Jekyll2023-08-26T02:37:28+00:00https://maxmautner.com/feed.xmlMr. Max MautnerMagician and Software Engineer, on occasion đMax MautnerVisit to Newport Beach2023-08-25T00:01:00+00:002023-08-25T00:01:00+00:00https://maxmautner.com/2023/08/25/newport-beach<p>My wife & I visited Newport Beach for a friendâs wedding and got an interesting dose of Orange County.</p>
<p>We flew from San Francisco to Santa Ana airport over a pancake flat valley:</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/newportbeach/airplane.jpeg" alt="Airplane flight over Orange County" /></p>
<p>Upon arrival we realized we could take the OC Transit public bus service to the weddingâs rehearsal dinner:</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/newportbeach/ocbus2.jpeg" alt="OC Bus" />
<img src="/public/images/newportbeach/ocbus3.jpeg" alt="OC Bus" /></p>
<p>The next morning, the day of the wedding I woke up early for a very long run on the <a href="https://letsgooutside.org/explore/mountains-sea-trail/">Mountains to the Sea Trail</a>:</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/newportbeach/run1.jpeg" alt="Back Bay Science Center" />
<img src="/public/images/newportbeach/run2.jpeg" alt="View of the San Diego Creek" /></p>
<p>I tried out the Rayban Stories sunglasses, and taking some photos & video with them & also to listen to music while I ran:</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/newportbeach/run3.jpeg" alt="Max Mautner running" /></p>
<p>My wife & I then borrowed bikes from our hotel & rode along what we came to find out was the Pacific Coast Highway or PCH.</p>
<p>It was awful and noisy and we were happy to make it to âdowntownâ Newport Beach safely.</p>
<p>We made a stop for coffee at Starbucks on the side of the highway on our way:</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/newportbeach/bike1.jpeg" alt="Biking" />
<img src="/public/images/newportbeach/bike2.jpeg" alt="Biking" /></p>
<p>We had brunch with a group of other wedding attendees, and then biked along the beach front which was gorgeous and very bike-friendly:</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/newportbeach/pretty-flowers.jpeg" alt="Pretty flowers in Newport Beach" /></p>
<p>At the end of the bike path we hopped on a ferry taking us to Balboa Island, $1.75 per passenger.</p>
<p>It was cash only & we had to ask a very kind stranger to give us the money in exchange for digitally transferring her money (via Apple Pay).</p>
<p>It was a pretty chill 2-minute boat ride:</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/newportbeach/boat.jpeg" alt="Balboa Island ferry passengers with bikes" />
<img src="/public/images/newportbeach/boat2.jpeg" alt="Balboa Island ferry ride" /></p>
<p>Balboa Island is extremely patriotic, with lots of loud American icons proudly on display:</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/newportbeach/balboa.jpeg" alt="Balboa Island flags" />
<img src="/public/images/newportbeach/balboa2.jpeg" alt="Balboa Island Statue of Liberty" /></p>
<p>After walking the west side of the island we then rode our bikes back to our hotel, crossing back across the PCH where we saw some bike lanes (in name only):</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/newportbeach/pch.jpeg" alt="Fictitious bike lane" />
<img src="/public/images/newportbeach/pch2.jpeg" alt="Fictitious bike lane" />
<img src="/public/images/newportbeach/bikelane.jpeg" alt="Fictitious bike lane" /></p>
<p>We got some rest and relaxation before attending the wedding which was a blast:</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/newportbeach/wedding.jpeg" alt="Wedding party" />
<img src="/public/images/newportbeach/wedding2.jpeg" alt="Wedding party" />
<img src="/public/images/newportbeach/wedding3.jpeg" alt="Wedding party" /></p>
<p>Some photos of wedding guests:</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/newportbeach/max-and-jessie.jpeg" alt="Max and Jessie" />
<img src="/public/images/newportbeach/juan-and-amanda.jpeg" alt="Juan and Amanda" />
<img src="/public/images/newportbeach/will-and-ani.jpeg" alt="Will and Ani" /></p>
<p>I cannot confidently predict when I will next visit Orange County, but I see its appeal and Iâm sure the weather is fantastic year-round.</p>
<p>Kudos to Newport Beach!</p>Max MautnerMy wife & I visited Newport Beach for a friendâs wedding and got an interesting dose of Orange County. We flew from San Francisco to Santa Ana airport over a pancake flat valley: Upon arrival we realized we could take the OC Transit public bus service to the weddingâs rehearsal dinner: The next morning, the day of the wedding I woke up early for a very long run on the Mountains to the Sea Trail: I tried out the Rayban Stories sunglasses, and taking some photos & video with them & also to listen to music while I ran: My wife & I then borrowed bikes from our hotel & rode along what we came to find out was the Pacific Coast Highway or PCH. It was awful and noisy and we were happy to make it to âdowntownâ Newport Beach safely. We made a stop for coffee at Starbucks on the side of the highway on our way: We had brunch with a group of other wedding attendees, and then biked along the beach front which was gorgeous and very bike-friendly: At the end of the bike path we hopped on a ferry taking us to Balboa Island, $1.75 per passenger. It was cash only & we had to ask a very kind stranger to give us the money in exchange for digitally transferring her money (via Apple Pay). It was a pretty chill 2-minute boat ride: Balboa Island is extremely patriotic, with lots of loud American icons proudly on display: After walking the west side of the island we then rode our bikes back to our hotel, crossing back across the PCH where we saw some bike lanes (in name only): We got some rest and relaxation before attending the wedding which was a blast: Some photos of wedding guests: I cannot confidently predict when I will next visit Orange County, but I see its appeal and Iâm sure the weather is fantastic year-round. Kudos to Newport Beach!Bike Summit 20232023-08-25T00:00:00+00:002023-08-25T00:00:00+00:00https://maxmautner.com/2023/08/25/bike-summit<p>I attended <a href="https://bikesiliconvalley.org/">Silicon Valley Bicycle Coalition</a> (SVBC)âs <a href="https://bikesiliconvalley.org/events/summit">2023 Bike Summit</a>âa conference for folks interested and involved with bicycling in San Mateo and Santa Clara counties.</p>
<p>The event was sold out, with 350-400 people in attendance.</p>
<p>I attended as a San Mateo county resident & (minor!) donor to SVBC.</p>
<p>This is a timeline of the events:</p>
<ul>
<li>9am met with other conference attendess at the Mountain View Caltrain, and got a demo from Caltrain staff about <a href="https://www.bikelink.org/">BikeLink lockers</a>, and the plans for future expansion of bike storage at stations</li>
</ul>
<p><img src="/public/images/bike-summit/caltrain.jpeg" alt="Mountain View Caltrain" /></p>
<ul>
<li>Biked over together to the venue at Mountain View Community Center</li>
</ul>
<p><img src="/public/images/bike-summit/bike-bus.jpeg" alt="Bike bus to Mountain View Community Center" /></p>
<ul>
<li>Free bike valet in the parking lot:</li>
</ul>
<p><img src="/public/images/bike-summit/bike-valet.jpeg" alt="Complimentary bike valet in the parking lot" /></p>
<ul>
<li>9:30am Mayor of Mountain View gave introduction, SVBC Director welcomed everyone introduced keynote speaker</li>
<li>10-11am Keynote speaker, <a href="https://mtc.ca.gov/news/mtc-names-andrew-fremier-new-executive-director">Andrew Fremier</a> Exectuive Director of MTC (the regional transit planning in charge of bay area-wide intercity connectivity like bridges, <a href="https://mtc.ca.gov/operations/regional-trails-parks/san-francisco-bay-trail">bay trail</a>, highways, etc.) speaking about bike infrastructure and cross-bay connectivity on bike, panel discussion with San Mateo county supervisor <a href="https://www.davidcanepa.com/">David Canepa</a> & Santa Clara county supervisor Cindy Chavez. They talked about distributing county money back to cities for bike infrastructure projects, what the priority areas are and how to do it equitably. There was some discussion about stopping widening of freeways like 101 which makes it harder to connect communities on foot/bike to cross over them.</li>
</ul>
<p><img src="/public/images/bike-summit/panel.jpeg" alt="Cindy Chavez, Andrew Fremier, David Canepa" /></p>
<ul>
<li>11-12 a bike tour with Mountain View city staff of their infrastructureâsome excellent stuff around the Google offices (protected bike lanes & protected intersections). Downtown MV has a pedestrianized Castro Street which is incredible.</li>
</ul>
<p><img src="/public/images/bike-summit/tour.jpeg" alt="Bike tour of Mountain View" />
<img src="/public/images/bike-summit/tour2.jpeg" alt="Bike tour of Mountain View" />
<img src="/public/images/bike-summit/tour3.jpeg" alt="Bike tour of Mountain View" /></p>
