Bitcoin mining- article from Quartz, seen on Atlas Obscura [shared for information's sake]

Taking advantage of the cheap and plentiful hydroelectric power that an army of computers require, bitcoin mining is spreading in remote parts of China’s Sichuan province.

[Packing materials for mining machines pile up beside the water-cooling system at a Bitcoin mine in Sichuan province. (Liu Xingzhe/ChinaFile/EPA)]

In dark and isolated warehouses, bitcoin mining machines hum along solving equations to produce the highly valued cryptocurrency.

[A miner inspects a malfunctioning mining machine during his night shift. (Liu Xingzhe/ChinaFile/EPA)]

In 2016, Chinese photographer Liu Xingzhe spent time in China’s bitcoin mines and with the miners themselves, who monitor the vast hallways of machines producing cryptocurrency for various clients.
According to Liu, miners typically live in company dormitories for days at a time—not unlike the mining towns of yore—only occasionally traveling dozens of miles to the nearest town.

[A bitcoin mine dormitory in Sichuan. Once a week, they hitchhike to the nearest town, 20 miles away (32 km). “The good thing is, there isn’t anywhere to spend money, so you can save your whole salary,” one miner told Liu Xingzhe. (Liu Xingzhe/ChinaFile/EPA)]

Although increased government oversight has caused Chinese bitcoin trading to falter, the country remains an important player in bitcoin mining, thanks to cheap labor and computing power (paywall). Chinese clients who pay for bitcoins to be mined on their behalf can monitor progress remotely, using apps on their mobile phones.