UT Austin Portugal Newsletter | Bringing Science out of the Lab


As Mark Walport said, "Science is not finished until it’s communicated". This year, the last one of the Program's third phase, is the perfect opportunity to look back and see the results that emerged from our community's perseverance and effort. Such results are able to shape the future, solve critical societal problems and give rise to new ideas and, therefore, deserve to be shared with everyone. This way, we focused this issue of our Newsletter on communicating the science beyond the past and present achievements of our community.Before diving into our interesting content, we invited Robert Peterson, Governing Board's Representative of the University of Texas at Austin, to sign this month's editorial. Peterson, who is a specialist in Marketing Communication and Strategy, takes a look back at some of our biggest accomplishments and how communicating them is important to share our value and increase scientific literacy.Research results: keeping them to myself or sharing them with the world? As phase three of the UT Austin Portugal Program winds down, it is instructive to reflect back to that bitterly cold and windy day when the FCT, Portuguese university rectors, and The University of Texas at Austin formally agreed to initiate an unprecedented, international academic collaboration. There was uncertainty, trepidation, and even some skepticism about how the program would transpire, what the program would produce, and, indeed, whether it would be successful. Today, 16 years later, it is abundantly clear that, regardless of criterion, the program has been unequivocally successful.Through countless educational exchanges, a host of research partnerships, and a variety of formal and informal communication events, workshops, and conferences, the UT Austin Portugal Program has produced a plethora of science-based knowledge that has translated into product and service innovations that have transformed Portugal in numerous ways. An enduring network of scientific relationships was established, Portugal’s first supercomputer was inaugurated, and program-related companies such as Feedzai, Sword Health, and Abyssal garnered world-fame.Given these societal benefits, it is imperative that a renewed emphasis be placed on widely communicating the direct achievements as well as the indirect and induced effects of the program. In addition to employing traditional mass media to reach the general public, and scientific publications to reach researchers and educators, a comprehensive social media strategy is required that embraces (marketing) affiliates and (celebrity) influencers. Not only will a dedicated, renewed communication emphasis remind people of the obvious value of the program to date; it will also portend the future value of the program and encourage the next generation of Portuguese youth to increase their scientific literacy.The UT Austin Portugal Program cannot, as per the parable, “hide its light under a bushel.” Robert A. Peterson, Governing Board's Representative of the University of Texas at Austin

As Mark Walport said, "Science is not finished until it’s communicated". This year, the last one of the Program's third phase, is the perfect opportunity to look back and see the results that emerged from our community's perseverance and effort. Such results are able to shape the future, solve critical societal problems and give rise to new ideas and, therefore, deserve to be shared with everyone. This way, we focused this issue of our Newsletter on communicating the science beyond the past and present achievements of our community.Before diving into our interesting content, we invited Robert Peterson, Governing Board's Representative of the University of Texas at Austin, to sign this month's editorial. Peterson, who is a specialist in Marketing Communication and Strategy, takes a look back at some of our biggest accomplishments and how communicating them is important to share our value and increase scientific literacy.Research results: keeping them to myself or sharing them with the world? As phase three of the UT Austin Portugal Program winds down, it is instructive to reflect back to that bitterly cold and windy day when the FCT, Portuguese university rectors, and The University of Texas at Austin formally agreed to initiate an unprecedented, international academic collaboration. There was uncertainty, trepidation, and even some skepticism about how the program would transpire, what the program would produce, and, indeed, whether it would be successful. Today, 16 years later, it is abundantly clear that, regardless of criterion, the program has been unequivocally successful.Through countless educational exchanges, a host of research partnerships, and a variety of formal and informal communication events, workshops, and conferences, the UT Austin Portugal Program has produced a plethora of science-based knowledge that has translated into product and service innovations that have transformed Portugal in numerous ways. An enduring network of scientific relationships was established, Portugal’s first supercomputer was inaugurated, and program-related companies such as Feedzai, Sword Health, and Abyssal garnered world-fame.Given these societal benefits, it is imperative that a renewed emphasis be placed on widely communicating the direct achievements as well as the indirect and induced effects of the program. In addition to employing traditional mass media to reach the general public, and scientific publications to reach researchers and educators, a comprehensive social media strategy is required that embraces (marketing) affiliates and (celebrity) influencers. Not only will a dedicated, renewed communication emphasis remind people of the obvious value of the program to date; it will also portend the future value of the program and encourage the next generation of Portuguese youth to increase their scientific literacy.The UT Austin Portugal Program cannot, as per the parable, “hide its light under a bushel.” Robert A. Peterson, Governing Board's Representative of the University of Texas at Austin

Dive into our Science and Innovation

The history of ideas or how the UT Austin Portugal Program has leveraged research

Learn how research that started here continues to thrive.

