Blog Exercise Nine

Man’s search for hospitable living space throughout our short history has placed us in the face of natural and man made hazards and the risks that they potentially present. Our history is beset by instances of natural hazards that have wrought destruction on those unfortunate enough to be within the vicinity of the event and those that felt the overall repercussions. The event on the island of Santorini in the Aegean comes to mind as a classical event of mass destruction in which a volcanic eruption destroyed all the settlements of the island and dissected the formerly single island, indirectly bringing the collapse of the Minoan civilization on nearby Crete. Theses events of mass destruction are infrequent in the context of overall time and history, but nevertheless should serve as examples of potential hazards and the aftermaths that follow, given the higher risks that exist in our modern, over-populated world. The collection of images displayed each presents a hazard that the modern world must face and adequately access to both mitigate and protect from potential risks and plan for new areas of development.
The top left image reveals the natural hazard of earthquakes that, depending on where you live in vicinity to a natural fault line, can have the potential for great death and destruction. The 1906 San Francisco earthquake is a prime example of an event in American history that influenced earthquake risk mitigation, which developed into a monitor and warn system of mitigating risk, but included safe zones, architecture evolution, infrastructure post-quake response, and urban planning. The image below that is a potential hazard as a result of an earthquake either on the surface or subsurface, a tsunami. Japan has historically experienced the destructive effects of tsunamis, with three major events striking the island since 1896, with the 2011 event being significant with the inclusion of a man made risk, radioactive contamination from a damaged nuclear power plant. The sheer destructive potential of a major tsunami can be seen in the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami, which led to the deaths of 230,000 people and the unsettling of 1.6 million. The greatest defense against the risk of a tsunami is education and warning systems to expedite evacuation of risk areas. The next image displays our historically old friend, the volcano. Given our intimate history with said friend, there are many examples of potential risks involved with living near a volcano and the risks of super volcanic eruptions such as Santorini and Krakatoa. The risks of volcanoes include the immediate heat, debris, and poisonous gases released by the volcano. In the case of the super volcanoes, the release of particulate matter into the atmosphere can adversely affect the climate, creating the potential risk of famine and other climate related devastation. The greatest defense against the risks of volcanoes is the monitoring of active sites and warning populated areas of the potential risk of an eruption. The top right image seems to display one of the man made hazards and potentials for risk, contamination due to a radioactive release from a nuclear power plant. Events such as Chernobyl, Three Mile Island, and Fukushima each present the potential for radioactive risk and highlight the need for proper management of plants and thorough analysis of plant locations and the possible hazards that are present at potential locations. Lastly, the final image displays a hazard that has been with us since we decided to settle down into clustered cities that were prime fire hazards. The best counter to potential fire destruction is the use of fire resistant building materials, adequate fire fighting resources and response time, and a well designed infrastructure. Ultimately, the presence of hazards have not prevented human beings from establishing roots in potentially dangerous areas, but these hazards have forced us to adapt to potential risks, because if anything humans are adaptive, perseverant animals.

All the bairns o' Adam

The usual rules…don’t attempt to identify the particular disaster, just talk about hazard and risk in each of these instances…

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Blog Exercise Eight….

Yet again, the reiteration of the “American Dream” comes to the forefront through this collage of images in all its eviscerating, soul crushing suburban glory, which the American public blindly pursued with a passion in our post-war sprawl. The general idea that developed during suburban growth was the creation of an investiture class of home owners, who in theory had a greater feeling of ownership in the system as a whole. The merits of this system can be debated but the trend that was created became the driver for evolving family structures, new housing norms, and the greater expansion of the suburban phenomenon. The outcome of this emerging ethos was the modern suburbs that surround us today. The modern embodiment of the suburbs may take on a different façade from its predecessors, adjusting to evolving housing designs and fads which are essential to the idea of capitalizing investments in housing, but the suburbs still represent the dream of “American exceptionalism” which recent history has shown to be a figment or our collective American imagination.
The majority of these images instill a feeling of anonymity, or a “cookie cutter” representation that represents a large majority of modern suburbs with the accompanying economic segregation that comes with developers creating houses with income bands. These income bands limit the diversity that could exist within larger urban areas which many families left during the post-war period to create their enclaves of American opportunity epitomized by the “white flight” that occurred as a result of expanding sprawl and urban decline. These suburbs, in some ways, attempt to preserve the society that developed at the height of American geopolitical and economic power, for it was government policy that created this “beast”, facilitating cheap mortgages and promoting the idea of home ownership as counteracting Communism. Though the world has fundamentally changed since the birth of the baby boomers, the inherent desire to grasp the “American Dream” is alive and well as represented by the two car garage “cookie cutter” suburban homes lining the cul de sacs in the images. The top central image in particular seems dizzying as the differentiation of each particular lot becomes obscured from a distance making one question the appeal of the whole design to the home owner beyond an investment, which might explain the lack of aesthetics and the soul crushing, conforming nature of it all. The bottom image seems to deliver the coup de grace of the whole suburban phenomenon, the great mother of convenience and progenitor of the suburbs, the Interstate System. For it was the Interstate System that allowed the exodus of the middle class to the developing suburbs en masse taking with them the “American Dream” and all its deceptive self gratification, something the suburbs seems to propagate when left to its devices. As American as the suburbs have become, there is still room to evaluate alternatives for a changing society whose demands might differ from the last century, and whose world has become globalized, taking the “American Dream” to the next level world-wide. The suburbs will remain in the lexicon of American iconography for the foreseeable future but its lauds could be easier to accept if someone as iconic as say, Bruce Springsteen, could have rocked about being “born in the suburbs of the USA.”

