Sponsored images from 
View allAll Photos Tagged translucent
The City of Arts and Sciences (Valencian: Ciutat de les Arts i les Ciències), (Spanish: Ciudad de las Artes y las Ciencias) is an entertainment-based cultural and architectural complex in the city of Valencia, Spain. It is the most important modern tourist destination in the city of Valencia.
The City of Arts and Sciences is situated at the end of the former riverbed of the river Turia, which was drained and rerouted after a catastrophic flood in 1957. The old riverbed was turned into a picturesque sunken park.
Designed by Santiago Calatrava and Félix Candela, the project underwent the first stages of construction in July 1996 and the finished "city" was inaugurated April 16, 1998 with the opening of L'Hemisfèric. The last great component of the City of Arts and Sciences, El Palau de les Arts Reina Sofia, was presented on October 9, 2005, Valencian Community Day.
The complex is made up of the following buildings, in order of their inauguration:
L'Hemisfèric — an Imax Cinema, Planetarium and Laserium. The building is meant to resemble a giant eye, and has an approximate surface of 13,000 m². The Hemesferic also known as the planetarium or the “eye of knowledge,” is the centerpiece of the City of Arts and Sciences. It was the first building completed in 1998. Its design resembles an eyelid that opens to access the surrounding water pool. The bottom of the pool is glass, creating the illusion of the eye as a whole. This planetarium is a half-sphere composed of concrete 110 meters long and 55.5 meters wide. The shutter is built of elongated aluminum awnings that fold upward collectively to form a brise soleil roof that opens along the curved axis of the eye. It opens to reveal the dome, the pupil of the eye, which is the Ominax theater. The City of Arts and Sciences is divided in half by a set of stairs that descend into the vaulted concrete lobby. The underground spaces are illuminated with the use of translucent glass panels within the walking path. The transparent roof is supported by concrete arches that connect to the sunken gallery. There is a miraculous echo inside of the building and if two people stay on the two opposite pillars inside of the eye they can seamlessly speak with each other.
El Museu de les Ciències Príncipe Felipe — Is an interactive museum of science that resembles the skeleton of a whale. It occupies around 40,000 m² on three floors. The hotch-potch of exhibits is designed more for 'entertainment value' than for science education. The building is much more impressive outside than inside and its meagre contents show how little thought was put into the whole project. Much of the ground floor is taken up by a basketball court sponsored by a local team and various companies. The building is made up of three floors of which 26,000 square meters is used for exhibitions. The first floor has a beautiful view of the Turia Garden that surrounds it; which is over 13,500 square meters of water. The second floor hosts “The Legacy of Science” exhibition by the researchers; Santiago Ramón y Cajal, Severo Ochoa y Jean Dausset. The third floor is known as the “Chromosome Forest” which shows the sequencing of human DNA. Also on this floor is the “Zero Gravity,” the “Space Academy,” and “Marvel Superheroes” exhibitions. The building’s architecture is known for its geometry, structure, use of materials, and its design around nature. The building is about 42,000 square meter and 26,000 square meters of is exhibition space, which is currently the largest in Spain. It has 20,000 square meters of glass, 4,000 panes, 58,000 m³ of concrete, and 14.000 tons of steel. This magnificent building stands 220 meters long, 80 meters wide and 55 meters high.
El Museu de les Ciències Príncipe FelipeL'Umbracle — a landscaped walk with plant species indigenous to Valencia (such as rockrose, lentisca, romero, lavender, honeysuckle, bougainvillea, palm tree). It harbors in its interior The Walk of the Sculptures, an outdoor art gallery with sculptures from contemporary artists. (Miquel from Navarre, Francesc Abbot, Yoko Ono and others). The Umbracle is a space that is a home to numerous sculptures surrounded by nature. It was designed as an entrance to the City of Arts and Sciences. It is 320 meters long and 60 meters wide, located on the southern side of the complex. It 55 fixed arches and 54 floating arches that stand 18 meters high. The plants in the garden were carefully picked to change color with the seasons. The garden consists of 99 palm trees, 78 small palm trees, 62 bitter orange trees. There are 42 varieties of shrubs from the Region of Valencia including Cistuses, Mastics, Buddleia, Pampas grass, and Plumbagos. In the garden there are 16 plants of Beauty of the Night. Honeysuckle and hanging Bougainvilea are two of the 450 climbing plants in the umbracle. It also has 5,500 carpet plants such as Lotus, Agateas, Spanish Flags, and Fig Marigolds. There are over a hundred aromatic plants including Rosemary and Lavender.
