August 7, 2015August 7, 2015 SampanSampan

Teenagers from Boston Asian Youth Essential Service (YES) have worked on a project advocating for smoke-free homes in Chinatown. We surveyed other teenagers about whether they’d be in-terested in smoke-free policies to get a sense of how youth felt.

After speaking face-to-face with more than 40 teenagers, we found that 85 percent of them are concerned about smoking within their housing facilities. The other 15 percent weren’t too con-

cerned. Eric, 19, lives in Tai Tung Village. He

said, “It felt as if I’m already six feet under the ground because I get smoke blown in my face every day in China-town. I have to walk through clouds of smoke and it doesn’t just affect me but also the people around me as well.”

The majority of youth stated even though no one in their household smokes, they still smell smoke due to neighbors who constantly smoke indoors.

10 HEALTH

Asian Community Development

Corporation

wishes you a prosperous and joyful August Moon !

亞美社區發展協會同仁

祝大家中秋節快樂！人月兩團圓！

亞美社區發展協會

www.asiancdc.org

ACDC invites you to our

10th annual Films at the Gate film festival

August 27-30, 2015 at the Chinatown Gate!

亞美社區發展協會誠意邀請您於8月27日

至30日參加第十屆華埠牌樓電影節！

Teenagers from Boston Asian Youth Essential Service ponder how to combat indoor smoking. (Image courtesy of Boston Asian Youth Essential Service.)

Teenagers learn about smoke-free homes BY BoSTon ASIAn YouTH ESSEnTIAl SErVICE

Melissa, 15, lives in Castle Square and said, “I smell smoke almost every single day. I’ve spoken to my neighbors but they keep denying it. I don’t know who to blame, the tenants or the [manage-ment] office.”

According to our data, 11.1 percent of the teenagers had household members suffering from health issues, such as dia-betes, circulation issues, heart problems and asthma. “It saddens me to see my dad going in and out of the hospital every now and then due to his lung problems from smoking. now he can’t spend as much time with me like he used to,” said Joshua, a 16-year-old who lives in Mass Pike Towers.

Surprisingly, 64.7 percent of the teen-agers surveyed said they were not con-cerned about secondhand smoke but would still support a smoke-free home policy. numerous teenagers said, “In-stead of telling someone to quit smoking,

why don’t we tell them to smoke some-where that doesn’t affect other people?” This shows that regardless of the individ-ual’s choices, they would prefer to work toward a common goal for others.

on the other hand, teenagers aren’t the only ones who support smoke-free homes policies. According to other data we compiled, 93.7 percent of 63 adults surveyed also support smoke-free homes policies.

We want to encourage people to live smoke-free and choose smoke-free homes, but the surveys reveal that even without persuasion, the community al-ready opts for better lifestyles for them-selves and for their futures.

This article was written by YES interns as smoke-free advocates, who were sup-ported by Tufts Medical Center’s Asian Health Initiative and the Dana Farber Cancer Institute’s Jimmy Fund.

What is cholesterol? Is it good or bad for you? BY louISA Poon, rEgISTErEd dIETITIAn

Cholesterol is a waxy, fat-like sub-stance in our body. Cholesterol is not only from food, as our bodies make cho-lesterol too. We need a certain amount of cholesterol because it helps to make body cells, hormones, vitamin d and bile acid to digest food.

There are different forms of choles-terol: High-density lipoprotein (Hdl) cholesterol (good cholesterol), low-density lipoprotein (ldl) cholesterol (bad cholesterol) and triglycerides. The good cholesterol helps to pick up exces-sive cholesterol in your blood and brings it back to your liver to break down. The higher your good cholesterol is, the bet-ter, because it protects you from heart disease. However, if the ldl cholesterol and the triglycerides levels are high in your blood, you have a higher chance of suffering from diseases like coronary ar-tery disease (CAd), strokes and athero-sclerosis.

risk factors for high cholesterol in-clude smoking, obesity, large waist cir-cumference, high fat diet, lack of exer-cise, high blood pressure and diabetes. It is important to know your cholesterol level.

A lot of people are trying to limit cho-lesterol in food consumption to avoid

high cholesterol in the blood. But stud-ies show that cholesterol in food has only a limited effect on blood cholesterol. A high saturated and trans-fats diet raises ldl cholesterol levels far more than a high cholesterol diet. However, it is not recommended to eat a diet high in cho-lesterol.

Saturated fats are found mostly in ani-mal products such as dairy, poultry with skin, pork, pork skin, lard, beef and lamb. Plant products high in saturated fats are palm oil and coconut oil. Avoiding satu-rated fats in your diet can help keep your cholesterol in the target range. For ex-ample, removing the skin off chicken, trimming the fat layer off pork or beef or selecting the leanest cut of meat will help to cut back on saturated fats in one’s diet. Moreover, using oil high in mono- and polyunsaturated fat such as grapeseed oil, safflower oil and olive oil helps to improve cholesterol levels in the blood. It is better to bake, broil, steam or even sauté food than to fry it.

Trans fats are mostly created in an in-dustrial process that adds hydrogen to liquid vegetable oils to make them more solid, which is very bad for our health. For example, partially hydrogenated oil found in most foods will raise your bad cholesterol and lower your good choles-terol. Many states and cities in united States, like California, Boston, Philadel-phia and new York City, have banned the use of trans fats. But it’s important to be mindful of the fact that trans fats are still in many foods on the market. read the food label to see if you can identify the trans fats!

About the author Louisa Poon is a registered dietitian

and has over 10 years of experience working with patients with kidney dis-ease, diabetes and overweight issues. She is a full-time renal dietitian at DCI Boston and a part-time consultant at Tufts Medical Center for a research study in gastrointestinal disease. She is fluent in both English and Cantonese.

