Angelic music in Marian iconography. A visual discourse about the hope of salvation

El presente artículo pretende profundizar en el significado de la música angélica en la imagen mariana. En los llamados evangelios apócrifos, los cánticos de los ángeles son asociados por primera vez a la historia de Cristo y su madre María, apareciendo así en los momentos clave de la historia de la salvación humana. Las primeras representaciones alusivas a este tema surgen en la élite intelectual eclesiástica, pero en la Baja Edad Media, con la difusión de la literatura hagiográfica y el auge de la devoción mariana, la música de los ángeles pasa a formar parte del imaginario común. Durante la época renacentista este sentido salvífico no hace sino intensificarse, surgiendo nuevas variantes más acordes con los intereses devocionales del momento.This article aims to provide an in-depth study of the meaning of angelic music in Marian iconography. In what are called apocryphal gospels, the canticles of the angels are associated for the first time in the history of Christ and his mother, Mary, appearing thus in the key moments of the history of human salvation. The first representations alluding to this question arise in the ecclesiastical intellectual elite, but in the early Middle Ages, with the diffusion of hagiographic literature and the increase in Marian worship, the music of the angels comes to form part of the shared imaginary world. During the Renaissance period this salvational meaning becomes even more intense, new variants emerging more in line with the devotional interests of the time

Avaluació de treballs de rehabilitació de sòl en àrees afectades per activitats extractives a Catalunya : criteris de qualitat de la restauració

Es recopilen dades referents a treballs de restauració d'activitats extractives a cel obert, i es discuteix la utilització de diferents tipus d'indicadors per tal d'avaluar la qualitat dels treballs de restauració, així com el patró amb el qual comparar aquests indicadors. Es proposen valors límit per a gruix del sòl, pedregositat, fraccions texturals, contingut de carbonats i matèria orgànica. Es discuteix l'avaluació dels treballs de restauració de les mines de carbó del Pedraforca com a exemple de l'ús de diferents tipus d'indicadors. D'entre els indicadors utilitzats més freqüentment, les mesures referents a la pèrdua de sòl per erosió (volum de sòl perdut i àrea afectada), les propietats físiques (densitat aparent, capacitat d'infiltració) i algunes característiques biològiques (flux de CO2) son les que han resultat de més utilitat. Això és així gràcies al caràcter integrador d'aquests atributs del sòl a les zones restaurades i a la relativa facilitat de mesura. En canvi, la informació referent a la vegetació arbustiva i arbòria, malgrat l'ús habitual que se'n fa, té una utilitat més limitada com a indicadora de la qualitat final dels treballs, atès el relativament curt termini transcorregut fins l'acabament del període legal de garantia de les obres de restauració (màxim cinc anys). Es presenta un exemple de taula global de puntuació de la qualitat de la restauració d'activitats extractives.Data on quarry reclamation are compiled and several reclamation-quality indicators are discussed. The use of soil quality standards is also discussed. Limit values for soil depth, stoniness, textural fractions, carbonate and organic matter content are proposed. The evaluation of Pedraforca's open cast coalmines reclamation is used as example for discussing quality indicators use. Among the current indicators of restoration quality, soil losses by erosion (volume of soil lost and affected area), physical properties (bulk density, infiltration rate) and some biological characteristics (CO2 efflux) are some of the more useful. This is due to the integrating character of those attributes easy to be measured. However, information about shrubs and trees, in spite of their current use, are more limited as indicator of final quality taking into account the short time of warranty (five years maximum) of restoration works. A global score table for restoration quality of mining activities is also shown

Experiència d'aprenentatge d'avaluació del medi natural per a estudiants de ciències ambientals. L'ús i l'estat de conservació dels sòls

En aquesta comunicació es presenta una activitat docent dissenyada pels professors de l'assignatura de Gestió i Conservació de Sòls de la UAB (tercer curs de Ciències Ambientals) que pretén desenvolupar la capacitat d'observació dels estudiants perquè siguin capaços de reconèixer en el camp processos que comporten la degradació dels sòls d'una determinada zona i, analitzar-ne les causes

RESTOQUARRY : indicators for self-evaluation of ecological restoration in open-pit mines

Several methods and criteria to evaluate and assess quarry restoration are available in the scientific literature, but they are very specialized and time consuming. Furthermore, there is a lack of evaluation tools appropriate for technicians involved in these types of activities, such as quarry engineers, restoration managers and quality control supervisors in public administration. The work presented attempts to bridge the gap between scientific knowledge and practical needs by proposing a simplified methodology (RESTOQUARRY protocol), which enables the non-scientific public to evaluate restored areas. This procedure focused on five groups of parameters for zone (homogeneous portions within the whole restored area) evaluation: geotechnical risk, drainage network, erosion and physical degradation, soil quality and vegetation status and functionality. Moreover, three groups of parameters are proposed for area (whole restoration) evaluation: landscape integration, ecological connectivity and fauna, and anthropic impacts. This protocol has been tested in 55 open-pit mines located throughout Catalonia (NE Iberian Peninsula), covering a wide range of Mediterranean climatic conditions and geological substrates. Results indicate that the proposed methodology is suitable for detecting critical parameters that can determine the success of the restoration

Hot spot analysis in integrated circuit substrates by laser mirage effect

3 páginas, 2 figuras.This work shows an analytical and experimental technique for characterizing radial heat flow present in integrated circuits (ICs) when power is dissipated by integrated devices. The analytical model comes from the resolution of the Fermat equation for the trajectory of rays and supposing a spherical heat source dissipating a time-periodic power. An application example is presented; hence demonstrating how hot spots and heat transfer phenomena in the IC substrate can be characterized. The developed method may become a practical alternative to usual off-chip techniques for inspecting hot spots in ICs and to experimentally characterize heat flow in the semiconductor substrate.This work has been partially supported by the Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC) (under contract “Junta para la Ampliación de Estudios,” JAEDoc No. E-08–2008–0637732) and the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (research programs THERMOS TEC2008- 05577, RUE CSD2009-00046, TERASYSTEMS TEC2008- 01856, and Ramón y Cajal RYC-2010-07434).Peer reviewe

Reduced-Order Thermal Behavioral Model Based on Diffusive Representation

14 páginas, 15 figuras, 2 tablas.-- et al.The virtual prototyping of power electronic converters requires electrothermal models with various abstraction levels and easy identification. Numerous methods for the construction of compact thermal models have been presented in this paper. Few of them propose state-space models, where the model order can be controlled according to the necessity of the virtual prototyping analyses. Moreover, the model reduction methods require the experience of the engineer and previous calibration. Diffusive representation (DR) is proposed here as an original and efficient method to build compact thermal models as state-space models. The model reduction is obtained through the model parameter identification and/or the time horizon of the measurement data provided for the identification. Instead of eigenvalue elimination, the method enables to specify adequately inside the model the frequency domain wished for the virtual analysis at hand. The proposed method is particularly dedicated to the system optimization phases. Experimental and simulation results are in good agreement. The advantages and limitations of the DR are discussed in comparison to published methods.Peer reviewe