<ul>
<li>Lunchtime, met a non-profit researcher for <a href="https://outridebike.org/">Outride</a> who are funded by Specialized bikes to study how youth bike riding impacts educational development & behavioral moderation of adolescents</li>
<li>1-2pm attended a panel session about creating safe routes to school. Witnessed some spirited back and forth over â<a href="https://crosswalksla.org/">tactical urbanism</a>â and legal liability of cities, drivers, bicyclists, children & parents. I need to learn more about insurance/law to have a strong opinion on this one(!)</li>
</ul>
<p><img src="/public/images/bike-summit/srts.jpeg" alt="Safe Routes to School panel at Bike Summit 2023" /></p>
<ul>
<li>Bunch of lightning talks from local activists, SJ conservation corps that maintain the trails system, East Palo Alto & Half Moon Bay activites who teaches bike repairs skills to kids & adults, anti-highway widening activism</li>
<li>Awards for local activists:</li>
</ul>
<p><img src="/public/images/bike-summit/awards.jpeg" alt="Awards" /></p>
<ul>
<li>Wrap-up happy hour where I met the mayor of Los Gatos and had an at-length conversation about the politics of the city, certain vocal residentsâ opposition to high-density housing, what bike culture exists in Los Gatos</li>
</ul>
<p><img src="/public/images/bike-summit/midpen.jpeg" alt="Bicycling advocates from San Mateo and Redwood City" /></p>
<p>It was awesome and inspiringâI do hope to attend next year.</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/bike-summit/svbc.jpeg" alt="Silicon Valley Bicycle Coalition" /></p>Max MautnerI attended Silicon Valley Bicycle Coalition (SVBC)âs 2023 Bike Summitâa conference for folks interested and involved with bicycling in San Mateo and Santa Clara counties. The event was sold out, with 350-400 people in attendance. I attended as a San Mateo county resident & (minor!) donor to SVBC. This is a timeline of the events: 9am met with other conference attendess at the Mountain View Caltrain, and got a demo from Caltrain staff about BikeLink lockers, and the plans for future expansion of bike storage at stations Biked over together to the venue at Mountain View Community Center Free bike valet in the parking lot: 9:30am Mayor of Mountain View gave introduction, SVBC Director welcomed everyone introduced keynote speaker 10-11am Keynote speaker, Andrew Fremier Exectuive Director of MTC (the regional transit planning in charge of bay area-wide intercity connectivity like bridges, bay trail, highways, etc.) speaking about bike infrastructure and cross-bay connectivity on bike, panel discussion with San Mateo county supervisor David Canepa & Santa Clara county supervisor Cindy Chavez. They talked about distributing county money back to cities for bike infrastructure projects, what the priority areas are and how to do it equitably. There was some discussion about stopping widening of freeways like 101 which makes it harder to connect communities on foot/bike to cross over them. 11-12 a bike tour with Mountain View city staff of their infrastructureâsome excellent stuff around the Google offices (protected bike lanes & protected intersections). Downtown MV has a pedestrianized Castro Street which is incredible. Lunchtime, met a non-profit researcher for Outride who are funded by Specialized bikes to study how youth bike riding impacts educational development & behavioral moderation of adolescents 1-2pm attended a panel session about creating safe routes to school. Witnessed some spirited back and forth over âtactical urbanismâ and legal liability of cities, drivers, bicyclists, children & parents. I need to learn more about insurance/law to have a strong opinion on this one(!) Bunch of lightning talks from local activists, SJ conservation corps that maintain the trails system, East Palo Alto & Half Moon Bay activites who teaches bike repairs skills to kids & adults, anti-highway widening activism Awards for local activists: Wrap-up happy hour where I met the mayor of Los Gatos and had an at-length conversation about the politics of the city, certain vocal residentsâ opposition to high-density housing, what bike culture exists in Los Gatos It was awesome and inspiringâI do hope to attend next year.Visit to San Diego2023-08-21T00:00:00+00:002023-08-21T00:00:00+00:00https://maxmautner.com/2023/08/21/san-diego<p>My wife and I visited San Diego for two days, while I worked remotely from our hotel room during the day.</p>
<p>We took the Amtrak train from Irvine to San Diego.</p>
<iframe width="560" height="420" style="max-width: 100%;" frameborder="0" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/Fm2G7yBTvxg?color=white&theme=light"></iframe>
<p>The arrival location in downtown San Diego at the <a href="https://www.pacificsurfliner.com/destinations/san-diego-santa-fe-depot/">Santa Fe Depot</a> station was quite scenic:</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/sandiego/surfliner-small.jpeg" alt="Santa Fe Depot Amtrak train station" />
<img src="/public/images/sandiego/surfliner1.jpeg" alt="Amtrak Pacific Surfliner train car exterior" />
<img src="/public/images/sandiego/max-jessie.jpeg" alt="Me and wife riding Amtrak" /></p>
<p>One of the interesting sites from the train ride was the remnants of the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Onofre_Nuclear_Generating_Station">San Onofre nuclear power plant</a>:</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/sandiego/sanonofre.jpeg" alt="San Onofre nuclear power plan" /></p>
<p>We walked from the station to our hotel at the Manchester Grand Hyatt:</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/sandiego/hotel1.jpeg" alt="Exterior of Manchester Grand Hyatt in San Diego" />
<img src="/public/images/sandiego/hotel2.jpeg" alt="Interior lobby of Manchester Grand Hyatt in San Diego" /></p>
<p>We went to dinner at Puesto, a Mexican chain restaurant next to our hotel which was greatâI had chips, salsa, a quesadilla and watermelon juice:</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/sandiego/puesto.jpeg" alt="Puesto San Diego" /></p>
<p>After dinner we walk around the waterfront:</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/sandiego/seaport-village.jpeg" alt="Seaport Village, San Diego" /></p>
<p>And then the Gaslamp District which had a large stretch of pedestrianized blocksâwhich were quiet as it was a Monday night:</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/sandiego/gaslamp1.jpeg" alt="Gaslamp District" />
<img src="/public/images/sandiego/gaslamp2.jpeg" alt="Gaslamp District" /></p>
<p>There was some excellent lighting for night-time photography:</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/sandiego/tacos.jpeg" alt="Tacos" />
<img src="/public/images/sandiego/ghirardelli1.jpeg" alt="Ghirardelli San Diego" /></p>
<p>Downtown San Diego seems centered around its courts and law offices.</p>
<p>We saw an ancient-looking bus with Immigration & Customs Enforcement(ICE) signage outside the courthouse.</p>
<p>Premium real estate in downtown is used for car storage because the transit accessibility and frequency is mediocre:</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/sandiego/parking.jpeg" alt="Parking" /></p>
<p>It was interesting to see offices of the parking enforcement company that does parking enforcement contracting in our city of residence, LAZ Parking:</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/sandiego/laz.jpeg" alt="LAZ offices San Diego" /></p>
<p>There was entrepreneurial signage for a bike mechanic:</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/sandiego/bikemechanic.jpeg" alt="Bike Mechanic San Diego" /></p>
<p>Overall it was a great, short trip.</p>
<p>I loved the temperate whether and the walkability of the downtown was very good.</p>
<p>I can see the appeal!</p>Max MautnerMy wife and I visited San Diego for two days, while I worked remotely from our hotel room during the day. We took the Amtrak train from Irvine to San Diego. The arrival location in downtown San Diego at the Santa Fe Depot station was quite scenic: One of the interesting sites from the train ride was the remnants of the San Onofre nuclear power plant: We walked from the station to our hotel at the Manchester Grand Hyatt: We went to dinner at Puesto, a Mexican chain restaurant next to our hotel which was greatâI had chips, salsa, a quesadilla and watermelon juice: After dinner we walk around the waterfront: And then the Gaslamp District which had a large stretch of pedestrianized blocksâwhich were quiet as it was a Monday night: There was some excellent lighting for night-time photography: Downtown San Diego seems centered around its courts and law offices. We saw an ancient-looking bus with Immigration & Customs Enforcement(ICE) signage outside the courthouse. Premium real estate in downtown is used for car storage because the transit accessibility and frequency is mediocre: It was interesting to see offices of the parking enforcement company that does parking enforcement contracting in our city of residence, LAZ Parking: There was entrepreneurial signage for a bike mechanic: Overall it was a great, short trip. I loved the temperate whether and the walkability of the downtown was very good. I can see the appeal!BART with Mike2023-08-10T00:00:01+00:002023-08-10T00:00:01+00:00https://maxmautner.com/2023/08/10/bart-with-mike<p>My neighbor Mike is in his 60s, retired, & doesnât have a whole lot to occupy his time.</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/mike/mike.jpeg" alt="My neighbor Mike, leaning forward with sunglasses" /></p>
