Comentary: João Arriscado Nunes and Irina Castro

Abstract
If the nineteenth century witnessed a growing social assertion of the scientist, with its institutionalization in societies, in the twentieth century we witnessed the afrimation  of a previous trend of organization of science in order to construct scientific policies at national and international level - under the impulse of amplitude recognized historical processes, such as the construction of the modern State or the Industrial Revolution itself, and defining events, like the world wars or economic cycles (Great Depression and economic growth). Meanwhile, Portugal, despite deadlocks, resistors and peculiarities, will not fail to follow the cadence of the history from the perspective  of the relationship between science and policy .
Several were the initiatives to organise  science, supported by an interesting groundwork from the point of view of strategic thinking and debate about the role of scientific culture, to be understood in the light of changing situations in the history of the Portuguese political regimes during the twentieth century and, above all, to be understood in the light of the dual process of institutionalization and professionalization of science and scientists, comprising inevitable alliances with power, on one hand , and on the other, also bearing in mind the legitimating narrative of political power and the State itself in Portugal .

Bio note
Doctor and  researcher at the IHC, Faculty of Social and Human Sciences of the NOVA University of Lisbon (IHC FCSH-UNL), he has  been studying the history of the organization of science in Portugal, several scientific institutions, working on the issue of construction and definition of science policy in Portugal. Graduated in History, after a Masters in Modern History, developed a PhD thesis entitled A Junta Nacional de Investigação Científica e Tecnológica (1967-1974) Organização da Ciência e política científica em Portuga [The National Board of Scientific and Technological Research (1967-1974). Organization of Science and Science Policy in Portugal]. Currently develops a post-doctoral project entitled A Junta Nacional de Investigação Científica e Tecnológica (1974-1997). Política Científica em Democracia [The National Board of Scientific and Technological Research (1974-1997). Science Policy in Democracy].