General cholesterol

targets

• LDL: 70-130 mg/dL (lower numbers are better)

• HDL: more than 50 mg/dL (high numbers are better)

• Triglycerides: 10-150 mg/dL (lower numbers are better)

• Total cholesterol: less than 200 mg/dL (lower numbers are better)

August 7, 2015August 7, 2015 SampanSampan 11 FEATURES

Mascuppic Village Dracut, MA

4 Beautifully designed attached condominiums 55+ households to be sold by Lottery

Sale Price $169,200 with 1543 sq. ft. 2 1/2 Baths 2 Car Garage

Eligibility Criteria1. At least one household buyer is 55 years old.

2. Asset/equity limit up to $275,0003. Gross Household Income Limits:

1 person: $46,1002 person: $52,6503 person: $59,2504 person: $65,800

Deed Restricted/Income and Asset Eligibility

Application Deadline: September 3, 2015

Open House Sunday, August 23, 2015

12:00 p.m.—2:00p.m. 780 Nashua Road, Unit 12

Directions: From Route 3, take Exit 2 in New Hampshire. Turn right off exit. At third set of lights bear Left on Dracut Road which becomes Nashua Road. Drive 3 miles and Mascuppic Village is on the right OR

From Lowell MA take Mammoth RD to Nashua RD

For program information:Maureen O’Hagan

Call: (978) 456-8388Email: lotteryinfo@mcohousingservices.com

Pick Up: Dracut Town Hall, Town Clerk Office, Public Library and Senior Center or

on Web: www.mcohousingservices.com

In our last article, we discussed the three “P’s” — Perception, Presentation and Professionalism — when sending out résumés and cover letters to employ-ers. In this article, we will discuss inter-view tips over the phone and how to pre-pare for an in-person interview.

Phone interview tipsAfter you have submitted your pro-

fessional résumé and cover letter, be prepared for the telephone screening or interview and the in-person interview.

Telephone screenings are tricky for people who consider English as their second language. record a professional message for your voice mail so the caller perceives you as someone who under-stands the importance of making a good impression or presentation. Keep the message simple and to the point, such as “Hello, you have reached Jane doe. I am unable to answer the phone right now. Please leave a brief message and I will return your call as soon as possible.”

Make sure you are prepared to answer questions about the job that you applied to on the spot when you answer the tele-phone. Keep a copy of your résumé on you at all times so that you can refer to it when asked specific questions. Keep a small pad of paper and a pen to write down questions and information. do not answer the telephone if you are in a place where you cannot take a call and talk.

listen to the questions asked and take a few seconds to answer them briefly. If the telephone interviewer wants more in-formation, they will ask or arrange for a follow-up conversation. Make sure you write down the caller’s name, telephone number and email address if possible.

Ask questions! Asking what are the next steps is always good because you show interest in going forward and you will get a better sense of the time frame of the hiring process.

In-person interview tipsonce you pass the telephone screen-

ing, the in-person interview is the next place to make your best impression anmd show you are the perfect fit for the job.

dress professionally. Think about the job you are interviewing and dress just a little bit better than you would for the job itself. Wear limited jewelry and no perfume or cologne. Arrive no more than 15 minutes early and shut off your phone once you are in the waiting room.

once you meet the person or people interviewing you, make sure you extend your hand and give them a firm hand-shake, look them in the eye and smile. Say hello, along with your first and last name. This will allow the interviewer to give their first and last name, so you can make a note of it for your thank you re-sponse.

In the interview, answer the questions asked and be short and to the point. do not respond to interview questions

There are four questions you can count on to be asked in most interviews.

1. First, “tell me about yourself.” This means introducing yourself in a way that pertains to this job. The employer does not want to know what country you are from or if you own a home. Your em-ployer wants to know about the experi-ences and strengths that you bring to this job.

2. The second and third likely ques-

Image courtesy of Flazingo.com.

How to find a job: Interview tips BY CYndY CHAPIn, ASIAn AMErICAn CIVIC ASSoCIATIon dIrECTor oF EMPloYMEnT SErVICES

tions are about your strengths and weak-nesses. The employer is looking for the strengths you bring to the position, so talk about one of the top three require-ments listed in the job position as your strength.

3. Your weakness is more difficult. You want to make sure your weakness is not something that is needed to be suc-cessful in the position. You don’t want to say it is language skills if communica-tion is important to the job. When you decide on a weakness, you should also find a way to show how you resolved that weakness.

4. The fourth and final question con-cerns what you know about the company or why you want to work for the compa-ny. To successfully answer this question, you should go online and research the company, paying close attention to their mission statement and core values.

After the interview, have a least three good questions to ask. Some examples are:

• If I am offered this position, what training will be provided?

• How long have you been working here and what is your favorite aspect about your job?

• What are the next steps in this inter-view process?

If you don’t ask questions, you give the perception that you are not actually interested in the job.

Thank you letterlast but not least is the thank you e-

mail. Today, e-mailing an employer after an interview is the acceptable way to con-vey your appreciation for their time and consideration. You can post your thank you response in the body of the e-mail or you can attach a thank you letter.

Whichever method you choose, please make sure you send a thank you letter. This is also a chance to include any rel-evant points that you might have missed in the interview.

BCNC and Urban College partner for Chinese early education program BY BoSTon CHInAToWn nEIgHBorHood CEnTEr

urban College and Boston Chinatown neighborhood Center (BCnC) are happy to announce a new Career Pathway Pro-gram for Chinese speakers interested in entering the field of early education and care which will soon be expanding and needing new educators in many com-munities. This program will provide for Boston low income Chinese speakers a free beginning to their college career to obtain the credentials needed for better jobs.

