Fabiola Gianotti (Roma, 1960) é unha doutora en Física de partículas experimentais pola Universidade de Milán (1989). En 2016 foi nomeada Directora XEral da Organización Europea para a Investigación Nuclear (CERN), sendo a primeira muller en ocupar este cargo.

É membro do Consello Científico do Secretario Xeral da Organización das Nacións Unidas, investigadora permanente no departamento de física do CERN dende 1996. Participou en distintos proxectos, tendo sido portavoz da colaboración internacional experimento ATLAS no Gran Colisionador de Hadróns entre 2013 e 2016. Ademáis, anunciou oficialmente xunto a John Incandela o descubrimento do bosón de Higgs nun seminario do CERN (2012).

É Profesora honoraria da Universidade de Edimburgo (2013) e membro da Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei, membro asociada estranxeira da Academia Nacional de Ciencias de Estados Unidos e doutora Honoris Causa pola Universidade de Upsala, a École Polytechnique Fèdérale de Lausana (EPFL), a universidade McGill ( Montreal), a universidade de Oslo e a universidade de Edimburgo. Ademais foi gañadora do premio Enrico Fermio da Sociedade de Física de Italia (2013) e foi nomeada Cavaliere di Gran Croce dell'ordine al merito della Repubblica (2014).

MORE INFORMATION IN ENGLISH

Born in 1960, Gianotti is the daughter of a geologist from Piedmont and a Sicilian mother who was passionate about music and art. It was the interest in fundamental questions that prompted her to choose the faculty of physics after her classical studies and the Milan Conservatory, where she concluded her piano studies. She also took up classical dance with the aim, she once decided, of becoming a ballerina. She developed a passion for cooking that remains with her today, while at school she devoured Greek, Latin and philosophy. Music plays a fundamental influence and taught her a rigorous approach to life. her sense of humour facilitates her communication.

Gianotti initially decided to study philosophy at university because it is asking the big questions, but in the end changed to physics because it was more likely to produce answers. This combination of artistic and scientific influences has left her with three passions in life: music, cooking and physics.

Raised a catholic, Gianotti refuses to admit to any religious beliefs. Her only comment on the relationship between science and religion is to insist that physics can neither prove nor disprove the existence of God.

The great particle physics laboratory may spew out all sorts of practical technological advances-the World Wide Web is only one of them- but t is the generation of pure science that it is real accomplishment. "Knowledge is like art", Fabiola Gianotti says." tHey are the highest expressions of the human mind and CERN is the perfect place to pursue them".

Wikipedia. Royal Society. CC BY-SA

QUESTIONS ABOUT FABIOLA

1. What did she study at the Milan Conservatory?

2. Why did she change careers to physics?

3. Which else did she want to become?

4. What taught her a rigorous approach to life?

5. What are her three passions in life?

6. What does she think about knowledge?