horror movie character.

But Yamaguchi insists her appeal can endure.

“There are already three generations of fans that like Hello Kitty, so I hope that there will be more fans like that in the future, like people in a family loving Hello Kitty together,” she said.

The main Hello Kitty 40th birthday celebrations will take place later this year, including the first ever fan convention, hosted in Los Angeles at the end of October.

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August 1-15, 2014 Georgia Asian Times

LIFESTYLE

Judy Joo brings Korean flavors to home cooks

New York, July 29, 2014 — Riding the wave of global popularity of Korean cuisine, chef Judy Joo travels around her parents’ homeland and adopts kimchi, pickled cabbage, and other local dishes for home cooks on her Cooking Channel TV show “Korean Food Made Simple.”

A: I just realised I didn’t have a passion for it. All of my free time in the weekends I was really excited to pick up food magazines and figure out what new restaurants opened up, what hot chefs were doing, and keeping up with the pulse of the restaurant world as opposed to the pulse of Wall Street.

Joo, a former Wall Street bond salesperson, will open her first restaurant, Jinjuu, in London later this year. The two-floor, 100-seat eatery, whose name means pearl in Korean, will showcase Korean and American street food.

Q: Did you have regrets about your career change?

It will be a departure from the upscale tasting menus of the Playboy Club London, where she spent nearly three years as executive chef.

The 39-year-old New Jersey native spoke about her love of food, her career change and why Koreans have separate refrigerators for kimchi.

Q: What can viewers learn from your show?

A: It’s about me traveling throughout Korea, to the south to the beaches, to the city to eat some street food ... gathering inspirations and taking them back to my home kitchen and cooking recipes that are simple and easy for the home cook.

Q: When did you know you no longer wanted to sell bonds?

A: I was making a fraction of what I made in the financial world. The hours are awful. You are working Saturday night ... I try not to glamorize it because it is a lot of hard work. But if you work hard, the money will come.

Q: For people already familiar with kimchi, what is another Korean ingredient you recommend to the American home cook?

A: Gochujang (a Korean chili paste) is a product of wonder. There is no reason why it can’t be the next Sriracha or ketchup. I’m using it in all areas of my cooking. It’s not just heat. It’s spiced with deep complex flavors that come from the fermentation process.

Q: Do you make your own kimchi?

A: I don’t make my own on a regular basis because it really smells. I don’t want to make my refrigerator reek.

That’s why Koreans have kimchi refrigerators.

Cucumber Kimchi (four servings) 1 pound small Korean, Persian or Kirby cucumbers 1 tablespoon kosher salt or sea salt 4 scallions or spring onions, chopped into 2- to 3-inch pieces 1 medium onion, roughly chopped 1 small clove garlic 1-inch piece ginger 2 tablespoons water 1 tablespoon Korean chili flakes (gochugaru), or to taste 1 tablespoon sugar 1 tablespoon salted shrimp (saewoo jut) 15 chives, cut into 2-inch pieces Using a small knife, cut each cucumber crosswise into 2-inch pieces. Stand the pieces on their cut sides. Cut each piece two-thirds of the way down into

quarters lengthwise, keeping them attached at the bottom. Sprinkle the cucumbers with salt, making sure to stuff inside the cuts of the cucumbers.

Place in a single layer on their cut sides in a glass or other non-reactive dish, cover, and let sit at room temperature for 1 hour to soften.

Meanwhile, prepare the chili paste mix. In a food processor combine all of the remaining ingredients except for the chives. Pulse until a coarse paste forms. Stir in the chives. Rinse the salted cucumbers very well under cold water, making sure to evacuate the crevices, and shake dry.

Spread open the cucumbers and using plastic gloves, stuff the chili mix into and around each piece generously.

Place into a container, packed somewhat tightly, and press in any remaining chili paste and liquid. Seal tightly.

Allow the cucumbers to ferment at room temperature for 24 hours. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Georgia Asian Times August 1-15, 2014

Page 13

SPORTS

Open champion McIlroy wants to achieve more Ohio, July 30, 2014 — Rory McIlroy embellished his status as one of the game’s best players with his wire-towire win at the British Open nine days ago, but has put that behind him as he strives to achieve further goals before the end of this year.

