Technology

California to Cap Incomes Eligible for Electric Vehicle Rebates

A bill will attempt to bring some equity to the flagrantly inequitable rebate program that subsidizes purchases of Electric Vehicles. Additional subsidies would be directed to low income families. Rebates could also be used for car share and transit.

August 19, 2014 - Los Angeles Times

Ten Years of OpenStreetMap

Exactly how does a student take on an open data political stance and transform it into "the largest crowd-sourced mapping project on the internet"?

August 16, 2014 - TechCrunch

Fighting Wildfires with Big Data

WIFIRE, a real-time and data-driven simulation, prediction, and visualization technology, combines satellite and remote sensor data to forecast the potential spread of wildfires.

August 13, 2014 - Information Week

Mobile App Helps Battle Graffiti in Philadelphia

Philadelphia's Community Life Improvement Program is using Esri's Collector mobile app to empower their data collection in management. Prior to Collector, the anti-graffiti effort was driven by Excel.

August 12, 2014 - Technical.ly Philly

The Mapping Tool that Helped Identify the Ebola Outbreak

An online mapping tool called HealthMap helped identify the recent outbreak of the Ebola virus in West Africa by pulling data from all over the big data spectrum. It can also tell provide insight into the health concerns in your area.

August 11, 2014 - PBS NewsHour - The Rundown

Researchers Pull Social Media Data to Track Migration

The limitations (and inaccuracies) of traditional data sources like the U.S. Census are well known, so researchers are looking social media to gather the data necessary to draw conclusions about societal movements.

August 10, 2014 - Forbes

Study uses Google Street View to Assess Gentrification

By assessing three different groups of indicators, researchers were able to tour thousands of blocks in Chicago through Google Street View and compare visual signs of reinvestment and renewal between 2007 and 2009.

August 7, 2014 - Gizmodo

Lyft Line, UberPool: Carpooling Features to Compete with Mass Transit

A new tier of service for Lyft launched today, allowing customers traveling in the same direction to share a ride. The new product follows a similar release earlier this week by Uber.

August 7, 2014 - Forbes

Floating Vertical Farms Could Deliver and Monitor Food Production in Dense Cities

Known for its density with nearly 20,000 people per square mile, Singapore is changing its food systems strategy to produce more food locally, and reduce food waste.

August 6, 2014 - Fast Company Co.Exist

New Applications for 3D Printing: Sanitation and Shelter

Called by some the "third industrial revolution," what are some of the opportunities and costs of applying 3D printing to issues facing the developing world, and more importantly, emergency housing?

August 6, 2014 - The Guardian

Unlocking the Biogas Potential in America's Farms

Thinking about "renewable power" often bring hydroelectric, wind, and solar to mind. The informed will recognize geothermal and biomass as major renewables. Biogas, the non-fossil natural gas, is not well known because few facilities capture it.

August 4, 2014 - EPA Blog

The New Era of 'Cities 3.0': Just Add Infrastructure

Any vision for a "City 3.0"—or an untethered, technology-enabled city—is dependent on next generation infrastructure for Internet, energy, water, and more.

August 1, 2014 - Governing

Google Self-Driving Car smaller

How Self-Driving Cars Can (and Should) Improve Transit

Comments on the proceedings of the Automated Vehicles Symposium (San Francisco, July 14-18, 2014), where participants addressed the many transportation and land use implications of an automated future.

August 1, 2014 - Daniel J. Fagnant

Out of the Frying Pan and into the Fire: Summer Temperatures in 2100

A new interactive map titled "1,001 Blistering Future Summers" displays predicted daytime summer heat temperatures for 1,001 cities in the United States for the year 2100.

July 31, 2014 - CityLab

Mapping Drone No-Fly Zones

While the FAA sorts out regulations for commercial drone flights in the United States, cities, states, and other groups have already restricted the flight of drones. Mapbox is working to compile a comprehensive map of prohibited air space.

July 28, 2014 - MapBox

SimCity 2013

Gaming for Planners—More than SimCity

At the Serious Gaming workshop held in South Africa, game-maker Tygron showcased their game "The Climategame" and examined game play for lessons in how planners might improve their professional practice.

July 25, 2014 - Future Cape Town

Public Meeting

How Civic Engagement Platforms Can Bring Back the Expertise of Urban Planners

The increasing use of online civic engagement platforms offers a chance for planners to improve the planning process—that is, if they take full advantage of the opportunities presented by the new technology to showcase their expertise.

July 24, 2014 - Karin Brandt

Google Self-Driving Car

Concerns Raised about Sprawl, Public Safety Implications of Autonomous Vehicles

A pair of articles sounds separate warnings about what a future of autonomous vehicles will mean for law enforcement and fuel consumption. The warnings are far from the utopian ideal that many desire for the technology.

July 23, 2014 - Bloomberg

Speed Cameras: Working in Chicago; Needed in Philadelphia

In Chicago, speed cameras are proving effective at reducing speeds; in Philadelphia, a police commissioner is lobbying the state to allow the implementation of the cameras.

July 22, 2014 - Chi.Streetsblog

What's Missed When Taking the Scenic Route?

An app that plots the most beautiful route across cities made news earlier this month, but one commenter worries about how taking the more scenic route could make it harder to improve quality of life in the "less-than-scenic" sections of cities.

July 22, 2014 - TheCityFix

Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools

This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.

Planning for Universal Design

Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.

Top Books

An annual review of books related to planning.

Top Schools

The definitive ranking of graduate planning programs.

100 Most Influential Urbanists

The who's who of urbanism, according to Planetizen readers.

Urban Planning Creators You Should Know

A short list of voices on social, video, and podcasting platforms.