Saturday, December 19, 2009 -- Beneath New York run roughly 1200 miles of train track – enough to connect San Francisco to Chicago – which weave a web entangling Brooklyn, Queens, Long Island, and the Bronx with the island of Manhattan in the center, its nether regions swiss-cheesed with subway tunnels.

Outside, the glowing ads of Times Square lit the streets like daylight, providing the Vegas-like illusion of a nightless reality, one in which the streets are always crowded and every corner attempts to lure you with high-pressure sales pitches for knock-off designer watches, sunglasses, or anything else a tourist might buy on impulse.

The pecking of fingers against keyboards serenaded the brightly lit, high-ceilinged room. By the far wall a gaggle of students pulled books from the stacks. In a nearby corner a few others scrolled computer screens and sipped from their coffee cups.