The City of Boston has launched its Office of New Urban Mechanics in order to foster:

• More ideas,
• Faster experiments, and
• Better results

In his 2010 inaugural address, Mayor Menino declared:

“We are all urban mechanics. Smartphones, GPS, wireless technology, and a resurgent spirit of civic engagement mean that all of us are eyes and ears on the streets, that neighbors are our greatest source of data, and our citizens the best civic entrepreneurs. It's time to build on our early experiments, deliver on projects we've dreamed up, and make Boston a proving ground for dozens of novel solutions."

Check out the Boston Globe's coverage of this effort and watch for updates.