Fernando M Lanças
The Power List 2020 – South America
Professor of Chemistry, Institute of Chemistry at São Carlos, University of São Paulo, Brazil
Dinner party guest: I would like to have dinner with my parents. In this (more mature) stage of my life, I would like to thank them for showing me the correct path and always investing in my future. Without their direction and tremendous efforts, I am not sure that I would have the same ideas I have now about people, life, and the future on Earth.
Time travel destination: I would love to travel to ancient Egypt to learn more about their practice of medicine. I am sure that we lost incredible amounts of information about this over time, and recovering it could be an essential resource for our future.
Advice to younger self: Be persistent. Science, either in the academic or industrial world, is not as easy or glamorous as it first looks. In particular for those young people interested in pursuing an academic career in science: many nights, weekends, and holidays will be dedicated to proofreading papers, preparing proposals, reviewing papers for scientific journals, traveling to attend meetings… If you enjoy it, you are in the right place. If not, for the sake of your own happiness, you should make a change as soon as possible. In the end, this is the most critical lesson in life.
