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Unfrozen
Published by Daniel Safarik
- Design
- Arts
A podcast on architecture and urbanism.
Listen on Apple PodcastsPublished by Daniel Safarik
A podcast on architecture and urbanism.
Listen on Apple PodcastsIntro/Outro: “Kaze Wo Atsumete,” by Happy End Discussed: Pittsburgh Mark Houser Unfrozen 81: Houser + Hytha = Highrises Cathedral of Learning The Pittsburgh Agreement Richard Florida’s “Eds and Meds” theories Pittsburgh Regional Transit’s former interurban trolley lines The Inclines Tokyo Thanks, Points Guy ! Shinjuku Park Tower / Park Hyatt (Kenzo Tange, 1994) Lost in Translation , Sofia Coppola, 2003 Midtown Tower (SOM, 2007) Roppongi Hills (KPF, 2003) Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building (Kenzo Tange, 1991) Imperial Hotel – Frank Lloyd Wright, 1922-1967; Mitsui Fudosan, 1970-present; next edition coming soon-ish Hotel Okura (Yoshiro Tanaguchi, 1962-2019; Taisei Corp. 2019-present) Hong Kong M+ (Herzog & De Meuron, 2XXX) Eric Chen Shirley Surya Archigram Archives Nakagin Capsule Tower Eric Ho, via Greg’s “ Hacking the City: A New Model for Urban Renewal ,” The New Republic, 10 December 2015 Sao Paulo Dan’s Vertical Urbanism article on his trip Cracolandia Japan <> Brazil polestar Fasano Hotel Sao Paulo (Isay Weinfeld) Hotel Unique ( Ruy Ohtake ) SESC Pompeia (Lina Bo Bardi, 1986) KPF Tech Week Upcoming Greg Lindsay / Brian Boyer White Paper for University of Michigan on “ Chain Drain ” Autodesk: time wasted communicating about construction Navigant survey on RFIs McKinsey survey on construction costs Argues for the need for a standard of governance and/or quality Can/should we Wal-martize our A/E/C supply chain? Pokemon Go’s 10th anniversary: 6 July 2026 EU Digital Product Passports Local Law 97 270 Park Avenue NYRA 50th Edition: Goldberger vs Krotov Jamie Dimon’s back to office call – is any data being collected? Brian Potter, Construction Physics: “ Welcome to Another Day in Katerra-dise ” 9 June 2021 Anori (born from Google X, The Moonshot Factory) and BIM 2.0 The Lacaton & Vassal Model: Just Don’t Build It Google repurposing lumber from the Moffett Field blimp hangars for its building in The Dalles, Oregon Florida + BCG: Rise of the Urban Knowledge Campus Mass Design: Alan Ricks Ha/f Climate Design: Kelly Alvarez Doran Bobby Fijan , American Housing Corp. WeWork Phil Kirschner : The Workline Canoa Sidewalk Toronto The Baumol Cost Disease Effect Niantic Spatial Keyhole ( In-Q-Tel ) Greg’s next appearance: FWD50 7 July 2026
-- Intro/Outro: “Got to Do It,” by Andrew W.K. -- Discussed: Amateur Architecture Studio : Wang Shu and Liu Wenyu A surreal and uncanny live translation of the press announcement. Sample sentences, per AI: “Then tell your ego can contribute to tie your to the total, one lie or toggle lie or drone gorgeous, so it will usually kind of boil in here.” “So it a general fish on the Gita woman sound lion eating the Minion, and Villa means young Jewish show that comes in the currency.” “Yes, we shall defund the pushes away, and the way this would come dark.” Is this the China-max Biennale? Marco Polo reference (visited Hangzhou in 1275) Shades of Lacaton & Vassal , curators of the 2018 Biennale Shades of, and throwing shade at, Mindfulness City from the 2025 edition Complexity of taking on the US Pavilion responsibility in this timeline The 2025 edition, PORCH: An Architecture of Generosity Our somewhat lame attempt at Fantasy Biennale: Post-warfare architecture / rebuilding schemes from Ukraine or Gaza? One source of ideas: Constructing Hope: Ukraine | Chicago Architecture Center Expected returnees: Francis Kere Lacaton & Vassal Probably not Ma Yansong Probably not Ai Weiwei Question mark over Russia and Israel pavilions, which were unoccupied and closed for renovations, respectively, in 