East Japan Railway Company enters Taiwan’s fitness market

East Japan Railway Company enters Taiwan’s fitness market

2023-07-31

The fitness sector is seeing fast recovery from the pandemic, as gym goers get back to their workouts. Besides the usual chain gyms, there’s a growing crop of small independent businesses. One new market player is the East Japan Railway Company, which has opened a gym with a uniquely Japanese feel.

You certainly know what a traditional gym looks like. But have you ever seen a workout room like this one?

One yoga pose after another gets sweat dripping on the mat. The flooring is made with stone slabs that are said to speed up calorie burning with far-infrared wavelengths.

Member of public
I feel how my body sweats slowly throughout the entire workout. After the class, my body feels good, and I can see that I really sweat a lot.

This enormous 380-inch screen shows a virtual racetrack. Hop on a spinning bike and pedal away into another world.

And these aren’t your run-of-the-mill gym showers. Here, there are Japanese-style thermal baths and even a sauna.

Member of public
Sometimes I feel tired after working and coming to the gym. So I like to take a bath to speed up my circulation after I exercise. It helps me recover better.

Isamu Osawa
Gym group chairman
Taiwan’s fitness market is very attractive. The fitness club market especially has grown a lot in just a few years. That’s why we decided to enter Taiwan now. Within three years, we would like to open a second and a third branch.

East Japan Railway Company isn’t alone in jumping into fitness. Coffeehouse chain Louisa Coffee and online learning platform Gjun are also branching into health and fitness, a segment that’s valued at NT$15 billion a year.

鐵道集團跨足健身業日系健身房首開張

2023-07-31

台灣健身房產值一年上看150億，尤其疫情後消費者更注重健康，也讓健身風潮再起。除了大型連鎖業者外，小型健身據點越來越多，甚至跨業爭搶這塊"疫後經濟"。像是知名咖啡品牌露易莎、老字號電腦教育業者巨匠，還有JR東日本集團今天也宣布，正式進軍，主打日式健身特色。

傳統的健身房，民眾一定不陌生，但這樣的健身房，你看過嗎。

一連幾個瑜珈動作，民眾立刻汗如雨下，原來這裡的地板，都是用岩盤打造，號稱還有遠紅外線效果，能加速熱量燃燒。

[[民眾]]
“在我們做動作的過程中，就會覺得說，身體慢慢就一直在出汗，在做完整個課程的時候，就會覺得身體通體舒暢，發現真的流很多汗”

380英吋的特製大螢幕，出現虛擬的賽道，讓民眾一邊踩著飛輪，也能一邊體驗VR的快感。

不像一般健身房房常見沖澡間，業者打造傳統日式浴場，還有三溫暖。

[[民眾]]
“有時候我會覺得，因為我要上班，要上班，要運動會有點累，我會喜歡說，我運動完訓練完，我泡澡加速血液循環，讓我恢復更好”

[[健身集團董事兼副總經理大澤勇]]
“台灣的健身產業市場非常具吸引力，尤其是健身俱樂部，在短暫幾年內有非常大的成長，也就是我們為甚麼選擇這個時間點進到台灣，那在3年內，想要再增加第二、第三間店”

其實不只是JR東日本集團，之前知名咖啡品牌露易莎、老字號電腦教育業者巨匠，也陸續跨業搶攻一年150億元的健身商機。

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US lawmakers move to lift arms restrictions on Taiwan amid Chinese malware campaign

U.S. officials are searching for Chinese malware hidden inside American defense systems. According to the New York Times, China covertly planted malicious code inside networks supporting U.S. military bases. The malware has been described by one official as a “ticking time bomb.” If a conflict breaks out over Taiwan, China could use the code to slow down a U.S. military response. Amid the hunt for Chinese malware, U.S. House representatives have proposed a bill to lift arms restrictions on Taiwan.

Anchor
CNN
This sounds pretty terrifying. How concerned is the White House?

David Sanger
Journalist
Well they’re pretty concerned, Paula. And there have been a lot of meetings taking place in the Situation Room about this.

A Chinese malware campaign is raising alarms in Washington. According to the New York Times, China has hidden computer code in networks controlling the power grids, communications systems, and water supplies of military bases in the U.S. and around the world. This could allow hackers to disrupt or delay U.S. military operations in the event of a conflict, such as a Chinese attack on Taiwan.

Anchor
CNN
This also comes at a time that China has ramped up threats against Taiwan, which President Biden has vowed to defend. Obviously, not a coincidence, right?

David Sanger
Journalist
Not a coincidence, we think. We don’t know that this is entirely about Taiwan, but clearly partly about it.