<p>He is super deadpan, âshoots straightâ and is a fountain of wisdom about issues of homeownership and local history.</p>
<p>I recently persuaded him to take the bus with meâsomething he had not done for decadesâand we took it to his favorite restaurant, <a href="https://goo.gl/maps/iYNSkWCgU6DdJd5p9">Harryâs Hofbrau</a>:</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/mike/mike2.jpeg" alt="Mike and Max, in front of Harry's Hofbrau" /></p>
<p>It was such a successful trip we brought along 2 more neighbors for a subsequent trip:</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/mike/mike3.jpeg" alt="Mike, Max & 2 more neighbors waiting at a Samtrans bus stop" />
<img src="/public/images/mike/mike4.jpeg" alt="Mike, Max & 2 more neighbors dining at Harry's Hofbrau" /></p>
<p>This past week I brought Mike with me on a trip to San Francisco on Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART).</p>
<p>He loves to bike.</p>
<p>He bikes 15 miles every day to help occupy his retirement and stay healthy, so naturally we biked to our nearest BART station at Millbrae.</p>
<p>Here are some photos from the outing:</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/mike/bart1.jpeg" alt="Mike with his bicycle inspecting the new BART cars as they arrive at Millbrae station" />
<img src="/public/images/mike/bart2.jpeg" alt="Mike & Max biking on Market Street in San Francisco, wearing helmets" />
<img src="/public/images/mike/bart3.jpeg" alt="Mike eating clam chowder and garlic fries" />
<img src="/public/images/mike/bart4.jpeg" alt="Max eating clam chowder and garlic fries" />
<img src="/public/images/mike/bart5.jpeg" alt="Mike watching the ferry arrive in San Francisco" />
<img src="/public/images/mike/bart6.jpeg" alt="An out of service BART escalator, collecting trash" />
<img src="/public/images/mike/bart7.jpeg" alt="Two bikes on the Embarcadero BART platform" /></p>
<p>Generally, Mike was fascinated at how fast BART traveled.</p>
<p>He noted critically how the train stationsâs locations are inconvenient and how train departures are infrequent.</p>
<p>Specifically, we rode by Daly City BART and noted that he was planning to go to a movie with his wife to the theater and that it was next to the station.</p>
<p>He could drive their car 10 minutes or bike 20 minutes to Millbrae BART, walk to the platform and wait for the train, ride the train for 14 minutes and walk 1 block from the movie theater.</p>
<p>Or they could drive to the theater directly in 22 minutes, park within a block or two where the fee to park is less than the fee for both him and his wife to pay for a BART ticket(!).</p>
<p>This math would perhaps look different if Mike was not retired and was needing to commute into downtown San Francisco or the east bay, but he is simply not that demographic.</p>
<p>I donât expect that Mike will use BART again, but it was very illuminating to hear his raw experience and thought process about using BART from the peninsula.</p>Max MautnerMy neighbor Mike is in his 60s, retired, & doesnât have a whole lot to occupy his time. He is super deadpan, âshoots straightâ and is a fountain of wisdom about issues of homeownership and local history. I recently persuaded him to take the bus with meâsomething he had not done for decadesâand we took it to his favorite restaurant, Harryâs Hofbrau: It was such a successful trip we brought along 2 more neighbors for a subsequent trip: This past week I brought Mike with me on a trip to San Francisco on Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART). He loves to bike. He bikes 15 miles every day to help occupy his retirement and stay healthy, so naturally we biked to our nearest BART station at Millbrae. Here are some photos from the outing: Generally, Mike was fascinated at how fast BART traveled. He noted critically how the train stationsâs locations are inconvenient and how train departures are infrequent. Specifically, we rode by Daly City BART and noted that he was planning to go to a movie with his wife to the theater and that it was next to the station. He could drive their car 10 minutes or bike 20 minutes to Millbrae BART, walk to the platform and wait for the train, ride the train for 14 minutes and walk 1 block from the movie theater. Or they could drive to the theater directly in 22 minutes, park within a block or two where the fee to park is less than the fee for both him and his wife to pay for a BART ticket(!). This math would perhaps look different if Mike was not retired and was needing to commute into downtown San Francisco or the east bay, but he is simply not that demographic. I donât expect that Mike will use BART again, but it was very illuminating to hear his raw experience and thought process about using BART from the peninsula.Rayban Stories2023-08-10T00:00:00+00:002023-08-10T00:00:00+00:00https://maxmautner.com/2023/08/10/rayban-stories<p>My wife worked at Meta (formerly known as Facebook) and helped market the <a href="">Rayban Stories</a> which retail for ~$300 USD.</p>
<p>They are âsmart glassesâ which have two camera lenses built into the glassesâ frame:</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/rayban/rayban1.jpeg" alt="" /></p>
<p>A shutter button exists above the right temple for capturing photo (one long-press) or video (short press to begin capture, short press to end capture):</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/rayban/rayban2.jpeg" alt="" /></p>
<p>They use Bluetooth in order to pair with iPhone or Android smartphones.</p>
<p>There are speakers + microphone which allow you to hold hands-free phone calls or listen to music.</p>
<p>There are no âaugmented realityâ features where visuals are projected onto the glassesâ lenses.</p>
<p>Theyâre like spy glasses that James Bond might have worn in a film in the 1970s.</p>
<p>Amazon ripped off the idea and offered a clone (minus the camera) called â<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Frames-sunglasses-Pacific-polarized-sunglass/dp/B08ZT26ZCY">Echo Frames</a>â thatâs now discontinued.</p>
<p>Here are some sample photosâthe first photo being the JPEG image file straight out of the camera and the second being post-processed image I have edited using photo editing software (Adobe Lightroom) to try and improve their appearance:</p>
<table>
<thead>
<tr>
<th style="text-align: center">Original</th>
<th style="text-align: center">Edited</th>
</tr>
</thead>
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="text-align: center"><img src="/public/images/rayban/bike1.jpeg" alt="" /></td>
<td style="text-align: center"><img src="/public/images/rayban/bike2.jpeg" alt="" /></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="text-align: center"><img src="/public/images/rayban/usps1.jpeg" alt="" /></td>
<td style="text-align: center"><img src="/public/images/rayban/usps2.jpeg" alt="" /></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="text-align: center"><img src="/public/images/rayban/lake1.jpeg" alt="" /></td>
<td style="text-align: center"><img src="/public/images/rayban/lake2.jpeg" alt="" /></td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p>Their battery life is quite poor, and more obnoxiously the Bluetooth connection can take up to a minute to pair with your phone.</p>
<p>They are also unuseable if they are not paired with your phone.</p>
<p>They can capture up to 60 seconds of video, however it draings the battery faster and there is no defined storage capacity for photos + video clips.</p>
<p>Here are sample videosânote the terrible audio quality:</p>
<iframe width="560" height="420" style="max-width: 100%;" frameborder="0" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/uFjxIaRBc_U?color=white&theme=light"></iframe>
<iframe width="560" height="420" style="max-width: 100%;" frameborder="0" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/jANpU8hJ-Jk?color=white&theme=light"></iframe>
<iframe width="560" height="420" style="max-width: 100%;" frameborder="0" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/DRE4yFX-yjE?color=white&theme=light"></iframe>
<p>I would say their most utility is when riding a bicycle.</p>
<p>It allows you to take quick photos or video from your bike ride, and safely listen to music as you ride without inhibiting your ability to hear car traffic threats.</p>
