Extra credit: The Social Life of Small Urban Spaces - Whyte - HAO JINGYU

 Summarize:

The book grew out of a study by Mr. White called the Street Life Project, in which Mr. White and his fellow researchers, armed with clipboards, cameras and tripods, climbed rooftops, wandered New York's plazas, sat along streets, and observed the city's public Spaces. After 10 years of observation, White put together a book of his findings.

The conclusions of this book are drawn from direct observation. "Direct observation", which is now almost a "lost" skill, if you do not do big data, quantitative analysis, as if there is no research, is not "scientific". But in fact, a lot of common sense is acquired without the sacrifice of dragon slaying.

It is often assumed that children play in the streets because there is no place to play. But is it possible that many children play in the streets precisely because they like them? To figure this out, you don't need to resort to complex analysis. Just observe whether children are having fun on the street and ask them how they feel. Most of the book is commonsense, not novel observations, and many of the key factors that make space work well seem surprisingly common but, upon reflection, make sense. I've heard a saying before: "Common sense is like oxygen. It gets thinner the higher you go." It is not difficult to understand common sense. What is difficult is to keep it in mind all the time and not forget it with the deepening of learning and long working days.

Interesting points:

1. Small Spaces have economies of scale, which together will have an impact on the whole urban space

2. Small urban space has advantages

3. Relying on the incentive system to control the floor area ratio and increase the area of public space cannot guarantee the quality and systematization of public space

4. Functions of public Spaces should be "dynamically adjusted" according to time and seasonal changes

5. Sensory density and hysteresis effect:

1) Sensory density: personal perception and estimation of the number of people, effective space and layout of an area (Rapoport), which is subjective

2) Sensory density is divided into spatial density (human-space: height, spacing...). And social density (person-person: social style, field...)

3) The high spatial density problem exists in too small space, and the high social density problem exists in too many people

4) When people pay attention to crowding, the influence of social density > spatial density

5) Hysteresis: density is a necessary but not sufficient condition for the sensation of crowding

6) Public space is a place rather than a project, and the use of people should be taken into account when designing the space

Discussion points:

1. How can each city make use of this book to create the desired urban space

2. How to make it necessary for urban designers to get rid of those flashy renderings, those inspiring but empty slogans, and really sink down into these small Spaces in the city, savor the beauty of these streets and alleys, and find the lost city perception and memory.

                   

      HAO JINGYU

      2019082315