Designing multiple urban space: an actor-network theory analysis on multiplicity and stability of public space

This paper suggests an empirical tool to examine the multiple and ever-changing aspects of public space. As an overarching theoretical framework, Actor-Network Theory was applied to identify the different ways of generating multiple user activities in a single built environment. Data on user behaviour were gathered by observations, short interviews and questionnaires from Fortune Street Park and Kingston Ancient Market Place, both in London. The empirical process recognized the constant but discursive performance of public space through the multiple activity networks, and verified that the public spaces have different network strategies to be stabilized according to their own urban context.     

城市型风景区边界区域城市空间优化设计方法研究

针对城市型风景区边界城市空间较少考虑观景效果、利用率低、活动不便、吸引力差的问题,文章采用计算机视觉技术中的人群行为分析技术对以可达性分析和可视性分析确定的风景区周边具有观景价值的城市公共空间进行研究。首先进行视频处理,基于视频监控技术,建立摄像头传感器网络;然后,进行轨迹识别;其三,在轨迹模式识别和轨迹聚类的基础上进行行为分析;最后,结合人眼对视频帧的判断和现场观察验证数据准确性,匹配活动类型与空间范围,并形成行为原型。由行为原型借助模型分析空间要素与行为原型的关系,形成形态原型。研究结论为基于空间范围和构成要素的空间原型,作为最小的空间构成单元用于城市型风景区边界区域城市空间优化设计中,使空间布局便捷、紧凑、设施完备。     

Research on the Influencing Factors of Users’ Perception of the Inclusiveness of Urban Parks Based on the Grounded Theory

The improvement of the inclusiveness of urban parks can guarantee the recreational opportunities and experience of different user groups, especially the vulnerable ones, and is also an important way to promote the justice of urban green landscape. The research explores the influencing factors to park users’ perception and evaluation on the inclusiveness of urban parks. Through the three-level data coding and analysis, a model consisting of eight main categories (i.e. site conditions, site usage, independent mobility, supply-demand matching capacity of space and facilities, interference and limitation of recreational activities, positive emotional experience, broad social participation, and place identity) which cover 30 influencing factors to individuals’ perception of the inclusiveness of urban parks is established. The model shows that park users evaluate the inclusiveness of urban parks upon their observation of site conditions and usage, and their own recreational experience; while the latter is affected by both physical and psychological factors related to passive exclusion and active exclusion, according to the concept of design exclusion. The disparity of the physical environmental quality of urban parks would lead to users’ different emotions and feelings about recreational activities. The model helps clarify the path and key factors of inclusiveness evaluation and provides a theoretical reference for future research and practice of landscape justice.     

小微型公共开敞空间的实证调查报告

在用地紧张的城市中心区,新建或改造小微型开敞空间是提升城市活力的重要措施。然而该领域的实证研究在我国极为缺乏。本研究在杭州市中心城区选取7平方公里范围的基地,对现存小微型开敞空间进行普查,进一步从33个场地中挑选出6个极端案例做详行为调查与分析。特别记录并分析了不同活动类型、社会交往发生频率的状况及其产生条件,最近得出有关使用模式的四个主要结论,以及三项与设计直接相关的指导意见。     

Evaluating the impact of mass housings' in-between spaces' spatial configuration on users' social interaction

This research examines the impact of in-between space configuration on users' social practices. The effects of different degrees of permeability of these spaces on the social interactions of the inhabitants are also analyzed. This research is based on a comparative approach using space syntax analysis and snapshot observations on four mass housing neighborhoods in Setif, Algeria. The neighborhoods are selected according to their degree of permeability, location in the city, realization period, and syntax measures from integrated to segregated. The activity patterns of two-week days for each study case are observed and recorded. Correlation results of observed social activities and syntactic measures demonstrate that spatial configuration affects people's use of in-between spaces. Moreover, connectivity and clustering coefficients are revealed to be important indicators of social activities. Previous urban studies argued that integrated spaces are mostly used by people. However, social interaction in the studied cases increases in the least connected areas, adjoining spaces to the buildings, and most closed spaces. This research finds that social activities are dependent on the degree of permeability, which when low, gives rise to increased social interaction and activities.     

Heterogeneous Spaces in the City: Study on Spatial Characteristics of Tibetan Settlements in Chengdu

Settlement of the minorities is a particular heterogeneous space in a metropolis,and such spaces exist as inseparable parts of the city for historical,social and geopolitical reasons.Taking Tibetan settlement in Wuhou District,Chengdu City for example,this study analyzed spatial features and evolution history of minority settlements,and explored how to respect and accept historic signifi cance and cultural value of these heterogeneous spaces during the rapid urban development,and then use them reasonably and reform creatively,so as to maintain their original spatial features and integrate the spaces into the overall urban structure.     