<p>Overall, there is a lot of room for improvement.</p>
<p>Ultimately, the pairing behavior with smartphone needs massive improvement to its seamlessness before I would recommend it to friends or buy it as a gift.</p>Max MautnerMy wife worked at Meta (formerly known as Facebook) and helped market the Rayban Stories which retail for ~$300 USD. They are âsmart glassesâ which have two camera lenses built into the glassesâ frame: A shutter button exists above the right temple for capturing photo (one long-press) or video (short press to begin capture, short press to end capture): They use Bluetooth in order to pair with iPhone or Android smartphones. There are speakers + microphone which allow you to hold hands-free phone calls or listen to music. There are no âaugmented realityâ features where visuals are projected onto the glassesâ lenses. Theyâre like spy glasses that James Bond might have worn in a film in the 1970s. Amazon ripped off the idea and offered a clone (minus the camera) called âEcho Framesâ thatâs now discontinued. Here are some sample photosâthe first photo being the JPEG image file straight out of the camera and the second being post-processed image I have edited using photo editing software (Adobe Lightroom) to try and improve their appearance: Original Edited Their battery life is quite poor, and more obnoxiously the Bluetooth connection can take up to a minute to pair with your phone. They are also unuseable if they are not paired with your phone. They can capture up to 60 seconds of video, however it draings the battery faster and there is no defined storage capacity for photos + video clips. Here are sample videosânote the terrible audio quality: I would say their most utility is when riding a bicycle. It allows you to take quick photos or video from your bike ride, and safely listen to music as you ride without inhibiting your ability to hear car traffic threats. Overall, there is a lot of room for improvement. Ultimately, the pairing behavior with smartphone needs massive improvement to its seamlessness before I would recommend it to friends or buy it as a gift.Folding bikes or no?2023-06-06T00:00:00+00:002023-06-06T00:00:00+00:00https://maxmautner.com/2023/06/06/folding-bikes-or-no<p>The pros and cons of getting a folding bicycle.</p>
<ul id="markdown-toc">
<li><a href="#pros-" id="markdown-toc-pros-">Pros â </a> <ul>
<li><a href="#light-weight" id="markdown-toc-light-weight">Light weight</a></li>
<li><a href="#faster-acceleration" id="markdown-toc-faster-acceleration">Faster acceleration</a></li>
<li><a href="#easy-mountdismount" id="markdown-toc-easy-mountdismount">Easy Mount/Dismount</a></li>
<li><a href="#are-these-really-folding-bike-features" id="markdown-toc-are-these-really-folding-bike-features">Are these really <em>folding bike</em> features?</a></li>
<li><a href="#it-folds-duh" id="markdown-toc-it-folds-duh">It Folds (Duh)</a></li>
<li><a href="#security" id="markdown-toc-security">Security</a></li>
<li><a href="#handlebar-mounting" id="markdown-toc-handlebar-mounting">Handlebar mounting</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><a href="#cons-" id="markdown-toc-cons-">Cons â</a> <ul>
<li><a href="#less-stable" id="markdown-toc-less-stable">Less stable</a></li>
<li><a href="#slower" id="markdown-toc-slower">Slower</a></li>
<li><a href="#aesthetics" id="markdown-toc-aesthetics">Aesthetics</a></li>
<li><a href="#customuncommon-components" id="markdown-toc-customuncommon-components">Custom/uncommon components?</a></li>
<li><a href="#less-durable-in-the-long-run" id="markdown-toc-less-durable-in-the-long-run">Less durable in the long run?</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><a href="#folding-bike-brands" id="markdown-toc-folding-bike-brands">Folding Bike Brands</a></li>
<li><a href="#conclusion" id="markdown-toc-conclusion">Conclusion</a></li>
</ul>
<h2 id="pros-">Pros â </h2>
<h3 id="light-weight">Light weight</h3>
<p>Itâs guaranteed to be light weight and carryable (usually about 10 kilograms or 20-25 pounds).</p>
<p>That excludes the weight savings from not having to carry a bike lock(!), allowing you to travel more lightly.</p>
<p><strong>Note</strong>: electric folding bikes are still incredibly heavyâexpect them to weight 10-25lbs (5-10kg) more.</p>
<h3 id="faster-acceleration">Faster acceleration</h3>
<p>Because of smaller diameter wheels, folding bicycles are easier to accelerate from a deadstop.</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/one-handed-riding.jpeg" alt="Folding bike point-of-view photo" /></p>
<h3 id="easy-mountdismount">Easy Mount/Dismount</h3>
<p>Folding bikes generally have a step-through frame & a lower center of balance, which makes them fantastic to mount/dismount.</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/folding-bike-stopped.jpg" alt="Stopped on a folding bike" /></p>
<h3 id="are-these-really-folding-bike-features">Are these really <em>folding bike</em> features?</h3>
<p>These first three benefits are not unique to folding bikes, but there is an entire category of bicycle called âmini veloâ which has some popularity in Asia. Read more here: <a href="https://twowheelsbetter.net/mini-velos/">Mini velos</a></p>
<p>Here are a couple of benefits that are specifically due to the folding behavior:</p>
<h3 id="it-folds-duh">It Folds (Duh)</h3>
<p>Since it can fold into a smaller shape, it can be carried and place in:</p>
<ul>
<li>Closets</li>
<li>At your office work desk</li>
<li>Car trunk</li>
<li>Bus, train, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/shorts/JgPnM8iKRnU">planes</a>(!)</li>
<li>Restaurants</li>
<li>Grocery stores</li>
</ul>
<p><img src="/public/images/folding-bike-trunk.jpeg" alt="Folding bike & backpack in the trunk of a Tesla Model 3" /></p>
<p>If you have fear of social shame for bringing your bike into specific places (e.g. grocery store) recognize that:</p>
<ol>
<li>a folding bike may be smaller than a shopping cart and</li>
<li>you are giving the store money</li>
</ol>
<p>If they want your money or your participation then they will not force you to leave the establishmentâespecially if you take the time to fold your bike:</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/folded-bike.jpeg" alt="Folded bike" /></p>
<h3 id="security">Security</h3>
<p>Folding bikes are harder to stealâas you can carry them with you, even inside of buildings where you ordinarily would be forced to lock your bike outside.</p>
<p>This is the most clear benefitâwhether you live in an apartment building or work at an office with no secure bike storage.</p>
<p>This has a secondary benefit, which is that you no longer have to carry a heavy lock and remember/carry its key.</p>
<h3 id="handlebar-mounting">Handlebar mounting</h3>
<p>Itâs easy to mount a bag or backpack on the front handlebars, since it has a long front stem with small wheels:</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/handlebar-mount.jpeg" alt="Handlebar mount on folding bike" /></p>
<h2 id="cons-">Cons â</h2>
<h3 id="less-stable">Less stable</h3>
<p>With smaller diameter wheels you will feel less balanced on the bike.</p>
<p>For example it is harder to pedal with one hand on the handlebar.</p>
<p>This requires a bit more focus as you travel, and itâs certainly not recommended to whip out your phone mid-ride to take photo/video (where you might on other bikes).</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/adam-folding-bike.jpeg" alt="Adam on folding bike" /></p>
<h3 id="slower">Slower</h3>
<p>At higher speeds you may travel slower than non-folding bikes-âthough this isnât necessarily true.</p>
<p>This is most exhibited when you might be going up a steep hill, and need to step up out of your seat to pedal (in order to keep momentum).</p>
<p>This type of athletic exertion is harder to do on a folding bike frame, as it does not have as much structural integrity as a road bike (for example).</p>
<p>I personally havenât found this to be much of an issue as I use my folding bike(s) for transit and not racing or going up big hills.</p>
<p>Lots of videos on YouTube illustrate the tradeoffs of wheel size and aerodynamics:</p>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yiUjG2Klrpk">Testing My Folding Bike with Roads Bike. They a super fast.</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CCAwg9OMa84">Can A Folding Bike Climb? Superbike Vs Brompton Challenge!</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F98oQ7Xo5mI">How fast is a Brompton?</a></li>
</ul>
<h3 id="aesthetics">Aesthetics</h3>
<p>Folding bikes do not look like a conventional bike.</p>
<p>If you want to ooze confidence to onlookers while riding your bike, it may be harder to do so on a folding bike.</p>
<p>But you wonât know if you donât try!</p>
<p>I feel pretty cool on mine:</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/beautiful-folding-bike.jpeg" alt="Beautiful folding bike in front of downtown San Francisco" /></p>
