The New York Times published an interactive map that shows how important distance is in determining connections on social media.
New research published in the Journal of Economic Perspectives examines microdata from Facebook to ask questions about what social networks reveal about social connectedness between individuals and across regions.
Emily Badger and Quoctrong Bui share the news of the study, noting its findings about the importance of geographic distance in determining social connectedness.
"America is often described as a place of great divides — between red and blue, big cities and rural towns, the coasts and the heartland," they write. "But our social lives are shaped by a much stronger force that ignores many of these lines: distance."
The real fun of this article is found in an interactive map that illustrates the likelihood that people living in each U.S. county will have a Facebook friendship in any other part of the country. The article offers insight into some of the trends visible in the map.
FULL STORY: How Connected Is Your Community to Everywhere Else in America?
Friday Eye Candy: A Sorely-Needed Map of New York City Neighborhoods
Neighborhoods don't get the same official boundaries as cities, counties, states, and countries. So how do we know where one neighborhood ends and another begins?
Facebook AI Maps Population Density
Facebook expects to release its worldwide maps of human density in the coming months—potential applications will likely be somewhere on the spectrum between humanitarian and commercial.
Friday Eye Candy: The World's Subway Systems, If You Could See Them From Above
Have you ever flown over a city and imagined all the subway lines running beneath the surface?
Rethinking Redlining
For decades we have blamed 100-year-old maps for the patterns of spatial racial inequity that persist in American cities today. An esteemed researcher says: we’ve got it all wrong.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
Walmart Announces Nationwide EV Charging Network
The company plans to install electric car chargers at most of its stores by 2030.
New State Study Suggests Homelessness Far Undercounted in New Mexico
An analysis of hospital visit records provided a more accurate count than the annual point-in-time count used by most agencies.
Michigan Bills Would Stiffen Penalties for Deadly Crashes
Proposed state legislation would close a ‘legal gap’ that lets drivers who kill get away with few repercussions.
Report: Bus Ridership Back to 86 Percent of Pre-Covid Levels
Transit ridership around the country was up by 85 percent in all modes in 2024.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
City of Moorpark
City of Tustin
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions