The Professor in Astronomy and Astrophysics in the University of Valencia, Vicent J. Martínez received at the University of Zaragoza the National Award José María Savirón for Scientific Dissemination of this year, a non-economic recognition promoted by several scientific entities of Aragón and the University of Zaragoza. The nomination was made by the Sociedad Española de Astronomía (Spanish Society of Astronomy), the Real Sociedad Matemática Española (Spanish Royas Society of Mathematics), the Real Sociedad Española de Física (Spanish Royal Society of Physics) and the Real Academia de Ciencias de Zaragoza (Zaragoza’s Royal Academy of Sciences).
The jury valued the “outstanding, extensive and varied dissemination labour” made by Martínez through all kinds of formats, as for example books, articles, lectures and documentaries, while the Aula del Cielo (Sky’s Classroom) project, promoted by the Astronomic Observatory under his direction, and the scientific communication webpage CONEC, which has become the site for the Confederación Española de Sociedades Científicas (COSCE), stand out. Both activities are carried out through agreements between the University of Valencia and the Valencian Government.
Vicente Martínez has been over 11 years the director of the Astronomic Observatory at the University of Valencia (OAUV). His research activity is mainly focused on galaxies, the large-scale structure of the universe and cosmology. His activity in the field of dissemination has included the organisation and teaching of university courses and international conferences on disseminators training, moreover, he participated in the creation of the Chair for Scientific Dissemination. As director of the OAUV, he led the dissemination work of the institution in open door lecture series, school tours through the Aula del Cielo (in which over 3000 annual students have participated during these past eight years), lecture series or special sessions of astronomic events observation. He was also responsible for the creation of the Colección Museográfica (Museumgraphic Collection) of ancient astronomic instruments of the OAUV, recognised by the Valencian Government.
For Martínez, “it is a prestigious award that bears the name of a great scientist and wonderful teacher. In the past, it has been received by people with a great career in activities of scientific dissemination. This award is a recognition for a whole collective that, from the Astronomic Observatory, makes an excellent job, with passion and enthusiastically, to bring science closer to society, through well-established projects, with a continuity and a great social impact”.
The award José María Savirón is given since 2005 by the Territorial Office in Aragon of the la Real Sociedad Española de Química (Spanish Royal Society of Chemistry), the Aragonese Office of the Real Sociedad Española de Física, the Real Sociedad Matemática Española, the Colegio Oficial de Químicos de Aragón (Official College of Chemists of Aragon), the Colegio Oficial de Geólogos en Aragón (Offical College of Geologists in Aragón), the Colegio Oficial de Físicos en Aragón (Official College of Phisicists in Aragón), the Fundación Zaragoza Ciudad del Conocimiento (Zaragoza City of Knowledge Foundation), the Royal Academy of Sciences of Zaragoza, the Spanish National Research Council in Aragón, the Chair José María Savirón for Scientific Dissemination of the University of Zaragoza – in which the Aragonese Government and Zaragoza’s city council collaborates – and the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Zaragoza.
Some of the previous winners of the Award Jose María Savirón for Scientific Dissemination have been José Pardina, director of the journal Muy Interesante, the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias, Pascual Román, editor of the scientific journal Anales de Química; Ramón Núñez Centella, director of the Museo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología or Raúl Ibáñez Torres, inventor and director of Divulgamat, the biggest Mathematics site in Spanish. And in the past edition, ex aequo, the programme Tres14 in La2 and Jorge Mira were awarded for several works and the ConCiencia programme.
Last update: 3 de december de 2013 13:37.
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