The Rise of the Network Society

The Rise of the Network Society

Castells talk about different aspects of society and how it affects time, space, and place.
Information technologies have changed the world we lived in and have both created and been affected by globalization. In the world today, there are a number of regional centers (such as Hong Kong, Zurich, Moscow, etc) that are rapidly joining the international market and expanding the global economy. In a study done by Cappelin on the European Union, he concluded that “the relative importance of city-region relationships seems to decrease with respect to the importance of the relationships which interlink various cities of different regions and countries…”(411) Thus, Castells believes that the global society cannot be reduced to hierarchical organizations. He believes that globalization stimulates regionalization. The greater the city-regions and networks become, the more interlinks the regions and localities appear to be. Castells believes that a hierarchical network is needed to keep stability, but that it also must be flexible to evolve with today’s increasing demands. The global city must not be a place, but a process. “A process by which centers of production and consumption of advances services are connected in a global network, while simultaneously downplaying the linkages with their hinterlands on the basis of information flows.” (417) See Figure 6.3 on page 420 for the relationships between the characteristics of information technology manufacturing and the industry’s spatial pattern. Castells emphasizes “new industrial space does not represent the demise of old, established metropolitan areas” (424). Furthermore, the rise of technology does not mean the end of cities, most definitely the opposite. Despite claims that technology is driving decentralization, Castells argues that this trend is also cyclical. The information age is undoubtedly ushering new urban form, melding different metropolises together. As “space is an expression of society”(440), the spatial articulation of major networks takes place in our society through conversations between various organizations and is made possible through the use of technological devices. Hence, the transformation of architectural and urban spaces is a representation of the current demands of society and how we evolve those networks that participate within it.