Image: Wikimedia Commons.
On International Women's Day I would like to take this opportunity to celebrate, on my blog, a wonderful Italian woman that some of you may not have heard about.
She is Rita Levi Montalcini and she is nearly 101 years old. Rita Levi Montalcini is a Cavaliere di Gran Croce, an Italian Life Senator and a Nobel laureate for her work with Stanley Cohen on nerve growth factor. She is the oldest living Nobel laureate.
Born in Turin to a Sephardic Jewish family, Rita Levi Montalcini decided early on that she wanted to go to medical school. She overcame her father's opposition, which was based on a traditional view of a woman's role, and graduated from the Turin Medical School in 1936 - just in time to be barred from her professional work by the Mussolini government.
Undaunted, she set up a laboratory in her home and in 1943 she fled, with her family, to Florence, where she set up a second laboratory. She returned to Turin in 1945 and was invited to work at the Washington University in St Louis, where she was made a full Professor in 1958. She returned to work in Rome in 1961. She continues to be academically active and to publish her works.
She is Rita Levi Montalcini and she is nearly 101 years old. Rita Levi Montalcini is a Cavaliere di Gran Croce, an Italian Life Senator and a Nobel laureate for her work with Stanley Cohen on nerve growth factor. She is the oldest living Nobel laureate.
Born in Turin to a Sephardic Jewish family, Rita Levi Montalcini decided early on that she wanted to go to medical school. She overcame her father's opposition, which was based on a traditional view of a woman's role, and graduated from the Turin Medical School in 1936 - just in time to be barred from her professional work by the Mussolini government.
Undaunted, she set up a laboratory in her home and in 1943 she fled, with her family, to Florence, where she set up a second laboratory. She returned to Turin in 1945 and was invited to work at the Washington University in St Louis, where she was made a full Professor in 1958. She returned to work in Rome in 1961. She continues to be academically active and to publish her works.
In 2009 she told a Times interviewer that she had never married because she had not wanted to be "dominated" in the way that her mother was and that she puts her longevity down to getting up at 5 am, working hard to keep her brain active and eating only one meal a day, at lunchtime.
Rita Levi Montalcini, I salute your intelligence, your integrity and your beauty.
Rita Levi Montalcini fell and broke her femur two weeks ago. I am sure you will join me in wishing her a speedy recovery.
Rita Levi Montalcini fell and broke her femur two weeks ago. I am sure you will join me in wishing her a speedy recovery.
10 comments:
Thanks for highlighting this wonderful person. Now, I'll return to my blog and put a link to yours. Ciao.
Thank you for sharing this. What an inspiration! I hope she recovers from her fall.
All the best (with congratulations) to Ms.Montalcini. Good wishes to all of us, women, everyday....Didn't even know we had a special day, Welshcakes!
Fantastic story. I don't expect to be so spritely at that age.
Thanks, lakeviewer. Thanks, Laura. Yes, a true inspiration. The hospital bulletins are encouraging. Hi, Claudia. It's celebrated in many countries but not in the US. Maybe not in Canada too? Hope you had a nice day anyway. Oh, I'm sure you will be, Colin.
Brilliant! Thank you for telling us about this amazing woman - there are so many of them out in the world.
What an amazing lady :-)
Fascinating!
By the way, I'd prefer there ought to be (wo)man's respectively human's day 365 days per year, and 366 in leap years. :)
yes, she's truly great. and you too (although slighlty younger) are on top of my blog right now. ciao!
You are right, Lady M. There are many wonderful women out there. Thanks, Cherie. Thanks, Sean. I agree. Thank you, Miss Welby. I am honoured.
Post a Comment