Computer engineer and Unicamp professor Eduardo Tadao Takahashi, one of those responsible for planning and implementing the internet in Brazil, died this Wednesday (6/4). Tadao graduated in Computer Science from the State University of Campinas (1972) and in Social Communication from PUC-Campinas (1973). For his fundamental contribution to the development of the internet, he was elected to the Internet Hall of Fame, from the Internet Society.
Tadao Takahashi's wake will be on Friday, April 8, from 9am to 11am, at the Parque Nossa Senhora da Conceição cemetery (Amarais), located on Rua Sylvia da Silva Braga, s/n, Jardim Santa Mônica, Campinas (SP ).
Digital inclusion
In 1989, the professor founded the Brazilian National Research Network (RNP), linked to the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq). RNP, today the Teaching and Research Network, was responsible for coordinating with other academic networks that formed the basis for the foundation of the Brazilian internet.
In 1999, he created and coordinated the National Program for the Information Society of Brazil (SOCINFO). Linked to the Ministry of Science and Technology, SOCINFO aimed to expand the strategic use of the internet in Brazil.
Concerned about digital inclusion, Tadao emphasized, in interview with Folha de São Paulo, in 2001, the need to provide internet to those who could not pay for connectivity, and to spread it beyond large cities.
The professor also worked in international bodies to formulate public policies linked to information and communication technology. At the United Nations (UN), he was an advisor to the Global Alliance on Information Technology, working on issues such as digital inclusion, and planning coordinator for the UNESCO Future Studies Center.
In 2017, he was elected to the Internet Hall of Fame, an award created to honor pioneers in the development of the internet. Tadao received recognition in the Global Connectors category, awarded to those who have contributed to the growth, connectivity and use of the internet on a global scale or within a specific region with global impact.
Career at Unicamp
At Unicamp, Tadao graduated in 1972. Hired as an assistant professor at the Institute of Mathematics, Statistics and Scientific Computing (IMECC), he was allocated to the Department of Computer Science (DCC). The DCC later became the Institute of Computing (IC).
Professor Tadao taught the Introduction to Computer Programming course at a time when Unicamp had only one computer, the IBM 1130 (32k RAM 5Mb HD). To solve the problem of machine overload, he brought the Fortran Coppefor compiler to Unicamp, which made learning easier for students.
A pioneer in many initiatives, in 1974 he coordinated a programming teaching project for high school students, in partnership with the MEC, with experimental classes in schools in the region. In 1975, he introduced Pascal to new Computer Science students. In 1976, he went to Japan to pursue his master's degree, returning to teaching in 1979.
Read more:
Death notice from the Computing Institute (IC).
Tadao Takahashi dies. Brazil loses one of the fathers of commercial Internet
Death note: Eduardo Tadao Takahashi, networking pioneer in Brazil
Watch the interview with Tadao Takahashi given to the Convergência Digital channel:
