Political economy of municipal water service privatization in Spain: a duration model analysis

This empirical work applies a duration model to the study of factors determining privatization of local water services. I assess how factors determining privatization decision evolve as time goes by. A sample of 133 Spanish municipalities during the six terms of office taken place during the 1980-2002 period is analyzed. A dynamic neighboring effect is hypothesized and successfully tested. In a first stage, private water supply firms may try to expand to regions where there is no service privatized, in order to spread over this region after having being installed thanks to its scale advantages. Other factors influencing privatization decision evolve during the two decades under study, from the priority to fix old infrastructures to the concern about service efficiency. Some complementary results regarding political and budgetary factors are also obtained

La caverna de Josep Palau i Fabre (1952-1969): teatre versus al·legoria filosòfica per a representar i impedir el final tràgic i fosc del lluminós art de pensar.

What is the use of performing the myth of the cave from book VII of the Republic by Plato? Josep Palau i Fabre, considers that, in Plato's dialogues, the speakers are mere instruments at the service of his dialectical goal. The aim of this article is to show how, by turning the myth into a tragedy and also by relying on Heraclitus's conflict or war of opposites, the playwright succeeds in favoring a sort of thought which is not one-sided or univocal. On the contrary, in Palau i Fabre's La Caverna, the tragic hero, that is, the released prisoner transformed by the light of Reality and finally killed by his "cavemates" -after having been imprisoned again and having tried to rescue them from their ignorance or shadows-, still leaves to them his powerful experience of the agonistikos thought, which might bear fruit in their life to come.

A comparison of the processes of institutionalisation of political economy in Spain and Italy (1860-1900)

[spa] El estudio de los procesos a través de los cuales la economía política se ha transformado en una disciplina académica es un área de creciente interés en la historia del pensamiento económico. Dicho estudio se ha abordado a través del análisis de la importancia de la economía política en un conjunto de instituciones, consideradas clave en la expansión de la economía en las sociedades occidentales en la segunda mitad del siglo XIX y primeras décadas del XX: universidades, sociedades económicas, publicaciones periódicas de contenido económico y los parlamentos nacionales. Este papel presenta una comparación entre los desarrollos del proceso de institutionalización de la economía política en España e Italia, a través del estudio de la presencia de esta disciplina en las instituciones mencionadas para el periodo 1860-1900. El objetivo es medir la posible existencia de una vía común en la institucionalización de la economía política en ambos países, como un primer paso hacia la elaboración de un modelo supranacional de institucionalización de la economía en este periodo.

Art i ciència: converses

A la infància, Enric Canadell químic teòric i Àlex Nogué artista visual comparteixen pupitre i jocs de carrer a Castellfollit de la Roca, un poble de la Garrotxa, Girona. Segueixen trajectes vitals ben diferents i desenvolupen una ampla experiència professional internacional en la ciència i l'art. Quaranta-cinc anys més tard es retroben novament sota el projecte "En comptes de la revolució, converses" promogut per Cafè Central i l'Associació per les Arts Contemporànies H.ACC per tal de cercar coincidències en les seves activitats professionals aparentment tan dispars i en la seva forma de viure-les.

A study of the effects of PVAC on works of art on paper and wood: pH and colour change

This paper presents the preliminary findings of pH and colour measurements carried out on artworks on paperand on wood that had been treated with a poly(vinyl acetate) (PVAC) based adhesive in the 1980s. In both cases, areas treated with PVAC proved to be less acidic than untreated areas. Contrary to expectations, the conservation treatments have not, as yet, increased acidity levels in the objects under study. Colour measurements of the works on paper showed that those that had been backed with a cotton fabric using a mixture of methylcellulose and PVAC were less yellow than those from the same print run that had not been backed. This finding suggests that the backing somehow prevented the natural degradation of the support. In view of these preliminary results, further research is clearly needed. This study forms part of a broader ongoing project to assess the role of PVAC in the conservation of a range of cultural assets.

Stuka (Plastyka, Muzyka): una veu a favor de l'educació a través de l'art

Traducció comentada del pròleg d¿un llibre on la seva autora, amb motiu de presentar les propostes dels seus estudiants sobre activitats integrades de plàstica i música per a l¿escola i l'institut, ens parla de la necessitat d¿activar la situació creadora en els individus per millorar el seu excel-lent procés educatiu, a la manera com ho feien els antics.

