Publications of the Office of the Hungarian Cultural Counsellor in Cairo 2018-2019. Current Research of the Hassan Fathy Survey Mission in Egypt

The Hassan Fathy Survey Mission has been researching Fathy’s oeuvre on the field nine times in five years. The 2018-2019 period has been crucial to the research endeavour. First, thanks to the Rare Books and Special Collections Library of the American University in Cairo we have had access to an unparalleled archive of important original plans and notes, as well as photos of the architect. We can use this material to search for details and connections which are virtually unknown, despite the large body of publications. In other words, based on the efforts we have undertaken to complete our fieldwork, questions arise which we can answer by using the material in the collection. The Mission’s scope in terms of time periods and the spaces studied has expanded. The research mission on Fathy’s oeuvre surpassed its original purpose. The concepts of design-based research and research-based design, as well as the character of the curriculum for designing architects are frequently discussed questions in scientific circles and forums. Therefore, fieldwork proves to be desirable and effective, as documentation always yields primary results which were previously unknown, not up to date, or not detailed enough. At the same time a fieldwork like ours allows us to observe many phenomena in Egypt which we might not notice otherwise. Today, Fathy’s original focus on understanding and preserving historical architecture in combination with vernacular architecture is still as relevant as in the 1940s. Now, the situation is exacerbated by demographics and the forecasted decline of the Nile, as well as by the unpredictable consequences of climate change. The review and publication of Fathy’s oeuvre may not answer these questions, but deeper knowledge of his work may help us understand the processes better. It can help with the analysis of historical and contemporary examples and with the understanding of their essential elements. Nowadays, understanding the issues of the Global South and supporting the region have become a global task. If the Hassan Fathy Survey Mission, with its field activities and its university-level dissemination and research potential can contribute to this at an international level, we will have achieved our primary goal. We will continue our work in 2020

Publications of the Office of the Hungarian Cultural Counsellor in Cairo 2016-2017. Current Research of the Hassan Fathy Survey Mission in Egypt

Hassan Fathy (1900-1989) is a role model for generations of architects. Survey works on twentieth-century architecture usually discuss his work; his famous New Gourna experiment laid the foundations for community-based construction and design in the mid-1940s. Nearly one thousand monographs, articles, publications, and dissertations have been published on the Egyptian architect. His prominence and legacy drew attention not only to twentieth-century Islamic architecture and Hassan Fathy’s special place in it, but also highlighted his universal significance. The Faculty of Architecture of the Budapest University of Technology and Economics, with the help of Hungarian architects and students of architecture, launched an expedition to Egypt in the spring of 2015 to make a complete documentation of Hassan Fathy’s remaining architectural heritage. Upper Egypt (Luxor, Garagus and Fares) is predominantly emblematic of his early work, while the distorted New Baris settlement is a sad memento of monumental mudbrick architecture, while Anwar Sadat’s late presidential rest house in Gerf Hussein is a significant example of Fathy’s late work. The main drive at the early stages of the project was the speed of deterioration of these buildings, thus we aimed for the most complete documentation possible for further research. We clearly saw this as a quest to salvage valuable. This is how the Mission began, which was from the outset sensitive to other observable phenomena as well, in particular contemporary architecture and its dimensions which are often difficult to comprehend from a European perspective, especially without personal experience. Thus, in addition to documentation, we studied the current constructions trends, their changes, changes in social conditions, and their effects. The contrasts and tensions that can be felt in the relationship between the landscape and the people seemed interesting and difficult for us to understand, and it still seems to be. Our interest has thus grown well beyond the primary basic documentation objectives which we exploited in the early years of the project; field studies, historical and contemporary architectural research, and the study of relevant literature have become part of our work

Európai tőzsdeindexek kockázattovábbító tulajdonságának vizsgálata = Analysis of the risk-transmitting nature of European stock indices

A tanulmány az európai részvénypiacok szerkezeti változásait elemzi minimális feszítőfa és Markov-féle rezsimváltó modell segítségével, amely a topológiai változások mellett a közelség és a közöttiség segítségével vizsgálja az adatokat. A szerzők célja, hogy rámutassanak a korábbi receszsziók hasonlóságaira és különbségeire, nevezetesen a 2008-as másodlagos jelzálogpiaci válságra, a 2010-es évek európai államadósság-válságára és a közelmúltban a Covid19-járvány időszakára. A szerkezeti változásokra fókuszálva egy sokkokat továbbító központi index megjelenését keresik. Folyamatos változást tapasztalnak a tőzsdei hálózatban, ahol a tőzsdeindexek a turbulens időszakokban főként egy központi indexen keresztül kapcsolódnak egymáshoz, míg a nyugodt időszakokban a kapcsolatok diverzifikáltabbá válnak. = This study analyses the structural changes in European stock market indices using a minimal spanning tree and a Markov-switching model that examines the regime-changes in betweenness and closeness in addition to topological changes. The authors aim is to highlight the similarities and differences of previous recessions, namely the subprime mortgage crisis of 2008, the European sovereign debt crisis of 2010, and the recent period of Covid-19. Focusing on the structural changes in the graph, the appearance of a central index transmitting shocks is sought. The results show that there is a constant change in the stock market network, where stock market indices are linked to each other mainly through a central index in turbulent periods, while relationships become more diversified in calm periods

Investigation of Laser Welding Technology of Diamond Drilling Segments

Segments containing diamond particles are fixed to replaceable inserts or to steel tool bodies for cost-effectiveness. The joining technology used should meet both environmental and technical requirements. The joining zone is subjected to high mechanical and significant thermal loads during use. In the event of an improper joint, the segments may detach from the base and fly away causing injury. Nowadays, many methods of welding or brazing are used to fix diamond segments. Among the possible segment fixing technologies, laser beam welding has been investigated. The microstructure of the joints has been examined by optical and scanning electron microscopy and chemical element maps have been recorded. Joints have been subjected to fracture and hardness testing. The mechanical properties and composition changes of the joints with different joining technologies have been evaluated and compared

Additívan gyártott fém alapanyagok és orvostechnikai eszközök korróziójának vizsgálata

Egyre nagyobb szerepet kap az additív gyártás (additive manufacturing, AM), amely segítségével személyre szabott, rövid időn belül előállítható termékek valósíthatók meg, akár a megrendelő szeme láttára. A kutatásunk elsősorban a közvetlen lézeres fémszinterezéshez kapcsolódik. Az új technológia elterjedése egyre több szektorban tapasztalható, így az orvostechnikai ipar területét is érinti, amelynél nem engedhetünk meg hibás terméket, hiszen emberi élet múlhat rajta. Kutatásunk során korróziós vizsgálatokat végeztünk. Potenciosztát segítségével határoztuk meg a ciklikus voltammetriás görbéket és a korróziósebességeket. Két tipikus, biokompatibilis implantátumanyagot hasonlítottunk össze, egy kobalt-króm ötvözetet (porkohászati úton gyártott) és egy titánötvözetet (3D nyomtatott). Az eredmények segítenek meghatározni az additívan gyártott alapanyagok korróziós tulajdonságait