Knowledge News News
- New R&D Institute Created in Madeira within the Carnegie Mellon – Portugal Program
University of Madeira, Madeira Technopole and Carnegie Mellon University sign, on July 23, 2009, a protocol for creating a new private R&D institute in the area of Information and Communication Technologies, Madeira – Interactive Technologies Institute (Madeira - ITI), in a ceremony in the presence of the Minister of Science, Technology and Higher Education, José Mariano Gago, and the Secretary of State of Science, Technology and Higher Education, Manuel Heitor. The creation of this institute had been proposed at the 5th meeting of the Board of Directors of the Carnegie Mellon – Portugal Program, chaired by Luis Magalhães, President of the Knowledge Society Agency (UMIC) and held at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, USA, on the 27th and 28th of May 2009. - 5th Meeting of the Governing Committee of the MIT - Portugal Programme
The Governing Committee of the MIT - Portugal Programme met on 21 November 2008, at FCT - Foundation for Science and Technology, IP, for the 5th time since this Programme was started around two years previously, on 11 October 2006, under the scope of the Partnerships for the Future activities integrated within the Commitment to Science for the Future of Portugal (in Portuguese) initiative.The main aims of the meeting were to consider and approve the report on the Programme’s activities, with the 1st part of the meeting including the participation of the executive directors of the various areas of the Programme, to receive information from the President of the External Review Committee of the MIT - Portugal Programme, Professor Henk Sol, regarding the process of assessing the candidatures for the projects presented during the public tender opened under the scope of the Programme. It also included discussion and approval of the main strategic and budgetary guidelines, discussion and approval of the Budget Plan for 2009, and analysis of operational matters and procedures.
- 4th Meeting of the Governing Committee of the CMU – Portugal Program
The CMU – Portugal Programme Governing Committee met for the 4th time on 6 and 7 November 2008, at FCT - Foundation for Science and Technology, to learn about the report from the Knowledge Society Agency (UMIC), consider the report from the Programme Directors and approve resolutions regarding the functioning of the Programme.
This Governing Committee is chaired by the President of FCT – Foundation for Science and Technology, IP, João Sentieiro, and also includes the Provost of CMU, Jared Cohon, the Dean of the School of Engineering of CMU, Pradeep Koshla, the President of Knowledge Society Agency (UMIC), Luis Magalhães, Alfredo Baptista from Portugal Telecom and the Programme directors at CMU and in Portugal.
- Harvard Medical School presents Assessment of Collaboration Opportunities with Portugal
The University of Harvard’s Harvard Medical School (USA) presented the Ministry of Science, Technology and Higher Education (MCTES) with its report assessing the potential for collaboration with Portuguese university and research institutions, entitled Research and Education Collaboration: Assessment. This document is being made publicly available today and the MCTES will accept any contributions from interested Portuguese institutions, namely scientific and technological institutions, university institutions, National Health System companies and institutions until the end of January 2008, which it will forward to the Harvard Medical School for assessment. - 1st meeting of the CMU-Portugal Programme’s External Review Committee
The CMU-Portugal Programme’s External Review Committee is meeting for the first time today and tomorrow, 13th and 14th December 2007, in Lisbon.
This Committee, coordinated by Professor Sir John O'Reilly from the University of Cranfield, United Kingdom, also includes the following internationally-renowned researchers: Joel Moses (Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA), Tariq Durrani (University of Strathclyde, United Kingdom), Luigia Aiello (University of Rome, Italy), David Audretsch (University of Indiana and Max Plank Institute, USA).
- 9 committees and councils of various EU programmes meeting in Braga
On 19th November 2007, the day before the High Level Conference on Nanotechnologies, 9 committees and councils of various EU programmes are meeting in Braga. These include the half-yearly Forum of National ICT Directors-General of the European Union and 3 meetings of European Technology Platform committees and councils, namely:
- 3rd MIT – Portugal Program Governing Committee Meeting
The MIT – Portugal Program Governing Committee will meet for the 3rd time on 10th October 2007, one day before the first anniversary of this program’s launch, to evaluate the report on the first year of activities and to discuss plans for the coming year’s activities.
This Governing Committee is chaired by the President of the FCT- Foundation for Science and Technology, IP, João Sentieiro, and also includes the MIT Chancellor, Phil Clay, the former MIT Engineering School Dean, Tom Magnanti, the President of the Knowledge Society Agency (UMIC), Luis Magalhães, and the respective directors of the program at MIT and in Portugal, Dan Roos and Paulo Ferrão.
