“KNOWLEDGE PROCESSES BUILT-UP ENVIRONMENT RECOVERY AND HERITAGE ENHANCEMENT”

To exchange views about the forms, actions and instruments of “doing architecture”, and to analyse in depth the needs for “recognition”, renewal and sustainable development, means to grasp the intrinsic relationship (gradually established in the course of time) between conservation – cultural heritage enhancement, maintenance, protection and safety – and the innovative aspects deriving from the dynamics of change. Such issues contribute to the delineation of the field of the research experience, and help to produce the terms for the definition of its subject matter KNOWLEDGE PROCESSES, BUILT-UP ENVIRONMENT RECOVERY AND HERITAGE ENHANCEMENT, with the aim of experimenting with methods, processes and techniques useful for the enhancement of the cultural and environmental heritage, and for the sustainable development of local resources. The study of “built-up heritage” (both of ancient construction and of recent creation) is a vast and complex research field which, besides being part of the cultural thread of local economies, at the same time opens out onto international contexts, thanks to the extensive co-operation and partnership agreements signed by the Palermo University with foreign bodies and institutions on multidisciplinary research platforms. The contribution of multidisciplinarity, as an active and interactive praxis of design, allows to analyse the built-up environment – manifold and heterogeneous in itself – according to different research angles (structural/building/transformation processes – landscape creativity and weaknesses) and to study the heritage, in a broader perspective, without separating its cultural, environmental, historical, architectural and archaeological aspects. On such bases, in the course of the research, the following questions have been raised: what “value relations” does the “technological project” share with tradition and what relations is it required to establish/measure with new domains and languages? How can the “technological project” (process/project/product) be made to interact competitively with the prospects of new development? On the whole, the tradition/innovation interaction has been regarded as one to be analysed both as a complex propositive action aimed at the enhancement of what already exists, and as an interpretative opportunity for the theoretical and applicative framework of the contemporary project

Дигитализиране на културното наследство: обещание с двойно острие. [Digitisation of Heritage: Double-Edged Promises]

Based on an in-depth ethnographic survey of a major heritage digitization project, this text critically examines the recent changes in the notion of heritage enhancement and deflates the promise of digitization as a vector for the long-term preservation of humanity’s heritage. In particular, it examines how the technological enhancement of heritage carries with it transformations in the content of heritage and its status, founding digitized heritage as a raw material for innovation and research, the conservation of which no longer appears to be a priority. This transformation is taking place on a heritage scene that is undergoing major changes, particularly as a result of the spread of the Google model (and its unparalleled economic success) in a version to be applied to heritage corpora, also characterized by the slogan “enhance your data!”. But with the paradigm of techno-cultural enhancement, is it always the heritage that is enhanced? Between valuing heritage and mobilizing heritage as an asset, have we measured the implications of what is presented in the form of an enhancement imperative on the destiny of our heritage

Technological innovation in creative clusters. The case of laser in conservation of artworks in Florence

The field of laser application to the restoration and cleaning of cultural assets is amongst the most thriving developments of recent times. Ablative laser technological systems are able to clean and protect inestimable works of art subject to atmospheric agents and degradation over time. This new technology, which has been developing for the last forty year, is now available to restorers and has received a significant success all over Europe. An important contribution in the process of laser innovation has been carried out in Florence by local actors belonging to a creative cluster. The objects of the analysis are the genesis of this innovation in this local Florentine context, and the relationships among the main actors who have contributed in it. The study investigates how culture can play a part in the generation of ideas and innovations, and which are the creative environments that can favour it. In this context, the issue of laser technologies for the restoration of cultural heritage has been analysed as a case study in the various paths taken by the Creative Capacity of the Culture (CCC).innovation, creative cluster, art restoration

Case study report The view of the EU cultural and science diplomacy from Egypt. EL-CSID Working Paper Issue 2018/12 • April 2018

As a reminder of the framework of this study, it is worth mentioning, even in general terms, a few schemes and figures. A EU-Egypt Association Agreement (2004) and a EU-Egypt Partnership (2017) have been guiding the relationship between the European Union and the Arab Republic of Egypt, which was maintained throughout all the recent historical events and mishaps of this big country. EU assistance to Egypt under the European Neighbourhood and Partnership Instrument (ENPI) for 2007-2013 was over 1 billion €. Under the Single Support Framework for the period 2014-2016 a total amount of 320 million € in EU grants were committed by the EU. For the period 2014-2020, the European Neighbourhood Instrument (ENI) is the main financial instrument for EU cooperation with Egypt. A “Memorandum of Understanding regarding the EU's Single Support Framework 2017-2020” was signed with Egypt (for an amount of 500 million €), defining priority sectors, amongst which economic modernisation, energy and environment, having been consensually determined by both parties. The “Euro-Mediterranean agreement establishing an association between the European communities and their member states and the Arab Republic of Egypt” (2004) already included some articles about culture, science and innovation1

