The Science of Cities

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Catherine brinkley, welcomed the minscape podcast. I want to talk about the science of cities. This is something you work on, something you hve written about. Thought itwo'ld be fun to just ease our way in by starting with the romance of cities. It's clearly a resonant concept that has different kinds of connotations for different people,. But also the idea that maybe it's little bit less authentic. You know, the hart land and the rural areas are more real America. Presumably other countries feel the same way.

The concept of the city is a crucial one for human civilization: people living in proximity, bringing in resources from outside, separated from the labors of subsistence so they can engage in the trade of goods and ideas. But we are still learning how cities grow and adapt to new conditions, as well as how we can best guide them to be livable as well as functional. I talk with urban scientist Catherine Brinkley about the structure of cities, including the fractal nature of their shapes, as well as what we can do to make cities thrive as much as possible.

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Catherine Brinkley received a Ph.D. in City and Regional Planning as well as a degree in Veterinary Medicine from the University of Pennsylvania. She is currently Associate Professor of Human Ecology and Faculty Director at the Center for Regional Change at the University of California, Davis. She has been awarded fellowships from the Fulbright Foundation, the National Center for Faculty Development and Diversity, and the Santa Fe Institute.