The Nature and Significance of Cities (Session II)

Sophy Ramírez  | 15 de noviembre de 2019  | Vistas: 14

In this second session, the professor of economics, Sandford Ikeda concentrates more on the significance of the city, contrary to the past session that was about its nature.

He starts up this session by making a summary of last lecture, highlighting social network and evolution of cities as spontaneous order and diverse knowledge. 

Then the professor introduces Kevin Lynch’s idea of trying to understand the imaginable city, which focuses on the knowledge of people about a certain city, whether they are residents or visitors. 

We have imperfect knowledge, we have incomplete knowledge, that is to say, we don’t know all the city and that part that we know may be wrong yet somehow we are able to navigate the city”

Ikeda describes parts of cities that helps us understand them, such as: 

• Paths 
• Edges
• Districts 
• Nodes 
• Landmarks

After this he continues sharing the ideas of other expert, Hideo Sasaki, professor of aesthetics, who has a connection with Lynch work, but also proposed a Cartesian city that it’s related with Descartes belief of someone having perfect knowledge. Sandy Ikeda clarifies the contradiction that may be between Hayek and Sasaki ideas.

Ikeda also emphasizes in how Sasaki explains some urban planning that was made to interact with the individual. 

You’re feeling the city as you are navigating it, you feel the ground change under your feet”

To conclude, Ikeda contrast tactile design, which involves the body of the individual, with the visual design and mentions the importance of considering how people will perceive the environment.