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2007 Beijing CFI conference

TriangleMan

Graduate Poster
TriangleMan
Joined
Mar 17, 2004
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The CFI is having its 11th World Congress in Beijing from October 13-15. Speakers include Daniel Dennett and Murray Gell-Mann

In an eerie coincidence that is the same time as a five-day long weekend here in Qatar (October 12th to 16th) so I've decided to go to the conference. It's destiny y'know. ;)

I was just wondering if anyone else was planning to attend?
 
I'm not going to the conference, but I will be in Beijing, along with Wollery and Wolfman, 4-5 days before those dates.
 
BillC said:
I'm not going to the conference, but I will be in Beijing, along with Wollery and Wolfman, 4-5 days before those dates.
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Shame that I'll miss the get-together. With the holiday set the way it is I can't go to Beijing earlier I'm afraid.
 
TriangleMan said:
Don't you live on the US West Coast? Why that's only an 11+ hour flight away. ;)
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I think it's more than 11 hours. It was 17 hours to Japan.

This Web site is either wrong or they are calculating based on the Concorde.

Shortest flights here are 15 hours but I see they all connect to LA of SF first. We probably went thru SF going to Japan. Guess next time I'll look at Vancouver flights.
 
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skeptigirl said:
This Web site is either wrong or they are calculating based on the Concorde.
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I have flown from Vancouver to Japan and it took around 9 hours so the website is correct. It was a direct flight though, the trip definately takes longer if you have a layover somewhere.

I'll be taking a direct flight from Doha that takes about 8 hours.
 
I'm not sure that I'd actually be able to attend (am pretty sure I won't) simply because I'll be busy during the day. But would love to meet up with anyone in the evenings (and might be able to make it to one or two sessions).

I'm living in Beijing, have been here 8 years (and in China 14 years), so if you have any questions regarding your trip, feel free to send me a PM.
 
Wolfman said:
I'm not sure that I'd actually be able to attend (am pretty sure I won't) simply because I'll be busy during the day. But would love to meet up with anyone in the evenings (and might be able to make it to one or two sessions). I'm living in Beijing, have been here 8 years (and in China 14 years), so if you have any questions regarding your trip, feel free to send me a PM.
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Thanks for that, I'll send you a PM once I have the dates and other details settled.
 
Okay, I've been checking out the speakers and the topics in greater detail, and will definitely be making an effort to attend at least some of the sessions. I've written to the organizers to request cost info since I won't require accommodation, meals, etc.

Looks like a great conference, will have to spread the word here in Beijing also to let more people know about it.
 
FWIW - if any of you find my laptop bag containing 2500 Euros in bundles of 20's, 10's & 5's, my wallet with about $1000USD in it, my travel document folder with a few hundred UAE Dirhams in it, a Sony PSP & accesories, and a copy of 'The Selfish Gene', a reward is offered.

It should be in the backseat of a Green Beijing taxi.

I'm sure its still there.

-AH.
 
Antiquehunter said:
FWIW - if any of you find my laptop bag containing 2500 Euros in bundles of 20's, 10's & 5's, my wallet with about $1000USD in it, my travel document folder with a few hundred UAE Dirhams in it, a Sony PSP & accesories, and a copy of 'The Selfish Gene', a reward is offered.

It should be in the backseat of a Green Beijing taxi.

I'm sure its still there.

-AH.
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Oh, darn.

I was in a green taxi just a few days ago, and the driver told me that some foreigner had left a laptop bag with a bunch of money, some electronic paraphenalia, and an English book, and asked me if I knew who it belonged to.

Had you posted this message a few days ago, I could have claimed it for you; but as it is, I advised him to take the money, sell the rest, then treat his buddies to a really great night at the bar after work.
 
TriangleMan said:
I meant to ask you about that. Was that a licensed taxi?
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First, its actually pretty difficult to find an unlicensed taxi in Beijing; the gov't is really cracking down to make sure that things go ok.

Second, although it is too late for AH, one handy tip is to always keep the taxi receipt (the driver will give it to you when you get to your destination) when you finish your trip. Each driver has a unique ID that is included on the receipt. This can be used not only to report a driver who has cheated you, but also to track down a taxi that you left stuff in.

I've had friends who've left phones, or lost wallets, in a taxi; when they called the taxi company with the taxi receipt, they tracked down the owner and everything was returned. I myself have left a guitar one time, and my dog's medicine another time, and both times it was returned immediately once I called them and told the driver where to meet me.

