8/8/2019 ASICC newsletter, Vol 1, Issue 4

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ISS. 4 2010. 10VOL. 1 Gregory and theChocolate Factory

G.SHELLNUTT.......1

Steamy windows

G.IMREH ..................2

Taipei Cinema TalkK. TAKAHASHI .........2 ASICC

timesADDRESSING THE NEEDS OF THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY OF

ACADEMICA SINICA.

Academia Sinica is keen to address the specific interests of our

international colleagues. By establishing ASICC we hope to offer a

dynamic environment and ensure a strong work/life balance.

Gregory and the Chocolate Factory

In elementary school I read Charlie and

the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl

for a reading assignment. I had found

memories of the book and I alwayswonder what it would be like to visit

chocolate factory and see river of milk

chocolate. So it was with great delight

that I jumped at an opportunity to

indulge in the pleasantries of life and

visit The World Chocolate Wonderland

exhibit on display at The National

Taiwan Science Education Center this

past weekend. The exhibit showcased

all things chocolate in a playful and

unique way. Located on the 7th floor,

the display begins with a few wonderful

chocolate molds of dinosaurs andDisney characters which then blends

seamlessly into the international

displays. Only a few countries are

represented, including my personal

favorite (Belgian chocolates), but, since

October 31st

marks the festival of Samhain (pronounced sow-an) or as we know it today,

Halloween. Halloween is a modern incarnation of the Samhain festival which originated

amongst Celtic peoples of Great Britain and Ireland many centuries ago. They believed that during

the seasonal transition from the lighter to the darker part of the year that good and evil spirits

could interact with the living. The term Halloween comes from all hallows-even (evening)

which corresponds to the day before (Oct. 31st) All Saints Day in Christianity. The modern

tradition of wearing a scary costume and carving Jack-O-lantern (original turnips) comes from theold traditions to scare away evil spirits. Recommended movies for Halloween include:

Paranormal Activity (2007), Halloween (1978), The Fog (1980), Night of the Living Dead (1968),

The Exorcist (1973) and Dracula (1931).

they are the main purveyors of

chocolates, it does not disappoint. I

had a good laugh when I saw the

Taiwan display because it shows eightauthentic Taiwanese foods (e.g. xiao

long bao, sausage, friend chicken

cutlet, soup) all made from chocolate.

The transition from the international

displays to the main exhibition passes

through the history of chocolate and

its use by Meso-American peoples as a

spicy bitter drink known as xocoatl

(pronounced so-co-la-tle). The real fun

begins in the main exhibition as there

is a Great Wall of chocolate, a life

sized terracotta warrior and numerous

smaller ones, a wall of chocolateBuddha, Taipei 101 and some

magnificent sculptures of cars, tea

pots, tigers, footwear and a personal

favorite, a violin with a broken string

(continued on page 2).

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Taipei Cinema Talk

Nights are getting cooler, but the

Japanese yen is still too strong, I

am not sure which way the

economy is going, well the same

is true in the movie world,

Greed is Good is back!!!

Gekko is back in Wall Street:

Money Never Sleeps, 23 years

ago the original movie about the

high life of fast money with

shady deals was a hit, now its

back in the recession time. This

time Gekko, seems to be a

changed man. What is his modus

operandi this time?

If you need action look no

further than Bruce Willis, it

seems like he is back again

to save the world with his allout action packed ways in

Red. Amazingly, some

people, however old they

get, take on the same

character that they did when

they were young. This time

Willis is aided by Morgan

Freeman, who seems to have

taken a different type of

character than he usually

does. Of course you can

never have an action movie

without the ever crazy JohnMalkovich, with his usual

unusual role!

For people who want slower

pace in life, there is Eat

UPCOMINGEVENTS

Workshop on Baking

Place: Mrs. Evans place

Date: Oct. 12, 2010

Time: 10:00am-11:30am

PREVIOUS EVENTS

1. BOURBON TASTING

Date: Aug. 27, 2010

2. MOVIE APPRECIATION

NIGHT

Date: July 29, 2010

3. COFFEE HOURDate: June 28, 2010

4. DRAGON BOAT RACE

Date: June 16, 2010

5. SPORT NIGHT-NBA Finals

Date: June 11, 2010-09-07

6. TUNG BLOSSOM PARK

Date: May 15, 2010

7. PINGXI DAY TRIP

Date: Apr. 18, 2010

8. POTLUCK PARTY

Date: Feb. 19, 2010

9. HIKING - Shishou Hills

Date: Jan. 30, 2010

10. ASICC Opening Dinner

Date: Jan. 22, 2010

Photo Album:

http://picasaweb.google.com.tw/asicc2010

Pray Love, a move that features

Julia Roberts. She plays a wife

searcher for more to life. Liz

Gilbert (Roberts) has everythinga modern lady will wish a

husband, a house and great

career. Well after a divorce, she

starts to take risks goes on her

own feet to live life. Italy, India,

Bali what is it she is looking

for? Will she find it? Anyway,

we all long for something in life,

whether we get it or not depend

on how much we are willing to

put into it, but at the same time,

going after it without looking at

other things may derail you, sodoing research in Academia

Sinica is good, but have some

free time to refresh yourself at

the movies.

Dont forget there are many second run cinemas throughout

Taipei which offer double features for low prices.

K. Takahashi,INSTITUTE OF ATOMIC & MOLECULAR SCIENCES

As the weather gets colder, Taiwanese start

to change what are they eating. The role of

food and drinks changes from keeping

people fresh and happy to keeping them

warm and happy. One cure for the cloudy,

rainy days is hot-pot dinner, or . Inhot-pots you have a nice soup-base and boil

various items in the pot. The soup stays,

while you fill up with what you cooked. Hot

pot restaurants are found everywhere inTaipei and can be easily spotted by their

steamed up windows. Chain restaurants like

Cash City (the basic version of hot pot) or

White Sugarcane (a bit more fancy, all-you-

can-eat version) are common but there are

many unique ones.

Just walk around Ximending or near Zhongxiao

Fuxing station and you are bound to find one.

The soups can vary a lot too: from the regular to

the quite spicy ones () - but that's notfor the faint-hearted. Or, to cater for everyone,

some pots are divided into two and you can try

two kinds of soup in one meal. So, what can you

put in the soup? Normally one would start with

vegetables to give it a good taste: cabbage,

spinach, lettuce, corn etc. Hotpot is good for

Vegetarians. On the other hand, you can add

sliced pork, beef or lamb, prawns, or almost anymeat that cooks in a few minutes. Most places

stock plenty of ice-cream to finish off. You see,

no reason to be cold this Autum: go out and

have a dinner!

G. ImrehINSTITUTE OF ATOMIC AND MOLECULAR SCIENCES

Steamy windows

CHOCOLATE from page 1

I have the distinct feeling the exhibitors were attempting to benefit from the recent Charlie and

the Chocolate Factory movie because there were elf and nymph-like creatures guiding me from

the beginning to end. Although the exhibit is aiming for children, kids of all ages can appreciate

the artisanry and creativity of the pieces on display. The exhibit runs until October 10, 2010.

J.G.ShellnuttINSTITUTE OF EARTH SCIENCES