L'UmbracleL'Oceanogràfic — an open-air oceanographic park. It is the largest oceanographic aquarium in Europe with 110,000 square meters and 42 million liters of water. It was built in the shape of a water lily and is the work of architect Félix Candela. Each building represents different aquatic environments including the Mediterranean, Wetlands, Temperate and Tropical Seas, Oceans, the Antarctic, the Artctic, Islands and the Ted Sea. This aquarium is a home to over 500 different species including dolphins, belugas, sawfish, jellyfish, starfish, sea urchins, walruses, sea lions, seals, penguins, turtles, sharks,and rays. It also inhabits wetland bird species.
El Palau de les Arts Reina Sofia — an opera house and performing arts center. It contains four large rooms: a Main Room, Magisterial Classroom, Amphitheater and Theater of Camera. It is dedicated to music and the scenic arts. It is surrounded by 87,000 square meters of landscape and water, as well as 10,000 square meters of walking area. The Palau de Les Arts has four sections; the main hall, the master hall, the auditorium, and the Martin y Soler theatre. It holds many events such as opera, theatre and music in its auditoriums. Panoramic lifts and stairways connect platforms at different heights on the inside of the metallic frames of the building. The building has an metallic feather outer roof that rests on two supports and is 230 meters long and 70 meters high. One of the supports allows for part of the building to overhang. The building is supported by white concrete. Two laminated steel shells cover the building weighing over 3,000 tons. These shells are 163 meters wide and 163 meters long.
El Pont de l'Assut de l'Or — a suspension bridge that connects the south side with Minorca Street, whose 125 meters high pillar is the highest point in the city.
L'Àgora — a covered plaza in which concerts and sporting events (such as the Valencia Open 500) are held.The Agora is a space designed to hold a variety of events such as concerts, performances, exhibitions, conventions, staging of congresses, and international sports meetings. Many important events have been held in this building including the Freestyle Burn Spanish Cup in 2010 and the Christmas Special Program.
Torres de València — forming part of a project of the construction of three skyscrapers of 308, 266 and 220 m. The project has been put on hold and the possibilities that it will be finished are seen by many as doubtful.
The Architects: Santiago Calatrava and Felix Candela.
Santiago Calatrava was born in Valencia Spain on the July 28, 1951. He is a qualified architect and engineer and also known for his artist skills in painting and sculpting. He attended the Art Academy in Valencia in the mid-1960s, then he earned a degree in architecture and a post graduate course in city planning at the Escuela Tecnica Superior de Arquitecturea, studied civil engineering at the Federal Polytechnic University of Zurich, and participated in academic research investigating The Foldability of Space Frames. Calatrava’s architecture is aimed to unite structure and movement. Early in his career, Calatrava was the winner to design The Stadelhofen Station in Zurich. He was recognized for his achievement in creating poetics of movement and integrating public transportation in a natural setting and urban context. Another theme in his work was moving contraptions in his buildings. The dome for the Reichstag Conversion Competition in Berlin that open and closes like a flower. The Planetarium in the City of Arts and Sciences in Valencia opens and closes like eyelids.
Felix Candela was born on January 27, 1910 in Madrid Spain and died December 7, 1997. His architectural designs composed of reinforced-concrete structures distinguished by thin, curved shells. His popularity sprung from his design, in collaboration with Jorge Gonzales Reyna, of the Cosmic Ray Pavilion in Mexico. He used his signature design of the reinforced concrete roof that varies in thickness from only 5/8 inch to 2 inches. He also built the church of La Virgin Milagrosa in Mexico City and the church of San Vicente de Paul. His designs consisted of warped-shell industrial buildings, thin-shell centenary, and barrel-vaulted factories and warehouses. Candela was also a teacher at Harvard University and University of Illinois. Felix Candela designed the underwater city, L’Oceanografic, located in the City of Arts and Sciences in Valencia and is reminiscent of Antoni Gaudi work in Barcelona.
This tessellation (translucent design), designed by Shuzo Fujimoto is not listed in any of his books or magazines (as far as I know). I discovered it among other models in a picture made inside Fujimoto’s home by Robert Lang. Details were not very clear in the photograph, but I managed to reverse-engineer the model. It is a tessellated version of CFW 90 star, with triangle twists added where necessary to connect the hex-twist-based elements, and the rhombi around the modified hex twist folded in half along the longer axis and squashed.
The existence of this model shows that Fujimoto knew some of his stars were actually tessellation molecules even if the tessellations do not appear as separate models in his books. This in turn makes it likely he had also folded, even if not documented, some models I’ve been speculating about, including tessellations and fractals based on molecules found in his stars.
