How social/ physical/ virtual link together- Amandeep

Hey- everyone! Humera I love the tram stop! It creates a sense of social space within a small area, increasing the people flow; even the stations create the idea of motion. Not sure if I like the bike, looks a bit too retro to me, and can't see anyone using it in the future!

Referring back to my last post about how modernisation maybe linked to mobility; I have interpreted Marx’s view as time being an indicator of how we have grown as a society and how the world has become more accessible and mobile- The idea of the word ‘Modern’ has never been interpreted the same.

I thought the best way to understand this was by looking at my own life; the above diagram is my representation of how mobility has affected/ changed over my lifetime. I have highlighted key points in my life (through a time line), that have increased my mobility within society.

The basic points I can pick out from it are that the virtual and physical aspects of mobility act as supports to the social factor. They all work simultaneously, and I wouldn’t be able to function properly if one was removed. As I have become older and more socially active, my virtual and physical mobility are automatically increased. I can also see that my virtual mobility is more active than my physical mobility, as I am more likely to contact someone via email/ phone rather than visit them in person.

I notice that education is a key backbone from where many of my social connections derive, as we do spend a lot of our youth studying. I can also see my virtual connections are mainly to local friends and friends.

While travelling, I can see a mixed set of emotions, especially when travelling to a new place, or a rarely used transport. It is here, in these transient places, where De Botton says we best encounter our true selves. It is these places where we feel that we can isolate ourselves into a place of comfort.

Maybe in the future surrounding will change according to our movement, or lack of it. Maybe our physical mobility will be replaced by more virtual movement as it is easier, faster and cheaper? Maybe our physical transport will get faster, more types of transport, but will we travel less often? Will there be any need to go to work, will we be working from home?

Amandeep

Oh yeh I wanted to mention that Jess brought up immobility which I think is a very important factor to look at. If we were immobile, the world would be a very dull and boring place, and De Botton discusses how our happiness and anticipation of travel provides us with some sort of satisfaction.

Nowadays, people as well as architects are becoming more aware and responsive to those with disabilities, creating spaces that are much more accessible to everyone, creating a more socially mobile community.

And also touching upon what Humera said that mobility can also be the moving of social status, position in a job and inqualities. She has also shown how it has happened over time, and this can be seen over many events- women given the vote, Martin Luther King providing black people with equal rights etc. But I still think there is a division between the Third world and the more wealthier countries, which maybe because of lack of communication. But I hope that after looking at previous events where the social link was separated, that this may be bridged in the not so distant future.

Initial thoughts- Aman

Hi guys- I just thought I’d start with my interpretation of mobility which is mostly based on personal experience and what I’ve read.

Mobility= Freedom of movement /communication= happiness!!

This statement comes from my understanding of reading Hertzberger and De Botton; this means that our society is subconsciously happier due to our freedom of ‘movement’. We are happier in places that have been created to be more welcoming and spacious. Over time we have, as a society, become more virtually, physically and politically mobile which has lead to being more socially mobile.

This means that we would be very different if it were not for our ability to travel. What I discussed on the previous blog was that our mobility as a society has been shaped and designed so that we communicate in a certain way. Our social behaviour is affected by the environment that we are occupying. Think about it- we act and behave differently at home as we do at university. At home we are comfortable and relaxed, whereas as university we are focussed and attentive. As we move around the city, there are roads that lead us in certain way forcing us to travel in that direction (e.g. bus/ train routes/ the pavement we walk on). Spaces are adapted according to population and culture. Our mobility is also determined by the built environment which affects the way in which we behave within that area.

If you think about our city is one complex network of bus/ train/ street routes interconnecting and overlapping, linking us all to each other horizontally (maybe vertically I future?).

The virtual society is much more free as we can communicate with any one at any time, and in any way we like. Google earth provides a prime example where we can travel to anywhere across the world with a click of a button. We can experience the place without even being there.

I thought the film ‘The Matrix’ shows our virtual mobility well, as it shows how the world we know is created virtually. Similarly I believe our society is heading this way, I mean in terms of how everything we do and use will become virtual. Our communication is becoming more virtual and I think that the limits seem endless.

http://video.google.co.uk/videosearch?q=wireless+festival+2009&emb=0&aq=0&oq=wireless#q=view+satellite+signals&emb=0

The above video shows how NASA uses physical mobility to translate it into virtual messages sent back to base as photos and data. The video also shows how we have developed, from not understanding our planet to the knowledge we have now.

Sorry for rambling on, look forward to reading your posts...=)