陳良基有意在波士頓設科技組

科技部長陳良基強調台灣需要年輕的創新人才。(周菊子攝)

             (Boston Orange周菊子劍橋市報導) 科技部長陳良基透露，將研擬在波士頓設科技組。

               在台灣被稱為"點子王"的陳良基，為推動台灣科技發展，上任以來陸續推出成立人工智能學院等不少新計畫，四月初還率團訪問洛杉磯，舊金山，紐約，波士頓等地，宣導“愛因斯坦計畫”，”哥倫布計畫”，強調該部每年至少撥10億美元支援大學院校等研發科技。

陳良基是成功大學的電機博士。(周菊子攝)

               2017年2月上任科技部長的陳良基，最近這幾年至少到過波士頓三次。第一次是他在台灣大學副校長任內到訪，第二次是去年為波士頓台灣人生物科技協會(BTBA)年會做主講人，這次和教育部攜手，邀得10大專院校正，副校長同行，到美國四個城市訪問，既為攬才，也是參訪，實地了解更多地方的研發成果與創新概況。

                         陳良基表示，這次帶三個特別訊息出訪，一是政府真的很努力的支持教學、研究，二是台灣已制定新法，包括外籍人士就業法，發放創業家簽證，藝術家簽證，提供永久居留權，家屬健保等，以吸引中外人才，甚至以科技基本法，鼓勵教授創業，三是科技部制訂了新計畫，支持青年學者回台灣，包括各為期3到5年，不限用途，每年最高撥給台幣500萬元的愛因斯坦計畫，以及每年最高撥給1000萬台幣的哥倫布計畫。

               陳良基指出，政府不只希望這些學者們回台灣，還希望他們能利用這筆經費，周遊列國訪學，把海外最好的科研知識帶回台灣，啟發，鼓勵台灣境內的科研創新。台灣的大專院校每年都有近千個職位空缺，訪問團中的10所學校，這次也帶了300個職位出來。

               陳良基強調台灣致力創新，不只關注美國，歐洲，東南亞，他上任以後也曾訪問國際間在科技創新上已頗有名聲的以色列。目前台灣和以色列及法國都有科技合作項目。
                            談到波士頓，麻州近年已成全美排名第一的創新州時，陳良基透露，在"亞洲矽谷"計畫之外，將考慮在波士頓也設科技組，以全面概括美國東西兩岸各有側重的科技發展新猷。
(更新稿)

波士頓僑教中心籲各界置換個人臉書大頭貼 聲援台灣參加WHA

                   (Boston Orange)波士頓僑教中心4月12日呼籲各界聲援臺灣參加世界衛生大會（WHA），即日起至2018年5月26日止，掃描一個貼圖特效框，來置換個人臉書大頭貼，為支援發聲

           波士頓僑教中心主任歐宏偉表示，臺灣身為地球村一員，長年善盡國際醫療合作全球防疫之責從未缺席，自2009年起連續8年以觀察員身分受邀出席世界衛生大會（WHA）。然自2017年起中國以政治因素阻擾臺灣出席世界衛生大會（WHA），嚴重影響臺灣取得國際疫情及健康照護資訊，並使臺灣成為全球防疫缺口。另依世界衛生組織憲章，健康是基本人權及普世價值，臺灣人民健康權利不應被屏除在世界醫療體系之外，此舉實有違該組織成立宗旨。

為結合海內外力量聲援臺灣參加世界衛生大會（WHA），歐宏偉請僑胞鄉親及各界好友自即日起至2018年5月26日止，踴躍更換個人臉書大頭貼，以實際行動支持臺灣參加2018年第71屆世界衛生大會（WHA），以及世界衛生組織(WHO)，展現Health for All，Taiwan Can HELP的精神及實力 。

「聲援臺灣參加WHA置換臉書大頭貼」的臉書大頭貼圖特效框，可點擊網址https://goo.gl/phe4qC，或掃描下列QR-code，登入個人臉書後置換。

AG SECURES $900,000 TO HELP STUDENTS OF ONLINE EDUCATION COMPANY

AG SECURES $900,000 TO HELP STUDENTS OF ONLINE EDUCATION COMPANY

Credit Union to Forgive Loans and Provide Refunds to More Than 200 Students

BOSTON – Attorney General Maura Healey announced today that her office has secured $898,000 from a Florida-based credit union that made loans to more than 200 Massachusetts students to finance expensive and ineffective online study materials and educational services.

