Some Spanish engineers and scientist that come to mind: Juan de la Cierva (autogyro), Isaac Peral (first electric-powered submarine), Santiago Ramón y Cajal (pioneer of modern neuroscience), Severo Ochoa (discovery of the mechanisms in the biological synthesis of RNA and DNA), Javier Balmis y Berenguer (his voyage is considered the first international vaccination campaign in history and one of the most important events in the history of medicine).

Yeah, very bad. More -> Spanish scientists and inventors

Spain was the 8th world economy before the 2008 crisis, and 14th right now, not bad for a country of 45 million people and so dependent on the tourism sector. We'll have to see the coming years with the economic transformation how much the Spanish economy grows.