The (in)formal,the (il)legal and the (il)licit. Roma informal settlements and institutional pragmatics of compromise and compassion in a Roman periphery

Using the lens of informal Roma settlements in the southwestern periphery of Rome, this article explores Romani approaches to urban space, showing how these are informed by heterogeneous understandings of non-Roma conceptions and practices of (in)formality, (il)legality and (il)licitness. The article also highlights complex and ambivalent attitudes concerning Roma and their informal settlements on the part of non-Roma residents of the neighboring district. Finally, it frames the existence of the informal settlements within the authorities' juggling of formal rejection and informal calculated acceptance of urban informality. The grey spaces that emerge from the convergence of institutional pragmatics of compromise and compassion are connected to governmental discourses that frame informal Roma settlements as dangerous and polluting spaces, and treat their inhabitants as exploitable labor force and politically expendable subjects. Urban (in)formality is also the space that Roma, like many non-Roma, navigate to cope with vulnerability and express their right to the city. Informal Roma settlements thus appear fully embedded in the political, socio-economic and cultural fabric of Rome, which embraces them precisely by treating them as separate polluting spaces.     

Underground pedestrian systems development in cities: Influencing factors and implications

Underground Pedestrian System (UPS) has been developed around the world especially within the central areas of mega cities during the past century. UPS development has occurred for various reasons. Factors from both natural and built environments have contributed to UPS developments in major cities around the world. In cities with severe weather conditions such as Toronto (Canada), a cold Winter City and Oklahoma City (United States), a windy city, UPS have provided a climate-controlled environment for social, entertainment, retail and commercial activities. In dense urban settings such as Tokyo, Japan and Shanghai, China, UPS provide opportunities for much more comprehensive and intensive usage of urban spaces, by accommodating multiple urban functions that is comparable to that which occurs at street level. This research selected 19 UPS cities as cases studies to explore the prevalence of the four influencing factors namely climate, subway construction, land usage and the economic environment. The research revealed the degree of prevalence of these four aspects for UPS cities and determined the differentiating factors of the natural and built environments that resulted in the establishment of UPS. Further analysis based on SPSS statistical tests examined the differences between developing and advanced economies in relation to the prevalence of these factors. The research findings indicated that there are statistically significant differences that help to explain the existence of UPS in developing and advanced economies according to economics, the presence of subway systems and city scale. These differences highlight the different stages of urban development of the studied cities, typified by differences in urban spatial structure that are apparent when comparing cities in developing and advanced economies.     

Gardening cyberspace—social media and hybrid spaces in the creation of food citizenship in the Bristol city-region,UK

Abstract

This paper conducts a detailed analysis of urban food and online networks in Bristol, UK. In particular, it examines social media postings of grass-roots food networks. Qualitative research identifies and analyses five core themes, from which two dominant discourses emerge. Analysis reinforces the multifunctional nature of city food but moves beyond dominant scholarly pre-occupations with nutrition and physical resources. Instead, the paper positions social and symbolic aspects as equal components within the convening power of food. To date, social media has been neglected in urban food research, although this is a space as well-tended and structured as the physical spaces it augments. The paper finds a relationship of limited collaboration between the grass-roots networks and the city council. While the former are dynamic and networked, the council adheres to a linear policy process that limits the scope of citizenship. The relationships examined here indicate implications for urban planning processes.     

Sensing multiple semantics of urban space from crowdsourcing positioning data

Urban spaces have multiple functions, and the main functions of these space change with human activities during a day; thus, there are dynamic semantics of spaces in a city. Knowing the dynamic semantics of urban spaces, which are implied in spatiotemporal patterns of human activities, can help urban planners and managers understand how a city performs over time and space. The very large amount of multidimensional user-generated data makes it possible to disclose the spatiotemporal patterns of human activities from multiple perspectives. In this paper, using Beijing as a case study, we extract the dynamic semantics of urban spaces through the spatiotemporal patterns of human activities discovered from crowdsourced positioning data. A high-order decomposition method, tensor factorization, is used to explore the crowdsourced positioning data. The decomposition results reveal five hourly patterns, four daily patterns and six spatial patterns of urban dynamics in Beijing, showing that urban dynamics in Beijing vary noticeably over different hours, days and space. The human activities implicated by hourly and daily patterns are inferred through empirical knowledge, and the activity semantics of spatial patterns are further disclosed by using the interaction relations among three dimensions stored in the core tensor. The k-means clustering method is executed to aggregate similar spatial units into one group. Five clusters of regions with similar activity semantics are discovered, the function semantics of clusters are clarified with point of interest (POI) data.     

