and the city of Duque de Caxias, in partnership with the National Institute of Metrics, Normalization and Industrial Quality (Inmetro), saw the implementation of "Pólo Avançado de Xerém" (Advanced Center of Xerém), aimed at boosting research in the fields of biotechnology and nanotechnology. UFRJ is one of the main actors in the formation of the Brazilian intellectual elite, contributing significantly to build not only the history of Rio de Janeiro but also of Brazil. Some of its former students include renowned economists Carlos Lessa and Mario Henrique Simonsen; Minister Marco Aurélio Mello; the architect Oscar Niemeyer; the philosopher and politician Roberto Mangabeira Unger; the educator Anísio Teixeira; the engineer Benjamin Constant; writers Clarice Lispector, Jorge Amado and Vinicius de Moraes; politicians Francisco Pereira Passos, Osvaldo Aranha and Pedro Calmon, besides the great physicians Carlos Chagas, Oswaldo Cruz and Vital Brazil. History Creation The Federal University of Rio de Janeiro is a direct descendant of Brazil's first higher education courses. Created on September 7, 1920 (Brazilian Independence Day) by president Epitácio Pessoa through the Law Decree 14343, the institution was initially named "University of Rio de Janeiro". Its history, however, is much vaster and parallel to that of the country's cultural, economic and social development (many of its courses trace back to the very foundations of Brazilian higher education system). In its inception, the university was composed by the "Escola Politécnica" (Polytechnic School, founded on December 17, 1792 as Royal Academy of Artillery, Fortification and Design, during the reign of Portuguese Queen Maria I), the "Faculdade Nacional de Medicina" (National College of Medicine, founded on April 2, 1808, by Dom João VI under the name of Academy of Medicine and Surgery) and by the "Faculdade Nacional de Direito" (National College of Law, which came to exist after the fusion between the College of Legal and Social Sciences and the Free College of Law - both recognized by the Law Decree 693 of October 1, 1891). To these initial units many others were progressively added, such as the "Escola Nacional de Belas Artes" (National School of Fine Arts) and the "Faculdade Nacional de Filosofia" (National College of Philosophy). Thanks to such achievements, the UFRJ toke crucial role in the implantation of Brazilian higher education, which was in fact an aspiration from Brazilian intellectual elite since the country's colonial era. Due to the longstanding tradition of its pioneering courses, the university functioned as