29/01/2021

In an interview with TV Brasil, Viana discusses the history and work of IMPA.

Reprodução: TV Brasil

In an interview shown on Saturday (23), on the program Ciência é Tudo , on TV Brasil, the general director of IMPA, Marcelo Viana, spoke about IMPA's trajectory, activities and objectives for the coming years. Closer ties with the productive sector and the popularization of mathematics were highlighted goals. Roberto Imbuzeiro, a researcher at IMPA, also participated in the program, and spoke about training in mathematics and possibilities in the job market.

Viana highlighted the institute's role in building the national mathematical literature. "We organize the Brazilian Mathematics Colloquium every two years, in the last week of July in odd-numbered years, and it's no exaggeration to say that Brazilian mathematics has grown around the Colloquium, with the lectures given and the books produced. A large part of Brazilian mathematical literature has been produced from course notes given at the Colloquium," he commented.

To highlight the contribution of mathematics to a country's economy, Viana pointed to a 2012 study commissioned by the United Kingdom, which indicated that professions linked to the discipline were responsible for 16% of the country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) annually. “[…] in Brazil, this equates to R$ 1 trillion per year. This gives an idea of the potential economic value. When I say economic, I am obviously thinking about the social component. A country that generates much more wealth to distribute among its population. And we know that in Brazil this is an urgent matter, a priority.”

Among the various professional fields that encompass mathematics, there's even sports, Imbuzeiro pointed out. “The most interesting use of mathematics in sports is when you use the statistics of a particular player or team to try to guess their potential. For example, to see what the probability is of them becoming champion or being relegated.” Although imminent in Brazil, this trend already moves thousands of dollars in the United States, he highlighted. “In baseball, they compile all the statistics of all the players to decide who to hire. So it's a super important thing that I think will start to be used more and more in soccer as well.”

A probability expert, Imbuzeiro spoke about the perspectives that people trained in mathematics can bring to the technology and finance sectors. “Despite there being people with specific training to work in these areas, mathematicians, with the knowledge they possess and the reasoning skills they develop in college, are capable of coming in and doing things differently than professionals with specific training in these fields. Furthermore, we see mathematicians in the oil industry, in public service, everywhere.”

In addition to being a professional tool, mathematical knowledge can also be a source of entertainment, Viana pointed out, when speaking about IMPA's commitment to popularizing mathematics. "It's extremely important that we reach out to children, young people, and their families, proposing that mathematics is an important instrument for achievement and development, and that it's really cool and fun."

For those who want to enjoy the playful aspect of the subject, Imbuzeiro recommends the OBMEP Portal . “It’s a fantastic project. On the OBMEP Portal you’ll find videos, games, everything geared towards teachers and students learning and having a little fun with mathematics.”