利用城市真实声像数据库再现城市路径

传统的城市路径计算机再现技术普遍基于两种方法：一种是先建立城市形态计算机模型,然后通过各种虚拟现实技术实现;一种是在GIS地理信息系统中,在按时间序列排列的一系列场地平面图上标注各种信息来反映路径的使用情况。这两种方法各有偏重,但实现的过程都相当繁琐。不管是城市规划师构思场地规划中各种人行交通流线,还是城市声学家进行项目声音规划或路径声景设计,其实他们最需要的是一种即时再现方法,能够高效、快捷地让他们获取各种城市路径相关信息,来校验和调整路径设计。新方法利用对称出现的方形城市实景图片从行人的视角再现视觉空间,利用声音事件来再现声音空间一天内的演变,所有信息均预存在数据库中,能够根据使用者设定,即时在计算机中再现城市路径的情况。除了高质量再现城市路径,还能在此数据库的基础上开发出各种智能应用,例如能够自动诊断路径两侧相邻声音空间的声音冲突情况等功能。     

The Spatio-Relational Nature of Urban Innovation Systems: Universities,Knowledge Intensive Business Service Firms,and Collaborative Networks

The need to better identify the spatio-relational nature of urban innovation systems and spaces is increasingly acknowledged. The aim of this paper, therefore, is to provide an enhanced understanding of the knowledge networks existing between urban Knowledge Intensive Business Service firms (KIBS) and universities, which are often key components of such systems and spaces. Drawing on an analysis of urban KIBS firms and universities in the United Kingdom, it is found that the nature of firms, their location, and the research intensity of their university partners are important determinants of the spatiality and localization of the networks they form. The results show that the smallest urban KIBS firms have the highest propensity to engage in local links with universities, suggesting that they rely most significantly on their own urban innovation system for collaborative network ties.     

Users as co-designers: Visual-spatial experiences at Whitworth Art Gallery

The importance of building users in the architectural field has been increasingly acknowledged in architectural research. Some studies have applied actor-network theory (ANT) to highlight the ways through which users are embedded in relation to the built environment. However, many of these studies are limited in recognizing the diverse ways users manipulate these relations as they experience the same built environment differently. This study draws on a recent ANT scholarship by summarizing the ethnographic research of Whitworth Art Gallery in Manchester, United Kingdom. Findings show that users see and react to the same built environment in different ways that are not limited to their alignment or misalignment with the design. They extend to include diverse interpretations and reactions (destructing, ignoring, noticing, attending, and interacting). The different user experiences explored in this research demonstrate three main themes, namely, entanglements, continuity, and transformation, which suggest new ways of recognizing the need for increasingly adaptable and inviting designs that address different user preferences and desires.     

城市绿地环境质量评估工具综述

城市绿地环境质量评估工具被广泛应用于探究空间特征与体力活动的关系,成为城市规划、公共健康、体育科学领域的研究热点。使用文献计量法、荟萃分析法,梳理了9项城市绿地环境质量评估工具,总结了评估工具的应用方式、适用范围及优劣异同。首先,城市绿地环境质量评估工具的开发始于21世纪初期,经历了探索期、发展期和活跃期,工具评估范围涵盖城市公园、步道空间和邻里绿地,主要评估方法包括系统性观察、远程评估和主观感知法;其次,基于尺度差异归纳了普遍使用的8项一级指标和58项二级指标,一级指标包括交通环境、周边环境、娱乐设施、便利设施、自然品质、维护管理、艺术审美以及安全保障;最后,探讨了常见工具的实际应用情况,为多学科的互相借鉴与融合提供基础。     

健康生活导向下的西方城市公共空间发展研究

以健康生活导向视角追溯西方发达国家城市公共空间发展历程,基于各自不同历史背景、医学模式、公共空间类别及健康生活实现方式,将其归纳为3个重要阶段：神圣敬畏的“公共园林”启蒙期、改善公共健康的城市公共空间发展期、开启多元健康的生活方式成熟期;由此揭示健康生活导向下西方城市公共空间呈现从“单一维度”到“多维融合”、从“消极被动补给”到“积极主动引导”、从“公共”到“共享”的3个发展转变趋势。旨在推动我国以人民健康幸福生活为导向的公园城市建设健康有序发展。     