Inclusive in the program will be two foundation early childhood courses; Child growth and development and Infant and Toddler Curriculum. To pro-vide the new educators with the English necessary to pursue education at a col-lege level towards an Associate degree or Child Development Associate certificate (CdA) the program will provide four courses in English which will sharpen reading and writing skills in English.

This program recognizes the chal-lenges for many who may need to work

and study at the same time. All classes will be held either at urban College or at BCnC evenings and Saturday. Tutoring and career counseling is available as well as access to the urban computer lab and resource center. Students are expected to attend one Chinese early education course and two English as a second lan-guage courses per semester. At the end of the year, teachers will have the course-work to be Teacher Qualified by the De-partment of Early Education and Care.

For those who would like to go on and obtain a CdA or Associate degree help applying for scholarships to pave the way will be available. our intention is to support skilled and credentialed Chinese speaking family child care educators and early education child care center teach-ers. This program is funded by a commu-nity development block grant for the city of Boston. For more information, call Tong Feng (Phoenix) at urban College (617) 449-7067 or Yu Man Mui at BCnC (617) 635-5129.

August 7, 2015August 7, 2015 SampanSampan12 FEATURES

We are currently accepting applications at:

Kingston PinesKingston, MA

1, 2 & 3 bedroom apartments

Our waiting list is open!APPLY TODAY!

Call 781-936-8733 ext. 302Quadraplex Housing / HallKeen Management

AFFORDABLE HOUSING AVAILABLE!

Rockland Trust Proudly SupportsThe August Moon Festival

At Rockland Trust you’ll find a respectful and inclusive environment where

everyone is given the chance to succeed. We are an Equal Opportunity Employer.

We're proud to partner with and support organizations that share our commitment to embracing a diverse community. Learn why we are a great place to work, visit www.RocklandTrust.com

Is your tuna sandwich bad for the environment?

BY STATEPoInTMore canned tuna is consumed in the

united States than in any other country in the world. unfortunately, the vast ma-jority of tuna sold in the American mar-ket fails to meet fundamental sustainabil-ity standards, according to greenpeace’s 2015 Canned Tuna shopping guide, their first-ever U.S. canned tuna ranking.

The ranking looked at 14 well-known u.S. national and private label supermar-ket brands to evaluate their sourcing pol-icies and practices — including whether the fishing method used to catch their tuna harms other marine life, whether they avoid shark finning, and whether they can trace their products back to the sea. In addition, it examined how eq-uitable and socially responsible are the brands.

The ranking concluded that most brands do not have adequate measures in place to address sustainability and hu-man welfare and labor issues.

“Consumers should know that many canned tuna brands are contributing to ocean destruction at an alarming rate,”

said greenpeace seafood markets lead graham Forbes. “However, the silver lining here is that other companies are stepping up to provide ocean safe op-tions for their customers.”

So how can you become a savvier gro-cery store shopper? Here are a few tips to ensure your tuna is sustainable:

• Think beyond the label. “dolphin safe” does not necessarily mean ocean safe. Turtles, sharks and other vulnerable ocean life are collateral damage in tuna fisheries that supply the US market.

To find out how your favorite brand measures up or to sign a petition asking brands to change their practices, visit www.greenpeace.org/usa/tunaguide.

You may not often look down at your lunch and wonder what had to happen for it to get to your plate. But your consumer choices do have an impact on both the environment and the workforce involved in production. By becoming a more in-formed consumer, you can ensure your kitchen is friendlier to both.

Frederick Taw was named a board member of Rockland Trust, owned by Independent Bank Corp. (Image courtesy of Independent Bank Corp.)

Independent Bank Corp. and Rockland Trust Company appoint

Frederick Taw to board of directors BY IndEPEndEnT BAnK CorP.

Independent Bank Corp. (nASdAQ: IndB), parent of rockland Trust Com-pany, announced the appointment of Frederick Taw as a Class I director of Independent. rockland Trust also ap-pointed Taw to its Board of directors.

“We are extremely pleased to welcome Fred Taw to our Board,” said donna l. Abelli, Chair of both the Independent and rockland Trust Board of directors. “Fred’s knowledge of the greater Boston market will help provide insight into the needs of the diverse communities that rockland Trust serves.”

Taw is the owner of the golden Temple, a well-known neighborhood restaurant in Brookline, Massachusetts. He has a long history of community service and is ac-tive in a number of local Asian service organizations, including the South Cove Community Health Center. Taw has been involved with South Cove since its inception in 1972 and previously served on the organization’s Board of directors. South Cove is the premier Asian com-munity health center of Massachusetts, serving 30,000 patients a year. Taw was instrumental in South Cove’s expansion from one small office in Boston’s China-town to two campuses in Boston and one in Quincy. Taw resides in newton, Massachusetts with his wife Yibei Chen and their daughters Kelly Zhang and natalie Taw.

“My father taught me that everything in life derives from the per-sonal relationships that you nurture,” Taw said. “I am honored to join the Board of rockland Trust, a bank which understands

the critical importance that relationships play in business and day-to-day life.”

Taw is 65 years old. His term as an In-dependent Bank Corp. director expires at Independent’s 2018 Annual Share-holder Meeting.

About Independent Bank Corp.Independent Bank Corp. has about

$7.0 billion in assets. Independent is the holding company for rockland Trust Company, a full-service commercial bank headquartered in Massachusetts. rockland Trust offers a wide range of banking, investment, and insurance services to businesses and individu-als through retail branches, commercial lending offices, investment management offices, and residential lending centers located in Eastern Massachusetts and rhode Island, as well as through tele-phone banking, mobile banking, and the internet. rockland Trust, which was named to Sandler 2014 Sm-All Stars list of top performing small-cap banks and thrifts in the country, is an FdIC Mem-ber and an Equal Housing lender. To find out why Rockland Trust is the bank “Where Each relationship Matters,” vis-it www.RocklandTrust.com.