Under the terms of the settlement, filed on Wednesday in Suffolk Superior Court, We Florida Financial (We Florida), a credit union with headquarters in Margate, Fla., will discharge loans made to Massachusetts consumers in connection with their purchases from The College Network, Inc., a for-profit company that marketed online study guides and educational services to students, including many prospective nurses.

The total outstanding balance on these loans is approximately $748,000. We Florida will also pay $150,000 to the Commonwealth, to be used to provide additional refunds to certain borrowers. The credit union will also seek to remove negative loan information from affected borrowers’ credit reports.

“The College Network treated their students like ATM machines,” said AG Healey. “With this settlement, more than 200 students will receive discharges and refunds and we are sending a clear message to lenders.”

The AG’s Office alleges that between January 2010 and May 2016, The College Network misled students by representing that its educational materials would enable them to earn passing scores on equivalency exams and college credit in fields such as nursing and healthcare administration.  The College Network’s educational materials consisted of online modules, with each one geared toward a specific equivalency exam. Packages of modules cost thousands of dollars—too expensive for most students to purchase outright—so the company’s salespeople arranged for students to finance their purchases with loans from lenders like We Florida. 

The Attorney General’s investigation revealed that The College Network made numerous false and misleading representations to Massachusetts residents to induce them to sign up for these expensive and defective study materials, in violation of state consumer protection laws.   The College Network later became insolvent and was administratively dissolved in 2017.

One student who hoped to use The College Network’s program to become a registered nurse borrowed nearly $8,000 from We Florida to purchase eleven modules. According to the student, The College Network’s salesperson told her that the program was affiliated with Excelsior College of New York when, in fact, no such affiliation existed. Ultimately, the consumer found the modules to be useless and enrolled in community college instead.

Last month, the AG’s Office reached similar resolutions with two Massachusetts for-profit schools. The office reached a settlement with New England College of Business and Finance, a for-profit online college based in Boston, over allegations of failing to make proper disclosures to prospective students of its programs and engaging in excessive recruitment calls. The office also reached a settlement with Empire Beauty, a for-profit cosmetology school with locations in Boston, Framingham, and Malden, over allegations of failing to provide job placement rates to prospective students and engaging in excessive recruitment calls.

Massachusetts residents who are eligible for relief under the settlement will be contacted by the AG’s Office. Anyone with questions about this settlement or complaints about The College Network, Inc. can contact the Attorney General’s Student Loan Assistance at 1-888-830-627 or file a complaint at www.mass.gov/ago/studentloans.

This matter was handled by John Michael Partesotti and Arwen Thoman of AG Healey’s Insurance and Financial Services Division, with the assistance of Shannon Roark of AG Healey’s Civil Investigations Division.

BU Innovation Week starts from 4/17

Next week at BU is going to be awesome. After you've cheered for 30,000+ marathon runners, get ready to keep that energy going for the first ever Innovation Week at BU! Celebrate and create innovation at over 20 events throughout the University and the City of Boston.  Check out all of the events you have to choose from, hosted by students, staff, and faculty. Some events require registration so make sure to click the links for more details! TUESDAY, APRIL 17TH: Global Disruptors: Lightning Talks on Global Innovations 11am-12:30pm * Project Soar: Help build the world’s largest paper airplane! 1-3pm * Questrom Dean’s Speaker Series with Nigel Travel, CEO, Dunkin’ Brands 5-6:15pm Monthly Idea Night 5-7:30pm * New Venture Competition Finals 6-9pm WEDNESDAY, APRIL 18TH: Cultural Entrepreneurship Magic School Bus Tour! 2-5pm, Registration required Spark Grant Showcase at CFA 5pm BU Venture Accelerator Demo Day 6-8pm * THURSDAY, APRIL 19TH: AR/VR Festival 10am-3pm * Earth Day Festival 11am-2:30pm Connecting the Heart to the Mind to the Wallet 11am-12:30pm, Registration required Collaborative Performances by CFA Theatre 12:30-3:15pm Steps to a Sustainable World 6-8pm * Engineers Got Talent 7-10pm InMotion Theatre: THE JOURNEY 7:30pm FRIDAY, APRIL 20TH: Changing the Climate: How Public Health, Cities, and the Media Can Advance Climate Solutions 8:30am-4:30pm Innovate & Athlete: A Talk with Dr. Kim Blair 10-11:30am * Mochi with the Office of Technology Development 3-5pm Interactive Workshop with Katy Rubin (CFA ‘07), ED of Theatre of the Oppressed NYC 4-5:30pm Creative Code & Design Mini Hack 3-7pm Innovators Networking Night: Alumni and Student Showcase 6-8:30pm, Registration required * = Hosted at the BUild Lab IDG Capital Student Innovation Center, 730 Commonwealth Avenue And don't forget! The week ends with: IDEA 2018: The Innovate@BU Conference Saturday, April 21st A one-day event to explore innovation of every kind, including enterprise, social impact, arts and culture. Afternoon session tickets are open to BU alumni and the public. Register today!