失智特殊护理单元公共空间设计对老人行为的影响—— 以北京市两所养老设施为例

中国是全球失智老人数量最多的国家,不断增长的失智老人群体对专业化的养老机构需求迫切。然而,当前中国能够满足失智老人特殊照护需求的养老机构很少,对失智老人行为模式、空间需求的认识和研究不足,更缺少专业的护理环境设计应对。本研究通过对北京两个空间布局相异的失智老人特殊护理单元中公共空间的调研,连续观察记录了老人对公共空间的使用方式与行为。对比分析后发现公共空间中空间布局、家具细节、空间氛围、物理环境等环境因素对老人的空间利用、交流行为、活动开展等行为均会产生影响。最后对失智老人护理机构公共空间环境设计提出了相应建议。     

Asian urbanisms and the privatization of cities

The majority of Asia’s cities are being constructed from private funding and by private labor. This has always been the case for so-called informal settlements. Recently, however, the newly acquired socioeconomic status, aspirations, and cultural horizons of the emergent professional and business middle classes in Asia have captured both popular imagination and critical academic attention. These classes are building their own urban spaces, with or without state intervention or support. To what extent can these trends be understood by drawing upon the existing Anglophone literature, which conventionally considers the global cities of Western Europe and North America as the leading edge of urban change and theorization? What can diverse empirical cases in Asia tell us about the global privatization of urban space? Arising from a workshop on the privatization of urban space in Asia, this Viewpoint article addresses four issues that arise from comparison of several Asian cases. More specifically, this work challenges Western-centered assumptions about the spatiotemporal origins of urban change; positions Asia at the leading edge of certain urban trends that may also be discerned elsewhere; questions the prior ‘public-ness’ implied by the term ‘privatization;’ and unravels the dystopianism of Anglophone academic treatment of privately owned, constructed, or regulated spaces.     

Spatial Logic and the Distribution of Open and Green Public Spaces in Hanoi: Planning in a Dense and Rapidly Changing City

Vietnam recently started to recognise the multiple benefits brought by open and green spaces to urban population and environment. In this paper, we analyse the provision of open and green spaces (parks, public gardens and lakeshores) in Hanoi. Using a model proposed by Talen (2010), we examine the spatial evolution of these spaces between 2000 and 2010, their level of proximity to residential units, and the extent to which their distribution matches social needs (defined in terms of population density). We find that while the absolute number and surface area of parks and public gardens has increased significantly in Hanoi, these new public spaces are mainly built on the city’s newly urbanised periphery. As a result, in 2010, only 15% of Hanoi’s residential blocks had access to a park or public garden within a reasonable walking (1000m) or biking distance (2500m). Moreover, the city’s densest residential areas have only access to relatively small gardens and parks, resulting in overcrowding. Lakeshores, however, represent an opportunity to enhance access to open and green spaces in Hanoi due to their spatial distribution. We conclude by advocating for the integration of spatial measures of proximity and needs into Hanoi’s public space planning policy framework.     

Urban Space Production in Transition: The Cases of the New Urban Areas of Hanoi

In recent decades, hundreds of master-planned new urban areas (NUAs) have developed on the urban fringes of expanding cities in Vietnam. They are promoted as a new urban planning concept in the post-reform policies. This article discusses the NUAs' planning concepts based on qualitative case studies of four NUAs in Hanoi, and on an examination of the 1990–2000 urban policies. It sheds light on transitional planning and urban space production processes in Vietnam and discusses urban quality in a rapidly urbanising Asian context. The article argues that NUAs are products of a hybrid, transitional system in which local government and the public sector form an alliance with the private sector to serve private interests in urban development. At the same time, NUAs are hybrid products of government-led, entrepreneur-driven planning and self-organising space production by the residents. The self-organising space production activities contribute to the urban quality of these new urban spaces, while the production of privatised, commodified spaces by corporate actors poses a threat to community life.     

信息流介入公共空间活力营造——基于城市公园的大数据循证分析

【目的】基于多源城市大数据,探寻信息流与公共空间活力的关系。【方法】以深圳市125个城市公园及其用户生成内容（user generated content, UGC）为例,在控制区位特征、可达性、公共空间特征后,量化信息流对公共空间活力的影响。【结果】研究发现：信息流对空间活力具有显著的积极效应;信息流的不同变量（评分、情绪值、曝光度）与信息流类型对空间活力效应具有显著差异。【结论】研究结果证实了信息流的显著效应及其异质性,为公共空间的活力营造提供定量数据支撑与策略。通过分析信息流介入活力营造的现象与机制,进一步反思人、技术与城市的关系,以重新理解公共空间活力营造的当代性。