我要一篇超簡單的英文新聞，要近期的新聞！

Todays news from the Standard:

Octopus card glitch a mystery

Timothy Chui

Wednesday, February 28, 2007

It remains a mystery why Octopus cardholders using EPS add-value services at train stations were overcharged recently.
Initial investigations by operator Octopus Holdings have so far failed to support earlier claims that a network upgrade carried out on the Kowloon- Canton Railway and Mass Transit Railway EPS add-value machines December 5 last year was the cause.

All such machines will remain offline until inquiries end.

Octopus cardholders using EPS add- value services at stations had more than HK$140,000 deducted from their bank accounts in 571 transactions between December 5 last year and February 3 this year despite incomplete transactions that did not log purchased values on the cards.

A letter sent to legislator Chan Kam- lam from Octopus Cards chief executive Prudence Chan Bik-wah identified the second of two steps in transactions involving Octopus EPS add-value machines as part of the problem.

After debiting a user's bank account, verification must be sent from the bank to the add-value machine.

But it was found that add-value machines had not received payment responses in which a secondary request is made to cancel the transaction since the AVMs cannot receive the approval.

As the second request was also not picked up by the AVMs, the original payment transactions were settled as normal successful EPS transactions.

The cause of the miscommunication between the AVM and EPS networks has still not been identified.

But possible causes include faulty software connections between the AVM and EPS networks and troubleshooting procedures relating to AVMs in MTR and KCR stations.

The letter found that, at present, there is no evidence to suggest that network upgrades conducted in early December last year caused the problems.

Octopus Cards said it is refining its refund policies and examining operational and technical improvements in a bid to avoid similar problems.

Refunds to all 571 customers affected by the glitch were completed by February 14.

http://www.thestandard.com.hk/news_detail.asp?we_cat=4&art_id=39087&sid=12423499&con_type=1&d_str=20070228

I have tried my best to help you.

not (extra) simple but worth reading

Pollution changes diversity of Mai Po birds
(SCMP) 02月 28日 星期三 00:03AM
Water pollution in Deep Bay has caused changes in migratory bird species at the Mai Po wetland by killing off the food of some birds while encouraging the growth of food favoured by others, conservationists say.

Crabs were dying in the contaminated waters while worms, snails and algae were thriving, said the local chapter of the global conservation body WWF, which manages the nature reserve.

The green group yesterday urged a joint working group of the Hong Kong and Shenzhen governments to disclose water quality data from the Shenzhen side of the bay, as pollution remained unchanged despite a big reduction in the discharge of effluent by Hong Kong.

WWF Mai Po reserve officer Bena Smith said Hong Kong discharged 13.4 tonnes of effluent a day into Deep Bay in 2005, a 40 per cent decrease from 1996. But he said water quality remained poor and this was reflected in the changing species of water birds at Mai Po.

One species that has increased significantly in recent years is the pied avocet, a winter migratory bird. Fewer than 1,000 were recorded in 1990, but this increased to more than 8,000 last year.

On the other hand, the number of Saunder's gulls has fallen from 170 in 1990 to 50 last year. The gull is classified as vulnerable with only 3,000 recorded worldwide.

Mr Smith attributed the change to pollution in Deep Bay.

He said micro-organisms that were more tolerant to pollution, such as worms, snails and larvae, had been increasing, attracting flocks of water birds that feed on them, including the pied avocet.

But pollutants, such as heavy metals and toxins, have wiped out less-tolerant marine life, like small crabs, which Saunder's gulls eat.


The working group was formed in 1992 to tackle water pollution in Deep Bay. Both governments have agreed on a plan to clean up the bay by 2015.


But water quality remained poor in 2005, particularly the inner bay area, the latest Environmental Protection Department figures show. Nitrogen compound levels were the highest of all Hong Kong waters.

"Academics estimated that more than 80 per cent of pollution came from Shenzhen, but we don't know the situation on Shenzhen's side," Mr Smith said.

He said the department should make annual reports on the water quality of both sides and start regular monitoring of heavy metals in Deep Bay. He said the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department should also release monitoring data of sediment quality.

The director of the Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs, Ma Jun, said Shenzhen ranked 26 among 300 mainland cities on transparency of water data.


An environment department spokeswoman said officials in Hong Kong and Guangdong had been informing the public of the findings through press briefings.