The Technological Institute of Saltillo (Spanish: Instituto Tecnológico de Saltillo), or ITS, is located in the city of Saltillo, state capital of Coahuila, Mexico. It is a college level technological institution. Though founded in July 1950 by Mexican President Miguel Alemán Valdez, it started operations on January 3, 1951.

History[link]

Since its foundation the institute has changed names several times. It was founded as Instituto Tecnológico de Coahuila, but then changed in 1968 to Instituto Tecnológico Regional de Coahuila. Again, by 1977, it was renamed to Instituto Tecnológico Regional de Saltillo and, finally, since 1981, as Instituto Tecnológico de Saltillo.

In 1951, the objective of the institution was to provide students technical degrees suitable for the industry; however, due to expansion, it later offered high school, engineering and graduate degrees. By 1951, enrollment consisted of barely 314 students, but after 55 years of existence, it now amounts to 3,600 students, without taking into consideration its staff that consists of 16 directive officers, 177 professors, 14 researchers, 134 auxiliary technicians, and an administrative and service staff of 172 and 76, respectively.

Academics[link]

Nowadays ITS offers the following degrees:

Undergraduate[link]

• Electrical Engineering
• Electronic Engineering
• Industrial engineering
• Materials Engineering
• Computer Systems Engineering
• Mechatronics engineering
• Computer Engineering
• Business Management
• Mechanical Engineering

Graduate[link]

• Ph.D. in materials
• Masters degree in Materials Engineering
• Masters degree in Industrial Engineering

List of Directors[link]

Its directors have been:

• Santiago Tamez Anguiano (1950–1951)
• Narciso Urrutia Lozano (1951–1952)
• Segundo Rodríguez Alvarez (1952)
• Oscar Peart Pérez (1952–1960)
• Gabriel H. Acosta (1960–1961)
• Jorge Fernández Mier (1961–1966)
• Benjamín Rodríguez Zarzosa (1966–1967)
• Jorge Fernández Mier (1967–1973)
• Rodolfo Rosas Morales (1973–1976)
• David Hernandez Ochoa (1976)
• Luis Rosales Celis (1976–1981)
• Carlos Herrera Pérez (1981–1983)
• Manuel F. Flores Revuelta (1983–1986)
• Jesús H. Cano Ríos (1986–1988)
• José Claudio Tamez Saénz (1988–1991)
• Manuel F. Flores Revuelta (1991–1996)
• Juan Francisco Mancinas Casas (1996–2001)
• Enriqueta Gonzalez Aguilar (2001–2005)
• Jesús Contreras García (current, since August 2005)

External links[link]

• Instituto Tecnológico de Saltillo's Official Site

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Saltillo
—  City  —
City of Saltillo
Nickname(s): The Athens of Mexico, The Detroit of Mexico
Location of Saltillo within the municipality
Country	Mexico
State	Coahuila
Founded	1577 (Alberto del Canto)
Government
• Mayor	Jerico Abramo Masso
Elevation	1,600 m m (5,249 ft)
Population (2010)
• City	725,095
• Metro	823,098
• Demonym	Saltillense
Time zone	CST (UTC−6)
• Summer (DST)	CDT (UTC−5)
Website	www.saltillo.gob.mx

Saltillo (Spanish pronunciation: [salˈtiʎo]) is the capital and largest city of the northeastern Mexican state of Coahuila and the municipal seat of the municipality of the same name. The city is located about 400 km south of the U.S. state of Texas, and 90 km west of Monterrey, Nuevo León. D

As of the 2005 census, Saltillo had a population of 725,095 people. 823,098 people reside within the metropolitan area, making it the 19th biggest metro area in the country. The metro area comprises the municipalities of Saltillo, Ramos Arizpe, and Arteaga.

The per capita gross domestic product the Metropolitan Zone of Saltillo is $13,936 USD. According to a 2006 ranking of 53 Mexican cities by Inversionista magazine, Saltillo is the second best Mexican city to live in.^{[1][unreliable source?]}

Geography[link]

El Cerro del Pueblo (The People's Hill) and its 4-metre (13 ft) cross overlook the city. The city's elevation, at 1,600 metres (5,200 ft), makes it cooler and windier than the neighboring city of Monterrey. Saltillo lies near the city of Arteaga and in the Chihuahuan desert. The city is flanked by the Zapalinamé mountains, which are part of the Sierra Madre Oriental. By looking at the relief of the mountains, one can see, according to local legend, the relief of Zapalinamé, chieftain of the Huachichil tribe.

