NIGHTLABORATORY
checklist of topics for nocturnal fieldwork
inhabitants of the nocturnal city
who is up and on the street at night, why and what for
24-hour economies
continuation of ‘diurnal’ activities and functions of urban life
nocturnalization
‘nocturnalization’ of activities and spheres of life as an ongoing process, especially in large (global) cities
differential access to the night
access to public urban spaces during the night differs for various social categories and groups
social categories and groups
men and women, young and elderly, revelers and homeless, workers, families and children, transients and immigrants
rhythms
life evolves according to different daily rhythms for particular social categories and groups: nonsimultaniety
nocturnal uses of urban spaces
Public and other accessible (interstitial, private and privatised) urban spaces and how they are used at night
changes in function
Day-time uses may differ from night-time uses
nocturnal topography
1.light, illumination, and zones of darkness 2.spatial niches of legal and illicit activities 3.the subjective 'feel' (mental maps) 4.nocturnal meeting places 5.the homeless and their living spaces 6.closed and protected leisure spaces
nightlife: leisure and entertainment
1. leisure activities in public spaces: people walking, sitting, chatting, dancing, etc. 2. commercial venues, entertainment industry 3. enclosed and protected bars, nightclubs, nightlife venues, casinos
categories of special interest
People who work at night, night shift workers and homeless
small private businesses
1. 24hr shops 2. taxi drivers 3. sex workers
low-wage and unskilled work
1.cleaners on premises and public transport 2.maintenance work 3.security guards, nightporters 4.shop assistants (filling and cleaning)
skilled work
1.hospital staff 2.policemen 3.public transport 4.postal services 5.fire brigades 6.hotels 7.service industries (banking)
charity workers
1. charity workers on nightshifts 2. shelters for the homeless 3. churches open during the night
nocturnal inversions
nocturnal situations where the diurnal social divisions become irrelevant, where ‘strangers’ turn into ‘friends’ (communitas and anti-structure)
crime and transgression
1.street muggings 2.public drunkenness and other public disturbances 3.dangerous driving and racing 4.street art and political activism (grafitti, squatting) 5.begging 6.street prostitution
homelessness
people living on the street during the night, homeless people occupying nocturnal spaces, a ‘shadow’ world removed from the well-lit parts of the city
security
1.policemen and public 2.nightguards and private security firms 3.ordinary citizens and their subjective sense of security during the night
public governance
1.public order issues (noice, light pollution, etc) 2.regulation of the night 3.surveillance and intervention 4.stakeholders: authorities, private businesses, churches, police, security companies, citizens