Arsteca.net

This site is awaiting the development of a second generation community site for artists and their art.  The site will be based on the latest principles of knowledge representation and information discovery.  In the meantime, you might find some links to technical ideas in software development, and possibly musings on philosophy, economics, and politics.

Some Links

• Topic maps viewer -- A topic maps engine that reads topic maps data directly from xtm format files. Not scalable, of course. Can switch to dbms backend for that. Just an exploration of what's possible. Written in PHP.
• facetEngine -- A test implementation of a faceted classification navigation engine, written in PHP.
• Game Theory engine -- Uses the constraint processing of facetEngine for strategy navigation.
• Cyber Telepathy -- New Technology makes mind reading across the Internet possible.
• Grand Cafe Restaurant Project -- Currently stunted. Unfortunately, the city (property owner) favors another project, one of dubious merit. I fear the historic building will be demolished. A damn shame. Here's an external link to current and archival images of the building: Salt City Playhouse

Opinion

• Help The Poor, Not Subsidize Developers -- Syracuse's vacant properties renovation program subsidizes developers rather than helps poor working families become homeowners.
• Convention Hotel Giveaway -- County should build and own hotel.
• More Defense of Preservation Law -- On the separate powers of the Zoning and Preservation Laws.
• Preservation Law Misinterpreted -- Law was misconstrued as subordinate to zoning law.
• Stimulus Plan Won't Keep Economy Afloat -- On spending choices to stimulate the national economy.
• Corridor Millions -- On spending choices to stimulate economic development.
• Media Icons Rule -- How media icons transform our culture.
• Verifiable Elections -- Verified voting is just one step to verifiable elections.
• The Syracuse Promise -- Free college tuition for Syracuse high school graduates.
• Healthy Cities Through Cultural Development -- Culturally rich cities attract diverse people.  People spend primarily where they live, not where they work.  Businesses follow people.
• Suggestion To Educate Residents On PILOT -- A letter to Syracuse Common Council.
• Mr. Smith Is Not Pyramid -- A dialog on Tax Increment Financing.
• Clarify PILOT Agreement -- Post-Standard letter.
• Appeal Judge Centra's Decision on DestiNY -- The decision seems poorly defended.
• County Paying For Convention Hotel -- Subsidies approaching 75%.
• Tech Park in an Urban DestiNY -- An open letter to Bob Congel.
• John Roberts Unacceptable, Unqualified -- It should be obvious.
• Shock Big Oil -- Don't let oil companies profit from hurricane Katrina.
• Einstein Economics -- On how our economic/political system is on a destructive course.
• Supreme Court On Eminent Domain -- Limits to eminent domain use now unclear.
• Abu Ghraib and International Law -- U.S. commits torture crimes.
• About That Democracy Thing... -- Maybe we should get more involved.
• On Voting Machines -- Simple voting machine may be best.
• Why Destiny is Bad For Syracuse -- Total public subsidies will outweigh any possible benefits.

Miscellaneous

• For an excellent textbook on italian for junior and senior high school, I highly recommend Amici from MVM Publishers. For more information, visit mvmpublishers.com

Important!

For more info, contact Carlo Moneti: cmoneti ATT arsteca DOT net