2025 The 2026 Art Biennale debacle Death of curator Koyo Kuoh No Golden Lions for nations accused of war crimes Potential Greg- and Michèle Champagne -led activation: EU-CAN Alliance: Greg: Classic OMA-AMO content, shitposting, that kind of thing. Michele: An alliance around new Bauhaus principles concerning housing. Exclusive first right of refusal obtained for Mind Enterprises performance Will the menagerie of pavilions make space for protest and dialogue around the more controversial entrants? Sorkin’s take on the Rafi Segal-designed Israeli National Library and its cancellation Austrian pavilion bridge to the adjoining neighborhood Venezia FC Closing of current arena on the Venetian lagoon, Stadio Pier Luigi Penzo Opening of a new stadium in Mestre Enter the Canadians: Major investment from Drake New management from Toronto FC Giuseppe Saputo (Quebecois) owns Bologna FC Flashback to episode 119 , Paul Goldberger’s interview and comments on the politics of sports and their arenas Como FC
-- Intro/Outro: “Ya Got Trouble,” by Robert Preston (Original Cast Recording of “The Music Man”) - Discussed: “All-American City: Bluster, Boom and Bust in Wichita,” by Chase M. Billingham “ The Midwest Revival: A Well-Kept Secret ,” Alan Arenhold, in Governing, April 21, 2026 Unfrozen 118 , “Migrant Midwest” Unfrozen 108 , “NORTH” The Chisholm Trail Cessna Beechcraft Stearman Aircraft The Coleman Company White Castle Pizza Hut Spirit AeroSystems Wichita’s non-annexation agreement with the Aerospace Industrial District, renewed 2021 Overview | Aerospace | Industry... | Greater Wichita Partnership Rise of the Creative Class , by Richard Florida The Cheesecake Factory arrives in Wichita – stop the presses Jack De Boer Gilbert and Mosley chemical bloom ,1986 “The Minnesota Guys” – David G. Lundberg and Michael Elzufon - Arrest for fraud “Harvard-educated” James Chung: 2015 Focus Forward Marshall Murdock and the Wichita Eagle “ The City as a Growth Machine: Towards a Political Economy of Place ,” (1976) by Harvey Molotch “ Urban Fortunes ,” (1987), Harvey Molotch and John Logan Markus Moos , University of Waterloo: “Youthification” Tulsa Remote Program Choose Topeka Program Modern Romance , by Aziz Ansari and Eric Kleinenberg Century II (1970), by John M. Hickman Wichita Public Library (1967), by Schaefer, Schirmer & Eflin Naftzger Park (2019 edition, Garver) Naftzger Park (1979 edition)
Intro/Outro: “Here on Earth,” by Love and Rockets -- “ Dwelling on Earth ,” by Stefan Al “ Supertall ,” by Stefan Al Unfrozen 29, “‘ Al’ in on Supertalls ” Etymology of “ oikonomia ” = “economy” in ancient Greek The Nebelivka Hypothesis “ The Poetics of Space ,” by Gaston Bachelard Pierre Bordeau ’s theory of “habitus” The Roman insulae “ The Island at the Center of the World ,” by Russell Shorto Angkor Wat Lidar scanning Mesopotamia’s use of plaster leading to deforestation The Frankfurt Kitchen Communal living at TU Delft Bosco Verticale , Milan Mjostarnet , Brummundal, Norway ICON Technology 3D printing on the Moon
Intro: “Stop the Rock,” by Apollo 440 -- Discussed: “ Lunch on a Beam: The Making of an American Photograph ,” by Christine Roussel “ The Art of Rockefeller Center ,” by Christine Roussel Rockefeller Center history Tishman Speyer acquired in 2000 Nelson Rockefeller John D. Rockefeller Jr. The Ludlow Massacre John R. Todd Raymond Hood Wallace Harrison Andrew Reinhard Delirious New York (Rem Koolhaas) and “Manhattanism” Empire State (Empty State) Building Ivy Lee Merle Crowell Charles Clyde Ebbetts Thomas Kelley William Leftwich Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) , est. 1971
