1.2 Reading
Within these 4 articles, the theme of data and how we use and process it was very apparent. It was interesting to see the different opinions the authors had on how to collect and process data appropriately.
In the article “Data Dimension: accessing urban data and making it accessible” they talked a lot about the technological advancements that have influenced new systems of data collection. I was most interested in the part of the article where they talked about the Los ojos del mundo project and how they used social media to understand the dynamics of tourism in Spain. The authors went into great detail about the types of variables that came along with this approach of using social media and how a lot of their time had to go into researching the data so that it would be more accurate. This showed the importance of collecting data that is unbias and accurate so that designers can understand urban design better and come to educated solutions.
In Chapter 11 of “Mobile cuisine in New York and Portland” there was a lot to be said about how the same booming business can be so different depending on its location. When I moved to Portland I was always a fan of the food cart atmosphere and how it was respected by the city. It was interesting and disappointing to read food carts are less encouraged by the city of New York as they seem like they would be a great addition to a fast paced city. Additionally, I appreciated the discussion about ethnic diversity and how the food cart business are a good way of spreading, sharing and expressing ones ethnic background.
The article “Social “Coding”: urban processes and socio-computational workflow” talked about the workflow of creating meaningful graphs to help designers better understand urban design. What stood out to me the most in this article was the different kinds of design integrations (indirect, direct and real-time) and how data can be used to support each of these. The article did a good job of describing the different ways we can use data and how we can present the data we are trying to show effectively.
“Using parametric methods to understand place in urban design courses” gave us good insight into the types of software’s we are using and have been used to collect data. I think this article was helpful in understanding how these software’s will apply to this course and others that we take throughout our time at UO.