The reason why city on mars will be designed by our culture, not by its climate.
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2023-10-03One might expect that constructing on another planet, with a hostile environment and extreme logistical challenges, would be entirely technical, with just one viable solution.
Recently, an experimental prototype for a Martian settlement was unveiled in Dubai, commissioned by the United Arab Emirates government and designed by the renowned architectural firm, BIG, known for tackling significant challenges. While Dubai isn’t on Mars, its environment offers qualities ideal for such a prototype. Notably, Dubai seems to present minimal hindrances when it comes to planning and constructing entire cities from scratch, making it an ideal setting for simulating solutions to the Martian challenge.
This same firm had previously designed the new Google headquarters in California. Why do these two solutions, one in Dubai (Mars) and the other in Palo Alto (California), appear so similar despite addressing different climate and functional issues?
One might argue that Google requires science-fiction-like solutions or that some solutions can address multiple challenges. While these points hold some validity, the reality is that the solutions we opt for depend more on who is seeking them and the prevailing culture than on a purely objective and comprehensive evaluation of all available alternatives.
It’s akin to cooking today; it’s not just about solving the problem of nourishment but also about satisfying individual tastes and preferences.