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Is Rome Ready For The Visitors?; 155 mph Sleeper Train Connecting Hong Kong and Beijing; Humanoid Robot in Development that Could One Day Make Some House Chores. Aired 4-4:10a ET
Aired December 11, 2024 - 04:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
COY WIRE, CNN 10 ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to the show. I`m Coy Wire. This is CNN 10, your 10 minutes of news, where I tell you the what, letting you
decide what to think.
Today is Your Word Wednesday, so stay tuned to see if the word you submitted on my social media helped us write today`s show. Your 10 minutes
of news starts now.
We begin in Rome, where they are bracing for a slew of visitors. In less than two weeks, millions of people will flock to the Italian capital for
the Jubilee. A Jubilee year is a Catholic tradition that takes place every 25 years, and one that began more than 700 years ago.
The 2025 Jubilee officially starts on December 24th of this year, when the Pope opens the holy door of St. Peter`s Basilica. The Jubilee will end on
January 6, 2026. This year`s theme is "Pilgrims of Hope." People from around the world are expected to make pilgrimages to Rome to participate.
The Pope will be very busy celebrating special Jubilee events throughout the year, and they will highlight a variety of communities, artists,
healthcare workers, volunteers, and youth.
All of this celebration is going to be bringing in big crowds, an estimated 35 million tourists over the next year, when a lot of places in Italy are
battling the hassles of over-tourism. Officials have been preparing for quite some time.
Construction took over parts of Rome for months. Infrastructure has been one of the main points of focus, and the metro system has been having major
work done to ensure people can move around easily. The Eternal City`s most iconic sites have also been getting extensive renovations.
The Trevi Fountains, major cleaning and renovation gave tourists lucky enough to snag a reservation a new perspective of the landmark, walking
above it on scaffolding.
Let`s get ready to hop on a Vespa with CNN`s Antonia Mortensen who will give us a look at all the preparations taking place.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANTONIA MORTENSEN, CNN SENIOR PRODUCER: They say Rome wasn`t built in a day, and that was certainly true in 2024, as construction took over the
ancient city to prepare for the Jubilee, a year-long celebration that takes place here every 25 years.
And what better way to see how those preparations are going than with our local guide, Ricardo, on a Vespa.
MORTENSEN: How are you feeling about the Jubilee next year? Are you ready for a 35 million tourists?
RICARDO ABATE, SCOOTEROMA VESPA GUIDE: Well if you say, if you ask me like that, it sounds like a lot of people, but I think -- I think it`s going to
be something that we are prepared for.
MORTENSEN: Now we`re driving onto Piazza Venezia and ahead of us, you`ll be able to see a ginormous hydro mill that`s 25m tall, and that is able to
excavate 80 meters underground.
What are they building there.
ABATE: Train station underground.
MORTENSEN: And here it is.
ABATE: How beautiful.
MORTENSEN: So beautiful.
Rome has been racing to finish on time with thousands of key construction projects underway.
Rome`s subway system is getting a serious upgrade. And right here in front of the Colosseum, a brand-new station is going to be built on top of Via
dei Fori Imperiali.
As you can see, we`re right on top of an ancient city, which makes excavation pretty difficult.
So how has the last year or so been here in Rome with the preparations?
ABATE: It`s been busy. It`s been chaotic. It`s been a little bit frustrating, especially for the everyday traffic. Like being in a car is
not fun.
MORTENSEN: So it`s actually much easier to get around on the Vespa here in Italy.
ABATE: Really. Absolutely. I wouldn`t change that for anything in the world.
MORTENSEN: And perhaps the most ambitious infrastructure project here, not far from the Vatican, this whole area is being turned into a pedestrian
zone and all traffic is going to be channeled underground.
And so do you think that Rome is going to be ready on time?
ABATE: I`m pretty sure Rome is going to be ready, yes. I think everyone wants to make Rome look at its best, and it`s working.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WIRE: Ten-second trivia. The rise of what form of travel led to the creation of time zones in the U.S. and Canada? Plane travel, train travel,
maritime travel, or car travel?
