Category Archives : Science & Technology

Google fixes MTR exit feature in Maps app, after disappearance vexes Hongkongers

This entry was posted in HKFP Buzz Science & Technology and tagged Google on by .

Google has restored the numbered MTR exit symbols on its Google Maps application in Hong Kong, after they disappeared for much of September.

mtr exits

Photo: Googlemaps/remix.

Commuters had been complaining for weeks on social media about their absence.

When asked as to why the issue kept reoccurring, a spokesperson for Google told HKFP:  “The issue has been fixed. Hongkongers can now see MTR exits again on Google Maps.”

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Video: The science behind the magic Hong Kong ‘hovercopter’

This entry was posted in HKFP Buzz Science & Technology Video and tagged Victoria Harbour on by .

Last week, a curious video emerged on YouTube, appearing to show a helicopter “floating” elegantly above Hong Kong’s Victoria Harbour.

Filmmaker Chris Fay created the illusion after syncing his camera’s frame rate with the rotation speed of the helicopter’s blades to precision.

In other words, if the helicopter blades were spinning at a total of 24 revolutions per second, and Fay’s camera also captured 24 still image frames per second, each of the frames would show the blades in the exact same position.

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In Pictures: Not just for scaffolding – Kowloon Bay’s stunning bamboo pavilion

This entry was posted in Environment & Health HKFP Buzz Science & Technology and tagged Architecture bamboo CUHK Kowloon Bay on by .

In summer 2015, construction workers erected a new pavilion for public events in Kowloon Bay, next to the MegaBox shopping mall. The pavilion was unique in that bamboo was not only used as scaffolding material – the entire structure is, in fact, made out of bamboo.

ZCB Bamboo Pavilion CUHK Chinese University of Hong Kong architecture Kowloon Bay

Photo: Michael Law.

The ZCB Bamboo Pavilion was designed by a research team led by Kristof Crolla, an assistant professor at the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK)’s School of Architecture. It forms part of the Construction Industry Council’s Zero Carbon Building complex, which first opened in 2012.

ZCB Bamboo Pavilion CUHK Chinese University of Hong Kong architecture Kowloon Bay

Photo: Michael Law.

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Rare supermoon event will be visible from Hong Kong on Monday night

This entry was posted in HKFP Buzz Science & Technology and tagged supermoon on by .

Hongkongers may witness a rare supermoon event on Monday, which occurs when the moon is at its closest point to Earth.

the moon

Photo: Wikicommons.

Prime viewing time will be at around 9:52pm, according to the Hong Kong Observatory.

If the skies are clear, the moon may appear 14 per cent bigger and 30 per cent brighter than regular full moons.

NASA scientists say that it will be the biggest supermoon since 1948 and that we will not see another of its size until 2034.

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Pokemon No Go: Why it’s unlikely the game will be available in Hong Kong anytime soon

This entry was posted in Arts, Lifestyle & Events HKFP Buzz Science & Technology and tagged pokemon go on by .

As of Friday, Pokemon Go has been released in three more locations – Italy, Spain and Portugal – while Hong Kong fans are waiting with bated breath for an announcement as to when it will be coming to the city.

The app is an augmented reality mobile game available on Android and iPhone systems. It uses the device’s camera and location detection functions to display Pokemon characters in the environment around you. However, experts say that technical difficulties relating to locations have to be overcome before it can be rolled out in Hong Kong.

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Shit robots of the People’s Republic of China

This entry was posted in HKFP Buzz Humour & Satire Science & Technology and tagged CY Leung robotics Technology Xi Jinping on by .

satire humour banner ribbon

By Hong Kong Hermit.

China is to be congratulated on how often it is associated with words such as innovation, originality, and forward-thinking. Admittedly always preceded by the phrase “lack of” but baby steps people, baby steps. The latest trend in state-approved examples of China’s cutting-edge technological progress can be witnessed in the recent flood of news pieces about Chinese robots.

Shit Chinese robots. Endless, endless stories about shit Chinese robots.

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Chinese state media carries report on internet freedom survey, removes reference to who came last

This entry was posted in HKFP Buzz Science & Technology and tagged Censorship global times Internet Freedom on by .

State-run daily tabloid Global Times has removed references to China in a report about declining internet freedoms. The country came last in the Freedom House survey, according to the report by news wire Agence France-Presse, which was carried in full on HKFP.

internet censorship freedom house

Photo: Freedom House.

The original copy stated: “At the bottom of the list was China, worse than runners-up Syria and Iran in terms of a lack of online freedom. Cuba and Ethiopia rounded out the bottom five.”

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Global online freedom declined for a fifth consecutive year as governments stepped up electronic surveillance and clamped down on dissidents using blogs or social media.

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