波士頓台灣人生物科技協會訂 6/2-3 舉行年會

BTBA announced it's annual symposium, held on Jun 2-3, 2018, Harvard University Science Center.

Register now to get early birds discount.

Boston Taiwanese Biotechnology Symposium is held by Boston Taiwanese Biotechnology Association (BTBA), a non-profit organization established by Taiwanese professionals in biology-related fields in 2012 in Boston. We strive to bridge the academics and industry gap in the U.S. and Taiwan and to meet the needs of professionals in biology-related fields.

This year, we are grateful to have Dr. David Y.H. Chang, Global Head at Roche Pharmaceuticals, Dr. Jui-Lien Huang, the Chairperson of AbProtix, Inc, and Dr. Rachel Meyers, Entrepreneur-in-Residence, Third Rock Ventures, as our keynote speakers. As usual, we will have a spectrum of different sessions to discuss potential career options in academic and industry, as well as tactics to advance our careers in the US and Taiwan. This year’s program also feathers trending topics in AI and data science in biomedicine, so that all of us can learn about the newest innovations in biotechnology.

Symposim website: http://btbatw.org/2018/

TREASURER GOLDBERG ANNOUNCES WOMEN’S ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT WORKSHOP IN QUINCY

TREASURER GOLDBERG ANNOUNCES WOMEN’S ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT WORKSHOP IN QUINCY

BOSTON – Treasurer Deb Goldberg has announced an additional location for the Women’s Economic Empowerment Series. The workshop, hosted by the Treasurer’s Office of Economic Empowerment (OEE) is a free program focusing on wage negotiation, money management, retirement and investment strategies for women. The workshop will be held at Quincy College on Saturday, April 28th.

“Women face unique challenges when it comes to financial security,” said Treasurer Deb Goldberg. “This Program will provide critical information that will give women the skills they need to be successful in today’s economy.”

"Quincy College is proud to host the Women's Economic Empowerment Series at our Quincy Campus located at the heart of Quincy Center.  We are thrilled to partner with Treasurer Goldberg and the Treasurer’s Office of Economic Empowerment to bring such a critically important message of empowerment and lifelong financial security to the Quincy College community and to surrounding South Shore communities," Tina Cahill, Director of Institutional Advancement at Quincy College.  

“At Citizens Bank we are committed to helping our neighbors reach their potential, and our communities thrive,” said Jerry Sargent, President of Citizens Bank Massachusetts. “Through our Citizens Helping Citizens Manage Money partnership with the Women’s Economic Empowerment Series, women are gaining the confidence and tools they need to budget, save and take charge of their personal finances.”

Women, on average, earn less than men over the course of their working lives because of the wage gap and more likely to leave the workforce to care for family members. Quincy was chosen as part of an expansion to bring economic security workshops to women across Massachusetts to help empower women and give them the tools to reach their full financial potential.

The program will include financial education workshops and salary negotiation training. Lunch will be provided to participants. For more specifics on the event details, programmatic content, and to register please visit the program’s site here. The Women’s Economic Empowerment Series is made possible by a grant from Citizens Bank.

On day one, Treasurer Goldberg created OEE to implement a range of economic empowerment initiatives including closing the gender wage gap, increasing access to financial education, improving college affordability, and investing in STEM careers and education. For more information visit http://www.mass.gov/treasury/empowerment or follow @EmpowermentMA on Twitter.

