Catalan beauty and the transnational beast: Barcelona on screen

This article explores the case of Barcelona as paradigmatic global city in such transnational productions as Vicky Cristina Barcelona by Woody Allen (2008) and Biutiful by Alejandro González Iñárritu (2010). Allen"s film shows the extreme dilution that national and linguistic identity undergoes under foreign eyes in its rendition of a"hip Barcelona" for tourists"invaded" by transnational subjects in search of bourgeois pleasures. Maybe in pursuit of a more"real" city, Iñárritu"s Biutiful moves to the Barcelona of the immigrants and the undocumented, a transnational and paradoxical location inhabited by those who need to cross borders in order to survive. Through reference to the work of Manuel Castells, Saskia Sassen, Neil Smith and Michel De Certeau among others, we argue that neither of these representations of the city is more real or unreal than the other. In their drastically divergent ways, both films contribute their external perspectives to the imaginary construction of Barcelona as a fascinating global city and can be seen as a dyptich of a transnational Barcelona. Further, they contribute to the ongoing debate about the polarization between the local and the global, the construction of urban boarders inside cities through gentrification, the transformation of the places we (would like to) inhabit, and the translation of all these into visual terms.

Urban Regeneration. A challenge for Public Art [1999]. Edition 2005

Urban Regeneration. A challenge for Public Art, supposed the start of a trend of critical thought related to the topics of Public Art, Urban Regeneration and Urban Design. This trend agglutinated around the Public Art Observatory that, still today, develops its activities.The book gathers a series of critical proposals organized in the chapters " Art and Design in/for Public Space ", " Forms and Representations of Public Art/Public Space. The Producer/User Dilemma " and " Public Art / Cities in Competition: Strategies, Bridges and Gateways ", with the participation of, among others, Sergi Valera, Ray Smith, Martí Peran, Ian Rawlinson, Chaké Matosian, Enric Pol, J. Hyatt, J. Gingell or T. Bovaird.

Carnatic music: Svara, Gamaka, Motif and Raga identity

Over the last century in Karnatik music, the method ofunderstanding raga has been to break it down into its variouscomponents, svara, scale, gamaka, and phrases. In this paper, an attempt is made to define the abstract concept of raga in its entirety within the aesthetics of Karnatik music considering the various components and their symbiotic relationship. This paper also attempts to prove that theidentity of a raga exists as a whole. Section 2 explains theconcept of a fundamental musical note or svara. Section 3 illustrates the concept of gamaka or inflections. Section 4 delves into the concept of raga in detail and then flows into Section 5 which enunciates the identity of a raga in terms of svara, gamaka, and phraseology. The paper concludes in Section 6, and Section 7 gives the references.

La construcción narrativa de la identidad en un contexto educativo intercultural = The narrative construction of identity in a intercultural educative setting

En este trabajo se expone e ilustra un modelo teórico para entender las funciones de la identidad, así como los mecanismospsicosociales asociados a su construcción: “Modelo Evolutivo y Funcional de la Identidad Mediada” (MEBIM). La identidad, mediada narrativamente, cumple una función personal orientada a la dirección de la propia vida, así como una función sociocultural vinculada a la búsqueda de reconocimiento de los derechos de los grupos sociales a los que uno se siente apegado. Se ilustran los factores asociados a la construcción de la identidad personal (sí mismos posibles, transiciones vitales, vínculo afectivo) y sociocultural (acción-transformación e identificación simbólica) a partir de 12 historias de vida realizadas con mestizos e indígenasde la Universidad Intercultural de Chiapas (México). Se sugiere que en contextos educativos formales, como la escuela o la Universidad, se deben propiciar narrativas personales y socioculturales con el objetivo de optimizar la identidad en un mundo a la vez globalizado y plural

The Arcuated Lintel and the "Serlian Motif". Imperial Identity, Architectural and Symbolic Interactions in Ancient Rome

Essay on the origin, use and development of the arcuated lintel in ancient Rome and the configuration of the so– called ‘Serlian motif’. These architectural elements will be related to the architecture of prestige on its technical, functional, visual and symbolic sphere. Its depictions, in addition to buildings, can offer a rich repertory of images that speak about the relations between visual culture, religion and power. Furthermore, the analyzed motifs will become important elements of the Western cultural legacy for centuries. The analysis of these events will contribute to the comprehension of the role played by some resources of ancient Rome architecture of prestige and its success

The Application of 3D Reconstruction Techniques in the Analysis of Ancient Tarraco’s Urban Topography

The widespread implementation of GIS-based 3D topographical models has been a great aid in the development and testing of archaeological hypotheses. In this paper, a topographical reconstruction of the ancient city of Tarraco, the Roman capital of the Tarraconensis province, is presented. This model is based on topographical data obtained through archaeological excavations, old photographic documentation, georeferenced archive maps depicting the pre-modern city topography, modern detailed topographical maps and differential GPS measurements. The addition of the Roman urban architectural features to the model offers the possibility to test hypotheses concerning the ideological background manifested in the city shape. This is accomplished mainly through the use of 3D views from the main city accesses. These techniques ultimately demonstrate the ‘theatre-shaped’ layout of the city (to quote Vitrubius) as well as its southwest oriented architecture, whose monumental character was conceived to present a striking aspect to visitors, particularly those arriving from the sea.

