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42-623: The Hong Kong Dolphin Conservation Society (HKDCS) ( Traditional Chinese : 香港海豚保育學會) is a non-governmental organisation that is dedicated to the conservation of whales, and dolphins and porpoises in Hong Kong. Founded in December 2003, its mission is to protect whales and dolphins through scientific research and public education. To promote concern and increase awareness of the unfortunate circumstances of whales and dolphins,

84-612: A lotus throne is a stylized lotus flower used as the seat or base for a figure. It is the normal pedestal for divine figures in Buddhist art and Hindu art , and often seen in Jain art . Originating in Indian art , it followed Indian religions to East Asia in particular. In imperial China, a stone tortoise called bixi was traditionally used as the pedestal for important stele, especially those associated with emperors. According to

126-533: A podium to the columns employed decoratively in the Roman triumphal arches. The architects of the Italian Renaissance , however, conceived the idea that no order was complete without a pedestal, and as the orders were by them employed to divide up and decorate a building in several stories, the cornice of the pedestal was carried through and formed the sills of their windows, or, in open arcades, round

168-509: A certain extent in South Korea , remain virtually identical to traditional characters, with variations between the two forms largely stylistic. There has historically been a debate on traditional and simplified Chinese characters . Because the simplifications are fairly systematic, it is possible to convert computer-encoded characters between the two sets, with the main issue being ambiguities in simplified representations resulting from

210-416: A court, the balustrade of the arcade . They also would seem to have considered that the height of the pedestal should correspond in its proportion with that of the column or pilaster it supported; thus in the church of Saint John Lateran, where the applied order is of considerable dimensions, the pedestal is 13 feet (4.0 m) high instead of the ordinary height of 3 to 5 feet (1.5 m). In Asian art

252-458: A large area within a relatively short period of time. When researchers sight a group of dolphins, the time, location and abundance are recorded. Helicopter surveys can provide better and more comprehensive information on the distribution of dolphins in Hong Kong as compared to vessel survey and land-based observation. Photo-identification is used to identify individual cetaceans. The identifying features include permanent external characteristics on

294-812: Is 産 (also the accepted form in Japan and Korea), while in Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan the accepted form is 產 (also the accepted form in Vietnamese chữ Nôm ). The PRC tends to print material intended for people in Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan, and overseas Chinese in traditional characters. For example, versions of the People's Daily are printed in traditional characters, and both People's Daily and Xinhua have traditional character versions of their website available, using Big5 encoding. Mainland companies selling products in Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan use traditional characters in order to communicate with consumers;

336-591: Is a retronym applied to non-simplified character sets in the wake of widespread use of simplified characters. Traditional characters are commonly used in Taiwan , Hong Kong , and Macau , as well as in most overseas Chinese communities outside of Southeast Asia. As for non-Chinese languages written using Chinese characters, Japanese kanji include many simplified characters known as shinjitai standardized after World War II, sometimes distinct from their simplified Chinese counterparts . Korean hanja , still used to

378-533: Is estimated that more than a total of 400,000 cetaceans have been killed. The HKDCS called upon the public to support and join the campaign protesting against this massacre. The society also sent a letter to the Consulate-General of Japan regarding the issue. AFCD – This government department provides services with agriculture and fisheries, as well as offering help in the conservation and regulation of animals, plants and fisheries. With regard to dolphins,

420-448: Is one organisation that carries out research on Chinese white dolphins in Hong Kong waters. Monitoring work of Chinese white dolphins and finless porpoises are normally carried out by vessel surveys , helicopter surveys and the use of photo-identification. Vessel surveys are used mainly for the routine monitoring of the distribution and abundance of the local dolphin population. Helicopter surveys are used mainly to search for dolphins in

462-510: Is useful as it provides an elevated pedestal with which to view and survey the entire study area. This allows an unobstructed view of the whole scene and environment , which gives the observer the chance to observe interactions between dolphins, and also between dolphins and passing boats. Furthermore, this observation does not disturb the dolphins in any way and therefore will not affect their usual behaviour. Despite having intensive research efforts conducted in Hong Kong's territorial portion of

