His father was a merchant, owner of a large store, and supported and funded the studies of his children.

[4][5] At 16, Palis moved to Rio de Janeiro to study engineering at the University of Brazil – now UFRJ.

He was Secretary-General of the Third World Academy of Sciences from 2004 to 2006, and elected its president in 2006[8] and remained on position till December 2012.

[10] Palis has advised more than forty PhD students so far from more than ten countries, including Artur Oscar Lopes, Ricardo Mañé, Welington de Melo, Carlos Gustavo Moreira, Enrique Pujals and Marcelo Viana.

[13] In 2010 he was awarded the Balzan Prize for his fundamental contributions in the mathematical theory of dynamical systems that has been the basis for many applications in various scientific disciplines, such as in the study of oscillations.