Institute For The Future

Our Favorite ideas from over the weekend on Maker Cities!

Maker Cities, our massively multiplayer game for prototyping the future of cities, has been live for almost a week! The game’s first challenge, called SynchroniCity, asks players what they would make if they could program or build anything directly on top of a Smart City. Play SynchroniCity, the first Maker Cities Challenge now!

This challenge is important because smart cities, and new forms of city infrastructure, will have a huge impact on how citizens today will be able to actively make the lives of others better tomorrow. The game is off to a great start. With just a couple days left (the challenge ends tomorrow night!), here is a short list of our favorite recent ideas. Click the link to your favorite idea below and support it in Maker Cities!

1. HOLDING ON TO OUR MOST VALUABLE ASSET: THE MINDS OF THE ELDERLY
   Player Jaqueline proposes networking retirement and elderly homes together to create a web of music venues, so that musicians can travel across the city and make hourly stops at different venues.  The same network could even be used for musicians traveling across the country.  A ratings and review system could even be used to alert seniors if the musician is likely to fit their interests!

2. RESPONSIVE CITY SERVICES 
   A city-wide sensor network has some wonderful baseline capabilities, like the ability to reduce and simplify complaint systems if infrastructure acts up, says player edmlabs.  Just as importantly, open city sensors could be used to offer citizens the opportunity to find ways to reduce energy consumption across the city grid.

3. FIRST AID ARMLET 
   Wearable tech, combined with smart emergency response networks, could revolutionize how emergency care is provided.  This is particularly promising for senior citizens, according to Sebastian.  If a senior citizen should fall and break a bone, their sensor will automatically request aid and provide the aid providers with all relevant data- before the aid providers even arrive on scene!

4. TRANSPORTATION – SOLVED 
   Jackamofinane, a (very proud) resident of Phoenix, presents a compelling user journey about what it would be like to travel via autonomous vehicles, culminating with an appeal that it would make highways obsolete, enabling them to become giant greenways.

5. FOOD-FORAGING FOREST AND THE GARDEN DEFENDERS 
   How do you manage shared public resources, and avoid a crisis of the commons?  Seattle’s Beacon Hill Food Forest, created in 2012, enables growing tons of food in an urban setting.  Player Lieukiss proposes creating a social network for managing polite policing of the space, weeding, and other donated time and effort, in order to create a respectful community capable of making sure the public appropriately manages itself.

Which idea do you like best?  What challenges might keep these futures from coming true?  Click on your favorite idea above to provide your feedback in Maker Cities.

Read more about the SynchroniCity challenge »