<h3 id="customuncommon-components">Custom/uncommon components?</h3>
<p>This is not unique to folding bikes, but you can encounter this issue with finding readily available (and cheap prices for) replacement components with manufacturers like Brompton</p>
<p>A couple of components that will be different:</p>
<ul>
<li>Tubes â maybe 12â, 20â, 22â, it entirely depends on your folding bike model</li>
<li>Tires â same thing</li>
</ul>
<h3 id="less-durable-in-the-long-run">Less durable in the long run?</h3>
<p>Smaller wheels wear down faster.</p>
<p>You will need to replace your tires more frequently than a conventionally sized bicycle.</p>
<p>The frame also feels less structurally sound than a full-size bicycle.</p>
<p>I donât know what lifetime a folding bike has (I havenât rode one into the ground yet), but longevity is something of which to be mindful.</p>
<h2 id="folding-bike-brands">Folding Bike Brands</h2>
<p>Here is an abbreviated list of companies that manufacture folding bicycles:</p>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://zizzo.bike/">Zizzo</a></li>
<li><a href="https://usa.dahon.com/">Dahon</a></li>
<li><a href="https://us.brompton.com/">Brompton</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.ternbicycles.com/us/bikes">Tern</a></li>
<li><a href="https://bikefriday.com/">Bike Friday</a></li>
<li><a href="https://retrospec.com/products/judd-folding-bike-single-speed">Retrospec</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.strida.com/">Strida</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.kwigglebike.com/en_US">Kwiggle</a></li>
<li>Schwinn</li>
<li>Electric bikes (E-bikes)
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.radpowerbikes.com/">Rad Power Bikes</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.aventon.com/">Aventon</a></li>
<li><a href="https://lectricebikes.com/">Lectric</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<h2 id="conclusion">Conclusion</h2>
<p>I enjoy my folding bikeâit definitely fits a small feature gap that other âconventional bicyclesâ cannot support.</p>
<p>If you live in tight housing or you work at an office with insufficient or unsafe locations for locking a bike, folding your bike and carrying it inside is your best bet for preventing theft.</p>Max MautnerThe pros and cons of getting a folding bicycle. Pros â Light weight Faster acceleration Easy Mount/Dismount Are these really folding bike features? It Folds (Duh) Security Handlebar mounting Cons â Less stable Slower Aesthetics Custom/uncommon components? Less durable in the long run? Folding Bike Brands Conclusion Pros â Light weight Itâs guaranteed to be light weight and carryable (usually about 10 kilograms or 20-25 pounds). That excludes the weight savings from not having to carry a bike lock(!), allowing you to travel more lightly. Note: electric folding bikes are still incredibly heavyâexpect them to weight 10-25lbs (5-10kg) more. Faster acceleration Because of smaller diameter wheels, folding bicycles are easier to accelerate from a deadstop. Easy Mount/Dismount Folding bikes generally have a step-through frame & a lower center of balance, which makes them fantastic to mount/dismount. Are these really folding bike features? These first three benefits are not unique to folding bikes, but there is an entire category of bicycle called âmini veloâ which has some popularity in Asia. Read more here: Mini velos Here are a couple of benefits that are specifically due to the folding behavior: It Folds (Duh) Since it can fold into a smaller shape, it can be carried and place in: Closets At your office work desk Car trunk Bus, train, planes(!) Restaurants Grocery stores If you have fear of social shame for bringing your bike into specific places (e.g. grocery store) recognize that: a folding bike may be smaller than a shopping cart and you are giving the store money If they want your money or your participation then they will not force you to leave the establishmentâespecially if you take the time to fold your bike: Security Folding bikes are harder to stealâas you can carry them with you, even inside of buildings where you ordinarily would be forced to lock your bike outside. This is the most clear benefitâwhether you live in an apartment building or work at an office with no secure bike storage. This has a secondary benefit, which is that you no longer have to carry a heavy lock and remember/carry its key. Handlebar mounting Itâs easy to mount a bag or backpack on the front handlebars, since it has a long front stem with small wheels: Cons â Less stable With smaller diameter wheels you will feel less balanced on the bike. For example it is harder to pedal with one hand on the handlebar. This requires a bit more focus as you travel, and itâs certainly not recommended to whip out your phone mid-ride to take photo/video (where you might on other bikes). Slower At higher speeds you may travel slower than non-folding bikes-âthough this isnât necessarily true. This is most exhibited when you might be going up a steep hill, and need to step up out of your seat to pedal (in order to keep momentum). This type of athletic exertion is harder to do on a folding bike frame, as it does not have as much structural integrity as a road bike (for example). I personally havenât found this to be much of an issue as I use my folding bike(s) for transit and not racing or going up big hills. Lots of videos on YouTube illustrate the tradeoffs of wheel size and aerodynamics: Testing My Folding Bike with Roads Bike. They a super fast. Can A Folding Bike Climb? Superbike Vs Brompton Challenge! How fast is a Brompton? Aesthetics Folding bikes do not look like a conventional bike. If you want to ooze confidence to onlookers while riding your bike, it may be harder to do so on a folding bike. But you wonât know if you donât try! I feel pretty cool on mine: Custom/uncommon components? This is not unique to folding bikes, but you can encounter this issue with finding readily available (and cheap prices for) replacement components with manufacturers like Brompton A couple of components that will be different: Tubes â maybe 12â, 20â, 22â, it entirely depends on your folding bike model Tires â same thing Less durable in the long run? Smaller wheels wear down faster. You will need to replace your tires more frequently than a conventionally sized bicycle. The frame also feels less structurally sound than a full-size bicycle. I donât know what lifetime a folding bike has (I havenât rode one into the ground yet), but longevity is something of which to be mindful. Folding Bike Brands Here is an abbreviated list of companies that manufacture folding bicycles: Zizzo Dahon Brompton Tern Bike Friday Retrospec Strida Kwiggle Schwinn Electric bikes (E-bikes) Rad Power Bikes Aventon Lectric Conclusion I enjoy my folding bikeâit definitely fits a small feature gap that other âconventional bicyclesâ cannot support. If you live in tight housing or you work at an office with insufficient or unsafe locations for locking a bike, folding your bike and carrying it inside is your best bet for preventing theft.Car Country2023-05-23T00:00:00+00:002023-05-23T00:00:00+00:00https://maxmautner.com/2023/05/23/car-country<p>I had an opportunity to read <a href="https://cwwells.net/carcountry">this history book</a> about the USAâs car-centric transit design, from 1850âs to the present.</p>
<p>Chronologically, transit in America began with walking and horses.</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/grant-horse.jpg" alt="Ulysses Grant with horse" /></p>
<p>Trains, bicycles, electric streetcars and then the automobile followed.</p>
<p>But the original focus on the public road grew from economic & public health needs.</p>
<p>Roads as public spaces were treated as a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tragedy_of_the_commons">tragedy of the commons</a>.</p>
<p>Residents, visitors and businesses of the streets dumped their food scraps, raw human water waste, and horse droppings where the commerce and transit needs were the greatest:</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/colorized-street.jpeg" alt="New York City, 19th century" />)</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/typical-city-street.jpeg" alt="Typical American city street" />)</p>
<p>Cleaning up the roads was not a government responsibilityâand was simply not tackled because of early political corruption in cities.</p>
<p>The author explains the demand and development of a professional sanitation and engineering approach, as public health harms reached objectionable levels and electric streetcars massively increased citiesâ day-time density of foot traffic.</p>
<p>The author paints a sharp contrast between these urban problems of the road with problems facing roads in rural communities.</p>
<p>In the rurual communities, farms largely used roads to move their produce and livestock to train stations.</p>
