Information Technology and the Future of Cities

Click For Summary

Discussion Overview

The discussion centers on the impact of information technology on urban life and face-to-face interactions. Participants explore whether advancements in telecommunications will lead to the obsolescence of cities or enhance interpersonal connections. The conversation includes theoretical models, personal observations, and implications for social structures.

Discussion Character

  • Debate/contested
  • Exploratory
  • Conceptual clarification

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants propose that improvements in telecommunications may lead to a reduction in face-to-face interactions, suggesting that cities could become less relevant as electronic communication becomes more prevalent.
  • Others argue that despite technological advancements, humans have a natural inclination towards face-to-face interactions and hierarchical structures, citing historical predictions of technology replacing these interactions that have not materialized.
  • One participant notes that while technology may reduce some face-to-face time, it has not eliminated the need for physical presence in activities such as shopping and social gatherings.
  • Another viewpoint suggests that cities are not merely solutions to information problems but are also tied to goods distribution, emphasizing the importance of physical proximity for certain services and experiences.
  • Some participants highlight the potential for a return to denser urban living, driven by energy constraints and changing preferences among younger demographics.
  • There is a mention of the need for energy-efficient information flow to sustain increasing connectivity, linking urban density with energy considerations.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express a range of opinions, with no clear consensus on whether technology will diminish the role of cities or enhance face-to-face interactions. Multiple competing views remain regarding the future of urban life in relation to information technology.

Contextual Notes

Some arguments depend on assumptions about human behavior and technological adoption, while others highlight unresolved issues related to energy efficiency and urban planning.

Ivan Seeking
Staff Emeritus
Science Advisor
Gold Member
Messages
8,215
Reaction score
2,661
Information Technology and the Future of Cities
Will improvements in information technology eliminate face-to-face interactions and make cities obsolete? In this paper, we present a model where people make contacts and choose a mode of interaction: meeting face-to-face or communicating electronically. Cities are a means of reducing the fixed travel costs involved in face-to-face interactions. When telecommunications technology improves, there will be two opposing effects on cities and face-to-face interactions. First, some relationships that would have been face-to-face will be conducted electronically. Second, the increase in frequency of contact between individuals caused by improvements in telecommunications technology may result in more face-to-face interactions. If the second effect dominates, telecommunications improvements will complement both face-to-face interactions and cities. Our empirical work suggests that telecommunications may be a complement to, or at least not a strong substitute for, cities and face-to-face interactions. Q 1998 Academic [continued]
http://www-agecon.ag.ohio-state.edu/class/AEDE680/Irwin/pdf/60.pdf
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Computer science news on Phys.org
I don't believe it. As long as I have been an adult I have seen repeated predictions that some new technology would replace face-to-face communications and hierarchical structures with distributed centerless networks. This started back in the late 40's with the video phone, which was gong to take over the world. It never happened; humans are a band oriented species; we like close contact and hierarchies. Thanks to minds, individuals can buck this default, but the greater number will accede to it.
 
selfAdjoint said:
I don't believe it. As long as I have been an adult I have seen repeated predictions that some new technology would replace face-to-face communications and hierarchical structures with distributed centerless networks. This started back in the late 40's with the video phone, which was gong to take over the world. It never happened; humans are a band oriented species; we like close contact and hierarchies. Thanks to minds, individuals can buck this default, but the greater number will accede to it.

In fact it started even before that, people were saying the same thing about the ordinary telephone, and perhaps even with those morse code devices.
Things like shopping will continue to draw people and give employment. Note that internet based shopping was supposed to take most of the business from the high street, but now people prefer to see/ touch the garments they are buying.
 
By chance I discovered that this thread was accidentally locked long ago, so I opened it and am bumping it up for anyone who is interested.
 
lol. Nice catch?

I don't think cities are a solution to an information problem. It's a goods problem. And until we develop really cheap teleportation, that's not going to change.
 
Smurf said:
lol. Nice catch?

I don't think cities are a solution to an information problem. It's a goods problem. And until we develop really cheap teleportation, that's not going to change.

cheap and fast. until robots can fix your plumbing problems, time required for transit is going to be a big issue. same for health care and entertainment such as live music, bars and restaurants.
 
Energy constraints will apply equaly to expanding the internet as travel. More dense cities are quite likely to be on the way back, some geographers note a trend among young couples to move into more dense city center areas due to the bull run on oil prices during the past 8 years.

Increasing the flow of information will have to be more energy efficient than present if it is to continue increasing.
 
selfAdjoint said:
I don't believe it. As long as I have been an adult I have seen repeated predictions that some new technology would replace face-to-face http://www.3gcgroup.com" and hierarchical structures with distributed centerless networks. This started back in the late 40's with the video phone, which was gong to take over the world. It never happened; humans are a band oriented species; we like close contact and hierarchies. Thanks to minds, individuals can buck this default, but the greater number will accede to it.

I agree, we like the face to face, but it's no doubt that new technologies have taken away some tof this time.
 
Last edited by a moderator:

Similar threads

Undergrad A Bold New Take on Quantum Theory
  • · Replies 25 ·
Replies
25
Views
6K
Advance of Technology; 1818 to 2318....
  • · Replies 22 ·
Replies
22
Views
6K
Undergrad How powerful would a collider have to be to observe a sphaleron?
  • · Replies 2 ·
Replies
2
Views
3K
Graduate RIP Edwin F Taylor (1931-2025)
  • · Replies 3 ·
Replies
3
Views
2K
White Paper on Revolutionary Technology - X-FORCE
  • · Replies 2 ·
Replies
2
Views
3K
Undergrad What Key Issues Should Cosmologists Address in the ΛCDM Model?
  • · Replies 1 ·
Replies
1
Views
3K
How bright is the future of Maglev Cars?
  • · Replies 19 ·
Replies
19
Views
12K
Is the Traditional Keynesian Approach Still Valid in Today's Globalized Economy?
  • · Replies 2 ·
Replies
2
Views
4K
The Scientist as Hero - or not
  • · Replies 1 ·
Replies
1
Views
3K
Is Alan Turing given too much credit when it comes to computers?
  • · Replies 29 ·
Replies
29
Views
5K