While emergency first-aid provides immediate assistance, second-aid pro- vides support on the long term.
The structures inserted during this period are exceptionally symbolic; not only they give support, they also sow the seeds for redemption. In a way they are the last emergency aid action, and the first step into reconstruction.
Medical research has been engaged in the development of stem cells ex- periments to replenish human tissues that have been damaged by degenerative or terminal illnesses. Stem cells are undifferentiated biological cells; they are pluripotent and have self-renewal properties; they can differentiate into specialized cells, depending on the tissue they must repair. Prefabricated, undifferentiated modules for secondaid action, or even rubble itself, are drafted into the earthquake struck urban tissue.
These urban stem cells can differentiate, mutate, reproduce, induce new circumstances, and foster urban regeneration.