Image courtesy of © Paul Hilton – Greenpeace

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August 7, 2015August 7, 2015 SampanSampan 13 FEATURES

SheriffSteven

Tompkins

Sheriff Steven Tompkins and the staff of the Suffolk County Sheriff’s Department want to wish eveyone want to wish eveyone a wonderful and peaceful August Moon Festival.

Suffolk County Sheriff Steven W. Tompkins

和Sheriff 部門的職員們

祝大家有一個很愉快

並且平安的中秋節。

Foster grandparents nurture children at Wang Y child care center BY rICHArd CHIn, WAng YMCA dIrECTor oF CoMMunITY dEVEloPMEnT

Volunteer Chinese grandmothers act as child care program volunteer care-takers at the Wang Y’s child care center. These ladies provide child security mon-itoring, food service, field trip monitors, class room attendants, and lots of care and attention.

The Foster grandparents Program has existed for about 14 years here at the Wang Y.

The program is made possible through a collaboration between the YMCA and ABCd. ABCd recently celebrated the

50th anniversary of its Foster grandpar-ents Program and the grandmothers were invited by the YMCA child care director daryl-Ann lewis-roosa.

These grandmas have brought Chinese culture and language into our child care center and are very valuable program assistants in taking care of the center’s children age one month to six years old. The children, parents and staff love our grandmas and appreciate their work and efforts.

Image courtesy of Cliff Wong.

Dream Project volunteers make college dreams come true

BY ClIFF WongIn last year’s Sampan article, “dream

Project helps high school seniors get into college,” I detailed my experience at an after school program in its sixth year of service. The project, known as the Quin-cy Satellite Program, serves Asian high school students in the city of Quincy. Most are low-income, first-generation college applicants. The dream Project was sponsored by the American Students Assistance (ASA) College Planning Cen-ter. The beauty of this program is how it succeeds with an organic grassroots ap-proach involving high school seniors and a single facilitator. Each year, I provide college access counseling for approxi-mately 200 high school seniors, alumni and adult learners. As for marketing, the project relies on a simple word-of-mouth and neighbor-to-neighbor mode of com-munication. Despite a lack of sufficient resources, the number of participants grows each year.

As facilitator for the past six years, I’m proud to acknowledge that reliance on volunteerism is the key to the project’s success. Volunteers have been amazing in terms of maturity and dedication. The task of scheduling and recruiting hun-dreds of students is a great enough chal-lenge in and of itself. Amazingly, our volunteers are only 17. They are mature beyond their years and I’ve been blessed with their incredible support each year.

After five successful seasons, one would expect a measure of complacency at the beginning of this past school year. This is likened to the Boston red Sox winning the World Series, then dropping to last place the following year. We’re not the red Sox! Such complacency is

nonexistent, for me or for our volunteers. Each year, we proceed with a sense of urgency. Each year, the maturity and in-dustry demonstrated by our volunteers is amazing enough. Even more remarkable is the fact that each year, a completely new set of volunteers appear.

I attribute our success to the coop-eration of our clients, the support of the community and the efforts of our volun-teers. This is an opportunity to recognize the many volunteers who make this pro-gram run. Without them, the program would not be as successful.

In 2015, our group leader was Emily Zheng. She was recommended by her older sister — Mary — a former vol-unteer in 2013. Emily is a natural lead-er and serves as president of the Youth Board at the Quincy Asian resource Inc. We are fortunate to have her and fellow volunteers liwen Wong Fang and lisa Chi. Each year, volunteers demonstrate great energy and dedication. They are mature beyond their years. For example, when I was assisting 20 students with the CSS Profile applications, Emily adjusted the schedule to a more manageable num-ber. She not only expedited the process efficiently, but also prevented me from becoming overwhelmed.

We want to acknowledge the individu-als who have served as group leaders each year. In 2009, a group of seniors shared the leadership role. Since then, each year, an outstanding individual has stepped forward to provide leadership. As of that second year, the group leaders were as follows: Tanya lymswan (2010), Shirley Chan (2011), Tammy Huang (2012), lisa Yang (2013) and Cynthia Yu

Foster grandparents attended ABCD’s 50-year anniversary on June 11 at Florian Hall. The ladies pictured help at the Wang YMCA child care center. (Seated left to right) Grandmas Wu, Moy, Lai and Zhu. (Standing left to right) YMCA child care director Daryl-Ann Lewis-Roosa with Grandmas Jiang, Mai and Wong. (Image courtesy of the Wang YMCA.)

(2014). Joining this distinguished group is Emily Zheng of the Class of 2015. not surprisingly, each of these wonder-ful young people took the initiative to serve.

let’s not overlook alumni who return to volunteer over the years. diana li (2004), a graduate of Boston latin Acad-emy, and Angie Yau (2009), a graduate of Boston latin School, have devoted their energies toward the project. diana is attending Tufts dental School, and Angie will soon be entering Tufts den-tal School this fall. Binqing Chen (2013) of Mass College of Pharmacy, Stephanie nguyen (2011) of northeastern uni-versity and Shirley li (2009) of Boston

university are alumni who have also re-turned to contribute their time.

unfortunately, as of this June, the ASA College Planning Center will no longer provide funding for the Quincy Satellite Program. This is not an end to the dream Project, only the beginning. It takes more than a sponsor for a program to succeed; it takes people! It takes volunteers like Emily Zheng from north Quincy High School, counselors like Eric ling at the Episcopal Quincy Chinese Center After School Program and countless others. The funding might be gone, but not the spirit. I believe that the spirit of our pro-gram is stronger than ever and am confi-dent in our future.