<p>Similar to urban communities, rural road maintenance was not a full-time profession, making it too inefficient and expensive to maintain.</p>
<p>In fact road maintenance costs were entirely a local concern.</p>
<p>Farmer families would volunteer to maintain the roads in lieue of paying poll taxes towards outsourcing the labor of road maintainence.</p>
<p>Road investment (or lack thereof) was a local control issue:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>âThe liberty of localities to perform their own functions in road building and road working is in danger,â one advocate of local control warned in 1804, âand if people do not exercise this liberty it will be wrested from them.â
âŚ
If farmers cared about local control because of republican principles and the long-established tradition of home rule, they also cared because the sort of hard-surfaced, all-weather roads that good-roads reformers advocated were quite expensive. The high costs of road improvements prompted farmers to meet good-roads entreaties with three significant objections, all of which related to traditional methods of financing rural roads. <strong>First was a problem of equity</strong>: The financing for rural road improvements typically came entirely from local government revenue, especially property taxes levied on the owners of abutting property. Urban cyclists and other nonlocal travelers would derive clear benefit from hard-surfaced roads, but farmers alone were expected to foot the bill. <strong>Second was the problem of cash payments</strong>: Most good -roads proposals would not only increase the size of road taxes but they would also eliminate the traditional option of paying them in labor rather than cash. For cash-starved agricultural commu-nities, the combination of cash payments and higher taxes represented an untenable double burden. <strong>Third, many farmers regarded with skepticism good-roads claims that hard-surfaced roads represented a one-time investment</strong>âmany enthusiasts referred to them as âpermanentâ roadsâthat would eventually pay itself back in reduced transportation costs.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Fast-forwarding, the rise of the automobile and the poor quality of existing roads made road development a prerequisite to the mass adoption of the automobile.</p>
<p>This was well-noted by automobile entrepreneurs like Henry Ford, who identified the need to shift the American population from urban to suburban community design for maximal car adoption:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>âWe shall solve the City Problem by leaving the City,â declared Henry Ford in one of his oft-quoted aphorisms. âGet the people into the country, get them into communities where a man knows his neighbor, where there is a commonality of interest, where life is not artificial, and you have solved the City Problem. You have solved it by eliminating the City.â As downtown interests struggled with snarled traffic and inadequate parking, real estate developers seized on Fordâs logic-not to eliminate the city, as Ford suggested, but to expand it in a radically new car-dependent form on the cityâs outer fringe.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>The migration of urban to suburban occurred over a number of decades, sharply pronounced after World War II as a consequence of a great deal of veterans returning & migrating within the US and forming new households.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, urban commercial cores suffered as they failed to meet this new car-centric transit demand with land-use that met the unquenchable demand for car parking:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Parking shortages improved somewhat in the 1930s, when the owners of vacant or otherwise unprofitable buildings razed existing structures to reduce tax valuations and opened parking lots to generate cash flow. The late 1930s also saw the proliferation of parking meters- -the first of which were installed in Kansas City in 1935-which effectively discouraged all-day street parking while generating reliable municipal revenue.
As off-street parking spaces multiplied and parking meters increased the turnover of on-street spots, many cities began to get a handle on their parking problems for the first time since the rapid growth of automotive traffic began. Downtownâs accessibility, on the other hand, remained a thorny issue, prompting cities across the country to draft plans for hugely expensive expressways as a way to facilitate the movement of cars to and from downtown. In the face of growing competition from outlying business districts, downtown was no longer the business district, but rather the largest and most central of many competing districts scattered across the city. And though downtown remained accessible by streetcar, many of the new competing business districts were entirely car-dependent in their location, in their site plans, and in their business practices.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>The rise of car-centric community planning was fully funded by the national government.</p>
<p>In part by the massive interstate highway system funded by Congress under the Eisenhower presidency.</p>
<p>But created and financed by a system of federally insured mortgages for homebuyers, that was pushed through in the face of a massive housing shortage post-WWII.</p>
<blockquote>
<p>By the end of World War II, a serious, long-term housing shortage wracked American cities, big and small alike. By 1945, housing starts had failed to keep up with demand for new housing through sixteen straight years of depression and war. The number of urban rental apartments actually contracted from 16.3 million in 1940 to just 13 million in 1950 as rentals converted into owner-occupied homes, highlighting the acuteness of the shortage as soldiers began to return home. The housing industry moved quickly to address these problems. Drawing on a host of new construction methods, including an adapted version of assembly-line techniques, housing construction boomed after World War Il, adding roughly Is million new housing units over the next decade. The overwhelming majority of these were single-family homes? With the housing sector booming, national homeownership rates crept upward. Homeowners reached majority status in the United States for the first time in the late 1940s, climbing to 55 percent in 19so and 62 percent in 1960.3 Nearly all of the increase came in car-dependent suburbs, where homeownership nearly doubled between 1940 and 1950.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>The author asks two important questions:</p>
<ol>
<li>Why did the housing industry respond to postwar demand with almost exclusively <em>suburban</em> construction?</li>
<li>Why did suburban growth overwhelmingly take the form of car-dependent landscapes?</li>
</ol>
<p>Both are explained by the decisionmaking of a federal bureaucracy called the Federal Housing Authority (FHA).</p>
<p>There was a preference to solve the problems that large-scale developers faced, as smaller scale developers had a bad reputationâand to overcome a common urban practice of âpromotionalâ zoning, in which municipalities used zoning as a tool for maximizing tax revenue.</p>
<p>Instead, the FHA wanted new communities to use âprotectiveâ zoning, in which zoning was used to protect neighborhoods from new, value-disrupting land uses.</p>
<p>Coming to the present, the moves the FHA made in the 40s, 50s and 60s have been intractable and unchanged, as non-car transit options have been left to dwindle and fade in their funding.</p>
<p>Critically, oil prices have exhibited very little inflation.</p>
<p>Overall it is a solid read, and I would recommend reading it.</p>