The Northern Irishman has made a habit of stringing together red-hot runs of form during his burgeoning career and has set his sights on clinching a maiden World Golf Championships crown at this week’s WGC-Bridgestone Invitational in Akron, Ohio.

“I’ve obviously had a bit of time to reflect after the (British) Open and everything, but just decided I wanted to move on and move forward,” world number two McIlroy told reporters at Firestone Country Club yesterday.

“There’s a lot of big tournaments left this year, a lot of golf left to play and a lot of things I still want to achieve. So I definitely wasn’t going to dwell on what I’d done at Hoylake (venue for the British Open).

“I want to move on and start by playing well again this week. I’ve never won a World Golf Championship. I’ve got three majors but never won one of these, so there’s a lot of stuff still to play for.”

McIlroy said he would only be ready to savor his successes once the season was over.

McIlroy is scheduled to tee off with American world number six Matt Kuchar in tomorrow’s opening round at Firestone, one of his favorite venues on the PGA Tour.

“You’ve got to keep moving forward and keep thinking about what you want to achieve from now until the end of the year,” he said. “And then at the end of the year, you can really reflect on everything you’ve done and enjoy it.

“This is one of the best courses we play all year,” said McIlroy, who recorded successive top-10 finishes at Firestone in (2010, 2011 and 2012. “I really look forward to this week.

“So it’s a springboard. I feel like I’ve got a lot of momentum, and I can carry that through to the end of the year.

Hopefully ride that and play some really good golf, and some golf similar to what you saw at Hoylake.”

“All the players really enjoy it because of the atmosphere, because you’re guaranteed four days of golf.

It’s on a great golf course and guys just enjoy coming here and playing.

It’s a good test.”

Though McIlroy has suffered a few lapses in form, most notably last year when he struggled to adapt after changing his equipment manufacturer in January and having to cope with legal distractions, he has already achieved more than most of his peers.

Stirring runs Victories at the 2011 US Open and the 2012 PGA Championship gave him two major trophies to cherish by the age of 24 and he followed up on both successes with a stirring run of form.

“I always feel like winning a major is almost a springboard in a way,” said the 25-year-old, who has already triumphed seven times on the PGA Tour. “Especially after the (2012) PGA (Championship) at Kiawah, I didn’t want to rest on that. I’d already had a pretty good year, but I wanted to just keep going.

“I set myself a goal. I want to win the FedExCup. I want to win the Race to Dubai. I want to keep that No.1 position in the world.

“Every time you have success, you need to reassess your goals because it’s only halfway, two-thirds through the season, and a lot of the goals that I set myself for the start of the year, I’ve achieved already.”

Real Madrid sign Colombia’s James Rodriguez Madrid, July 22, 2014 — Real Madrid have signed Colombia midfielder James Rodriguez from Monaco, the La Liga club said today. james.rodriguez“Real Madrid and AS Monaco have reached an agreement for the transfer of James Rodriguez that will see keep him at the club for the next six seasons,” Real said in a statement on their website.

The World Cup’s Golden Boot winner with six goals will be presented at the Bernabeu later today and is Real’s

second major signing of this transfer window after Germany midfielder Toni Kroos from Bayern Munich.

No details of the fee for Rodriguez were disclosed but media reports said it was around €80 million.

Page 14

August 1-15, 2014 Georgia Asian Times

SPORTS The Portuguese recently hit out at the wage demands of new United defender Luke Shaw, but Van Gaal said he would not let Mourinho get under his skin.

“He shall not do that with me,” Van Gaal, who appointed Mourinho as his assistant while at Barcelona, said.

“I play against Chelsea and not against Jose Mourinho. My team and his team are playing against each other.”

Don’t expect instant success, van Gaal warns Man U fans Washington DC, July 30, 2014 — New Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal has warned fans not to expect instant success, saying it will take three months for his players to get used to his style and methods.

The Dutchman, brought in following the sacking of David Moyes less than 10 months after taking the job at Old Trafford, is introducing a 3-4-1-2 formation and increasing the technical demands on his players.

United, who finished outside the European places in seventh last season, play Swansea City, Sunderland and Burnley in their first three Premier League matches but despite a relatively comfortable start, Van Gaal warned against immediate success.

United reportedly spent close to £60 million on Shaw and Spanish midfielder Ander Herrera last month but van Gaal said he was determined to give opportunities to the young players already at the club.

