Ranking of Megacities by their Growth Dynamic. The proliferation of buildings in the cityscape. A Research Programme By Dr Jonathan Drane.
Abstract
Dynamic growing cities are currently ranked by human population alone- those with over ten million people being called ‘Mega-cities’, resulting in the attention of academic, government and industry commentators.
Measuring Population and Building Growth
Apart from ignoring emerging ‘Mega-cities’, as well as the relative growth in population between cities, the ranking takes no notice of the growth in ‘building population’ that is created and left as a remnant, of the growing population.
Since ‘building matter’ (as a product of the building population) is a common denominator in the assessment of energy used by the built environment, a ranking system that measures the growth in building matter would inform the grading of our cities by environmental impact.
The proposed method involves the creation of a ‘matter making profile’ for cities based on both ‘population growth’ and ’building population growth’ recognizing that although related, each have their own actors and demographies, and therefore independent propensity to grow.
Proliferation of Different Building Types
Underlying the method is a ‘proliferation model’ which describes and measures ‘matter making propensities and traits’ of different building types based on an organic metaphor.
Literature of Ranking of Megacities -City Growth Patterns
The literature abounds with those who would ( from many disciplines) seek to explain the dynamism of the changing face of our built environments, cities and Mega-cities through the frames of urban morphology, building typology, organic metaphors, physics based models, oncological frames, fractal analysis, satellite modeling and even Darwinian views, all of which inform the topic .
Missing however is a simple measure of our cities by their building populations, with buildings viewed in demographic terms as a species, each with their own actors and propensity for ‘making matter’, the sum of which is a primary legacy of our civilisation.
Working Papers
Read Paper:
Drane 2009- Ranking of Megacities
Read More on Ranking of Megacities
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/275407744_The_ranking_of_dynamic_cities_through_a_proliferation_model_and_demography_of_building_types
https://www.jondrane.net/publications/proliferation-of-tall-buildings-in-the-cityscape/
City Development Processes- the first practitioner doctorate
Thanks for your interest in The City Whisperer. Please fill in the form below and we will get back to you soon.
Contact Us- Dr Jonathan Drane- The City Whisperer – Smarter Healthy Cities.