Vinicius M. Netto is interested in cities as networks involving information, cooperation, and segregation. His academic journey began with a focus on segregation, during which he proposed the approach to dynamic segregation in people’s daily movements and activities while pursuing his MPhil degree in 1999. Later, he worked on a theory that examined the relationship between meaning, architectural and urban space and communication and how this affects the creation of social action systems. Netto’s research then led him to collaborate on a method that differentiates the effects of architecture from other urban features, such as street networks, on the social life of streets and neighbourhoods. His current research concentrates on understanding how humans collectively battle entropy by encoding information in cities as cooperation systems.
Vinicius is a Principal Researcher at the Research Centre for Territory, Transports and Environment, University of Porto, Portugal (CITTA | FEUP), and an Associate Professor at the Graduate Programme in Architecture and Urbanism (Universidade Federal Fluminense | UFF, Brazil). He received a PhD in Advanced Architectural Studies from The Bartlett School of Architecture, University College London (UCL), under the supervision of Professor Bill Hillier, and was a Visiting scholar at the Center for Urban Science and Progress, New York University (CUSP NYU, 2019-2020).
He is the author of The Social Fabric of Cities (Routledge) and over 100 articles and chapters, including in journals such as Environment and Planning B: Urban Analytics and City Science, Environment and Planning D: Society and Space, Cities, International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, Built Environment, Cybergeo, PLoS One, Complexity and as a cover feature of Physics journal Entropy. Vinicius has authored or co-edited four books published in Brazil. He is an associate editor for Area Development and Policy (ADP), a journal of the Regional Studies Association (RSA, UK), a former Editor-in-Chief for Revista de Morfologia Urbana (Portuguese-language Network of Urban Morphology | PNUM), and a member of the editorial board of journals such as the International Journal of Urban Informatics.
“My research explores theoretical gaps and absences, particularly those concerning overlooked and subtle aspects of social reproduction, even in widely recognised problems.
My approach frequently pursues threads beyond observation: elusive entities as ‘candidates for existence’ embedded in contingent and non-contingent relationships, which must be reconstructed by imagination, abstraction and new empirical methods, particularly computational ones.”
Research subjects
Information, entropy and the city
How can unpredictable individual acts amount to working systems of action? We propose that space is an essential part of the cyclical reduction of the entropy of actions, guiding cooperation.
Dynamic segregation: segregated trajectories and movement networks in the city
I proposed in 1999 a shift in the focus from the static segregation of places to how social segregation is reproduced through embodied urban trajectories, activities and actions. We analyse the space-time structure of potential encounters latent in people’s daily urban trajectories by drawing on classic methods like surveys and recent social media locational data explorations.
The social effects of architecture
Could different architectural forms have different effects on what occurs in public spaces? This research attempts to grasp traces of the elusive effects of the built form and distinguish them from other urban forces at play.
Morphogenesis: the invention of the urban block
Our work examines how spatialities emerge and why they acquire recognisable morphogenetic structures that, from many possible paths, follow archetypal directions.
Authored and edited books
Netto, V. M. (2017) The Social Fabric of Cities. London & New York: Routledge. [download Introduction]
Netto, V. M. (2014) Cidade & Sociedade: As Tramas da Prática e seus Espaços. Porto Alegre: Sulina.[available for download]
Sampaio, A.R., Carvalho, C., Netto, V. M. (2020, Ed) A Cidade e suas Dimensões de Pesquisa: Abordagens Emergentes. Rio de Janeiro: RioBook.
Netto, V. M., Saboya, R., Vargas, J.C., Carvalho, T. (2017, Ed) Efeitos da Arquitetura: Impactos da Urbanização Contemporânea no Brasil. Brasília: FRBH. [available for download]
Aguiar, D., Netto, V. M. (2012, Ed) Urbanidades. Rio de Janeiro: Folio Digital. [available for download]
Scientific papers (ISI/Scopus journals)
Netto, V. M., Brigatti, E., Cacholas, C. (2023) From urban form to information: Cellular configurations in different spatial cultures. Environment and Planning B-Urban Analytics and City Science, v.50, p.239980832211073 – 161.
Carvalho, C., Netto, V.M. (2023) Segregation within segregation: Informal settlements beyond socially homogenous areas. Cities, v.134, p.104152.
Ventorim, F.C.; Netto, V.M. (2023) Criminalidade e espaço urbano: as redes de relação entre crime, vítimas e localização no Rio de Janeiro. Urbe. Revista Brasileira de Gestão Urbana, v.15, p.1-18.
Brigatti, E., Netto, V. M., De Souza Filho, F. N. M., Cacholas, C. (2021) Entropy and hierarchical clustering: Characterizing the morphology of the urban fabric in different spatial cultures. Chaos, v.31, p.113138.
