Exclusives

BLOG POST

<img src='http://www.planetizen.com/tech/files//coolspacelocater.jpg' alt='cool space locater' /><br /> <br /> One of students was kind enough to forward this to me. The <a href="http://www.coolspacelocator.com/index.html">Cool Space Locater</a> is designed to match innovative and creative firms to spaces that may not traditionally appeal to businesses looking for office space. I could have used this in Philadelphia when I really needed office space that wasn't overpriced nor in Center City. The only resource we really had was Craig's list as there are few coordinated resources for finding office spaces for rent - particularly small, non-traditional spaces.

May 5 - Scott Page

BLOG POST

<img src='http://www.planetizen.com/tech/files//20050503csusmap.gif' align="right" alt='muni map' /> <a href="http://www.broadbandreports.com/shownews/63145">Broadband Reports</a> reports on CNET's <a href="http://news.com.com/Municipal+broadband+and+wireless+projects+map/2009-1034_3-5690287.html">national map</a> which offers a state-by-state summary of developing fiber or Wi-Fi projects, and the legal barriers states are are facing in implementing these projects.<br /> <br /> From a <a href="http://news.com.com/Cities+brace+for+broadband+war/2009-1034_3-5680305.html">CNET article</a>

May 3 - Chris Steins

FEATURE

May 2 - Michael Mehaffy

BLOG POST

<img src='http://www.planetizen.com/tech/files//indiantrafficjam.jpg' alt='' align="left"/>

April 25 - Anonymous

BLOG POST

<img src="http://www.placematters.com/Graphics/Flickr.jpg" alt="Memory Map Example in Flickr" /><br /> <br /> Related to Charles' article about google maps and satellite images…<br /> <br /> The emerging <a href="http://www.flickr.com/groups/memorymaps/pool/">MemoryMap pool</a> on Flickr, where people annotate maps and photos (frequently taken from google maps) with their memories linked to specific places, takes the Google map service to a new fun level. So why not bring this into the planning process? Maps, <a href="http://flickr.com/photos/antonolsen/8687302/in/pool-memorymaps">like this example here</a>

April 21 - Ken Snyder

BLOG POST

<a href="http://murmurtoronto.ca/">murmur</a> is one of those inexpensive but creative ways of combining technology with space. to me, its exciting to see public art move into this realm - dealing expressly with communications rather than focused solely on physical beautification. potentially so much more than a mural.... <br /> <br /> "[murmur] is an archival audio project that collects and curates stories set in specific Toronto locations. At each of these locations, a [murmur] sign will mark the availability of a story with a telephone number and location code.

April 20 - Scott Page

BLOG POST

<img src="http://www.planetizen.com/tech/files/20050416-ar-skyscrapers.gif" alt="skyscraper graf" align="right"/>The data's from the real-estate consultancy <a href="http://www.emporis.com/en/bu/sk/st/sr/">Emporis</a>. Note that these numbers count <em>thousands</em> of 'scrapers. Hong Kong bristles with 'em!<br /> <br /> Says the <a href="http://www.economist.com/printedition/displayStory.cfm?Story_ID=3841144">Economist</a>:<br /> <blockquote>Hong Kong has 7,417 skyscrapers, more than any other city, according to Emporis, a firm that tracks the construction of high-rises. By its definition, a building must be over 35 metres tall to qualify as a skyscraper. New York ranks second with 5,444 skyscrapers; Los Angeles has just 450. Chicago's Sears Tower has more floors than any of its rivals, though other skyscrapers are taller.</blockquote>

April 18 - Anonymous

BLOG POST

With all the talk of municipal wireless initiatives, it will be interesting to see what implications (if implemented) these networks will have on individual neighborhoods. As a planner working in a neighborhoods in Philadelphia, how should I assist my clients in best utilizing Philadelphia's wireless to create a stronger fabric between people and place? There are increasing number of community based applications that utilize rather simple technology to create new communication tools between residents.

