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Traffic and Pollution Plummet as U.S. Cities Shut Down

nytimes.com

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Re: Traffic and Pollution Plummet as U.S. Cities Shut Down

#91

Post by BurningFrog »

gdubs wrote: post #4

I’ve been thinking a lot about the next looming crisis: Climate Change. On Bloomberg radio a few weeks ago, an analyst / money manager was talking about how his firm was looking at satellite imagery of pollution in China to measure their economic recovery. More pollution == “better”. Something is clearly unsustainable with that formula. Like the virus, the longer we wait to take action, the more expensive it is and t…

> More pollution == “better”. Something is clearly unsustainable with that formula.

Except nobody actually thinks that.

This is only about finding a way to measure if life in China is returning to normal, without having to trust the Chinese authorities.

Re: Traffic and Pollution Plummet as U.S. Cities Shut Down

#92

Post by v8engine »

Can someone please tell me what the name for the technology used to create the graphics is? The text for the place names over the image is highlightable.

I know you can handcraft these by having the text overlay over an exact X,Y on an image but that seems overblown for just these maps than having the text rastered into the image loaded.

So, is there some tool like an SVG creator that helps create these with the responsiveness and everything handled?

Re: Traffic and Pollution Plummet as U.S. Cities Shut Down

#93

Post by tjr225 »

ciconia wrote: post #67

Despite the loss of human life, and the economic suffering of a great chunk of our species, a lot of good may come of the present pandemic. I believe this crisis has the potential to bring about a fundamental change in the way we relate to the world and to each other. It's as if humanity is at a crossroads: everything is possible, and we need to make a choice. I read this morning something that struck me as true: "We…

A beautiful quote. I think it’s a little goofy that you’re being downvoted just for saying something vaguely positive. Please, people- keep your wits about you.

Re: Traffic and Pollution Plummet as U.S. Cities Shut Down

#94

Post by cat199 »

gdubs wrote: post #4

I’ve been thinking a lot about the next looming crisis: Climate Change. On Bloomberg radio a few weeks ago, an analyst / money manager was talking about how his firm was looking at satellite imagery of pollution in China to measure their economic recovery. More pollution == “better”. Something is clearly unsustainable with that formula. Like the virus, the longer we wait to take action, the more expensive it is and t…

> democratic values

devils advocate, but if it ends up that democratic states don't handle the response as well as authoritarian ones out of differing views of individual rights, this isn't necessarily a 'win' for the democratic side of the fence

Re: Traffic and Pollution Plummet as U.S. Cities Shut Down

#95

Post by boulos »

Slightly off-topic but the analyses here come from the nice folks at Descartes Labs (Disclosure: I work on Google Cloud and with the Descartes Labs folks, we’ve even been skiing together in Taos).

If you’re into GIS or large-scale imagery processing, you should hit them up [1] especially if you’d like to live in Santa Fe (where the core team is). They also hire outside of Santa Fe, but as the core team is there, they strongly suggest you consider it.

[1] https://jobs.lever.co/descarteslabs.com/55bcc68b-f7ba-448f-b...

Re: Traffic and Pollution Plummet as U.S. Cities Shut Down

#96

Post by zachkatz »

grej wrote: post #39
paulryanrogers wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> A car isn't a "want" for most people outside of major US cities. It's a need. It doesn't have to stay this way. Smaller cities and towns can invest in public transportation. Activities which must be in person could be decentralized to more local sites.

It seems likely there will be a lot less interest in public transit investment after the pandemic. Not more.

I think you're probably right. It'll be cycling's time to shine.

Re: Traffic and Pollution Plummet as U.S. Cities Shut Down

#97

Post by iso1210 »

dgellow wrote: post #16
nicoburns wrote: post #3

Is anyone else wondering if the shutdown for COVID-19 will have a significant impact on carbon emissions? If it does, then it could actually save far more lives than it takes.

Depends how things play out once we are done with the virus crisis. It's possible that we will see crazy level of production and consumption to compensate the down time, resulting in way more carbon emissions. And governments will surely want to boost their economy at any cost, that could be quite bad for ecological policies. Definitely not what I personally want, I'm in Europe and hope that EU members use the curren…

> EU members use the current situation as a way to work closer together

EU members are shouting "Every country for itself"

Pretty similar to the US states actually, other than US states can't close borders (but can enforce no travelling, which is basically a superset of closed borders)

Re: Traffic and Pollution Plummet as U.S. Cities Shut Down

#98

Post by losteric »

tobylane wrote: post #51
losteric wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well, to question your premise - Why is universal home ownership desirable or necessary?

Because tenants rights are poor? The difference in safety felt between owning and renting is related to perception of tenants rights. I think they (the difference and the rights) vary accordingly worldwide.

What are the shortfalls of tenant rights in your area? and how would you answer the previous question in a world with "ideal" tenant rights?

Re: Traffic and Pollution Plummet as U.S. Cities Shut Down

#99

Post by lol768 »

losteric wrote: post #98
tobylane wrote: post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Because tenants rights are poor? The difference in safety felt between owning and renting is related to perception of tenants rights. I think they (the difference and the rights) vary accordingly worldwide.

What are the shortfalls of tenant rights in your area? and how would you answer the previous question in a world with "ideal" tenant rights?

> How could tenant rights be improved, and how would you answer that question in a world with "ideal" tenant rights?

It's difficult isn't it? You need to somehow reconcile the fact that it's not the tenant's home with their desire to treat it like it is.

I've had to fight to get basic repairs and redecoration work done. In some of these cases I've still had a battle despite funding them myself!

I think something you could probably address is the lack of security with tenancies. In the UK, after the initial fixed period of an AST, it's very easy for either party to terminate the lease. I'd prefer for this to be tipped in favour of the tenant, so that they can be flexible and leave if necessary - but they're not also in danger of homelessness at very short notice.

Re: Traffic and Pollution Plummet as U.S. Cities Shut Down

#100

Post by losteric »

nradov wrote: post #90
losteric wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well, to question your premise - Why is universal home ownership desirable or necessary?

Because I want to be able to install shelves in the garage or put a new oven in the kitchen without having to negotiate with a landlord.

How many people does your situation apply to? Personally, I prefer having a landlord take care of appliances over the freedom to make my own changes.
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