El método de José Antonio Corrales y Ramón Vázquez Molezún. Influencias y escenarios arquitectónicos

El siguiente texto plantea un novedoso enfoque sobre el método de trabajo de José Antonio Corrales (1921-2010) y Ramón Vázquez Molezún (1922-1993), enfocado en la primera parte de su obra, la que culminaría con la Casa Huarte en el año 1966. Desarrollaron dos tipologías de proyectos: el pabellón abierto y la arquitectura concentrada. Ambas estrategias combinaban un comprometido diálogo con el lugar con una evidente influencia de diversas referencias arquitectónicas y artísticas de la primera mitad del siglo XX. Corrales y Molezún recibieron una educación clásica, falta de maestros, en una España situada en la autarquía y aislada del exterior, por lo que tuvieron que buscar referencias válidas en el extranjero. La arquitectura de Corrales y Molezún se alimentó de referentes diversos, que abarcan desde la primera Modernidad hasta los revisionistas de los años cincuenta (Team X, Reyner Banham, Ernesto Rogers), pasando por el Nuevo Empirismo nórdico, que representaba un equilibrio entre el racionalismo maquinista de la primera modernidad y las corrientes teóricas rupturistas de italianos y renovadoras de los ingleses. Las distintas corrientes y posicionamientos surgidos en Europa llegaban a España con cuenta gotas, pero resultaban estimulantes para los arquitectos nacionales de posguerra. Corrales y Molezún desarrollaron, desde sus primeros trabajos, un método alimentado por un lado por la influencia de los grandes arquitectos de la Modernidad y por otro por su convencimiento firme de que la arquitectura, además de atender a las necesidades de las personas, debía responder al lugar y dialogar con el paisaje. Este método se basaba en el ejercicio de una práctica teórica, alimentada por la experiencia y comprometida con el oficio. Esta estrategia implicaba un posicionamiento intelectual ante la arquitectura de igual valor que una aproximación teórica. Sus obras son sus manifiestos.

DIMETER: a haptic master device for tremor diagnosis in neurodegenerative diseases

In this study, a device based on patient motion capture is developed for the reliable and non-invasive diagnosis of neurodegenerative diseases. The primary objective of this study is the classification of differential diagnosis between Parkinson's disease (PD) and essential tremor (ET). The DIMETER system has been used in the diagnoses of a significant number of patients at two medical centers in Spain. Research studies on classification have primarily focused on the use of well-known and reliable diagnosis criteria developed by qualified personnel. Here, we first present a literature review of the methods used to detect and evaluate tremor; then, we describe the DIMETER device in terms of the software and hardware used and the battery of tests developed to obtain the best diagnoses. All of the tests are classified and described in terms of the characteristics of the data obtained. A list of parameters obtained from the tests is provided, and the results obtained using multilayer perceptron (MLP) neural networks are presented and analyzed.

De J. Antonio Martín-Pereda a W. Warzanskyj Poliscuk

Respuesta a la carta de W. Warzanskyj Poliscuk

Silica final lens performance in laser fusion facilities: HiPER and LIFE

Nowadays, the projects LIFE (Laser Inertial Fusion Energy) in USA and HiPER (High Power Laser Energy Research) in Europe are the most advanced ones to demonstrate laser fusion energy viability. One of the main points of concern to properly achieve ignition is the performance of the final optics (lenses) under the severe irradiation conditions that take place in fusion facilities. In this paper, we calculate the radiation fluxes and doses as well as the radiation-induced temperature enhancement and colour centre formation in final lenses assuming realistic geometrical configurations for HiPER and LIFE. On these bases, the mechanical stresses generated by the established temperature gradients are evaluated showing that from a mechanical point of view lenses only fulfil specifications if ions resulting from the imploding target are mitigated. The absorption coefficient of the lenses is calculated during reactor startup and steady-state operation. The obtained results reveal the necessity of new solutions to tackle ignition problems during the startup process for HiPER. Finally, we evaluate the effect of temperature gradients on focal length changes and lens surface deformations. In summary, we discuss the capabilities and weak points of silica lenses and propose alternatives to overcome predictable problems

Entrevista a José Antonio Martín Pereda

A raíz del suicidio de un alumno de la Universidad Politécnica de Valencia, Martín Pereda reclama la necesidad de replantear los planes de estudio de las ingenierías y lo que se exige al alumnado.

Self-organized colloidal quantum dots and metal nanoparticles for plasmon-enhanced intermediate-band solar cells

A colloidal deposition technique is presented to construct long-range ordered hybrid arrays of self-assembled quantum dots and metal nanoparticles. Quantum dots are promising for novel opto-electronic devices but, in most cases, their optical transitions of interest lack sufficient light absorption to provide a significant impact in their implementation. A potential solution is to couple the dots with localized plasmons in metal nanoparticles. The extreme confinement of light in the near-field produced by the nanoparticles can potentially boost the absorption in the quantum dots by up to two orders of magnitude. In this work, light extinction measurements are employed to probe the plasmon resonance of spherical gold nanoparticles in lead sulfide colloidal quantum dots and amorphous silicon thin-films. Mie theory computations are used to analyze the experimental results and determine the absorption enhancement that can be generated by the highly intense near-field produced in the vicinity of the gold nanoparticles at their surface plasmon resonance. The results presented here are of interest for the development of plasmon-enhanced colloidal nanostructured photovoltaic materials, such as colloidal quantum dot intermediate-band solar cells.

Interband absorption of photons by extended states in intermediate band solar cells

This paper considers sub-bandgap photon absorption in an InAs/GaAs quantum dot matrix. Absorption coefficients are calculated for transitions from the extended states in the valence band to confined states in the conduction band. This completes a previous body of work in which transitions between bound states were calculated. The calculations are based on the empirical k·p Hamiltonian considering the quantum dots as parallelepipeds. The extended states may be only partially extended?in one or two dimensions?or extended in all three dimensions. It is found that extended-to-bound transitions are, in general, weaker than bound-to-bound transitions, and that the former are weaker when the initial state is extended in more coordinates. This study is of direct application to the research of intermediate band solar cells and other semiconductor devices based on light absorption in semiconductors nanostructured with quantum dots.

Reducción del número de parcelas de muestreo al incorporar información auxiliar LiDAR en la estimación de variables dasométricas

Reducción del número de parcelas de muestreo al incorporar información auxiliar LiDAR en la estimación de variables dasométricas

De churras y de merinas: ¿biodiversidad en la ingeniería? Discurso del Académico electo Excmo. Sr. D. Roberto Fernández de Caleya y Álvarez, leído en el acto de recepción pública el día 30 de octubre de 2001 y contestación del académico Excmo. Sr. D. José Antonio Martín Pereda

En esta obra se recoge el discurso que pronunció D. Roberto Fernández de Caleya al ser nombrado miembro de la Academia de Ingeniería y la contestación de Martín Pereda, donde recuerda y analiza la trayectoria vital y académica del nuevo académico.