Transhumanism Between Human Enhancement and Technological Innovation

Transhumanism introduces from its very beginning a paradigm shift about concepts like human nature, progress and human future. An overview of its ideology reveals a strong belief in the idea of human enhancement through technologically means. The theory of technological singularity, which is more or less a radicalisation of the transhumanist discourse, foresees a radical evolutionary change through artificial intelligence. The boundaries between intelligent machines and human beings will be blurred. The consequence is the upcoming of a post-biological and posthuman future when intelligent technology becomes autonomous and constantly self-improving. Considering these predictions, I will investigate here the way in which the idea of human enhancement modifies our understanding of technological innovation. I will argue that such change goes in at least two directions. On the one hand, innovation is seen as something that will inevitably lead towards intelligent machines and human enhancement. On the other hand, there is a direction such as “Singularity University,” where innovation is called to pragmatically solving human challenges. Yet there is a unifying spirit which holds together the two directions and I think it is the same transhumanist idea

Community-driven approaches to open source archaeological imaging

No abstract available

Museum Experience Design: A Modern Storytelling Methodology

In this paper we propose a new direction for design, in the context of the theme “Next Digital Technologies in Arts and Culture”, by employing modern methods based on Interaction Design, Interactive Storytelling and Artificial Intelligence. Focusing on Cultural Heritage, we propose a new paradigm for Museum Experience Design, facilitating on the one hand traditional visual and multimedia communication and, on the other, a new type of interaction with artefacts, in the form of a Storytelling Experience. Museums are increasingly being transformed into hybrid spaces, where virtual (digital) information coexists with tangible artefacts. In this context, “Next Digital Technologies” play a new role, providing methods to increase cultural accessibility and enhance experience. Not only is the goal to convey stories hidden inside artefacts, as well as items or objects connected to them, but it is also to pave the way for the creation of new ones through an interactive museum experience that continues after the museum visit ends. Social sharing, in particular, can greatly increase the value of dissemination

The 19th entury iron architecture of industrial buildings. A formal and constructive comparison between two case studies

The paper analyzes the features of the 19th century industrial architecture and the application of metallic structures combined with formal and architectural expressions that frequently concealed or mitigated their presence. The mix of engineering features for the industrial purpose and familiar perceptions of the traditional architecture is one of the characteristics of this typology. The cases - both belonging to the mining industry of the 1800s - feature both the structural innovations in the use of metallic - masonry structures and formalism that recall the Eclectic and aesthetic motifs as a mean to enhance the industrial function and the technological expression. The metallic elements are in fact frequently employed in the most important sections of the buildings and testify the influences of both the technical advance of the constructive theories and the stylistic formulas that, although belonging to a more aulic architecture, intensify the productivity and the performances. Finally a proposal of reuse for one of the case study aims to valorize the duplicity of the formal and the technological approach for this typology in order to give a new purpose to this symbol of the industrial epopee.Peer ReviewedPreprin

Modeling nature-based and cultural recreation preferences in mediterranean regions as opportunities for smart tourism and diversification

The tourism and recreational o er of Mediterranean destinations involves, essentially, the promotion of mass tourism, based on the appeal of the sun and beach, and the quality of its coastal assets. Alongside the impacts of climate change, poor tourism diversification represents a threat to the resilience of the territory. Thus, heterogenization of noncoastal tourism products presents an opportunity to strengthen regional resilience to present and future challenges, hence the need to study, comparatively, the complementary preferences of tourists and residents of these regions in order to unveil their willingness to diversify their recreational experience, not only in coastal spaces, but also—and especially—in interior territories with low urban density. Consequently, this strategic option may represent a way of strengthening resilience and sustainability through diversification. In this context, a survey was conducted among 400 beach tourists and 400 residents of a case study—namely, three municipalities of the Algarve region in southern Portugal—in order to analyze their degree of preference for activities besides the sun and beach, such as nature-based and cultural tourism activities, and to probe the enhancement potential of each tourism and recreational activity through the various landscape units considered by experts, stakeholders, and tour operators. The respective degree of preference and enhancement potential were indexed to the area of each landscape unit. Subsequently, respecting the existing recreational structure and constraints, a suitability map for territory enhancement and the implementation of smart tourism practices for each tourism activity and landscape unit is presented. Results show a significant preference for noncoastal outdoor recreational activities.FCT- Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia: SFRH/BD/102328/2014; PTDC/GES-URB/31928/2017info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Evaluation of the implementation process of urban road pricing schemes in the United Kingdom and Italy

This paper is based upon detailed research that has taken place in the UK and Italy, on the implementation strategies for urban road pricing schemes. In the UK, both in London and Durham, the Road User Charging schemes required new legislation, and were implemented rapidly. The time from announcement to implementation took three years and the schemes were introduced after short periods of intensive planning, consultations and stakeholder networking. In Italy, the situation has been very different. The road pricing schemes in Rome and Genoa were not introduced under specific legislation but rather evolved from access control zones originally implemented in historic urban centres. The incremental introduction of the Italian road pricing experiments has taken approximately ten years. The paper undertakes a comparison of these different strategies to introduce urban road pricing and the lessons they contain for the development of similar measures elsewhere. The comparison of the different implementing experiences is undertaken using Strategic Policy Niche Management, a method designed to explore, among other factors, the dynamics of the stakeholder networks involved in planning, introducing, marketing and managing radical urban Travel Demand Management policies