Smart Cities and Transportation: Reviewing the Scientific Character of the Theories

Mihai Burlacu, Răzvan Gabriel Boboc and Eugen Valentin Butilă
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Mihai Burlacu: Department of Social and Communication Sciences, Transilvania University of Brasov, 500036 Brasov, Romania
Răzvan Gabriel Boboc: Automotive and Transport Engineering, Transilvania University of Brasov, 500036 Brasov, Romania
Eugen Valentin Butilă: Automotive and Transport Engineering, Transilvania University of Brasov, 500036 Brasov, Romania

Sustainability, 2022, vol. 14, issue 13, 1-15

Abstract: The concept “smart city” nowadays designates a plethora of things. The multiple meanings associated with the smart city, and its imperfect synonym the “robotic city”, continue to provide a topic of debate. In this paper we aim to present an epistemologically grounded review of articles focused on the concept of “smart city” and its correlatives. The goal of this article is to ascertain whether the scientific character of the theories employed in such articles is discussed and/or ascertained. For this purpose, we used Popper’s method of falsification: a theory’s scientific character is determined by its falsifiability and eventual falsification. Papers from the literature were extracted using the PRISMA method, and 15 studies were assessed as eligible for analysis. Most conclusions and results expounded in the articles reviewed that claim to be scientific are arguably based on the unsound logic of verification and confirmation rather than falsification. This has the detrimental effect of reducing to the category of logically false universal instantiations the majority of conclusions about (a) smart city services and infrastructures, (b) intelligent transportation systems and (c) blockchain/Internet of Things.

Keywords: smart city; transportation; epistemology (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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