Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Four simple rules behind Japan's most liveable cities

bbc.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

71–80 of 186 posts

Re: Four simple rules behind Japan's most liveable cities

#71

Post by wat10000 »

thereisnospork wrote: post #69
wat10000 wrote: post #53

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"Conform to the expected behavior of the situation" is incredibly complicated. What is the situation? How do you determine what the expected behavior is? What exactly does conforming consist of? It takes humans years to learn how to do this. Entire books are written on the subject. A major medical disorder affecting millions of people includes a persistent difficulty doing this specific thing. Even normal people have…

"Stand to the right on an escalator" "Put trash in a trashcan and not on the ground" That wasn't complicated. And took 30seconds. Are there a lot of rules? Of course. Is knowing them all in advance possible? Of course not. Don't confuse that with 'complicated'. Fine people who litter. Have an ai voice chide people who stand on the wrong side of an escalator. Both simple.

Do I really have to stand to the right on an escalator? I think the nearest one is a mile away, that seems really inconvenient and unnecessary, and it's going to be hard to get my work done.

I'm surprised to find this sentiment on a site filled with computer programmers. The most important and difficult lesson of computer programming is that simple-sounding rules have a lot of details that we take for granted.

Re: Four simple rules behind Japan's most liveable cities

#72

Post by mikhael »

timr wrote: post #68
mikhael wrote: post #65

Earlier quoted context omitted.

yeah, that's mostly correct, but i don't see it as a barrier. i don't think an elevator needs to be slammed down next to every staircase. if there's a way in, and a way out, i consider that a win. will i lose maybe 5 minutes because the accessible entrance is not in the most convenient location that day? perhaps. but it's just that - an inconvenience. on the staff support: i don't really see any problem here at all.…

> if there's a way in, and a way out, i consider that a win. will i lose maybe 5 minutes because the accessible entrance is not in the most convenient location that day? perhaps. but it's just that - an inconvenience. I get that, and I also don't think they need to plop an elevator at every staircase, but there are so many stations where they could have ramps or some other minor improvement to make more exits accessi…

(just curious if you're willing to share which station that is. i'm sincerely interested in checking it out.)

Re: Four simple rules behind Japan's most liveable cities

#73

Post by redsocksfan45 »

inigyou wrote: post #26
Avicebron wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I can tell you haven't been to japan, the noise and litter issues aren't as much of a problem there. Get to the bottom of why that is and you'll probably have a good understanding where the problems to address are.

Is it the monoethnicity?

[dead]

Re: Four simple rules behind Japan's most liveable cities

#74

Post by FloorEgg »

giwook wrote: post #42
prteja11 wrote: post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

While you are correct about Vancouver downtown, once you get o suburbs like Langley, Coquitlam, they are no different that what you are calling out American cities for. If we limit this to downtowns, there are several cities in America that are similar (Boston, Seattle, SF, SanDiego, Austin, NYC to name a few).

I think OP must be in their early 20s and has not experienced much of life yet. And there's nothing wrong with that.

That would imply they created their hacker news account when they were 3-8 years old. Seems unlikely.

Its more likely that they simply value all the convenience they listed over having their own backyard, larger living space, living in a quiet safe neighborhood for kids to run around in, and being surrounded by nature.

Re: Four simple rules behind Japan's most liveable cities

#75

Post by jerlam »

giwook wrote: post #33
danudey wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Or come to downtown Vancouver. I live in a small apartment, but within four blocks I have a community centre with gym, a pharmacy, a post office, a grocery store, a small bakery, the best liquor store in the city, three banks, a hot pot restaurant, a physiotherapist/massage therapist office, a vet, a dispensary, multiple hairdressers, an optometrist, several restaurants, two places to get gelato, a public plaza with…

One key difference that jumps out at me between various cities in Japan and Vancouver is that the COL seems significantly better in Japan. When I visited Vancouver I couldn't afford to stay in or even near the city, I had to find a place about 20 minutes away and even then it was pricey. Whereas in Japan I had no problem finding affordable stays in city centers in all of the major cities I visited, including Tokyo. I…

As a visitor, it's probably impossible to know the real cost of living is in different areas, because you're not employed locally, paid local wages, or paying rent and utilities. You are a foreigner with foreign money staying in hotels.

