Lecciones aprendidas del terremoto de Lorca de 2011.

El terremoto de Lorca del 11 de mayo de 2011, de magnitud Mw=5,2, causó un enorme impacto en la ciudad y una gran alarma social, provocando 9 víctimas mortales, centenares de heridos y cuantiosos daños materiales. Este trabajo recoge las opiniones de varios expertos que tuvieron un papel destacado en la gestión y análisis del suceso, y la de 627 lorquinos a través de una encuesta llevada a cabo por estudiantes del I.E.S. Ramón Arcas de Lorca. Aunque cada uno de los expertos y los ciudadanos inciden en aspectos diferentes, el análisis de sus opiniones nos permite concluir, como principal lección aprendida, que terremotos futuros como el de Lorca pueden producir muchos menos daños si se trabaja conjuntamente en mejorar: (1) la investigación sísmica, (2) la calidad de las construcciones, (3) la gestión de las catástrofes naturales y (4) la formación de la ciudadanía. Esta aproximación multidisciplinar al terremoto de Lorca puede resultar interesante para los estudiantes, y puede aportar ideas a los docentes para el análisis de futuros terremotos

Lessons learned from the 2011 Lorca Earthquake

El terremoto de Lorca del 11 de mayo de 2011, de magnitud Mw=5,2, causó un enorme impacto en la ciudad y una gran alarma social, provocando 9 víctimas mortales, centenares de heridos y cuantiosos daños materiales. Este trabajo recoge las opiniones de varios expertos que tuvieron un papel destacado en la gestión y análisis del suceso, y la de 627 lorquinos a través de una encuesta llevada a cabo por estudiantes del I.E.S. Ramón Arcas de Lorca. Aunque cada uno de los expertos y los ciudadanos inciden en aspectos diferentes, el análisis de sus opiniones nos permite concluir, como principal lección aprendida, que terremotos futuros como el de Lorca pueden producir muchos menos daños si se trabaja conjuntamente en mejorar: (1) la investigación sísmica, (2) la calidad de las construcciones, (3) la gestión de las catástrofes naturales y (4) la formación de la ciudadanía. Esta aproximación multidisciplinar al terremoto de Lorca puede resultar interesante para los estudiantes, y puede aportar ideas a los docentes para el análisis de futuros terremotos.The Mw 5,2 earthquake of 11 May 2011 in Lorca caused a great impact and social alarm, producing 9 fatalities, injuring hundreds and leaving widespread damage. This paper collects opinions by several experts on earthquakes and seismic risk management, and the opinions of 627 citizens from on an opinion poll conducted by students of the Ramon Arcas high school in Lorca. Although experts and citizens focus their attention on different items, anaylizing their opinions allows us to conclude that prevention or mitigation of the effects of future earthquakes needs combined efforts aimed at improving: (1) earthquake research, (2) earthquakeproof design of buildings, (3) seismic risk management and (4) self-protection measures and education of the population. This multidisciplinary approach of the Lorca earthquake is interesting for students and teachers when it comes to analyzing future earthquakes.Depto. de Geodinámica, Estratigrafía y PaleontologíaFac. de Ciencias GeológicasTRUEEspaña. Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovaciónpu

The Atapuerca sites and the Ibeas hominids

The Atapuerca railway Trench and Ibeas sites near Burgos, Spain, are cave fillings that include a series of deposits ranging from below the Matuyama/Bruhnes reversal up to the end of Middle Pleistocene. The lowest fossil-bearing bed in the Trench contains an assemblage of large and small Mammals including Mimomys savini, Pitymys gregaloides, Pliomys episcopalis, Crocuta crocuta, Dama sp. and Megacerini; the uppermost assemblage includes Canis lupus, Lynx spelaea, Panthera (Leo) fossilis, Felis sylvestris, Equus caballus steinheimensis, E.c. germanicus, Pitymys subtenaneus, Microtus arvalis agrestis, Pliomys lenki, and also Panthera toscana, Dicerorhinus bemitoechus, Bison schoetensacki, which are equally present in the lowest level. The biostratigraphic correlation and dates of the sites are briefly discussed, as are the paleoclimatic interpretation of the Trench sequences. Stone artifacts are found in several layers; the earliest occurrences correspond to the upper beds containing Mimomys savini. A set of preserved human occupation floors has been excavated in the top fossil-bearing beds. The stone-tool assemblages of the upper levels are of upper-medial Acheulean to Charentian tradition. The rich bone breccia SH, in the Cueva Mayor-Cueva del Silo, Ibeas de Juarros, is a derived deposit, due to a mud flow that dispersed and carried the skeletons of many carnivores and humans. The taxa represented are: Vrsus deningeri (largely dominant), Panthera (Leo) fossilis, Vulpes vulpes, Homo sapiens var. Several traits of both mandibular and cranial remains are summarized. Preliminary attempts at dating suggest that the Ibeas fossil man is older than the Last Interglacial, or oxygen-isotope stage 5