I thought it was going to be plane, but your answer is train. Train travel surges in the late 1800s required local time to be standardized into time
zones.
Now the news about a new sleepover train service gaining popularity in Asia. Lots of folks are opting to travel from Beijing to Hong Kong by
overnight high-speed train. The new line was launched this summer, and it`s not quite as fast as flying, but these trains do have the benefit of being
able to board in one city, get a good night`s sleep, then wake up in another. CNN`s Max Burnell shows us what it`s like to take a trip and a
snooze on the new sleepover service.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MAX BURNELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This is one of two new high-speed sleeper trains linking Hong Kong and mainland China. It takes just 12 and a half
hours to complete the 1,200-mile trip from Beijing, cutting journey times by around half compared to previous sleeper train services. And while it`s
not quite as fast as flying or daytime bullet trains, what it does offer is a night`s rest.
The journey from China`s capital begins at Beijing West Railway Station. Running Friday to Monday, the sleeper is perfect for a weekend break. The
train, which can travel at over 155 miles per hour, is made up of 16 carriages.
Sleeper cars have cabins that accommodate up to four passengers, while those who can do without a bed can opt for regular seating. And there`s a
dining car offering a range of food and drink, perfect for late night snacking.
The service runs on a section of high-speed track in Hong Kong, which, when it opened in 2018, marked the first time Mainland Chinese laws were given
jurisdiction in the territory.
And while that caused some controversy, arriving well-rested by train is likely a welcome alternative for many to navigating China`s notorious
flight delays.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WIRE: Today`s story getting a 10 out of 10. Doniferous humanoids giving the gift of help with your mundane daily chores. We`re talking AI robots that
could clean your room, fold your laundry, take out the trash, even pour you a cup of coffee each morning, although it might initially come with a hefty
price tag.
But I want to pose a question to you. As you`ll hear our Kristie Lu Stout explain, some of these robots could be autonomous, but others might have
the ability to be controlled by a person helping you do your daily chores, even from across the globe. Would you do it?
If so, why? If not, what would be some of your biggest concerns? Here`s Kristie with an inside look at a company working on humanoid robotics that
might one day be living and working in some of our homes.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): How do you take your morning coffee, milk and sugar, maybe a latte? How about prepared by a
humanoid robot? For those daily tasks no one likes to do, tech companies want to be the first to take them off your hands and into the hands of
human-like droids.
1X is a leader in the home robot race. Its prototype, NEO, able to handle, as the company`s CEO puts it, the simple things.
BERNT BORNICH, 1X CEO: There`s nothing simple in robotics, but the laundry, tidying, general cleaning, and everyday kind of household tasks, right? And
in addition, it`s going to be a great companion. You can talk to it, have good conversations, it can teach you things, it can be entertainment.
STOUT (voice-over): And it all comes back to AI. In NEO`s case, an AI brain and an engineered body, working together to make the household companion
feel more humid than humanoid.
BORNICH: All of this is modern AI applied to robotics. And what really is exciting about NEO and the pilots that we`re starting to roll out now is to
have these systems learn among people.
STOUT: NEO can also be controlled by people, even from across the world. The CEO of 1X tried living with an earlier version of the company`s
humanoid. He says it was useful at the time, but it wasn`t a product he`d pay for.
Now, NEO`s future looks more promising.
BORNICH: We`re about to try this again now, and I`m super excited to see the results.
STOUT: So how much for your sleek new household gadget? Well, it will cost you. 1X says, just imagine what you`d pay for your average new car. But if
you think the practicality is worth the price, you could have a new roommate as soon as 2025.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WIRE: Thanks to all of you for submitting some magnificently marvelous, noteworthy words for Your Word Wednesday. Today`s winners are our friends
at Irving in Norman, Oklahoma, for doniferous, an adjective that means carrying or bearing gifts, as Ms. Lindy posted on my Instagram. Perfect for
this most wonderful time of the year.
Our school shout out of the day is going to those Rockets at A.C. Reynolds Middle School in Asheville, North Carolina. Rise up.
Thank you for making us part of your day. You are why we do what we do. We`ll see you right back here with more news tomorrow on CNN 10.
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