Mac’s Web Log

I participated in a seminar this afternoon at National Taiwan University of Science and Technology about computer/cyber crime prevention & development in information security (電腦犯罪的防治與資安技術發展).

The (main) reason that I signed up for the talk is because one of the speaker is Dr. Henry C. Lee (李昌鈺博士). I must first declare that I’m not a big fan of him, all I want to know is what he has to offer in his talk about forensic science (I AM a big fan of CSI though ).

He’s a funny person, and he speaks mostly in Mandarin with some English jargons here and there. He asked the audiences several questions in-between his talk and gave out presents to the people that answered them. You get to choose between a badge which he claimed you can sell it on eBay for US$29 or a miniature torch that you can sell it for more than US$30. Anyway, I didn’t answer any of the questions, so I don’t have any souvenirs so show.

The second speaker is Police Lieutenant-General Amporn Charuchinda from Thailand. His talk was a shock to everyone. I think the organizing committee will be checking speaker’s presentation slide next time if they are to host a conference such as this in the future. Why? Maybe Pol. Lt. Gen Charuchinda wasn’t aware that Taiwan is not as dangerous as Thailand that we don’t see dead people all the time, or maybe he wasn’t aware that those that come to the talk aren’t forensic scientists. His slides are way too graphic that I don’t think anyone besides him, and less than a handful of people saw something like that. There were a lot of images on crime scenes, dead people (without pixelization), close up view on wounds and blood spatters, autopsy, etc. He started by telling us a story (and shows lots of crime scene photos) about the death of Hangthong Thammawattana (a wealthy former Bangkok MP) in 1999. It is not until recently that people start see it as a suicide case rather than a murder case and he explained why. After that he showed photos and 3 complete videos on people who is committing suicide with small hand gun (just to show that it is possible to have the dead person still holding the gun after he/she’s dead). Maybe I watched too much CSI, I think I’m rather immune to them

HANGTHONG CASE: Noppadol’s top servant under scrutiny (2003/04/11)

Scots crime solver is a wanted man in Thailand (2003/11/07)

Ecosse: Body of evidence (2003/11/16)

A Scottish forensic scientist tells Kenny Farquharson how he was dragged into the murky world of Thai politics as he probed a millionaire’s mysterious death

Khunying Porntip Rojanasunan (Dr. Death) (2004/01/11)

World beats a path to blood-spatter specialist’s door (2004/07/17)

Third autopsy: Hangthong killed himself (2006/02/17)

Noppadol cleared in Hangthong murder (2007/09/28)

The Criminal Court cleared Noppadol Thammawattana of conspiring in the murder of his brother Hangthong in Thailand’s longest running family feud, citing weak evidence.

Court Acquits Brother of Former MP in 8-Year-Old Murder Case (2007/09/28)

The Criminal Court has decided to acquit Noppadol Thammawattana of charges of first degree murder after the death of his brother, former MP, Hangthong Thammawattana. The court cited insufficient evidence to prove the suspect’s guilt.

Because Dr. Lee and Pol. Lt. Gen Charuchinda talked for too long, therefore the third speaker Prof. Tzong-Chen Wu (吳宗成博士) only quickly mentioned about TWISC (TaiWan Information Security Center) and iCAST (International Collaboration for Advancing Security Technology). Nothing as exciting as the previous two in this talk. Well, it is very unlikely to have anything more exciting than those

While everyone was thinking about that and as the conference came to an end, the host asked if anyone has any questions about today’s talk, someone raise his hand and he said: 我是319真調會與行動聯盟召集人梅峰 (Mei-Feng) …..

He wanted to ask if all Dr. Lee cares are evidence why did he influencing the investigation (that’s a stupid question, how can evidence not affecting the investigation!) . He and Dr. Lee started to argue and shouting and things were getting a little out of hand (I was thinking on my mind, shit, now I can’t get an autograph from Dr. Lee, he’ll be in such a bad mood now ). Anyway, Dr. Lee was escorted out from the conference room (there goes my autograph…) and Mei-Feng was nowhere to be seen then. Too bad I didn’t record the whole dispute with my Canon camera, or else it will be very exciting to show it to my family and friends.

p.s. I’ve seen Porntip on National geographic’s “Crime Scene Bangkok” and I kind of remember she discussed Hangthong’s case on the show. I hope to see this show again