<p><a href="https://twitter.com/maxmautner">Follow me on Twitter</a> to talk about this book and bicycles.</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/car-country.jpeg" alt="Car Country" /></p>Max MautnerI had an opportunity to read this history book about the USAâs car-centric transit design, from 1850âs to the present. Chronologically, transit in America began with walking and horses. Trains, bicycles, electric streetcars and then the automobile followed. But the original focus on the public road grew from economic & public health needs. Roads as public spaces were treated as a tragedy of the commons. Residents, visitors and businesses of the streets dumped their food scraps, raw human water waste, and horse droppings where the commerce and transit needs were the greatest: ) ) Cleaning up the roads was not a government responsibilityâand was simply not tackled because of early political corruption in cities. The author explains the demand and development of a professional sanitation and engineering approach, as public health harms reached objectionable levels and electric streetcars massively increased citiesâ day-time density of foot traffic. The author paints a sharp contrast between these urban problems of the road with problems facing roads in rural communities. In the rurual communities, farms largely used roads to move their produce and livestock to train stations. Similar to urban communities, rural road maintenance was not a full-time profession, making it too inefficient and expensive to maintain. In fact road maintenance costs were entirely a local concern. Farmer families would volunteer to maintain the roads in lieue of paying poll taxes towards outsourcing the labor of road maintainence. Road investment (or lack thereof) was a local control issue: âThe liberty of localities to perform their own functions in road building and road working is in danger,â one advocate of local control warned in 1804, âand if people do not exercise this liberty it will be wrested from them.â ⌠If farmers cared about local control because of republican principles and the long-established tradition of home rule, they also cared because the sort of hard-surfaced, all-weather roads that good-roads reformers advocated were quite expensive. The high costs of road improvements prompted farmers to meet good-roads entreaties with three significant objections, all of which related to traditional methods of financing rural roads. First was a problem of equity: The financing for rural road improvements typically came entirely from local government revenue, especially property taxes levied on the owners of abutting property. Urban cyclists and other nonlocal travelers would derive clear benefit from hard-surfaced roads, but farmers alone were expected to foot the bill. Second was the problem of cash payments: Most good -roads proposals would not only increase the size of road taxes but they would also eliminate the traditional option of paying them in labor rather than cash. For cash-starved agricultural commu-nities, the combination of cash payments and higher taxes represented an untenable double burden. Third, many farmers regarded with skepticism good-roads claims that hard-surfaced roads represented a one-time investmentâmany enthusiasts referred to them as âpermanentâ roadsâthat would eventually pay itself back in reduced transportation costs. Fast-forwarding, the rise of the automobile and the poor quality of existing roads made road development a prerequisite to the mass adoption of the automobile. This was well-noted by automobile entrepreneurs like Henry Ford, who identified the need to shift the American population from urban to suburban community design for maximal car adoption: âWe shall solve the City Problem by leaving the City,â declared Henry Ford in one of his oft-quoted aphorisms. âGet the people into the country, get them into communities where a man knows his neighbor, where there is a commonality of interest, where life is not artificial, and you have solved the City Problem. You have solved it by eliminating the City.â As downtown interests struggled with snarled traffic and inadequate parking, real estate developers seized on Fordâs logic-not to eliminate the city, as Ford suggested, but to expand it in a radically new car-dependent form on the cityâs outer fringe. The migration of urban to suburban occurred over a number of decades, sharply pronounced after World War II as a consequence of a great deal of veterans returning & migrating within the US and forming new households. Meanwhile, urban commercial cores suffered as they failed to meet this new car-centric transit demand with land-use that met the unquenchable demand for car parking: Parking shortages improved somewhat in the 1930s, when the owners of vacant or otherwise unprofitable buildings razed existing structures to reduce tax valuations and opened parking lots to generate cash flow. The late 1930s also saw the proliferation of parking meters- -the first of which were installed in Kansas City in 1935-which effectively discouraged all-day street parking while generating reliable municipal revenue. As off-street parking spaces multiplied and parking meters increased the turnover of on-street spots, many cities began to get a handle on their parking problems for the first time since the rapid growth of automotive traffic began. Downtownâs accessibility, on the other hand, remained a thorny issue, prompting cities across the country to draft plans for hugely expensive expressways as a way to facilitate the movement of cars to and from downtown. In the face of growing competition from outlying business districts, downtown was no longer the business district, but rather the largest and most central of many competing districts scattered across the city. And though downtown remained accessible by streetcar, many of the new competing business districts were entirely car-dependent in their location, in their site plans, and in their business practices. The rise of car-centric community planning was fully funded by the national government. In part by the massive interstate highway system funded by Congress under the Eisenhower presidency. But created and financed by a system of federally insured mortgages for homebuyers, that was pushed through in the face of a massive housing shortage post-WWII. By the end of World War II, a serious, long-term housing shortage wracked American cities, big and small alike. By 1945, housing starts had failed to keep up with demand for new housing through sixteen straight years of depression and war. The number of urban rental apartments actually contracted from 16.3 million in 1940 to just 13 million in 1950 as rentals converted into owner-occupied homes, highlighting the acuteness of the shortage as soldiers began to return home. The housing industry moved quickly to address these problems. Drawing on a host of new construction methods, including an adapted version of assembly-line techniques, housing construction boomed after World War Il, adding roughly Is million new housing units over the next decade. The overwhelming majority of these were single-family homes? With the housing sector booming, national homeownership rates crept upward. Homeowners reached majority status in the United States for the first time in the late 1940s, climbing to 55 percent in 19so and 62 percent in 1960.3 Nearly all of the increase came in car-dependent suburbs, where homeownership nearly doubled between 1940 and 1950. The author asks two important questions: Why did the housing industry respond to postwar demand with almost exclusively suburban construction? Why did suburban growth overwhelmingly take the form of car-dependent landscapes? Both are explained by the decisionmaking of a federal bureaucracy called the Federal Housing Authority (FHA). There was a preference to solve the problems that large-scale developers faced, as smaller scale developers had a bad reputationâand to overcome a common urban practice of âpromotionalâ zoning, in which municipalities used zoning as a tool for maximizing tax revenue. Instead, the FHA wanted new communities to use âprotectiveâ zoning, in which zoning was used to protect neighborhoods from new, value-disrupting land uses. Coming to the present, the moves the FHA made in the 40s, 50s and 60s have been intractable and unchanged, as non-car transit options have been left to dwindle and fade in their funding. Critically, oil prices have exhibited very little inflation. Overall it is a solid read, and I would recommend reading it. Follow me on Twitter to talk about this book and bicycles.Writing Without Bullshit2023-05-04T00:00:00+00:002023-05-04T00:00:00+00:00https://maxmautner.com/2023/05/04/writing-without-bullshit<p>Summary from listening to the audio book of â<a href="https://withoutbullshit.com/book">Writing Without Bullshit</a>: Boost Your Career by Saying What You Meanâ by <a href="https://withoutbullshit.com/josh-bernoff">Josh Bernoff</a>.</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/writing-without-bullshit.jpeg" alt="" /></p>
<hr />
<h2 id="key-takeaway">Key takeaway</h2>
<p>Write as if your audienceâs time is worth more than your own.</p>
<h2 id="how">How</h2>
<p>Do this by creating value for your audienceâdo not postpone/hide the delivery of value (information) in your writing).</p>
<p>Content formatting:</p>
<ul>
<li>utilize formatting (indentation, lists, tables) to break down walls of text</li>
<li>incorporate images, data visualization</li>
</ul>
<p>Consider your formatâe.g. reading on a mobile phone screen.</p>
<p>For example with email: the subject line is 10 times more important than the email body.</p>
<p>Jargon & acronyms separate your audience into those who do and donât know them.</p>
<p>Do not kill your audience size by unnecessarily using jargon/acronyms.</p>
<p>Use pronouns (you, me, we, I).</p>
<p>Eliminate:</p>
<ul>
<li>passive voice.</li>
<li>adverbs, qualifiers (very, generally), weasel words (most, many, few, countless).</li>
</ul>
<p>Shorter is better.</p>
<p>State numbers. Source them with care.</p>
