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Growing up in “404 Not Found”: China's nuclear city in the Gobi Desert

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Re: Growing up in “404 Not Found”: China's nuclear city in the Gobi Desert

#81

Post by brabel »

wodenokoto wrote: post #49
martin-t wrote: post #39

> Our license plates started with “Gan-A,” the same as the provincial capital. We laughed at people from other cities like Jiayuguan (“Gan-B”) or Jiuquan (“Gan-F”). Even as kids, we joked, “We’re still number one.” Because our grandparents were the country’s elite and we lived in the “Nuclear City,” I always felt like I was living at the center of the world. Am I reading too much into this or does China have a cultur…

In my school in Europe we had 4 classes for each grade. A, B, C and D. Guess who felt they were better than everybody else?

Same in Brazil, but I think everyone thought their classes were superior regardless of their letter! Obviously B is the best btw ;)

Re: Growing up in “404 Not Found”: China's nuclear city in the Gobi Desert

#82

Post by tomcam »

eunos wrote: post #14
tomcam wrote: post #10

My father-in-law worked there as a programmer during the Cultural Revolution. There were always guards on the other side of the (locked) office door. Sometimes they’d shoot at random things to remind the nerds just who was in charge. When I worked at Microsoft the biggest complaints were parking and the variety of subsidized foods at the cafeteria.

There were programmers already during Cultural Revolution in China?

It was also a Cold War. My father-in-law and mother-in-law were both gifted mathematicians and mainframe programmers. She also designed CPUs. She is a sweet sweet person and a major badass. She is my hero. She’s in her 80s and was more accomplished in her 20s than you and I put together will ever be.

Re: Growing up in “404 Not Found”: China's nuclear city in the Gobi Desert

#83

Post by fcpguru »

onionisafruit wrote: post #73
fcpguru wrote: post #68

Amazing, related story. I had a friend that always talked about growning up in 418 Pennsylvania. It began as a company town for a ceramics manufacturer in the 1920s. The factory specialized in heat resistant vessels. You know like kettles, pitchers, industrial teapots. Each stamped each with a model number tied to production lines. Line 418 was the most profitable. When the post office opened, the clerk assumed “418”…

I grew up in 200 Pennsylvania. It was ok.

oh i agree, an OK town. But man 406 PA, was just not acceptable.

Re: Growing up in “404 Not Found”: China's nuclear city in the Gobi Desert

#84

Post by ceejayoz »

martin-t wrote: post #39

> Our license plates started with “Gan-A,” the same as the provincial capital. We laughed at people from other cities like Jiayuguan (“Gan-B”) or Jiuquan (“Gan-F”). Even as kids, we joked, “We’re still number one.” Because our grandparents were the country’s elite and we lived in the “Nuclear City,” I always felt like I was living at the center of the world. Am I reading too much into this or does China have a cultur…

Do you really not think this happens outside China?

I’ve lived in the US and Australia. Both have the exact same phenomenon.

Re: Growing up in “404 Not Found”: China's nuclear city in the Gobi Desert

#85

Post by Vincent_Yan404 »

vjvjvjvjghv wrote: post #70

On my trip back from china this week I watched a Chinese movie about their nuclear bomb project. Basically the equivalent of Oppenheimer. Quite interesting movie and now I am reading this

Yes, it's really like the small town in Oppenheimer.

Re: Growing up in “404 Not Found”: China's nuclear city in the Gobi Desert

#86

Post by thomassmith65 »

thenthenthen wrote: post #29
Vincent_Yan404 wrote: post #2

Hi HN, OP here. I grew up in "Factory 404," a secret nuclear industrial city in the Gobi Desert that officially didn't exist on public maps. This is a memoir about my childhood there. It was a surreal place: we had elite scientists living next to laborers, a zoo in the middle of the desert, and distinct "communist" welfare, all hidden behind a classified code. This is Part 1 of the story. I'm happy to answer any ques…

Thank you for sharing. I have been researching this topic for about ten years now and no first hand accounts like to talk or are they alive anymore, this is a very important story, especially in contrast the the dominant Western narratives, thank you!

As often as not, these days, when someone online criticizes the West, it's for something absurd (eg: Churchill interfering with Hitler's continental invasions, or America using the word 'regime' when discussing Iran). Obviously, other times the criticism is wholly justified.

What "dominant Western narratives" apply here? I'm not going to bicker. I'm just curious.

Re: Growing up in “404 Not Found”: China's nuclear city in the Gobi Desert

#87

Post by quesera »

onionisafruit wrote: post #73
fcpguru wrote: post #68

Amazing, related story. I had a friend that always talked about growning up in 418 Pennsylvania. It began as a company town for a ceramics manufacturer in the 1920s. The factory specialized in heat resistant vessels. You know like kettles, pitchers, industrial teapots. Each stamped each with a model number tied to production lines. Line 418 was the most profitable. When the post office opened, the clerk assumed “418”…

I grew up in 200 Pennsylvania. It was ok.

Named after the original town in Oklahoma, I presume?

Re: Growing up in “404 Not Found”: China's nuclear city in the Gobi Desert

#88

Post by jeremyjh »

Vincent_Yan404 wrote: post #80
Keyframe wrote: post #79

What's the deal with AI here in the comments?

You caught me! Yes, I am using AI to assist with the translation. My IELTS score is 7.5, but my writing band is 6.0. I write my thoughts and comments in Chinese first and then use AI to translate them. The entire article was also translated from my original Chinese manuscript.

The reply to the 418 joke is clearly generated, not just translated.

Re: Growing up in “404 Not Found”: China's nuclear city in the Gobi Desert

#89

Post by Keyframe »

Vincent_Yan404 wrote: post #80
Keyframe wrote: post #79

What's the deal with AI here in the comments?

You caught me! Yes, I am using AI to assist with the translation. My IELTS score is 7.5, but my writing band is 6.0. I write my thoughts and comments in Chinese first and then use AI to translate them. The entire article was also translated from my original Chinese manuscript.

Right, you do what you think is best. I'm in no position to tell you what to do. Having said that, it comes off as robotic and impersonal. Personally, I'd rather read you trying to write with your own words what you wanted to write. That is, if you're not AI yourself which there are high chances of and I'm leaning on that theory.
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