Intro: “S.P.Q.R.” by This Heat Discussed: Paul Goldberger “ Trump Will Destroy Washington if It’s the Last Thing He Does ,” New York Times, March 13, 2026 More Times analysis on the White House ballroom plans Godwin’s Law Albert Speer Benjamin Latrobe Alternate venues, that would not require a new ballroom at the White House: National Building Museum Mellon Auditorium Moynihan Train Hall Saarinen's Dulles Airport design “ Fedlandia ” – a plan to rebuild 230 acres of Federal downtown Washington East Potomac Golf Links Trump takeover plan, and the resistance National Garden of American Heroes Christopher Columbus statue, Baltimore White House ballroom architects James McCrery Shalom Baranes Arc de Trump – Justin Shubow Suit against Kennedy Center renovations Mamdani’s Trump-whispering to get funding for the Sunnyside Yards overbuild Dulles Airport overhaul proposals Original Dulles Airport mobile lounges John Foster Dulles Trump offer to release Gateway Tunnel funds in exchange for naming Penn Station after him Renaming of Palm Beach airport , after Trump Renovation and expansion of the US Embassy in Delhi, India (Edward Durell Stone > Weiss Manfredi) Penn Station reconstruction under Trump: Move Madison Square Garden ? AECOM joint venture to lead project management ASTM + HOK + PAU Plan: Keep MSG, remove Hulu Theater Moynihan Train Hall Ballpark: Baseball in the American City FIFA Sites include: Gillette Stadium , Foxborough, MA Arrowhead Stadium , Kansas City, MO SoFi Stadium , Inglewood, CA AT&T Stadium , Arlington, TX Chuck Klosterman: “ Football ” as a “hyperobject” Milan San Siro (Stadio Giuseppe Meazza) NY Jets plan for West Side stadium Upcoming Goldberger book (11/17/2026): “ The Imperfect City: Design, Serendipity, and the Real Life of Cities ” -- Outro: “The Leopards Ate My Face,” by Franchesca Ramsey
Intro/Outro: “America,” by Neil Diamond -- Discussed: Jonathan Burkham Migrant Midwest Ed Glaeser – “ Human Capital Follows the Thermometer ,” New York Times, April 19, 2011 Civic Federation’s report “ Chicago's Budget Growth: 2019–2025 ” Minneapolis’ resilience and defense of its Somali community against ICE raids Springfield, Ohio – myths and realities about its Haitian population Milwaukee – population trends 1960-2024 Michigan governor Rick Snyder’s 2014 call for 50,000 visas Michigan’s population growth , 2021-2025 Nick Reding, “ Methland: The Death and Life of an American Small Town ” Canadian Provincial Nominee Program Backlash to the CPNP + no housing growth Canada’s population decline – 102,000 in 2025, the first since Confederation in 1867 Allan Mallach – Smaller Cities in a Shrinking World – Unfrozen 61 Jesse Keenan – North – Unfrozen 108 “ Climate-proof Duluth ” Daryl Fairweather, Redfin chief economist, new resident of Williams Bay, WI National Association of Realtors migration trends 2024
Intro/Outro: “Depreston,” by Courtney Barnett -- Discussed: Japonica Brown-Saracino The Death and Life of Gentrification: A New Map of a Persistent Idea The Gentrification Debates Explicating Divided Approaches to Gentrification and Growing Income Inequality Sarah Schulman: The Gentrification of the Mind Ruth Glass and the coining of “ Gentrification ” as a term in 1964 Jane Jacobs : The Death and Life of Great American Cities Robert Goldman: Renovating Value: HGTV and the Spectacle of Gentrification Sharon Zukin: Naked City: The Death and Life of Authentic Urban Places Neil Smith : The Rent-Gap Theory Vida Gentefied The Curse Loretta Lees : Super-Gentrification Wendy Griswold: Regionalism and the Reading Class
