The Economist gives cities a thorough going-over in one of its most recent surveys. The usual suspects are to be found under sources: Robert Bruegmann, Mike Davis, Jane Jacobs. Glaeser, Gluckman, Katz, Kotkin, Mitchell, Mumford…and Johnny Town-mouse. Quite

“Of the traditional reasons for urban living, several (the presence of the shrine, the proximity of food) have lost their importance. Some of what the city provided (shops, factories) can now be offered in suburban malls or industrial parks—or in low-cost urban rivals in the developing world. Security, once one of the main reasons for huddling together, is often now more elusive in the druggy streets of the metropolis than in the exurbs. And technology, which has usually favoured urban progress, now enables people to work in rural bliss on home computers. No wonder so many cities find that in order to flourish they have to reinvent themselves.”
Economist | Grimond Interview | Sources