Part 1: If the dam really disappeared in Frozen

1.
Frozen, Norway, and South Korea's Dams
2.
A civil engineer's thoughts on the Gangwon-do wildfires
3.
To preserve the environment of the Alps, the Swiss people
4.
What 'Yeontral Park' Tells Us
5.
Concrete, the generous tree of modern civilization
6.
Excuse for the press block
7.
Singapore's Water Story
8.
Which World Cup does the Han River's "World Cup Bridge" commemorate?
9.
What is engineering and what should it be?

Part 2: The Artificial is Beautiful

1.
The Story of Kruger National Park
2.
Walking around Baekun Lake
3.
How did Ganghwa Island become what it is today?
4.
Suwon Hwaseong, Joseon's new city
5.
The romance of the port, the romance of the breakwater
6.
Some misconceptions about fine dust
7.
Regarding Jeju Island's 'development'
8.
The Birth of a Nation, a Quiet Revolution
9.
About nature and artificiality

Part 3: What Does a City Mean to Us?

1.
Where is Deokseon's house?
2.
How's the apartment?
3.
Thoughts on the way to work in Seoul
4.
The city where others walk, the city I want to live in
5.
In an era of 100% housing supply, is supply no longer necessary?
6.
About the pre-sale and post-sale systems
7.
Walking along Anyangcheon
8.
To create a three-dimensional and shining city
9.
Hong Kong travelogue

Part 4: The Power of the Invisible

1.
Throw away the high bar
2.
Jump over the high bar
3.
Trust society
4.
The value of labor and competition
5.
What skills will our children need in the world they will live in?
6.
Our attitude toward preparing for the future
7.
What I enjoy and what I don't enjoy
8.
Thoughts on generational theory
9.
Unification may not necessarily be a jackpot, but

What would happen if the dam in Frozen really disappeared?
Emphasize that not all construction is the same

According to the author, the root of the complex and negative view of apartments and condominiums lies, above all, in a long-standing misunderstanding about their "eco-friendliness."
Without addressing this social misunderstanding and deep-seated antipathy, our society's superficial and unproductive divisions over "construction projects" will continue, and we will be unable to harness the progressive energy surrounding social infrastructure.
This is because, from some point on, a critical view of civil engineering structures and infrastructure construction has been gaining ground in our society.
Of course, as the author reveals in the book, it is true that the environmental impact assessment of the Four Major Rivers Project in the past was somewhat hastily conducted.
But can we really dismiss all construction projects as the same? The author recalls the project to bury the Gyeongbu Expressway at its terminus, recently re-launched by the Seocho-gu mayor after extensive research and review by specialized organizations. He examines the various contexts in which this proactive approach has not been widely embraced in our society.
This is why the author begins to seriously question the meaning of apartments by asking, “What’s wrong with apartments?” and comprehensively reflects on the construction of social infrastructure in a country.
We need to clearly recognize the social benefits that infrastructure can provide and think more transformatively about its power and value.
Let's take a look at [Frozen 2].
In the Disney animation [Frozen 2], which recorded an astonishing audience number of 13.74 million, the main characters use the power of spirits to destroy a concrete arch dam and achieve a happy ending.
The author asks:
But what would happen if the dam actually disappeared? Norway, the setting for this story, actually enjoyed a pristine environment with single-digit fine dust concentrations thanks to its dams, laying the foundation for generating electricity for the entire country from renewable energy.
It's not just Norway's dams.
The same goes for the tunnels in Switzerland.
Switzerland, which built the world's longest Gotthard Base Tunnel in the Alps, consistently ranks first or second globally in sustainability and environmental performance indices.
The author asks:
What if the Swiss government had built the Arirang Road, a winding road over the mountains, claiming the tunnel would be detrimental to the environment? Wouldn't the Alps have suffered from even more carbon dioxide emissions?
There is another example that the author of "What's Up with the Apartment" cites in the book.
If South Korea, where 70 percent of the land is mountainous, hadn't built sufficient highways, would the 2019 wildfire in Sokcho, Gangwon Province, have been able to produce the moving scene where countless fire trucks from across the country converged on the scene in the middle of the night to quickly extinguish the blaze? According to the book, that simply couldn't have happened.
Infrastructure plays a great role in supporting a society.
Of course, the author's view is that we must be wary of the indiscriminate development fever, speculative forces, corruption, and collusion surrounding construction projects.
However, the invisible power of social infrastructure still guarantees the members' prosperous and convenient lives.
The author, who has been working as a civil engineer for over a decade, draws on his own experience to argue eloquently how engineering contributes to our society and emphasizes the importance of our attention to infrastructure.