Model page with clickable links to references that can help you fold this design: origami.kosmulski.org/models/tessellation-cfw-335
POTD Dec 20, 2016
Not sure I have ever noticed this before, but this looks like a normal metal STOP sign, yet somehow the light is shining through.
this is the newest felted piece which i really wanted to share with you. it's gray, and warm, and my favorite to date. this shot was taken just as it was completed and still wet.
Near Sand Lake, Wekiwa Springs State Park, FL. Shot with A. Schacht Ulm Travegar R 100mm f/3.3, preset, M42, at f/3.3
www.flickr.com/search/?w=21728045@N08&q=Star%20fruit
Carambola, or star fruit, is the fruit of Averrhoa carambola, a species of tree native to Indonesia, the Philippines, and throughout Malesia.[1] The fruit is commonly consumed throughout Southeast Asia, the South Pacific, Micronesia, and parts of East Asia. The tree is cultivated throughout tropical areas.
The fruit has distinctive ridges running down its sides (usually five but can occasionally vary); when cut in cross-section, it resembles a star, hence its name.[1] The entire fruit is edible and is usually eaten out of hand. They may also be used in cooking and can be made into relishes, preserves, and juice drinks.
The original range of Averrhoa carambola is believed to be from Sri Lanka or Indonesia,[1] but has been cultivated in the Indian Subcontinent and Southeast Asia for hundreds of years. They remain a local favorite in those areas but have also recently gained popularity in parts of East Asiaand Queensland, Australia; as well as in the Pacific Islands, particularly Tahiti, New Caledonia, Papua New Guinea, Hawaii, and Guam. They are cultivated commercially in India, Southeast Asia, southern China, Taiwan, and the southern United States. They are also grown in Central America, Brazil, the Southwestern United States and Florida, and parts of Africa.[1][2] In other areas they are usually grown as ornamentals, rather than for consumption.[2]
The fruit is about 5 to 15 centimetres (2 to 6 inches) in length and is an oval shape. It usually has five prominent longitudinal ridges, but in rare instances it can have as few as four or as many as eight. In cross section, it resembles a star.[1] The skin is thin, smooth, and waxy and turns a light to dark yellow when ripe. The flesh is translucent and light yellow to yellow in color. Each fruit can have 10 to 12 flat light brown seeds about 6 to 13 mm (0.25 to 0.5 in) in width and enclosed in gelatinous aril. Once removed from the fruit, they lose viability within a few days.[3][4][5]
Like the closely related bilimbi, there are two main types of carambola: the small sour (or tart) type and the larger sweet type. The sour varieties have a higher oxalic acid content than the sweet type. A number of cultivars have been developed in recent years. The most common cultivars grown commercially include the sweet types "Arkin" (Florida), "Dah Pon" (Taiwan), "Ma fueng" (Thailand), "Maha" (Malaysia), and "Demak" (Indonesia) and the sour types "Golden Star", "Newcomb", "Star King", and "Thayer" (all from Florida). Some of the sour varieties like "Golden Star" can become sweet if allowed to ripen.[2][3][4]
including the slightly waxy skin. The flesh is crunchy, firm, and extremely juicy.[1] It does not contain fibers and has a texture similar in consistency to that of grapes. Carambolas are best consumed shortly after they ripen, when they are yellow with a light shade of green or just after all traces of green have disappeared. They will also have brown ridges at the edges and feel firm. Fruits picked while still slightly green will turn yellow in storage at room temperature, but will not increase in sugar content. Overripe carambola will be yellow with brown spots and can become blander in taste and soggier in consistency.[4][6]
Ripe sweet type carambolas are sweet without being overwhelming as they rarely have more than 4% sugar content. They have a tart, sour undertone, and an oxalic acid odor. The taste is difficult to match, but it has been compared to a mix of apple, pear, grape, and citrus family fruits. Unripe star fruits are firmer and sour, and taste like green apples.[3][7]
Ripe carambolas may also be used in cooking. In Southeast Asia, they are usually stewed in cloves and sugar, sometimes with apples. In China, they are cooked with fish. In Australia, they may be cooked as a vegetable, pickled, or made into jams. In Jamaica they are sometimes dried.[2]
Unripe and sour type carambolas can be mixed with other chopped spices to make relishes in Australia.[2] In the Philippines, unripe carambolas are eaten dipped in rock salt.[8] In Thailand, they are cooked together with shrimp.[2]
The juice from carambolas is also used in iced drinks, particularly the juice of the sour varieties. In the Philippines they can be used as seasoning. In India, the juice is bottled for drinking.[2]
Carambolas contain caramboxin[9] and oxalic acid.[10] Both substances are harmful to individuals suffering from kidney failure, kidney stones, or those under kidney dialysistreatment.[10] Consumption by those with kidney failure can produce hiccups, vomiting, nausea, mental confusion, and sometimes death.[11][12][13] Caramboxin is a neurotoxin which is structurally similar to phenylalanine, and is a glutamatergic agonist.[9]
Drug interactions
Edit
Like the grapefruit, carambola is considered to be a potent inhibitor of seven cytochrome P450 isoforms.[14][15] These enzymes are significant in the first-pass elimination of many medications, and, thus, the consumption of carambola or its juice in combination with certain prescription medications can significantly increase their effective dosage within the body.
