<
https://theconversation.com/how-london-paris-and-new-york-coped-in-the-heatwaves-of-the-past-283542>
"Paris, London and New York are more often associated with culture, finance and
history than with dangerous heat. Yet each summer all three are increasingly
exposed to extreme temperatures they were never designed to withstand.
Like many dense urban areas, they amplify heat through what is known as the
“urban heat island effect”. This reflects the way that warmth is trapped in
concrete, asphalt and glass, turning hot days into hazardous ones.
With skyscrapers made of glass and steel, roadways encased in cement and blocks
of residential apartments, New York traps heat like few other metropolitan
centres. In fact, the city has one of the highest urban heat island effects in
the United States, a measurement of thermal difference between urban and rural
areas. Heat kills more than 500 New Yorkers every year, a grim statistic that
exacerbates inequalities along the lines of race and class.
While many people escape to the seaside or countryside to find relief, others
remain in cities where the heat can be harder to avoid and more difficult to
endure. Yet these uneven experiences of urban heat are not new. In cities such
as London, Paris and New York, coping with hot summers has long been shaped by
inequality.
Across the 19th and 20th centuries, urban residents developed a range of
strategies to manage extreme heat in densely built environments. Our research
for the
Melting Metropolis project examines everyday experiences of heat.
Here are some of the ways people have coped with these conditions in the past
and what they reveal about living with heat in the city."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
