In tonight’s session of “mobilities: cities on the move” Professor Sheller introduced this video of a young scotsman, Danny MacAskill, filmed imaginatively navigating his environment and shaping it to suit his purpose. He clearly tests our understanding of an environment’s affordance while demonstrating that how we move through space alters our perception of a space […]
Tag Archives: Cities
The Future of Our Built Environment
According to the Center for Built Environment Research in the School of Planning, Architecture and Civil Engineering at Queen’s University Belfast: “Modern built environment research combines innovations in materials, interaction of people with the built environment, meeting social needs of housing, simulation studies for energy efficiency in the built environment, and the use of space, […]
Physical Determinism vs Cultural Difference
I need to thank my urban studio professors for somehow selecting me as the one student in our section to read Peter Calthorpe’s The Next American Metropolis in order to brief my peers. The book is written by a practitioner and not a pure academic. It may just be me, but it appeals. I find it […]
Homeless
I’ve heard many people complain about the sight or smell of Philadelphia’s homeless population. Homeless people, like the one in this photograph, often use the city’s public spaces as bedrooms and as shelter from the elements. I’m amazed when I hear those with homes complain about the homeless. Perhaps this is because I generally see […]