April 15 - Scott Page

BLOG POST

Sorry about the giant graphic, but I like the pretty colors.<br /> <br /> This is the Torino scale, a Richter scale for asteroid strikes. Unlike the old Richter scale used to do -- measuring the magnitude of an earthquake -- Torino measures the likelihood of a hit, and how bad that hit's going to be.<br /> <br /> For a while, when some backyard astronomer with a high-powered 'scope would see something that looked like it was on the way to a "rendezvous," he'd send a telegram to the <a href="http://cfa-www.harvard.edu/">Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics</a> (this is before email), and they'd send out a notice to the world astronomy community saying, basically, keep watching the skies.

April 12 - Anonymous

BLOG POST

<img src="http://www.planetizen.com/tech/files//heavy.jpg" alt="" width="400" align="left"/><img src="http://www.planetizen.com/tech/files//heavy industry.jpg" alt="" width="400 align="right" /><br /> <br /> <br /> Check out the Moscow that never was -- but might have been, if Stalin had gotten his way.The <a href="http://www.muar.ru/ve/2003/moscow/index_e.htm">architectural designs</a> are in the City Beautiful vein, typical of egotistical rulers and their capital city makeovers. So yeah, there's that Daniel Burnham/<a href="http://www.chipublib.org/digital/lake/POC.html">Chicago</a>

April 7 - Anonymous

BLOG POST

<img src="http://www.planetizen.com/tech/files//popdens.gif" alt="" width="400" align="right"/>More human beings are moving to cities. You already know that. But according to new data (plus maps!) from the <a href="http://www.earth.columbia.edu/news/2005/story03-07-05.html">Global Rural Urban Mapping Project</a> at Columbia University (yes, that acronym is GRUMP), the Earth looks even more citified than anyone thought.<br /> <br /> Mixing satellite data with stats from that <a href="http://sedac.ciesin.columbia.edu/plue/gpw/index.html?main.html&2">Gridded Population of the World</a>

April 5 - Anonymous

BLOG POST

<img src="http://www.planetizen.com/tech/files//cover13_04.jpg" alt="" width="150" align="right" border="5"/>Yes, yes, blogosphere echochamber mutual admiration blah blah blah. It pays the bills, baby. My <a href="http://www.wired.com/wired/">day job</a> this month has a fun, interesting package on hybrid cars and how they're going to change the shape of the energy debate (and here is a <a href="<a href="http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/13.04/hybrid.html">link</a> to it, on which you may click upon with your mouse device, should you so choose).

March 31 - Anonymous

BLOG POST

<img src="http://www.planetizen.com/tech/files//mortality-1.jpg" alt="" width="600" border="0"/>You know the end is nigh. Now the big brains at Columbia have confirmed it. The <a href="http://www.ldeo.columbia.edu/chrr/">Center for Hazards & Risk Research</a> has released a report (PDF chunks of which available <a href="http://www.ldeo.columbia.edu/chrr/research/hotspots/">here</a>) called Natural Disaster Hotspots: A Global Risk Analysis. It lists (and maps and charts) the places on Earth most in danger of drought, earthquake, volcano, landslide, flood, or tornado.

March 31 - Anonymous

FEATURE

Marisa Cravens examines planning through the cinematic lens with a recent compilation of important planning movies reflecting the instincts and hidden goals of planners.

March 30 - Marisa Cravens

BLOG POST

<img src="http://photos6.flickr.com/5878672_7ab00e126d.jpg" alt="Front Range" align="right" />Ann Oliveri from the <a href="http://www.uli.org">Urban Land Institute</a> kindly pointed me to an article, <a href="http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/state/article/0,1299,DRMN_21_3646692,00.html">Toll road gets tangled in Web of defeat</a>, in the <em>Rocky Mountain News</em>.<br /> <br /> The developer says he was "blindsided" by the rapid an online opposition on legislation that would make it possible for the development of a privately financed <a href="http://www.cololegislativeinfo.com/TRInfo.html">$2 billion tollway</a>

March 25 - Chris Steins

BLOG POST

Thanks to <a href="http://www.writingbusiness.com/">James Carberry</a> for pointing me to this article on the slightlly academic, but consistently readable and relevant, Knowledge@Wharton journal.<br /> <br /> <img src="http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/images/archive//032305_blog.jpg" alt="Blogs & Blogging" align="right"/><a href="http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/index.cfm?fa=viewfeature&id=1172">Blogs, Everyone? Weblogs Are Here to Stay, but Where Are They Headed?</a> wonders about the future of blogging.