August 7, 2015August 7, 2015 SampanSampan

Among the Civil War’s unsung heroes are its Chinese fighters. Ruthanne Lum McCunn’s “Chinese Yankee” tells the story of Thomas Sylvanus, a “singular” union soldier celebrated in a new York Times obituary.

Thomas was born “Ah Yee Way” in China, who was brought to America to learn missions and return one day to bring Christ to his countrymen. once on-

board, his patron fell ill and entrusted the boy to a doctor, who gave him to his sis-ter as a slave. He was christened Thomas Duvall Sylvanus, a first name he chose to honor a kind sailor and his surname was of his slave owners. Thomas enlisted in the union army at age 15, claiming to be 19 in 1861.

His story was forgotten, until gordon Kwok, webmaster for the Association to commemorate the Chinese serving in the American Civil War was informed about a “Thomas Sylvanus” who was having his gravestone replaced and whether he had cultural preferences as a Chinese man.

lum McCunn pieced together Thom-as’s story from newspaper clippings, pension information and census records. His ethnicity was recorded as white, black and even a swish, as “Chinese” was not an option in the 1860 census.

Thomas was treated poorly, yet proved to be a valiant soldier. He saved his regi-ment’s flag in battle, waving it boldly despite attracting enemy fire. He lost his eyesight early on, yet enlisted again and was promoted to corporal.

Thomas was captured and placed in the Confederate concentration camp of Andersonville for nine months. “China Tom” survived to marry and have chil-dren in Pennsylvania. Thomas fought for his rights, becoming a naturalized citizen and successfully receiving a military dis-ability pension. He opened a laundry and battled for his family’s survival until his death in 1891.

In “Chinese Yankee,” lum McCunn’s painstaking research reveals Thomas’s singular life and sacrifice.

Baidu and Google: The race to create self-driving carsBY BETH KEllY

As science fiction fans are well aware, the fully-automatic “smart” automobile has been a constant presence in fantasy fiction for years. A distant dream no more, these “self-driving” cars are no longer contained to the pages of sci-fi lit-erature — in fact, google has been test-ing its autonomous vehicle prototypes on California public roads for more than two months. The company has gone on the record saying that its cars will be ready by 2020. At least that’s the goal: in the race to develop a reliable car that functions without human intervention, more than one company has a stake in the game.

google and its Chinese competitor, Baidu, have both merged into the dy-namic and unpredictable multibillion au-tomotive industry. And while both search engine superpowers share overlapping goals, the culture driving their interest in autonomous automobiles couldn’t be more different. A self-driving car, in the simplest of terms, will replicate the hu-man characteristics of the driver — navi-gation skills, the will to obey traffic laws and cogent spatial awareness. But repli-cating the complexity of our vast biologi-cal neuron network is no easy task. As both companies — and countries — at-tempt to move forward in the manufac-ture of “self-driving” vehicles, they must integrate their new product into the es-tablished framework of their respective transportation cultures and attempt to understand what it is that drives life for-ward in the first place.

Google and BaiduFirst things first: Baidu is not simply

the google of China. Saying that under-mines the immense variations that exist between the two companies as well as the populations they court and serve. like Google, Baidu became profitable by sell-ing ads alongside ordered search results. But the two companies connect users to information along much different lines of thinking. For Baidu, it is as much about solving search queries as it is providing a link to relevant services – for example, individuals in China can buy film tickets for local movie theaters without leaving the pages of Baidu. But as the Chinese market continues to expand and grow online, competing tech platforms have challenged both its established business model and dominance in the country.

google’s attempts to offer search ser-vices in China have largely been quashed by the country’s so-called “great Fire-wall.” Even as it strives to “organize the world’s information and make it univer-sally accessible and useful”, the search giant remains famously absent within Chinese borders. Baidu on the other hand has a limited reach outside China. Kaiser Kuo, Baidu’s director for international communications, commented on Baidu’s inward tendencies: “The overwhelm-ing majority of our users are in China ... wouldn’t make sense to provide search results ... that don’t meet the specific needs of Chinese users.”

‘CARs’ CoNTINUed oN PAGe 15

Summer jobs bring foreignstudent workers to America

BY KEVIn FrEElEY

What are the chances of a daughter of illiterate construction workers from a poor area of China coming to Chicago for the summer? If you are luo Yuan, it’s a reality! Every year the u.S. State de-partment selects international students to come to America for work and cultural exchange. Yuan was one of the lucky ones who wound up in Chicago this sum-mer.

Yuan is the oldest daughter of two mi-grants who left farming in their native Henan to work in Beijing in construc-tion. Since they were not legal residents of Beijing, Yuan could not attend public school. She was selected at age 13 to at-tend the dandelion School (蒲公英中學), a nonprofit middle school started by Zheng Hong, a former Boston area resi-dent. Since Yuan was not documented for Beijing, she needed to go back to her hometown for a period to enroll in school and take the national college entrance exam. under Zheng’s guidance, she was able to continue her education through

high school and into college. This summer, Yuan is living with 10

other international students from the ukraine, Turkey and Mongolia. She en-joys the opportunity to learn about the cultures and values of other participants. Working in an amusement park, her main responsibility is being a cashier at one of the food concessions, allowing her an opportunity to occasionally talk to cus-tomers. on her free time, she can travel around Chicago.

The J1 program has not been without controversy. There have been protests in the past concerning exploitation of these J1 student workers. Participation in the J1 visa program is expensive. It does, however, allow the students to earn some money, improve their English and learn American culture. Yuan was partly sponsored by her college in Beijing. For Yuan, despite the low wages of $7.75 an hour and cramped quarters with 10 other students in a two-bedroom unit, she still enjoys her u.S. experience.

