  Monte Carlo simulations applied to the lattice formulation of quantum
chromodynamics (QCD) enable a study of the theory from first principles, in a
nonperturbative way. After over two decades of developments in the methodology
for this study and with present-day computers in the teraflops range,
lattice-QCD simulations are now able to provide quantitative predictions with
errors of a few percent. This means that these simulations will soon become the
main source of theoretical results for comparison with experiments in physics
of the strong interactions. It is therefore an important moment for the
beginning of Brazilian participation in the field.
