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Jean Nouvel designs a gastronomy and cultural centre for Barcelona’s beer company Moritz

November 29, 2011 11:20 PM | CNA

The Catalan beer company Moritz will open an innovative space at the former factory of the well-known drink and residence of its owners in downtown Barcelona. The 4,500 square metre centre has been designed by renowned French architect Jean Nouvel. It will house a microbrewery, a shop, a beer bar, a wine bar, two restaurants, a museum, a gastronomic classroom, a bakery and a newsagent. It cost €30 million.

Gaudí and the Sagrada Família travel to the Vatican

November 24, 2011 08:53 PM | CNA

An exhibition on Barcelona’s Sagrada Família Basilica and Antoni Gaudí’s architectural techniques are on show in the Vatican. It focuses on the art, science and spirituality displayed at the Catalan architect’s church. Pope Benedict XVI declared the Sagrada Família a basilica one year ago during a visit to Barcelona. At the time he commented on the beauty of the temple and spoke of his personal admiration for the work of Gaudí.

Photography exhibition on Catalan human towers commemorates their first anniversary as part of World Cultural Heritage

November 17, 2011 08:12 PM | CNA / Sara Gómez

‘Castells’ or the traditional human towers originally from Southern Catalonia and generally built during town festivals were included in the list of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO last year. An exhibition at the Palau Robert in Barcelona will celebrate this first anniversary. It reflects on the tradition’s cultural and social value, and its role as one of Catalonia’s best known symbols.

Intel and the Barcelona Supercomputing Center to build a lab on the fastest calculation speeds

November 16, 2011 11:02 PM | CNA

The Spanish IT multinational company Intel and the Barcelona Supercomputing Center will create a joint research and development lab to calculate speeds on the exaFLOP scale, which are a thousand times quicker than the current fastest computers in the world. The lab will be created in Barcelona over the coming years, at the BSC facilities. Intel hopes to reach Exascale performance within the next ten years.

‘Le Monde’ condemned paying a 15,000 euro fine for damaging FC Barcelona’s honour in 2006

November 15, 2011 03:27 PM | CNA

The French newspaper ‘Le Monde’ published an article in December 2006 that falsely linked FC Barcelona with doping practices. A first trial condemned ‘Le Monde’ to pay 300,000 euros to the Catalan sports club, but the French newspaper and the journalist Stéphane Mandard appealed. A second court reduced the fine to 15,000 euros, but they appealed again. The Spanish Supreme Court has upheld the last sentence and dismissed the French newspaper's appeal.

The Barcelona International Boat Show attracts 108,000 visitors

November 14, 2011 06:16 PM | CNA / Sara Gómez

The 50th edition of one of Europe’s most important nautical trade fairs came to an end having “exceeded” initial expectations “despite the complex economic situation”, said the show Director. The organisation has highlighted the preservation of trust in the exhibition, as the number of exhibitors only dropped by 5%. This year’s edition focused on boat innovation and engine efficiency to attract a public economically undermined by the crisis.