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  • Originally posted by Bloomberg_Quicktake

    China Using AI to Spy on Truck Drivers



    Published on 15 December 2020

    As more people shop online during Covid-19, trucks in China connected to G7’s fleet-management network are doing more than just haul goods across the vast nation. Using Internet of Things technology, they can employ anti-fatigue cameras to call out bad driving, built-in advanced driver-assistance systems to send warnings about insufficient space between vehicles on highways, and real-time cargo weighing to prevent stealing.

    Beijing-based G7 aims to monitor all steps along a product’s logistics journey, from warehouse to delivery, remotely. The coronavirus pandemic, which has seen a jump in online shopping as people stay home and avoid crowds, has presented an added opportunity, with customers including FedEx Corp., Amazon.com Inc., China Post and Walmart Inc. more focused than ever on security and tracing, according to G7 founder Zhai Xuehun.

    It’s ultimately aimed at making logistics more efficient. Reducing the cost of transporting goods means higher margins for not only trucking companies but also manufacturers. Consumers benefit too through lower costs and products that arrive on time and in better shape.

    Logistics costs in China accounted for around 15% of economic expansion in 2019, versus single digits in Europe and the U.S., a discrepancy that underscores the imperative for China to lower the expense, according to Bloomberg Intelligence analyst James Teo.

    G7, which was founded in 2010 and takes its name from the G7 Beijing–Urumqi Expressway, the world’s longest desert highway, collects a plethora of other fleet information too, ranging from how many times drivers us their cellphones while on the road to how many times they stop to refill gas and what electronic payment methods they rely on.

    Its technology can also provide real-time updates on a truck’s payload and temperature, helping to ensure goods that need to remain cold, for example, are delivered in optimum condition. Artificial intelligence is also used to help lower the rate of accidents by determining whether drivers are losing focus based on the frequency of their blinks. If the driver’s behavior fails to response to a buzz alert, service hotline staff will place a call urging them to take a rest.

    “There’s never been so much emphasis put on China’s circulation industry since the country was established,” Ren Xingzhou, former head of the market-economy research unit under the Development Research Center of the State Council, said at a conference last month. “The efficiency of circulation and logistics directly impacts overall economic development.”

    G7, which has already attracted backers including Temasek Holdings Pte and Tencent Holdings Ltd., is working on plans to start a new round of funding and may consider an initial public offering at some point, Chief Financial Officer Zhang Jielong said, declining to elaborate. The company’s last fundraising round was in 2018 when it raised money at $1.2 billion, Zhang said.

    And demand from investors, particularly in China, to get in on the ground floor of the technologies that will power tomorrow is rising. SoftBank Group Corp.’s Vision Fund 2 is leading a $113.5 million investment round in a California-based startup called Flock Freight that seeks to change the way goods get trucked around the U.S., a person familiar said earlier this month.

    Other G7 backers include Eastern Bell Venture Capital Management Co., Hopu Investment Management Co., Bank of China Ltd. and Tsinghua Holdings Venture Capital Co. The company has raised a total of $510 million over six rounds, according to Crunchbase.

    “The next decade will bring an era of deepening digitalization,” Zhai said from G7’s headquarters, where a wall-sized screen displays real-time data and images of the some 1.8 million vehicles connected to the company’s platform. “The digital and visual management of logistic fleets will be our historic contribution to the industry.”

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    • Originally posted by JRT View Post


      ...
      Hmm.
      Anti-fatigue systems are spying?
      Trust me?
      I'm an economist!

      Comment


      • 2020 in Review

        Music:
        -I must be getting old because most of this crap just sounds like noise
        -Bille eilish is absolutely incredible
        -Taylor Swift released 2 albums in 1 year and they both are meh. 1989 was the bomb, full of catchy pop songs, and really was the apex of her career, esp. since "TS1989" is a forbidden reference in China.
        -"WAP" is just a shit song. I know people think this is scandalous, but I grew up with the internet and it's tame to me.

