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Will the High-Tech Cities of the Future Be Utterly Lonely? (theweek.com)

Posted by BeauHD on from the new-reality dept.

adeelarshad82 writes from a report via The Week: The prospect of cities becoming sentient is "fast becoming the new reality," according to one paper. Take Tel Aviv for example, where everyone over the age of 13 can receive personalized data, such as traffic information, and can access free municipal Wi-Fi in 80 public zones. But in a future where robots sound and objects look increasingly sentient, we might be less inclined to seek out behaviors to abate our loneliness. Indeed, one recent study titled "Products as pals" finds that exposure to or interaction with anthropomorphic products -- which have characteristics of being alive -- partially satisfy our social needs, which means the human-like robots of tomorrow could kill our dwindling urge to be around other humans.

5 of 108 comments (clear)

  1. Why would anybody live in a city? by Snotnose · · Score: 4, Insightful

    I'm in a suburb of San Diego. I have parks, recreation, low traffic (unless I want to get the Sorrento Valley from 7-9 or 4-6). I walk outside my door I have grass, landscaping, little traffic. I can ride my bike pretty much anywhere within my lung capacity.

    I could move to downtown SD and walk to bars, restaurants, the harbor. Why would I want to? I outgrew bars 30 years ago. I can walk in parks here, drive to cheaper restaurants, and the harbor? Phfft. Kevin Faulconer seems hell bent on destroying Seaport Village, and they've already fucked up Anthony's beyond all repair.

    1. Re:Why would anybody live in a city? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

      I'm in a suburb of San Diego. I have parks, recreation, low traffic (unless I want to get the Sorrento Valley from 7-9 or 4-6). I walk outside my door I have grass, landscaping, little traffic. I can ride my bike pretty much anywhere within my lung capacity.

      I could move to downtown SD and walk to bars, restaurants, the harbor. Why would I want to? I outgrew bars 30 years ago. I can walk in parks here, drive to cheaper restaurants, and the harbor? Phfft. Kevin Faulconer seems hell bent on destroying Seaport Village, and they've already fucked up Anthony's beyond all repair.

      Bars are okay as long as you abandon the idea that they're a good place to meet women. They're not. They're really, really not. If you can enjoy them for what they are - a good place to have some drinks you don't normally indulge in and make it a treat while enjoying the atmosphere - then they're okay. If you think a bar is going to fulfill some unmet need of yours, well then I hope you enjoy suffering because you're asking for more.

    2. Re:Why would anybody live in a city? by JanneM · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Because cities have a lot of different kind of people, different kinds of shops, art spaces, restaurants, performances and so on. Suburbs are far more homogenous. They're like that bar in Blues Brothers that have "both Country and Western".

      And cities are a lot more accessible; when you get older you may no longer be able to drive or get around easily, and you will certainly start to appreciate the closeness to various medical specialists, nursing facilities and emergency services.

      One major trend here in Japan is that as the population grows older, so does the move into urban centers accelerate, and that's exactly for this reason. Baby boomers are selling their suburban homes and rural houses to get convenient, accessibility-adapted apartments in the city.

      --
      Trust the Computer. The Computer is your friend.
    3. Re:Why would anybody live in a city? by swell · · Score: 4, Insightful

      I grew up in an idyllic suburban countryside on the banks of a river and lived a Huck Finn childhood. Everyone in our community knew everyone else. No bicycle had ever been stolen there, though it may have been left at the beach for a week. Nice for kids, but stifling and claustrophobic for me the adult.

      Now I live in walking distance of the finest park in America's Finest City (urban San Diego) with the best zoo in America and a score of museums and other entertainments. I'm in walking distance of dozens of fancy night clubs, a dozen coffee shops, many restaurants, exotic grocery stores, huge farmers' market, yadda... There are at least hundreds of employers in walking distance- tech firms, medical, advertising, and retail of course. Artists, musicians, photographers, hackers & con men. I make an effort to drive the car and the motorcycle once a week to charge their batteries, but there's really no place to go.

      But best is the people I meet every day. Not your typical bland Starbucks suburbanites but creative, risk taking individuals of every stripe, and OK, some homeless people but even they are a cut above the suburban homeless. I'm at the far end of 70 now and I need this stimulation or I'll be bored to tears.

      --
      ...omphaloskepsis often...
  2. Re:Loneliness? It's hard to be left alone! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Not the same AC as any of the previous posts, and not from the US, but still find it odd how you attribute near universal issues specifically to the US...

    narrow minds generally cannot be reasoned with, they just get upset and more hostile when you try

    And this is why you get short, insult laden replies. People see someone who is hypocritically complaining about others being unware and self-centered while dumping a bunch of belittling off-topic rants, and think the exact same, "This person can't be reasoned with." Your replies pretty much validate that, and double down on the hypocrisy by doing nearly all of the stuff you complain of others doing. Of course you shouldn't be surprised that pseudo-intellectual attention seeking gathers unintelligent attention.