2007年11月15日 星期四

醫學英文拼字檢查:OpenMedSpel + OpenOffice.org

有許多同學和醫學相關專業的朋友,要打病歷或是寫報告的時候,都會用到很多醫學上的單字。這些單字很容易拼錯,但是很不幸地又不在常用的拼字檢查裡面。我在網路上找了很久,市面上也有許多此類產品可以檢查醫學單字的拼字,但是都必須要收費。今天總算找到一個OpenMedSpel是以GPL方式授權,可以免費下載使用,介紹給大家。

OpenMedSpel是設計和OpenOffice.org一起使用。OpenOffice是一個自由免費的Office程式,包括文字編輯、試算表、簡報等。理論上可以讀寫Microsoft Word的.doc檔,不過有的時候會有一點小問題。如果說沒有特別要求的話,用內建的.odf格式儲存會比較好。

跟著以下說明,一起來安裝醫學字典檔吧:
  • Windows的使用者可以在這下載2.2.0中文版,Ubuntu的使用者則已經內含在系統安裝裡面囉。
  • 下載完安裝檔請執行並安裝,基本上只要一直按「下一步」就可以了。接著請到OpenMedSpel的網站下載字典檔。下載完之後解壓縮到「C:\Program Files\OpenOffice.org 2.0\share\dict\ooo」。
  • 用記事本打開「C:\Program Files\OpenOffice.org 2.0\share\dict\ooo\dictionary.lst」,在最下面加上「DICT en US en_US_OpenMedSpel」,存檔後關閉。

至此大功告成!現在您可以在OpenOffice.org裡頭編輯文件,不小心把一些單字打錯的時候,就會出現正確單字的提示了。

這個字典裡面的字數仍稍嫌不足,不過相信還是對您有助益的。

2007年11月6日 星期二

WHO and China neglects health of Taiwan

Once in a while, I come across a news article that actually upsets me. Sometimes it's how the media totally ignores its responsibility to verify sources, and rather mindlessly reported false material. On other occasions, it's due to the news itself. Lately there has been a piece of news that had really made me quite angry. As a student seeking profession in medicine, I feel responsible that I make this issue known to the world.

The issue is described in Food-safety alert delayed health at risk, and also available in various other news reports. I had learned of this incident from a Taiwan newspaper in Chinese. In brief, WHO issued a food-safety alert to the countries at risk. The alert intended for Taiwan was not sent to Taiwan, but rather to China, due to the sad fact that Taiwan is not a member of WHO. China officials delayed sending the crucial information to Taiwan, which put the entire population of Taiwan at risk.

For those not familiar with Taiwan-China relations, Taiwan is essentially self-governed. The Taiwan government is in charge of all aspects of the nation, including economics, military, jurisdiction, and of course, its public health. The China government has no part in the health system of Taiwan. Therefore it is ridiculous for China to act as the window between Taiwan and WHO. Furthermore, from this incidence, we can see that China has no concern for the welfare of the people of Taiwan.

Diseases and pandemics have no borders. The health of the people of Taiwan are just as important as the rest of the world. Allowing Taiwan to join WHO not only benefits the people of Taiwan, but also helps advance the health of the world. The subtropical position of Taiwan and its advanced medical research provides an outpost for the rest of the world, as emerging infectious diseases become more prominent each year.

I had tried to outline the current situation in clear, reasonable facts. I hope it is enough to provoke your interest, or at least your doubts. Please, look even deeper if you are suspicious about my claims. It is my hope that this issue will become sufficiently important for you to mention to others. I am genuinely angry at the irresponsibility of China and WHO, in that they chose to neglect the health of Taiwan people for political reasons. They are shameful for letting political purposes surpass medical profession.

As a doctor-to-be in Taiwan, I am truly sad for the people of Taiwan.

Please visit the following websites for more information:
WHO for Taiwan
WHO for Taiwan, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
http://taiwanandwho.com/