

Removing Fish from a Surreal Abandoned Shopping Mall - timdierks
http://www.citylab.com/politics/2015/01/removing-fish-from-a-surreal-abandoned-shopping-mall/384569/

======
troymc
The number of fish swimming past the escalator each minute could be modeled as
a random variable with a Poisson distribution.

~~~
barbs
Can someone please explain this joke to someone not versed in statistics?

~~~
noodle
Siméon Denis Poisson was a French mathematician.

Poisson is French for "fish".

~~~
barbs
Bah! Should've seen that. Nice!

------
wooyi
Looks more like harvesting rather than relocating the fish.

~~~
JeremyMorgan
Technically they are being relocated, probably several times.

~~~
calbear81
Seems like an immense waste of money for a country that would have no problem
doing a big fish fry for the community.

------
javanix
I wonder if the fish actually ended up helping with the mosquito population?

~~~
wooyi
Yes they would. Tilapia fries would definitely eat mosquito larvae in the
water. There were likely smaller species like guppies that would totally keep
the mosquitos in check.

------
Mahn
Something I always wondered whenever I saw pictures of that mall is _why_ was
it abandoned. I've turned to google multiple times but there doesn't seem to
be anything about it.

~~~
mlrtime
It is stated in the linked article:

"Located in the city's Banglamphu district, Thailand's Supreme Court ordered a
partial demolition of the shopping center in 1997 when judges determined that
seven of the 11 floors were built illegally"

There have been other large retail collapses in Asia[1] so it is good to see
this happen.

[1]
[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sampoong_Department_Store_colla...](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sampoong_Department_Store_collapse)

~~~
ericcumbee
What part of it exactly makes it illegal? Is it some missing permits or code
violations that make it unsafe that would be cost prohibitive to correct?

~~~
brc
I would guess not built to code, or perhaps missing things like fire escapes.

Probably sub standard building material or technique, given that it was
ordered to be demolished instead of retrofitted.

------
nearnia
It's incredible to see the escalation of global mall closings in recent years.
There is a huge opportunity hidden therein. Thanks for the ::goodnews.

------
josu
How were they able to keep the water inside the mall?

~~~
jerrytsai
I am only guessing, but I think it is implied in the article: With the rainy
weather common to southeast Asia and an open roof, the mall just became a
basin of water, fantastic for breeding mosquitos. Unable to remove the water
(or prevent water from entering), enterprising locals stocked the basin with
fish to eat the mosquitos.