Read here

A whole new world of research possibilities, future collaborations and enriching experiences, made possible through the Short-term Research Internships at UT Austin

Get to know the research work of our 2022 Visiting Researchers and their feedback on their time at UT Austin.

Read here

Check out the most recent episode


Cross Talks #9: Soft4Sense Project Guests: Bruno Martins (IPN), Carlos Patacas (IPN) and Rui Huang (UT Austin's Cockrell School of Engineering)Find out how Space Invaders can be related with coating tools' methods and how Soft4Sense is creating smart surfaces to monitor this process.

Follow our podcast on your favorite streaming platforms

Get to know our Community


Through the opportunities Peter Arzberger had during his early education, he chose to graduate in Mathematics. While at Purdue University, Peter was drawn to a professor who worked at the interface of mathematics and population genetics and, since then, his career has been overlapping mathematics, biology, and computing. This filled Peter's professional life with plenty of international and multidisciplinary collaborations and different adventures worth sharing. Read here

Through the opportunities Peter Arzberger had during his early education, he chose to graduate in Mathematics. While at Purdue University, Peter was drawn to a professor who worked at the interface of mathematics and population genetics and, since then, his career has been overlapping mathematics, biology, and computing. This filled Peter's professional life with plenty of international and multidisciplinary collaborations and different adventures worth sharing. Read here


Maria Filomena Botelho wanted to graduate in Medicine for as long as she can remember, without the thought of not being a doctor ever crossing her mind. While working as a junior doctor at the hospital, she started to contact with research at the clinical level. While there, a research faculty position opened up and she applied. Needless to say, Maria Filomena got the job, thus starting a great career as a researcher, where she managed to combine one of her other passions: Physics. Read here

Maria Filomena Botelho wanted to graduate in Medicine for as long as she can remember, without the thought of not being a doctor ever crossing her mind. While working as a junior doctor at the hospital, she started to contact with research at the clinical level. While there, a research faculty position opened up and she applied. Needless to say, Maria Filomena got the job, thus starting a great career as a researcher, where she managed to combine one of her other passions: Physics. Read here

A bioengineer by heart, Ana Pêgo has a fulfilling career in the field, both nationally and internationally. After a visit to UT Austin, Ana started a collaboration with Laura Suggs, which culminated in the 2017 Exploratory Research Project MECHANO. This project was so successful that its legacy lives on, even after its completion, through other Projects. We interviewed her to know more about her journey, before and after being a UT Austin Portugal's Project PrincipaI Investigator.

Read here

Stay tuned for our events and opportunities


💻 Online Advanced Course on Biomedical Imaging 2023 📅 Thursdays and Fridays from April 27 to June 2, 2023 After a successful first edition in 2022, this course is back to offer you a unique opportunity to learn from leading experts in Portugal, Texas and Germany about the main imaging methodologies used in biomedicine and, even, how Artificial Intelligence can complement this field. Registrations are open until April 21! Make sure to grab your online seat.

💻 Online Advanced Course on Biomedical Imaging 2023 📅 Thursdays and Fridays from April 27 to June 2, 2023 After a successful first edition in 2022, this course is back to offer you a unique opportunity to learn from leading experts in Portugal, Texas and Germany about the main imaging methodologies used in biomedicine and, even, how Artificial Intelligence can complement this field. Registrations are open until April 21! Make sure to grab your online seat.


🚀 SOE'23: Space, Ocean and Earth Insights📅 June 15, 2023📍 Azores, Portugal The UT Austin Portugal is a Co-organizer in the second edition of this special event that fosters connections between Space, Ocean and Earth, and how they contribute to further space exploration. This year, the event is a part of the Global Exploration (GLEX) Summit and will be broadcasted from the enchanting Azores islands. Save the date for this exciting event!

🚀 SOE'23: Space, Ocean and Earth Insights📅 June 15, 2023📍 Azores, Portugal The UT Austin Portugal is a Co-organizer in the second edition of this special event that fosters connections between Space, Ocean and Earth, and how they contribute to further space exploration. This year, the event is a part of the Global Exploration (GLEX) Summit and will be broadcasted from the enchanting Azores islands. Save the date for this exciting event!

(Re)view our training portfolio

Browse through our Research Publications

UT Austin Portugal Newsletter | Bringing Science out of the Lab (original) (raw)