Book jacket for Ruthanne Lum McCunn’s “Chinese Yankee.” It features a composite photo of a Union soldier with the face of Chinese man resembling Ah Yee Way, known as Thomas Sylvanus. (Image courtesy of Ruthanne Lum McCunn.)

Book review: ‘Chinese Yankee’ by Ruthanne Lum McCunn

BY lIng-MEI Wong

Luo Yuan, a summer exchange worker from China, is working in concessions at a Chicago amusement park. (Image courtesy of Kevin Freeley.)

Sudoku solution 數讀答案

數讀迷題在英文第七版。The Sudoku puzzle is on English page 7.

FEATURES14

August 7, 2015August 7, 2015 SampanSampan

CARS: Development reflects cultureConTInuEd FroM PAgE 14

In the mobile age, that means more us-ers than ever. Baidu has approximately 80 percent of the country’s search engine market, and with more than 1.29 billion individuals now connected via mobile device, their influence is indisputable.

Cars and cultureIn less than a decade, both google and

Baidu hope to completely change the relationship drivers have to the vehicles that transport them. Although many fea-tures within today’s standard automo-biles have been gradually automated over the years — transmission, windows, even seat belts — the “self-driving” car concept pushes the envelope a step fur-ther.

google’s smart-car sized rides offer a glimpse into a new era of transporta-tion altogether. Space-agey and diminu-tive, the little computer cars function without a steering column, feature rear-facing seats, and move as instructed by advanced sensor technology and lIdAr cameras. The search engine company formed google Auto back in 2011 as a “secretive” and distinctly separate com-pany from which to test their earlier for-ays into automotive automation. Today’s adorable auto-pods are the result of a lengthy research-to-product develop-ment phase — though with prototypes now on the roads of California for test-ing, its clear google is miles away from other carmakers in terms of pioneering this technology.

While google aims to replace the driv-er, Baidu seeks to assist drivers without rendering them completely irrelevant. less information about the Baidu vehicle has been shared with the Western press, though word from company officials has stated that the car that will “not totally replace the driver” and “should really give the driver freedom” similar to the experience of “riding on a horse.” Pol-lution and chaotic driving patterns make for a traffic system that challenges even the most advanced state-of-the-art auto-motive sensors.

google has spoken out saying their primary goals behind the self-driving car are assisting those with limited abilities and preventing traffic fatalities due to human error, Baidu cites reducing traf-fic congestion and air pollution as moti-vators behind getting their product into the marketplace quickly. Even as Baidu hopes to keep the user experience com-parable to “riding a horse,” when self-

driving cars become the norm, tradition-al automobiles may disappear as quickly as the horse-drawn carriage.

The future is nowFrom express oil changes and pay-

for-parking lots to automotive finance companies and car insurance schemes, the automobile is an integral component of the global economy. The computer-ized, drone-like nature of self-driving car threatens these industries, and will surely impact if not eliminate them altogether. Studies and data from lawrence Berke-ley national laboratory, direct Energy and the Environmental Protection Agen-cy have concluded that the self-driving car will reduce fuel consumption, carbon dioxide emissions and even encourage new innovations in hybrid technology. Safer and more energy efficient than tra-ditional automobiles, autonomous cars have the potential to reshape nearly ev-ery aspect of our lives.

Well before google and Baidu an-nounced their interest in automobiles to the public, the united States and Europe have seen a gradual shift in public atti-tudes toward car transport. After World War II, the car had become a crucial el-ement of American, and to a lesser ex-tent European, culture. In recent years, concerns about climate change and car-bon dioxide emissions, and an emerging culture of frugality, the younger genera-tions have become less concerned with individual car ownership.

All of this is in contrast to China, where a car culture has only just begun to take off. The total number of Chi-nese citizens living in extreme poverty has shifted over the past 30 years, go-ing from 84 percent in 1981 to just 12 percent in 2010. To the average Chinese citizen, individual car ownership is still a novel concept. Cars are taxed exorbitant-ly, and the large pool of poor individuals in cities provides an ample workforce of hired drivers. owning a car in China is still something of a status symbol — and China’s eventual autonomous prototype will likely reflect that ideal.

The ambitious autonomous auto proj-ects from both google and Baidu prom-ise to drive the future of car use in an entirely new direction. As the world’s foremost search giants continue to im-prove their work in strategic artificial intelligence and vehicle technology, it’s anyone’s guess where they’ll take us.

FEATURES

Image courtesy of Statepoint.

Why you should adopt a dog BY STATEPoInT

dogs make a house a home; there is no doubt about it. If you have ever thought about including a dog in your family, here are several reasons to consider mov-ing ahead on adoption.

Health benefitsBetween walks in the morning, walks

in the evening and daily play time, dogs get everyone in the family active and moving each day — an important part of

a healthy lifestyle.dogs may have pervasive positive

effects on human health, according to the national Institutes of Health, which reports that groups of new pet owners showed a significant reduction in minor health problems compared to those with-out pets. other studies have shown that spending time with animals can reduce blood pressure and cholesterol levels.

Why adopt?Between six and eight million home-

less pets enter shelters every year. Be-cause shelters cannot handle all the dogs that need a place to live, many that don’t get adopted are euthanized. Adopting a dog is a conscientious decision to make because it means you are saving a life.

Furthermore, animals in shelters re-ceive medical care during their stay. As an adopter, you can be better informed about the state of your new pet’s health, as shelters keep great records on vacci-nations and other treatments.

lastly, adopting a pet is a much more

affordable route to dog ownership than buying a dog from a breeder or store.

Where to adopt dog adoption events are an excellent

way to meet lots of potential pets at once, helping you find a dog whose tempera-ment would be a good fit for your home and family.

