A vision of hell

[British Red]

Cities of 2050...

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-23524249

If I had to live in that, I'd rip out a lump of optic fibre from the network and hand craft a noose!

 

[crosslandkelly]

I'll be 93 then, I'll join the queue at the Soylent green facility.

 

[Imagedude]

The reality will be far worse...

 

[Robbi]

The reality will be far worse...

now there lies the truth.

 

[Niels]

Here's hoping they won't urbanize the whole world, so there's still an outdoors to escape to every now and again.

 

[Robbi]

you won't be allowed.........no free thought, no unautherised travel, no unaccountable absences.

 

[resnikov]

I would say nothing to worry about, look back at the fifties view of today, no flying cars yet

I have to say I do like the farm skyscrapers.

 

[British Red]

Because tower blocks worked so well for people?

 

[Goatboy]

Well happily I won't live that long!

 

[Imagedude]

Because tower blocks worked so well for people?

In many countries they work well; depends mainly on the quality of the occupants.

 

[Hibrion]

Cities now are my idea of hell!

 

[resnikov]

Because tower blocks worked so well for people?

They might work well for vines and hops

 

[Toddy]

Why shouldn't cities evolve ? Ours are a vast improvement on those of the past. I too like the farmscrapers Fruit and veg on the doorstep

My eldest son lives in the city; it'd do my head in, but he and 100's of 1,000's are quite happy living there.
Different strokes, different folks.

cheers,
Toddy

 

[British Red]

Cities can evolve for sure...but three quarters of the worlds population in cities...doing...what exactly? Not producing food, or fuel or raw materials certainly. I fear that as cities grow, so will the trapped "inner city poor"

As for farm scrapers...as a guy who grows stuff...they are a daft idea...how much water do they need? Far more than falls on them! Where does the soil come from? The manure? Should we transport the soil, the manure, the water to a city skyscraper to grow food? What's so wrong with the Mark I field? You know, where the rain can fall, the sun can shine and soil exists?

 

[Toddy]

..........and transport costs and pollution aren't going to go away.
At least inner city farms cut down that, and they do let folks who live in the city have some hands on growing and processing of food.

It's not all bad, and in this overcrowded world, making best use of the already urbanised bits is surely practical

M

 

[British Red]

But it isn't practical. Inner city land prices are absurd....and as I said - lifting soil up ten stories and then pumping up water, and artificial fertiliser? Cities are already short of water, the South East has to import it. There's a reason why people do better spread out. The whole thing strikes me as weak thinking. Why do people need to live packed in together? To go to an office? Why? We have teleconferencing, video messaging and online collaboration. No need to pack people into cubicles any more. For shops? Shopping will all be online soon enough. Cities are a thing of the past (with luck).

 

[Imagedude]

I hope people stay packed in cities so that I can have more space in the country.

 

[British Red]

Good point - well made

 

[ex-member BareThrills]

As for farm scrapers...as a guy who grows stuff...they are a daft idea...how much water do they need? Far more than falls on them! Where does the soil come from? The manure? Should we transport the soil, the manure, the water to a city skyscraper to grow food? What's so wrong with the Mark I field? You know, where the rain can fall, the sun can shine and soil exists?

Hydroponic growing is already a reality Red, You dont need soil or manure, everything can be packaged into the water delivery system which is very frugal too. the growing medium is a gel. This stuff is already being grown commercially and trialled on some prestigious residential developments in the far east.

Its a sad fact but it will all go this way with population growth. I would of course prefer the Mk1 field approach

 

[British Red]

Hmm I've seen - and toured - hydroponic set ups. I've never seen one that's commercially viable - its strikes me as an "agricultural perpetual motion machine" - you still need a growing medium, nutrients, water, light. If you have to pay for, circulate, import and transport them, I can't figure it being more efficient than where they occur naturally.