哈佛中國論談創業大賽 優膚奪冠

真格基金徐小平(中)頒發冠軍獎4萬元給優膚團隊。
(周菊子攝)

         (Boston Orange 周菊子波士頓報導)哈佛中國論談創業大賽在4月8日早上決賽，共8隊打入決賽，主打個人化護膚產品的優膚(You Skin)脫穎而出，贏得冠軍及獎金4萬元。

紀源資本童士豪(左)頒亞軍獎2萬元給Karuna。(周菊子攝)

        優膚是哈佛大學醫學院講師暨皮膚科專家楊秉琦，取得波士頓大學光子中心博士，目前在哈佛大學醫學院做博士後研究的陸洋合作的創業團隊。他們指出，在市場上搜尋適合自己的護膚產品，往往因為耗費時間，廠家廣告不實等因素，百分之五十以上的人很都不滿意。他們研發的診所級護膚品，可以精準分析各人的臉部皮膚狀態，油膩或乾燥，皺紋深淺，哪兒有斑點，再利用大數據級人工智慧，以80及90後族群為雇主要顧客對象，提供護膚建議與產品。

        當天的決賽，共有8名評審，包括紀源資本管理合夥人童士豪，真格基金創始人徐小平，真格基金合夥人暨執行長方愛之，晨興資本合夥人程宇，硅谷未來資本創始合夥人洪淼，峰瑞資本創始合夥人李豐，諾基亞成長基金管理合夥人鄧元鋆，聯想首席戰略官唐昭平。

        得到二等獎2萬元獎金，以及三等獎2個1萬5千元的團隊，依序為Karuna和Local Locker。

真格基金方愛之(右三)頒發季軍獎給Local Locker團隊。
(周菊子攝)

        Karuna為家庭提供醫療保健護理的協調服務，以大數據來達到自動化，讓顧客得到更好治療的結果。

        Local Locker以新方式找出市中心商業大樓內可用，但還未出租的空間，為業主提供創收機會，為有需要者提供更方便儲存空間。

真格基金徐小平(左二)評語最爆笑。(周菊子攝)

        根據主辦單位訊息，比賽的所有獎金名為”夢想啟動基金”，來自真格基金，紀源資本和聯想。獲得冠軍的優膚還可得到北京朝陽海外學人中心提供的海外學人創業大會邀請函，5000元人民幣機票及兩日旅遊的補貼，還可有機會獲得鳳凰計畫10萬元人民幣投資。

        在比賽講評中，徐小平對優膚的評語最爆笑。他稱讚兩名創辦人都長得特帥，可以當自己產品的代言人，但最打動人的是該團隊不僅專業性夠強，擁有高科技，更打算回中國發展。

納什維爾范德堡大學首屆中國論壇探討中國現狀 (轉載)

轉載

中國留學生主辦的第一屆范德堡中國論壇在納什維爾成功舉辦
http://www.aacyf.org/?p=8888

2018年4月7日，第一屆范德寶中國論壇由范德堡大學全球中國鏈接主辦。此次為期一天的中國論壇給范德堡的師生提供了一個就中國問題展開對話的學術平台。百人會會員，布魯金斯學會中國中心主任李成博士，衛斯理安大學 Stephen Angle在論壇發表了主旨演講。
范德堡教授Xiu Cravens，政見創始人方可成，華爾街龍舌蘭創始人孫居然，范德堡教授宋麗君，唯理學院創始人白雲鵬，有方教育聯合創始人陳才等嘉賓出席了這次論壇。
最具知名度和國際影響力的智庫布魯金斯學會的中國中心主任李成博士在談及關於在美中國人夾縫中求生的未來，他表示要相信困難只是暫時的，要對中美關係有信心。
Wesleyan的Stephen Angle教授認為，在儒家裡與他人的各種關係同等重要；並不是孔子在提倡“重人情，輕法度”(which people often believe this is how Legalism and Confucianism differ)。因此，將中國人情文化帶來的惡果（包庇、隱瞞等）歸咎於儒學是不合理的。 Angles教授還介紹了一篇他寫的關於孔子支持女權主義（聽起來很不可思議）的文章。
范德堡中國論壇由大四政治系學生劉浩陽和大二藝術史學生周韻暘領導。作為比較政治專業的留學生，劉浩陽在大學前兩年發現學校有許多對中國問題感興趣的學生，可是學校缺乏中國相關的學術資源以及就業資源。所以，她和周韻暘決定牽頭舉辦中國論壇，為不同專業和背景的學生提供一個與中國鏈接的職業學術發展平台。
此次論壇有五個主題：中美關係，中國的崛起​​和儒學的複興，教育創新，中國社會與媒體，以及中國當代藝術。除了四個演講與藝術展，此次論壇還針對在讀學生準備了三個職業發展講座，並邀請到了12位年輕有為的前輩分享他們的職業規劃。這三個職業發展講座分別是政策與法律，科技和創業。
此次論壇吸引了200位學生與來賓。來賓包括納什維爾市長辦公室的代表，範得堡大學全球校友發展辦公室主任，田納西中美商會代表，以及來自加州大學伯克利分校、北卡教堂山分校、和艾默里大學的學生和學者。
范德堡大學（Vanderbilt University），作為美國最具影響力的私立大學之一，2018年范德堡大學位列US News全美大學綜合排名第14位，享有“南方哈佛”（Harvard of the South）的美譽。傑出校友包括了2名美國副總統，7名諾貝爾獎得主。現有近4百名來自中國的留學生。
范德堡大學由於地處美國中南部農業較為發達的田納西州，這次的論壇也受到了各方的矚目。近年來，由於全美各大高校的中國留學生聯誼會的交流密切，從21年前的哈佛中國論壇、到現在東西岸知名學府的年度中國論壇和峰會，為留學生和當地的學者帶來了最新的中國信息和發展現狀。進入4月份以來，幾乎每個週末都有類似的“中國論壇”在全美各大知名學府陸續展開。將在本月28日登場的耶魯中美論壇，目前公佈的高層次的嘉賓和演講者，以及多個涉及中美多方面的議題，受到主流學界和中國問題研究專家的高度關注。 （AACYF洛杉磯訊）

