(1825 - 1919)
Meteorólogo. Precursor en Cuba de las investigaciones en ese campo, dedicó gran parte de su actividad científica a la Zoología, la Geografía y la Etnología. Como geógrafo elaboró en 1848 un Atlas con 28 mapas litografiados para las escuelas primarias que fue el primero de su tipo impreso en Cuba
Natural and Exact Sciences
1999 | Group of Nuclear Analytic and Related Methods to study Environmental contamination in different ecosystems of national interest
Main author: Juan R. Estévez Alvarez.
Summary:

This proposal of prize embraces the development of new variants of nuclear and non nuclear analytic methods (twelve in all) and the determination of some elements' contents at concentration levels which previously were not determined with the techniques used. All the measurements were carried out with a high scientific rigor, which allowed these methods having been credited by the National Standarization Office and that these are currently used in the Laboratory of Chemical Analysis of the Center of Technological Applications and Nuclear Development (CEADEN).

It is important because it studies multielemental composition, and especially polluting and toxic elements, which are indispensable to evaluate their incidence in a certain ecosystem's behavior. In this context, there were carried out analysis of marine sediments from the north cays of the country, soils, fertilizers, irrigation waters and phosphoric rocks used in Cuban agriculture, sediments and marine biological species from significant bays (Moa and Cienfuegos), natural peloids used in the medical treatment of several affections, environmental biomonitors, radio-active elements present in residual waters and samples of rain and sea water.

The results of the work appear in 35 publications, two of them in "Journal of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry" magazine and three in "Nucleus" magazine. The rest are articles published in memoirs of national and international scientific events and a master's thesis. It also presents, as references, 21 results’ introduction certificates, several of them from the Center of Technological Applications and Nuclear Development (CEADEN).

All that has been previously exposed, in addition to the social impact that this scientific work has in or related to our environment, and inside the outstanding elements related to soils' pollutants that could have been connected topolyneuritis epidemic, make possible to consider it as meritorious as to be one of the rewarded works in this year by the Academy of Sciences.