Yule Heibel's Post Studio © 2003-2010

The Sunday Diigo Links Post (weekly)

December 7, 2008 at 2:30 am | In links | Comments Off

• The Quivering Upper Lip by Theodore Dalrymple, City Journal Autumn 2008

  Yes, he’s an old curmudgeon, but there are valid questions and true insights in this piece, which among other things basically asks, whatever happened to self-control and isn’t there something plain wrong with thinking that it’s now imperative to let it all hang out all the time?
  QUOTE
  Certainly, many Britons under the age of 30 or even 40 now embrace a kind of sub-psychotherapeutic theory that desires, if not unleashed, will fester within and eventually manifest themselves in dangerous ways. To control oneself for the sake of the social order, let alone for dignity or decorum (a word that would either mean nothing to the British these days, or provoke peals of laughter), is thus both personally and socially harmful.

  I have spoken with young British people who regularly drink themselves into oblivion, passing first through a prolonged phase of public nuisance. To a man (and woman), they believe that by doing so, they are getting rid of inhibitions that might otherwise do them psychological and even physical harm.
  UNQUOTE

  tags: theodore_dalrymple, socialcritique, england, morality, commentary

• Efficient Thin-Film Solar Cells – MIT Technology Review

  New breakthrough in making solar cells:
  QUOTE
  Researchers at MIT have unveiled a new type of silicon solar cell that could be much more efficient and cost less than currently used solar cells. (…)

  The design combines a highly effective reflector on the back of a solar cell with an antireflective coating on the front. This helps trap red and near-infrared light, which can be used to make electricity, in the silicon.
  UNQUOTE

  tags: thinfilm, mit_techreview, solar_power, electricity

• A Vancouverite’s Guide to Twitter » Vancouver Blog Miss 604 by Rebecca Bollwitt

  As the title says, a compendium of all the major Vancouver users of Twitter. Victoria (Victorians, we) should / could take note…

  tags: rebecca_bollwitt, miss_604, twitter, vancouver

• Is Urban Loneliness a Myth? by Jennifer Senior — New York Magazine

  Another fascinating New York Magazine article, showing that 1 out 2 apartments in Manhattan are occupied by singles …and that their occupants are not lonely or alienated.
  QUOTE
  Manhattan is the capital of people living by themselves. But are New Yorkers lonelier? Far from it, say a new breed of loneliness researchers, who argue that urban alienation is largely a myth.
  UNQUOTE

  tags: urbanism, manhattan, nyc, myths, loneliness, demographics, nymag

• The Glass Stampede: A Building-by-Building Survey of New York’s Last Great Architecture Boom, by Justin Davidson — New York Magazine

  Looks to be a great & informative article, but it’s annoying that New York Magazine spreads these pieces over so many many pages. File under “will read later”?

  tags: nyc, architecture, buildings, critique, nymag, justin_davidson

• VIVACE: Energy from Slow Currents – MIT Technology Review: Videos

  Video demo of how VIVACE works (the device developed to mimic how fish harness energy from water currents).

  tags: mit_techreview, vivace, biomimicry, hydropower, video, energy, vortex_hydro_energy

• A New Twist on Hydropower – MIT Technology Review

  Fascinating report on how a new mechanical device, which “mimics how fish harness energy from water flow,” could contribute to the sustainable energy toolkit.

  (Since the device is based on mimicking how fish do it, I’m adding the “biomimicry” tag to this article.)

  tags: mit_techreview, hydropower, energy, biomimicry, vivace, vortex_hydro_energy

• Megginson Technologies: Quoderat » Blog Archive » What’s happening in Canada?

  Excellent little chart that compares the Canadian and American systems.

  How interesting, that in Canada the head of state is the queen’s representative (i.e., the governor-general), who is not elected but rather appointed (by someone who also is not elected), and that the prime minister is also not elected by the people, since the people only elect the members of parliament but not the party leaders, and the PM is simply the leader of the party with the most seats in the house of commons.

  The Westminster System of parliamentary democracy: can’t say I’m a fan. This is the alpha version of a less-than 1.0 version.

  tags: canada, coalition, politics, election, westminster_system

• The “broken windows” theory of crime is correct | Can the can | The Economist

  The Economist article on Dutch research that indicates a heightened tolerance for crime & social disorder once “broken windows” set it.

  tags: the_economist, psychology, crime, broken_window_theory

• Google Transit Partner Program

  Tell me again why Victoria is not yet hooked into this? Vancouver transit did it – why not BC Transit in Victoria?

  tags: google, transit, victoria

• “Broken Windows Matter,” CEOs for Cities :: Blog, View Entry

  Carol Coletta points to The Economist article that featured new research in Holland which showed that low-level social disorder provides a breeding ground for creating more of the same. Based on the “broken windows” theory, it gives back some statistical relevance to a theory that has been falling out of favour. (Why it fell out of favour is a mystery to me, but there you have it…)
  QUOTE
  The “broken windows” theory had its day in the sun during the “zero tolerance” policies of the Giuliani adminsitration in New York. Petty crime, such as graffiti and subway turnstile jumping, were not to be tolerated because, according to the theory, observing disorder has a psychological effect on people.

  The theory later fell out of favor. But new research out of the Netherlands bolsters the belief that tolerance of low level crime matters. According to the new research, it actually doubles the number of people willing to litter and steal.
  UNQUOTE

  Coletta brings the issue back to city budget slashing, and how this will affect the climate for social disorder.

  tags: ceos_for_cities, carol_coletta, cities, social_disorder, broken_window_theory

• A city that thinks like the web, slides + audio « commonspace

  Mark Surman’s must-see/ must-listen presentation at the City of Toronto 2.0 Web Summit, on getting cities to think like the web: open, transparent, shared data, mashable, hackable, improve-able.
  QUOTE:
  …three simple challenges to City Hall. They went something like this:

  1. Open our data. transit. library catalogues. community centre schedules. maps. 311. expose it all so the people of Toronto can use it to make a better city. do it now.
  2. Crowdsource info gathering that helps the city. somebody would have FixMyStreet.to up and running in a week if the Mayor promised to listen. encourage it.
  3. Ask for help creating a city that thinks like the web. copy Washington, DC’s contest strategy. launch it at BarCamp.
  UNQUOTE

  tags: mark_surman, web_2.0, commonspace, cities, open_source, mozilla, urbanism, toronto

• Urban farming school takes root

  Richmond, BC starts an urban farming school…

  tags: urban_food, urban_farming, food_security, vancouver, richmond

• Better Place || Electric Changes Everything

  Hmmm, from the header: “electric changes everything :: When we break the cycle of oil dependence, new things become possible. See how the switch to electric transforms the relationship between cars, people and the planet.”

  Proposed solution? Electric everything?

  Portal page.

  Interesting – lots to explore…

  tags: ecology, economics, environment, electricity, futurismo, better_place, shai_agassi

• Business Guide – David Suzuki Foundation

  “New guide to cutting greenhouse gas emissions shows how businesses can save millions and the environment.” Portal page for downloading the document(s), etc.

  tags: environment, ecology, economics, business, david_suzuki, green_strategies

• “Is a little history worse than none?,” by Christopher Hume (TheStar.com) – Annotated

  Hume looks at facadism – when it works, and when it doesn’t.

  tags: thestar, christopher_hume, heritage, preservation, architecture, facadism, toronto

Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.