Enantioselective synthesis of proline derivatives by 1,3-dipolar cycloadditions

Research devoted to the synthesis of highly substituted prolines, which are hepatitis C virus inhibitors, using 1,3-dipolar cycloadditions (1,3-DC) of azomethine ylides is described. In the first part, a diastereoselective approach using an inexpensive lactate-derived acrylate as dipolarophile is described. In the second part, our efforts using simple and easily accessible chiral silver(I) and gold(I) complexes as catalysts for enantioselective synthesis of proline derivatives are reviewed. In this case, chiral phosphoramidites and binap have been used as privileged ligands. Parallel to these experimental results, considerable effort was dedicated to run semiempirical density functional theory (DFT) calculations to explain and justify the stereoselectivity of each process.This work has been supported by the DGES of the Spanish Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (MICINN) (Consolider INGENIO 2010 CSD2007-00006, FEDER-CTQ2007-62771/BQU, and by the Hispano-Brazilian project PHB2008-0037-PC), Generalitat Valenciana (PROMETEO/2009/039), and by the University of Alicante (GITE-09020-UA)

Parametric Methodology to Optimize the Sizing of Solar Collector Fields in Series-Parallel Arrays

The analysis of solar thermal systems through numerical simulation is of great importance, since it allows predicting the performance of many configurations in any location and under different climatic conditions. Most of the simulation tools are commercial and require different degrees of training; therefore, it is important to develop simple and reliable methodologies to obtain similar results. This study presents a parametric methodology to size stationary solar collector fields, with operating temperatures up to 150 °C. The costs of the collector loop piping and the pumping power of different series−parallel arrays is considered. The proposed tool was validated with experimental data and through simulations using commercial software. The tool allows establishing series−parallel arrays and calculates the volume of the storage tank according to the thermal load. The calculation is based on the system energy balance, where the mass flow and the heat losses in the interconnections of the collectors are taken into account. The number of collectors and the optimal series−parallel array were determined. The results show deviations lower than 7% in the relative error of the temperature profiles and in the solar fraction, with respect to the results obtained by dynamic simulations

Pre-Feasibility Assessment Tool for Solar Industrial Process Heating

The industrial sector demands 25% of global energy as heat, where one-third is used at temperatures below 150 °C. Nevertheless, the installed solar heating capacity in the industry is only 0.02%, even though the integration of solar heating systems into production processes could significantly reduce fossil fuel consumption at a competitive cost. Among other reasons, this low penetration is due to the final users’ lack of knowledge of solar heating technologies. As a result, a free pre-feasibility assessment tool was developed for non-specialised users to evaluate the possibility of integrating solar heat into their processes using basic information. This tool uses transient simulation to estimate a feasible solar heating system through the parametric optimisation of the solar collection area, thermal storage volume, heat exchange capacity, and solar integration schemes at the supply level and costs. A commercial facility in Mexico was analysed using the developed tool as a case study. However, even when this is not a design tool, the calculated solar collector area, storage tank volume, and investment were only 2.1%, 9.0%, and 2.3% higher than reported by the solar designer. Pre-feasibility assessment tools are essential to overcome the certainty gap between end users and solar designers, thus enhancing the possibility of implementing solar heating systems in various commercial and industrial processes

Occurrence and molecular diversity of Blastocystis sp. in wild mesocarnivores from Spain

