"John Lorinc’s incisive analysis in Dream States reminds us that the search for urban utopia is not new. Throughout the book, Lorinc underscores the fact that a gamut of urban innovations – from smart city megaprojects to e-government to pandemic preparedness tools – only provide promise when scrutinized together with the political, economic, social, and physical complexities of urban life." – Shauna Brail, University of Toronto
"Dream States: Smart Cities, Technology, and the Pursuit of Urban Utopias takes us on a fascinating journey across world cities to show how technology has shaped them in the past and how smart city technology will reshape them in the future. This book is essential reading for policy makers, researchers, and practitioners interested in understanding the opportunities and challenges of smart city technology and what it means for city building." – Enid Slack, University of Toronto School of Cities
"“Utopia may be the oldest grift in the city-building business, but Dream States shows that technology is a timeless tool for turning the most ordinary of urban dreams – clean air and water, safe streets, and decent homes – into reality. As digital dilettantes try to sell us on a software overhaul, John Lorinc provides us an indispensable and flawless guide to the must-haves and never-agains of the smart city.” – Anthony Townsend, Urbanist in Residence, Cornell Tech, author of Smart Cities
Authors
- Pages
- 288
- Published in
- Canada
Table of Contents
- Cover 1
- Title Page 3
- Copyright Page 4
- Dedication 5
- Table of Contents 7
- Introduction 9
- The Technology of Cities 23
- 1. Connections 25
- 2. Engineering the City 34
- 3. Water and Sewage: The Original Urban Networks 43
- 4. City Lights 53
- 5. Cities, Communications Technology, and the Feedback Dilemmas 66
- The Dream of the Smart City 79
- 1. Smart City Tech: A Primer 81
- 2. Smart Cities and the Origins of Utopian Urbanism 99
- 3. Planning Smart Cities 115
- 4. Smart Cities, Big Data, and a Question of Trust 130
- 5. Smart City Tech and the Promise of Green Cities 147
- 6. The Quagmire of Mobility Tech 163
- 7. Function Creep and Surveillance 180
- 8. The Special Case of AI and Big Data–Based Policing 193
- 9. The Utopianism of Smart City Megaprojects 210
- 10. The Politics of Smart Cities 221
- Conclusion 239
- 1. Science, Technology, and Pandemic Cities 241
- 2. How Technology is Reshaping the Post-Pandemic City 256
- Acknowledgements 269
- Bibliography 272
- Index 285
- About the Author 289