Intro: “Megeve,” by Henry Mancini Part 1: White-Hot Mid-Century Blowout The Lautner Compound (Hotel Lautner) Lucien Hubbard John Lautner Albert Frey Frey House II Tamarisk trees “ Racist Trees ,” the movie, and the blowback from Tucker Carlson Part 2: Palm Springs Mod Squad tours by Kurt Cyr Transition: “Loose Caboose,” by Henry Mancini Home 1: The Wentworth, Fairway Estates, Donald Wexler, 1965; addition by Robin Abrahams, 2022 The Alexander Construction Co . Pilkington float glass Canyon View Estates – Palmer & Krisel for the Alexanders -- home of “Barbie” and “Don’t Worry Darling” Atomic Ranch magazine Roman tubs Transition: “Caravan,” by John Buzon Trio Home 2: Kurt Cyr home, Kurt Cyr , 2020 Lawrence Crossley and the Crossley Tract Washingtonia filifera (California palm) Hortus conclusus Kenny Irwin Jr. robot designs , feat. “Winston” Hans Wegner Room 606, SAS Royal Hotel (Arne Jacobsen) Craig Ellwood Danish case study houses, per Wallpaper * Transition: “Miniskirt,” by Esquivel Home 3: The Desert Star Apartments (Motel), Howard Lapham, 1956; Converted to private residences in 2005 “Car decking” Uba Tuba marble Calico marble Carrara marble Nichols Company Chinese Art Deco rugs The Palm Springs School, by Alan Hess , (Rizzoli, 2025) Florence Knoll Transition: “This Must Be the Place (Naïve Melody),” by Talking Heads Part 3: An Archipelago of Disney Lifestyle Mad Men: Season 2, Episode 12, “The Mountain King.” Storyliving by Disney: Cotino, Rancho Mirage, CA Sunnylands Storyliving by Disney, Asteria , Pittsboro, NC DMB Development It’s not Celebration, FL Crystal Lagoons – “Swimming pools are things of the past.” Dubai Festival City "Aerotropolis: The Way We’ll Live Next" ULI Florida Summit, Orlando Joshua Harris “ The Anti-Social Century ,” by Derek Thompson, in The Atlantic, February 2025 TestFit Greg’s address to the ULI Global Governing Trustees Meeting , Washington DC “ Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community ,” by Robert Putnam (2000) Firefly by Candlelight Homes , Eagle Mountain, Utah Stonethrow , Dallas Christopher Leinberger Transition: “Terms and Conditions,” by Dan Safarik, recorded on the Teenage Engineering Riddim EP-40 dub machine Part 4: Terms and Conditions of Cotino Transition: “The Community of Hope,” by PJ Harvey Part 5: The Community of Hope Artifacts of an optimistic age: New York World’s Fair 1964 Montreal Expo 1967 “ Capitalist Realism: Is There No Alternative ?”, by Mark Fisher “ Welcome to the Desert of the Real ,” by Slavoj Zizek BNP Paribas Indian Wells Open , sponsored by Emirates Airlines and the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia The destruction of the present and perhaps the future: Dubai’s neo-liberalism vs Iran and the rest of the world coming to its doorstep with bombs Palm Springs International Airport Main Building, Donald Wexler, 1966 Outro: “Crawl Home,” by Desert Sessions (Josh Homme feat. PJ Harvey)
Intro/Outro: “Coming Up,” by Cornershop -- Discussed: Homegrown Cities: Reclaiming the Metropolis for Its Users Dharavi , Mumbai (including Koliwada) Emergent Tokyo Shanghai Shikumen Urbz: The Slum Outside Stewart Brand: “ How Buildings Learn: What Happens After They’re Built ” James C. Scott Hernando de Soto and land title “Ad-hocracy” Open House: Levittown intervention by DS+R, Droog & EFGH, 2011 MoMA Foreclosed project: Cicero, 2011 Uneven Growth: Tactical Urbanisms for Expanding Megacities | MoMA , 2014-2015
-- Intro/Outro: “Afrique Victime,” by Mdou Moctar -- Discussed: Africa’s Buildings: Architecture and the Displacement of Cultural Heritage Siege of Magdala, Ethiopia , 1867-8 > Request for return of items, 1872 Benin Expedition of 1897 Egypt is in Africa! Netherlands’ return of the Benin bronzes Benin Dialogue Group US museums’ return of Benin bronzes Flashback to Episode 57: Looty (Chidi Nwaubani) - raiding the British Museum in “digital repatriation” Lesley Lokko // Venice Biennale 2023 // African Futures Institute Museum of West African Art (MoWAA) , Benin City, Nigeria (ex-Edo-Benin), by Adjaye Associates Demonstration against MoWAA , November 2025 Musee de Civilization Noir (MCN) Dakar, Senegal Colonial Williamsburg (reconstructed village / open-air museum) model applied to Africa? … or Xintiandi , Shanghai Village Museum , Dar es Salaam, Tanzania Jos Museum , Northern Nigeria Julia Watson – Lo-Tek MASS Design Group , Rwanda Koyo Koouh – Art Biennale – Zeitz MoCAA Pan-African Biennale of Architecture – Nairobi, Kenya, September 2026 (Omar Degan)