“It’s shocking to think of how many homeless dogs enter shelters each year,” said Sean Blankenship, chief marketing officer for Coldwell Banker Real Estate. “That’s why we launched this program; between our 86,000 sales associates and the 15,000 Adopt-a-Pet.com shelters and rescues, we’re hoping that we can truly make a difference.”

The Homes for dogs national Pet Adoption Weekend is expected to be one of the largest adoption events of the year. A list of pet adoption events is available at www.adoptapet.com/homesfordogs.

To add laughter and love to your life, consider sharing it with a dog in need.

MARSHFIELD HOUSING OPPORTUNITY PURCHASE PROGRAM

ROUND 10

The Marshfield Housing Partnership is accepting additional applications from qualified applicants for grants to assist them in purchasing an existing market rate home or condominium in Marshfield. A deed restriction will be recorded on each unit purchased with a grant to secure

affordability in perpetuity.

MAXIMUM GRANT AMOUNTS

1 Bedroom 2 Bedroom 3, 4, and 5 Bedrooms$80,000 $100,000 $120,000

MAXIMUM HOUSE/CONDOMINIUM AMOUNTS

Bedrooms Sale Price Maximum Grant Affordable Price After Grant1 BR Condo $243,200 $80,000 $163,2001 BR House $253,500 $80,000 $173,5002 BR Condo $274,400 $100,000 $174,4002 BR House $295,000 $100,000 $195,0003 BR Condo $305,500 $120,000 $185,5003 BR House $336,700 $120,000 $216,7004 BR House $354,000 $120,000 $234,0005 BR House $371,500 $120,000 $251,500

MAXIMUM ANNUAL HOUSEHOLD INCOME 1 Person 2 Person 3 Person 4 Person 5 Person 6 Person 7 Person 8 Person 9 or more$48,800 $55,800 $62,750 $69,700 $75,300 $80,900 $86,450 $92,050 Please call

Subject to periodic change by the U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development

Net family assets may not exceed $75,000.

Households interested in applying should attend one of the two informational sessions being provided. Informational sessions will be held at the following locations:

Thursday, September 10, 2015, 7:00 PM: Hearing Room # 2, Marshfield Town Hall, 870 Moraine Street, Marshfield

Saturday, September 12, 2015, 10:00 AM: Hearing Room # 2, Marshfield Town Hall, 870 Moraine Street, Marshfield

A lottery will be held on Thursday, October 8, 2015 at 7:00 PM at the Marshfield Town Hall,

Hearing Room # 3, to select grant recipients. Successful grant recipients are required to have at least one family member attend and complete a Homebuyer Education Workshop.

For additional information or to receive an application please contact either the Marshfield Hous-ing Authority (781-834-4333) or the

Marshfield Housing Coordinator: (781-834-1051). Applications are also available outside the Town Clerk’s Office, Marshfield Town Hall.

All applications must be received and date stamped by the Marshfield Housing Authority no later than 12:00 PM (Noon) on Friday, September 25, 2015.

Marshfield Housing Authority 12 Tea Rock Gardens

Marshfield, MA 02050

The Marshfield Housing Partnership has an obligation to provide reasonable accommodations to applicants if they or any family member has a disability. If needed,

language assistance is provided at no cost to the applicant.

MHOPP Funding was made possible by the Town’s adoption of the Community Preservation Act

15

August 7, 2015August 7, 2015 SampanSampan16 August Moon

Celebrating the August Moon Festival with mooncakes BY KA HEI KArEn lAu, rEgISTErEd dIETITIAn

The August Moon Festival is one of the most important traditional Chinese festivals. This is a time for family re-unions and to count the blessings from the past year. lanterns will be lit that day, and families will enjoy delicious dishes together. Families from different cities in China, Taiwan and Hong Kong may celebrate with different festival foods, including taros, pears, pomelos and most importantly, mooncakes.

Mooncakes from different regions have different fillings, such as lotus seed paste, red bean paste, salted duck egg yolks or nuts and seeds. Tradition-ally, mooncakes are about 4 inches in diameter and 1.5 inches thick, with a thin soft crust. In recent years, smaller

“mini mooncakes,” ice cream moon-cakes, snowy mooncakes and reduced sugar mooncakes are also available. re-gardless of the flavor, they generally are very rich and thick in texture. See the a table of the average nutrition content of one whole piece of mooncake of differ-ent flavors.

Most mooncakes are high in energy, carbohydrates, sugar and fat content. With some careful planning, people with diabetes can still enjoy the festival with this festive food. Here are five steps that you can take for having a healthier Au-gust Moon Festival meal:

1) offer more healthy food choices at the meal. Prepare some lean protein such as fish, and include a few healthy

vegetable dishes. 2) Reduce the amount of carbs such

as rice, noodles or bread that you have from the main meal to balance out the carb that you will be having from the mooncake.

3) Enjoy a quarter of a regular size mooncake or half of a mini moon-cake.

4) A reduced-sugar mooncake is still high in calories. remember to limit the serving size to a quarter of a regular size mooncake or half of a mini mooncake.

5) Enjoy the mooncake on the day of August Moon Festival, but remem-

ber to resume your usual meal plan the following day!

Making healthy food choices is the first step to a healthier festive season. Staying active is equally important to your health. Take a 15-20 minute walk

after the meal. This will help in prevent-ing the post-meal blood sugar surge. And you will also have an additional benefit of seeing a nice full moon!

About the author Ka Hei Karen Lau is a registered di-

etitian and certified diabetes educator in the Asian Clinic at Joslin Diabetes Cen-ter.

