Information

Alexis C. Madrigal get exclusive access to "Ground Truth," Google's project to develop the most accurate maps in the world. But why is the master of the virtual world so intent on documenting the physical world?

September 7, 2012 - The Atlantic

Whenever we weed through the records of our personal past -- diaries, letters, drawings, school assignments from our youth -- we face difficult decisions over what to keep and what to discard. We are forced to come to terms with our documented past, and often recognize the power such records hold to both inspire – and embarrass. For individuals and governments alike, the decision over what to record, what to retain and what to communicate is a potent one, for it can either afford or constrain opportunities for actions in the future, as well as confirm or conflict with the image or myths we choose to tell about ourselves.

July 12, 2012 - Michael Dudley

Planning students are often told to find good information. How to do that is becoming both simpler, due to various search engines and databases, and more complex, given the amount of information available.

May 31, 2010 - Ann Forsyth

London is making public more than 200 streams of city data, joining a host of world cities in sharing city-collected data with its citizens.

January 8, 2010 - BBC

The availability of information in the city is creating a new opportunity for adaptive and interactive urban spaces. As Carlo Ratti of MIT's SENSEable City Lab discusses, the key is people.

October 11, 2009 - Wired UK

With the semester starting, students are beginning to focus on assignments and other project work. Today there is a great deal of information available for planners, but that can lead students to be overwhelmed (and use only a few available sources) or uncertain about how to use those sources that are available. Fortunately universities are coming up with resources to help students untangle these issues. My own institution just launched the very helpful http://digitalliteracy.cornell.edu/. The following tips are adapted from my guide for students doing final projects and theses (link at the end of this entry).

August 31, 2009 - Ann Forsyth

Online versions of journals have made quick inroads at universities. However, subscriptions are expensive and those outside universities seldom have access. A new generation of open access journals is making planning research accessible beyond the campus. Some examples illustrate the range of material now available. Some are fully accessible and some are partially open to non-subscribers:

November 29, 2007 - Ann Forsyth