The carambola is a tropical and subtropical fruit which can be grown at elevations up to 1,200 metres (4,000 feet). It prefers full sun exposure, but requires enough humidity and annual rainfall of at least 1,800 mm (70 in). It does not have a soil type preference, but requires good drainage.[citation needed]
Carambola trees are planted at least 6 m (20 ft) from each other and typically are fertilized three times a year. The tree grows rapidly and typically produces fruit at four or five years of age. The large amount of rain during spring actually reduces the amount of fruit, but, in ideal conditions, carambola can produce from 90 to 180 kilograms (200 to 400 pounds) of fruit a year. The carambola tree flowers throughout the year, with main fruiting seasons from April to June and October to December in Malaysia,[16]for example, but fruiting also occurs at other times in some other locales, such as South Florida.[4]
Growth and leaf responses of container-grown `Arkin' carambola (Averrhoa carambola L.) trees to long-term exposure of 25%, 50%, or 100% sunlight showed that shading increased rachis length and leaflet area, decreased leaflet thickness, and produced more horizontal branch orientation.[17]
Major pests are fruit flies, fruit moths, ants, and birds.[3][16] Crops are also susceptible to frost.[3]
Top producers of carambola in the world market include Australia, Guyana, India, Israel, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan, and the United States.[4] Malaysia is a global leader in star fruit production by volume and ships the product widely to Asia and Europe.[16] Due to concerns over pests and pathogens, however, whole star fruits cannot yet be imported to the US from Malaysia under current United States Department of Agriculture regulations. In the United States, carambolas are grown in tropical and semitropical areas, including Texas, South Carolina, Louisiana, California, Virginia, Florida and Hawaii.[2][18]
In the United States, commercial cultivation and broad consumer acceptance of the fruit only dates to the 1970s, attributable to Morris Arkin, a backyard horticulturalist, in Coral Gables, Florida. The 'Arkin' variety represented 98% of the acreage in South Florida in the early 21st century.[19]
The trees are also grown as ornamentals for their abundant brightly colored and unusually shaped fruits, as well as for their attractive dark green leaves and their lavender to pink flowers.[4]
Like the bilimbi, the juice of the more acidic sour types can be used to clean rusty or tarnished metal (especially brass) as well as bleach rust stains from cloth. They may also be used as a mordant in dyeing.[2]
Etymology and vernacular names
Edit
The Portuguese word carambola, first known use 1598, was taken from Marathi karambalderived from Sanskrit karmaphala.[20] In Spanish, it is known as carambola. The carambola is called "star fruit" in English.
References
Edit
^ a b c d e f "Averrhoa carambola (carambola)". CABI. 27 September 2018. Retrieved 5 October 2018.
^ a b c d e f g h i Julia F. Morton (1987). "Carambola". In Julia F. Morton. Fruits of warm climates. pp. 125–128.
^ a b c d e "Averrhoa carambola L." California Rare Fruit Growers, Inc. Retrieved August 9, 2012.
^ a b c d e f Jonathan H. Crane (1994). The Carambola (Star Fruit) (PDF). Fact Sheet HS-12. Florida Cooperative Extension Service, University of Florida. Archived from the original(PDF) on 2012-11-19. Retrieved 2012-08-08.
^ "Star Fruit". Fruitsinfo. Retrieved August 9, 2012.
^ "How to Eat Star Fruit". Buzzle. Retrieved August 5, 2012.
^ "Carambola or Star Fruit". FloridaGardener.com. Archived from the original on July 27, 2012. Retrieved August 5, 2012.
^ "Balimbing / Carambola / Star Fruit". Market Manila. Retrieved August 5, 2012.
