The Chaotic, Fractal and Complex City

The Global Economic Crash of 2008 was a watershed which is continuing to have effects in all aspects of the economy, politics and society. However, it was merely an exclamation mark within the developing trends in the U.S. that are pertinent to suburbanization in the country, such as: -The national economy will not bounce back to pre-2008 in the foreseeable future with continued slow growth -Demographics have changed (Baby Boomers retiring, smaller family sizes, more single adults, more ethnic diversity etc.) -The smaller labor force in manufacturing requiring unskilled labor -A decline in the middle class’s purchasing power due to declining wages -Increasing individuals in poverty -Unemployment/under-employment of young adults and those ‘near-retirement” group (55-70) -Increasing energy costs -Changing view of what cities should offer and lifestyle (i.e., ’24/7″ city) -Oversupply and over valuing of housing with tighter credit -Diminished hyper-consumerism In sub...

(Reprinted from the Progressive Press article ) 3-D printing combined with its increasing affordability could be an important element in accelerating the world away from the Post-Industrial to the Information Age.    3-D printing is the process of producing a physical object from a digital blue print or a scanned object. It is an additive process, not a subtractive process, as used in the machine tooling for a metal or plastic object. It relies on a mold that is inserted with a material (plastic, iron, copper etc.) to make a finished product. Using a digital schematic, the 3-D printer builds a series of layers using material such as: plastic, glass, metal, ceramics or even cells to produce a single seamless product. One could think of this as similar to making a cake by putting down the different layers. This one machine might revolutionize manufacturing, the global economy and cities (Blua, 2013). The cost may vary from as low as $1,000 to as hi...