The formula that emerged from the 2000 and 2004 Presidential elections was provocative: the less dense the population, the more likely it was to vote Republican. Republicans appeared to have lost the cities and inner suburbs, positioning themselves as the party of country roads, small towns, and... View full entry

Taiwan plans to open its high-speed train system tomorrow after decades of planning and construction. NYT View full entry

Bryant Simon and David Schwartz explore the history of Atlantic City, and why the casinos there failed to lead to prosperity for the surrounding town. WNYC View full entry

Dozens of otherwise well-housed, middle-class French have been spending nights in tents along the canal, in the 10th Arrondissement, in solidarity with the country’s growing number of “sans domicile fixe,” or “without fixed address,” the French euphemism for people... View full entry

"toxic clouds so big that they can seen from space, drifting across the Pacific to California" "plan to build no fewer than 500 new coal-fired power stations, adding to some 2,000," "where vehicles drive in daytime with their headlights on to grope through the miasma" times View full entry

It's pickup time at the Vauban kindergarten here at the edge of the Black Forest, but there's not a single minivan waiting for the kids. Instead, a convoy of helmet-donning moms - bicycle trailers in tow - pedal up to the entrance. - CSMon View full entry

Few cities anywhere have created wealth faster than Shenzhen, but the costs of its phenomenal success stare out from every corner: environmental destruction, soaring crime rates and the disillusionment and degradation of its vast force of migrant workers. NYT | Part 1 View full entry

SHENZHEN, China — When residents here in southern China’s richest city learned of plans to build an expressway that would cut through the heart of their congested, middle-class neighborhood, they immediately organized a campaign to fight City Hall. NYT View full entry

In Shanghai rapid urban development is creating a literal and phenomenal collective sense of loss. NPR View full entry

the disco lights of capitalism that have been shining down onto the pedestrians realm may be banned in NYC. Is this corporate vandalism or a legitamate form of advertising? NYT View full entry

For many people filling the seats, Broadway itself is the sideshow to the main attraction, the shopping emporiums, brand-name restaurants and general you-are-here hubbub of Times Square, and it has accordingly adopted some aspects of the commercial circus in the main tent. NYT View full entry

Architects Ben Wood and Ma Qingyun talk about the hyper development of Shanghai, in the first in a series of reports by Louisa Lim on the Chinese city. NPR View full entry

Cartifact maps the homeless in downtown LA , "epicenter of the largest homeless population in the nation." Gridskipper makes a good point - the dynamic map doesn't lead you to any homeless advocacy resources, or really help you to understand the problem in any other way except as a spatial-visual... View full entry

WNYC has a discussion about the potential of New York City adopting London-style congestion pricing plan to the streets of Manhattan. View full entry

Homelessness in Hawaii has become so pervasive that the governor has assigned a state employee to work full time at getting people off the beaches and into transitional housing. NYT View full entry