Starting from the principles of Proxemics, which refer to distances between people at which certain activities were observed to occur, this talk looks at the implications of these for the design of spaces for people. Key to doing this is a different conception of time, in which it is seen to move at several speeds at the same time, but which need to be aligned in order to achieve a sense of sociality. A very simple example is given to show how this might affect the design of a social space.

Speaker: Nick Tyler (Chadwick Professor of Civil Engineering, UCL and Director of UCL Centre for Transport Studies)

Professor Nick Tyler CBE FREng is the Chadwick Professor of Civil Engineering at UCL and the Director of the UCL Centre for Transport Studies. He is working extensively with bodies such as Transport for London, national and local governments, and civil society to help create an accessible, adaptive and sustainable urban realm which is responsive to all people and their needs. He has recently created PEARL (People-Environment-Activity Research Laboratory), part of the UK national research facility for infrastructure and cities. He is a co-investigator of the UCL Ecological Brain Doctoral Training Programme. Nick combines highly diverse fields in his research, from civil/transport engineering and architecture to neuroscience, psychology, physiology, ophthalmology, audiology, orthopaedics, lighting, sound and acoustics.