- Conferences and Bilateral Meetings with Russian and Ukrainian Research Centres
A series of conferences and bilateral meetings will take place at the ISQ – Instituto de Soldadura e Qualidade from 1st to 4th October 2007 on the activities of Russia’s International Science and Technology Center (ISTC)and Ukraine’s Science and Technology Center in Ukraine (STCU).The agenda for this event, which is entitled Approaching the CIS scientific community: ISTC and STCU meet the Portuguese business, technological and scientific players, takes in interventions on opportunities for cooperation in various areas, which include, among others: material science, nanotechnology, biochips, photonics, welding and vibrations.
- CMU – Portugal Program Governing Committee Meeting
The CMU - Portugal Programme Governing Committee, chaired by the President of the FCT – Foundation for Science and Technology, IP, João Sentieiro, will meet on 20th July 2007. The meeting will also be attended by the Chairman of the CMU, Jared Cohon, the Chairman of the CMU Electrical and Computer Engineering Department, Pradeep Kosla, the President of Knowledge Society Agency (UMIC), Luis Magalhães, the Director of the Programme at the CMU, José Manuel Fonseca de Moura, and the Programme Director in Portugal, Victor Barros. - Search on for a Director and Qualified Staff for the Fraunhofer Centre/Institute in Portugal
The Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT), the Knowledge Society Agency (UMIC) and the Fraunhofer Company (FhG) signed a scientific and technological cooperation agreement on 18.04.2007 in Portugal. This agreement includes the establishment of a Fraunhofer Centre/Institute in Portugal in the Technologies Applications, Content and Services for Ambient Assisted Living field, which is scheduled for the end of 2007. The Centre/Institute will pay special attention to developing technology, content and services for less qualified citizens, the elderly and citizens with special needs who normally do not follow the development of new technologies and the demands of the emerging Information and Knowledge Society. In the area of applied research for industrial and governmental clients, the Centre/Institute will develop concepts and information and communication technologies for Ambient Assisted Living.In this context, shows of interest from qualified individuals interested in technical and administrative management positions at the Fraunhofer Centre/Institute in Portugal will be warmly received. The positions include that of the Centre/Institute scientific director, which is a post that will also include lecturing duties in information and communication technologies at a Portuguese university. It is hoped that the Fraunhofer Centre/Institute director will be involved in both research and lecturing as part of their university activities.
- Harvard – Portugal Program Launch
An agreement was signed with the Harvard Medical School on 16 April 2007 at a session starting at midday in the Pavilhão do Conhecimento in Lisbon. The principal objective of this agreement is to stimulate internationalisation and cooperation among medical faculties and the main national biomedical science laboratories and research centres.The agreement is specifically geared towards production and dissemination of medical content, namely for medical students, teaching staff and researchers, but also for doctors and healthcare professionals and for the general public, the objective being to promote the dissemination of this content in Portuguese.
- Fraunhofer – Portugal Programme Launch
At a ceremony at the Porto Customs House lasting from 11.45 am until 1 pm on 18th April 2007, a long-term collaboration agreement was signed between the FCT – Foundation for Science and Technology and Knowledge Society Agency (UMIC) and FhG – Fraunhofer Gesellschaft - the company that manages 56 applied research laboratories in Germany and is the largest applied research organisation in Europe. This long-term cooperation agreement focuses on emerging technologies, exploring mutual interest in science and technology for social well-being, economic growth and quality of life. The focal areas for this collaboration were identified based on a preliminary opportunity analysis that was conducted in 2006. They include ICTs, biotechnology, nanotechnology, advanced production engineering and logistics.
The core objective of the agreement is to establish a framework for ongoing and systematic cooperation between Fraunhofer Institutes and R&D institutions in Portugal, and to set up a Fraunhofer Institute in Portugal in the short-term, dedicated to applied research in Technology, Applications and Services for Ambient Assisted Living. This will be the first Fraunhofer Institute to be set up outside Germany.
- Launching of the UT Austin – Portugal Program
On 2nd March 2007, the agreements from the UT Austin - Portugal Program were signed at the Universidade Nova de Lisboa’s Faculty of Sciences and Technology in Almada. This comes under the Government’s current work to strengthen scientific and technological cooperation with institutions of recognised international merit in a way that enables innovative projects that effectively help boost scientific and advanced training capability in Portugal.The UT Austin - Portugal Program encompasses the joint implementation of an International Collaboratory for Emerging Technologies, CoLab, which includes the establishment of a network to stimulate marketing activities for Science and Technology (University Technology Enterprise Network, UTEN).
- Launching of CMU – Portugal Program
On 27th October 2006, the CMU – Portugal Program agreements were signed in Aveiro. This comes under the Government’s current work to strengthen scientific and technological cooperation with institutions of recognised international merit in a way that enables innovative projects that effectively help boost scientific and advanced training capability in Portugal.