Why Do So Many U.S. Cities Have Gridded Streets?
Many U.S. cities were founded with a street grid. Why? This video describes the historic factors that contributed to the adoption of a grid. This includes influential city designs from Versailles, London, Philadelphia, New York, Chicago, and Reno.
What Happened When A Tiny Nation Got Filthy Rich Overnight
Nauru, an island in the South Pacific, is known for its high rate of poverty and unemployment. Only a few decades ago, the island was listed among world’s richest countries while it was a major phosphate exporter but as the resources exhausted, the national systems started to fail.
How Advertising Conquered Urban Space
In cities around the world, advertising is everywhere. We may try to shut it out, but it reflects who we are (or want to be) and connects us to the urban past. Local signs connect us to the past, to vernacular styles, to folklore. The best examples catch our eye as children and stay with us.
How To Fight Lies, Tricks And Chaos Online
It took me years to really understand where all the information I saw online was coming from. So this isn’t just a guide to spotting when something is fake. It’s a system for slowing down and thinking about information — whether that information is true, false, or something in between.
In San Francisco, Tech Money Doesn’t Buy Happiness
In the midst of a housing crisis, an injection of cash into the superheated real-estate market seems likely to cause an uptick in evictions and displacement.
Zoom Company Story: How Eric Yuan Defeated Skype
Chances are you’ve used some sort of video call with family, friends or even to school and most likely it’s been Zoom, the videoconference software has taken the world by storm. But in the presence of giants like Microsoft, Skype, Teams and Google Hangouts, why is everybody using Zoom?
Life And Struggle After YouTube Fame
Dax Flame was only 15 when he became YouTube royalty – his channel was among the top 20 most subscribed in the early years of the site. But 13 years later, his fortunes have changed – he’s working as a waiter and trying to scrape together money just to get by.
America’s Cocaine Habit Fueled Its Migrant Crisis
During the 90s, traffickers started shipping their drugs through Central America and over land to Mexico. That created a violent and competitive turf war between gangs and organizations in Guatemala and Honduras, and after the governments cracked down, violence only increased, forcing people to flee, often to the US.
“3,000 Miles”, A Short Doc About Life In New York Through Voice Mails
On July 5th, 2016, Sean Wang moved across the country to work and live in New York City for one year. This is a personal documentary of his year, chronicled by voicemails left by his mom.
Is This A Chinese City In Malaysia?
Forest City is being built in the Malaysian state of Johor in the southern part of the country. Here, the Johore Strait acts as a natural border between Malaysia and the independent city-state Singapore. It is one of the most ambitious urban development projects currently underway. An entire new city built from scratch.
Why Socialism Failed in Africa
Considering capitalism to be equal to colonialism, Africa’s founding fathers rejected it and adopted marxist-socialism in the 1960s. Foreign companies were nationalised, state-owned enterprises were created and all sorts of controls on rents, prices, imports and foreign exchange.
The Story Of World’s First Floating Hotel Abandoned In North Korea
In October 2019 North Korean leader Kim Jong-un ordered the demolition of the world’s first floating hotel. Docked in North Korea, the hotel is currently owned by a South Korean company that bought it from a Japanese one. It was a major hit in Vietnam but it was originally made for Australia, designed in Sweden and built in Singapore.
La Linea, Europe’s Narco City
La Linea is a Spanish coastal city built on the drug trade. Smugglers and policemen often come from the same street. Off the Grid met people on both sides of the divide.
World’s Busiest Station: Shinjuku Station, Tokyo
Five separate train lines, almost three thousand passengers per minute and trains arriving every second. How can the people behind the scenes of the world’s busiest station overcome a traffic load like this every day? A look behind the scenes of the world’s busiest station: Shinjuku Station in Tokyo.
“I Bought An Abandoned Ghost Town”
My name is Brent and with my friend Jon, I purchased the former mining town of “Cerro Gordo”. The town was originally established in 1865 and by 1869 they were pulling 340 tons of bullion out of the mountain for Los Angeles. The silver from Cerro Gordo was responsible for building Los Angeles.
What Does A Cashless Future Mean?
Operating in cash costs countries about 0.5% of their GDP every year. But cost isn’t the only incentive to move towards a cashless future. Many countries are going cashless at great speed. What are the advantages of ditching hard cash and what are the dangers?
From 2nd Poorest Country To Fastest Growing Economy in the World
This video takes a look at Sir Seretse Khama, the man that oversaw Botswana’s transformation from to 2nd poorest country in the world to the fastest-growing economy. Botswana today is the world’s largest producer gem diamonds and is one of only a handful of middle-income countries in sub-Saharan Africa.
The Rise And Fall Of Subway
With thousands of store closures in the last three years and petitions against Subway from its franchise owners, the fast-food chain with the most locations globally seems to be on the rocks. This video unpacks what’s going on and where Subway’s headed from here.
Macau: The Story Of China’s Golden Child
On December 20th, 1999 the 25 square kilometer Portuguese colony on China’s southern coast was returned to China becoming the Macau Special Administrative Region. In the 20 years since the handover, Macau has transformed into the gambling capital of the world while some call it the Las Vegas of the East.
What We Get Wrong About Time
“Time” is the most frequently used noun in the English language. Most of us tend to think of time as linear, absolute and constantly “running out” – but is that really true? And how can we change our perceptions to feel better about its passing?
Studio Precht Designs A Fingerprint-Shaped Park For Physical Distancing
Austria-based studio Precht — previously known as Penda — has unveiled the design for a lush green park envisioned for physical distancing and short-term solitude. Dubbed Parc de la Distance, the open air space has been shaped in the form of a fingerprint, evoking human touch.