Australia or Canada? (deposits, cities, buildings)

[fusion2]

Originally Posted by Acajack

Water and wood you need to survive are a lot easier to find in a boreal forest than water in the middle of a scorching hot desert.

Good point - Isn't softwood lumber highly sought out for in building homes? I remember vaguely reading about that but thought i'd ask you cuz you'd probably know

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by fusion2

Good point - Isn't softwood lumber highly sought out for in building homes? I remember vaguely reading about that but thought i'd ask you cuz you'd probably know

I suppose it is - not sure. Not an expert, sorry!

But certainly if you are thinking of the basic necessities, it's also much easier to find wood to build sheltier and make fires in a boreal forest than it is in a desert.

[fusion2]

Here's an interesting read for anyone interested on the Canadian lumber industry and what it contributes to the world economy...

Forest products | Natural Resources Canada

[hobbesdj]

Originally Posted by Acajack

There does seem to be a sweet spot or at least a minimum of about 20C for the summer. People seem to willing to put up with a lot during the winter provided they get a decent break during the summer. Some of the larger cities in Siberia have insane cold in winter but get up into the 20s during the summer.

I wonder what the largest city in the world is that has no real summer (think 15C maximums or less) and very cold winters?

There are places like the west coast of Norway and Iceland and La Paz in Bolivia that don't really warm up in the summer, but their winters aren't what I would call extremely cold.

Any ideas people?

It is worth taking a look at Anchorage. The metro area is something like 300,000+. It has the usual brutal Alaska winters but summers that only have average highs around ~17 during the three summer months. But from what I can see the prize would go to Murmansk, which has a similar population and even lower temperatures.

[fusion2]

Originally Posted by Acajack

But certainly if you are thinking of the basic necessities, it's also much easier to find wood to build sheltier and make fires in a boreal forest than it is in a desert.

Yes - that is very true! You'd probably have a better chance of finding food as well..

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by hobbesdj

It is worth taking a look at Anchorage. The metro area is something like 300,000+. It has the usual brutal Alaska winters but summers that only have average highs around ~17 during the three summer months. But from what I can see the prize would go to Murmansk, which has a similar population and even lower temperatures.

I looked up Harbin which is huge (Toronto-sized) and has Winnipeg temperatures in the winter. But it's like Toronto in the summer so it wouldn't count.

[fusion2]

Originally Posted by hobbesdj

It is worth taking a look at Anchorage. The metro area is something like 300,000+. It has the usual brutal Alaska winters but summers that only have average highs around ~17 during the three summer months. But from what I can see the prize would go to Murmansk, which has a similar population and even lower temperatures.

Ah good one! Yes Anchorage is notable... As a matter of fact, Fairbanks isn't too bad of an example either..

[fusion2]

Trondheim Norway is a fairly large sized city 235K in urban area that doesn't get above 20 in the summer..

Colourful residential stock too..

https://www.google.ca/search?q=trond...ch&q=trondheim+

[saturno_v]

Originally Posted by Acajack

Another few things to consider:

- the super-hot parts of Australia don't seem to have much success getting a lot of people to stick around and settle permanently. The resource-based communities seem to have the fly-in, fly-out culture that is typical of many isolated northern resource communities in Canada.

What is the point of living in the middle of Australia if you have temperate beautiful coastal areas??

- countries like the US, France, Russia and China that have colder areas and warmer areas tend to have a majority of their large cities concentrated in colder areas. They may be there for historic reasons but even so they are far from emptying out and continue to grow even though technology (as has been stated here) makes it more comfortable to live in warmer areas.

The vast majority of big cities are not located in extreme weather areas.....having snow in the winter does not make a place extreme.

- in spite of the harshness of cold or cooler climates, these tend to be the areas of the world that first achieved a lifestyle with a high level of comfort. Out of these places then emerged the know-how to make life in hotter places more comfortable.

Ancient Greece and the Romans, just to make a quick example, beg to disagree...

Water and wood you need to survive are a lot easier to find in a boreal forest than water in the middle of a scorching hot desert.

Not much wood in an arctic cold desert either...

But unless you live there, for better or for worse, you don't generally go to Palm Springs in the summer. It's the low season for visitors there.

And no one lives in Death Valley. And many other desert places that are just too hot and uncomfortable.

Even Florida is widely considered to be a destination to be avoided in the summer weather-wise because it's just too hot.

They go to Palm Springs and Las Vegas for specific reasons as well. Places with moderately warm climates are those who draw visitors for temperature reasons, not places with extreme heat.

Tourism is still robust in summer months in Florida and Palm Springs...obviously there is less need to flock there because other places get warm as well in the summer....would a Torontonian feel the urge to fly to a warmer climate in July?? Or better, he would have other choices as well...I prefer moderate temperatures as well but between too cold and too hot, give me too hot hands down.

[saturno_v]

Originally Posted by fusion2

Right but you have to drive 2 hours for an event which means 4 hours round trip for every event - That would suck!

Palm Springs is not the only place where I can enjoy nice warm weather in the US....it is what it is.