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An article published last year in Energy and buildings ((Lai, D., Zhou, C., Huang, J., Jiang, Y., Long, Z., and Chen, Q. 2014. “Outdoor space quality: a field study in an urban residential community in central China,” Energy and Buildings, 68, Part B, 713-720.)) highlights the importance of "thermal comfort" factor in the quality of outdoor spaces.According to the authors, in cities such as Wuhan with a large temperature range, residents' use of outddoor spaces is mainly determined by thermal comfort. Residents will only use outdoor facilities if they can find "shade" in summer and "light" in fall and winter.  Per consequence, the authors suggest urban planners to pay better attention to micro climatic conditions when designing public spaces.