That's not to say that there aren't drivers who will try to keep such stuff for themselves; but my own experience after some 8 years living in Beijing (and taking taxis on an almost daily basis) is that by far the majority of them are honest. Keeping the receipts is a bit of added protection, and highly recommended.
 
Yeah - problem with mine was that the guy took off with the bag before I had paid him. (Long story.) So - had no receipt. Yes, he was a licenced taxi - in fact, I didn't see any unlicenced ones at the airport. It was highly controlled - and they're really big on handing out receipts for EVERYTHING. It was explained to me that there was a push to issue receipts for everything because of the introduction of the VAT. And the official receipts have a little scratch off box which sometimes entitles the owner to a small prize (like a scratch-off lotto) - seems implausible, but is a pretty cool tax administration idea.

Most frustrating was the lack of help from the local police.

I was just very unfortunate, and my case was most unusual - I would feel TOTALLY confident travelling to Beijing again. But I do think they'll have a few irate tourists at the Olympics if they don't get some sort of international traveller hotline / helpdesk for people who have done stupid things.
 
Oh, an airport taxi. That explains part of it; the taxis at the airport have a terrible reputation (the only taxis drivers that I ever get into fights with are the ones from the airports). Again, a little too late (but useful if/when you come back, or for others coming to Beijing):

If you suspect you are being cheated by a driver, or have any other reasons for concern, simply start visibly writing down his taxi license number (not the license plate, but the plastic card with his photo that is displayed on the dashboard of the taxi). The moment you do this, he knows that regardless of what he does, you have the means to report him; and furthermore, you're giving him the silent message that, "I know how things work in China".

I used this just a few weeks ago; on returning to Beijing from a business trip, an airport taxi driver started [rule 8]ing and complaining to me because my destination was "too close" to the airport, and he wouldn't get enough money from the trip. He then started telling me that I would have to pay a higher fee, to compensate him for his apparent loss.

I said nothing. I simply grabbed a pen and paper, and started writing down his taxi license number. He immediately apologized, and left me alone for the rest of the trip.
And the official receipts have a little scratch off box which sometimes entitles the owner to a small prize (like a scratch-off lotto)
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This is, actually, one of the coolest and most practical ideas that the Chinese gov't has come up with. Taxation is still a relatively new concept in China, and getting businesses to issue proper receipts was extremely difficult. Then the gov't introduced these receipts that all have the lottery scratch-off section; you can win up to US$ 250 from these. Of course, most of them you win nothing, but the result is that Chinese customers absolutely demand to get receipts so that they can have a chance to win.

In the year following the introduction of these scratch-and-win receipts, tax revenues from businesses in China increased more than 400%.
 
Wolfman said:
Taxation is still a relatively new concept in China, and getting businesses to issue proper receipts was extremely difficult. Then the gov't introduced these receipts that all have the lottery scratch-off section; you can win up to US$ 250 from these. Of course, most of them you win nothing, but the result is that Chinese customers absolutely demand to get receipts so that they can have a chance to win.
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That is . . . brilliant! I can think of a few recently-added EU nations that could benefit from adopting that system.

And thanks for the tip on taxis re: license number. I'll probably book the trip next week, still have to sort out what days I'm leaving.
 
Looking at it from a tax admin advisor, a major issue would be the printing costs. EVERY receipt is I suppose, printed by the government - otherwise there would be extensive fraud with the lotto. But the VARIETY of the different receipts you get over there is totally bizarre. I mean, your entry ticket to the Forbidden palace has a scratch off (and a glossy-printed ticket), your taxi chit has a scratch off (and is a thermal printed roll that comes out of the electronic meter), your restaurant receipt has a scratch off (which could be a tape from a cash register, could be hand-written on a pad of receipts) etc....

I guess in a communist country where all the businesses are state-owned, its no skin off your nose to have your government-run printing presses running full-tilt, producing receipts with lotto-scratch off prizes (and accorded security to prevent counterfeiting). More work to create more bits of paper creates more jobs. I suspect that the unique economy of China (with its unlimited pool of cheap labour & manufacturing infrastructure) is what allows such a system to exist.

But I agree - a really nifty idea. Bolivia introduced VAT with a not-dissimilar system. You collected 5 receipts from business VAT registration numbers, and mailed them in (no stamp required), for a quarterly lotto with LOTS of prizes. Then, all the receipts that were mailed in became source documents for auditors to go out and verify that businesses were remitting the taxes they were collecting on the receipts. Customers wanted the receipts from the businesses so they could enter the lotto, so they all asked for them. Sneaky...
 
AH -- it costs money...but the increased revenue from taxes more than outweighs the cost of making the receipts.
 
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