“The use of radiation has historically been stigmatised and distorted for centuries”. According to Pedro Vaz, a professor at Instituto Superior Técnico, this is one of the key points to take away from the MasterTalk held on March 15, dedicated to the Master’s Programmes offered by the Department of Nuclear Sciences and Engineering (DECN).

For the seventh time on a Thursday afternoon, the Técnico Congress Centre welcomed several students interested in learning about the school’s training offer. Pedro Vaz gave a talk titled ‘Utilizações das Radiações e do “Nuclear” em Ciência e na Sociedade – Riscos e Benefícios, Mitos e Realidades’ (‘Uses of Radiation and “Nuclear” in Science and Society – Risks and Benefits, Myths and Realities’), that aimed to dispel fears about radiation and nuclear science, which he claims are the result of “decades of misinformation”.

In particular, the former researcher at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) highlighted many of the benefits that research in this area has brought and continues to bring to society – radiotherapy, space exploration, food and medical material sterilisation, imaging, nuclear energy production and even smoke detector components. According to Pedro Vaz, summarising nuclear sciences in a 30-minute lecture is “a demanding task”. “I talked about seven or eight applications, but there are hundreds – not to say thousands – in all sectors of activity”, he explains. About the MasterTalks, he highlighted – “it’s a great initiative that deserves to be encouraged”.

Beatriz Marques, one of the students who attended the MasterTalk, attends an undergraduate programme at another higher education institution. She said she was curious about the master’s programmes and fields of study at Técnico, particularly Medical Physics. “The MasterTalk was very interesting”, she says, adding that “the lecturer was very helpful in clearing up [her] doubts”.

Sofia Vidal and André Feliciano, third-year Engineering Physics undergraduate students, came to the session together because they were curious about the DECN’s training offer. For Sofia, the possibility of “combining Physics, Biology and Medicine seems interesting”. André praises the talk “it gives us an overview of what is done here and what academic and professional path we can follow”. The student had studied medicine for two years, but decided to change course. “Técnico was an obvious choice because of its link with companies”, he explains. Sofia agrees, highlighting “Técnico’s good reputation that everyone knows”.

The Department of Nuclear Sciences and Engineering offers a Master’s Programme in Radiation Protection and Safety, and a Master’s Programme in Science and Technology for the Cultural Heritage, the latter in partnership with the Faculty of Fine Arts, the Faculty of Sciences and the School of Arts and Humanities of Universidade de Lisboa.

The upcoming MasterTalk, led by Patrícia Gonçalves, takes place on April 11 and will focus on the master’s programmes offered by the Department of Mathematics.

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