Simona Palermo (Italy)
| Hi, I'm Simona and work as a postdoc at Parco Tecnologico Padano (PTP) in Lodi (Italy), a research centre for agro-food biotechnologies. |  |
Ever since I was a child, I have loved writing. So now you're probably wondering why I became a scientist! Actually I have always been interested in nature and its mechanisms, and in high school I was also very attracted to maths and physics. Since I couldn't imagine writing as a 'real job', I chose Agricultural Sciences as my university major because it included a number of different scientific and technical subjects, ranging from biology to economics. I had a lot of fun doing the research leading to my thesis in the Entomology Department, and I found great satisfaction in getting interesting results. Thus the decision to continue to study for a PhD came naturally. The rest of my scientific career was absolutely similar to those of many other young researchers, with some periods spent abroad (in the USA and Switzerland), and a lot of hard work resulting in a number of publications in scientific journals.
The less ordinary aspect of my story as a scientist deals with my passion for writing. After my PhD, I heard about a master degree in Scientific and Institutional Journalism and Communication and I thought that it could be a great opportunity of joining my scientific knowledge with my writing skills. So I enrolled on the course and got the degree. Since then, I have started to write for several popular science journals and websites.
At present I'm a postdoctoral researcher at the Parco Tecnologico Padano (PTP) in Lodi (Italy), a research centre for agro-food biotechnologies. Within the Animal Genomics I group, my current research focuses on immune protective response developed by swine against pathogens (e.g. Salmonella). At PTP I am also involved in a few dissemination programmes of European research projects as well as two Gender Action Plans (FP6 IP SABRE, FP6 NoE EADGENE), aimed at promoting the professional role of women within the projects. As a woman, a scientist and as a science communicator, I take this task seriously and I've become so keen on this issue that about one year ago I established, together with my colleague Elisabetta Giuffra, a non-profit association named FAiR (Fairness and Accountability in Research). FAiR's mission is to promote fairness and accountability in scientific research, with specific regard to enhancement of gender equity at all levels and apart from origin, class, race, faith and political creed.
In the light of this, I am thrilled by the idea of visiting the schools to tell young students (and in particular young girls) about my experiences in science, because I firmly believe that one of the main missions of a scientist is to bring science and technology to the people.
School:
Vimercate (Milan), Italy