Intro: “Ruins,” by Pink Frost Outro: “Disappointed,” by Morrissey -- Discussed: - The Disappointed Tourist – site and project - Atlantis - Berlin Nightclub , Chicago, closed 2023 - Birmingham Central Library – J.H. Chamberlain, Birmingham, UK, b. 1882, d. 1974 - Birmingham Central Library – John Madin, Birmingham, UK, b. 1974, d. 2015 - Black Wall Street – Tulsa, d. 1921 - Cathedral of Christ the Saviour – Konstantin Thon, Moscow, b. 1883, d. 1931 - CBGB & OMFUG – New York, b. 1973, d. 2006 - Colossus of Rhodes , d. 226 - Commuter Carpet by Ellen Harvey – Francisco CTA Station, Chicago, b. 2007, d. 2025 - Great Synagogue – Warsaw, b. 1878, d. 1943 - Kim’s Video – New York, c. 2014 - Mormon Temple – Nauvoo, IL, b. 1843, d. 1848 - Other Music , New York, b. 1995, d. 2016 - Penn Station – McKim, Mead & White, New York, b. 1910, d. 1963 - Riverview – Chicago, b. 1904, d. 1967 - Robin Hood Gardens – Alison & Peter Smithson, b. 1972, d. 2017 - Tower Records – New York, b. 1983, d. 2006 - Ukraine - World Trade Center – New York, b. 1973, d. 2001 - The World Before Plastic , d. 1907 - The Montreal Forum , b. 1924, r. 1998 - Temple B’Nai Jehuda , Clarence Kivett and Ralph Myers, Kansas City, b. 1967, d. 2003 Utopia Machine
Bruno Carvalho is a Harvard professor and author of The Invention of the Future: A History of Cities in the Modern World . The book explores the evolution of urban planning, the impact of transportation on city development, and the interplay between planners and the organic growth of cities. On this episode of Unfrozen, we question the reliability of historical narratives, the role of technology in shaping urban futures, and the challenges of modern urbanism. -- Intro/Outro: “In the Future,” by Sparks -- Discussed: Urban Plans, Cities & Experiments Lisbon earthquake, 1755 Commissioners’ Plan of 1811 (NYC Grid) Brasília Arcosanti (Paolo Soleri) Riverside, Illinois (Olmsted & Vaux) New York Parkway System Baldwinville, Massachusetts NEOM (Saudi Arabia) Lagos (Nigeria) Jakarta (Indonesia) Key Figures in Architecture & Planning Sebastião José de Carvalho e Melo, 1st Marquis of Pombal Baron Georges-Eugene Hausmann Ebenezer Howard Carlos Moreno Cesar Marchetti Lúcio Costa Oscar Niemeyer Juscelino Kubitschek Paolo Soleri Paul Romer (Economist; Charter Cities) Frederick Law Olmsted Peter Cook (Archigram) (en.wikipedia.org in Bing) Jan Gehl Andrés Duany (New Urbanism) Clarke & Rapuano (via Robert Moses) Infrastructure, Policy & Governance Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956 Political Economy, Land & State Power Henry George Seeing Like a State (James C. Scott) The Modernist City (James Holston) The Land Trap (Mike Bird)
Intro/Outro: “Lattice,” by Tipper -- Discussed: American Bridge: Reinventing Building, Making History Gregory Dreicer Lattice bridge patented 1820 by Ithiel Town A.J. Davis Nationalism and national character (e.g. “American,” “British”) Wooden bridges and iron bridges Evolutionary analogies (“technology evolves”) Evolutionary hierarchies Industrialization myths Industrialization of construction Invention of the beam Uniform parts Knowledge types: “technology” and “science” Howe truss , patented 1840 Warren truss , patented 1848 Invention as networked, transnational process Lo-TEK: Design by Radical Indigenism, Julia Watson Britannia Bridge , Robert Stephenson Railway boom and Bezos’ “good bubble ” Railway construction labor Tom F. Peters’ , Manhattan grid, redundancy Structural redundancy and Key Bridge, Baltimore Iron as symbol Covered bridges Techno-utopianism History of engineering and design Myth of abundance of wood in the US