March 24 - Chris Steins

BLOG POST

I'm in San Francisco this weekend for the annual <a href="http://www.planning.org/2005conference/index.htm">2005 American Planning Association Conference</a>. On Saturday, I'm presenting on a panel, "Computer-Based Decision-Support and Visualization Strategies", organized by Kenneth Topping, FAICP of Topping Associates International.<br /> <p><br /> I'll be releasing my annual list, "Top Five Technologies For Planning, 2005". After the session, I'll post my top technologies here also.<br /> <p><br /> Rumor has it that the Moscone West Conference Center is outfitted with wireless Internet access. If so, I'll blog the presentations, as well as publish a few photos of the event.<br /> <p><br /> <img src="" alt="Conference photo" /><br /> <p><br /> Other presenters include:<br /> <li>Mark Sorensen, University of Redlands: Linkages between knowledge-base, multiple criteria analysis and GIS <br /> <li>Chuck Donley, Donley & Associates Inc.: Using vector data for site selection, land use allocation, forecasting, and visualization. <br /> <li>Ken Snyder, PlaceMatters.com: Using visualization and GIS tools on the neighborhood scale <br /> <li>Dr. Michael Flaxman, Assistant Industry Manager for Design, ESRI: A Conceptual and Technical Framework for GIS-Based Land Use Planning: Alternative Futures for La Paz, Mexico <br /> <p><br /> The official panel description: "Presenters will showcase IT-based approaches to community outreach and decision making. Case studies include redevelopment of Lower Manhattan and other high-pressure planning situations. The enhanced program includes 3-D visualization geared for use in public settings, electronic democracy techniques, scenario-building models, web-based GIS, and multi-media tools. "</p>

March 18 - Chris Steins

BLOG POST

Hey, if any of y'all are going to be in Kobe after April, find out if it's true that the city is running a pilot project to embed Radio Frequency Identification (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RFID">RFID</a>) chips in public places, to be read by anybody's PDA. According to <a href="http://ubiks.net/local/blog/jmt/archives3/003524.html">RFID in Japan</a> (which says the story comes from an article, in Japanese, on <a href="http://japan.cnet.com/news/tech/story/0,2000047674,20081418,00.htm?ref=rss">CNET Japan</a>).

March 18 - Anonymous

BLOG POST

Japan has cooler cell phones than us. We just have to accept. My sister-in-law lives over there, and every time she comes to visit, her phone does more stuff than mine. I get a camera; she gets a camera with a flash. I get downloadable ringtones, she gets to play MP3s. Grrr.<br /> <br /> Now, Japanese cell-phone app company <a href="http://www.navitime.co.jp/ja/topics/20050310.html">Navitime</a> (in Japanese) is offering a navigation service that gives you overhead maps (with real pictures) to guide you to destinations.

March 16 - Anonymous

BLOG POST

The Museum of Chinese in Americas is undertaking an installation of a digital media project that explores New York City's Chinatown. <br /> <br /> <a href="http://www.moca-nyc.org/MoCA/content.asp?cid=17">www.moca-nyc.org/MoCA/content.asp?cid=17</a><br /> <br /> Its an extremely interesting example of digital archiving that recognizes the multiple ways we learn about cities - both physically and virtually. A hope of things to come? Putting our information and databases to use in helping us learn more, and subsequently, feel a stronger connection to place is an increasingly utilized concept already expressed in more mundane sites such as Citysearch.

March 10 - Scott Page