February 27th, 2007
The sun never knew how wonderful it was
until it shone on the wall of a building.
In the elegantly written Chambers for a Memory Palace, Donlyn Lyndon and Charles Moore exchange correspondence about the fundamental elements of memorable places. With themes such as “Axes that Reach / Paths that Wander” and “Openings that Frame / Portals that Bespeak”, the writers analyze the purpose and importance of simple architectural elements, citing time-honored examples and accompanying their discourse with beautiful sketches.
“Two thousand years ago, writes Lyndon and Moore, “Marcus Tullius Cicero used to make two-hour speeches in the Roman Senate, without notes, by constructing in his mind a palace whose rooms and furnishings, as he imagined himself roaming through them, called up the ideas he wished to discuss: ideas were made memorable by locating them in space.”
Cicero’s Memory Palace, as the authors emphasize, is made vivid and distinct by its physical composition. In other words, the architectural structure and layout of a place may determine if its image remains in our memories long after it has been seen or if our memory of the place slowly dissolves, unremarkable in comparison.
The book may act as a guide for any person designing a place for people, no matter how grand or simple, to ensure that it is unforgettable and significant.
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February 26th, 2007
Last weekend, Eric and I began designing a map for Counter-Strike. Counter-Strike is a team-based online computer game where players must complete an objective (rescuing the hostages or detonating a bomb) or eliminate the other team. While the game includes dozens of official maps, each a different physical setting for the game to occur, map-making software allows players to create customized maps of their own.
Before we began designing our map, we analyzed the popular maps for strategic patterns and logical layouts. For example, the number and placement of choke points, or locations where the teams collide after a round begins and players rush to the objective, may affect if the map is balanced fairly for each team. In our evaluation, we began to wonder if the designers of the official Counter-Strike maps took the time to plan the layout, anticipating how players may use their maps. Or, did they merely design an attractive environment and leave it to the players to decide how to use it?
I recently heard somebody claim that Great Places are Planned. As a planner, I like to think that I contribute to the design of great places, but I do not believe that my contributions are necessary. Surely, there have been unique and distinct places that were not deliberately planned. Furthermore, how insulting it must be to hear that your place is not great, only because it did not employ the expertise of a planner.
Certainly, planning and forethought may enhance the usability and sustainability of a place (or the playability of a Counter-Strike map), but to imply that all great places are planned is inaccurate. The people that live, work, and play in place ultimately determine its greatness. How people use space and how culture shapes it is an act greater than planning and cannot always be anticipated.
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February 24th, 2007
Similar to the destruction of the rural idyll when it is overcome by suburban development, slums in the Global South may be eradicated by their growing popularity as a tourist destination.
Andrew Downie writes in his article about Rio de Janeiro’s slums, “To many Brazilians, favelas are dirty, violent, frightening places. But to many foreigners, they are exciting, interesting, and romantic.”
I experience a similar fascination when I visit Mexico. The wild and unaffected environment, the simple housing, and the slow lifestyles appeal to me as a contrast to my fast-paced urban life. These characteristics create a place that is increasingly hard to find in America.
When residents of these underdeveloped places begin to market their culture to foreigners, tourism may lift their economies from poverty. When this occurs, will they cease to maintain the lifestyle that gained them their success?
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