Su Tzu-yun
Institute of National Defense and Security Research
It could create chaos in the physical world from the virtual realm of information. That’s the first thing. Second, it could cut off or confuse the U.S. military communications and battlefield management. Third, such results could affect the physical world, reducing the accuracy of U.S. troop reinforcement to Taiwan and firepower strikes. So many such instances of CCP hack attacks have been found.

Amid heightened Chinese aggression, Washington has stepped up efforts to protect Taiwan. Following lawmakers in the Senate, U.S. House representatives have proposed their own version of the Taiwan Peace Through Strength Act. The bill requires the U.S. to prioritize arms sales to Taiwan. It proposes amending the Taiwan Relations Act, so that weapons sold to Taiwan aren’t limited to those “of a defensive character.”

Wang Ting-yu
DPP lawmaker
It can be said that it seeks to strengthen Taiwan to promote peace. It provides for regular exercises and more weapons, including more advanced weapons, including weapons of a non-defensive nature, in order to deter China. There’s an extremely good chance that Congress will pass this bill. What’s worth observing is whether the White House signs it into law. This bill would greatly improve Taiwan’s security and stability and its relations with major allies.

The bill must be approved by all relevant committees and both the House and Senate. Then it must be signed by U.S. President Joe Biden before taking effect. But even at this stage, Washington has already made clear its mounting concern over the Taiwan Strait.

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Civic groups to hold ‘Stop Killing Pedestrians’ protest on Aug. 20 in Taipei

Civic groups are planning a protest for pedestrian rights on Aug. 20. They want the government to address Taiwan’s reputation as a “hell for pedestrians,” by passing a dedicated law for traffic safety. At a press conference promoting the event, lawmakers said 400 pedestrians are killed on Taiwan’s roads each year, with another 1,000 left paralyzed after getting hit by vehicles. Responding to the upcoming event, transport minister Wang Kwo-tsai pledged to take in all the public’s suggestions, in order to create a safer space for pedestrians.

Chang Yung-wei
National Association for Firefighters’ Rights
In total, firefighters in Taiwan were called out on emergencies 1.3 million times. Surprisingly, 30% of those calls, involving about 300,000 people, were due to traffic accidents.

A firefighter furnishes stats on traffic accidents as part of a campaign for pedestrian rights. The Vision Zero association will hold a protest called “Stop Killing Pedestrians” on Aug. 20 at Taipei’s Ketagalan Boulevard. The group wants transport officials to erase Taiwan’s reputation as a living hell for pedestrians.

Yu Yu-lan
KMT lawmaker
Every year, 400 pedestrians die on Taiwan’s roads.

Chiu Hsien-chih
New Power Party lawmaker
There are 3,000 injuries or deaths every year, and more than 1,000 people are left paralyzed.

Lawmakers spoke out from across party lines. They said that last year, 394 pedestrians were killed in traffic accidents. From this January to May alone, two children died after being run over. And more than 500 children were injured after being hit by vehicles. Taiwan People’s Party lawmaker Lai Hsiang-ling 賴香伶has experienced firsthand the dangers of Taiwan’s streets.

Lai Hsiang-ling
TPP lawmaker
I’m in a wheelchair because I fractured my hip bone. I had to get surgery and get two fasteners installed. The scar on my face is because I was on my scooter taking my child home from school and we had an accident. My helmet visor broke and cut my face.

Lai spoke about the difficulty of using a wheelchair in Taiwan. Uneven paving on sidewalks forces wheelchair users onto the road, where they come in close quarters with motor vehicles. Ruling and opposition lawmakers called on the government to apply the “Three Es” of traffic management: Engineering, Education and Enforcement. Already they have elicited some response. In late June, the government raised the top fine for failing to yield to pedestrians to NT$6,000. In the month since, Taipei alone has issued 2,497 fines for failing to yield.

Liu Shih-fang
DPP lawmaker
The central government has provided NT$40 billion to local governments, so that they can make improvements to transport infrastructure and engineering projects. But there isn’t enough coordination and communication between central and local governments. As the ruling party, we should strongly request that improvements are implemented.

Wang Kwo-tsai
Transport minister
The appeals of the street demonstration are consistent with the position of the ministry of transport. That is, respecting the right of way of pedestrians. We will review all the suggestions brought up with a humble mind.

With an eye on achieving “people-centered transport,” the government said it would listen to the public’s appeals. Activists are demanding the urgent passage of a traffic safety law, to make Taiwan’s roads safer for pedestrians.

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Malaysian illustrator builds AI tool to encourage others to get to know nature

A Malaysian immigrant in Taiwan has dedicated herself to helping others find their love of nature. Chang Shie Khim and her husband built an AI tool that can identify sea creatures, based on their decades of experience exploring Taiwan’s coast. Their tool helps beachcombers work out what species they have found. Chang also illustrates storybooks based on the healing power of nature, drawing on stories from childhood. All of her work revolves around her reverence for the earth, and her longing for humans to help keep ecosystems delicately balanced.