Meirelles, J., Ribeiro, F. L., Cury, G., Binder, C. R., Netto, V. M. (2021) More from Less? Environmental Rebound Effects of City Size. Sustainability, 13(7), 4028.
Netto, V.M. (2020) Da forma urbana à cidade como informação. Urbe. Revista Brasileira de Gestão Urbana, v.12, p.1 – 21.
Ribeiro, F., Meirelles, J., Netto, V.M., Rodrigues, C., Baronchelli, A. (2020) On the relation between transversal and longitudinal scaling in cities, PLoS One, v.15, p.e0233003.
Maia, J.L.M., Netto, V.M., Costa, B.L.G (2019) Forma urbana e poluição atmosférica: impactos na cidade do Rio de Janeiro. Urbe. Revista Brasileira de Gestão Urbana, v.11, p.1 – 15.
Netto, V.M., Brigatti, E., Meirelles, J., Ribeiro, F.L., Pace, B., Cacholas, C., Sanches, P. (2018) Cities, from Information to Interaction. Entropy 20, 834.
Netto, V.M., Meirelles, J., Pinheiro, M., Lorea, H. (2018) A temporal geography of encounters. Cybergeo: European Journal of Geography. 844, DOI: 10.4000/cybergeo.28985
Netto, V.M., Meirelles, J., Ribeiro, F.L. (2018) Cidade e interação: o papel do espaço urbano na organização social. Urbe: Revista Brasileira de Gestão Urbana 10(2), pp.249-267. DOI 10.1590/2175-3369.010.002.ao06.
Netto, V.M., Meirelles, J., Ribeiro, F. (2017) Social interaction and the city: The effect of space on the reduction of entropy. Complexity, Article ID 6182503, DOI: 10.1155/2017/6182503
Netto, V.M. (2017) The social fabric of cities: a tripartite approach to cities as systems of interaction. Area Development and Policy 2 (2), 130-153.
Netto, V.M., Pinheiro, M., Paschoalino, R. (2015). Segregated networks in the city. International Journal of Urban and Regional Research 39 (6) 1084-1102.
Scientific papers (other refereed journals)
Netto, V.M., Saboya, R.T., Vargas, J.C. (2022) Does Architecture Matter to Urban Vitality? Buildings and the Social Life of Streets and Neighbourhoods. Built Environment, v.48, p.317-340.
Green, M., Yang, T., Netto, V. M., Conroy-Dalton, R., Psarra, S., Holanda, F. (2022) A Tribute to Bill Hillier. Urban Design (Beijing, China), v.04, p.6-25.
Netto, V.M., Fiszon, M., Moreira, M. C., Moraes, I. M. (2020) Pesquisa urbana no Brasil: Um panorama inicial [Parte 1]. Arquitextos, v. 238, p. 1-15.
Netto, V.M., Fiszon, M., Moreira, M. C., Moraes, I. M., (2020) Pesquisa urbana no Brasil: Um panorama inicial [Parte 2]. Arquitextos, v. 239, p. 1-15.
Netto, V.M., Brigatti, E., Meirelles, J., Ribeiro, F.L., Cacholas, C. (2019) Cidades como informação. V!rus, v.19, p.1.
Netto, V.M., Meirelles, J., Pinheiro, M., Lorea, H. (2017) Uma geografia temporal do encontro. Revista de Morfologia Urbana, v. 5, n. 2, p. 85-101. https://doi.org/10.47235/rmu.v5i2.2
Netto, V.M. (2016) A cidade como trama da vida cotidiana: a (r)evolução de Jane Jacobs. Revista Políticas Públicas & Cidades, v.4, p.1-8.
Netto, V.M. (2016) Jane Jacobs. Revista Políticas Públicas & Cidades, v.4, p.8 – 41.
Saboya, R., Netto, V.M., Vargas, J. C. (2015) Fatores morfológicos da vitalidade urbana: uma investigação sobre o tipo arquitetônico e seus efeitos. Arquitextos, v.180, p.1.
Book chapters
Netto, V.M., Carvalho, C., Fiszon, M., Couto, Y. (2022) Micro-segregation in Rio de Janeiro. In: Vertical Cities: Micro-segregation, Social Mix and Urban Housing Markets. Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar Publishing Limited, pp. 154-171.
Netto, V.M., Meirelles, J., Ribeiro, F.L. (2020) Cities and entropy: assessing urban sustainability as a problem of coordination. In Binder, C.; Wyss, R.; Massaro, E. (Eds) Sustainability Assessment of Urban Systems. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. 438-459.
Netto, V.M., Fiszon, M., Moreira, M. C., Moraes, I. M. (2020) A pesquisa urbana no Brasil: Um panorama inicial. In: A Cidade e suas Dimensões de Pesquisa: Abordagens Emergentes. Rio de Janeiro: MC& Design Editorial, pp. 20-55.
