tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6412900754136064810.post8749565569268317374..comments2024-02-29T14:00:40.184-05:00Comments on Restonian: News blog from Reston, Virginia, the mauve-colored New Town (tm): Future of Reston to Be Decided By Lego PlaydateRestonianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15519884797760354007noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6412900754136064810.post-28784480325157643112010-07-01T10:54:09.135-04:002010-07-01T10:54:09.135-04:00They should have used Duplo blocks. They're l...They should have used Duplo blocks. They're larger so that small minds with big hands and age-related manual dexterity issues don't have to fumble around. Plus, you can get a better appreciation of scale when that 50 story skyscraper actually comes up to your chin instead of your crotch. Besides, when the play date tends towards over-zealousness, the Duplo blocks have just enough mass that, when heaved, can really drive your point home. Legos just don't have enough mass to travel more than a couple of feet and don't convert their potential energy into truly attention-getting kinetic energy as well.The Convict in the Gulaghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02530536432165645618noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6412900754136064810.post-44683512791849187432010-07-01T09:58:36.464-04:002010-07-01T09:58:36.464-04:00In the military they call it the "sandbox&quo...In the military they call it the "sandbox"... where yes, they move little toys around ... but it works. It's known as data visualization... it helps people conceptualize...<br /><br />And yes, regarding economic modeling -- the best IMF models in 2007 predicted the world economy would grow and "financial risk" was on the decline...<br /><br />go figure...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6412900754136064810.post-35368898048290407702010-07-01T07:13:15.133-04:002010-07-01T07:13:15.133-04:00Thank God for Legos -- I just realized what the AC...Thank God for Legos -- I just realized what the ACTUAL master plan for Reston was supposed to be. By completely harmonizing our dwellings to neutral colors, the nature surrounding us on our trails and green spaces can be seen in all its real beauty.<br /><br />And by requiring a certain percentage of subsidized housing in each new development, we will all become one big happy rainbow of colors to stand out against our DRB drab dwelling colors. Oh, no. . . wait . . . <br /><br />That means actually welcoming the Section 8 housing as a good thing...perhaps we all need to play Legos together more often?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6412900754136064810.post-37320123770231624482010-06-30T20:55:57.561-04:002010-06-30T20:55:57.561-04:00Good one, Restonian -- your take on the Lego exerc...Good one, Restonian -- your take on the Lego exercise should make the all-time top 10 list.<br /><br />Dick Stillson mentions in his report a study done by a group from George Mason about projected job and population growth in the Dulles Corridor, from Wiehle Avenue to Rt. 28, that looked ahead 40 years to 2050. Before everyone gets their knickers in a knot, as our cousins across the pond would say, about those job and growth projections, it's worth reading the cautionary note that's the last part of Stillson's report. Note that Stillson has been an economist for 30 years, 25 of them at the IMF.<br /><br />"I think that modeling demand in the area for 40 years is a useless exercise...The only thing one can be sure about 40 years in the future is that it will be very different from now, or from the past. Maybe playing with Legos would give a better answer - it would be at least as good.Peasant From Less Sought After South Restonnoreply@blogger.com