Analysis of the New York Subway System using an Adaptive Network Model
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.47611/jsrhs.v12i3.4827Keywords:
Physarum Polycephalum, InfrastructureAbstract
Through the use of a Physarum Polycephalum organism and a scaled-down model of the New York Subway System, this study created and analyzed a system of "maximum efficiency". By taking advantage of the capabilities of a Physarum organism, a system reminiscent of the existing subway system was created, with deviations analyzed to find differences in both track usage and overall costs. Previous research regarding Physarum Polycephalum and infrastructure development were relatively separate. This study holds similarities to research done by Atsushi Tero of Kyoto University, but while his team sought perfect replication, this study sought to use the growth patterns of Physarum to create a more efficient system. Using a geographically accurate mapping of the New York Subway System, a scaled-down model of the Subway System was created, with major subway stations represented as oat nodes atop an agar solution in a sterile petri dish. The Physarum was placed within and allowed to grow for roughly 6 days. Following the full connection of all oat nodes, an analysis of the Physarum system was conducted using a ModaCam system. This analyzed system was then scaled up to that of the existing Subway System, and a comparison of the two was conducted. This study concluded that the Physarum system was significantly more efficient than the existing system, using fewer subway tracks and consequentially a lower maintenance cost.
Downloads
References or Bibliography
King, David. “Developing Densely: Estimating the Effect of Subway Growth on New York City Land Uses.” Journal of Transport and Land Use, vol. 4, no. 2, 2011, pp. 19–32. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/26201668. Accessed 22 Apr. 2023.
Reid, Chris R., et al. “Slime Mold Uses an Externalized Spatial ‘Memory’ to Navigate in Complex Environments.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, vol. 109, no. 43, 2012, pp. 17490–94. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/41829697. Accessed 22 Apr. 2023.
González-Rivera, Christian. DESTINATION NEW YORK: Spurred by 30 Million More Tourists over the Past Two Decades, Tourism Is Now Driving NYC’s Economic Future. Edited by Eli Dvorkin and Jonathan Bowles, Center for an Urban Future, 2018. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/resrep21708. Accessed 22 Apr. 2023.
Cohen, James K. “Structural versus Functional Determinants of New York’s Fiscal Policies Towards Metropolitan Transportation, 1904-1990.” Social Science History, vol. 15, no. 2, 1991, pp. 177–98. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/1171413. Accessed 22 Apr. 2023.
Chi-Hong (Patrick) Tsai, et al. “Measuring the Cost Efficiency of Urban Rail Systems: An International Comparison Using DEA and Tobit Models.” Journal of Transport Economics and Policy, vol. 49, no. 1, 2015, pp. 17–34. JSTOR, https://www.jstor.org/stable/jtranseconpoli.49.1.0017. Accessed 22 Apr. 2023.
Larkin, Brian. “The Politics and Poetics of Infrastructure.” Annual Review of Anthropology, vol. 42, 2013, pp. 327–43. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/43049305. Accessed 22 Apr. 2023.
Crain, W. Mark, and Lisa K. Oakley. “The Politics of Infrastructure.” The Journal of Law & Economics, vol. 38, no. 1, 1995, pp. 1–17. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/725815. Accessed 22 Apr. 2023.
Westphal, Joseph W. “The Politics of Infrastructure.” Social Research, vol. 75, no. 3, 2008, pp. 793–804. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/40972090. Accessed 22 Apr. 2023.
Harris, C. (2020). Five Cheap Ways to Improve Nyc Subway Operations. Manhattan Institute, Issue Brief.
Tero, A., Takagi, S., & Ito, K. (2010). Rules for biologically inspired adaptive network design - researchgate. researchgate.net. Retrieved April 27, 2023, from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/41111573_Rules_for_Biologically_Inspired_Adaptive_Network_Design
MTA. (2020). Division of the budget. Metropolitan Transportation Authority | Agency Appropriations | FY 2021 Executive Budget. Retrieved April 27, 2023, from https://www.budget.ny.gov/pubs/archive/fy21/exec/agencies/appropdata/MetropolitanTransportationAuthority
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
Copyright (c) 2023 Zachary Carino
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Copyright holder(s) granted JSR a perpetual, non-exclusive license to distriute & display this article.
