Frequently Asked Questions

Watched all the tutorials, read all the FAQs and still have questions?

What should I expect to see in this app? What should I be looking for?

You will first see an overview map of the city and surrounding region and be able to read a narrative of the city's history to this point in 2070. At this scale, you will also see summaries of many of the districts that make up the city, as well as have the option to select different “lenses” to better understand the city. From there you will go deeper into either the Historic Core District or the Adaptive Corridor. Here you can investigate the city systems at work. Next stop is one of three Core Samples, which extracts a vertical section of the district so you can see elements operating on various planes. Finally, you'll enter the Street level, and join the residents of Mega City at a human scale. There is much information to explore here, both visually and textually. For more details, please watch the “Orientation” tutorial video.

What is the goal? How do I know when I'm done?

The goal of the Mega City 2070 app is to provoke you to think about various aspects facing future cities, their infrastructure, systems, and people. This is best accomplished by taking part in the discussions - using the Comment tab located in all informational callouts to add your questions, observations, and ideas and/or to reply to the thoughts of others. You can do this within a private group, or among all users on any subject that excites you. In this sense, you'll never be done as long as the discussion and debate is stimulating and thought-provoking. Your thoughts may even lead to future adjustments or additions to the application itself.

Is Mega City 2070 based on a real city?

Yes and no.The developers and designers borrowed from existing cities all over the world. You may recognize elements of Los Angeles, Tokyo, Lagos, London, Houston, Sao Paolo, or Shenzhen. Research from the various city layouts, climates, population growth patterns, density and architecture are reflected in this mashup we call Mega City. But it has its own unique identity.

How do I see what research was behind the textual information?

On each “callout,”or clickable informational button, in the city you can select the “Research” tab to view citations and/or interviews with topic experts that informed that particular callout. If you'd like to access the actual article cited, bookmark the callout, which will place it in your library. You can then create a collection from some or all of your bookmarks and export it to your email. All of the sources will be sent to your email box as live links within the collection.

What if I have questions about the content or even disagree with it?

Great! This is the purpose of the discussion tab. Making comments here will allow your colleagues on the app to consider your perspective and, in turn, comment back. The richness of the platform relies on input from its users.

Where did the overall idea of Mega City originate? How were the macro decisions made?

The process started with a lot of research interviews, both inside and outside of ASCE and across as many disciplines as you see represented in Mega City, not all of them engineering. Common themes were noted and discussed at regular intervals between the design team and the ASCE Future World Vision team, and different perspectives were often debated. Decisions were based on two criteria: this is a likely future scenario or is a further-reaching speculation gleaned from the many conversations and interviews conducted. In all cases, research grounds the speculation in some way. In more far-reaching scenarios, the user may or may not agree with the outcome, but that is where the debate can happen. If you have a better idea to contribute, this is the place!

Beyond the research, 3D artists used imagery gathered from the researchers to create a look for the architecture, and decisions were made about how to represent the human inhabitants of the city - in this case, fairly nondescript characters who bring the city to life with their movements.

How can I suggest ideas for new features?

Please submit your ideas for new features using the Contact Us form.

Will Mega City 2070 be updated regularly with new content?

New content will be continuously added to the application in the form of user-generated comments and discussions. New features, new core samples, districts or street corners, or even new cities will be developed based on user feedback and engagement, as well as available resources.

Will other city models be developed?

Future World Vision includes concepts for four additional city models, in addition to Mega City 2070: Floating City, Rural City, Frozen City, and Off-Planet City. The additional city models will be developed based on user response and engagement, as well as available resources.