Urban Form group 20

Group 20

We have learned in class that the pattern of roads and transportation greatly affect the way a city grows, and into what capacity its traders will shift.
Consider not the city for a moment, but a larger scale. For a long time in history, man was landlocked. But with the advent of sailing drove coastal development. Railroads in america made a western expansion possible.
When we see these non conventional factors affecting growth its more easy to palate the possibility of road patterns affecting growth as well.
More than affecting growth, road patterns can DETERMINE what a city or region will become.
Take the capital beltway, so many people use it for easy commuting that the northern VA, DC, southern MD region is going to be heavily retail and industry. Lots of jobs.
Then again, look at the afgan mountainous regions. These regions are notoriously turoilic, and have a severe lack of proper roads and infrastructure. The coreloation is more than coincidental.

Perhaps looking forward we can design our city to a more efficient degree, facilitating every type of urban form.
Walt disney was a futurist and proposed many alternatives to the interstate highway system. But he really got his ideas from one Fuller. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buckminster_Fuller 
Check him out. lots of crazy vertical farms and walking path/beehive 3d cities.

Urban Inequality in Education

Last week in class we focused on Urban Inequality in terms of all forms of social stratification. In this blog post I would like to zone in on educational inequality within the urban environment. Education has been inextricably linked to the amount of money that one will make in their career. The higher your education, the more likely you are to make more money. Although there are cases where this does not hold up, it is, in general, true. Most people will live their lives in the same social class as they grew up in. That is to say that if your parents are in the middle class you will likely be in the middle class. This has to do with the education and social networking that you receive either because of your own merits or with the help of your parents, or both. A very recent news article from Hesston College touches on these issues of educational inequality. The article states that urban schools face many different problems than schools that are in affluent areas. Most of the children at the high school, which is in Tulsa, Oklahoma, believe that they will not go to college and the educational system seems to be somewhat broken. Contrast this with children whose parents can put them into private schools within urban environments. The difference is huge! Take a look at this article from USA Today that spells out the differences in dreams and real opportunities for low income high school students. The opportunities that you are given growing up has a serious impact on your future and your future success (both intellectually and monetarily). The Urban divide in education is stark, it is a gap that is trying to be bridged by organizations like Teach for America. But the fact remains that educational inequality plays a large role in the future success or failure of the students. As college students we are in an elite echelon of society, although it may not seem that way. We have been given the opportunity to push boundaries and promote education experiences.

Why are cities important

Why are cities important?
Recently in class we watched a video that portrayed the bad side of cities, but we never actually saw why cities are important. Cities are very important when it comes to an economy. Cities are the center of all business. Most business occurs in cities and if you take a look at the bigger cities such as NYC, LA, and Chicago, they are very important in our nations economy. This is because cities attract people. When a city attracts people, that in turn brings in money. There is a reason why restaurants in NYC are willing to pay so much money for such a small restaurant. That is because location. A restaurant in NYC has a very good chance of doing well because it is in a city with SO many people. Location is very very important to people who are looking to start up businesses because they want to be around the people and what better place then a city. People always talk about the bad part of having cities (pollution, overpopulation) but they are forgetting that it is the cities that really attract a lot of the business and help stimulate the economy. Below is the article that explains this in further detail.
http://www.economist.com/blogs/freeexchange/2011/03/economic_geography_0
 

Urban Public Issues,
Group 20
Week 3

Ubiquitous Computing

  This week some of our reading spoke to the ever increasing speed at witch the forward edge of technology is advancing. We see it all around us, each of us hold in his or her pocket a device capable beyond the machines of the past by factors of 100. 

  The phenomenon we are fast approaching is called a state of ubiquitous computing. We can communicate instantly, travel anywhere in under a day, make or break a plan a few short minutes before the date. As our relationship with the world changes, so does our relationship with ourselves. It is important to take a breathe and attempt to see the world for what it is, not what it appears to be.

   The spokes on a bike wheel will blend together past a certain speed but we all know that the spokes themselves have not changed.

  

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=219YybX66MY&noredirect=1

  You can follow the link above to a speech made by my favorite son of quantum theory, Michio Katu. He invented string theory and has spent much of his career debating contemplating the nature of the future, as many  of his predictions come true, he gains re known and gives speeches like this one above.

  "We are in a new era for urban documentation. Indexed 

multiplicity, many-aspectival views, very wide participation, 

and archives that are unlimited in size and controlled by no 

one are likely to allow for a representation of urban life that 

is heterogeneous and unhegemonic."  (Kreiger, p.2)

 The quote from our reading is included because id like the opportunity to elaborate on the point made there. As technology increases, each of us becomes empowered, because as technology increases its price decreases, and more of us can afford it. When we all have fire, none can be left in the dark.

Who are we?....Group 20

This blog is being published by a group of students at Virginia Tech for an Urban Public Issues Class. We will be exploring the role of cities in society, how we view cities, and problems/solutions with Urban Planning.

My name is Kate Chambers and I am currently a senior at Virginia Tech majoring in Art History with a minor in Classical Studies. I am from Charlottesville, VA. I am currently applying to graduate schools for Art History and plan on pursuing a career in this area.