Free Nonsense

The beginning of the end

By Miguel Ángel López*

When I was invited to write a short article at first I thought they were “pulling my leg”. Then I realised that the INESC Porto bulletin has a section called “Free Nonsense” where we can write whatever we want. I don’t really understand what they mean by “nonsense”. Maybe it’s called that because it’s not the most interesting part. Whatever it is, that fact is that it is free means that I can write whatever I want as long as I fit it in the template.

As I am quite new to INESC TEC I think the best thing would be to tell you a bit about me first and my time in Porto. So that’s what I’ll do.

For those who don’t know me, my name is Miguel Ángel López and I was born in Malaga (Spain). I studied industrial engineering there and three years later I began my PhD thanks to a grant from the Council in Andalucía. My research areas focus on integrating electric vehicles into Micro networks and distribution networks and using optimisation algorithms to model technical operations and the market.

My city belongs to the Andalucía District and is known for the number of tourists who visit its beaches in summer and for its fried anchovies and gaspacho (cold soup). It also has lots to offer in terms of wine, Parma hams and provincial cheese. Malaga has a historic city centre with tall buildings that touch the skyline. The most important monuments are the Cathedral, known as "La Manquita" because it has a tower missing and the Gibralfaro castle. The people there are mostly open, outgoing and easygoing. I would encourage everyone to visit my city.

But I’m not just going to talk about my city. Porto is also city that is rich in history and famous for its excellent wines and cod. It is the land of the fishermen and was my first time aboard. Aliados, the Clérigos Tower, the City Park, and many other places are great and full of friendly people. What else can I say that you don’t know already? Porto is a city that I will certainly visit again one day.

I am sad to see my internship draw to a close as I will be leaving good friends behind. Thank you to everyone for your time, particularly Paula Castro who even at the beginning when she didn’t know me was willing to help out whenever necessary. João Peças Lopes, Pedro Barbeiro and Filipe Joel Soares who are very busy people were there to answer my questions and have input in my work. I would like to thank my colleagues Jakov, Julija, Matthias and Hrvoje for all of the lunchtimes we spent together and for their help with personal issues. Finally, I would like to thank everyone who has helped me in one way or another and Jorge M. Alves for correcting this article.

 I am now off home to see my family and return to my life there. However, I hope this isn’t a goodbye, see you soon. Thank you.

*Collaborator at the Power Systems Unit (USE)