^ a b Garcia-Cairasco, N.; Moyses-Neto, M.; Del Vecchio, F.; Oliveira, J. A. C.; Dos Santos, F. L.; Castro, O. W.; Arisi, G. M.; Dantas, M. R.; Carolino, R. O. G.; Coutinho-Netto, J.; Dagostin, A. L. A.; Rodrigues, M. C. A.; Leão, R. M.; Quintiliano, S. A. P.; Silva, L. F.; Gobbo-Neto, L.; Lopes, N. P. (2013). "Elucidating the Neurotoxicity of the Star Fruit". Angewandte Chemie International Edition. 52 (49): 13067–70. doi:10.1002/anie.201305382. PMID 24281890.
^ a b Muthu, N.; Lee, S. Y.; Phua, K. K.; Bhore, S. J. (2016). "Nutritional, Medicinal and Toxicological Attributes of Star-Fruits (Averrhoa carambola L.): A Review". Bioinformation. 12 (12): 420–424. doi:10.6026/97320630012420. PMC 5357571. PMID 28405126.
^ Chang CT, Chen YC, Fang JT, Huang CC (2002). "Star fruit (Averrhoa carambola) intoxication: an important cause of consciousness disturbance in patients with renal failure". Ren Fail. 24 (3): 379–82. doi:10.1081/JDI-120005373. PMID 12166706.
^ Neto MM, da Costa JA, Garcia-Cairasco N, Netto JC, Nakagawa B, Dantas M (2003). "Intoxication by star fruit (Averrhoa carambola) in 32 uraemic patients: treatment and outcome". Nephrol Dial Transplant. 18 (1): 120–5. doi:10.1093/ndt/18.1.120. PMID 12480969.
^ Titchenal A & Dobbs J (2003-04-28). "Kidney patients should avoid star fruit". Nutrition ATC. Retrieved 2008-10-16.
^ "Abstracts: Metabolism and metabolic enzymes studies for the 8th National Congress on Drug and Xenobiotic Metabolism in China". Archived from the original on 2007-09-28. Retrieved 2007-04-23.
^ Potential Drug-Food Interactions with Pomegranate Juice Archived March 21, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
^ a b c Crop Protection & Plant Quarantine Services Division (2004). Technical Document for Market Access on Star Fruit (Carambola) (PDF). The Ministry of Agriculture and Agro-based Industry, Malaysia.[permanent dead link]
^ Marler, Thomas E.; Schaffer, Bruce; Crane, Jonathan H. (1994-07-01). "Developmental Light Level Affects Growth, Morphology, and Leaf Physiology of Young Carambola Trees". Journal of the American Society for Horticultural Science. 119 (4): 711–718. ISSN 0003-1062.
^ Hein Bijlmakers. "Star Fruit". Tropical Fruits. Archived from the original on 2012-06-26. Retrieved August 9, 2012.
^ Robert J. Knight; Jonathan H. Crane (2002). "The 'Arkin' Carambola in Florida" (PDF). Proc. Fla. State Hort. Soc. 115: 92–93.[permanent dead link]
Carambola - Definition of carambola by Merriam-Webster". merriam-webster.com.
Nice little spider, waiting for a meal. No idea what type of spider, but I love the translucent stripes.
This one-legged gull was playing in the updrafts created by a ferry on Sydney Harbour. I love the way that its wings and tail are translucent and that you can see the golden glow of the late afternoon sun is reflected on its belly. Note the other gull bottom-right corner :-)
I really like the way she turned out. I think I handled the translucent too much and ended up with a bit of plaquing in several places. But it turned out to be a good thing on this piece of mokume gane.
She is painted with a mix of pearl and emeral pearl acrylic paints.
Natural light plays a major part in the design of Taliesin West. In the drafting room, Wright used translucent canvas to act as a roof (later replaced by plastic because of the intense wear from the Arizona sun). In the south-facing dining room, Wright designed the roof to hang past the walls, preventing unwanted sun rays from penetrating but allowing for horizontal light to pass through the room. Wright believed natural light aided the work environment.
I use to think that Autumn was the only time for fungi, but finding this tiny one growing from a crack in a bit of dark, sure does brighten a winter day.
I just had to have her, as soon as I saw her. Translucent, tan, silver hair - she is perfect. I might change a few things, but not in the near future.
Oh god, I put everything I want to say in the Transparent photo. Sooo this is just for the description to not look empty lol
Bee xoxo
What an unusual animal. Very hard to spot in the field.
Thanks to the Department of Tourism of the Philippines for setting up the Critter Spotter Workshop where I shot these images.
Part II.
www.flickr.com/photos/dewfah/14251681947/
This recent weddig shot was taken at the most beautiful place of Budapest - Fisherman's Bastion.
Only natty light was used! ;-) 110 cm translucent refelector to diffuse light
Canon 5D mk III + 70-200f2.8