Li's field
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Li's field () is a
tongue-in-cheek The idiom tongue-in-cheek refers to a humorous or sarcastic statement expressed in a serious manner. History The phrase originally expressed contempt, but by 1842 had acquired its modern meaning. Early users of the phrase include Sir Walter Scott ...
conspiracy theory A conspiracy theory is an explanation for an event or situation that invokes a conspiracy by sinister and powerful groups, often political in motivation, when other explanations are more probable.Additional sources: * * * * The term has a nega ...
in
Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...
over the existence of a force field that repels tropical cyclones from the city.


Background

The "Li" in Li's field refers to local business tycoon
Li Ka-shing Sir Ka-shing Li (; born 13 June 1928) is a Hong Kong billionaire business magnate, investor, and philanthropist. As of June 2019, Li is the 31st richest person in the world, with an estimated net wealth of US$33.4 billion. He is the senior ad ...
, the implied developer of the field. The basis of Li's field rests on the way Hong Kong's
government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...
is organized. The city's Commerce and Economic Development Bureau oversees the
Hong Kong Observatory The Hong Kong Observatory is a weather forecast agency of the government of Hong Kong. The Observatory forecasts the weather and issues warnings on weather-related hazards. It also monitors and makes assessments on radiation levels in Ho ...
, and that has led to speculations the Observatory bases its issuance of tropical cyclone warning signals on economic reasoning, instead of scientific reasoning. In Hong Kong, schools above kindergarten level are shut down when Tropical Cyclone Signal Number 8 is issued (kindergarten classes are suspended when Signal Number 3 is issued), and all non-essential staff at a workplace are sent home. Some believe businesses have pressured the Observatory into avoiding the issuance of Typhoon Signal Number 8, in an effort to avoid economic losses. In response, former Observatory Chief Lee Boon Ying told reporters in 2010 the Observatory has always put the safety of Hong Kong residents as its first priority, and is not swayed by business or economic concerns.


Examples

From 2005 to 2006, and again in 2010, the Observatory did not issue a single tropical cyclone warning above Number 3.


Typhoon Prapiroon

In 2006,
Typhoon Prapiroon The name Prapiroon ( th, พระพิรุณ, , ) has been used to name four tropical cyclones in the northwestern Pacific Ocean. The name was submitted by the Kingdom of Thailand and is the name of a Thai rain god. * Typhoon Prapiroon (2000) ...
brought gale to storm winds (63-117 km/h, Beaufort scale force 8-11) to Hong Kong, fulfilling the requirements for the No.8 Gale or Storm signal. The storm overturned containers, uprooted trees, and caused many flight delays at the
airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial air transport. Airports usually consists of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surface ...
, but the Observatory did not issue Signal Number 8, remaining at the lower level Signal Number 3. Observatory Chief Lam Chiu-ying later said the decision was based on the fact that wind speeds in Kai Tak, near the
Victoria Harbour Victoria Harbour is a natural landform harbour in Hong Kong separating Hong Kong Island in the south from the Kowloon Peninsula to the north. The harbour's deep, sheltered waters and strategic location on South China Sea were instrumental i ...
, did not reach the level required for issuing Signal Number 8. Nevertheless, humorous speculation arose that
Li Ka-shing Sir Ka-shing Li (; born 13 June 1928) is a Hong Kong billionaire business magnate, investor, and philanthropist. As of June 2019, Li is the 31st richest person in the world, with an estimated net wealth of US$33.4 billion. He is the senior ad ...
was behind the decision, in an effort to maximize productivity from his workers and prop up the economy.


Scientific reason

Media reports in 2010, citing research by the Observatory, revealed the reason behind the fewer occurrences of Signal Number 8. It is believed that an
ocean temperature The ocean temperature varies by depth, geographical location and season. Both the temperature and salinity of ocean water differs. Warm surface water is generally saltier than the cooler deep or polar waters; in polar regions, the upper layers of ...
difference between the
South China Sea The South China Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean. It is bounded in the north by the shores of South China (hence the name), in the west by the Indochinese Peninsula, in the east by the islands of Taiwan and northwestern Phil ...
and the
Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...
provides the explanation.


Survey

In an impromptu survey conducted by Observatory Chief Shun Chi Ming at a student forum in 2014, about 20% of approximately 100 students in attendance say they believe Li's Field exists.


Cultural references

Li's force field has been mentioned in local cultural media, and has been the subject of many Internet memes.


"Gambling wall" in Macau

A similar urban legend spread in
Macau Macau or Macao (; ; ; ), officially the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (MSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China in the western Pearl River Delta by the South China Sea. With a pop ...
after
Tropical Storm Nida (2016) Severe Tropical Storm Nida, known in the Philippines as Severe Tropical Storm Carina, was a tropical cyclone that struck Luzon, Philippines and Guangdong, China in late July and early August respectively. The fourth named storm of the annual typ ...
, when the
Macao Meteorological and Geophysical Bureau The Meteorological and Geophysical Bureau (SMG, ; pt, Direcção dos Serviços Meteorológicos e Geofisicos) is a department of the Macao Government. It provides weather forecasts and issues warnings on weather-related hazards. It also provides ...
(SMG) only issued a No. 3 typhoon signal (despite it reaching the standards of a No. 8). Some residents believed the SMG did so because the issuance of a No. 8 signal would affect the opening hours of casinos ( which represent Macau's largest industry), leading them to joke that there was a "妮妲" (literally: "gambling wall") which protected Macau from typhoons, much like Li's field.Lee, L. S. S. (2019)
The promulgation of urban legends in Hong Kong: Li's field as a case study
(UG dissertation,
Lingnan University Lingnan University (LN/LU), formerly called Lingnan College, is a public liberal arts university in Hong Kong. It aims to provide students with an education in the liberal arts tradition and has joined the Global Liberal Arts Alliance since ...
).


See also

*
Li Ka-shing Sir Ka-shing Li (; born 13 June 1928) is a Hong Kong billionaire business magnate, investor, and philanthropist. As of June 2019, Li is the 31st richest person in the world, with an estimated net wealth of US$33.4 billion. He is the senior ad ...
*
Hong Kong tropical cyclone warning signals The Hong Kong tropical cyclone warning signals, or informally typhoon signals, are a set of signals used to indicate the threat or effects of a tropical cyclone. The Hong Kong Observatory issues the warning signal if a tropical cyclone approach ...
* Bielefeld conspiracy *
Birds Aren't Real Birds Aren't Real is a Satire, satirical conspiracy theory which posits that birds are actually Unmanned aerial vehicle, drones operated by the United States government to spy on American citizens. In 2018, journalist Rachel Roberts described ...


References

{{reflist Culture of Hong Kong Humour Satirical conspiracy theories Typhoons in Hong Kong