And the way you see Barcelona still playing with six players from my time is because I gave a lot of chances to the youth players.

“The structure and the culture of the club is Xavi, (Andres) Iniesta, (Carles) Puyol, (Victor) Valdes. Thiago Motta, I also gave his debut and he is playing in Paris St Germain, not a little club.

“At Bayern Munich, it was the same.

You can see that in (Thomas) Mueller, (David) Alaba, (Toni) Kroos, that kind of player, so I am always for the long term not the short term.

“When I buy, I buy players for the long term, not the short term because I do respect the club a lot.”

“When you see Ajax, I had the youngest team to win the Champions League with 17, 18, 19-year-old players.

“I say things as they are, so you have to adapt to that way of coaching. It’s not so easy, and also the way I train and coach is in the brains and not the legs.

“A lot of players are playing intuitively and I want them to think and know why they do something. That’s a process that is difficult at first.

“When we survive for the first three months, it will be the same as at Bayern (Munich). After three months there, we were seventh (in the Bundesliga) and third in the Champions League (group stage).

“We had to win at Juventus, we did and that was the turning point.”

No mind games

“Every club where I have been, I have struggled for the first three months,” Van Gaal told reporters on the club’s pre-season tour in the United States.

“After that, they know what I want, how I am as a human being and also as a manager because I am very direct.

Van Gaal, who led the Netherlands to third place at the World Cup in Brazil, said he turned down an approach by Tottenham Hotspur before taking the United job, and would not engage in verbal sparring with Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho.

Louis van Gaal speaking with new Manchester United signing Luke Shaw at training.

Georgia Asian Times August 1-15, 2014

Page 15

HEALTH Healthy lifestyle key to childhood cancer survivors Following a healthy lifestyle may lower childhood cancer survivors’ risk of developing the metabolic syndrome, says a study.

Adults who had cancer as children are known to be at increased risk for the metabolic syndrome, a group of risk factors that increases the likelihood of developing heart disease and other health problems such as diabetes and stroke.

People with the metabolic syndrome have some combination of factors including high blood pressure, abnormal cholesterol and glucose levels, and increased body fat.

Kirsten Ness from St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis and her colleagues looked to see if lifestyle habits might affect cancer survivors’ risk of developing the metabolic syndrome.

Can exercise, physical relaxation help with social anxiety?

Toronto, July 20, 2014 — Researchers at Queens University in Canada challenged the common association of yoga and other exercise-based relaxation activities with relief from tension, stress and anxiety, concluding they can be beneficial to those with social anxiety.

According to clinical psychology PhD candidate Adam Heenan, such activities are quite literally able to change people’s perception of the world, reducing threatening and negative feelings.

“This is a big development because it helps to explain why exercising and relaxation techniques have been successful in treating mood and anxiety disorders in the past,” says Heenan.

In the study, subjects were asked to either perform muscle relaxation exercises similar to yoga, jog on a treadmill

The team studied 1,598 childhood cancer survivors who were cancer-free for at least 10 years.

The findings indicate that children with cancer and adults who had cancer when they were children should receive information about how their lifestyle may influence their long-term health.

“In addition, adopting a lifestyle that includes maintaining a healthy body weight, regular physical activity, and a diet that includes fruits and vegetables and that limits refined sugars, excessive alcohol, red meat, and salt has potential to prevent development of the metabolic syndrome,” said Ness.

The study appeared online in the journal CANCER.

those who simply stood on the treadmill,” says Heenan.

A total of 66 male and female participants between the ages of 17 and 29 were assessed, although no information on their state of mental health at the time of the study is mentioned and their level of social anxiety was assessed solely by means of Heenan’s tests.

Heenan added that the result was the same when the group who performed progressive muscle relaxation exercises was compared to the control group.

To test subjects’ perception, Heenan asked participants to view a point-light display of a human walking and asked them to identify whether the figure was approaching them or not.

More subjects said the figure was walking towards them, a sign of social anxiety and intimidation, before their relaxation exercises rather than after.

“We found that people who either walked or jogged on a treadmill for 10 minutes perceived these ambiguous figures as facing towards them (the observer) less often than

The findings were published in the journal PLOS ONE, although this is not the first academic study to conclude that relaxation exercises have significant health benefits.

In 2011 researchers in New Orleans found that not only does yoga reduce anxiety, it can also improve heart health.