Snowy moon cakes. (Image courtesy of Wing Wah. ) Cantonese style mooncakes. (Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons. )

Mooncake nutrition facts

Type Energy Carb Sugar Fat

Estimated walking time to burn off calories*

Lotus paste with 2 egg yolks moon-cake

838 kcal

100 g(= 2 1/3 bowl of rice)

62 g(= 12 tsp

of sugar)

42 g(= 8.5 tsp of oil)

2 hr 35 min

Mixed nuts and ham moon-cake

761 kcal

99 g(= 2 1/3 bowl of rice)

(Data not avail-

able)

31(= 6

tsp of oil)

2 hr 20 min

Mung bean paste and egg yolk snowy moon-cake

660 kcal

73 g(= 1 2/3 bowl of rice)

41 g(= 8 tsp of sugar)

37 g= (7.5 tsp of oil)

2 hr

Reduced sugar lotus paste and egg yolk moon-cake

388 kcal

46 g(= 1 bowl of rice)

1 g(= 0.2 tsp

of sugar)

20 g(= 4

tsp of oil)

1 hr 12 min

Mini lotus paste with egg yolk moon-cake

246 kcal

30 g(= 2/3 bowl of rice)

18 g(= 3.5 tsp

of sugar)

12 g(= 2.5 tsp of oil)

45 min

Mini mung bean paste snowy moon-cake

200 kcal

29 g(= 2/3 bowl of rice)

16 g(= 3 tsp of sugar)

8 g(= 1.5 tsp of oil)

37 min

*Based on a person weighing 150 pounds.

艾默生學院與您共慶中秋

Emerson College extends peace to your families at the light of

the first August Moon.

艾默生學院與您共慶中秋

Emerson College extends peace to your families at the light of

the first August Moon.

August 7, 2015August 7, 2015 SampanSampan 17INFO

August 7, 2015August 7, 2015 SampanSampan18 FEATURES

Malden Wah Lum Academy brings home victory from U.s kung fu competitionBY WAH luM Kung Fu And TAI CHI ACAdEMY

The largest and most diverse group of youth and adult contenders from Wah lum Kung Fu and Tai Chi Academy re-turned from the 2015 u.S. International Kuo Shu Federation Championship Tournament in Baltimore, Maryland, bringing home the overall grand cham-pion trophy. The tournament took place from July 24 to 26.

ranging in ages from 6 to 42, with entries in open-hand and weapon kung fu forms, tai chi and lei tai fighting, the team’s 47 competitors earned over 150 medals — a third of them gold — in an accomplished field of challengers from all over the u.S., as well as China, Brazil and Peru.

For the second year in a row, both Wah lum’s Youth Form and Adult Form teams achieved the top ranking. This is the first year that the team won the Wang Cheuh-Jen Cup for its overall perfor-

mance and their participation in the lei Tai full contact fighting category. In ad-dition, the team garnered four individual Competitor of the Year awards, spanning youth, teen and adult categories.

As a result of their outstanding per-formances in their divisions, Wah lum adult martial artists Amy Tran, Andrea So and Austin Tang will be traveling to Argentina in September to represent the u.S. in the 5th World Kuo Shu Federa-tion Championship Tournament.

“We owe a debt of gratitude to our stu-dents’ amazing parents, who helped to transport them and their weapons, plan and chaperone the trip to Baltimore, and, above all, support our school throughout countless hours of practice,” said Wah lum’s Sifu Mai du of Malden. “I am deeply humbled by and grateful for my kung fu family. no words can adequately describe this level of appreciation.”

“Dau Nan,” illustrating a Japanese aircraft hovering over a grandfather and grandmother car-rying a baby, while a woman runs for her life. (Image courtesy of Sam Hom.)

Artist and author sam Hom channels trauma into hope

BY lIng-MEI Wong

The Wah Lum Kung Fu and Tai Chi Academy attended the 2015 U.S. International Kuo Shu Federation Championship Tournament from July 24 to 26 in Baltimore, Maryland, winning the grand championship trophy. (Image courtesy of Wah Lum.)

Chinese-American author and artist Sam Hom wanted to tell his family’s story. His novel, “Angelic Encounter: A Flying Tiger Son’s Story,” is based on his father’s experiences serving in World War II.

“My father was not a pilot but part of the ground crew, the 597th Air Engineer-ing Squadron,” Hom said. “The Japanese invasion were a mighty force, they would attack the ground crew so the planes wouldn’t get repaired or airborne.”

Hom’s novel tells the story of Ah-Seem, a boy who overcomes his father’s

war trauma through art and Chinese culture. His father served when China’s forces, led by nationalist leader Chi-ang Kai-shek, joined with the American Volunteer Group to fight the Japanese invasion. The American allies were nick-named the “Flying Tigers,” who flew older P-40s against more maneuverable Japanese aircraft.

His father bore battle scars, both on his body and soul. “My father definitely was there because he had post-traumatic stress disorder … He would hear the si-rens in his dreams and relive his trauma,”

Hom said. The nightmares were so viv-id that his father would wake up, dress Hom and his brother, and drag them out of the house for nonexistent air raids.

Hom’s father never drove after the war, as he transported airplane parts by truck along the Burma road — southern China’s main supply route — and came under enemy fire.

“My father after the war was not re-spected,” Hom said. “The American high school kids were racist; they beat him to a pulp. He took the onslaught — they thought he was Japanese.”

Hom did not understand his father, who suffered in silence, until he did re-search for his book. “I was ashamed of my father, I didn’t see him as a hero,” he said.

Hom’s book is being optioned for a screenplay, as he embraces his family and roots.

“For a long time, I worked alone in si-lence,” Hom said. “You need to validate where you come from. As I polish up my Mandarin, I get closer to who I am and my heart is quiet.”

Sam Hom’s father served in the 597th Air Engineering Squadron during World War II, as part of the ground crew maintaining planes for the Flying Tigers. (Image courtesy of Sam Hom.)