City: Shanghai
Personal Memory
Four seasons are in general distinct and pleasant in Shanghai. Spring and fall are mild, but are perceived shorter than the other two. While winter is merely freezing cold unlike New York, summer sometimes can be unbearable especially these years along with global climate change. Reportedly, the temperature has already exceeded 100°F several times this year.
Personally, my favorite season is winter simply because of the childhood fatness. I always feel uncomfortable in hot weather even though I’ve turned lean since high school. Conversely, cold weather clears my mind, and gave me a reason to hide my belly fat.
Plum rain season is a signature weather happening in June and July in middle and lower Yangtze Plain. The rainy season coincides with the maturity of plums, accounting for its name. However, because of high humidity, the ground is always wet, and clothes are likely to go mouldy if not taken good care of during the period, which often annoys me.
Before I went to college, I had some chances to go hiking with my families or friends. Besides enjoying fresh air and beautiful view, we engaged in our conversation without interruption from technical devices. It was a pleasing period while unhappy memories also existed. I raised three rabbits and grew a mimosa, but it turned out that I was a terrible keeper.
Friend’s Memory (Crystal Chen, 27)
Crystal thinks Shanghai’s climate is always unsatisfying whether before or now. She believes it’s largely related to the rapid development of the city in modern times. Her favorite season is fall because the weather is the most comfortable around the year. She loves the smell of the first summer rain, fresh, earthy and enthusiastic. Her interactions with the natural world were adventurous. She once drove her car into a swamp. Also, she went camping in a small island with her friends. On their way back, they confronted an unexpected thunderstorm, which destroyed a tiny island nearby. Frightened, she had no choice but be stuck on the island.
Research
Shanghai has a subtropical monsoon climate. The city is confronted with the problem of high temperature mainly caused by excessive carbon emissions. “Strategy Research on Shanghai Low-carbon City Development” published by Tongji University shows accumulated amount of carbon emissions from 1978 to 2007 are approximately 210 million tons. (http://www.china-nengyuan.com/news/12135.html) The good news is regulations and policies concerning have been put into practice and come into effect. In 2015, the amount was down 2% from a year ago. (http://www.tanpaifang.com/jienenjianpai/2015/0402/43538.html) Promotion of clean energy as well as public transport and extension of the green area are both long-term tasks to take in order to improve the situation.
Kenneth Rapoza, “In Global Warming Fight, Shanghai Starts Carbon Trade,” Investing: Forbes, Published November 26 2013, Accessed July 6 2016, http://www.forbes.com/sites/kenrapoza/2013/11/26/in-global-warming-fight-shanghai-starts-carbon-trade/#754099f861bf
Final Piece
My final presentation is composed by screws and transparent vinyl. I use the language of screw to represent a big city as concrete jungle, Shanghai in this specific case, which is covered by thick vinyl standing for carbon dioxide. The image of the suffocated city is thus displayed by the piece.