Netto, V.M., Vargas, J.C., Saboya, R.T. (2019) The social effects of architecture: built form and social sustainability. In M. R. Shirazi and R. Keivani (Eds.) Urban Social Sustainability: Theory, Policy and Practice. London: Routledge, pp. 125–148.
Netto, V.M. (2018) Jane Jacobs: An intellectual trajectory In: Jane Jacobs is still here: Jane Jacobs 100 Her legacy and relevance in the 21st Century. Delft: TU Delft, pp. 34-46.
Netto, V.M. (2017) A cidade como resultado: consequências de escolhas arquitetônicas In: Efeitos da Arquitetura: Os Impactos da Urbanização Contemporânea no Brasil. Brasília: FRBH, pp. 25-50.
Vargas, J.C., Netto, V.M. (2017) Condições Urbanas da Caminhabilidade In: Cidades de Pedestres: A Caminhabilidade no Brasil e no Mundo. Rio de Janeiro: Babilonia, pp. 191-204.
Saboya, R.T., Vargas, J.C., Netto, V.M. (2017) Fatores morfológicos da vitalidade urbana: uma investigação sobre a arquitetura e seus efeitos In: Efeitos da Arquitetura: Os Impactos da Urbanização Contemporânea no Brasil. Brasília: FRBH, pp. 163-183.
Netto, V.M., Paschoalino, R. B.; Furtado, M., Cantarino, J., Macedo, S. M., Moreira, M. C. (2017) Impactos de complexos habitacionais do PMCMV: mobilidade, diversidade do entorno e vida social In: Efeitos da Arquitetura: Efeitos da Arquitetura: Os Impactos da Urbanização Contemporânea no Brasil. Brasília: FRBH, pp. 199-218.
Netto, V.M., Saboya, R.T., Vargas, J.C., Carvalho, T. (2017) Os efeitos multidimensionais da forma urbana In: Efeitos da Arquitetura: Os Impactos da Urbanização Contemporânea no Brasil. Brasília: FRBH, pp. 9-24.
Netto, V.M. (2016) A cidade como resultado: consequências de escolhas arquitetônicas In: Cidade e Movimento: Mobilidades e Interações no Desenvolvimento Urbano. 1 ed.Brasilia: Instituto de Pesquisa Econômica Aplicada, pp. 101-130.
Netto, V.M. (2016) Between urban and digital spaces. In: Spatial Cultures: Towards a New Social Morphology of Cities Past and Present. 1 ed.London / New York: Routledge, pp. 141-150.
Netto, V.M. (2016) Cidade e entropia social In: Qualidade do Lugar e Cultura Contemporânea: Modos de ser e habitar as cidades. 1 ed.Porto Alegre: Sulina, pp. 116-143.
Some earlier works
Netto, V.M.; Saboya, R.T.; Vargas, J.C.; Figueiredo, L.; Freitas, C.; Pinheiro, M. (2012) The convergence of patterns in the city: (isolating) the effects of architectural morphology on movement and activity. In: Proceedings of the 8th International Space Syntax Symposium. Santiago, Universidad Católica de Chile.
Netto, V.M.; Vargas, J.C.; Saboya, R.T. (2012) (Buscando) Os efeitos sociais da morfologia arquitetônica. Urbe – Revista Brasileira de Gestão Urbana, v. 4, n. 2, pp. 261–282.
Netto, V.M. (2008). Practice, space, and the duality of meaning. Environment and Planning D: Society and Space, 26(2), 359-379.
Netto, V.M. (2007) Communication and Space: A Reflection on the Materiality of Social Structures. PhD Thesis, University College London.
Netto, V.M.; Paschoalino, R.; Pinheiro, M. (2010) Social networks in the city, or the urban condition of coexistence. V!rus, v. 01, p. 04.
Netto, V.M.; Krafta, R. (2001) “Socio-spatial networks: social segregation as a real-time phenomenon”. In: Proceedings of the 3rd International Space Syntax Symposium. Atlanta, GeorgiaTech.
Netto, V.M.; Krafta, R. (1999) Segregação dinâmica urbana: modelagem e mensuração. [Urban dynamic segregation: modelling and measurement] Revista Brasileira de Estudos Urbanos e Regionais, v.1, p.133-152.
Conference papers (peer reviewed)
Netto, V.M., Brigatti, E., Cacholas, C. (2021) Built form and cultural identity: exploring spatial information to understand different spatial cultures In: Proceedings of the XXVII International Seminar on Urban Form ISUF, Glasgow.
Netto, V.M., Brigatti, E., Cacholas, C., Aleixo, V. (2019) Assessing spatial information in physical environments. In 14th International Conference on Spatial Information Theory (COSIT 2019), Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Regensburg, Germany, September 9-13, 142, 25.