Climate[link]

Saltillo has an arid climate (Koppen climate classification BWh). Saltillo is located in the Chihuahuan desert but temperatures are cooler than other desert cities in Mexico because it is located in an altitude of 1,600 meters. Summers are slightly hot with cool nights and winters are sunny but cool. Rainfall is scarce but more prominent in summer.

Government[link]

The city of Saltillo is the municipal seat of the municipality of Saltillo. The current Mayor is Jerico Abramo Masso from the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) whose term ends in 2013.

History[link]

Historical aqueduct

Founded in 1577 by Spanish colonists, Saltillo is the oldest post-conquest settlement in northern Mexico. Fourteen years later in 1591 the Spanish resettled a community of their Tlaxcaltec allies in a separate nearby village (San Esteban de Nueva Tlaxcala), in order to cultivate the land and aid colonization efforts that had stalled in the face of local hostility to the Spanish presence.^[2]

In 1824, Saltillo was made the capital of the State of Coahuila y Tejas and included the area which is now the US State of Texas until the Texas War of Independence and the founding of the independent Texas Republic.

On 23 October 1840 the Battle of Saltillo took place when 110 Texans crossed the Rio Grande and attacked the city, which was defended by 1000 Mexicans. The Texans killed about 400 of them before retreating.^[3]

Saltillo became the site of the first same-sex civil union in Mexico on 31 January 2007.^[4]

Economy[link]

Sarapes being made

Saltillo's most famous exports are Saltillo tile and the locally woven multi-coloured sarapes. Mercedes-Benz and General Motors both have assembly plants here and Chrysler operates a truck assembly plant, a sedan assembly plant, two engine facilities and a car transmissions plant. 37.4% of cars and 62.6% of trucks produced in Mexico are assembled in Saltillo.^[5] Saltillo is home to the Grupo Industrial Saltillo, an important manufacturing conglomerate that makes home appliances, silverware, and auto parts.

During the early 20th Century, Saltillo was called the Athens of Mexico because of its number of famous intellectuals. At that time, Saltillo was inhabited by a large number of expatriates from Europe, particularly Great Britain and Ireland. It is currently considered the Detroit of Mexico because of the importance of its automotive industry, including the huge Chrysler, General Motors, and Delphi plants.

The General Motors plant, the Complejo Industrial Ramos Arizpe (Ramos Arizpe Industrial Complex) manufactures vehicles for export to Japan, Canada, and Central America as well as for domestic purchase. It builds the Chevrolet C2, Chevrolet Monza, Chevrolet Captiva, Chevrolet HHR, Saturn Vue hybrid, Saab 9-4X and Cadillac BRX.^[6]

Points of interest[link]

Plaza de Armas fountain

Saltillo Cathedral

Saraperos Baseball stadium

Alameda Zaragoza is the largest park in the city and has an artificial lake in the shape of the Mexican Republic. The park is located just west of the downtown plaza.

The Colonial Center of the city is built in pink marble, giving Saltillo's architecture a distinctive flavor. Prominent buildings are the cathedral (built from 1745-1800), the Palacio de Gobierno (state government building), the Ateneo Fuente and the Instituto Tecnológico de Saltillo. The large cathedral is the best example of colonial religious architecture in northeastern Mexico; its facade is mainly Spanish Baroque, with less exuberant areas. The Centro Cultural Vito Alessio Robles (Vito Alessio Cultural Center) is an 18th Century repository of antiquities and documents from historians Vito Alessio Robles and Oscar Davila. The repository is also a temporal museum. The Casa Purcell (Purcell Mannor) is a Victorian style mansion built in the 19th century by Irish merchant William Purcell. Today it is a cultural center.

