Uploaded on 2016-12-24 by Hibon

This is a picture taken in Kyoto while i was visiting the country last October. As you can see and as highlighted in the module, in such an old city most of the electrical wiring is still hanging outside rather than being hidden in the buildings. Different reasons probably explain this situation, one of them being the materials used for housing in Japan, often involving wood and "lighter" building materials compared to stone, cement and bricks in Europe where gullets can be carved in the walls so as to hide the wires. Another reason being that Japan is often subject to seisms and that network fixes are easier realized and monitored when wirings are outside despite the esthetic impact and potential risk to civilian life if wires were to fall off. As materials and technology evolve, there should be ways to better monitor / enhance the electricity network and transmit energy while preserving the traditional architecture of the area at a reasonable cost.