Researchers worked with 49 patients who suffer from atrial fibrillation, a condition characterized by irregular heart rhythms provoked by miscommunication among the heart’s natural electrical signals.

The test groups showed significantly reduced symptoms after a three-month yoga intervention.

Could a high-fat diet inhibit sense of smell? and the water, leading researchers to believe that a high-fat diet can interfere with communications between olfactory neurons.

The metabolic syndrome was present in 31.8 percent of the participants. Females who did not follow the guidelines were 2.4 and males were 2.2 times more likely to have the metabolic syndrome than those who followed the guidelines.

Cancer survivors should not smoke.

or, in the case of the control group, just stand on the treadmill.

Tallahassee, July 22, 2014 — Researchers from the neuroscience department at Florida State University conducted an experiment on mice which, for the first time, made a scientific association between a bad diet and a reduced sense of smell.

In a quasi-Pavlovian technique, researchers taught mice to associate a particular aroma with a reward, in this case, water, while feeding the test group a high-fat diet.

The test group was slower to make the association between the aroma

Researchers later diversified the aromas, introducing a new one to eliminate the possibility that a high-fat diet blocks just one scent, and the test group was, again, slow to respond.

“Moreover, when high-fat-reared mice were placed on a diet of control chow during which they returned to normal body weight and blood chemistry, mice still had reduced olfactory capacities,” says Biological Science Professor Debra Ann Fadool. “Mice exposed to high-fat diets only had 50 per cent of the neurons that could

operate to encode odor signals.”

Encouraged by the doors their project could open, lead study author Nicolas Thiebaud, a post-doctoral researcher at Florida State, and his colleagues plan further research in which they will incorporate exercise into the diet-olfactory experiment.

They also plan to try the experiment using a high-sugar diet instead of a high fat diet to see if it affects the sense of smell in the same way.

“This opens up a lot of possibilities for obesity research,” says Thiebaud.

The study was published in the Journal of Neuroscience.

Page 16

August 1-15, 2014 Georgia Asian Times

Misc Asia

Student survivors of South Korean ferry disaster continue testimonies Chinese officials paint rectangular running track Beijing, July 29, 2014 - Chinese officials painted a rectangular running track at a stadium as they rushed preparations for a visit by their superiors, state media reported today.

Pictures posted online showed the running surface had the normal oval shape, but the white lines marking out each runner’s lane were angled at 90 degrees.

Internet users leaped on the revelation. “Leaders, this is the newly developed right-angled running track,” wrote one poster on China’s Twitter-like Sina Weibo, imitating the tone of a lower-ranking Chinese official reporting to his superior.

“We have become the first country in the world to have such tracks! I believe (Chinese athletes) will outperform other countries’ (athletes) after scientific training on such a running track!”

China National Radio described the forestry administration stadium in Tonghe county, in the northeastern province of Heilongjiang, as having “rectangular tracks” around the football pitch.

“It is difficult to turn and easy to fall,” local resident Gong Xiaona told provincial television program Newsnight.

It quoted a stadium staffer as saying the previous track had become worn down by long use.

“The current tracks were laid in a rush to deal with the visit by some provincial leaders,” he said.

“We ourselves feel it’s ugly. But who can change it if our bosses don’t care?”

It is not unknown for local officials in China to come up with eccentric ideas to curry favor with their bosses or cope with inspections.

A publicly-funded orphanage in Jieyang in the southern province of Guangdong had its facilities transformed into government offices and dormitories, according to previous state media reports.

When provincial authorities mounted an inspection last year, social welfare officials attempted to borrow orphans from a nearby temple.

Nearly a dozen more students, who were among the 75 students to survive the Sewol ferry disaster, arrived at a local courthouse in Ansan, South Korea, on Tuesday for a second day of testimony against the 15 crew members who fled as the vessel sank off Jindo Island.

sengers. Video footage of their escape triggered outrage across South Korea.

On Monday, six teenage survivors, whose names were withheld to protect their privacy, described how they were given repeated orders not to move from their cabins.

Many of those killed were students from the same school on a class trip.

Only 172 people, including the 75 students, were rescued and the rest are presumed to have drowned.

The students from Danwon High School near Seoul revealed how chaotic the scene on the ferry was, saying they wore life jackets and were helped by friends to float out and leave flooded rooms. One of them said she saw some schoolmates swept away by the waters.