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504-493: The Chinese Commercial News , World News , and United Daily News all use traditional characters, as do some Hong Kong–based magazines such as Yazhou Zhoukan . The Philippine Chinese Daily uses simplified characters. DVDs are usually subtitled using traditional characters, influenced by media from Taiwan as well as by the two countries sharing the same DVD region , 3. With most having immigrated to

546-610: The Standard Form of National Characters . These forms were predominant in written Chinese until the middle of the 20th century, when various countries that use Chinese characters began standardizing simplified sets of characters, often with characters that existed before as well-known variants of the predominant forms. Simplified characters as codified by the People's Republic of China are predominantly used in mainland China , Malaysia, and Singapore. "Traditional" as such

588-484: The Kensiu language . Pedestal In sculpting, the terms base, plinth, and pedestal are defined according to their subtle differences. A base is defined as a large mass that supports the sculpture from below. A plinth is defined as a flat and planar support which separates the sculpture from the environment. A pedestal, on the other hand, is defined as a shaft-like form that raises the sculpture and separates it from

630-640: The Shanghainese -language character U+20C8E 𠲎 CJK UNIFIED IDEOGRAPH-20C8E —a composition of 伐 with the ⼝   'MOUTH' radical—used instead of the Standard Chinese 嗎 ; 吗 . Typefaces often use the initialism TC to signify the use of traditional Chinese characters, as well as SC for simplified Chinese characters . In addition, the Noto, Italy family of typefaces, for example, also provides separate fonts for

672-488: The "Environmental & Conservation Fund" and "Environmental Campaign Committee", and worked hand-in-hand with the Parent-Teacher Associations of participating schools, resulting in the latest creation of workshops for primary school students which will be held from September 2006 to December 2007. The HKDCS hopes to convey the message of the conservation of dolphins, through tailor-made activities for

714-587: The FormosaCetus Research and Conservation Group to conduct a joint conservation programme on Chinese white dolphins in Taiwanese waters. Until 2002, there was little evidence that the coastal waters of Taiwan were populated with any Chinese white dolphin. A discovery that year revealed a sizeable population of these creatures. As a result of the discovery, the Chinese white dolphin is now placed at

756-779: The Guangdong coastline is urgently needed. Data concerning their trends in abundance, distribution, habitat use, social organisation, life history, mortality rates and causes of Chinese white dolphins are to be acquired. The Matzu Islands, a small group island off Taiwan in the East China Sea , has found to be home to some cetaceans as well. Little is known about their distribution and population characteristics, hence sparking off HKDCS' research programme with Formosa Cetus. The HKDCS also holds an internship programme for local tertiary students, who are majoring in general biology, environmental science and/or other relevant fields, during

798-524: The HKDCS has been involved in various fields including carrying out research, offering related education to school children, providing volunteers a chance to join as research interns, and organising forums for dolphin-lovers which also serves as a social gathering for like-minded individuals. HKDCS has an ongoing member recruitment programme since 2003. To protect local cetaceans residing in Hong Kong waters, through scientific research and public education. As

840-480: The Pearl River Estuary in the preceding seven years, only a years' worth of effort was dedicated to acquiring data about the rest of the estuary. The contrasting surveillance effort between the Hong Kong and Mainland Chinese waters has hindered the general understanding of the entire Pearl River Estuary population of Chinese white dolphins. The long-term aims of the exploratory surveys are to estimate

882-555: The People's Republic of China, traditional Chinese characters are standardised according to the Table of Comparison between Standard, Traditional and Variant Chinese Characters . Dictionaries published in mainland China generally show both simplified and their traditional counterparts. There are differences between the accepted traditional forms in mainland China and elsewhere, for example the accepted traditional form of 产 in mainland China

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924-532: The United States during the second half of the 19th century, Chinese Americans have long used traditional characters. When not providing both, US public notices and signs in Chinese are generally written in traditional characters, more often than in simplified characters. In the past, traditional Chinese was most often encoded on computers using the Big5 standard, which favored traditional characters. However,

966-721: The base. An elevated pedestal or plinth that bears a statue, and which is raised from the substructure supporting it (typically roofs or corniches), is sometimes called an acropodium . The term is from Greek ἄκρος ákros 'topmost' and πούς poús (root ποδ- pod- ) 'foot'. Although in Syria , Asia Minor and Tunisia the Romans occasionally raised the columns of their temples or propylaea on square pedestals, in Rome itself they were employed only to give greater importance to isolated columns, such as those of Trajan and Antoninus , or as