Inside Crime: Crime Scene Bangkok

Dr Pornthip Rojanasunan is Thailand’s renowned forensic expert– famous for arriving at homicide scenes with her trademark spiky hair and trendy clothes. She loves her work – trying to find the truth behind unexplained deaths by cutting and slicing her way into corpses. In Thailand, the police investigate crime scenes, gather and decipher evidence, and then decide whether or not to bring charges. In this system, when a suspect has financial resources, corruption can lurk behind every crime. “Crime Scene Bangkok” is a film about a woman’s fight to bring more transparent justice to the people of Thailand, as she tries to bring an outdated forensic system into the 21st century.

p.s. From the way Pol. Lt. Gen Charuchinda talks about Porntip, it is very clear that Porntip aren’t very welcome in the Thai police.

Living Darfur is a song by Mattafix recorded to raise awareness of the inhuman suffering of peoples of the Darfur area in Africa.

I first heard fragments of this song on the News on TV. Thanks to Google and my excellent Internet searching ability/skill, I was able to find the name of the song and the artist who sings it within an hour

A report from GLOBE FOR DARFUR, please refer to the website for full text

The first single ever to have been recorded in a war zone by an international artist will be launched today (Sunday 16th September).

The single, ‘Living Darfur’ by Mattafix was filmed in the refugee camps on the Chad/Darfur border where over 200,000 people have been killed over the last four years.

The project is backed by a host of international names. Desmond Tutu, Matt Damon, Elle MacPherson, the Black Eyed Peas and many others have supported the project by appearing in the video holding slogans demanding action on Darfur. The project was funded by Mick Jagger.

All artist royalties from this single will be donated to Oxfam, Crisis Action, and the Save Darfur Coalition to support their work on the Darfur crisis but the main purpose of the single is to raise awareness of the crisis.

The single is being released to coincide with the ‘Global day for Darfur’ which will see campaigners in fifty countries take to the streets to demand an end to the slaughter. It is designed to put pressure on world leaders meeting at the opening of the United Nations General Assembly next week.

Video on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JJtvNHPWUO8

iTunes Store: Digital Music / Music Video

Mattafix’s Official Website: http://www.mattafix.com/

Reference: http://www.cdc.gov/flu/avian/

What is avian influenza (bird flu)?
Bird flu is an infection caused by avian (bird) influenza (flu) viruses. These flu viruses occur naturally among birds. Wild birds worldwide carry the viruses in their intestines, but usually do not get sick from them. However, bird flu is very contagious among birds and can make some domesticated birds, including chickens, ducks, and turkeys, very sick and kill them.

Do bird flu viruses infect humans?
Bird flu viruses do not usually infect humans, but several cases of human infection with bird flu viruses have occurred since 1997.

How are bird flu viruses different from human flu viruses?
There are many different subtypes of type A influenza viruses. These subtypes differ because of certain proteins on the surface of the influenza A virus (hemagglutinin [HA] and neuraminidase [NA] proteins). There are 16 different HA subtypes and 9 different NA subtypes of flu A viruses. Many different combinations of HA and NA proteins are possible. Each combination is a different subtype. All known subtypes of flu A viruses can be found in birds. However, when we talk about “bird flu” viruses, we are referring to influenza A subtypes chiefly found in birds. They do not usually infect humans, even though we know they can. When we talk about “human flu viruses” we are referring to those subtypes that occur widely in humans. There are only three known A subtypes of human flu viruses (H1N1, H1N2, and H3N2); it is likely that some genetic parts of current human influenza A viruses came from birds originally. Influenza A viruses are constantly changing, and they might adapt over time to infect and spread among humans.

What are the symptoms of bird flu in humans?
Symptoms of bird flu in humans have ranged from typical flu-like symptoms (fever, cough, sore throat and muscle aches) to eye infections, pneumonia, severe respiratory diseases (such as acute respiratory distress), and other severe and life-threatening complications. The symptoms of bird flu may depend on which virus caused the infection.

How does bird flu spread?
Infected birds shed flu virus in their saliva, nasal secretions, and feces. Susceptible birds become infected when they have contact with contaminated excretions or surfaces that are contaminated with excretions. It is believed that most cases of bird flu infection in humans have resulted from contact with infected poultry or contaminated surfaces. The spread of avian influenza viruses from one ill person to another has been reported very rarely, and transmission has not been observed to continue beyond one person.

