Special programs

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Science Day

November 09, 2022As of 5:30 p.m.
CORDOBA
Casa Árabe headquarters (at Calle Samuel de los Santos Gener, 9). As of 5:30 p.m. Check entry conditions for each activity.
In Spanish.

To mark this anniversary, we are hosting two activities related to geometry in Cordoba on Wednesday, November 9: a workshop and a conference. Check out all of the information here.

We will be beginning the evening at 5:30 p.m., with a workshop on geometry and symmetry in Moorish art, given by Sextomario (registration required).

Immediately thereafter, Professor Rafael Pérez Gómez will be giving a conference in which he discusses the importance of the sciences in Al-Andalus.

  • Geometric design workshop

    November 09, 20225:30 p.m.
    CORDOBA
    Casa Árabe headquarters (at Calle Samuel de los Santos Gener, 9). 5:30 p.m. Free entry after registering.
    Sign up using this form.
    In Spanish.
    In order to mark the holding of Science Day, Casa Árabe has organized this workshop in Cordoba on Wednesday, November 9, where we will be making a Moorish arabesque bandwork design, a sort of geometric decoration. Sign up here before the workshop is full!
    Geometry and symmetry are closely related to Moorish art and demonstrate not only the scientific development achieved in al-Andalus, but also a new form of art which sought to represent divinity through the accuracy and perfection of mathematics.

    At this workshop, we will be giving those attending step-by-step instruction on how to make a Moorish arabesque bandwork design that they can then colour as they wish, using models with different levels of complexity to adapt them to each participant’s abilities and taste.

    All of the materials are provided by the organizers free of charge. In order to take part in the workshop, you must register in advance using this form.

  • From dust figures to mathematics in Al-Andalus

    November 09, 20227:30 p.m.
    CORDOBA
    Casa Árabe Auditorium (at Calle Samuel de los Santos Gener, 9) . 7:30 p.m. Free entrance until the event’s capacity is reached.
    In Spanish.
    In order to celebrate Science Day on Wednesday, November 9, we will be hosting this conference at our headquarters in Cordoba. It will be given by mathematician Rafael Pérez Gómez, who will talk about the fundamental role played by science in Al-Andalus.
    Ṣā’id al-Andalusī (1029-1070) wrote in his work Kitāb Ṭabaqātal-umam (“Book of the Categories of Nations”) that, after the initial period of Muslim conquest on the Iberian Peninsula, “The country lost all concern for the sciences, with the exception of Law and the Arabic language, until the day when power was definitively placed in the hands of the Umayyads...” More and more contributions are being made across time through research on the development of the sciences in Al-Andalus. Little by little, the gaps in this history are being filled, identifying the people who played leading roles in this process.

    The belief that Al-Andalus acted merely as a bridge between Arab culture and Europe is vanishing. We now know about Al-Andalus’ original contributions in astronomy, geometry and algebra, used by Fibonacci, Scotus, Regiomontanus, Ceva, Vieta... to develop “their” theories. The apparent simplicity of astronomical tools and the architecture developed in Al-Andalus explain the high level of knowledge which was attained.

    Professor Rafael Pérez Gómez will be discussing all of this during his talk, which we are hosting as part of the celebrations marking Science Day, to be introduced by Javier Rosón, Casa Árabe’s coordinator in Cordoba. The conference will be taking place in person at our Auditorium in Cordoba, but you can also watch it live on our YouTube channel.

    Rafael Pérez Gómez
    Rafael Pérez Gómez is a mathematician and special collaborating professor at the University of Granada School of Architecture. He has authored several books, the most notable of which include Alhambra. Belleza abstracta(Alhambra, Abstract Beauty, 2019), published by the Alhambra and Generalife Board of Trustees, which includes a mathematical analysis of the Nasrid monument, and Granada, la Nueva Jerusalén (Granada, the New Jerusalem), the latest (unfinished) work by Alonso Cano, published by the University of Granada Publishing House. Furthermore,

    Rafael Pérez Gómez has had over 30 book chapters, 10 prologues, 37 articles in journals and 16 publications as an editor published. Since 2000, he has given around 200 conferences in Spain and abroad and has been a guest professor at Smith College in Massachusetts, the Fundación Olimpiada Matemática Argentina and the School of Engineering in Bogota.