The role of children in the traditional religious house-blessing rite of Salpassa in north-eastern Spain

Salpassa denotes the blessing of houses, land, and other belongings, carried out during Easter week and Resurrection (Easter) Sunday in the Valencia–Catalonia linguistic region of north-eastern Spain. Although it is now remembered mostly as a consecrating ceremony or a religious rite, recent field research has shown that a playful element, carried out by children through their songs and other activities, was also an important aspect of the traditional Salpassa.

Spin degree of freedom in two dimensional exciton condensates

We present a theoretical analysis of a spin-dependent multicomponent condensate in two dimensions. The case of a condensate of resonantly photoexcited excitons having two different spin orientations is studied in detail. The energy and the chemical potentials of this system depend strongly on the spin polarization. When electrons and holes are located in two different planes, the condensate can be either totally spin polarized or spin unpolarized, a property that is measurable. The phase diagram in terms of the total density and electron-hole separation is discussed.

Restoration of religious temples: intervention in the church “Nuestra Señora de Belén” in Crevillente (Alicante)

Heritage conservation has raised historical problems usually centered in defects resulting from water leaks. Thus, any intervention is presented as a difficult task, both due to building techniques to be used and the lack of economic resources in many cases. In relation to the temples existing in Alicante (Spain), water drainage is solved with pitched roofs on slope formation (in vaulted naves) or directly supported on the vaulted elements (in the domes). Since those construction systems are composed by brick and plaster, the presence of moisture is problematic, and represents a risk of losing the strength capacity and therefore the stability of the dome. An example of this problem is the dome of the church “Nuestra Señora de Belén” in Crevillente, built with solid bricks, it has the highest diameter of the province (18th century). This historic building has been restored on several occasions in the recent years due to moisture, cracks or fissures. The study of these works give an idea of the difficulties of maintenance, conservation and proper restoration of such kind of buildings as unique and valued constructions in our heritage.

La interculturalidad en el ámbito educativo español: una perspectiva de género

Este artículo tiene como objetivo principal la identificación de las vías más adecuadas para gestionar la diversidad cultural en el ámbito escolar español. Una aproximación intercultural a la educación requiere nuevos principios y nuevos métodos, entre otros, la mediación intercultural. Como ejemplo de diversidad cultural se analizará uno de los supuestos que más dimensión mediática y social ha adquirido en relación con el tratamiento de la diversidad cultural en la escuela pública: el uso del velo islámico. Por último, se presentarán las posibles vías que ofrece la mediación intercultural para resolver conflictos como el descrito. El análisis de los aspectos mencionados se realiza desde una perspectiva de género que con el fin de ofrecer repuestas a las necesidades específicas de las mujeres en un ámbito tan sensible como es el de su formación integral.