All the bairns o' Adam

You know the drill…500 words…

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Blog Exercise Seven

The international integration of society through globalization has changed the way in which global cities develop and compete for renown, expressed through icons which in turn write the narrative of cultural and economic prowess within the shrinking expanse of an interconnected global society. The global cities included in the images each provides an iconic image that describes the city as an icon in terms of globalization through pre-industrial icons and constructed icons that set the backdrop for the modern global metropolis.
The industrial revolution set the stage for the exponential advance in technology that propelled the Western world into the modern age by the 20th century. With this advance in technology came the advent of modern globalization in the world economy, which in turn propelled global advertising and global consumerism to its current status and made possible the creation of homogenous cities throughout the world, bringing the Western lifestyle to any city on the globe. A differentiating characteristic of a modern global city has come to be represented by a specific icon or icons within a city, creating a uniqueness that can be identified as that city’s own within the sea of homogeneity.
The Golden Gate Bridge is an example of a constructed icon that uniquely identifies San Francisco, California, which in addition to the Transamerica Pyramid creates the iconic San Francisco skyline that would seem rather ambiguous without these unique icons. Elsewhere, the statue of Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil has to be among one of the most identifying icons of this metropolis, displaying beautiful Art Deco architecture whose construction became a symbol of Brazilian Christianity and an icon for all of Brazil. For the Aussies, the Sydney Opera House, which almost instinctually comes to mind when mentioning Sydney, has become a unique icon for the metropolis of Sydney, Australia, providing a venue for the performing arts and becoming one of the busiest performing arts centers in the world, producing unique cultural prestige for this global city. In London, England the skyline is dominated by The Shard, an 87 story skyscraper that is atypical of most major city centers in Europe, whose skyscrapers tend to be built on the edges, avoiding the central business districts. Finally, the image of Hong Kong, China at night with its expansive skyline and vibrant neon lights displays the true extent of globalization and Hong Kong’s role in the global economy.
All of these unique structures and landscapes have come to represent global cities as icons in modern society, where globalization has created homogeneity among our global cities. New icons will seemingly continue to be constructed or rediscovered as the global economy expands and corporate and cultural identity come to the forefront. Yet, as the global city becomes structured more and more in a homogenous fashion, it may become increasingly more difficult to distinguish our cities in the near future if not at the present time. Ultimately, our icons become not just unique identifiers of our particular cities, but become necessary heritage sites to remind us of who we once were, before we became automatons for consumerism.

All the bairns o' Adam

Hey there, usual rules, but wait until after Thursday’s lecture to try to respond to this one…I will get the last couple graded by the end of this week…

