Enrico Fermi stands as one of the greatest physicists in history. How did he manage to do this? This talk will explore the facts of his life, both personal and professional, and attempt to suggest the roles that nature, nurture, and chance played in the development of his extraordinary career. He was clearly born with extraordinary gifts, but these gifts would have been lost if he had not been mentored early in life by a special friend, and his career might have taken a very different trajectory had chance not intervened in numerous ways. This talk will be based on the research conducted by Dr. Schwartz in preparation of his biography of Enrico Fermi, recently published in Italian by Solferino Editore: "Enrico Fermi. L'ultimo uomo che sapeva tutto."
The event, which is organized by ILAS (Interdisciplinary Laboratory for Natural Sciences and Humanities) of SISSA, will take place at SISSA's room 128-129, starting from 3.00 pm. The seminar will be held in English. Everybody is welcome.