Sérgio_Mascarenhas_de_Oliveira
Sérgio Mascarenhas de Oliveira
Brazilian physicist (1928–2021)
Sérgio Mascarenhas de Oliveira (May 2, 1928 — May 31, 2021[1]) was a Brazilian experimental physicist, educator and scientific leader. He was awarded several prizes including the Brazilian Order of Scientific Merit in the categories of Commander[2] and Great Cross,[3] the Conrado Wessel Prize for General Science,[4] the Joaquim da Costa Ribeiro Prize[5] and the Guggenheim Fellowship.[6]
His main contributions to science were new observations of the thermo-dielectric effect;[7] the discovery of bioelectrets, i.e. electrets as a property of biological materials such as bone and biopolymers, enabling the development of a new detector used in radiological dosimetry to date human bones in archeological sites;[8] and the development of a non-invasive procedure to measure intracranial pressure.[9][10]
Mascarenhas contributed to the creation of important Brazilian research institutions, such as the farming instrumentation center of the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation and the Federal University of São Carlos.[11]