Let's go smaller to make better use of space

 

Taking a flight is often seen as a badge of honor, a promotion to a higher social economic class. I took my first flight at the age of 33.

Remember the benchmarking tours when devolution came? It was about a dream come: “I will fly one day.“

But I see it beyond the class issue, it’s a celebration of technology.

Arthur Clarke, a science fiction writer who predicted the artificial satellite, said that “advanced technology and magic are indistinguishable.”

In flying, the magic is too apparent. How do you explain to a layman how a plane, several tones heavy can fly?

You can bring all the science from Bernoulli’s principle to Newton’s second law of motion.

But how do you break that down for your grandmother without seeming to be a magician or a witch doctor?

Having watched birds soar in the air in the countryside, flying is simple, we just copied the birds in making an aircraft! Nothing so magical, maybe the materials used and avionics. Making a bicycle was more complicated. What did we copy? 

If flying does not fascinate us, what then? It’s the state of miniaturisation.

The little space you have in a plane and the many things you can do with it. From a seat, a table for your meals, a TV Monitor, and leg space. You can buy more ‘space’ in first class. 

The optimisation of space could save our planet and ensure it never becomes like Mars, barren and useless for now. We could one day get technology to green Mars and sell plots there.

By optimising the use of space, we use fewer resources. One might argue that because a flying trip is only a few hours, we can ‘stomach’ such a small space, the same way we squeeze ourselves in matatus or flats to wait for a spacious home.

We waste lots of space. Why do leave the living room empty at night? 

Why is the city of Nairobi empty at night? Why does a Toyota Landcruiser V8 and a Toyota Vitz both carry five passengers? 

If we made better use of space, both mental and physical, this planet would be a more homely place. It has been observed that hustlers are adept at utilizing scarce space but as we grow more affluent, we become more extravagant with space, including the stomach. How do you explain obesity? 

Even mental space matters. Failing to live within our mental space, being dissatisfied leads to stress and meaninglessness. Is envy not about mental space? How have you used your space, both mental and physical? Can you improve on it? Talk to us?