True sons of Archimedes
May 17, 2010 6:27 AM Subscribe
A preliminary atlas of gizmo landscapes. A comprehensive look at the environments necessitated by American gizmos, as exemplified by a single iPhone in Brooklyn.
Curious, not a single photo of Chinese mines, factories, or container ports. I thought this was supposed to be about the iPhone's impact on the Earth?
posted by Pollomacho at 6:37 AM on May 17, 2010
posted by Pollomacho at 6:37 AM on May 17, 2010
Pollomacho, there's a couple of photos of a Chinese factory center in the article under the header 'FACTORIES'. And the first section is about mines, so I'm not really sure what you're getting at?
posted by shakespeherian at 6:41 AM on May 17, 2010
posted by shakespeherian at 6:41 AM on May 17, 2010
Oh god those brick-camouflaged cell phone arrays are just miserable. They look more like Mario blocks than whatever it is they're trying to resemble. In Brooklyn, brick walls above hose-level are usually encaked with years of grime and weird brick structures on top of a building are about ten times more obvious than an antenna array. Come on guys. This isn't the 'burbs. It's not a fake tree.
posted by griphus at 6:46 AM on May 17, 2010
posted by griphus at 6:46 AM on May 17, 2010
A handful of recent posts (Life Without Buildings, Markasaurus, Robert Sumrell) have noted that the iPhone may be the single industrial product which best exemplifies both the continuance and the evolution of Banham’s notion of the peculiarly American gizmo.
I don't think that anything requiring the widespread installation of cell-phone towers (or WiFi hotspots) and needing its battery recharged every evening can really be considered the no-infrastructure panacea these wankers think it is.
posted by xbonesgt at 6:48 AM on May 17, 2010
I don't think that anything requiring the widespread installation of cell-phone towers (or WiFi hotspots) and needing its battery recharged every evening can really be considered the no-infrastructure panacea these wankers think it is.
posted by xbonesgt at 6:48 AM on May 17, 2010
You're right, I stand corrected, the second section does have a couple of shots od Shenzhen.
How about some of the larger impact aspects like energy or shipping or shipping of materials?
posted by Pollomacho at 6:50 AM on May 17, 2010
How about some of the larger impact aspects like energy or shipping or shipping of materials?
posted by Pollomacho at 6:50 AM on May 17, 2010
Does the iPhone have some sort of unique negative environmental impact that I'm not aware of, when compared to any other phone, camera or portable gadget?
I can't think of any reason it would be any worse, and if anything Apple's glass and metal fetish with all their products is probably a small bit better, long-term, than the more common plastic. Likewise the longer life spans might necessitate fewer replacements, another possible (small) plus.
posted by rokusan at 6:57 AM on May 17, 2010
I can't think of any reason it would be any worse, and if anything Apple's glass and metal fetish with all their products is probably a small bit better, long-term, than the more common plastic. Likewise the longer life spans might necessitate fewer replacements, another possible (small) plus.
posted by rokusan at 6:57 AM on May 17, 2010
Does the iPhone have some sort of unique negative environmental impact that I'm not aware of, when compared to any other phone, camera or portable gadget?
Yes, it has completely destroyed the planetary smug superiority equilibrium, both for user and non-user populations.
posted by Dr Dracator at 7:11 AM on May 17, 2010 [2 favorites]
Yes, it has completely destroyed the planetary smug superiority equilibrium, both for user and non-user populations.
posted by Dr Dracator at 7:11 AM on May 17, 2010 [2 favorites]
Does the iPhone have some sort of unique negative environmental impact that I'm not aware of, when compared to any other phone, camera or portable gadget?
Unrepairable with a vengeance?
posted by DU at 7:39 AM on May 17, 2010
Unrepairable with a vengeance?
posted by DU at 7:39 AM on May 17, 2010
Well, they do go out of their way to make them ridiculously recyclable and PVC free, if that counts for anything. I don't see any other smart phones advertising that.
Plus the smug factor? Come on, it's hard to feel superior when everybody and their dog has one.
posted by fungible at 8:13 AM on May 17, 2010
Plus the smug factor? Come on, it's hard to feel superior when everybody and their dog has one.
posted by fungible at 8:13 AM on May 17, 2010
Come on, it's hard to feel superior when everybody and their dog has one.
I wouldn't call a 3% market share "everybody and their dog".
posted by Pollomacho at 9:31 AM on May 17, 2010 [1 favorite]
I wouldn't call a 3% market share "everybody and their dog".
posted by Pollomacho at 9:31 AM on May 17, 2010 [1 favorite]
Hmm, over at Fark I was reading an article about how there's been a "suicide cluster" at or around the Honhai factory in Shenzhen. Kinda strange to see the same factory in two different articles I randomly clicked today.
Here is the article. I guess they brought in a Buddhist monk to try and cleanse the place of evil spirits.
posted by Clamwacker at 6:02 PM on May 17, 2010
Here is the article. I guess they brought in a Buddhist monk to try and cleanse the place of evil spirits.
posted by Clamwacker at 6:02 PM on May 17, 2010
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posted by three blind mice at 6:28 AM on May 17, 2010