A new and groundbreaking perspective on nature and artificiality
Speaking of the true beauty of the 'artificial'

Therefore, we must fundamentally reexamine this concrete civilization from the beginning.
Furthermore, we must ask how much a society's infrastructure construction project can 'revolutionarily' change.
In Part 1 of the book, the author meticulously examines the 'Yeontral Park' in Yeonnam-dong, Seoul, the sidewalk blocks of Gwanghwamun, and the World Cup Bridge on the Han River. In Part 2, the author begins to focus on the 'power of art' that guarantees convenient lives for citizens both domestically and globally.
We examine the process by which Baekun Lake, known to many as a natural lake, was artificially created, and trace the history of Ganghwa Island since the Goryeo Dynasty to retrace the legacy of large-scale reclamation projects.
The author, who spoke of the importance of urban planning while talking about Joseon's new city, Suwon Hwaseong, turns his attention to the Port of Los Angeles and Mumbai, India, and preaches the civilizational value of the structure called a breakwater.
What the author is trying to say is, ultimately, to maturely affirm the historical legacy and value of the scientific revolution and its engineering vision.
In "What's Wrong with Apartments," the author emphasizes how crucial it is for a society to actively embrace the advancement of engineering technology and take an infrastructure-based approach, and how urgent it is to improve the quality of life and daily living standards of citizens through this.
For example, we suffer from fine dust caused by industrialization, and this can easily be linked to a negative perception of technological advancement. However, there is a stark difference in the concentration of fine dust between representative cities in developed and developing countries.
Through strict regulations on fine dust and the active adoption of eco-friendly energy, advanced countries are already producing remarkable results in suppressing fine dust.
The same goes for transportation infrastructure and disaster prevention infrastructure, which are a culmination of a society's engineering resources and cutting-edge technologies.
It's hard to ask, "What's the big deal about building a bridge?" or "Isn't that a useless construction project?" There are still examples in Korea, such as the Cheonsadaegyo Bridge in Sinan, Jeollanam-do, that have dramatically improved regional logistics and medical services.
The flood problem that occurred in the summer of 2020, which resulted in many casualties across the country due to the failure to prevent overflow of rivers and streams, is in the same context.
The author shares vivid examples of Singapore, a country plagued by water shortages and relentless infrastructural investment, and of countries in Africa and the Middle East struggling to secure even a single cable-stayed bridge.
Traces of science and technology that enrich human civilization exist throughout the cities and lands where we live. We live by their benefits, and we must continue to pay close attention to them.
We often criticize 'gray' and 'dry' concrete structures, but it would be foolish to be fooled by such appearances.
Yang Dong-shin, the author of “What’s Wrong with Apartments,” argues that reinforced concrete is actually a blessing to humanity.
According to the author, thanks to the widespread adoption of sewerage systems in the 21st century, humanity has been freed from waterborne infectious diseases and the average life expectancy has increased by about 35 years. This sewage treatment infrastructure is a technology that would never have been developed without concrete.
If we pay close attention and pay more attention, artificial technologies and facilities, including concrete, can continue to ensure an environmentally friendly and sustainable future for humanity.


Revisiting the progressive values ​​of "slab-type apartments"
Why the 'Apartment Republic' Perspective Is Wrong