Embodying feminist research: learning from action research, political practices, diffractions and collective knowledge.

In the past three decades, feminists and critical theorists have discussed and argued the importance of deconstructing and problematizing social science research methodology in order to question normalized hierarchies concerning the production of knowledge and the status of truth claims. Nevertheless, often, these ideas have basically remained theoretical propositions not embodied in research practices. In fact there is very little published discussion about the difficulties and limits of their practical application. In this paper we introduce some interconnected reflections starting from two different but related experiences of embodying 'feminist activist research'. Our aim is to emphasise the importance of attending to process, making mistakes and learning during fieldwork, as well as experimenting with personalized forms of analysis, such as the construction of narratives and the story-telling process.

Embodying feminist research: learning from action research, political practices, diffractions and collective knowledge.

In the past three decades, feminists and critical theorists have discussed and argued the importance of deconstructing and problematizing social science research methodology in order to question normalized hierarchies concerning the production of knowledge and the status of truth claims. Nevertheless, often, these ideas have basically remained theoretical propositions not embodied in research practices. In fact there is very little published discussion about the difficulties and limits of their practical application. In this paper we introduce some interconnected reflections starting from two different but related experiences of embodying 'feminist activist research'. Our aim is to emphasise the importance of attending to process, making mistakes and learning during fieldwork, as well as experimenting with personalized forms of analysis, such as the construction of narratives and the story-telling process.

CREI-Sants. Educació, art i teràpia

Aquest article dóna explicació dels objectius fonamentals del model ecològic-contextual en el que se basa CREI-Sants (Centre de recursos educatius i d'Investigació de Sants), dedicat a l'atenció de nens, joves i adults amb diferents tipos de hándicaps integrats en grups heterogenis de població. Expressa les últimes tendències en tractament terapèutic basades en l'art i la creativitat, i dóna informació de les darreres activitats de caràcter sociocultural que es realitzen. El text, finalment, recull el manifest de l'Art i Creativitat en persones amb handicap, amb la finalitat d'influenciar en l'opinió pública a favor de la integració dels col·lectius afectats pels diferents tipos de dificultats.

A study of the effects of PVAC on works of art on paper and wood: pH and colour change

This paper presents the preliminary findings of pH and colour measurements carried out on artworks on paperand on wood that had been treated with a poly(vinyl acetate) (PVAC) based adhesive in the 1980s. In both cases, areas treated with PVAC proved to be less acidic than untreated areas. Contrary to expectations, the conservation treatments have not, as yet, increased acidity levels in the objects under study. Colour measurements of the works on paper showed that those that had been backed with a cotton fabric using a mixture of methylcellulose and PVAC were less yellow than those from the same print run that had not been backed. This finding suggests that the backing somehow prevented the natural degradation of the support. In view of these preliminary results, further research is clearly needed. This study forms part of a broader ongoing project to assess the role of PVAC in the conservation of a range of cultural assets.

Public Art. Timeline of the XXth Century Evolution

The concept of public art is a polysemic term, and the dispersion of its meaning is reflected in the different ways of working during the XXth Century. It cross the fields of sculpture, monument, visual arts and urban space, defined from a civic perspective. This timeline had been constructed after the publications of my PhD: http://www.tesisenred.net/handle/10803/1549

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.

Quant la ment s'acorda amb el cos. Moments de plenitut i saviesa en l'art del Taijiquan

Después de revisar las dos grandes tradiciones corporales de la China milenaria -prácticas respiratorias y artes marciales- se analiza la práctica del tai chi que, como es sabido, constituye una actividad cotidiana en los países orientales. Alrededor de dicha práctica se dan una serie de acciones corporales, meditativas y respiratorias en consonancia con la cosmovisión y valores de la cultura china que se caracteriza por su sentido global y unitario. Por último, los autores formulan una serie de consideraciones con la intención de incorporar su práctica a la educación física en orden a desarrollar una conciencia corporal abierta -más allá de las técnicas- a valores espirituales.