Re: Four simple rules behind Japan's most liveable cities

#76

Post by red-iron-pine »

PaulRobinson wrote: post #19
stringsandchars wrote: post #9

> It's a concept that's difficult to replicate elsewhere, but Lydon compares it to what made old Main Street America so special. Designing at a people-first scale pays off. "The smell of fried croquettes drifting onto the streets, small shops run by the building owners, easy public transit access, a feeling of safety and community for all ages… it's hard to overstate how well this all works." Honestly, even though I…

TFA explains that Japan is unusual as being the only country in Asia with two cities in the top 10 most liveable cities in the World. That's why they wrote the article. If Spain had been the only country in Europe with two cities in the top 10, they might have done it in Spain.

plus it's the BBC, plenty of UK-ians living in Spain. No need to highlight that when a solid chunk of the readership are in or will go to Hispania

Re: Four simple rules behind Japan's most liveable cities

#77

Post by testing22321 »

prteja11 wrote: post #35
danudey wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Or come to downtown Vancouver. I live in a small apartment, but within four blocks I have a community centre with gym, a pharmacy, a post office, a grocery store, a small bakery, the best liquor store in the city, three banks, a hot pot restaurant, a physiotherapist/massage therapist office, a vet, a dispensary, multiple hairdressers, an optometrist, several restaurants, two places to get gelato, a public plaza with…

While you are correct about Vancouver downtown, once you get o suburbs like Langley, Coquitlam, they are no different that what you are calling out American cities for. If we limit this to downtowns, there are several cities in America that are similar (Boston, Seattle, SF, SanDiego, Austin, NYC to name a few).

> there are several cities in America that are similar (Boston, Seattle, SF, SanDiego, Austin, NYC to name a few).

Worth noting the US does not have a single city in the top 20 worlds most livable. Honolulu is #25, Atlanta gets #35

That tells you something.

Re: Four simple rules behind Japan's most liveable cities

#78

Post by testing22321 »

danudey wrote: post #23
stringsandchars wrote: post #9

> It's a concept that's difficult to replicate elsewhere, but Lydon compares it to what made old Main Street America so special. Designing at a people-first scale pays off. "The smell of fried croquettes drifting onto the streets, small shops run by the building owners, easy public transit access, a feeling of safety and community for all ages… it's hard to overstate how well this all works." Honestly, even though I…

Or come to downtown Vancouver. I live in a small apartment, but within four blocks I have a community centre with gym, a pharmacy, a post office, a grocery store, a small bakery, the best liquor store in the city, three banks, a hot pot restaurant, a physiotherapist/massage therapist office, a vet, a dispensary, multiple hairdressers, an optometrist, several restaurants, two places to get gelato, a public plaza with…

> Or come to downtown Vancouver

In the last ~20 years Vancouver has almost always been the number one or number two worlds most livable city, so this makes perfect sense.

Re: Four simple rules behind Japan's most liveable cities

#79

Post by testing22321 »

giwook wrote: post #40
danudey wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Or come to downtown Vancouver. I live in a small apartment, but within four blocks I have a community centre with gym, a pharmacy, a post office, a grocery store, a small bakery, the best liquor store in the city, three banks, a hot pot restaurant, a physiotherapist/massage therapist office, a vet, a dispensary, multiple hairdressers, an optometrist, several restaurants, two places to get gelato, a public plaza with…

Plenty of American cities have this. I have three big grocery stores within a 2-7 minute walk. Myriad restaurants, bakeries, and cafes literally on the same block and within walking distance of me. Vancouver is great, just wanted to call out the bias and massive overgeneralization in your statement.

What a shame you don’t have good public transit, horrible crime and pollution, poor schools and a police force that is actively against you.

The US does not have a single city in the top 20 worlds most livable for a reason. (Many, actually)

Re: Four simple rules behind Japan's most liveable cities

#80

Post by testing22321 »

gilthelander wrote: post #50
danudey wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Or come to downtown Vancouver. I live in a small apartment, but within four blocks I have a community centre with gym, a pharmacy, a post office, a grocery store, a small bakery, the best liquor store in the city, three banks, a hot pot restaurant, a physiotherapist/massage therapist office, a vet, a dispensary, multiple hairdressers, an optometrist, several restaurants, two places to get gelato, a public plaza with…

[flagged]

> Canada basically IS the US with metric and the people talk funny.

I’ve spent considerable time in both - seen something around 46 states and all but two provinces and territories. I’m actually an immigrant from a different OECD county.

On the surface, the US and Canada are fairly similar. Once you live and go to work everyday, the differences are stark.

Every single person in Canada has healthcare. Medical bankruptcy does not exist. People are much kinder, much less prone to anger and violence, and happier. There is vastly less crime. People care about the collective good, not just themselves.

The US is a dog eat dog world. Canada is a work together world.

I’d been living and working in the US for 6 months, and came to Canada for the first time. After 30 minutes I felt more at home and happier than I did at any time during six months in the US.

They are NOT the same. Anyone that thinks they are should live in Canada for a few years and see how they feel.

Post reply on HN