Footnotes to a Conversation, November 18, 2024
“The task is, not so much to see what no one has yet seen; but to think what nobody has yet thought, about that which everybody sees.” – Erwin Schrödinger
People vs. Cars
I’m a pedestrian. I walk for pleasure, but I also walk to shop, to go to the dentist’s, or to visit a medical clinic or lawyer. Sometimes walking is miserable – if there isn’t a sidewalk or if I’m walking past long rows of faceless buildings. It’s fun when I can peer into shop windows, read a menu, or admire a flowerbox display. Generic storefronts suit car drivers “because the more basic and bland the buildings, the less active the sidewalk area, and the easier for cars to zip through.” Pedestrians, on the other hand, want to feel enclosed. For example, I don’t feel safe when I’m standing on the corner waiting for the walk light and there are cars zipping past.
The solution is simple. “Double loading a sidewalk is when you put amenities or features on both sides of the pedestrian walkway, such as outdoor seating, street trees, kiosks, and dining sheds. This makes the walkway feel like a kind of ‘safe zone’ drawing people in large numbers to gather and enjoy the stretches where everyone feels safe.” Double loading is good for businesses too as they can add extra seating or displays.
If you’re having trouble picturing double loading, take a look at the photos from cities around the world. [Social Life Project]
Every Word Counts
Imagine being a translator at COP 29. Countries will have been arguing for days over the text, so you have to make sure the translation is accurate. The word ‘energy’ is more or less identical in French, Spanish, and English, but translating it into Hindi or Mandarin takes a bit more effort. In Hindi, you have a choice of 3 words, depending on whether you’re referring to energy production, spiritual energy, or a moving force. In Mandarin, “néngliàng is a scientific term referring to quantifiable physical energy whereas néngyuán refers generally to energy sources like solar or wind”. [BBC]
Newbie Humility
Don’t move to the country if you’re not prepared for the smell of rotting cabbages or an early-morning wake-up call from a rooster. Similarly, people who have lived in an area for generations won’t take kindly to newcomers who seek to impose their own values on their new home. Johnny, who works for a moving company, explains that his “grandparents—in their mid-80s— live in a neighborhood his family has called home for generations. Increasingly, they find themselves surrounded by newcomers who express discomfort with their long-standing ways. Something as simple as front yard parking—a practice that predates zoning laws and, to some, is simple and practical community life—has become a point of contention. Johnny explained that these new neighbors often arrive with rigid preconceptions of how a historic neighborhood ‘should look,’ missing that his grandparents have maintained the practice for years.” [Resurgence: A Journey]
Footnotes to a Conversation is a weekly Monday feature covering an assortment of topics that I’ve come across in the preceding week – books, art, travel, food, and whatever else strikes my fancy. I also post occasional articles on other dates, including frequent book reviews and travel tales.
If you share my love of nature, check out EcoFriendly West, an online publication encouraging environmental initiatives in Western Canada, and Nature Companion, a free nature app for Canada’s four western provinces.