1008-515: The body, such as nicks, dorsal scars or marks. Currently, over 260 individual dolphins have been identified in Hong Kong waters and the Pearl River Estuary. The photographic documentations of individual humpback dolphins will be used to study their home range and movement patterns. The data are also used to clarify some life history parameters to estimate dolphin population through mark/recapture analysis. The HKDCS plans to work with

1050-465: The department carries out different projects, such as the conservation programme for Chinese white dolphins and the organising of various exhibitions. Traditional Chinese Traditional Chinese characters are a standard set of Chinese character forms used to write Chinese languages . In Taiwan , the set of traditional characters is regulated by the Ministry of Education and standardized in

1092-440: The finless porpoises ( Neophocaena phocaenoides ). At least 1,400 Chinese white dolphins are said to be living in this region, with about 300 alone in Hong Kong waters; but their population, temporal and spatial distribution, their use of habitat places and ranging patterns have not yet been studied adequately. This is especially so for finless porpoises as they are known to be more elusive, and therefore harder to spot at sea. HKDCS

1134-494: The general public in Hong Kong knows little about these creatures, the HKDCS believes local cetaceans have not received sufficient protection from the locals yet. The HKDCS deems that in order for local cetaceans to be relieved from this quandary and to be effectively protected in the long run, the knowledge of the general public on cetaceans in Hong Kong and around the world should be raised. The HKDCS aims to: The HKDCS carries out extensive research to better understand and monitor

1176-600: The highest level of protection under Taiwan's Wildlife Conservation Law. Coastal pollution accruing from industrial and human sewage waste and the cumulative impacts of coastal development would mean tainting the water which the dolphins live in. Before issuing protection measures and drawing up conservation programmes, the impacts that these threats on dolphins have to be first addressed and understood. Most land-based observations in Hong Kong take place in Sha Chau and Lung Kwu Chau Marine Park. This type of far-off observation

1218-493: The inverse is equally true as well. In digital media, many cultural phenomena imported from Hong Kong and Taiwan into mainland China, such as music videos, karaoke videos, subtitled movies, and subtitled dramas, use traditional Chinese characters. In Hong Kong and Macau , traditional characters were retained during the colonial period, while the mainland adopted simplified characters. Simplified characters are contemporaneously used to accommodate immigrants and tourists, often from

1260-725: The mainland. The increasing use of simplified characters has led to concern among residents regarding protecting what they see as their local heritage. Taiwan has never adopted simplified characters. The use of simplified characters in government documents and educational settings is discouraged by the government of Taiwan. Nevertheless, with sufficient context simplified characters are likely to be successfully read by those used to traditional characters, especially given some previous exposure. Many simplified characters were previously variants that had long been in some use, with systematic stroke simplifications used in folk handwriting since antiquity. Traditional characters were recognized as

1302-682: The majority of Chinese text in mainland China are simplified characters , there is no legislation prohibiting the use of traditional Chinese characters, and often traditional Chinese characters remain in use for stylistic and commercial purposes, such as in shopfront displays and advertising. Traditional Chinese characters remain ubiquitous on buildings that predate the promulgation of the current simplification scheme, such as former government buildings, religious buildings, educational institutions, and historical monuments. Traditional Chinese characters continue to be used for ceremonial, cultural, scholarly/academic research, and artistic/decorative purposes. In

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1344-983: The merging of previously distinct character forms. Many Chinese online newspapers allow users to switch between these character sets. Traditional characters are known by different names throughout the Chinese-speaking world. The government of Taiwan officially refers to traditional Chinese characters as 正體字 ; 正体字 ; zhèngtǐzì ; 'orthodox characters'. This term is also used outside Taiwan to distinguish standard characters, including both simplified, and traditional, from other variants and idiomatic characters . Users of traditional characters elsewhere, as well as those using simplified characters, call traditional characters 繁體字 ; 繁体字 ; fántǐzì ; 'complex characters', 老字 ; lǎozì ; 'old characters', or 全體字 ; 全体字 ; quántǐzì ; 'full characters' to distinguish them from simplified characters. Some argue that since traditional characters are often