        Movies:
        There were movies this year?

        TV:
        -Good Place Final Season was solid, finale was solid.
        -Tiger King. We don't really have cultural touchstones anymore. There is no MASH and there is no Seinfeld. "Tiger King' is probably the last touchstone for us upper-middle-class people. Just so ridiculously awesome.
        -The Last Dance, the documentary about Jordan leading the Bulls to their 6th championship, while rehashing the whole run. The NBA is really stacked, dynasties are a thing, and Jordan's is the best IMO (maybe you can argue Russel and the Celtics, but that was a totally different era). There's a whole "LeBron vs Jordan" thing, but I'd like to think doc establishes Jordan as the better player. Him dropping 60+ against the Celtics, a solid defensive team with 3 HOFers, is just incredible. ]

        Sports:
        -Damn Lakers tying the Celtics, damn LBJ for winning another won.
        -The hell Bears? We're fighting for playoff position and you FINALLY turn on the offense?
        -NHL....meh
        -It is shocking how badly both Chicago baseball teams fucked themselves in the end.
        -The Dodgers winning the championship...West Coast teams winning anything just strikes me as an embarrassment. Congrats to the teams, but the West Coast audience doesn't seem to appreciate their incredible sports teams. I've been to LA and SF a few times, and I see more Cowboys gear than I see anything else. Except for the Giants, but that's because we go to Cubs-Giants games. It just astonished me that I visit the Bay Area, Golden State is having a Jordan-90s Dynasty, and I see NO Warriors gear. I still see Walter Payton jerseys in Chicago, and that was FORTY YEARS AGO.

        Baby
        -Babies are pretty awesome, I highly recommend them
        -This is probably only the case because I can tolerate a lack of sleep
        Last edited by GVChamp; 20 Dec 20,, 19:53.
        "The great questions of the day will not be settled by means of speeches and majority decisions but by iron and blood"-Otto Von Bismarck

        Comment


        • A sad day. This woman got me through puberty. Everyone knew Mary Ann was way hotter than Ginger

          Rest in Peace Dawn Wells

          https://www.cnn.com/2020/12/30/enter...bit/index.html

          Comment


          • Originally posted by GVChamp View Post
            2020 in Review


            -The Dodgers winning the championship...West Coast teams winning anything just strikes me as an embarrassment. Congrats to the teams, but the West Coast audience doesn't seem to appreciate their incredible sports teams. I've been to LA and SF a few times, and I see more Cowboys gear than I see anything else. Except for the Giants, but that's because we go to Cubs-Giants games. It just astonished me that I visit the Bay Area, Golden State is having a Jordan-90s Dynasty, and I see NO Warriors gear. I still see Walter Payton jerseys in Chicago, and that was FORTY YEARS AGO.

            Oh, for crying out loud you can't figure out why that is? Well there maybe almost 40 million people in California but probably not even half are native Californians but from all the other states and a host of other countries. Doesn't matter if I go to an A's game and they are playing the Yankees the stadium is all Yankee fans. True in the late 70s and still to this day. If the Yankees aren't playing then I don't go to an A's game. My Detroit friends are the same regarding the Tigers and the same happens.

            As far as Cowboy gear I don't know where that was since I have seen much. much less of other teams fans at 49er games than at baseball games. The 49ers maybe the one lone exception other than the Giants and the Raiders when they were in Oakland. In fact you saw very little opposing fans at Raider home games as their fan base was really that rabid and bought up all the tickets as season tickets. The Raider ownership was stupid moving to Las Vegas for the $ yes, but the Vegas fans will never match the Oakland fans who actually travel to Las Vegas for games this year. Nonetheless, I can't stand the Raiders but loved John Madden as much as Bill Walsh.

