Agência Brasil | Roberto Filho/WikimediaJacob Palis (left) and Edu Lobo won prizes in the science and culture categories, respectivelyAgência Brasil | Roberto Filho/Wikimedia
Mathematician Jacob Palis and composer Edu Lobo are the winners of the 15th FCW prize in the science and culture categories respectively. Each will receive a prize of R$300,000 and a commemorative trophy. Awarded annually by the Conrado Wessel Foundation (FCW), the prize has long recognized the contribution of dozens of scientists and artists, including parasitologist Luiz Hildebrando Pereira da Silva, physicist José Goldemberg, author Ariano Suassuna and actress Fernanda Montenegro. Palis, 76, is from the city of Uberaba in the state of Minas Gerais. He was director of the National Institute for Pure and Applied Mathematics (IMPA), the Brazilian Academy of Sciences (ABC) and the World Academy of Science (TWAS) – for the advancement of science in developing countries. He graduated with a degree in engineering and earned a PhD in mathematics from the University of California. He became one of the key researchers in Brazil for dynamic systems, a field of mathematics that studies long-term trajectories of equations that are used to model conditions that change over time, such as climate, chemical reactions and planetary systems. Edu Lobo, 73, is from Rio de Janeiro. He began his career in the 1960s and composed hit songs for pop music festivals like Arrastão (Trawl), sung by Elis Regina in 1965, and Ponteio (Strumming), on which he partnered with Capinam, Lobo himself and singer Marília Medalha to compete at the TV Record Brazilian Popular Music Festival in 1967. The song stole the show and won at the festival. In 1983, he and Chico Buarque wrote the soundtrack for the musical O grande circo místico (The Great Mystical Circus) for the Guaíra Ballet. In 2002, the record entitled Cambaio (Bow-legged), another partnership with Chico Buarque, won the Latino Grammy. The panel of judges that chose Palis and Lobo included representatives from FCW and partner institutions, including FAPESP, the Brazilian Academy of Sciences (ABC), the Brazilian Academy of Letters (ABL) and the Brazilian Society for the Advancement of Science (SBPC). The prize will be given out at a ceremony in São Paulo in the second half of 2017.
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