Sílvio Mendes | 110 anos do Técnico

Author Archive

Episode 31: The SenToy

Friday, January 28th, 2022

SenToy is an effective control toy, designed to control a synthetic character in a computer game. By expressing gestures associated with six human emotions through SenToy, players influence the emotions of the character they control in the game. It is actually one of the first European projects in the area of Affective Computing, led by a multidisciplinary team from Técnico (GAIPS/INESC-ID). SenToy, which includes the idea of sensing and toy in its name, was one of the first control toys using tangible user interfaces, which are so common today. SenToy is currently at the Faraday Museum.

Acknowledgements:
Ana Paiva
Moisés Piedade
Rui Prada
Museu Faraday

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 30: The portable Gas Analyser

Friday, January 21st, 2022

Before the invention of electronic devices, simple daily tasks such as measuring chemical compounds in the air, required ostentatious devices that carried out physicochemical measurements. The portable gas analyser, also known as the Orsat apparatus, made these measurements possible in 1873. It is estimated that the model that belongs to the Técnico collection, has arrived at the time of the Chemical Engineering Laboratories’ creation.
It became a piece of laboratory equipment universally used, which allowed to compare measurements carried out in different laboratories, namely very important measurements such as the analysis of gases that factories release into the air, hazardous air quality in heavily polluted cities or indoor car parks, and also car exhaust smoke. Some of these measurements can save lives.

Acknowledgements:
Dulce Simão
Moisés Pinto

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 29: The Van de Graaff accelerator

Friday, January 14th, 2022

There are many potential applications of nuclear physics-based technologies, such as evaluating the authenticity of art pieces and precious metals, and studying the nature of materials used in electronics and in the diagnosis and treatment of diseases. In 1961, Portugal witnessed the arrival of one of these technologies: The Van de Graaff accelerator. It is located at Técnico – CTN Campus, and attracted a large community of physicists. The accelerator is an electrical device that can accelerate elementary particles, such as protons, electrons or ions. Particle beam impact allows for studying the most diverse materials and their constitution. The accelerator at CTN was upgraded and, in the 1990s, began operating at even higher energies. This new version of the accelerator includes some parts of its predecessor. The remaining parts of the original accelerator can be found at the National Museum of Natural History and Science -Universidade de Lisboa (MUHNAC).

Acknowledgements:
Eduardo Alves
José Marques, Vice-Presidente para a Gestão do Campus Tecnológico e Nuclear do Pólo de Loures do Técnico

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 28: The Mastodon teeth

Friday, January 7th, 2022

About 20 million years ago, portentous Mastodons (ancestors of the elephants) peacefully walked around Técnico – Alameda Campus. The Mastodon teeth fossils found in the vicinity of Alameda campus show evidence of a period when Lisbon was a savannah, with vegetation up to two meters high, and animals such as hyenas, hippos, giraffes, beavers and even… cat-sized horses. The Mastodon teeth are one of the Décio Thadeu Museum’s major assets that will help us understand some mysteries of the past.

Acknowledgements:
Manuel Francisco
Tiago Carrilho
Simão Mateus
Museus de Geociências do Técnico
Jardim Zoológico de Lisboa
Dino Parque Lourinhã

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 27: Charles Lepierre’s autoclave

Friday, December 31st, 2021

The autoclave was brought to Técnico by Charles Lepierre at the beginning of the 20th century, and it is similar to the first ones that were invented to save lives in the world. The rabies vaccine was made available after the invention of the autoclave, as it allowed disinfecting and to sterilise the materials used to handle the different components of the vaccine. It was crucial to Charles Lepierre’ s research work but also (many years later, in the 1980’s) to the development of microbiology at Técnico. The analysis laboratory was a pioneer in the analysis of hemodialysis water in the country, drinking water, swimming pools, and wastewater, among others.

Acknowledgements:
Manuela Cadete
Maria Cândida Vaz
Paula Le Hartel
Liceu Francês de Lisboa

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 26: The “Técnica” magazine

Friday, December 24th, 2021

The “Técnica” magazine was for decades one of the most important magazines in the field of Engineering in Portugal. Published between 1915 and 1998, it comprises almost 500 editions that include nearly 5000 articles authored by national professors, researchers and students. The “Técnica” magazine also stood out for its well-designed covers, which witness the history of Portuguese Engineering and the important role played by Técnico in the country’s industrial development during most of the 20th century. At the initiative of IST Students’ Union (AEIST), a new and fully digital version was published in November 2021.

Acknowledgements:
Associação dos Estudantes do Instituto Superior Técnico
Biblioteca do Instituto Superior Técnico
Guilherme Arroz
Isabel Marcos
Madalena Caldas

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 25: “Exaltação dos ritmos dominantes das origens”, a sculpture by Lagoa Henriques

Friday, December 17th, 2021

Lagoa Henriques’ sculpture “Exaltação dos ritmos dominantes das origens” has occupied the entrance wall of the Técnico Interdisciplinary building, at Alameda campus, since 1973. Dynamic and extensive, it represents the “passage from chaos to a cosmos” or an “energetic sweep through very informal patches that are born from the randomness of matter”, among other possible descriptions. It summarizes the nuclear energy research that was being carried out in the building, which at the time was part of the Laboratory of Mass Spectrometry at the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation. Only in 1995 the sculpture and the building became part of Técnico.

Acknowledgements:
Maria João Gamito
Hermínio Diogo

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 24: The cellular automata machine

Friday, December 10th, 2021

Built in 1985 by Técnico researchers with rudimentary electronic material, the Técnico’s cellular automata prototype was able to perform 15 million operations per second, for example by analysing the evolution of the water flow along the Tagus estuary. The cellular automata machine is still in full operation, despite its electronic circuits, memories and structure being only protected by acrylics. This machine, which is composed of calculators that work collaboratively and interact with each other very fast, was used by many Técnico students and gave rise to scientific collaborations with the Portuguese Department of National Defence.

Acknowledgements:
Rui Dilão

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 23: Statue honouring Engineering

Friday, December 3rd, 2021

The statue honouring engineering was designed by Salvador Barata Feyo. It remained for decades of unknown origin and author until this podcast episode. The statue arrived at Alameda campus in 1948, on the occasion of the exhibition “Quinze anos de Obras Públicas” (“Fifteen years of Public Works”), and has been holding, since then, the historical symbols of engineering (a compass and a square) in his right hand and a drawing of the Duarte Pacheco Viaduct in his left hand.

Acknowledgements:
Eduardo Pereira (Pró-reitor da universidade de Lisboa / Departamento Engenharia Civil, Arquitetura e Georrecursos do Instituto Superior Técnico)
Fernando António Baptista Pereira

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 22: The “Student Solidarity” bulletin

Friday, November 26th, 2021

On the morning of 26 November 1967, exactly 54 years ago, the Lisbon metropolitan area was affected by heavy rainfall. The 1967 Floods were one of the major disasters in Portugal and exposed many of the country’s weaknesses. According to official information 462 people died, but according to historians there was at least 700 deaths. As a reaction to this tragedy, the Técnico students launched a memorable solidarity campaign to support the population of Vala do Carregado, which included household tasks, distributing food, transporting people who needed medical assistance and vaccination. Despite the dictatorship control, the “Solidariedade Estudantil” bulletin (“Student Solidarity” bulletin ) distributed at Técnico was one of the few bulletins that escaped the censorship under the Estado Novo. The bulletin was written by the Técnico students who participated in the solidarity campaign and reached 10 000 copies.

Acknowledgements:
Associação dos Estudantes do Instituto Superior Técnico
José Pires Brazão
Luísa Tiago de Oliveira

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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