What's New in Science & Technology

Brazil Ranks 13th among Major Knowledge Producers

Brazil ranked 13th in the global classification of published scientific works in 2008, overtaking Russia (15th) and the Netherlands (14th). The number of articles published jumped from 19,436 in 2007 to 30,451 in 2008. The United States, China, Germany, Japan and England ranked first through fifth, followed by France, Canada, Italy, India, Australia and South Korea.

Initiative inspired in the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

The Brazilian Minister of Environment, Carlos Minc, and the Minister of Science and Technology, Sérgio Rezende, launched on Friday, April 17, at the Botanical Gardens in Rio, at 4PM, the Brazil Panel on Climate Change (PBMC).

CNPq Researcher Discovers new Paths for Cancer Studies in Partnership with U.S.

Researchers have a new target for their cancer studies. The finding was published in the December 2008 issue of Nature, in an article by Eduardo Rego, a researcher from the Brazilian National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq) and the Division of Hematology of the Department of Medical Clinic from the Ribeirão Preto College of Medicine of the University of São Paulo (FMRP-USP), who provided evidence that a ribosomal protein, called L24, is involved in the development of lymphomas, cancer in the lymphatic system. These results represent a new concept in cancer studies and may serve as the basis for developing new drugs.

INT Turns Sugarcane Bagasse and Straw into Ethanol

The production of fuel ethanol may be expanded and made more inexpensive with the use of waste sugarcane biomass, i.e. sugarcane bagasse and straw. This alternative, which is also available for other agro industrial wastes, is currently being researched by researchers from the National Technology Institute (INT) from the Brazilian Ministry of Science and Technology. They have already developed technology, which is currently in its pilot phase, to pre-treat sugarcane waste for the purpose of producing bioethanol through enzyme hydrolysis.

Creation of 101 National Institutes of Science and Technology

CNPq Announced the Creation of 101 National Institutes of Science and Technology: a R$600-Million Investment

The new 101 National Institutes of Science and Technology (INCTs) will be located in 16 different states in Brazil and they will function as a network with institutions throughout Brazil, playing a strategic role in the National System of Science and Technology. The approval of the institutes were announced in the INCTs notice at the end of November 2008 by Marco Antonio Zago, Chairman of the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq), and Sergio Resende, the Brazilian Minister of Science and Technology, during an official event at the CNPq headquarters, in Brasília.