Technology

Paris Plans for Power From Hydroliennes Beneath The Seine

This week, Paris City Hall is launching an appeal to find power companies able to install eight 'hydroliennes' underneath the Seine's celebrated bridges. French power company EDF has already declared the plan interesting.

June 29, 2010 - The Guardian

Standardizing and Sharing City Data

New York City is moving forward with a plan to create a singular clearinghouse of public agency information -- an effort to help improve the way city departments work together.

June 25, 2010 - Urban Omnibus

City Data Visualization Tool Wins Journalism Prize

A visual city data mapping tool called CityTracking is one of the winners of this year's Knight News Challenge, a journalism competition that seeks out innovative communication ideas for the changing news media.

June 24, 2010 - Knight Foundation

Radar Uncovers Ancient Egyptian City

Radar imaging has revealed the layout of a now-underground ancient Egyptian city named Avaris.

June 22, 2010 - Guardian

Locals vs Tourists Mapped Through Photography

Eric Fischer uses Flickr geodata to visualize where photos are taken in cities, and by whom. The result is a colorful divide between tourists and locals in a variety of cities around the world.

June 19, 2010 - The Map Room

Green Energy Economy Debate: Hot Air Or Feasible Goal?

In this Newshour video (with transcript), spokesmen from a liberal and conservation think tank debate each other on the feasibility of transitioning to clean, green energy from the current fossil fuel powered economy in light of the Gulf disaster.

June 19, 2010 - PBS NewsHour

Too Many Traffic Lights

Architect Arrol Gellner says that traffic engineers use traffic lights far too often when a simple stop sign works better and is much less expensive.

June 18, 2010 - Daily Journal of Commerce

The Sorry State Of Indian Rail

The sorry state of India's government-owned railways, both rail and freight, are hampering India's progress. Unlike China's authoritarian approach, politics in the world's largest democracy appears to be a major obstacle to modernization.

June 18, 2010 - The New York Times - Global Business

Augmenting Sense of Place

In the first of a two-part series on augmented reality, Mitchell Schwarzer discusses how this new form of information affects our sense of place.

June 15, 2010 - Places

How Cities Can Take Advantange of Their Data

Public data can be more than information for cities. Some have even used it to help generate revenue.

June 14, 2010 - Next American City

Creating a 3D Record of Africa's Heritage Sites

Fast Company points to a project at the University of Cape Town which seeks to create 3-D renderings of Africa's endangered monuments and heritage sites.

June 10, 2010 - Fast Company

Could 'Farming Pods' Be The Water Towers of the Future?

Artist Natalie Jeremijenko's farming pods could be perched atop skylines in the future as a sustainable method of rooftop farming. They will grow fruits and vegetables in hydroponic chambers, allowing sunlight through a clear plastic skin.

June 9, 2010 - Fast Company

A Brief History of International Expositions

As Shanghai aims to bring people together through spectacle, Edwin Heathcote examines the concept behind the festival and questions its relevancy.

June 9, 2010 - Financial Times

Exclusive Bus Lanes Coming To Manhattan's East Side

More changes are coming to Manhattan as auto-space yields to bus-space on First and Second Aves. Will transit users comply with the honor system as boarding will take place from all three doors? The lanes will be 'terra-cotta brown' without barrier.

June 8, 2010 - The New York Times - N.Y. / Region

The Most Complex Piece of Architecture Created by Mankind

340KM above your head, the first human dwelling beyond Earth's surface has just been completed. Last week, a space shuttle launched on May 14 added the final building block to the $125 billion International Space Station.

June 8, 2010 - Building Design

A 'String' Theory for High Speed Rail

This post from Gizmag looks at Anatoly Unitsky's String Transport Systems, which are trains that operate on above-ground rails at speeds of up to 300 miles per hour -- in theory.

June 6, 2010 - Gizmag

From Idyllic Nature to the Hip, Urban Landscape

Ads for automobiles have depicted their vehicles swooping through dramatic natural landscapes, but as Catherine Lutz and Anne Lutz Fernandez note, car ads have moved into the city.

June 5, 2010 - The Huffington Post

Britain's WiFi Networks Mapped

Search giant Google has mapped the location of every WiFi network in Britain. Some say the collection of this information is a violation of privacy.

June 4, 2010 - Telegraph

San Francisco Considers Demand-Based Parking Prices

San Francisco's transportation agency has proposed the installation of parking meters in a handful of neighborhoods that dynamically change their prices according to the time of day and the related demand.

June 3, 2010 - San Francisco Examiner

FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?

After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.

Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold

The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.

Top Books

An annual review of books related to planning.

Top Schools

The definitive ranking of graduate planning programs.

100 Most Influential Urbanists

The who's who of urbanism, according to Planetizen readers.

Urban Planning Creators You Should Know

A short list of voices on social, video, and podcasting platforms.