Malaysian immigrant Chang Shie Khim loves to come to the seaside to search for creatures washed up by the tide, accompanied by her husband, biologist Chen Yang-wen.

The ocean has been changing for many years. We see the rising tide of ocean waste, but we don’t see the gradual disappearance of marine species. Chang and Chen have created an AI identification database for the tidal species that they have been observing for the last 20 years.

They turn their camera onto the sea creatures they find, and the identification system can immediately produce the name of the species onscreen. So far the database can recognize almost 200 tidal species. The couple believe that only by becoming sensitive to the distinctions of nature will we learn to care for the ocean and the earth.

Chang Shie Khim
Malaysian immigrant
Although Taiwan is an island, many people don’t know the ocean. Maybe helping people get to know the ocean is a way to inspire them to love and protect it. The technology that distinguishes them is quite interesting.

Chang’s other life is her career as a storybook illustrator. Her books revolve around memories of her childhood home, such as the time when she and her father planted a rambutan tree. She also tells the story of the migration that she made together with her mother and grandmother. Her third book is about the taste of home: a wild herb feast.

Chang Shie Khim
Malaysian immigrant
The wild herbs, as the name implies, were the plants from the forest in our hometown. Tropical rainforests are gradually vanishing, so we also want to wake people up to pay attention to issues in the natural environment.

Chang’s creative projects continue. She has lots of stories to tell about the forests of her childhood, and her adventures with the creatures from the sea, and hopes her love for nature will inspire others to cherish the beauty that is around us.

This story was provided by the program "We Are Family"
Funded by New Immigrant Development Fund

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New Taipei City Youth Library focuses on digital technology at Innovative Learning Center

New Taipei City Youth Library has a new strategy, to provide technological facilities for young people. Instead of focusing on the print resources libraries traditionally center, the library has created an Innovative Learning Center, where robots, drones and other tech allow children and young adults to explore 21st century skills. They even have a new esports room with pro gaming facilities, where gamers can compete in team tournaments. Librarians want to provide less-well-off families with access to the digital resources of tomorrow.

Computers, keyboards, mice and earphones: This is the professional equipment needed for five-person team esports battles. In the middle is a huge screen for the game. This is the esports room at New Taipei City Youth Library.

Member of public
Often there are three or four teams queueing to use it. They offer very professional esports chairs, keyboards and even computers here.

And alongside the equipment, there are chairs for an audience to sit and watch the contest. You can also play on a switch and work up a sweat…

Or work out your fingers on this remote control and fly this tiny drone into the air. The Innovative Learning Center at the library offers drones and Lego robots to play with, as well as occasional innovation classes. And when you’re winding down, you can listen to a robot read a story…

Or program a robot’s actions with an app on your phone, and choreograph a dance.

Child
I often spend a whole day here, usually playing video games and then playing with drone. I play with my parents.

Chen Min-jou
New Taipei City Youth Library
Our Innovative Learning Center provides facilities such as robots, programming design tools, and drones, for readers’ use. We also want to give children from disadvantaged families access to esports, digital toys, and technological education facilities in the Innovative Learning Center.

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This candy is both a delicious treat and a traditional art.

Sugar painter Chen Wen-pin pours sugar crystals into the pan and adds water.

Chen Wen-pin
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When you boil the sugar, the ratio is about two to one, like if the sugar is two, the water is half, one. You can’t stir it when it’s cooking.

Careful work makes the dream come true. When the caramel is bubbling furiously, it becomes a beautiful golden color. It’s poured into molds and cooled. Those cooled syrup batons are heated up once more to melt them down, and then they can be used to create beautiful images.

Chen Wen-pin
Sugar painter
Then more and more children and parents wanted to give it a try. They’d say “Hey sir, can I have a go?”

Chen initially feared that kids would scald themselves on the hot caramel. So he developed this sugar art pen. It gives children an easy way to make candy art works that they can take home and eat.

Chen Wen-pin
Sugar painter
See, you can make art out of sugar. Maybe after this call you can have a think about what other objects around you you can use to make stuff. Everyone gets imaginative ideas from the sugar painting class.

Chen does not come from an art school background. He was an engineer for 20 years, struggling to balance work and life. Then he remembered a moment in his childhood when he saw some sugar painting. It made him so happy that he made a decisive career change.

Chen Wen-pin
Sugar painter
“Is this really how I’m going to live my life? Do I have to spend my whole life as an engineer? Is this what I want to be for my whole life?” Now I don’t define it as just a class. I hope people who come to the class can take it away with them in their hearts, and maybe it can be a beautiful memory for them even when they grow up.

Chen uses his experience as an engineer to offer this innovative class, and hopes his encouragement to embrace creativity will stay with his young students long after they’ve eaten their artwork.

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