Chinese Eco-Cities

opencity writes "The Guardian is reporting on a deal by Arups, a British consulting firm, to build four eco-cities in China. The cities are to be self-sufficient in energy, water and most food products, with the aim of zero emissions of greenhouse gases in transport systems. The press release hints at some of the technology."

Comments

Great Leap Forward, anyone?

[Pyrion]

China's last experiment with self-sufficiency was by all accounts a complete disaster, with upwards of 35 million dead. I wouldn't be surprised if this attempt results in another spectacular failure.

These will be called "prisons"

[meburke]

What a great social experiment! Put all your troublesome individuals and families in one "city" and if something starts getting out of hand you can threaten to close off the city unless the rest of the populace keeps everyone else in line.

Hmmmm. In Japanese feudal society, the Daimiyo's serfs were clustered in families of five. If a member of one family offended the Daimiyo, all five families were executed, so each family member watched everyone else very carefully. The Japanese still have a culture of popular co-operation and responsibility to the population, and this is thought to be one of the originating cultural artifacts.