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Blog Exercise Six

The need for affordable housing has been a constant concern since the demographic transitions that occurred during the industrial revolution and is still an extant issue in the pursuit of addressing housing inequality, which social housing seeks to remedy. The approaches to social housing are evident in the Western world and, as the images detail, the successes or failures of such projects have been preserved for the efficacy process of history. Though most social housing is owned and managed by the state, which ideally provides affordable or rent free housing, some social housing is administered by non-profit organizations which ultimately seek to address housing inequality.
The collage of images all present public housing from different periods of recent history in Europe, with varying appeal and desirability. For instance, the one image that jumps out at me is the center right image of a multi-story concrete structure, which many Americans would associate with public housing in America, but at the same time is reminiscent of Eastern bloc, Soviet inspired housing, with utilitarianism as the overall engineering driver, making aesthetics a little lacking compared to the other images. The adjacent image to the left, though concrete in its construction, seems to have a more creative approach to design and still maintains an aura of social housing with laundry drying from the balconies. These two social housings were probably made prior to the 1980s, as the 1970s seems to project the height of iconic concrete multi-story structures. The top right image seems to be the progressive next step up from the iconic concrete multi-stories with more spacious living areas and a marginally higher standard of housing, making for a more content tenant. The bottom image presents social housing with an appreciable sense of style, not exquisite by any means, but adequate to house tenants with varied income levels, seeming reminiscent of Medieval housing where all economic classes intermixed in their housing, without the thatched roofs of course. The top two images to the left by far present social housing that functions as both a remedy for housing inequality and serves as a means of dispelling the stereotypical association of public housing with the “poor,” as both these housings could easily be prime rental units in the United States. The housings integrate green space within the units presenting an appealing, approachable building that provides a clean looking living space for the residing tenants. This seems like the most ideal form of public housing but is it the most practical?
There are definitely building space concerns within European cities making the smaller more open building approaches seem less practical but harkening back to the concrete multi-stories doesn’t seem like an adequate redress to housing inequality. The demand for affordable housing will always be an issue of great concern in Europe, which brings to light the European approach in comparison to the American approach to public housing. The guiding principle of the “American dream,” house ownership, etc., will always be a hindrance to the American approach to public housing, never really truly addressing the problem of housing inequality. The European approach seems to more genuinely tackle the issue of housing inequality by making living conditions and all around standards of living more egalitarian, the ultimate outcome of which history will judge.

All the bairns o' Adam

These are all images of social housing projects in Europe…discuss (both the images and the history, execution and success of such projects)…

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Blog Exercise Five

The evolution of the American city and the advent of the modern American suburb phenomenon have been molded by the development of 20th century transportation projects and the ever-encompassing need of new modes of transportation and the externalities that they present. The first image gives a prime example of American innovation in transportation technology, with an aircraft in the foreground flying over a city connected by a suspension bridge, which was a technological innovation of the late 19th century, but the two technologies juxtaposed seems to highlight progress and the possibilities of innovation, especially given how the use of aircraft opened up new possibilities of inner-connectivity and economic evolution that were limited by previous technology. This evolution in aircraft integration into our transportation system can be seen in the image of the airport terminal, which became essential to any city nationally and internationally that sought to provide economic growth for its citizens and potential citizens and immigrants who might otherwise have been unable to feasibly travel. These ever-growing airports changed the image of the modern cityscape, more specifically the images in larger cities that required larger airports to support the ever-increasing traffic due to the demand to travel by air. With these new travel hubs came the symbiotic associations we now see in modern cities, such as hotel accommodations for travelers, with some becoming iconic travel destinations themselves, and services and entertainment for travelers which became economic drivers for growing cities. Yet, with the new innovations in transportation came the possibilities of life beyond or away from the growing cities. This seemed to be the path which presented itself with the construction of the Eisenhower Interstate System, which changed the way in which we travel and where we live in the United States to this day. As Eisenhower had been the Allied Supreme Commander in Europe, he had witnessed the possibilities and potentials of a well developed and highly integrated highway system, as the Germans had developed in the 1930s on their path to war. This system of highways had proved essential to the full mobilization of the German military prior to and during World War II and fueled the resurgence of the post-Weimar German economy which built its way out of the world-wide economic depression. What we know as the Interstate System today was authorized in the Federal Aid Highway Act of 1956, ushering forth a new era of transportation and economic growth in the United States that would take over three decades to complete. The image of the quintessential “cookie cutter” suburb was a result of this new found freedom to travel, fueled by access to cheap cars, cheap gas, and affordable housing guided by the “American dream” of home ownership, white picket fences included. The end result of this evolution in American transportation can be seen in the last image, a typical highway with a green median, the highway being the connecting jugular to the side streets of cities growing along the main artery and the ultimate path to the other jugulars that crisscross the nation. The American transportation system has transformed how we move and live in the modern world in a relatively short span of time, yet if air travel or access to inter-connected highways were spontaneously revoked or denied our world would seem much smaller and the suburban pastures might not look so green.

All the bairns o' Adam

Usual rules; reblog, 500 word commentary, remember to actually reference the images in your response…

