Virtually no cities are entirely 24-hours all year round, noted Marion Roberts, a professor of urban design at London’s University of Westminster. Extending late-night hours extends the hours of a city’s economy, Roberts said, but there are downsides as well. Common concerns about keeping a city up all night relate to noise, traffic and alcohol consumption.
And the concerns are not misguided. For example, a 2010 World Health Organization study stated that New York is the world’s loudest city, followed by Tokyo, Nagasaki and Buenos Aires. In addition, the Institute of Alcohol Studies found that the late-night economic activity of 24-hour cities is largely tied to alcohol consumption, a conclusion Roberts arrived at in her own 2005 study on 24-hour cities, which said that this is “not a desirable urban philosophy for the 21st Century”.
No matter what shape it takes, a night-time economy relies on a night-time workforce. Night shift workers are far more prone to having sleep disorders, gastrointestinal disorders, metabolic problems, cancer,diabetes, depression and a number of other health problems.
Labour laws vary from country to country – in the US, for instance, there are virtually no special constraints placed on overnight work, whereas in Spain, overtime is not allowed for night shift workers – but the onus is almost always on the employer to regulate night-time working conditions.
“Creating a healthy work environment isn’t just a nice thing to do… it’s smart business,” Ballard insisted, since it can lead to “better product and service quality, better performance, higher levels of productivity, lower absenteeism, lower turnover rates, fewer accidents, better customer service ratings… and nowadays, many companies are concerned with keeping health care costs in check. The challenge is, the more people that are working overnight, the more support services you need.”
Would you want to live in a city that never sleeps? Voice out your opinions and experiences!
Source: BBC Travel
Image: Golden Egypt Tours
Digital Etiquette For The Excited Travelers
1. Don’t play “stump the tour guide” by looking up the sights you’re visiting on your mobile phone and sharing your findings with the group.
“The tour guide knows something interesting,” Matthews said. “They know local pieces of information. They have these local nuggets that now they’d be offended by even sharing because how can they compete with Wikipedia?”
2. If you post to Facebook, Twitter or a blog, make sure the others you’re traveling with know you’re writing or sharing photos about the trip.
Laws vary from state to state, so it’s not only important to know them, it’s equally import to ask permission to photograph people and let them know the images may wind up online.
3. Don’t “tag” people in photos online without prior approval.
Not only will the person you tag see it, but all the people who will visit his or her wall will also see it. Can you image having your work colleagues that you may have Facebook friended see you in your skimpy bikini guzzling back a beer? Also in the same vain, some tweets or photos shouldn’t be posted until you’re home –or not at all.
5. Be careful about posting critical comments online about a destination or trip.
“Posting commentary considered ‘negative’ about an area you’re touring for the first time disappoints and can even offend others who are envious that you’re able to take a vacation,” Matthews said.
6. Unless you’re riding on a bus, train or plane, take off the headphones.
Travel is about the sights, smells and sounds. Not only is wearing headphones rude, it can be dangerous if you can’t hear the noise of an oncoming car or a bus.
7. Get in front of the camera.
“With the help of the Internet and Google images, I can see thousands of pictures of the Eiffel Tower,” Matthews said. “I can see plenty. So when I see another picture of the Eiffel Tower, why aren’t you in front of the Eiffel Tower?”
8. Turn down the screen brightness.
A great traveler’s trick is to use your smartphone or tablet screen as a flashlight. It’s great in a pinch, but watch out, you can get some fellow air travelers very angry if that goes off in a darkened cabin.
Do you follow any of all of these digital etiquettes? Tell us of the times you were offended by “rude” techies!
Source: Fox News Travel
Image: SailAway Yacht Charter Consultants, Inc.