EUCYS 2020/2021 TEAM

Dear Young Scientists,

The road towards EUCYS2020/2021 has not been an easy one. During our preparation of EUCYS2020 in Salamanca, COVID-19 barged in our lives. Now that the entire world has undergone the devastating consequences of a new virus, it has become more clear than ever how our future societies will need to rely on knowledge and science in order to face the challenges that are to come. And science needs people. In particular, young people like you, with unique skills such as innovation, creativeness and above all, inquisitiveness. Science, and our world, needs you, and we are here to support your first steps as scientists.

This EUCYS edition has its unique signature. We have performed a special effort to run EUCYS thinking of you, the participants. Apart from the contest itself, that will take place in a virtual platform, we have put together a program of very appealing activities —a round table with highly recognized scientists, a Nobel prize plenary lecture, outreach talks—,which we expect that you can benefit your careers. We hope that these activities can serve you to spot the challenges you are going to face as young scientists, and to learn how to tackle them within our state-of-the-art scientific environment.

 

Science, like music or art, is universal. And by being universal, nowadays we cannot do science without team work, making cooperation and collaboration very valuable —if not mandatory— skills for scientific research. We know how delightful seems to obtain an EUCYS prize, but keep in mind that the best prize you can obtain from EUCYS2020/2021 is the friendship with your peers. In this edition we cannot benefit from face-to-face interaction in Salamanca, but we strongly encourage you to take advantage of the virtual platform to interact as much as possible with your peers, and, hopefully, to establish meaningful friendship with future colleagues. We hope that you remember EUCYS Salamanca as one of the milestones of the beginning your scientific careers.

 

As researchers ourselves, and professionals who dedicate their lives to support and disseminate science and research, we really wish you to enjoy EUCYS2020/2021 as much as possible. Please, do not hesitate to contact us, we are here to help you. We wish you all the best for your scientific future.

 

Carlos Hernández-García
on behalf of the EUCYS2020/2021 team

ORGANIZING COMMITTEE

Dr. Carlos Hernández-García. Senior Researcher in Physics, Ramón y Cajal fellow, ERC grantee.
diarium.usal.es/carloshergar / carloshergar@usal.es

Dr. María Jesús Santos Sánchez. Associate Professor in Physics.
smjesus@usal.es

Marta Romo. PhD student in Biochemistry.
martarogo@usal.es

PROJECT MANAGERS

Dr. José Manuel Iglesias Pérez
Dr. Fernando Gutiérrez Chico

DEPARTMENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF SALAMANCA

Innovation and Digital Production

Dr. Gustavo Lannelongue, Director of Department.
Graphic and digital designers:
Pilar Vega Pérez, Sara Alejandra Labrador Martín, Marta Férnandez- Roldán Galán.
Audiovisual media:Ana Hernández Martín.

Scientific Culture and Innovation

Miguel Battaner-Moro
María de los Ángeles Tardáguila Navarro

HOST ORGANISER

Universitas Studii Salmanticensis

 

The University of Salamanca (USAL) celebrated its 800th anniversary in 2018, being an important piece of the history of Europe. Nowadays USAL draws around 28.000 undergraduate and graduate students from across Spain and the world, being also known for its Spanish courses for non-native speakers, which attract more than 2.000 foreign students each year. The city’s main activity revolves around the University, the students and the academic life, which makes it an excellent scenario for celebrating and disseminating science. Within this contest, USAL intends to support science, and in particular, to motivate and encourage young scientists by creating a unique atmosphere of knowledge transfer between local and international scientists interested in interdisciplinary fields of research.

Universitas Studii Salmanticensis

 

The University of Salamanca (USAL) celebrated its 800th anniversary in 2018, being an important piece of the history of Europe. Nowadays USAL draws around 28.000 undergraduate and graduate students from across Spain and the world, being also known for its Spanish courses for non-native speakers, which attract more than 2.000 foreign students each year. The city’s main activity revolves around the University, the students and the academic life, which makes it an excellent scenario for celebrating and disseminating science. Within this contest, USAL intends to support science, and in particular, to motivate and encourage young scientists by creating a unique atmosphere of knowledge transfer between local and international scientists interested in interdisciplinary fields of research.

The University of Salamanca, which was founded in 1218 by King Alfonso IX of León, is one of the oldest universities in Europe and has been an academic point of reference for its eight centuries of existence and for countless generations of students from all over the world.