La medina andalusina de Lleida en el segle XI: identitat i societat

La ciutat a Alandalús és l’espai hegemònic del poder públic emiral i posteriorment califal. Partint de la ciutat de Lleida, analitzem la evolució des del segle VIII fins al segle XI de la consolidació dels espais urbans com a representants del poder. Talment, aquests, capitalitzen els districtes o cores, mitjançant una xarxa de ciutats i fortificacions que li donen cohesió interna. Paral∙lelament, es vertebra i s’envigoritza una societat urbana partint d’elements comuns d’identitat i d’un discurs ideològic afí a la dinastia Omeia. La “gent de la ciutat” repre‐senten una part de la societat andalu‐sina, d’arrels hispano‐visigodes, i alhora, assumeixen l’hegemonia cultural de l’Islam, tot convivint en la nova realitat político‐social.

On the identity of the type species of the genus Telema (Araneae, Telemidae)

Telema tenella Simon, 1882, the type species of genus Telema, is the only species of family Telemidae reported from Europe and all other 39 congeners occur far from it. However, it has never been properly described. In this paper T. tenella is redescribed and illustrated.

Newly described human polyomaviruses Merkel Cell, KI and WU are present in urban sewage and may represent potential environmental contaminants

Recently, three new polyomaviruses (KI, WU and Merkel cell polyomavirus) have been reported to infect humans. It has also been suggested that lymphotropic polyomavirus, a virus of simian origin, infects humans. KI and WU polyomaviruses have been detected mainly in specimens from the respiratory tract while Merkel cell polyomavirus has been described in a very high percentage of Merkel cell carcinomas. The distribution, excretion level and transmission routes of these viruses remain unknown. Here we analyzed the presence and characteristics of newly described human polyomaviruses in urban sewage and river water in order to assess the excretion level and the potential role of water as a route of transmission of these viruses. Nested-PCR assays were designed for the sensitive detection of the viruses studied and the amplicons obtained were confirmed by sequencing analysis. The viruses were concentrated following a methodology previously developed for the detection of JC and BK human polyomaviruses in environmental samples. JC polyomavirus and human adenoviruses were used as markers of human contamination in the samples. Merkel cell polyomavirus was detected in 7/8 urban sewage samples collected and in 2/7 river water samples. Also one urine sample from a pregnant woman, out of 4 samples analyzed, was positive for this virus. KI and WU polyomaviruses were identified in 1/8 and 2/8 sewage samples respectively. The viral strains detected were highly homologous with other strains reported from several other geographical areas. Lymphotropic polyomavirus was not detected in any of the 13 sewage neither in 9 biosolid/sludge samples analyzed. This is the first description of a virus isolated from sewage and river water with a strong association with cancer. Our data indicate that the Merkel cell polyomavirus is prevalent in the population and that it may be disseminated through the fecal/urine contamination of water. The procedure developed may constitute a useful tool for studying the excreted strains, prevalence and transmission of these recently described polyomaviruses.

Inclusion and empowerment in public art and urban design

To involve citizens in developing the processes of city making is an objective that occupies part of the agenda of political parties in the context of the necessary renewal in representative democracy. This paper aims to provide some answers to the following questions: Is it possible to overcome the participatory processes based exclusively on the consultation? Is it possible to"train" residents to take an active role in decision-making? How can we manage, proactively, the relationship between public actors, technicians and politicians, in a participatory process? We analyse the process development for creating the Wall of Remembrance in the Barcelona neighbourhood of Baró de Viver, a work of public art, created and produced by its neighbours, in the context of a long participatory process focused on changing the image of the neighbourhood and the improvement of public space. This result and this process have been possible in a given context of cooperation among neighbours, local government and the research team (CR-Polis, Art, City, Society at the University of Barcelona). The development of a creative process of citizen participation between 2004 and 2011 made possible the direct management of decision making by the residents on the field of the design of public space in the neighbourhood. However, the material results of the process does not overshadow the great achievement of the project: the inclusion of a neighbourhood in taking informed decisions because of their empowerment in public space design and management of their remembrances.

Use and perception of urban green spaces in Barcelona

Background: Although the mechanisms are not well understood yet, evidence exists of the benefits of urban green spaces for human health. As a consequence, one of the concerns of public health interventions must be to promote the use of urban green spaces within cities. Aims: This study aims to explore the citizens’ purposes of use of urban green spaces as well as the elements related to the characteristics of these places that condition their use. Methods: In-depth interviews were conducted with non-hospitalised people living in different areas of Barcelona, with different socioeconomic status and different residential distance to urban green spaces (n = 20). Thematic content analysis of the qualitative data was performed. Results: Physical pursuits and attention restoration were identified as prominent purposes of use of urban green spaces. The natural features of urban green spaces were identified as the most relevant determiners for the use of these places. Conclusions: To promote the use of urban green spaces, qualitative findings from this study suggest that purpose-built places should be provided. Moreover, natural features of urban green spaces must be particularly taken into account when designing and maintaining them.

Identity, non-identity, and near-identity: Addressing the complexity of coreference

This article examines the mainstream categorical definition of coreference as "identity of reference." It argues that coreference is best handled when identity is treated as a continuum, ranging from full identity to non-identity, with room for near-identity relations to explain currently problematic cases. This middle ground is needed to account for those linguistic expressions in real text that stand in relations that are neither full coreference nor non-coreference, a situation that has led to contradictory treatment of cases in previous coreference annotation efforts. We discuss key issues for coreference such as conceptual categorization, individuation, criteria of identity, and the discourse model construct. We redefine coreference as a scalar relation between two (or more) linguistic expressions that refer to discourse entities considered to be at the same granularity level relevant to the linguistic and pragmatic context. We view coreference relations in terms of mental space theory and discuss a large number of real life examples that show near-identity at different degrees.