-- Intro/Outro: “Beancounter,” by The Cooper Vane -- Discussed: Incorporating Architects: How American Architecture Became a Practice of Empire , by Aaron Cayer Episode 90 – Magalopolis Episode 104 – Make Gaza Great Again Caudill Rowlett Scott , 1946-1994 The Architects Collaborative , 1945-1995 Halliburton Bechtel Gensler AECOM / DMJM John Portman URS , 1951-2014 Brooks Act , 1972 Bohemian Grove GLUCK+ Booz Allen Hamilton Litton Industries , 1953-2001 The Crying of Lot 49 , by Thomas Pynchon Pierre Bourdieu Albert Kahn Albert Kahn Inc.: Architecture, Labor, and Industry , by Claire Zimmerman Final report to the General Court of the Special Commission Concerning State and County Buildings (Massachusetts, 1980) Iron Mountain Cesar Pelli Anthony Lumsden Titan (rocket family) Jack Martin Smith Another Science Fiction , by Megan Prelinger
Imagine a New York City in the double python squeeze of political corruption and traffic congestion, where creative attempts to alleviate said congestion are thwarted at every turn by vested interests. This very contemporary-sounding condition was also very much in force in the late 1860s and early 1870s, when Boss Tweed and Tammany Hall ran the city, and an inventor named Alfred Beach built a short pneumatic-tube conveyance under Broadway, carrying dignitaries beneath the chaotic, horse-manured streets. This is the story of New York’s Secret Subway: The Underground Genius of Alfred Beach and the Origins of Mass Transit , as told by Matthew Algeo. Intro/Outro: “Sub-Rosa Subway," by Klaatu -- Discussed: Alfred Ely Beach Oscar Munn The Scientific American “Boss” Willam Tweed Tammany Hall The Tweed Courthouse The Great Barbecue: Vernon L. Parrington Alexander T. Stewart West Side and Yonkers Patent Railway > IRT Ninth Avenue Line William Steinway Tunnel Interborough Rapid Transit (IRT) subway London Pneumatic Despatch Railway L'arrivée d'un train en gare de La Ciotat , Louis Lumiere Second Avenue Subway Ghost Road, by Anthony Townsend Siemens dynamo Hyperloop California High-Speed Rail The railway accident at Staplehurst, Kent, England , 1865, that almost killed Charles Dickens Panic of 1873 Stanley Yale Beach Water tower speakeasy, Arlo Hotel, Williamsburg, Brooklyn 258 Broadway
Jesse M. Keenan is the Favrot II Associate Professor of Sustainable Real Estate and Urban Planning at the School of Architecture and the Built Environment at Tulane University. In his upcoming book North: The Future of Post-Climate America , he outlines the complexities of America’s handling of climate change and its effects on not only migration, mitigation, and real estate, but also our institutions and societal fabric. Simultaneous conclusions: There are no climate havens, but adapt we will. Join us for the fascinating Unfrozen interview. -- Intro/Outro: “System Error,” by The Cooper Vane -- Discussed: San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank report on reversal of the migration to the Sun Belt “ What Climate Change Will Do to America by Mid-Century ” - The Atlantic Climate gentrification: from theory to empiricism in Miami-Dade County, Florida Sean Becketti, Freddie Mac, April 2016: Will Markets Absorb Climate Change ? A Climate Minsky Moment ? Mitigation vs adaptation vs resilience Rachel Minnery’s efforts at the AIA to include climate adaptation as part of architects’ standards and duty of care “Climate-proof Duluth” in the New York Times There were never any climate havens : The Guardian The lesson of Asheville: The flooding was the beginning of its role as a “receiving zone,” not the end “Climate havens” = media clickbait Marketing of Buffalo as a “climate haven” by Mayor Byron R. Brown Alan Mallach’s Unfrozen take on reviving legacy cities “This is about growth management and urban planning 101 at the regional and local level” For many “climate havens” rhetoric is not about recruiting new residents; climate mobility is a rhetorical arm for the existing residents for core sustainability development. “The Midwest will ultimately grow for the exact same reason the Sun Belt grew” Storming the Wall by Todd Miller The Climate Credit Score Hurricane Pass, Pinellas County, Florida “Sodom & Gorlando” Climate intelligence arms race, e.g., AlphaGeo Spencer Glendon – “The money is slow and dumb”
