08/07/2020

National Science and Researcher Day is this Wednesday (8)

The term "science" is often used to designate systematized knowledge that attempts to understand natural truths or laws to explain the workings of the universe. It seems like a pretentious mission, but science is linked to almost every stage of our day, from the coffee maker that prepares our coffee to the app that informs us about traffic on our way to work. To encourage scientific activity and highlight its importance for the country's development, National Science Day was created, celebrated this Wednesday, July 8th.

Established by Law No. 10,221 of April 18, 2001, National Science Day is also a tribute to the Brazilian Society for the Advancement of Science (SBPC), founded on July 8, 1948. Since then, the organization has been one of the pillars supporting scientific activity in the country. Seven years later, the date also began to honor those who do science with the creation of National Researcher's Day (Law No. 11,807 of November 13, 2008).

The double celebration usually involves a series of fairs and activities annually that highlight Brazilian scientific research, encouraging young people to become interested in science and bringing the country's production in this area within reach of the general public. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this year's celebrations had to be adapted to a virtual format.

This was the choice of IMPA, which is promoting this Wednesday (8), at 11 am, the webinar “Science and Mathematics: from crisis to development” in honor of the date. Broadcast on the institute’s YouTube channel, the meeting will have the participation of IMPA’s deputy director, Claudio Landim, Marcia Barbosa, researcher at the Institute of Physics of the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), and Claudia Sagastizábal, researcher at the Institute of Mathematics, Statistics and Scientific Computing (IMECC) at Unicamp. The researchers will discuss the role of science, the work and routine of a scientific researcher .

The SBPC, which is celebrating its 72nd anniversary, is also organizing a live launch of the book “Science for Brazil – 70 years of the Brazilian Society for the Progress of Science (SBPC)” this Wednesday (8). The meeting will be broadcast at 5 pm on the organization’s YouTube channel and Facebook page . The participants in the live event are former President of the Republic Fernando Henrique Cardoso, biochemist Jorge Almeida Guimarães and physicist José Goldemberg.

To demystify the figure of the scientist and explain how science is done, the Serrapilheira Institute is launching the hashtag #CientistaTrabalhando ( Scientist at Work), encouraging researchers, journalists, and science communicators to occupy social media and media outlets. During the month of July, newspaper columnists will give up their spaces to address topics related to the scientific process, both with texts written by themselves and by invited scientists.

The program is extensive and has activities for all tastes. The important thing is not to miss out on the party!