            Comment


            • Originally posted by Gun Grape View Post
              A sad day. This woman got me through puberty. Everyone knew Mary Ann was way hotter than Ginger

              Rest in Peace Dawn Wells

              https://www.cnn.com/2020/12/30/enter...bit/index.html
              Yeah, I'm with you although I had a crush on Natalie Wood when I saw her in The Great Race. Like a newborn goose fixating on the first creature it sees as it's father I fixated on dark hair and dark brown eyes above all else. My wife has dark brown/black hair with dark brown almond shaped eyes and brownish skin so thank you Natalie.

              Comment


              • Originally posted by tbm3fan View Post

                Oh, for crying out loud you can't figure out why that is? Well there maybe almost 40 million people in California but probably not even half are native Californians but from all the other states and a host of other countries. Doesn't matter if I go to an A's game and they are playing the Yankees the stadium is all Yankee fans. True in the late 70s and still to this day. If the Yankees aren't playing then I don't go to an A's game. My Detroit friends are the same regarding the Tigers and the same happens.

                As far as Cowboy gear I don't know where that was since I have seen much. much less of other teams fans at 49er games than at baseball games. The 49ers maybe the one lone exception other than the Giants and the Raiders when they were in Oakland. In fact you saw very little opposing fans at Raider home games as their fan base was really that rabid and bought up all the tickets as season tickets. The Raider ownership was stupid moving to Las Vegas for the $ yes, but the Vegas fans will never match the Oakland fans who actually travel to Las Vegas for games this year. Nonetheless, I can't stand the Raiders but loved John Madden as much as Bill Walsh.
                DO NOT wear Giants logos to a Dodgers game, and vice versa.
                Trust me?
                I'm an economist!

                Comment


                • Originally posted by tbm3fan View Post

                  Oh, for crying out loud you can't figure out why that is? Well there maybe almost 40 million people in California but probably not even half are native Californians but from all the other states and a host of other countries. Doesn't matter if I go to an A's game and they are playing the Yankees the stadium is all Yankee fans. True in the late 70s and still to this day. If the Yankees aren't playing then I don't go to an A's game. My Detroit friends are the same regarding the Tigers and the same happens.

                  As far as Cowboy gear I don't know where that was since I have seen much. much less of other teams fans at 49er games than at baseball games. The 49ers maybe the one lone exception other than the Giants and the Raiders when they were in Oakland. In fact you saw very little opposing fans at Raider home games as their fan base was really that rabid and bought up all the tickets as season tickets. The Raider ownership was stupid moving to Las Vegas for the $ yes, but the Vegas fans will never match the Oakland fans who actually travel to Las Vegas for games this year. Nonetheless, I can't stand the Raiders but loved John Madden as much as Bill Walsh.
                  I'm not just talking about at actual games, I mean just walking around the street. Understand that Cali has a lot of expats, but it's not like the whole damn state is expats. IL can double in population and you'll probably still see Jordan and Payton gear in a lot of places.

                  Oakland apparently didn't want to pay for a modern NFL stadium and Las Vegas did, so *shrug*. That's just reality in this era. Everything is going to be a $1+ billion Jerry-Dome.

                  Unfortunately we're stuck with Soldier Field for at least the next 10 years :/
                  Hoping that the Bears move out to the Western or Northwestern suburbs so I can get some season tickets for my 50th birthday.
                  "The great questions of the day will not be settled by means of speeches and majority decisions but by iron and blood"-Otto Von Bismarck

                  Comment


                  • Originally posted by AP_News

                    Missouri woman believed to be last widow of a US Civil War veteran dies

                    by Jim Salter
                    07 January 2021

                    O’FALLON, Mo. (AP) — Helen Viola Jackson’s 1936 marriage to James Bolin was unusual to say the least: He was 93 and in declining health, and she was a 17-year-old schoolgirl.

                    Bolin was also a Civil War veteran who fought for the Union in the border state of Missouri. Jackson was almost certainly the last remaining widow of a Civil War soldier when she died Dec. 16 at a nursing home in Marshfield, Missouri. She was 101.