 

The University attained its greatest splendour in the 15th and 16th centuries when it became the centre of the world debate on people’s rights. Its teachers discussed Colombus’ project and once America had been discovered debated whether the natives should be given full rights. Some of the women who studied in its lecture halls are considered to be among the first female university students in the world such as Lucía de Medrano and Beatriz Galindo. The former subsequently became the first woman university lecturer.

The construction of the Historical University Building began in 1411 and was completed in 1533. It is one of the most important monuments in Spain and one of the most valuable examples of Spanish Renaissance art. It is noted for its plateresque façade built of the golden stone of Villamayor. The interior of the building includes very special places such as the Fray Luis de León Hall and the spectacular Noble Staircase. Other unique spaces of great importance include the Ancient Library which contains very valuable manuscripts and other incunabula.

 

Adjacent to the University buildings others arose such as the Study Hospital, the Escuelas Mayores, the Escuelas Menores, and numerous other schools.

Mapa Castilla y León por campus de la Universidad de Salamanca

9 university campuses distributed in three provinces: Salamanca, Zamora, and Ávila

 

The University of Salamanca has a long humanistic and scientific tradition and a presence in four towns (Salamanca, Zamora, Ávila, and Béjar). Over 30,000 students study at its 26 faculties and university schools each academic year.

 

The University of Salamanca is established in a World Heritage city which is both dynamic and of great architectural value. Its wide range of academic, cultural, and sporting activities have made the USAL the second most important Spanish university with most students from outside its university district. Owing to all this Salamanca is known the world over as one of the major university cities.

International character

 

It is a university with a marked international character which welcomes each year over 7000 students from the five continents thanks to its major programme of international student mobility.

 

The University of Salamanca is established in a World Heritage city which is both dynamic and of great architectural value. Its wide range of academic, cultural, and sporting activities have made the USAL the second most important Spanish university with most students from outside its university district. Owing to all this Salamanca is known the world over as one of the major university cities.

 

Moreover, the University of Salamanca has an important heritage of historical buildings and emblematic spaces still in use for academic activities, including the Escuelas Mayores building.

Salamanca

 

The golden city of a thousand legends

 

To speak of culture is to speak of Salamanca. Strolling through the streets of its historical centre which has been declared a World Heritage Site by the UNESCO means exploring centuries of history, art, and knowledge and allowing oneself to be charmed by wonders such as its famous University, which is one of the oldest in Europe and continues to attract thousands of students every year.

Salamanca

 

The golden city of a thousand legends

 

To speak of culture is to speak of Salamanca. Strolling through the streets of its historical centre which has been declared a World Heritage Site by the UNESCO means exploring centuries of history, art, and knowledge and allowing oneself to be charmed by wonders such as its famous University, which is one of the oldest in Europe and continues to attract thousands of students every year.

Taking a closer look at the monuments of Salamanca is immersing oneself in a world of legends and stories to be discovered. Begin a fine walk in its world-famous Plaza Mayor, the meeting point of the city par excellence. Having a coffee at the legendary Novelty, contemplating its 88 arches, or relaxing at any of its pavement cafés is extremely worthwhile.

 

If you feel like investigation you can begin at the two Cathedrals of Salamanca: yes, there are two! At the Puerta de Ramos entrance of the New Cathedral you can search for the figure of an astronaut sculpted in stone and then climb to its towers on the Ieronimus visit which provides matchless views.

 

The University of Salamanca hides a stone frog on its façade which is said to bring luck to students, the palace known as the Casa de las Conchas is reputed by legend to contain a treasure, the garden of Calixto and Melibea has literary associations, it is said that the Devil taught witchcraft at the Cave of Salamanca… And a thousand more stories in a city which has dozens of places to discover such as the Casa Lis, the Cielo of Salamanca, the Clerecía, the Roman Bridge…

Plaza Mayor

 

It is one of the most beautiful plazas in Spain; it was built in the baroque style by Alberto Churriguera.

 

On its north side stands the Town Hall, which is also baroque with its five granite arches and a steeple among four allegorical figures. Its decoration is noted for its iconic circular portraits of Charles I, Alfonso XI, Ferdinand VI, Cervantes, and Saint Teresa, among others. The façades of the buildings have three stories and are supported by a series of round arches and crowned by a balustrade. The Plaza Mayor is currently one of the liveliest and most popular places of Salamanca.

Domus Artium 2002 (DA2)

 

The Domus Artium 2002 (DA2) was created in the year 2002 to coincide with Salamanca being the European Cultural Capital.

 

The building, which was formerly used as a prison, was renovated and extended. The main themes of this museum are contemporary art and new technologies.