How is bird flu in humans treated?
Studies done in laboratories suggest that the prescription medicines approved for human flu viruses should work in preventing bird flu infection in humans. However, flu viruses can become resistant to these drugs, so these medications may not always work. Additional studies are needed to prove the effectiveness of these medicines.

What is the risk to humans from bird flu?
The risk from bird flu is generally low to most people because the viruses occur mainly among birds and do not usually infect humans. However, during an outbreak of bird flu among poultry (domesticated chicken, ducks, turkeys), there is a possible risk to people who have contact with infected birds or surfaces that have been contaminated with excretions from infected birds. The current outbreak of avian influenza A (H5N1) among poultry in Asia and Europe (see below) is an example of a bird flu outbreak that has caused human infections and deaths. In such situations, people should avoid contact with infected birds or contaminated surfaces, and should be careful when handling and cooking poultry. For more information about avian influenza and food safety issues, visit the World Health Organization website. In rare instances, limited human-to-human spread of H5N1 virus has occurred, and transmission has not been observed to continue beyond one person.

What is an avian influenza A (H5N1) virus?
Influenza A (H5N1) virus – also called “H5N1 virus” – is an influenza A virus subtype that occurs mainly in birds. It was first isolated from birds (terns) in South Africa in 1961. Like all bird flu viruses, H5N1 virus circulates among birds worldwide, is very contagious among birds, and can be deadly.

What is the H5N1 bird flu that has been reported in Asia and Europe?
Outbreaks of influenza H5N1 occurred among poultry in eight countries in Asia (Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Japan, Laos , South Korea , Thailand , and Vietnam) during late 2003 and early 2004. At that time, more than 100 million birds in the affected countries either died from the disease or were killed in order to try to control the outbreak. By March 2004, the outbreak was reported to be under control. Beginning in late June 2004, however, new outbreaks of influenza H5N1 among poultry were reported by several countries in Asia (Cambodia, China [ Tibet ], Indonesia, Kazakhastan, Malaysia, Mongolia, Russia [ Siberia ], Thailand, and Vietnam). It is believed that these outbreaks are ongoing. Most recently, influenza H5N1 has been reported among poultry in Turkey and Romania. Human infections of influenza A (H5N1) have been reported in Cambodia, Indonesia, Thailand, and Vietnam.

What is the risk to humans from the H5N1 virus in Asia and Europe?
The H5N1 virus does not usually infect humans. In 1997. However, the first case of spread from a bird to a human was seen during an outbreak of bird flu in poultry in Hong Kong, Special Administrative Region. The virus caused severe respiratory illness in 18 people, 6 of whom died. Since that time, there have been other cases of H5N1 infection among humans. Recent human cases of H5N1 infection that have occurred in Cambodia, Thailand, and Vietnam have coincided with large H5N1 outbreaks in poultry. The World Health Organization (WHO) also has reported human cases in Indonesia. Most of these cases have occurred from contact with infected poultry or contaminated surfaces; however, it is thought that a few cases of human-to-human spread of H5N1 have occurred.

So far, spread of H5N1 virus from person to person has been rare and has not continued beyond one person. However, because all influenza viruses have the ability to change, scientists are concerned that the H5N1 virus one day could be able to infect humans and spread easily from one person to another. Because these viruses do not commonly infect humans, there is little or no immune protection against them in the human population. If the H5N1 virus were able to infect people and spread easily from person to person, an influenza pandemic (worldwide outbreak of disease) could begin. No one can predict when a pandemic might occur. However, experts from around the world are watching the H5N1 situation in Asia very closely and are preparing for the possibility that the virus may begin to spread more easily and widely from person to person.

How is infection with H5N1 virus in humans treated?
The H5N1 virus currently infecting birds in Asia that has caused human illness and death is resistant to amantadine and rimantadine, two antiviral medications commonly used for influenza. Two other antiviral medications, oseltamavir and zanamavir, would probably work to treat flu caused by the H5N1 virus, but additional studies still need to be done to prove their effectiveness.

Is there a vaccine to protect humans from H5N1 virus?
There currently is no commercially available vaccine to protect humans against the H5N1 virus that is being seen in Asia and Europe . However, vaccine development efforts are taking place. Research studies to test a vaccine to protect humans against H5N1 virus began in April 2005, and a series of clinical trials is underway. For more information about the H5N1 vaccine development process, visit the National Institutes of Health website.