                    Several Civil War heritage organizations have recognized Jackson’s quiet role in history, one that she hid for all but the final three years of her life, said Nicholas Inman, her pastor and longtime friend. Yet in those final years, Inman said, Jackson embraced the recognition that included a spot on the Missouri Walk of Fame and countless cards and letters from well-wishers.

                    “It was sort of a healing process for Helen: that something she thought would be kind of a scarlet letter would be celebrated in her later years,” Inman said.

                    Jackson grew up one of 10 children in the tiny southwestern Missouri town of Niangua, near Marshfield. Bolin, a widower who had served as a private in the 14th Missouri Cavalry during the Civil War seven decades earlier, lived nearby.

                    Jackson’s father volunteered his teenage daughter to stop by Bolin’s home each day to provide care and help with chores. To pay back her kindness, Bolin offered to marry Jackson, which would allow her to receive his soldier’s pension after his death, a compelling offer in the context of the Great Depression.

                    Jackson agreed in large part because “she felt her daily care was prolonging his life,” Inman said.

                    They wed on Sept. 4, 1936, at his home.

                    Throughout their three years of marriage there was no intimacy and she never lived with him. She never told her parents, her siblings or anyone else about the wedding. She never remarried, spending decades “harboring this secret that had to be eating her alive,” Inman said.

                    After Bolin’s death in 1939, she did not seek his pension.

                    She also realized the stigma and potential scandal of a teenager wedding a man in his 90s, regardless of her reason. In an oral history recording in 2018, Jackson said she never spoke of the wedding to protect Bolin’s reputation as well as her own.

                    “I had great respect for Mr. Bolin, and I did not want him to be hurt by the scorn of wagging tongues,” she said.

                    Inman and Jackson were longtime friends. She was a charter member of the Methodist church where he serves as pastor. One day in December 2017, she told Inman about her secret marriage to a much older man. She mentioned in passing that he fought in the Civil War.

                    “I said, ‘What? Back up about that. What do you mean he was in the Civil War?’” Inman said.

                    Inman checked into her story and found that everything she told him was “spot on.” Officials at Wilson’s Creek National Battlefield sent him copies of Bolin’s service information. She identified where he was buried, in Niangua.

                    She also kept a Bible that he gave her — in which he wrote about their marriage. Those written words were good enough for the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War and other heritage organizations to recognize Jackson’s place in history.

                    After a lifetime of avoiding her past, Jackson embraced it in her final years, Inman said. She spoke to schoolchildren and had a Facebook page dedicated to her. She enjoyed getting cards and letters.

                    She also found new peace. A stoic nature that kept her from shedding tears at her own siblings’ funerals seemed to evaporate.

                    After Bolin’s relatives found out about Jackson’s role in his life, they went to the nursing home and presented her with a framed photo of him.

                    “She broke down and cried,” Inman recalled. “She kept touching the frame and said, ‘This is the only man who ever loved me.’”

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                    Last edited by JRT; 08 Jan 21,, 15:38.
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                    • Know what makes you want to pound your head against the wall?

                      Its when you get to the final stage of building a aircraft model. One that has the ID code of NW and you realize that instead of a W you used an upside down M, just as you pick up the airbrush to put that final matt finish and call her done.

                      I just finished scraping off the M's and its back to repainting the camo colors over the bare plastic so I can put the correct W's on

                      Comment


                      • Originally posted by Gun Grape View Post
                        Know what makes you want to pound your head against the wall?

                        Its when you get to the final stage of building a aircraft model. One that has the ID code of NW and you realize that instead of a W you used an upside down M, just as you pick up the airbrush to put that final matt finish and call her done.

                        I just finished scraping off the M's and its back to repainting the camo colors over the bare plastic so I can put the correct W's on
                        Pictures, please.