<p>Use modern collaborative editing software (Google Docs, Dropbox/Box/Drive).</p>
<p>Creativity ideas:</p>
<ul>
<li>Create âfatâ outlines. No harm to starting out âfatâ as itâs easier to flesh out.</li>
<li>Research interviews.</li>
</ul>
<p>Editors do not dictate what to writeâthey help you see what you cannot see.</p>
<p>Communicate with your editor what you are uncertain about & to what degree you are seeking feedback.</p>
<h2 id="common-problems">Common problems</h2>
<ul>
<li>Too long.</li>
<li>Do not get to the point fast enough.</li>
<li>Passive voice.</li>
<li>Too much jargon, weasel words.</li>
<li>Not prescriptive enoughânot focused on the audience.</li>
<li>Bad use of data.</li>
<li>Lack of structure.</li>
<li>No central idea.</li>
</ul>
<p>Not mentioned in the bookâbut <a href="https://hemingwayapp.com/">Hemingway App</a> is an interesting tool for eliminating passive voice:</p>Max MautnerSummary from listening to the audio book of âWriting Without Bullshit: Boost Your Career by Saying What You Meanâ by Josh Bernoff. Key takeaway Write as if your audienceâs time is worth more than your own. How Do this by creating value for your audienceâdo not postpone/hide the delivery of value (information) in your writing). Content formatting: utilize formatting (indentation, lists, tables) to break down walls of text incorporate images, data visualization Consider your formatâe.g. reading on a mobile phone screen. For example with email: the subject line is 10 times more important than the email body. Jargon & acronyms separate your audience into those who do and donât know them. Do not kill your audience size by unnecessarily using jargon/acronyms. Use pronouns (you, me, we, I). Eliminate: passive voice. adverbs, qualifiers (very, generally), weasel words (most, many, few, countless). Shorter is better. State numbers. Source them with care. Use modern collaborative editing software (Google Docs, Dropbox/Box/Drive). Creativity ideas: Create âfatâ outlines. No harm to starting out âfatâ as itâs easier to flesh out. Research interviews. Editors do not dictate what to writeâthey help you see what you cannot see. Communicate with your editor what you are uncertain about & to what degree you are seeking feedback. Common problems Too long. Do not get to the point fast enough. Passive voice. Too much jargon, weasel words. Not prescriptive enoughânot focused on the audience. Bad use of data. Lack of structure. No central idea. Not mentioned in the bookâbut Hemingway App is an interesting tool for eliminating passive voice:The Moral Imperative for Bike Lanes2023-04-06T00:00:00+00:002023-04-06T00:00:00+00:00https://maxmautner.com/2023/04/06/the-moral-case-for-bike-lanes<p>What parents need now more than ever is the ability to set their kids free and have them be safe.</p>
<p>Bike lanes are a solution.</p>
<p>They make life easier, healthier and more fun for parents, kids and seniors.</p>
<p>While it builds our kidsâ resilience and independence, it also <a href="https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/05/190529113036.htm">saves lives</a>.</p>
<p>Walking and biking myself around I see loads of bikes parked in the alleys of restaurantsâour communityâs wageworkers cannot afford the cost of being a victim of traffic violence.</p>
<p>Bike lanes also save families a jaw-dropping amount of money.</p>
<p>The annual cost of car ownership <a href="https://newsroom.aaa.com/2022/08/annual-cost-of-new-car-ownership-crosses-10k-mark/">now exceeds $10,000 per year</a>.</p>
<p>Enabling households to drop one of their cars is a massive windfall for our communityâand those savings go directly to helping residents avoid displacement and stay in their homes!</p>
<p>The benefits of bike lanes are both quantifiable & unquantifiable.</p>
<p>They are quantifiable as more households build wealth by opting for fewer carsâreducing traffic & competitive street parking.</p>
<p>And they are unquantifiable: a next generation who are independent, resilient and responsibleâprepared to participate in our community fully without needing to be 16 years old or have $10,000.</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/bike-lanes.png" alt="Bike lanes" /></p>Max MautnerWhat parents need now more than ever is the ability to set their kids free and have them be safe. Bike lanes are a solution. They make life easier, healthier and more fun for parents, kids and seniors. While it builds our kidsâ resilience and independence, it also saves lives. Walking and biking myself around I see loads of bikes parked in the alleys of restaurantsâour communityâs wageworkers cannot afford the cost of being a victim of traffic violence. Bike lanes also save families a jaw-dropping amount of money. The annual cost of car ownership now exceeds $10,000 per year. Enabling households to drop one of their cars is a massive windfall for our communityâand those savings go directly to helping residents avoid displacement and stay in their homes! The benefits of bike lanes are both quantifiable & unquantifiable. They are quantifiable as more households build wealth by opting for fewer carsâreducing traffic & competitive street parking. And they are unquantifiable: a next generation who are independent, resilient and responsibleâprepared to participate in our community fully without needing to be 16 years old or have $10,000.Biking to Work2023-03-13T00:00:00+00:002023-03-13T00:00:00+00:00https://maxmautner.com/2023/03/13/biking-to-work<p>About a year ago I sold my car I had used for commuting and bought an e-bike for ~$1,000.</p>
<p>Where my drive to the bus stop previously took ~15 minutes, the e-bike ride took ~20 minutesâand was roughly the equivalent exercising of jogging for 2 miles.</p>
<p>This has been a huge help as I have lost ~15 pounds of bodyweight over the year since dropping driving a car.</p>
<p>Iâve since been intrigued by video production on bicyclesâinspired in part by <a href="https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLSHhOwcVorC5Skr91zvInLVMO5lfL5zs4">Terry Barentsenâs âHotlineâ series in New York City</a>.</p>
<p>I live in San Mateo, California thoughâa much less dense area of the world than Manhattanâso the situations I capture on video while biking are very different from Terryâs footage!</p>
<p>Iâve studied & have largely tried to mimic Terryâs video production rig, making a video about my <a href="https://youtu.be/Ld9XlkTbFjc">bike video-recording setup</a> & here is a photo of it:</p>
<p><img src="/public/images/mic-and-gopro.jpeg" alt="H1n pro + GoPro Hero 8 Black with a Chesty mount" /></p>
<p>And here are the videos Iâve recorded of my bike commute for your enjoymentâboth to and from:</p>
<h2 id="the-ride-to-work">The ride to work</h2>
<iframe width="560" height="420" style="max-width: 100%;" frameborder="0" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/FjjblFo8jao?color=white&theme=light"></iframe>
<h2 id="the-ride-home-from-work">The ride home from work</h2>
<iframe width="560" height="420" style="max-width: 100%;" frameborder="0" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/oGa-t4PdNAA?color=white&theme=light"></iframe>
<h2 id="conclusion">Conclusion</h2>
<p>I donât think these videos will help persuade other folks to commute to work by bike.</p>
<p>Letâs be real: the video (and thumbnails) do a great job of depicting just how terrifying it is to be passed by aggressive drivers in excessively large vehicles.</p>
<p>I <em>do</em> think that any video footage of bicycling helps normalizes it as a valid mode of transportation.</p>
<p>And that is all I aim to doâalive or dead.</p>Max MautnerAbout a year ago I sold my car I had used for commuting and bought an e-bike for ~$1,000. Where my drive to the bus stop previously took ~15 minutes, the e-bike ride took ~20 minutesâand was roughly the equivalent exercising of jogging for 2 miles. This has been a huge help as I have lost ~15 pounds of bodyweight over the year since dropping driving a car. Iâve since been intrigued by video production on bicyclesâinspired in part by Terry Barentsenâs âHotlineâ series in New York City. I live in San Mateo, California thoughâa much less dense area of the world than Manhattanâso the situations I capture on video while biking are very different from Terryâs footage! Iâve studied & have largely tried to mimic Terryâs video production rig, making a video about my bike video-recording setup & here is a photo of it: And here are the videos Iâve recorded of my bike commute for your enjoymentâboth to and from: The ride to work The ride home from work Conclusion I donât think these videos will help persuade other folks to commute to work by bike. Letâs be real: the video (and thumbnails) do a great job of depicting just how terrifying it is to be passed by aggressive drivers in excessively large vehicles. I do think that any video footage of bicycling helps normalizes it as a valid mode of transportation. And that is all I aim to doâalive or dead.