=Nova York (9 Metis)= 
**Station Type:** [[Beehives|Beehive]]
**Allegiance:** Independent (Autonomist)
**Primary Languages:** English, French, Wu
**Population:** 500,000
The third largest habitat in the [[Main Belt]], Nova York is a microgravity habitat carved into the asteroid Metis. An S-type asteroid, Metis has experienced extreme impact weathering over the eons and is believed to have lost most of its original mass, making it far more dense than similar asteroids.
Though nominally a beehive habitat, with kilometers of tunnels and warrens worming throughout Metis’s surface, the true majesty of Nova York is found in its central cavern. Opening up a bare two hundred meters under the asteroid’s surface and extending four kilometers in diameter, this spherical chamber is similar to the inside of a [[Cole bubbles|Cole bubble]], but without being spun for gravity. The asteroid’s minute gravity enables some impressive architecture. The kilometers-tall buildings that stretch up and even across the chamber are a study of thin, spindly lines that reach deeper and deeper, forming wildly creative, geometric shapes. Built on light but sturdy frames, many of these buildings use reﬂective or translucent materials that play with the ambient light in the cavern, creating light shows depending on the day/night cycle of the overhead sun tube lighting.
==Noyo Economics== 
Founded by idealists, Nova York has been artificially manufacturing its own economy for years based on a locally produced ﬁnancial currency called the “noyo.” Here, no other form of currency is accepted and the value of a single noyo devalues over time from the date of issue, an intentional design meant to stimulate spending and prevent currency speculation or mass accumulation of wealth. Additionally, the value of the noyo is pegged to a reputation index internal to Nova York, so positively valued actions slow the devaluation of currency for an individual while an inﬂux of negative acts can accelerate the devaluation process. A single noyo will typically devalue to zero over two months; reputation ﬂux can adjust this from one month to three months. The Banco de Nova York (BdNY), which manages all ﬁnancial transactions as the habitat’s legal custodian, is owned jointly through shares purchased by permanent residents who have chosen to live within the city limits for over ﬁve years. Since the BdNY is directly answerable to those most invested in seeing Nova York ﬂourish, it tends to take a more pro-social stance on development than more traditional ﬁnancial institutions. This system of checks and balances ensures the BdNY does not attain too much power and remains in the long-term interests of the habitat. As a result, residents rent, rather than buy, a roof over their head and hold onto few possessions in order to spend their money on what they deem more valuable: entertainment, recreation, new and improved architecture, city-wide clean-up and maintenance, emergency services, police protection, etc. In theory, the economy is intended to force everyone to have a stake in the well-being of their neighbor, whether they want to or not. In practice, though, it has resulted in Nova Yorkers sometimes turning a blind eye to misdeeds or bad behavior of friends and comrades so as not to cost them money. On the opposite end, I’ve seen Nova Yorkers banding together to mete out group punishment to “narcs” who too often inﬂict negative reputation feedback.
Aside from the noyo and BdNY, Nova York largely functions along [[Extropians|Extropian]] lines, with individuals contracting with private companies for security, insurance, legal code, and so on. Unusually, however, many of the large buildings within Nova York are more than artistic monuments, serving instead as the building blocks of the habitat’s community. Each of these buildings is a micro-community that offers contractual services to manage the general welfare and upkeep of its inhabitants, including their defense and protection.
==Nova Culture== 
The aura of Nova York is more akin to an artistic commune than a bustling chamber of commerce. This attitude has drawn prominent artists from around the system, further fostering a culture of creativity and spontaneity. While architecture and sculpture are two dominant art forms expressed in the cityscape, various other sensory and performing arts are gaining ground here, from the majestic visual and auditory overlays of AR artists to the acrobatic microgravity and aerial dance routines conducted across wires and rooftop stages. Nova York’s artistic output has been a boon to tourism and the economy. It’s common knowledge residents are planning to host their ﬁrstever Intergalactic Art and Culture Show to draw new tourists and residents to the city sometime next year.
Like its historic namesake, Nova York is a melting pot for cultural trends—and also religious ones. Unlike Extropia, which certainly is open to many new things but tends to be a bit more hostile towards religious memeplexes, Nova York is a place where ideas are allowed to ﬂourish, and both old and new religions are embraced. More and more, Nova Yorkers seek knowledge, philosophical, and cultural enlightenment as their economy continues to shape the habitat into an egalitarian society. Religious ﬁgures from faiths presumed dead, or at least on the decline, are able to ﬁnd new believers here.
While Nova York is a bustling and growing burg on the verge of a cultural renaissance, it’s not all solar rays and cuddly space roaches. Nova York’s unique economy is off-putting to many hypercorp interests, meaning that many corps are taking their business and investment money to friendlier habitats, slowing development and opportunity. Those hypercorps that are interested are trying to sway public opinion to make changes to the system to make it more inviting to business interests. Some hypercorp building microcommunities have attempted to recognize standard currencies within their walls, but the BdNY has so far revoked their leases. The large tourist trade is likely to keep many hypercorps intrigued in Nova York, however, meaning they are sure to redouble their efforts to change the business climate to something more in their favor.

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