AG HEALEY OPPOSES U.S. LABOR DEPARTMENT’S NEW SELF-REPORTING PROGRAM FOR COMPANIES THAT COMMIT WAGE THEFT

AG HEALEY OPPOSES U.S. LABOR DEPARTMENT’S NEW SELF-REPORTING PROGRAM FOR COMPANIES THAT COMMIT WAGE THEFT

 PAID Program Reflects Rollback of Federal Enforcement Supporting Workers

            BOSTON – Attorney General Maura Healey today joined a coalition of 11 attorneys general in strongly opposing a new pilot program from the U.S. Department of Labor that shields employers who violate labor laws from prosecution and penalties in exchange for simply paying the back wages that workers were already legally-owed.

            In a letter the coalition sent to U.S. Labor Secretary Alexander Acosta today, the attorneys general argue that the Department’s Payroll Audit Independent Determination (PAID) Program encourages employers to require their employees waive important state law protections like higher minimum wage levels and longer time periods to sue in exchange for payment of overdue wages. Even though such waivers may not be enforceable against state law enforcement entities, employees may be misled into believing they have no legal recourse to fully assert their workplace rights. The attorneys general pledge to continue to prosecute labor violations to the fullest extent of their authority regardless of whether or not employers are participating in the program.

                “Wage theft is widespread in Massachusetts and across the country, so it’s more important than ever that partners in government join together to protect workers,” said AG Healey. “Unfortunately, this self-reporting program gives many employers an incentive to underpay and exploit their employees for personal benefit. We urge the Administration to reconsider.”

            The letter raises serious concerns with the PAID program, including its release of employers from their obligation to pay liquidated damages, penalties, and interest on overdue wages. The coalition further contends that the PAID Program does not to require employers to pay employees at higher state or local minimum wage or overtime wage rates, or to pay wages owed during longer state statute of limitations periods. 

Massachusetts workers are entitled to the higher state minimum wage of $11.00 even though the federal minimum wage is only $7.25, and they have three years to bring those state claims compared to two years for unintentional federal violations. Under the PAID program, employers could require their employees to release all claims even though they are only paying overdue wages at the lower federal rate going back two years.

            AG Healey’s Fair Labor Division has made cracking down on wage theft one of its top priorities. In addition to increased enforcement, the Division has partnered with 13 community based organizations to launch monthly free legal clinics that connect workers with advocates and attorneys to ensure they are getting paid the wages they are owed. To date, the AG’s Office has helped hundreds of workers recover more than $200,000 in lost wages from its Wage Theft Clinics.

Joining AG Healey in sending today’s letter to Secretary Acosta are the attorneys general of New York, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Washington, and the District of Columbia.

Massachusetts workers who believe that their rights have been violated in their workplace are encouraged to file a complaint at www.mass.gov/ago/wagetheft. For information about the state’s wage and hour laws, workers may call the Office’s Fair Labor Hotline at (617) 727-3465 or go to the Attorney General’s new Workplace Rights website www.mass.gov/ago/fairlabor for materials in multiple languages.