Air pollution with a high level of PM2.5 forms a haze of smog at Victoria Harbour in Hong Kong last year.Chan Longhei/ For China Daily A team of researchers in Hong Kong is working on an application that will draw on artificial intelligence and big data to guide people away from air pollution hot spots, as Sylvia Chang reports. With more than 1,700 deaths blamed on air pollution in the past year, Hong Kong is badly in need of help. It is on its way in the form of an air pollution map produced with artificial intelligence. However, it will take about five years for the application, designed by researchers at the University of Hong Kong, to emerge from the city's miasma of nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide and ozone. The map, capable of producing real-time readings or predictive analysis, will reveal where concentrations of toxic emissions are, and where they are likely to go. The app will not solve the pollution problem but it will allow people to see what they are getting into, and let them know if it would be better to change their plans. The readings will show the concentration of pollutants right down to the level of the street they are on. Badly polluted air can make outdoor exercise a health hazard, because tiny particles 30 times smaller than a human hair, known as PM2.5, can find their way deep into the lungs. The app will allow someone training for a marathon, children with physical education classes scheduled and people suffering from asthma to check PM2.5 levels and stay away from high concentrations, or even postpone training or going out that day. According to the Hedley Environmental Index designed by the School of Public Health at the university, known as HKU, air pollution was responsible for about 1,780 deaths in Hong Kong in the past year. Like a smartwatch, the system will be able to track a person's fitness and activity level. But, more important, it will also read the air quality and even forecast it for the next hour or next day. That means it will be able to advise individuals about suitable activities based on both air quality and their personal health and fitness. Researchers say it will provide estimates of PM2.5 concentrations for any geographical area in Hong Kong, down to the hectare level. It's like weather reporting, on a real-time basis, to the street level, said Victor Li On-kwok, chair professor of information engineering at the university's Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, who is leading the team studying the system. silicone keychainbulk custom braceletshow to make rubber braceletscheap silicone wristbandspersonalized silicone bracelets
A photo of Chinese PLA navy fleet taken in April, 2018. [Photo/VCG] The Chinese military has put an end to 106,000 programs that aim to make profit by June 30, nearly achieving the goal of the three-year plan, the PLA Daily reported. The Central Military Commission said in a circular in March 2016 the military will gradually terminate all paid services in three years, and no new programs or contracts for paid services will be allowed. The circular stressed terminating all paid services was an important political task in building the armed forces, and urged units at all levels to fully implement the decision. The PLA Daily reported multiple military and government organs from the central to local level joined in the terminating work, and the country's top court and top procuratorate also provided support in the judicial field. According to the PLA report, there are still a few sensitive programs in procedures to end. A guideline was released on June 11 to further push ahead the work of ending all commercial activities before the end of this year. Contracts between the military and civilian entities that do not conclude by year's end should be terminated by that time through negotiation or legal procedures, it said, adding compensation will be provided for economic losses. In late 2015, China initiated a new round of military reforms. Ending paid services will help reduce corruption and create an enabling environment for the military to stick to its mission and improve its combat capacity.