The city has two world-class museums. The Museo de las Aves de México (Bird Museum),^[7] featuring a collection of bird specimens from all over Mexico in realistic displays. The Museo del Desierto (Desert Museum)^[8] focuses on the geography, geology, paleontology (with dinosaur fossils) and biodiversity of the Chihuahuan desert, and the history and culture of the local people through time. It includes a cactus greenhouse and exhibits, with dozens of species.

The Mirador is an amazing place to observe a panoramic view of the city. Underground tunnels start in the Catedral de Santiago and end at the city's limits.

Education[link]

Local government palace

Inside the government palace

Saltillo's main universities are the Universidad Autónoma de Coahuila, the Instituto Tecnológico de Saltillo, the Tec de Monterrey Saltillo Campus, El Instituto de Filologia Hispanica, and the Universidad Autonoma Agraria Antonio Narro. Other universities include Centro de Investigaciones y Estudios Avanzados del IPN (CINVESTAV Saltillo), Universidad Interamericana del Norte (Tec Sierra Madre [1], Universidad Autonoma del Noreste, Universidad Pedagogica Nacional, Universidad del Valle de Mexico, Escuela Normal de Coahuila [2], and many others.

Transportation[link]

Saltillo Metropolitan Area air traffic is served by Plan de Guadalupe International Airport. It takes 15 minutes to get from downtown Saltillo to the airport. It has several flights per day to Mexico City and a daily flight to Houston, Texas. There is a comprehensive bus system in Saltillo along with many taxis.

Sister cities[link]

The following are sister cities of Saltillo:

• Austin, United States
• Lansing, United States
• Windsor, Canada
• Holguín, Cuba

People[link]

• Fernando Soler (1896 - 1979), film actor and director
• Ruben Aguirre, actor best remembered for his characterization of Professor Jirafales in the television show El Chavo del Ocho.
• Katie Barberi, actress best known for her work in telenovelas.
• Magda Guzman, actress with many film and TV credits 1941 to the present^[9]
• Roberto 'Flaco' Guzman, prolific film actor from the 1970s to the early 2000s.
• Brissia Mayagoitia, singer, former member of a band called La Nueva Banda.
• Rosario Ybarra, activist and prominent figure in Mexican politics.
• Carlos Bee, former U.S. Representative from Texas, great-grandson of Thomas Bee.
• Manuel Acuña, 19th-century Mexican writer. He focused on poetry, but also wrote some novels and plays.
• José Narro Robles, former director of the Faculty of Medicine of the National Autonomous University of Mexico.
• Roque González Garza, Mexican general and acting president of the Republic from January to June 1915.
• Julio Torri, Mexican writer and teacher who formed part of the Ateneo de la Juventud (1909-1914).

Notes[link]

References[link]

• Link to tables of population data from Census of 2005 INEGI: Instituto Nacional de Estadística, Geografía e Informática.

External links[link]

Mexico portal

• Official city website

v t e Mexican state capitals Aguascalientes (Aguascalientes) Mexicali (Baja California) La Paz (Baja California Sur) Campeche (Campeche) Tuxtla Gutiérrez (Chiapas) Chihuahua (Chihuahua) Saltillo (Coahuila) Colima (Colima) Mexico City (DF) Durango (Durango) Guanajuato (Guanajuato) Chilpancingo (Guerrero) Pachuca (Hidalgo) Guadalajara (Jalisco) Toluca (Mexico State) Morelia (Michoacán) Cuernavaca (Morelos) Tepic (Nayarit) Monterrey (Nuevo León) Oaxaca (Oaxaca) Puebla (Puebla) Querétaro (Querétaro) Chetumal (Quintana Roo) San Luis Potosí (San Luis Potosí) Culiacán (Sinaloa) Hermosillo (Sonora) Villahermosa (Tabasco) Cd. Victoria (Tamaulipas) Tlaxcala (Tlaxcala) Xalapa (Veracruz) Mérida (Yucatán) Zacatecas (Zacatecas)

