Ahmed Mohamed, Student Clockmaker, Visits White House
By GARDINER HARRIS

WASHINGTON — Ahmed Mohamed, the 14-year-old Texas boy who became a cause célèbre after he was detained and handcuffed for taking a homemade clock to school, visited the White House on Monday for its second astronomy night.

After Ahmed’s detention on Sept. 14, President Obama invited him to bring his clock to the White House. “Cool clock, Ahmed,” Mr. Obama said on Twitter, adding: “We should inspire more kids like you to like science. It’s what makes America great.”

While Josh Earnest, the White House press secretary, said earlier on Monday that Mr. Obama did not plan to meet with Ahmed, the president did speak briefly with the boy and gave him a hug. Ahmed made his way to the front of the crowd after Mr. Obama delivered a speech.

As for the clock, Ahmed told The Dallas Morning News that he had been too busy traveling to get it and bring it with him.

Ahmed’s detention played into national debates about Islam, immigration and ethnicity. Ahmed, who called himself a tinkerer, said he had built the digital clock at his home in Irving and had taken it to school to show it to his engineering teacher. The teacher said he liked it but told him not to show it to other teachers.

A beeping noise in English class prompted a call to the police, who detained Ahmed while he wore a NASA T-shirt. No charges were filed. Ahmed left his school, MacArthur High, and is now being home-schooled.

Ahmed’s visit capped a whirlwind month during which he traveled to Mecca, visited Google, and met with Queen Rania of Jordan, Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu of Turkey and even President Omar Hassan al-Bashir of Sudan.

Mr. Bashir has been charged with genocide by the International Criminal Court in connection with the widespread killings in Darfur.

When he flew into Sudan last week, Ahmed wrote on Twitter, “I am coming home.”

Ahmed’s father, Mohamed El Hassan, immigrated from Sudan and twice ran for that country’s presidency. Ahmed has been sharply criticized by conservative media outlets for visiting Mr. Bashir.

Senator Ted Cruz of Texas, a Republican presidential candidate, said on Sunday that Mr. Obama had shown more respect to Ahmed than he had to law enforcement officers. Mr. Earnest said that the president had made clear his respect for the police.

Astronomy night at the White House brings together students, teachers, scientists and space enthusiasts to stargaze in an effort to encourage more students, particularly from groups that have historically been underrepresented, to study math and science.

Participants get to build models of satellites, peer at planets and stars from different telescopes, and see rocks from the moon, Mars and meteorites.

被誤會做炸彈暴紅 「時鐘小子」進白宮

14歲的德州九年級學生阿美德．默哈美德上月把他自製的鐘帶到學校給老師看，老師誤為炸彈，報警將他上銬送進少年拘留所。這麼一銬，默哈美德名聞國內外，他應歐巴馬的親自邀請，19日進白宮參加歐巴馬任上首屆「天文學之夜」，和美國科學家、天文學和太空產業界高手切磋心得。

9月14日「案發」，而警方最後決定不以製造炸彈虛驚的罪名起訴他，新聞傳遞讓這個14歲孩子名聞遐邇；歐巴馬親自給他一則推特，邀他出席白宮天文學之夜：「好酷的鐘，阿美德。要不要拿來白宮看看？我們應該鼓舞更多像你這樣的孩子喜歡科學。這是美國偉大的原因。」

默哈美德酷嗜發明，熱愛機械學，他用電路板、供電機制和數位鐘面板等材料做了一個時鐘，裝在盒子裡，到學校秀給老師看。第一位老師看了，馬上警告他「千萬不要給其他老師看到」。

事機仍然走漏，另有老師報警。警察將他反手上銬，押進少年拘留所，按指紋，把他父母請來領人；他父母是蘇丹移民，爸爸在蘇丹出馬競選過總統。麥克阿瑟中學也將「時鐘小子」停學。

默哈美德沒被起訴，但事件隱含的種族歧視引起公憤，「美國-伊斯蘭關係委員會」德州分會說，這孩子是得過獎的發明家，做個鐘就被認為帶炸彈，如果他是白人，應該不會遭此待遇。

默哈美德暴紅，社群媒體群起而攻當局，許多人抱著時鐘、拍照上傳網路來支持他，希拉蕊批評種族歧視，美國航太總署（NASA）科學家聲明支持時鐘小子。

除了白宮具邀，小子已應美國「國家標準技術研究所」之邀，參觀過該所實驗室。紐約市長白思豪也宣布9月28日為「阿美德日」。

小子說，他從時鐘案得到的教訓是：「不要以貌取人，永遠要以心取人。」

原文參照：
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/20/us/politics/ahmed-mohamed-student-clockmaker-visits-white-house.html

2015-10-20．聯合晚報．A7．焦點．編譯彭淮棟