1,721,052 research outputs found
Area dynamics and social participation: from the European Landscape Convention to the Observatori del Paisatge de Catalunya
No full textThe role of the European Landscape Convention has helped fuel a new inclusive idea of landscape whichought to take shape above all through a process of participation of the inhabitants, favouring landscape sustainability to improve the quality of life of the population.\ud
This article presents a case study of the Spanish region of Catalonia, where the cardinal principles of the European Landscape Convention have been transposed and translated into a highly effective landscape protection, management and planning law: the Llei 8/2005. One of the\ud
most innovative provisions of the law is the setting up of an organization – the Observatori del Paisatgede Catalunya– tosupport and cooperate with the regional government of Catalonia (Generalitat de Catalunya) with respect to area planning. The Observatory is not only a\ud
landscape reference centre and think tank, but also a consortium for the implementation of the European Landscape Convention. Finally, theGeneralitat de Catalunya has entrusted the Observatorito draw up landscape catalogues, documents of a technical nature, these too\ud
provided byLlei 8/2005, conceived as a landscape planning and management support tool. The main aim of the catalogues is to help incorporate landscape quality measures, criteria and objectives into the area plans, especially thePlanes territorialesparciales (PTP) adopting\ud
participatory processes
The Development of a Flexible Sensor for Continuum Soft-Bodied Robots
Full text linkIn this thesis, we investigate, develop, and verify an approach to sense over soft and flexible materials based on the use of a tomographic technique known as Electrical Impedance Tomography
Canali artificiali, territorialità idraulica e paesaggio. Uno studio comparativo tra Veneto, Catalogna e sud-ovest dell'Inghilterra
Full text linkCanals, society and engineered waterscapes.
A comparative study between the Veneto region, Catalonia and South - West England.
The reorganization and control of water flows are among the most significant transformations of natural elements caused by human activities. Waterways are not only environmental quality facilities, but also linear paths of high cultural value, where, thanks to the interaction between natural element and human intervention, we can identify types of landscape. Today, many researchers consider landscapes not only as the way in which people perceive their own reality, but also as factor of intellectual and material transformation of nature, through which people represent and contend those realities. Water landscapes are preferential testing systems thanks to their delicate and multi-scalar peculiarities, where the collective values are combined with the individual ones and where the concept of artefact merges with the concept of heritage, to blend into landscape. Thus artificial water canals are opportunities to ensure that the water resource and the hydrographic network are sufficiently considered within territorial programs, urban and landscape planning and, more generally, in any type of intervention connected to environmental, cultural, social and hydraulic aspects.
Through a comparative study, this survey seeks both to provide a comparison between different geographical areas and to assess how the artificial hydrographic mesh may constitute an opportunity for social and economic development. Canals are elements of a great cultural heritage able to attract visitors and communicate to a wide public the importance of sustainable development through the promotion of a slow and responsible tourism which aims at the preservation both of a places and artefacts.
The theoretical and methodological foundations on which this study is based are mainly three. Considering the historical relevance, the geo-historical approach is appropriate to set the foundation knowledge from which to start operative afterthoughts destined to actual needs for efficient management of those ‘bands of conflict' which can be considered the artificial canals (Ciriacono, Cosgrove, Glick, Hoskins, Meinig, Schama, Swyngedouw, Vallerani). Second, we have considered the literature based on the concepts of heritage and cultural legacy which are related to those of memory and value. This literature consequently produced some considerations regarding the concept of heritage protection (Bonesio, Lowenthal, Nogué, Michell, Norberg-Schulz, Turri). Third, we have focused on the epistemological reflection of the term landscape and in particular on the implications the adoption of the European Landscape Convention could possibly have in the future management of the territorial heritage, including the amphibian one and the birth of the Observatories (Castiglioni, Jones, Mels, Olwig, Varotto).
This research explores three different case studies: the first one analyses the irrigation ditches outflowing from river Brenta in the middle Veneto plain; second one discusses the importance of building the acequias (open canals) in the formation of the landscape of the Baix Ter in north-eastern Catalonia; The last part considers the Kennet and Avon Canal in England, which is the canal that connects the cities of Bristol and Reading and links river Avon to the Thames. This research presents each case study through the three methodological approaches in order to give homogeneity: the first part offers a geo-historical analysis; the second part focus on the study of heritage, administrative authorities and actors who play a delicate task in conservation and management; the third part investigates the reception of the European Landscape Convention and the formation of observatories as a possible consequence of its application.
