Using the retina as a brain mirror for early diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease: An unprecedented study by a multidisciplinary team from the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Coimbra (FMUC) has shown that the retina may function as a relevant non-invasive biomarker for early diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease. Characterized by the gradual and irreversible loss of certain brain functions such as memory, attention and language, Alzheimer's disease accounts for about 60 to 70% of dementia cases, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). The diagnosis, which depends on several examinations, is not easy to make and is often carried out at a moderate or advanced stage of the disease. Thus, there is an urgent need to identify subclinical biomarkers that can help reliably and early diagnose disease onset. 

A study in the field of high-reliability power supply systems by Tiago José Leitão de Oliveira, a student at the Faculty of Science and Technology of the University of Coimbra (FCTUC), has just been awarded the “ABB Award” of academic year 2018/2019, by the multinational Asea Brown Boveri (ABB).

3 Minute-Thesis Competition (3MT) is an academic competition that challenges PhD students to present their thesis in just 3 min (video). “An 80,000-word thesis takes 9 hours to deliver. Here, your limit is 3 minutes… ” Take this challenge, share your thesis with us! To participate please fill in the following form: https://surveys.uc.pt/index.php/894937  (Applications are open until the 19th January).

“Talkdesk” has created the first edition of the“ TDX Merit Awards”, with the support of the University of Coimbra. According to Talkdesk the initiative aims at “recognising excellent academic pathways through the awarding of scholarships for masters and doctoral students”.Thus, one of the annual “TDX Merit Awards”, is addressed exclusively to bachelor graduate students who continue their 2nd cycle studies in one of the following Master degrees offered by the Department of Informatics Engineering of the University of Coimbra: Master in Informatics Engineering, Master in Software Engineering, Master in Informatics Security and Master in Design and Multimedia.The other award – “Talkdesk Doctoral Awards” – is for doctoral students (Doctoral Programme in Information Science and Technology), recognised for their academic performance and research projects. Applications for both awards have been extended until the 31st of January at https://talkdesk.com/tdx/merit-awards