Sílvio Mendes | 110 anos do Técnico

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Episode 21: The Distillery Panels

Friday, November 19th, 2021

The two panels represent an ethanol factory built in Angola at the beginning of the last century. They have been, and still are, iconic for several generations of Técnico students who look at them while waiting for their classes. The panels are located on the first floor of the Chemistry Engineering building, near the auditorium. The factory they represent produced around 15 tons of ethyl alcohol a day and their representation on these panels bears witness to the construction techniques of this type of factory that are still used today.

Acknowledgements:
João Carlos Moura Bordado
Dulce Simão

Episode only available in Portuguese in: Spotify | Apple Podcasts | Anchor.fm

Further reading and additional audio in the Portuguese version of this webpage.

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Episode 20: The Organic Chemistry Laboratory

Friday, November 12th, 2021

One of the great revolutions in the teaching of laboratory chemistry at Técnico began in 1953 with the renovation of the Organic Chemistry Laboratory. Led by Pierre Laurent and continued by Bernardo Herold from 1962 onwards, the laboratory has become so relevant that it is impossible to imagine how laboratory teaching was done before. It has 70 years of history(s) and, in Herold’s opinion, is still “perfect to serve another 50 years”. The Organic Chemistry Laboratory featured in the 20th episode of the “110 Stories | 110 Objects” podcast.

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Episode 19: The Técnico’s 1st Image

Friday, November 5th, 2021

Porfírio Pardal Monteiro, also known as the “architect of Lisbon”, designed the layout that still forms the basis of the Alameda campus of the Instituto Superior Técnico. This watercolour perspective is the first sketch of what would become Portugal’s first modern building, Lisbon’s first university campus, which applied the programme of a university based on applied science. A story that intersects with Duarte Pacheco’s vision, with the history of Portuguese architecture itself and with myths and caricatured episodes surrounding these two characters. The 1st Image of the Technician featured in the 19th episode of the podcast “110 Stories | 110 Objects”.

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Episode 18: The 1st Laser in Portugal

Friday, October 29th, 2021

Lasers are everywhere today, in many everyday activities. This is a far cry from the 1960s, when no-one really knew what they could be used for, and when we witnessed the first laser in Portugal (and at Técnico). The ruby laser, about two metres in size, consisting of a main core made of ruby crystals, surrounded by a flash bulb, reminds the researchers at Técnico / IPFN – Instituto de Plasmas e Fusão Nuclear (Institute of Plasmas and Nuclear Fusion) of the heritage they received from experimental physics at home. The 1st laser in Portugal featured in the 18th episode of the “110 Stories | 110 Objects” podcast.

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Episode 17: Crystal lattice models

Friday, October 22nd, 2021

At the entrance to the South Tower, on the Alameda do Técnico campus, several small models of crystalline networks don’t go unnoticed. They represent various chemical substances, at a magnification of 100 million, and “allow a chemical reading of the interactions between molecules and atoms in the crystal”, as Clementina Teixeira, a retired Técnico professor, tells us. They were acquired in 1998 in Budapest and have somewhat revolutionised Técnico’s teaching of crystal models. “There are many models, but these are special because they are rigorous.” Crystal lattice models or “Beevers miniature models” featured in the 17th episode of the “110 Stories | 110 Objects” podcast.

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Episode 16: The Meteorite of São Julião de Moreira

Friday, October 15th, 2021

Discovered in 1877 by a farmer while he was working in the fields in a village near Ponte de Lima, the São Julião de Moreira Meteorite is one of the most special objects to be found in the Décio Thadeu Museum, one of Técnico’s two Geosciences Museums. It’s a piece of evidence of the entry into the Earth’s atmosphere of a large meteorite weighing around 160kg, which disintegrated before reaching the surface. We don’t know when, but we do know a lot about meteorites. And it seems clear that they can help us discover even more about the origin of life on the planet where we live. A conversation with astrobiologist Zita Martins (Técnico / Structural Chemistry Centre) and Manuel Francisco (Técnico / Técnico Geosciences Museums) serves as the basis for the story in the 16th episode of the “110 Stories | 110 Objects” podcast.

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Episode 15: The TLMoto prototype

Friday, October 8th, 2021

The first combustion electric motorbikes made by students in Portugal bear the signature of TLMoto, a group of Técnico students dedicated to designing, building and racing electric sports bikes. The project, founded in 2012, has applied its latest energy to the TLM03e prototype (the second electric motorbike – and third prototype – built by this team). A bike with more power, more autonomy and the same weight as its predecessors, it fills the group with hope for the future. “We’ve managed to reach a level of having a capable bike and from now on we just have to make improvements.” The story of this Técnico team and its prototypes in the 15th episode of the “110 Stories | 110 Objects” podcast.

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Episode 14: The Three-Dimensional Maps

Friday, October 1st, 2021

They are three three-dimensional maps and they don’t go unnoticed by those who enter the Civil Pavilion at the Instituto Superior Técnico or those who visit the Civil Museum. They were forgotten in a storage room at Técnico for decades until they were recovered and exhibited in the 90s. Innovative for their time, when such three-dimensional representations were not common, the models also fulfil an important educational role for Técnico students.

The stories of the Three-Dimensional Maps in the 14th episode of the podcast “110 Stories | 110 Objects”.

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Episode 13: The Aquilégio Medicinal

Friday, September 24th, 2021

The “Aquilégio Medicinal”, a book “in which the agoas de Caldàs, de fontes, rios, poços, lagoas e cisternas do Reyno de Portugal e dos Algarves are reported”, is the first compilation of natural mineral waters in Portugal, published in 1726. One of the original editions, almost three hundred years old, is kept in the Clinical Analyses Laboratory of the Instituto Superior Técnico (LAIST). It is one of the “relics” cared for by Maria Cândida Vaz, a retired professor and researcher at Técnico, born in 1939, who was also director of the Laboratory between 1984 and 2004. This is the story of the 13th episode of the podcast “110 Stories | 110 Objects”.

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Episode 12: Técnico Solar Boat

Friday, September 17th, 2021

From the sleepless nights spent in Monaco in 2017 to finalise the first prototype before its competition debut, to the recent odysseys across the country’s waters, the stories of the Técnico Solar Boat are many. The project is made up of engineering students from Técnico and seeks to promote renewable energies, sustainability and electric mobility through the development of solar-powered boats. It’s already on the third prototype of the São Rafael, whose version 01 shines in the 12th episode of the “110 Stories | 110 Objects” podcast.

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