Prompt Cast
The Fascinating History of Fake Towns and Decoy Cities
TLDR Fake towns and decoy cities have been used throughout history for various purposes, including propaganda, diverting bombing raids, testing driverless cars, and military training. From Potemkin villages to Starfish Cities, these fake facades have played a significant role in shaping history.
Timestamped Summary
00:00
In this podcast episode, the hosts discuss the concept of fake towns, including the example of a Potemkin village built in the 1700s to impress Empress Catherine II.
05:30
Potemkin villages are fake facades used as propaganda, and examples include a famous North Korean village and a Nazi village during World War II.
10:53
During World War II, the British created fake cities called Starfish Cities to divert German bombing raids and successfully diverted about 700 bombing raids and potentially saved about 3,000 lives, but the idea of decoy cities was actually first used by the French in World War I to protect Paris from German Zeppelin bombing raids.
15:57
The hosts discuss the influence of movie backlots on the creation of fake cities during World War II and beyond.
21:10
During World War II, Boeing built a fake city on top of their factory in order to shield it from potential bombing raids, with the fake city including plywood cars, dyed burlap grass, and surrealistic approximation of trees.
26:15
Boeing built a fake town called Apex in Florida as a cover for their secret rocket fuel project, and the town name was derived from the technical designation of the project, Air Products Incorporated Experimental (Apex).
31:27
Aglow became a real town after someone opened a general store on the spot marked on the map, and Ram McNally got sued for including it on their map.
36:30
The Nevada test site was a famous fake town used for weapons testing, including the Apple II test site in 1955 where they gathered 6,000 people to watch the blast.
42:13
There are several fake towns that have been used for various purposes, including a fake drive-around town in Ann Arbor used to test driverless cars and a miniature fake town called Safety City where children can learn about traffic rules.
47:22
Fake towns have been used for various purposes, including testing energy savings, transportation, and driverless cars, with a focus on sustainability, as well as for military and police training.
52:43
The Johnson administration diverted funding from social welfare programs to police forces, indicating a shift in the United States' official policy to suppress protests rather than address the underlying issues causing unrest.
Categories:
Society & Culture
