Population heatmap of Tehran
Dark red and dark blue indicates higher and lower levels of population density, respectively.
A person who owns a car or who has a college education may be less vulnerable to COVID-19, according to an analysis of cases in Tehran, Iran, one of the early epicenters of the pandemic. While such variables do not inherently lower a person’s risk, they do indicate an infrastructure of protection that persists despite how densely populated a person’s district might be.
The international collaboration published their results on April 3 in Sustainable Cities and Society.
“In the past few decades, there have been various efforts aimed at increasing urban density to enhance efficiency and contribute to climate change mitigation – but the COVID-19 pandemic has brought questions about the desirability of compact urban development to the forefront,” said paper author Ayyoob Sharifi, associate professor in the Graduate School of Humanities and Social Scienc
Living in a busy city doesn t increase the chance of getting Covid-19, but overcrowding does, a new study reveals.
Researchers analysed cases in Tehran, Iran, one of the early epicentres of the pandemic, using data from AC-19, Iran s national Covid detection app.
AC-19, which was withdrawn from Google s app store last year over alleged concerns of government spying, tracks positive cases and deaths by geographic location.
After investigating the link between density and virus transmission in the city, the researchers found that density alone cannot be considered a risk factor .
The experts stress the difference between high urban density – a high number of people inhabiting an urbanised area – and overcrowding.
The perils of relying on high-tech networks in a warmer world (commentary)
by Simon Pollock on 25 February 2021
Wild snowstorms paralyzed electricity infrastructure in Texas, a state in the country with the world’s largest economy.
Just imagine what climate change fueled extreme weather will do to our cities as infrastructure and ICT systems become increasingly interconnected.
Many see high-tech “smart cities” as a climate solution, but just how smart are they?
This article is a commentary and the views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily Mongabay.
Smart cities are held up as beacons of hope in meeting the climate crisis. This is because they reduce greenhouse gas emissions by paring back energy use and urban waste. But is it possible the high-tech complexity of smart cities actually leaves urban dwellers more exposed to future climate disaster?Smart cities’ dependence on the information and communications technology (ICT) systems that help generate thes