Having calmly examined the nature and role of infrastructure and its social value, the author now analyzes the urban problems of a country, including apartments and other multi-family housing, in Part 3, directly answering the question, "What's wrong with apartments?"
The author reveals his vision of urban planning from a broad perspective that covers Seoul, Anyang, Hwaseong, Sejong, Jeju, and Hong Kong, and says that the difference between past and present cities can be defined in one word: 'the difference between the building-to-land ratio and the floor area ratio.'
Contrary to the many misconceptions surrounding 'urbanization', he firmly asserts that structures with 'low building-to-land ratio' and 'high floor area ratio', such as high-rise apartments, may be the most advanced way to efficiently utilize limited nature, and that modern cities should continue to expand green space by increasing building floor area ratio and lowering building-to-land ratio.
Furthermore, he emphasizes that only such a direction will give us a ‘three-dimensional and shining city.’
Wouldn't such a claim provoke premature resentment in many? We recall the setting of the popular drama "Reply 1988," the Deokseon family living in Ssangmun-dong, Dobong-gu, Seoul.
Looking back at the densely packed single-story and multi-family homes in a residential area, I am overcome with a vague sense of nostalgia for the place where we lived 30 years ago.
However, in terms of per capita living space, green space expansion, parking issues, environmental protection, and other aspects, such a housing style cannot be said to be better than an apartment complex.
Apartments and other multi-family housing units are supplied with high-voltage utilities, which can save on electricity, water, and gas costs. Furthermore, from a transportation perspective, more people can use public transportation, reducing greenhouse gas emissions per capita.
As Edward Glaeser, a Harvard University economist and author of “The Triumph of the City,” argues, it is true that people living in cities emit less carbon than those living in rural homes.
In short, living surrounded by concrete walls is much more environmentally friendly than living surrounded by trees.
So, what can we say about the antipathy toward apartments expressed in Valéry Julezeau's "Apartment Republic" perspective? As a counterargument, the author brings up the ideas of Le Corbusier, a master of global architecture active in the early 20th century.
In the Plan Voisin, which he advocated in the 1920s, Le Corbusier listed pilotis, roof gardens, free facades, free plans, and horizontal windows as five principles of modern architecture that could solve Paris's urban problems.
Yang Dong-shin claims that surprisingly, these elements are almost all applied to the slab-type apartments in new cities in South Korea.
Moreover, a closer look at France's public housing culture reveals that it is completely different from the apartment-centered culture and urban form that are unique to our country, and that France's apartment policy is synonymous with failed policies worldwide.
In this book, the author takes what he can from the criticisms of the French geographer who wrote "The Apartment Republic," but he explains in detail how wrong it is to unconditionally accept them.


A masterpiece that preaches the value of invisible infrastructure.
A brilliant and innovative insight from an engineer!

Yang Dong-shin, the author of "What's Wrong with Apartments," is a construction engineer who began studying urban planning and civil engineering 20 years ago and has participated in various projects, including undersea tunnels, subways, power plants, and sea bridges, in over ten countries, including India, Iraq, Vietnam, South Africa, Qatar, Uzbekistan, Oman, and Denmark.
He has been a regular columnist for a major daily newspaper (Seoul Shinmun) since 2018, and is still a practicing engineer working on various infrastructure projects across borders.
We usually understand the importance of science, engineering, and infrastructure in our heads, but he must have been able to experience the value of that infrastructure firsthand, having spent over a decade working on immersed structures and temporary hoists.
Sometimes, as written in the book, we go through very dangerous situations that could lead to death.
Ultimately, the author of this book, Yang Dong-shin, fiercely emphasizes the value of infrastructure to us.
Like some architects, we reject the conventional thinking that views cities only in terms of aesthetics, and instead think of cities from a practical perspective where more people can live more happily and conveniently.
So he finds in the "apartment complex," which we often feel baseless rejection of or criticize or belittle without warning, the sustainability, strengths and values ​​that can open up the future of our civilization.
There are certainly many grievances against multi-family housing, especially slab-style apartments, which are home to more than half of the population and yet are often described as “inhumane,” “unnatural,” and “matchbox-like.”
According to the author, Le Corbusier was never wrong.
He was an architect who, a century ago, foresaw the potential and eco-friendliness of our apartment complex, as well as the power and value of our social infrastructure.

As Professor Kim Du-eul of the Department of Economics at Myongji University, who wrote the book's recommendation, said, the author was able to gain a groundbreaking perspective that would lead us to true reflection by "creating" tunnels, bridges, dams, and public housing.
Having personally used public transportation for over two hours every day for over 20 years since his college days, he was able to discuss the infrastructure needed from the perspective of a citizen living his daily life, and he was able to think about what kind of city he wanted to live in, rather than a city where others walk.
The author argues that we no longer need an infrastructure that centralized power can "proceed forward," but rather an infrastructure culture that improves by incorporating the voices of each and every citizen who uses it.
To create such a culture, it would be essential to hear the insights of an engineer who has been in the field for a long time and has poured concrete himself.
Just because it's an apartment doesn't mean it's a perfect architectural structure.
It is also true that metropolises around the world, including our country's, each suffer from their own problems.
But as always, humanity will find solutions to overcome the current anxiety and confusion.
When trying to find the answer, it would be best to consult the unique perspective of an engineer who has long been building undersea tunnels, subways, apartment buildings, and sea bridges.
Like the lyrics of [Apartment], we hope that the land where we live will be filled with starlight, with wind-blown greenery beside it, and that the presence of our loved ones who are always waiting for us will be with us.
As the author says, apartments and multi-family housing with high floor area ratios can guarantee just such a lifestyle.
So, when we read this book, we can sincerely ask ourselves:
How's the apartment?