People From Madrid

"This was absolutely cutting-edge... about 1932, 33, 34 there are no laminar structures. ...[T]his was a huge step forward in and lamimar structures, and it is recognized as such. I compare it... with the . They were absolutely original and absolutely original structures, not only in their originality but in how they were calculated and built."

"[S]tresses in one direction produce not only a deformation along this direction but also transversally, the relation of both being expressed by the so-called Poisson ratio. However, the consideration... is of no great importance for the first, approximate judgement."

"The material in all elementary parts of a structure must have the properties of resistence to all internal forces produced by general loading conditions and by the action of any exterior force."

"Stress phenomena are... not independent of scale, as was the case pertaining to simple external static equilibrium. ...with increasing dimensions of a structural element the volume and therefore the proper weight increases more rapidly than its cross-sectional areas..."

"Equilibrium requires that the whole of the structure, the form of its elements, and the means of interconnection be so combined that at the supports there will automatically be produced passive forces or reactions that are able to balance the forces acting upon the structures, including the force of its own weight."

"Even children know that drafting rule is easier to bend flat than across the edges; and... they will not be much surprised if told that for the same width of the rule its resistance is proportional to the square of the thickness and the deflection is inversely proportional to the cube of the thickness. Nevertheless some modern designers seem to be unaware... since they require... beams of such slenderness that they resemble springboards..."

"In general, these phenomena are very easy to perceive and understand, but difficult to calculate. The danger of failure increases rapidly with decreasing depth or thickness of the structural member..."

"[C]onsider the danger of bulging and... counteract it by providing adequate anchorage, thus shortening the free length of the member and reducing its relative slenderness."

"Clay masonry, like concrete, is a "plastic" material that permits the pouring in situ of large monoliths of any shape or form, with certain limitations and by using special methods. Its economical possibilities when used in walls of popular housing, its excellent heat and sound insulation, as well as its aesthetic possibilities, should not be underestimated. Its resistance and durability can be substantially improved by using modern techniques and methods, for example, admixture of small amounts of Portland cement in accordance with granulometric investigation, petrographic composition, and rheological behaviour of all constituents."

"The variety of exterior forms in concrete is limited only by the cost of forming; and its thickness is limited only by the size of aggregates, gravel, and sand."

"Lightweight concrete obtained with special admixtures producing bubbles throughout the mass shows lower resistance, which makes it less suitable for structural purposes; its practical application is limited to smaller structural elements adequately reinforced in which thermal insulation is required."

"Torroja was a specialist in stress analysis... and he wrote a... book on the mathematical theory of elasticity. This... led him to see a connection at Algeciras between the stresses in the shell and the reinforcement... but not to express those stresses in... visually evident ribs. We contrast... Nervi's Little Sports Palace... whereas Nervi sees shells as ribbed, Torroja sees them as ribless... since domes tend to spread, Nervi designed ribbed buttresses... whereas Torroja avoids buttresses by connecting vertical supporting columns with a... polygonal ring of horizontal ties... prestressed to counteract dead load and to lift the shell slightly off its scaffold... probably the first application of prestressing to a doubly curved shell. In the Nervi dome... the buttresses are supported below ground on a ring which carries the horizontal thrust and... transmits the vertical weight to the ground. ...[These] choices related to the [respective] local traditions in Italy and Spain."

"The equilibrium... in order to become static—should be steady, permanent, lasting. ...This type of equilibrium... is... independent of any scale. A reduced model will show the same effects as the proper structure. Experiments on models are simple and... instrumental for understanding such structural problems."

"[E]xperimental investigation of stresses in a plane structure is of great interest and merit as applied to shells with single curvature (barrel shells, pipes) and to shells with double curvature (domes, etc.). In these structures similar states of stress are produced and can be determined at any point as acting in a plane tangential to the center layer of the shell."

"One should become so familiar with the structure as to have the feeling of being, in full vitality and sentiment, part of it and of all its elements. ...it is necessary to achieve a sincere Einfühlung [empathy] of the process of resistence... through the deformation that is always essentially united with the process of stressing. ...[T]he comprehension of a structure requires intuitive knowledge of the ethology of its resistance and of its constituent materials."

"Construction methods are... variable for each specific material."

"Long before... our techniques of today, men could conceive and build structures adapted to the requirements of resistance... because he had observed... the branches of a tree bending under the weight of fruits and the tensioned cords of strings in which children have rocked from time immemorial..."

"[M]ost of our structures in the past consisted of individual members having relatively small transverse dimensions as compared with their length, and in such members stress analysis is much more simple. ...[M]any modern structures consist of frameworks of this type, and frequently the word "structure" refers specifically to assemblies consisting of linear elements."

"This is a span of nearly 50 metres. If it had been done with beams [they] would have had to be 80 or 90 cm thick. ...Torroja was able to do this with a thickness of only 9 cm."

"[T]here are three different but interconnected conceptions to be considered in every structure, and in every structural element involved: equilibrium, resistance, and stability."

"Mathematics is merely a convenient tool by which the designer determines the physical proportions and details of a planned structure in order to transform his ideas... to the actuality of a finished structure."

"Structural design is... very much concerned with art, common sense, sentiment, aptitude, and enjoyment of the task of creating opportune outlines to which scientific calculations will add finishing touches, substantiating that the structure is sound and strong..."