v t e  State of Coahuila Saltillo (capital) Topics Architecture Climate Culture Demographics Economy Education Geography Government History Literature Politics Sports Transportation Tourist Attractions Municipalities and (municipal seats) Abasolo (Abasolo) Acuña (Ciudad Acuña) Allende (Allende) Arteaga (Arteaga) Candela (Candela) Castaños (Castaños) Cuatrociénegas (Cuatrociénegas de Carranza) Escobedo (Escobedo) Francisco I. Madero (Francisco I. Madero) Frontera (Ciudad Frontera) General Cepeda (General Cepeda) Guerrero (Guerrero) Hidalgo (Hidalgo) Jiménez (Jiménez) Juárez (Juárez) Lamadrid (Lamadrid) Matamoros (Matamoros de la Laguna) Monclova (Monclova) Morelos (Morelos) Múzquiz (Santa Rosa de Múzquiz) Nadadores (Nadadores) Nava (Nava) Ocampo (Ocampo) Parras (Parras de la Fuente) Piedras Negras (Piedras Negras) Progreso (Progreso) Ramos Arizpe (Ramos Arizpe) Sabinas (Sabinas) Sacramento (Sacramento) Saltillo (Saltillo) San Buenaventura (San Buenaventura) San Juan de Sabinas (Nueva Rosita) San Pedro de las Colonias (San Pedro de las Colonias) Sierra Mojada (Sierra Mojada) Torreón (Torreón) Viesca (Viesca) Villa Unión (Villa Unión) Zaragoza (Zaragoza)

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Rodolfo Neri Vela
NASA Payload Specialist
Nationality	Mexican
Born	(1952-02-19) 19 February 1952 (age 60) Chilpancingo, Guerrero
Other occupation	Scientist
Time in space	6d 21h 04m
Selection	1985 NASA Group
Missions	STS-61-B
Mission insignia

Rodolfo Neri Vela (born 19 February 1952) is a Mexican scientist and astronaut who flew aboard a NASA Space Shuttle mission in 1985.^[1] He is the first and only Mexican, and the second Latin-American to have traveled to space.

Personal[link]

Neri was born in Chilpancingo de los Bravo, Guerrero, Mexico. He is a professor for the Telecommunications Department in the Electrical Engineering Division of the Engineering Faculty, at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM). He is Mexican born of Spanish and Italian ancestry.

Education[link]

Neri received a bachelor's degree in mechanical and electrical engineering, National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) 1975, and received a master's degree in science, specialized in telecommunications systems, in 1976 from the University of Essex, England. Neri then received a doctorate degree in electromagnetic radiation from the University of Birmingham in 1979, and performed one year of postdoctoral research in waveguides at the University of Birmingham.

Career[link]

The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, U.S.; The Institution of Electrical Engineers, UK; Asociación Mexicana de Ingenieros en Comunicaciones Eléctricas y Electrónicas, Mexico; and Colegio de Ingenieros Mecánicos y Electricistas, Mexico.

Neri has worked at the Institute of Electrical Research, Mexico, in the Radiocommunications Group, doing research and system planning on antenna theory and design, satellite communications systems, and Earth station technology.

He is currently also a full time researcher at the Electric Engineering department of the Faculty of Engineering at UNAM.

Spaceflight[link]

Neri Vela's spacesuit in the Museum of Technology in Mexico City.

Neri was a Payload Specialist aboard the STS-61-B Atlantis mission, from (November 26 to December 3, 1985).^[1] STS-61B launched at night from Kennedy Space Center, Florida, and returned to land at Edwards Air Force Base, California. During the mission the crew deployed the MORELOS-B, AUSSATT II, and SATCOM K-2 communications satellites, conducted two six-hour spacewalks to demonstrate space station construction techniques with the EASE/ACCESS experiments, operated the Continuous Flow Electrophoresis (CRFES) experiment for McDonell Douglas and a Getaway Special (GAS) container for Telesat, Canada, conducted several Mexican Payload Specialists Experiments for the Mexican government, and tested the Orbiter Experiments Digital Autopilot (OEX DAP).

At mission conclusion, Neri had traveled 2.4 million miles (3.8 million km) in 108 Earth orbits, and logged over 165 hours in space.^[1]

Bibliography[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Interview with Rodolfo Neri Vela for Mexican TV (Spanish)
• NASA biography page (original source for this article)
• Rodolfo Neri Vela, International Space Hall of Fame inductee
• Spacefacts biography of Rodolfo Neri Vela
• "Accidente 'echó abajo' al segundo astronauta nacional" 2005-11-25 article in El Universal newspaper; English translation