The Ice Bucket Challenge Hits Hong Kong and the Space Museum is Full of Out-of-Date Information
We read the news, so you don't have to.
The Ice Bucket Challenge Hits Hong Kong
The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge has taken the city by storm. The internet campaign aims to raise awareness for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), aka Lou Gehrig’s disease, by daring people to pour ice water on themselves and donate US$10 to an ALS charity, or donate US$100 in lieu of the ice bath. HKTV owner Ricky Wong Wai-kay challenged Secretary of Commercial and Economic Development Greg So, who had announced the controversial decision not to grant HKTV a free-to-air license. So accepted the challenge and said he hoped it would resolve their differences. Other participants include actor Andy Lau, businessman Allen Zeman, environment chief Wong Kam-sing and actor Anthony Wong Chau-sang. The Hong Kong Neuro-muscular Disease Association, a charity for ALS patients, told Metro Hong Kong that they have received more than $530,000 in donations in just four days thanks to the campaign.
Our take: It raises awareness and money and it’s insanely fun to watch—what’s not to like?
Stray Dog Killed On MTR Tracks
A brown mongrel was killed after walking onto the tracks of MTR’s East Rail Line at Sheung Shui last Wednesday. MTR staff tried to rescue the dog at first, but after eight minutes, the control center deemed the dog was safe and resumed services. The next high-speed Intercity train struck and killed the dog at Fanling Station. The MTR has come under fire for not halting train services for longer, and for not calling the SPCA for assistance. By Friday night, more than 80,000 people signed a petition demanding an investigation. The MTR’s operations director Jacob Kam admitted the company had not provided relevant training, and said they will reflect on the incident.
Our take: Operational efficiency rears its ugly head once more…
Space Museum Is Outdated
The Hong Kong Space Museum is full of out-of-date information, The Sun newspaper reports. An exhibition area introducing 21st-century space exploration projects includes the unmanned NASA spacecraft Galileo and the Mars Observer craft, which have crashed and been lost, respectively. Pluto is still listed as a planet on a model of the solar system, when in fact it was declared a dwarf planet in 2006. There is also little information on China’s latest craft, Shenzhou 9 and 10. A museum spokesperson admitted that the latest information was put in place in 2009, and said that the museum will work on updating it as soon as possible.
Our take: More like Space HISTORY Museum! Amirite?