Passengers on board the ferry had been told to stay on board as it was sinking.

The six girls Monday were the first of 75 student survivors to give evidence in the trial at the Gwangju district court for two days, which has been moved to Ansan south of Seoul to accommodate the students.

Last week, the country’s forensic agency said it was impossible to determine the cause of death as the body was badly decomposed.

Five of the students gave their evidence on Monday in the courtroom while one testified from another room via closed-circuit television.

The surviving crew members, including the captain, face charges ranging from homicide to negligence for abandoning the ship ahead of the pas-

More than 300 people died after the ferry Sewol capsized on a routine trip on April 16, making it one of South Korea’s worst civilian maritime disasters.

The trial comes after businessman Yoo Byung-un, who heads the family that owned the sunken ferry operator, was found dead in June.

Earlier on Tuesday, Yoo Byun-un’s driver, Yang Hoe-jung, turned himself in, which could potentially unlock the mystery of the man’s final days after the disaster.

Yang is thought by authorities to have been with Yoo, in the days before his body was found by a farmer at an orchard on June 12.

Georgia Asian Times August 1-15, 2014

Page 17

Misc Asia Kerry – speaking by telephone with his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov – called for an immediate stop to the cross-border heavy weapons fire.

The statement also said Kerry refused to accept Russian denials that its heavy weapons are striking Ukraine targets. For its part, the Russian Foreign Ministry said the two diplomats agreed on the need for an immediate cease-fire in the eastern region.

U.S. analysts say the Malaysian airliner was shot down by a missile near the Russian border on July 17. U.S. experts have concluded that a Russian SA-11 “Buk” missile downed the aircraft and that ill-trained rebels likely fired the missile, believing the aircraft belonged to Ukraine’s military.

Downing of MH17 may be a war crime, according to U.N. The U.N. high commissioner for human rights says the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 in rebel-held eastern Ukraine “may amount to a war crime.”

Navi Pillay said Monday in a statement “the horrendous shooting down” of the aircraft was a violation of international law that “may amount to a war crime.”

She called for a “prompt, thorough, effective, independent and impartial investigation” into the downing of the plane.

Pillay said every effort will be made to ensure that anyone committing serious violations of international law in the Ukraine conflict, “including war crimes” will be brought to justice, “no matter who they are.”

Meanwhile, fighting in the area where the plane crashed has forced a team of international investigators to abandon plans to gain access to the site

for a second straight day. The team of Dutch and Australian experts said earlier Monday the group was renewing efforts to reach the site.

In another development, the U.S. State Department released satellite images Sunday showing what it says is proof that Russian forces are firing rockets and artillery across the border into eastern Ukraine.

The images, released in a four-page document, show what U.S. analysts say are multiple rocket launchers and artillery fire coming from Russian territory.

Other images show impact craters near military positions in eastern Ukraine, where government forces are battling pro-Russian separatists.

Moscow has not commented on the pictures, which were released as fighting raged near the rebel-held eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk.

Separately, a State Department statement said Secretary of State John

Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak’s office said Sunday that Malaysian police will soon join the monitoring team in Ukraine to “provide protection for international crash investigators.”

Also Sunday, Dutch authorities said they had identified the remains of the first of 227 shootdown victims transported last week from eastern Ukraine to the Netherlands.

Body parts from 71 other victims are thought to be strewn across the largely inaccessible crash site. – VOA

One third of China’s wealth controlled by top 1 percent, says report Beijing, July 26, 2014 — The top one per cent of households in Communist-ruled China control more than one third of the country’s wealth, while the bottom 25 per cent control just one hundredth, official media said, citing an academic report. chinaThe 2012 figures contained in a Peking University report released late yesterday reveal the massive breadth of China’s social inequality, a widespread source of anger in the country.

The wealth gap is also of significant concern for the ruling Communist Party, which places huge importance on preserving social stability to avoid any challenge to its grasp on power.

“One per cent of households at the top level nationwide control more than one third of the country’s wealth.

Twenty-five per cent of families at the bottom level only own one per cent of the country’s wealth,” the website of the People’s Daily newspaper said late yesterday in a report on the university’s statistics.

“The difference between wages in

the cities and the rural areas is the main reason behind China’s unequal wealth,” the newspaper added.

