Microapartments

Microapartments are becoming more popular. In fact, NYC is testing out new microapartments. I love microapartments because they are a piece of ingenuity and efficiency. You literally maximize space in creative ways. For instance, a bed pops out of nowhere and storage space is maximized using stairs. You can see the brilliance of microapartments in this YouTube channel.

However, despite the awesomeness of microapartments, there are some issues. First, there is so much space you can save. You can super efficient by transforming the room but still after some time, you will realize that you cannot shrink the house anymore and it is probably uncomfortable.

Second, everyday is a day of moving and configuring stuff around. Of course, this can be good exercise but that time and energy of turning stuff around could have been spent doing something more creative.

Third, microapartments encourage overcrowding and isolation, which are not good for society. By putting more people into confine space, well, in one sense, you increase efficiency of the utilities and the infrastructure (no more long roads leading to small towns) but you also tax the land. More people means more pressue on the land and more chances of conflict as individuals bump into each other more (See supercrowded cities in Asia such as Seoul and Beijing). Microapartments also encourage living alone, promoting isolation. Because of the confined space, it is really hard to have a family live in a microapartment. Isolation is known to contribute to all kinds of mental illness including depression.

Despite these downsides, I still like microapartments and I believe that they will serve well in certain areas. Also, it will make us question whether we need those huge houses and suburbs that are literally in the middle of nowhere. Yet we must be aware of the potential negative consequences of microapartments. Finally, enjoy the sarcastic piece that makes fun of microapartments.