"Thin-shell structure"

"In the early twentieth century was a new building technology. Its novelty inspired experimentation, both from architects, such as Le Corbusier, and from engineers, who dreamed up different applications for the new ferroconcrete. ...The German engineering firm of ['s]... design of the concrete dome for ’s Century [or Centennial] Hall in Breslau... in 1913... became the first modern building whose clear span exceeded Rome’s Pantheon. Other notable structures of this early phase are the elegant works of Eduardo Torroja in Spain, including the Algecira market hall (1934), and Freyssinet’s economical segmented system for an aircraft hangar at Orly (1921)."

"The technical literature on structural engineering abounds with theoretical works of a mathematical nature, but few publications are concerned with the various kinds of structures or the fundamental reasons for their existence."

"[E]very structure has a resistant function to fulfill... to ensure ...the static equilibrium of the structure for a long period of time."

"Architecture"

"[El Instituto Técnico de la Construcción y del Cemento] had shown that it is possible in Spain to create organizations in which there exists a perfect harmony between different professions, between those above and those below; organizations in which everyone is able to live a life of high human rank, as gentlemen, a life of mutual respect and help and of maximum personal dignity."

"[M]aterials should resist mechanical forces and other effects... starting with all types of loading and external forces... and with the mechanical properties of the materials... constitutes the part given most emphasis in technical books and schools."

"So how does the dome work? It is clear. The dome is always in compression, both in the direction of the meridians and in the direction of the parallels, up to a parallel when the meridians continue to provide compression and the parallels start to provide traction, so cracks would appear. So then what does Torroja do? ...[C]ylidrical sheets ...absorb the force from the membranes through the meridians, which continues through the cylindrical pieces."

"Stone can effectively resist compression but is relatively weak in tension. Because of its mass and weight it may be used advantageously in structural types that can be made stable by the proper weight (dead load, gravity) and are but slightly exposed to lateral forces."

"Before a man can successfully plan a structure... he must study, from every possible angle, the ultimate purpose of his building. Attention must be directed to the basic structural concept before the mathematical process of calculation is undertaken."

"Tenía capacidad para sorprender, como todos los imbéciles mayúsculos, y por supuesto para irritar de nuevo en un solo segundo."

"...y un poco más tarde viene la pregunta que nadie se hace antes de obrar ni antes de hablar: ‘Do I dare disturb the universe?’, porque todo el mundo se atreve a ello, a turbar el universo y a molestarlo, con sus rápidas y pequeñas lenguas y con sus mezquinos pasos."

"No desdeñes nunca las ideas imaginativas, Jack, a ellas se llega sólo después de mucho pensamiento, de mucha reflexión y mucho estudio, y de notable atrevimiento."

"...al mantener el brazo en alto me permitió contemplar su axila, y cuando una mujer desnuda permite ver eso, y descubre una o ambas, es como si ofreciera un suplemento de desnudez con ello."

"Las mentiras son las mentiras, pero todo tiene su tiempo para ser creído."

"Todo insiste y continúa solo, aunque opte uno por retirarse."

"Le quedaban por conocer muchas noches en las que sucumbiría a mujeres que su avidez y el alcohol le harían juzgar deseables, para llevarse a la mañana siguiente las manos a la cabeza al descubrir que se había metido en la cama con descomedidas parientes de Oliver Hardy o con casquivanas émulas de Bela Lugosi."

"Todo está ahí a la vista, en realidad todo es visible desde muy pronto en las relaciones como en los relatos honrados, basta con atreverse a mirarlo, un solo instante encierra el germen de muchos años venideros y casi de nuestra historia entera."

"A veces resulta imposible explicar lo más decisivo, lo que más nos ha afectado, y guardar silencio es lo único que nos salva en lo malo, porque las explicaciones suenan casi siempre algo tontas respecto al daño que uno hace o le han hecho."

"Tendemos a desconfiar increíblemente de nuestras percepciones cuando ya son pasado y no se ven confirmadas ni ratificadas desde fuera por nadie, renegamos de nuestra memoria a veces y acabamos por contarnos inexactas versiones de lo que presenciamos, no nos fiamos como testigos ni de nosotros mismos."

"Lo más intolerable es que se convierta en pasado quien uno recuerda como futuro."

"Todo lo que nos sucede, todo lo que hablamos o nos es relatado, cuanto vemos con nuestros propios ojos o sale de nuestra lengua o entra por nuestros oídos, todo aquello a lo que asistimos (y de lo cual, por tanto, somos algo responsables), ha de tener un destinatario fuera de nosotros mismos, y a ese destinatario lo vamos seleccionando en función de lo que acontece o nos dicen o bien decimos nosotros."

"...y lo que me hace levantarme por las mañanas sigue siendo la espera de lo que está por llegar y no se anuncia, es la espera de lo inesperado, y no ceso de fantasear con lo que ha de venir."

"La noche pertenece al día anterior en nuestro sentimiento."

"Los amores pasados siempre ofenden a los amantes nuevos, por muy muertos que estén aquéllos."

"Para mí este territorio es territorio de paso, pero se trata de un paso lo bastante dilatado para que deba procurarme lo que se llama un amor mientras estoy aquí."

"La fidelidad (lo que así se llama para referirse a la constancia y exclusividad con que un determinado sexo penetra o es penetrado por otro igualmente determinado, o se abstiene de ser penetrado o penetrar en otros) es producto de la costumbre principalmente, como lo es también la llamada—contrariamente— infidelidad (la inconstancia y alternación y el abarcamiento de más de un sexo)."

"La gente sólo se casa cuando no tiene más remedio, por pánico o porque anda desesperada o para no perder a alguien a quien no soporta perder. Siempre hay mucha chaladura en lo que parece más convencional."