1386-677: The official script in Singapore until 1969, when the government officially adopted Simplified characters. Traditional characters still are widely used in contexts such as in baby and corporation names, advertisements, decorations, official documents and in newspapers. The Chinese Filipino community continues to be one of the most conservative in Southeast Asia regarding simplification. Although major public universities teach in simplified characters, many well-established Chinese schools still use traditional characters. Publications such as

1428-700: The original standard forms, they should not be called 'complex'. Conversely, there is a common objection to the description of traditional characters as 'standard', due to them not being used by a large population of Chinese speakers. Additionally, as the process of Chinese character creation often made many characters more elaborate over time, there is sometimes a hesitation to characterize them as 'traditional'. Some people refer to traditional characters as 'proper characters' ( 正字 ; zhèngzì or 正寫 ; zhèngxiě ) and to simplified characters as 簡筆字 ; 简笔字 ; jiǎnbǐzì ; 'simplified-stroke characters' or 減筆字 ; 减笔字 ; jiǎnbǐzì ; 'reduced-stroke characters', as

1470-511: The population of the Chinese white dolphin in the PRE and to study the spatial and temporal patterns of their distribution and habitats. The HKDCS also wishes to assess the threats faced by dolphins within the area, and to provide suggestions on the conservation and management of the Chinese white dolphin to the Guangdong authorities. The HKDCS maintains that additional dolphin surveys in the rest of

1512-531: The primary school kids and their parents, such as distributing educational booklets and chessboards with the theme of Hong Kong dolphins and making paper-clay models of dolphins etc. The large scale exhibition "Get close with Chinese White Dolphin", was jointly held by the HKDCS and the Cityplaza. There has recently been a protest against the slaughtering of dolphins and small whales within Japanese waters. It

1554-438: The situation of dolphins and their habitats within the vicinity of Hong Kong. The society stresses that research should be conducted on a yearly basis at least, so that information about the dolphin population can be updated regularly. Decisions based on these information can then be made with confidence. Research projects include: The main targets of HKDCS's monitoring work are the Chinese white dolphins ( Sousa chinensis ), and

1596-429: The summer and also all year round. Student interns will be able to help in a variety of research aspects; including the observation of impacts on Chinese white dolphins brought about by dolphin-watching activities, conducting boat surveys as well as studying about vessel effects on finless porpoises. The HKDCS organises a wide range of activities that can be categorised into the following two groups: The HKDCS financed

1638-636: The traditional character set used in Taiwan ( TC ) and the set used in Hong Kong ( HK ). Most Chinese-language webpages now use Unicode for their text. The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) recommends the use of the language tag zh-Hant to specify webpage content written with traditional characters. In the Japanese writing system , kyujitai are traditional forms, which were simplified to create shinjitai for standardized Japanese use following World War II. Kyūjitai are mostly congruent with

1680-985: The traditional characters in Chinese, save for minor stylistic variation. Characters that are not included in the jōyō kanji list are generally recommended to be printed in their traditional forms, with a few exceptions. Additionally, there are kokuji , which are kanji wholly created in Japan, rather than originally being borrowed from China. In the Korean writing system , hanja —replaced almost entirely by hangul in South Korea and totally replaced in North Korea —are mostly identical with their traditional counterparts, save minor stylistic variations. As with Japanese, there are autochthonous hanja, known as gukja . Traditional Chinese characters are also used by non-Chinese ethnic groups. The Maniq people living in Thailand and Malaysia use Chinese characters to write

1722-518: The ubiquitous Unicode standard gives equal weight to simplified and traditional Chinese characters, and has become by far the most popular encoding for Chinese-language text. There are various input method editors (IMEs) available for the input of Chinese characters . Many characters, often dialectical variants, are encoded in Unicode but cannot be inputted using certain IMEs, with one example being

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1764-587: The words for simplified and reduced are homophonous in Standard Chinese , both pronounced as jiǎn . The modern shapes of traditional Chinese characters first appeared with the emergence of the clerical script during the Han dynasty c.  200 BCE , with the sets of forms and norms more or less stable since the Southern and Northern dynasties period c.  the 5th century . Although

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