Trabajo presentado al: XXI Congreso de la Sociedad Española de Parasitología (SOCEPA). Pontevedra, 3-5 julio 2019.This study was funded by the Health Institute Carlos III (ISCIII), Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (Spain), under project PI16CIII/00024. Additional funding was obtained from the Complutense University of Madrid (grant CT65/16), the University of Aveiro (Portugal) and FCT/MEC through CESAM RU funding (UID/AMB/50017/2019), and European FEDER (PT2020 Agreement)

The Atapuerca Sites and the Ibeas Hominids

ABSTRACT:The Atapuerca railway Trench and Ibeas sites near Burgos, Spain, are cave fillings that include a series of deposits, ranging from below the Matuyama/Bruhnes reversal up to the end of Middle Pleistocene. The lowest fossil-bearing bed in the Trench contains an assemblage of large and small Mammals including Mimomys savini, Pitymys gregaloides, Pliomys episcopalis, Crocuta crocuta, Dama sp, and Megacerini; the uppermost assemblage includes Canis lupus, Lynx spelaea, Panthera (Leo) fossilis, Felis sylvestris, Equus caballus steinheimensis, E. c. germanicus, Pitymys subterraneus. Microtus arvalis agrestis, Pliomys lenki, and also Panthera toscana, Dicerorhinus hemitoecbus, Bison schoetensacki, which are equally present in the lowest level. The biostratigraphic correlation and dates of the sites are briefly discussed, as are the paleoclimatic interpretation of the Trench sequences. Stone artifacts are found in several layers; the earliest occurrences correspond to the upper beds containing Mimomys savini. A set of preserved human occupation floors has been excavated in the top fossil-bearing beds. The stone-tool assemblages of the upper levels are of upper-medial Acheulean to Charentian tradition. The rich bone breccia SH, in the Cueva Mayor-Cueva del Silo, Ibeas de Juarros, is a derived deposit, due to a mud flow that dispersed and carried the skeletons of many carnivores and humans. The taxa represented are, Ursus deningeri (largely dominant), Panthera (Leo) fossilis, Vulpes vulpes, Homo sapiens var. Several traits of both mandibular and cranial remains are summarized. Preliminary attempts at dating suggest that the Ibeas fossil man, is older than the Last Interglacial, or Oxygen-isotope stage 5.RESUMEN: La Trinchera del ferrocarril de Atapuerca y yacimientos de Ibeas cerca de Burgos, España, son rellenos de cuevas que incluyen una serie de depósitos, que datan desde por debajo de la inversión Matuyama/Bruhnes hasta el final del Pleistoceno Medio. El nivel fosilífero de la Trinchera contiene un conjunto de grandes y pequeños Mamíferos incluyendo Mimomys savini, Pitymys gregaloides, Pliomys episcopalis, Crocuta Crocuta, Dama sp. y Megacerini; el conjunto más superior incluye Canis lupus, Lynx spelaea, Panthera (Leo) fossilis, Felis sylvestris, Equus caballus steinheimensis, E. c. germanicus, Pitymys subterraneus, Microtus arvalis agrestis, Pliomys lenki y también Panthera toscana, Dicerorhinus hemitoechus, Bison schoetensacki, que están igualmente presentes en el nivel más inferior. La correlación bioestratigráfica y las edades de los yacimientos se discuten brevemente, al igual que la interpretación paleoclimática de las secuencias de Trinchera. Los artefactos de piedra se encuentran en varios niveles, las primeras apariciones corresponden a los niveles superiores que contienen Mimomys savini. Se ha excavado un conjunto de suelos que preservan ocupación humana en la parte superior de los niveles fosilíferos. Los conjuntos de herramientas de piedra de los niveles superiores son del Achelense superior-medio a la tradición Charentiense. La rica brecha fosilífera SH, en la Cueva Mayor-Cueva del Silo, Ibeas de Juarros, es un depósito derivado, debido a un flujo de lodo que dispersó y transportó los esqueletos de muchos carnívoros y humanos. Los taxones representados son, Ursus deningeri (muy predominante), Panthera (Leo) fossilis, Vulpes vulpes, Homo sapiens var. Se resumen los rasgos de los restos mandibulares y craneales. Los intentos preliminares de datación sugieren que el hombre fósil de Ibeas, es más antiguo que el último Interglacial, o estadio de oxígeno isotópico 5.Peer reviewe