The results of the study confirm the crucial importance of the landscapes of water in their respective contexts. The importance of water landscapes particularly emerges in the light of new paradigms of regional development and landscape planning which are considered to be more respectful to the quality life of the inhabitants and economically based on slow and green tourism. Moreover the identity value of these landscapes may play a role in relocating culturally and socially these areas subject to numerous anthropogenic impacts (urbanization, hydrological disasters, economic crisis, building trivialization). Another result of this research regards the valorisation if the artificial canals in England which generate generate widespread prosperity in the local population, as well as become an economical and cultural surplus added to affirm areas outside the usual crowded tourist destinations. Finally, the reading of the European Landscape Convention, and especially the study of local observers have witnessed how the role and participation of the people can no longer be just a good practice in the hands of the most sensitive administrations, but a necessary choice to reaffirm some of the values that are the basis for the active democratic adhesion of citizens, who must return the protagonists of territorial planning management
Paesaggio, Territorio, Società Civile. Il Senso del Luogo nel Contemporaneo. Di Joan Nogué
No full textModernist ideas and local reception: the company towns of Piazzola sul Brenta and Borgonyà, 1895-1930
No full textUtopianism, paternalism and the myth of progress were the ideological foundations underpinning the formation of company towns. These communities, which emerged at the turn of the nineteenth century, were dependent on a single company for all or most of the necessary services or functions of town life. This article explores the aspects of company town life that were received and implemented differently depending on the cultural and geographical context. In particular, this article examines the emergence of two company towns that were established in the same period but in two distinct geographical contexts: Piazzola sul Brenta in the Veneto region of Italy and Borgonyà in Catalonia, Spain. While the development of these two company towns relied on the same ideals of social and technological progress, the visions of their respective companies, the site of their construction and the topographies of their locations differed significantly. These modernist new towns are examined through key factors that reflect the owners’ and city planners’ faith in social and technological progress, such as the exploitation of water, the construction of railways and moral paternalism. These features are analysed by reflecting on the meaning of space in specific contexts. Piazzola sul Brenta and Borgonyà were experimental spaces that their designers and owners used to achieve ephemeral social, political and cultural goals that allowed me to examine both the ways and the spaces in which knowledge and ideas were received and how different types of knowledge and ideas were transformed and realized
Turismo rurale e nuove tecnologie: tra opportunità e difficoltà. Il caso delle applicazioni lungo le vie d'acqua nelle campagne del Veneto (Italia).
No full textNegli ultimi anni, il numero crescente di utenti di smartphone e tablet, di tutte le fasce d’età, e la vasta gamma di applicazioni che vengono ogni giorno prodotte, hanno di fatto alterato il nostro attuale rapporto con il viaggio, la sua esperienza, la sua comprensione, l’orientamento e l’organizzazione (Dickson et al. 2012). Non è un mistero che l’utilizzo di mappe interattive, banche dati, informazioni abbiano trasformato le nostre abitudini, l’atteggiamento attraverso il quale ci rapportiamo con lo spazio e i luoghi, i rapporti che intratteniamo con le persone che incontriamo durante un viaggio (Wang, Park, Fesenmaier 2012). Questo contributo, partendo dall’analisi di tre applicazioni prodotte dal Centro Civiltà dell’Acqua in collaborazione con l’Università Ca’ Foscari di Venezia all’interno del progetto ‘Exploring Rivers’, esplora i meccanismi di mediazioni, le opportunità, le potenzialità e rischi che intercorrono nella produzione e nell’utilizzazione di specifiche applicazioni dedicate al turismo rurale lungo le vie d’acqua. Le implicazioni di questi risultati possono fornirci importanti informazioni per affrontare le sfide emergenti che ci impongono le nuove tecnologie
Costruire Contratti di fiume: riflessioni, percorsi, pratiche
No full textPerché un libro sui Contratti di Fiume? La scelta di scrivere questo testo è dettata da una parte
dall’opportunità di cogliere un fermento crescente nei confronti di uno strumento di programmazione negoziata che sempre più territori decidono di adottare e dall’altra di fornire delle coordinate concettuali e di metodo, nonché delle indicazioni tecniche e pratiche per la ‘costruzione’ collegiale di processi negoziali. È necessario tenere presente che l’obiettivo generale dei Contratti di Fiume è quello di prendersi cura dei luoghi, in modo collettivo e partecipato, a partire dalla loro componente idrica.
Quindi, il nostro scopo non era quello di scrivere un altro manuale su come pianificare o controllare dei progetti, bensì di mettere in discussione, grazie ai Contratti di fiume, un paradigma concettuale e teorico attraverso il quale il bene acqua viene interpretato, programmato e gestito.
Nel momento in cui la ricerca accademica raggiunge il dibattito pubblico, e nel momento in cui il
Contratto di fiume diventa una pratica che sempre più territori (come attori, pubblici e privati) scelgono di abbracciare, è importante che vengano evidenziate delle questioni di metodo e suggerite delle linee per la gestione e programmazione dei processi in atto. Con i Contratti di Fiume, infatti, si cerca di rivendicare la necessità di riabilitare una ‘società idraulica’ che torni ad essere costruzionista attraverso una visione e delle capacità rinnovate di gestione
A Single-Wire Soft Sensor for Seamless Multimodal Tactile Sensing
Full text linkIntegrating sensing in a soft robot is still crucial to enable feedback response to environmental stimuli. This paper presents a single-wire soft sensor for multimodal tactile sensing designed to address the limitations of current technologies. The sensor integrates a stimulus-responsive hydrogel with a unique design that enables spatial and force sensing by leveraging changes in electromagnetic resonance properties. With a simplified structure, the sensor is fabricated with minimal wiring, maintaining flexibility and adaptability for various robotic applications. Experimental results demonstrate high accuracy in detecting contact points (up to 98%) and applied forces (96%) and a combined detection accuracy of 87%. This approach allows for distributed sensing within the robot or using the whole body as a sensing element, enhancing the system’s responsiveness to environmental stimuli and supporting advanced applications in physical intelligence
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