Just in time for Halloween comes a spooky story of speculation and specters in the world of real estate. Joshua Comaroff, a professor at National University of Singapore, is the author of Spectropolis: The Enchantment of Capital in Singapore . He tells Unfrozen that, despite being one of the most assertively modern nations in the world, mysticism and geomancy are very much part of the design and construction process in the island nation-state. Woe be to the development (and its occupants) that does not undertake elaborate rituals and pay the requisite respect (and sometimes burnt “hell money” offerings) to ghosts that may be resident on the site. We hope you enjoy this tale of spirits and the material world… -- Intro/Outro: “Beancounter,” by the Cooper Vane -- Discussed: Hell money , in sextillion-dollar denominations Feng shui People’s Action Party Ghost Month ( Ghost Festival ) Bomoh (Malay spirit doctor) Winchester Mystery House ION Orchard Gateway, by I.M. Pei AI Ghosts John Calvin’s hatred of speculation The Clayford Sisters Thanatechnology
Depending on how you look at it, it is either a great or rough time out there for speculative fiction, as reality continues to bite at the heels of even the most dystopian visions. Jason Tester is a futurist with a knack for telling prescient stories about our imminent urban realities, in a startlingly graphic way. The visually compelling Insurrection: an American Future predicted troop deployments in San Francisco in early January 2025; by June, a real-life version of that story began unfolding in Los Angeles, then Washington, Chicago, and Portland. Tester gazes into the abyss with Unfrozen, in another episode a bit too close for comfort. -- Intro/Outro: “System Error,” by The Cooper Vane -- Discussed: Institute for the Future What Is The Insurrection Act? Here’s What Happens If Trump Invokes Law Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence Frogs of Portland Ilana Lipsett Meta Ray-Bans Frend.AI ImmigrationOS San Francisco Proposition E - Police drone authorization The beleaguered Whole Foods on Market ICE Ramming in Chicago Grand juries say no to sandwich crimes DDS Waymo Jam Barbara Walter at UC San Diego: How Civil Wars Start Abyss gazing UrbanistAI One Big Beautiful Bill One Big Beautiful Aftermath
Rem Koolhaas is nothing if not enigmatic, which makes him and his first major built work, the Villa dal’Alva, Paris (1990), an ideal first subject of the “Gumshoe” series of architectural mysteries. Cutting through the conventions of academic jargon and trade press, The House of Dr. Koolhaas reopens the “cold case” of Koolhaas and examines evidence in a pulp-detective novel format. Unfrozen turns the lamp back on writer/editor team Francoise Fromonot and Thomas Weaver. -- Intro/Outro: “Beancounter,” by the Cooper Vane -- Discussed: Gumshoe Architectural Mystery Series Thomas Weaver ( AA Files ) Villa d’Alva , OMA S, M, L, XL Luis Bunuel City of Glass by Paul Auster Ways of Seeing by John Berger Aramis, or the Love of Technology by Bruno Latour The Purloined Letter by Edgar Allen Poe Mannerism Madelon Vreisendorp with Teri Wehn-Damisch: The Film of Delirious New York Countryside, The Future Dali’s paranoiac-critical method Le Corbusier’s Villa Savoye Next up: Oscar Neimayer’s Communist Party Headquarters, Paris , by Littell Shaw Then: The Parthenon Then: Case Study House by Craig Ellwood Poelzig’s I.G. Farben Building , Frankfurt Raymond Chandler James Ellroy