Minimum energy

One good thing about the snow is that it lets us see what portion of our streets we really need.   Similarly, it's interesting to observe cow-paths and the people-created walking paths in urban parks.

One good example that I remember is this little park in front of the Milan's Polytechnic University.   Here is the original image from Google Maps.

All of these examples follow just one simple rule: minimum energy.

• shortest walk: connect common origins and common destinations
• physical constraints: avoid obstacles (e.g. trees, light poles, puddles)
• reinforcement: previously created paths offer clean, compacted soil

Perhaps landscape architects should let people find these natural paths?   One could even decide to leave the park without any paved paths for a few months, then pave the acceptable ones and block off those that are undesired.