http://dsc.discovery.com/convergence/engineering/pyramidcity/interactive/interactive.html
This massive pyramid, if approved, would be constructed over Tokyo Bay in Japan. The structure itself would be 12 times higher than the Great Pyramid at Giza. I believe this is what the cities of the future would look like. It would be built largely by robots and house over 750,000 people in skyscrapers dangling from the jungle-gym-like structure. If built, it will be the largest man-made structure on Earth, standing at over 6,575 feet high. The proposed project is so massive, that current technology has not produced the necessary materials needed to build the pyramid. Due to the weight of the building, it would require a futuristic material that is strong and lightweight; something like carbon nano-tubes.
To give you a better sense of how large this pyramid would be, it is equivalent to 55 pyramids about the size of the Luxor Hotel in Las Vegas stacked upon each other. The skyscrapers inside the Shimizu pyramid would be 30-story-high and would be supported from above as well as below, connected to the pyramids nano-tubing. The nano-tubes also serve as the pyramid’s transportation system. There would be no need for cars, residents would actually move through the city with accelerated walkways, trams, elevators…etc. Much of the travel will be done through personal rapid transit pods, which are non-polluting, computer-driven vehicles that could travel throughout the hollowed, interconnecting trusses. To deal with power, the entire structure is coated with a photovoltaic film to absorb sunlight for electricity. The self-sustaining city could also get electricity by harnessing the oceans currents and even from fuel cells powered by algae. Since Japan sits on the world’s seismically hyper “Ring of Fire,” the pyramid would also have to be built to withstand earthquakes, tsunamis, and volcanoes. In various small scale tests, the pyramid shows early indication that it could withstand the forces of nature. Surprisingly this idea is not new; it originated in 1979 entitled Sea City 2000 to address urban crowding.
http://www.paleofuture.com/2007/03/sea-city-2000-1979.html
I really hope I can see the Shimizu Mega-City Pyramid during my life-time. It would be a major feat of human engineering and it would be a beauty to see. I believe these types of structures will be essential in the near-future to deal with the population boom. However, building larger and larger buildings is not the answer for overcrowding. Personally I believe the government really needs to step in and enforce some rules to regulate the human population, much like what China did with the single-child policy. I know if America enforces this similar policy, there would be a massive uproar since it might go against the constitution. All I’m saying is that America should place a rule that if a family exceeds over 2 children, they will get a higher tax. Therefore, a family could still choose to have over 2 children, but that family would have to pay the price. I believe this would lower the population growth rate which should cause a chain reaction that could benefit society as a whole. If the family size gets reduced to a typical 4 person family, a child will get the attention he or she deserves as oppose to a child in a large family. The child would grow up to have a better lifestyle with correct morals which would hopefully reduce crime rate and poverty level. With less crime and poverty, we may very well see a utopian society. What steps would you take to inch towards a utopian society?
9 comments:
The idea of humans inhabiting super-pyramids constructed by robot underlings seems a bit far-fetched at this point in time. Plus, if the earth's population ever reaches a point where it becomes necessary to build pyramids in the sea, perhaps the governments of those nations should either consider imposing regulations on breeding as you said or use their advanced technology to build living quarters on Mars.
I am interested in knowing more about what you consider to be a "correct" moral upbringing. Perhaps morality's role in crafting a utopian society is small. It seems as though political differences play a much larger part in preventing a utopia from being realized. People disagree on how they should be governed which leads to wars and revolutions. I would also argue that most individuals are either unwilling or unable to forgive injustices and grievances resulting in a state of perpetual conflict.
This is a really interesting article, especially since the article mentions how the means to construct these cities is not even available yet. If nations are forced to build on the ocean, it will result, among other things, in possible confrontation between nations. Much like how nations go to war over vital resources now, soon terrestial space will be fought over. I agree with you that merely building these larger cities will not solve the growth in population. However, taxing people more for having over a certain number of children WOULD be against the Constitution since the Court has in the past declared that people have the right to have children. Limiting this right would prove to be difficult.
I was once told that one of mankind’s greatest achievements is also the worst mistake in history- and that was the agriculture revolution. Before this time, most people were Hunters and gatherers which sustained the population. With the agriculture revolution it ensured that everyone on Earth could be fed- the only reason why some people still starve today is because we have trouble getting the food to them. There are also other factors such as costs of shipping food to poor areas which I won’t go into detail about, but we do have enough food to feed everyone in the world. As the population grew, political problems arose because each country was expanding to the point where they crossing other nation’s territory. A bigger population also meant more power for war, greater consumption of Earth’s resources, Global warming…etc. Almost every problem we have now could be traced back to the overgrowth of human population. I’m just afraid as we continue to grow; more problems will come up as we’ve seen through history. That is why I strongly believe some sort of population regulation should be put into place, not just in America, but for all nations. Of course this is very unlikely to happen.
Although a good thought, I think it will eventually prove to be much to costly and time consuming to create such a big sky scraper and house 750,000. That is an ENORMOUS amount of people. That would kind of be like having everyone in irvine inside this one big pyramid. Not only would it be increadibly crowded, but there would be way too many problems. People need space. Cramming everyone into this one pyramid is not tne answer to solving the population problem. Perhaps it is a step in the right direction, but it definately won't be a reality for a few hundred years at least, after the entire globe is covered with houses and there are underwater colonies. At that point, then i could maybe imagine seeing super pyramids.
Due to the number of comments left on your blog as opposed to mine--I can safely say your article is much more interesting and innovative. Japan specializes in creating and inventing new ways of making life more more efficiently and conveniently. This pyramid idea is so far ahead of this time I'll be mesmerized if this city actually pulls through. "Skyscrapers dangling from the ceiling"--I can only imagine these sort of buildings in movies. This is truly an imaginary place. And yes overpopulation is an uprising problem in the states. However I have another proposal, there are still vast grasslands and inhabited areas around the world where people can migrate to. Places in the countryside and outside of the city walls lay hundreds of miles of land in which infrastructure can be built on.
I believe every family should have the right to have as many children as they can afford. Granted, it may be tougher to provide equal love to all the kids, but it is a blessing to have children. Creating offspring to carry out the family line is part of evolution--there should be no restrictions as to how many kids a family can have. My grandma had 5 daughters and 4 sons. Very admirable I must say. Maybe one day I can have that many kids too.
A good moral upbringing is handle by the parents and should be the responsibility of the parents to raise their children the proper way regardless of how many kids they have.
Back to the pyramid article. According to some sources, US is starting to fall behind the technological race, actually way behind. For Americans this seems like such a far fetched idea. But who knows in Japan this city seems realistic and could possibly be the next greatest man made construction.
Over population is most certainly going to be a huge problem in the future, and we should start coming up with ideas to solve this problem now. The pyramids should like a great idea if they come up with a super strong material to support that many people. I think that there could be better ideas to help solve over population, but this is a start.
I can see why some people think having the government step in and do something about over population would be good, but this is america and people come here to get away from those kinds of laws. I think that you should be able to have as many children as you want if you can afford it and can handle it. the government should raise your taxes, but you shouldn't get government help expect with college grants, and college financial aid.
Oh! I remember going to a museum and there a whole bunch of models like this pyramidal architecture. Like this one, the other superstructures was suppose to house thousands of people. Its kinda interesting because this structure could become its own world or community cut off from the rest of the world since there are so many people put together in one mass. With a growing population and our ever-growing knowledge in technology, this idea might not be too far off since people have already invested in constructing a rotating building. I think this kind of architectural idea is possible but not at such a grand scale...l
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