The report includes an alarmingly high Gini coefficient, a measure of inequality with 0 representing total equality and 1 representing total inequality.

Government statistics claim the figure stood at 0.47 in 2012, which would put it close to the US, which had an index figure of 0.56 in 2009, according to the World Bank.

The Peking University report puts the figure for “family households” in China in 2012 at 0.73, the People’s Daily said.

It is unclear if the social groups analyzed in the report are different to those surveyed by authorities.

Since taking office as president last year, Xi Jinping has touted the catchphrase “Chinese dream” which, though vaguely defined, is meant to encourage unity, national rejuvenation and pride.

Page 18

August 1-15, 2014 Georgia Asian Times

TECH A smartphone with a 4-day battery life possible in the near future Thanks to the smartphone’s status as the Swiss army knife of the average consumer’s digital life, battery life is fast becoming the number one feature that people look for when choosing a handset.

Unfortunately, battery technology isn’t moving at the same pace as every other component in the latest generation of smartphones, meaning that, if anything, battery life is becoming comparatively shorter.

However, that might not be true for long.

Researchers at the University of Stanford believe they have essentially created a new type of battery that could offer three times the life of today’s smartphone and tablet cells and have published their findings in the latest edition of science journal Nature.

At the moment the only way to double or triple a handset’s battery life while on the go is to invest in a case with an integrated second battery or to carry a standalone battery pack that can be plugged into the phone to top up the power when the battery’s about to die.

Of course, as battery life is a hot topic, similar reports about breakthroughs make the headlines on a regular basis, but what makes this discovery, by the team headed up by Yi Cui, a professor of Material Science and Engineering, exciting is that it may have solved a problem that was at the core of existing lithium ion batteries.

If lithium could be used in both the electrolyte and anode of a cell, efficiency would be significantly boosted.

However, until now, doing so would create a highly volatile and unstable battery. Lithium expands in an uneven and unpredictable manner and can twist and deform a battery, cause overheating, short circuiting and for the battery to crack and seep its charge. That’s why the anode of a battery is made from silicon or graphite, which have predictable behavior.

However, the team has found a way of using lithium in both ends of the cell by fencing in the anode with a honeycomb layer of carbon nanospheres.

And while the new battery requires further testing, if it can be proved to be stable and can be easily mass produced, then the next generation of smartphones, tablets and even electric cars could boast between 100% and 200% greater battery life between charges.

As Steven Chu, the former US Secretary of Energy and Nobel Laureate who was also part of Yi Cui’s team, told Physics.org: “In practical terms, if we can improve the capacity of batteries to, say, four times today’s, that would be exciting. You might be able to have cell phone with double or triple the battery life or an electric car with a range of 300 miles that cost only US$25,000 -- competitive with an internal combustion engine getting 40 mpg.”

In-flight WiFi more important than ever to travelers Staying connected while off the ground is as important to travewifi. flylers as in-flight beverage service, according to a recent study conducted

by Honeywell Aerospace.

From its survey of 1,000 Americans who used WiFi on a plane within the past 12 months, the company concludes that the majority of passengers view connectivity as a key factor when choosing an airline.

Two thirds of respondents (66%) said that the availability of in-flight WiFi influences their choice of air carrier. Furthermore, 22% said they have spent more on airfare just to have WiFi, and 17% chose not to fly with their former preferred airline because a competitor offered better WiFi options.

Nowadays, the ability to connect to the internet is regarded by many as just as essential as in-flight refreshments, or perhaps even slightly more so.

Thirty-seven percent of respondents said they would be upset if there was no WiFi on their next flight, compared to 35% who would be upset if they were not offered food or beverages for purchase.

Beyond the mere ability to connect to the web, passengers have come to expect a high-speed connection that allows them to quickly download large files, stream videos and communicate with their contacts on the ground.

Many of them would even be willing to go through airport security twice (45%) or to arrive three hours before boarding (34%) if it meant they could enjoy a faster connection during the flight.

However, while they want to surf freely and quickly, over half of travelers (54%) say they would be embarrassed if their in-flight neighbor caught a glimpse of what they were doing online to pass the time, such as looking at dating websites (50%), watching cat videos (32%) or watching children’s movies (30%).

Delta, Air France, KLM, Emirates and Japan Airlines are some of the names on an ever-growing list of airlines that already offer WiFi on certain flights, often for an extra fee.