Ecumenopolis
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Ecumenopolis (from Greek: world city) is a word invented in 1967 by the Greek city planner Constantinos Doxiadis to represent the idea that in the future the urban areas and megalopoleis would eventually fuse and there would be a single continuous world-wide city as a progression from the current urbanization and population growth trends. It is worth noting that science fiction author Isaac Asimov's city-planet Trantor predates the etymology.
A world undergoing this level of hyper-development would presumably either have its food imported from other planets, or grown in vast orbital or subterranean hydroponics facilities. A civilization capable of building an ecumenopolis is almost by definition at least ranked as Type I on the Kardashev scale.
Doxiadis also created a scenario based on the traditions and trends of urban development of his time, predicting at first a European eperopolis (continent city) which would be based on the area between London–Paris–Amsterdam.
[edit] Ecumenopolis in fiction
In modern science fiction ecumenopolis became frequent topic. Capitals of galactic empires are typically portrayed as ecumenopoleis.
[edit] See also
| Image:Steps.svg | |
| Preceding: | Megalopolis |
| Subsequent: | Civilization |