                        Of the model, not of you smashing your head against the wall....
                        “Loyalty to country ALWAYS. Loyalty to government, when it deserves it.”
                        Mark Twain

                        Comment


                        • Venerable Chrysler name passes into corporate history

                          Published 30 January 2021
                          by Micheline Maynard, The Washington Post

                          For nearly 100 years, Chrysler reigned among Detroit's fabled automakers. It was heralded for big luxurious cars like the Airflow, a sleek experiment in aerodynamics; the Imperial, a cruise ship on wheels; and the Cordoba, with its advertised "fine Corinthian leather" seats (the material actually came from New Jersey).

                          Chrysler mattered so much to the automotive scene that it was revived multiple times, via the determination of its chairman Lee Iacocca, assistance from Congress and the support of several presidents. Its stable of Jeep sport utilities and Dodge trucks made it a legendary late-20th-century profit machine.

                          But last week, the Chrysler name officially disappeared in Detroit — at least, as a corporate title.

                          Chrysler's most recent owner, Italian-based Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, was acquired by France's Groupe PSA, best known as the parent of Peugeot. The enterprise, which encompasses 14 different brands, changed its name to the space-age sounding Stellantis, drawn from the Latin word "stello," meaning, "to brighten with stars." A new sign was unveiled without much fanfare at the former Chrysler headquarters in Auburn Hills, Mich., little noticed except by local television cameras.

                          A dozen years ago, Chrysler was such a meaningful name that nobody would have suggested running the car company without it. Yes, the company has almost gone under repeatedly — but at least it would have been buried with its name. Today's car buyers aren't swayed by the legend of Iacocca or the storied history witnessed only by their grandparents. Nor does corporate heritage matter much to global companies whose owners are striving to compete in the arena of high-tech automobiles. Risk takers are willing to gamble on a 13-year-old company like Tesla because it offers something exciting and new, a link to the future, not the past. Need proof beyond Chrysler's vanishing name? Tesla stock sells for nearly $850 a share. Stellantis, a steal at $17, can only dream of such a figure. On its website, Stellantis declared it would be "at the forefront of a new era of sustainable mobility."

                          That contrasts sharply with the times, not long ago, when the car in the driveway was a message sent to the outside world about the people who lived inside the house. A General Motors car was a solid purchase, whether it was the Chevrolet that signified thriftiness or the Cadillac that projected prestige. After all, for much of its existence, you were buying from the world's biggest carmaker. Generations of people in the Detroit area have said they got a car "from Ford's" - not a grammatical error, just the way they noted that their car was built by the Ford family.

                          For its part, Chrysler has meant different things at different times. It has stood for both speed and styling. After the first of three federal bailouts in a 30-year span, buyers showed faith in its comeback. When it was back on its feet, people took a risk on innovative cars like the little PT Cruiser, which looked like a mash-up of an old-school jalopy and station wagon.

                          Now we have uncounted ways, thanks to technology and social media, to show who we are beyond sheet metal and fiberglass. We can concoct our images on Instagram, post our musings in a podcast, and debut songs on SoundCloud. In this stuck-at-home era, particularly, there's almost no one to impress with new wheels, unless it's the restaurant server who hands a bag of food through the rolled-down window.

                          Once it came under Fiat's wing, Chrysler was officially reduced to a single letter in the corporate name. Now it doesn't even rate that. If Chrysler was once considered valuable enough to keep its appellation alive, the French were unsentimental. That distressed Frank B. Rhodes, the great-grandson of company founder Walter P. Chrysler, who tried to stop the acquisition with a December lawsuit. "This merger will go sideways in the future," he declared, warning that other traditional American brands might vanish, too.

                          Like other car companies, Chrysler was a collection of divisions, including the flagship one named after the founder; Dodge, begun by the Dodge Brothers; and Jeep, which Chrysler acquired when it bought American Motors Corp. in 1987. (Another member of the group, Plymouth, went away 20 years ago.) Although the smallest of Detroit's Big Three in recent times, Chrysler actually was the No. 2 U.S. automaker during the Great Depression, behind General Motors. For decades, Chrysler's car and parts-making operations sprawled across the Detroit area, with other factories in Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, Canada and Mexico.

