Where are you now? | Nov.13 / Jan.14

Marcos Domingues, University of São Paulo, Post-Doc Researcher

• Year when you began working at INESC TEC and when you left: 2010-2012
• Unit(s) at INESC TEC where you worked: UTM

After eight years living in Portugal, I decided to go back home to Brazil. These were eight years of intense learning and conquests, two of which at INESC Porto. There, I made friendships for life. In Brazil, I am working as a post-doc researcher at the University of São Paulo (USP), one of the best in Latin America, where I conduct research on Data Mining, Machine Learning and Recommender Systems. I still maintain collaborations with some INESC TEC researchers.

While at INESC TEC, I was able to become familiarised with research applied to industry. These experiences changed the way I conduct my research. Today, I have a broader vision of what research is and this is very appreciated in my current workplace, as well as the thoroughness and dedication that I learned at INESC TEC.

I left INESC TEC less than a year ago and so I think that not much has changed during this period. INESC Porto is still a solid institution, with a well-defined strategy and great human potential. An interesting fact is the institution’s growing internationalisation, not only through international projects, but also through the creation of INESC R&D Brazil.

Saulo Queiroz, UTFPR, Lecturer

• Year when you began working at INESC TEC and when you left: : 2009 - 2010
• Unit(s) at INESC TEC where you worked: UTM

After I left INESC TEC, I had the opportunity to participate in projects at the University of Coimbra and at the Lusófona de Lisboa University. In particular, I participated in the Google Summer of Code 2010 with the project “Implementation Of A Bounded Incremental Shortest Path Algorithm For Olsrd”. After that period in Portugal, I participated in a call to integrate the teaching staff at the Technological Federal University of Paraná (UTFPR). The UTFPR and INESC TEC have a lot in common, especially in the field of manufacturing systems, power systems, telecommunications, informations, robotics, embedded computing and similar areas.

I believe that INESC TEC has took an important step towards internationalisation, particularly in Latin America, by establishing strategic partnerships in Brazil in several areas of expertise. I believe that this represents one of the most outstanding changes because when I was there INESC R&D Brazil was simply a project. Congratulations to INESC TEC for the initiative.

Miguel Rocha. M. G. Rocha – Engenharia e Construções, Sociedade Unipessoal, Lda., Managing Partner

• Year when you began working at INESC TEC and when you left: 2000 – 2001
• Unit(s) at INESC TEC where you worked: UESP

I left because I wanted total change. At the time, I was specialised in informatics and I started working in construction. It was a very risky and radical decision. In 2001, I started a family company and I took a responsibility that I wasn’t expecting. Meanwhile, I graduated in Civil Engineering.

It’s almost impossible to relate such a conservative area such as construction to my journey at INESC TEC, a place where innovation and technological development are constant. I would say that the best was the professional experience and the work environment, which I miss.

The experience that you get from a real work context is always very important. When I started I was still very young, and I think that working in a real project in a business context taught me a lot.