Cathedrals

 

The Cathedral of Salamanca includes two buildings joined together: the Old Cathedral of the 12th-13th centuries and the New Cathedral of the 16th century.

 

The Old Cathedral is Romanesque is style and is noted for the Torre del Gallo, the Chapel of San Martín or of El Aceite, the 15th-century main altarpiece which was created by several painters under Dello Delli, the mural of the vault by Nicolás Florentino, and the fine sepulchres of bishops and figures of the nobility in the interior.

 

The New Cathedral, which was completed in the 18th century by Churriguera, contains the image of the Virgin of La Asunción which was carved in 1626 by the sculptor Esteban Rueda. It is noted for the choir stalls designed by Joaquín Churriguera in 1727 and the baroque retrochoir with its Renaissance images such as the Virgin of Loreto and those of St John the Baptist.

Casa de las Conchas

 

The Casa de las Conchas is Gothic in style. Its construction was initiated in the late 15th century although it also contains Renaissance and Mudejar elements; it is classed as Isabelline art.

 

Over three hundred shells cover its walls. In the 18th century it suffered from cracking which led to the remodelling of its upper part, which lacks the shells which decorate the remainder of the façade. It is noted for its entrance with its Gothic coat of arms above containing representations of the fleurs-de-lys. It currently houses the Salamanca Public Library and an information office.

Casa Lis Art Nouveau
and Art Deco Museum

 

This museum is located in the Casa Lis which was the first modernist building in the city (1905).

 

The museum displays 19 collections of decorative art from the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It contains some 2,500 exhibits including glass pieces; porcelain dolls; chryselephantine, enamel, bronze, and ivory figures; paintings; furniture; jewels; toys; a Fabergé egg… It also holds an important pictorial collection of 19th-century Catalan works and paintings by Salamanca artists such as Celso Lagar and Mateo Hernández.

Spain

 

Did you know that Spain is the third country in the world
with the most UNESCO World Heritage sites?

 

In Spain there are more than 15,600 monuments, archaeological sites, gardens, and historical sites and ensembles which have been declared Assets of Cultural Interest (Bienes de Interés Cultural, BICs). All this constitutes an extraordinary and extremely valuable heritage which stands out for its richness and diversity and which includes numerous examples of the various civilisations, cultures, and historical periods which developed in Spanish territories ranging from the Iberians and Celts to the Romans and Arabs via the Phoenicians, Greeks, Visigoths…

Spain

 

Did you know that Spain is the third country in the world
with the most UNESCO World Heritage sites?

 

In Spain there are more than 15,600 monuments, archaeological sites, gardens, and historical sites and ensembles which have been declared Assets of Cultural Interest (Bienes de Interés Cultural, BICs). All this constitutes an extraordinary and extremely valuable heritage which stands out for its richness and diversity and which includes numerous examples of the various civilisations, cultures, and historical periods which developed in Spanish territories ranging from the Iberians and Celts to the Romans and Arabs via the Phoenicians, Greeks, Visigoths…

Moreover, within this whole we can also find unique and characteristic artistic styles such the pre-Romanesque of Asturias, Mudejar architecture, and Andalusian art. It is thus not surprising that Spain is the third country in the world with the most sites included on the World Heritage list of the UNESCO. From the cave paintings of the Cueva de Altamira and the findings of Atapuerca via the Aqueduct of Segovia, the Alhambra of Granada, and the Mosque of Córdoba to the cathedrals of Seville, Burgos, and the Sagrada Familia of Barcelona to mention but a few, Spain is an essential cultural destination. The 15 Spanish Cultural Cities of Humanity also deserve special mention and are always well worth a visit.

Throughout history many Spanish figures have left their mark on various fields of the arts and culture (Murillo, Zurbarán, Miró, Sorolla, Maruja Mallo, Cervantes, Lorca, Falla, Buñuel, Balenciaga, Ramón y Cajal…). This situation has continued to the present day: Antonio López, Miquel Barceló, Paco de Lucía, Camarón de la Isla, Montserrat Caballé, Pedro Almodóvar, Blanca Li, Manuel Pertegaz, Severo Ochoa, Margarita Salas, and Ana María Matute are but a few examples of the long list of men and women devoted to literature, painting, music, the cinema, fashion, dance, science, and arts of all kinds, the prestige and recognition of whom are international.

Gobierno de España - Ministerio de Universidades
Junta de Castilla y León
Ayuntamiento de Salamanca
Iberdrola