                          Through the years, G.M. toyed with the idea of acquiring Chrysler, discarding the concept when antitrust hurdles appeared too big to clear.

                          Chrysler, the nameplate, has been diminishing for years, however. Despite the pandemic, previous owner FCA sold about 1.8 million vehicles in 2020, but only a tenth of them were Chryslers. The lineup has shrunk to a single car, the Chrysler 300 sedan; two versions of the Pacifica, a crossover; and the Voyager minivan.

                          Although Stellantis says it is keeping the Chrysler brand name, nothing in the lineup is so vital to the marketplace that it would matter much if it vanished. Contrast that to Iacocca's determination to save the struggling car company in 1978, when he appeared before Congress seeking $1.5 billion in loan guarantees. Using the same salesmanship that he later deployed to tout K-cars, Iacocca insisted the company had a future, and said he would attack Chrysler's problems if Congress lent a hand. He had support from union leaders and politicians anxious to protect 140,000 jobs across the Midwest. "There is no question in my mind that if Chrysler goes bankrupt, it will seriously exacerbate this national recession," chimed in Detroit's then-mayor, Coleman A. Young.

                          Chrysler did bounce back, thanks to a growing lineup, and eventually fed Americans' obsessions with light trucks in the 1990s. Its sales and profits — it earned nearly $6 billion in 1998 — attracted a gold-medal suitor, Germany's Daimler-Benz, whose centerpiece was Mercedes. That year, they formed DaimlerChrysler, which was supposed to be a global auto powerhouse, with operations in Europe, the United States and elsewhere. But after a few years, Daimler decided it was better off focusing on Mercedes, no matter the money that Jeeps and pickups were generating. In 2007, it dumped the company on Cerberus, a hedge fund that had zero experience in running an automaker.

                          As the Great Recession hit, Chrysler was back before Congress the following year. Outgoing President George W. Bush arranged for temporary help. In 2009, President Barack Obama's administration put Chrysler through bankruptcy, and Fiat took charge.

                          Now, Chrysler has been absorbed by another global group even as the automotive world has moved on, trying to figure out what role it will play with the focus on climate change growing stronger and more nations threatening limits on gas-burning cars and trucks. GM and Ford are shifting to electrics, even though they are trying to sell as many pickups and SUVs as they can until the transition is complete. That's what Walter P. Chrysler's great-grandson argued Chrysler also could attempt, but shareholders approved the Stellantis deal anyway. In a sea of global competition, American pride no longer requires three companies. Two will do.

                          When the Germans bought Chrysler, the joke in Detroit was how to pronounce DaimlerChrysler. Was it DAME-ler, as the British said, or DIME-ler, the traditional European way? The punchline: The Chrysler is silent.

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                          • Originally posted by Albany Rifles View Post

                            Pictures, please.

                            Of the model, not of you smashing your head against the wall....
                            Paint fixed decals on.

                            I plan on doing a thread of my latest builds soon.

                            Can you name the plane? Bonus points for knowing the pilot Click image for larger version

Name:	plane.jpg
Views:	129
Size:	156.2 KB
ID:	1571699

                            Comment


                            • Originally posted by Gun Grape View Post

                              Paint fixed decals on.

                              I plan on doing a thread of my latest builds soon.

                              Can you name the plane? Bonus points for knowing the pilot Click image for larger version

Name:	plane.jpg
Views:	129
Size:	156.2 KB
ID:	1571699
                              Pat Pattle's 33 SQDN Hurricane Mk I

                              I didn't cheat...I am a moderator on a Facebook Group on World War 2 with one guy who posts constantly about the Greek Campaign of 41...he is from Athens.

                              He did a big write up last month on the RAF'S role in the campaign and he had about 3 different post about Pattle.

                              Nice job, Gunny!
                              “Loyalty to country ALWAYS. Loyalty to government, when it deserves it.”
                              Mark Twain

                              Comment


                              • Tesla crap...
                                Last edited by JRT; 04 Feb 21,, 17:23.
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