Netto, V.M., Meirelles, J., Ribeiro, F.L., Cacholas, C. (2018) A criação do quarteirão: Do registro arqueológico à simulação morfogenética. VIII PNUM: A Produção do Território: Formas, Processos, Desígnios. Porto, Portugal.
Netto, V.M., Meirelles, J., Pinheiro, M., Lorea, H. (2017) The fabric of encounter: Integration and segregation in the spatiotemporal structure of social networks. In Proceedings of the 11th International Space Syntax Symposium, Lisbon, Portugal.
Netto, V.M., Furtado, M. (2017) Configuration, location, mobility: effects on spatial and social behaviour for residents in social housing complexes in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. In Proceedings of the 11th International Space Syntax Symposium, Lisbon, Portugal.
Cantarino, J., Netto, V.M. (2017) Social housing and the ‘hidden morphology of plots’. In Proceedings of the 11th International Space Syntax Symposium, Lisbon.
Netto, V.M., Meirelles, J., Ribeiro, F. (2017) Social entropy and the city: a unidimensional model. In Proceedings of the 2nd International Workshop on Agent-based modelling of urban systems. ABMUS 2017, São Paulo: AAMAS.
Cantarino, J., Netto, V.M. (2017) Urban diversity and transformation: Land use and social housing. In Proceedings of the Regional Studies Association Latin America Division Conference, São Paulo.
Furtado, M., Netto, V.M. (2017) Mobility and sociability as issues of spatial inequality: effects of location, income and mobility differences on social housing residents in Rio de Janeiro. In Proceedings of the Regional Studies Association Latin America Division Conference, São Paulo.
Netto, V.M. (2016) (Re)claiming the city: Polis and the public sphere. In Proceedings of the XXXIV International Congress of the Latin American Studies Association (LASA 2016). New York, LASA.
Netto, V.M. (2015) Reflections on space syntax as sociospatial theory. In Proceedings of the 10th International Space Syntax Symposium, University College London.
Netto, V.M., Meirelles, J., Pinheiro, M., Lorea, H. (2015) Digital Footprints in the Cityscape: Finding networks of segregation through Big Data. In Proceedings of the International Conference on Location-based Social Media Data. Athens, Georgia.
Editorial work
Associate Editor of Area Development and Policy (ADP), a journal of the Regional Studies Association (RSA, UK, Taylor & Francis, 2017-present).
Editor-in-Chief of Revista de Morfologia Urbana, journal of the Portuguese-speaking community of researchers on urban morphology and city science (2019-2021).
Guest Editor of the special issue of the journal Entropy on “Entropy and Information in Networks, from Societies to Cities” (2019).
Guest Editor of the Journal of Space Syntax (2015, Volume 6, Issue 1), with the thematic issue “Open syntaxes: Towards new engagements with the social sciences and humanities”, including contributions by leading theorists Nigel Thrift and Juval Portugali, among others.
Keynotes and invited speech
Invited speaker at Tel Aviv University, Comparative Urbanism Lecture Series, 2022 | Title: The many facets of segregation: Rio de Janeiro. https://urban0204.wixsite.com/comp-urbanism2/copy-of-tel-aviv
Keynote speaker at the 13th International Space Syntax Symposium, Bergen, 2022 | Title: Ideas as legacy: Traces of Bill Hillier in theory (and memory). https://www.hvl.no/en/research/conference/13sss/meet-the-keynotes/
Keynote speaker at the 12th International Space Syntax Symposium, Beijing on 8-13 July 2019. Title: Information: Connecting Minds, Cities and Societies. http://www.12sssbeijing.com/speakers/
Guest Speaker, City Science Summit, The MIT Media Lab, City Science Group and Network, University of Guadalajara (October 7th-9th 2020). Title: Cities without segregation
Keynote speaker at the International Seminar on Data and Technology for Urban Analysis, 25 and 26 November 2019, University of Guadalajara, Mexico. Title: Cities as systems of information.
Invited speaker at the Centre for Advanced Spatial Analysis (CASA), University College London | UCL, 11 July 2018. Title: Cities, from information to interaction.
Invited speaker at The Bartlett School of Architecture, University College London | UCL, 10 July 2018. Title: Cities, from information to interaction.
Invited speaker at the Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation, Columbia University, 16 October 2018, chaired by Marcela Tovar-Restrepo. Title: Networks of encounter and segregation in public spaces.
Documentary
Colosso, P., Detomi, I., Netto, V. M. (2023) Quem foi Jane Jacobs? Comuns Urbanos. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yJgseBS4an4
Netto, V.M.; Tedesco, N.; Passeri, B.; Malusa, V.; Drummond, P. (2015) Arquitetura e o Ballet da Rua. Rio de Janeiro: Conselho de Arquitetura e Urbanismo (CAU/RJ), Universidade Federal Fluminense (UFF). Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9HRxbbuxVvk.