In chapter 1, Manuel Castells depicts a revolution in information technologies that over the last thirty years or so has transformed social life, producing, in interaction with economic, social, cultural, and political changes, "informational cities" that "deepen existing patterns of sociospatial segregation," creating what Castells dubs the "dual city." According to Castells, this revolution has not caused the gap between rich and poor in our society, but has exacerbated it. He frames his argument mainly in terms of the city, seeing it as the subject of sociotechnological changes, taking it as his primary unit of analysis, and treating local urban governments as the most likely agents of change. He sees American cities "evolving toward systemic urban schizophrenia," an image that matches much of what you see as you travel today through American cities. But Castells believes that "The promise of information technology may lead to a different, more humane city, in the framework of a new, more intelligent, and more just society."