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Large bodies distort the shape of space around them. Their mass curves space and time and alters the fabric of the universe around them.
London March '99
Nickjenkins2003-11-20 12:44:01
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Large bodies distort the shape of space around them. Their mass curves space and time and alters the fabric of the universe around them.
Large cities similarly alter the social fabric of the universe around them.
Social space becomes more unstable and disturbed under the influence of a large mass nearby. People’s behaviour becomes more erratic and extreme under the pressure of social gravity generated by millions of individuals crammed into a tiny space.
London is a black hole in the fabric of the social universe.
People do strange things in London.
Having been attracted by the bright lights and big name of the city I am now finding it’s losing its allure. What I once found exciting I now find annoying and where I once found opportunities I now find obstructions.
I was born in Perth, a smallish city of one million people which visitors have variously described as being "not like a real city at all" and "so friendly it was just like a big country town". From Perth I moved to Sydney, which is possibly Australia’s only real big city, and from there I have come to London. I always thought of Perth as rather dull and provincial but now dull and provincial are starting to show a certain level of merit.
For example while Perth lacks the public transport of a big city like London it also doesn’t need it. There wasn’t anywhere I couldn’t get in Perth within twenty minutes, a fact I proved occasionally by using my racing car as a rapid transit taxi for friends. In London, in theory I should be able to get everywhere within at most an hour using the fantastically efficient Underground system. This is sometimes true.
On the other hand sometimes it takes two hours to go six stops, a trip that would take you twenty minutes to walk if only you could get out of the goddamn tube station!
...
See photographs from:
United Kingdom Gallery