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Blog Exercise Two

The rise of the Baroque period city was a confluence of the expressions of patronage for the sciences, humanism, and architecture, but this period also brought to the forefront an expression of the power and wealth of autocracy displayed through the organization and structure of these cities basked in grandeur. In this grandeur some of the most iconic architecture and city planning endure to this day and still inspire contemporary thought and urban planning, even influencing grand locations of power such as our nation’s capital, whose design still beckons to the Baroque grandeur of the past while being surrounded by the bustle and urban degradation of the modern metropolis. The iconic Eiffel Tower centered in the landscape of modern Paris, emphasizes the Baroque influences that surround this marvel of the 19th century, in that if one were to scale this Parisian tourist site an unobstructed view, bereft of modern skyscrapers and accompanying accoutrement could be seen for some distance in all directions. The view seen would also display the height of Baroque secular and religious culture, with the perceived centers of power, such as churches, monuments, and palaces or official buildings, acting as structural nodes for further organization and development of the urban landscape. In the image provided, the Arc de Triumphe can be easily seen as such a structural node with boulevards emanating from the monument, towering over the surrounding structures. Though the monument was constructed post-Baroque period, the structural node remains relevant in describing the organizational techniques of Baroque city planning and the enduring influences that remains in such a cultural heritage as the city of Paris. The bird’s eye images provided all focus on a central node that provides a centering point from which radial streets emerge, again emphasizing the origin point which would have been a perceived center of power during the Baroque period. This design differs from the previous city planning developed by the Greeks and expanded by the Romans in its obvious non-gridded structure, but also exhibits a less egalitarian design that displays the triumphs of power and wealth, which as in Paris and France during the Baroque period, were epitomized by the absolute monarchs of the day. Though the urban planning seems to be more organic in its design as compared to preceding classical city planning, the avenues and intersections seem to be carefully designed to accentuate the focal point of a building or monument of some significance, as seen in the illustrated city which focuses on a large open space with a monument centered and the more intricate illustration which shows the grand extent of Baroque city planning. The fountain displayed typifies the grandeur of the Baroque period, which served as a means of expressing cultural achievement but also served as a means of expressing power, wealth, triumph, and control by the aristocracy over their society. Ultimately, the Baroque period saw the progression of urban planning into a form of cultural expression of power and wealth, emphasizing monuments and buildings of grandeur that exist to this day, but the extant struggle between the aristocracy and everyone else for control seemed to be a significant driver for this cultural progress whose contributions to modern society should not be overlooked but whose motives should be examined.

All the bairns o' Adam

As last week, please reblog and write at least 500 words about how these representations of the baroque period of European urban development relate to our lectures from this week.

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Blog Exercise One

Ostia was one of the first Roman colonies established during the early days of Rome that provided port access to the city of Rome itself at the mouth of the Tiber and opened the Tyrrhenian Sea and the greater Mediterranean beyond to eventual Roman expansion. Ostia would come to serve as the principal port destination of the massive amount of resources needed to sustain the Imperial city of Rome, fed by the abundance produced from all corners of the Roman world. Given the significance of Ostia’s role in facilitating the flow of resources into the center of the Roman world, it is interesting to examine archeological evidence and visual reconstructions of this once great Roman port city.
The Roman motto “Order, Structure, Power” implies a sense of organization and rigidity that personified the Roman psyche and can be seen in the building designs of Roman cities such as Ostia. With the symmetrical design even in the construction of an extensive harbor, as seen in the visual reconstruction, a design built to purpose with a certain pragmatism can be seen, while maintaining the grandiose Roman style of an Imperial power whose might and culture were supreme, at least in the eyes of Rome. The design of Ostia, as displayed through the excavations, was based on two main roads, a main east to west road and an intersecting north to south road, that provided reliable access to gridded neighborhoods and civic buildings and maintained a reliable trade system through a connected road system that provided safe travel to Rome and further into the Roman hinterland. Ostia typified a Roman city, in that it used a gridded building system, adopted from the Greeks and expanded, as the Romans often did, and provided the necessities that the Romans became accustomed to, such as an amphitheatre for entertainment and temples for religious needs. Ostia also seems to have had a defensive wall encompassing the city not facing the river Tiber, possibly built to protect Ostia in its earlier history, as once the Roman Republic increasingly committed to preemptive “defensive” invasions and established itself as the sole Mediterranean superpower, the need for a wall in a city so close in proximity to Rome would seem non-essential. The visual reconstruction also presents an orderly, free-flowing city that was clean and visually appealing, which was a fairly momentous accomplishment seeing as how the standards of living decreased significantly once the guiding light that was Rome faded into history, prevailing to a millennia of comparably darker, less sophisticated standards of living, at least in the splintered remnants of the Western Roman Empire. Overall, the city of Ostia represents what the Romans ultimately sought to accomplish through their expansive history as historical trend setters and as the premier city planners of the ancient world. The city of Ostia represented the Roman ideals of “Order, Structure, Power” through the thoughtful planning that provided a functional, prosperous city that probably epitomized the glory that was Rome, or at least was an example of the grand possibilities of the ancient Roman world.

All the bairns o' Adam

Please reblog this and write 500 words of discussion about what you see and how it relates to the lecture we had on classical and ancient cities last week. Your thoughts should be posted by midnight on Sunday January 26th. Feel free to comment on each others’ posts…

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