Prof. Maria Marinaro
Professor Maria Marinaro was born in Opedaletto d’Alpinolo (Avellino – Italy) on September 29, 1933. She obtained her degree of “Dottore in Fisica” at the University of Naples in 1956 and here her Ph.D in Theoretical and Nuclear Physics in 1959. In 1972 she obtained the Professional Certificate for the chair of Theoretical Physics at Cagliari University. In 1976 she won the chair of Theoretical Physics. She was Assistant Professor at the University of Naples from 1959 to 1976, Full Professor of Statistical Mechanics at Salerno University from 1976 to 1992. In 1993 her designation to Full Professor of Theoretical Physics, the position she held up to 2008.
Just after concluding her studies, Maria Marinaro began her research activity, at the Institute of Theoretical Physics at the University of Naples, in prof. Eduardo R. Caianiello’s research group on Field Theory. Her first research topic was the Renormalization of Field Theory, of great interest at the time. After some years, she focuses her interest on the study of many-body system properties and she led a research group for the application of Field Theory techniques to these systems. Her research group was among the first in Italy to introduce the formalism of Green’s functions to non-relativistic systems. In particular, was faced the problem of the spontaneous symmetry breakdown in relation to the phenomenon of condensation in Bose systems (superfluidity)
After a one-year-stay in England at the Queen Mary College in London where she collaborated with professors G. Sewell and J. Valatin and a sojourn, as Visiting Professor, with prof. J. Klauder’s research group at the Bell Laboratories, New Jersey, U.S.A., in 1974 Maria Marinaro shifted her research activity to the Institute of Physics at Salerno University, where she led several research groups in various fields, among which: the dynamics of quantum systems with temperature different from zero; electrodynamics in superconducting systems; properties of highly correlated electron systems.
Since 1986 a part of Maria Marinaro’s research activity was devoted to the study of neuronal systems. The dynamical properties and the learning mechanisms of neuron systems were analyzed and neural nets were applied for signal and image recognition in various contexts.
The result of this intense research activity was the publication of 177 papers (in Maria Marinaro Collected Papers, edited by Roberta Citro, Silvia Scarpetta and Ferdinando Mancini, Gutenberg Edizioni). This research activity developed in a vast context of international relations and exchanges supported by Maria Marinaro’s organization and/or participation at Conferences, Schools, Workshops held in prestigious scientific institutions both Italian and international.
Apart from her deep commitment to research and didactics, Maria Marinaro fulfilled many academic roles during her profitable career. From 1966 to 1973 she was the Scientific Responsible of the theoretical section in Naples of the G.N.S.M. (National Group of Matter Structure) of the C.N.R. (National Research Council); from 1975 to 1978 she was the Scientific Responsible of the theoretical section in Salerno of the G.N.S.M. of the C.N.R.; from 1972 to 1976 and from 1980 to 1983 she was the Director of the Institute of Physics of the Faculty of Science at Salerno University; from 1976 to 1978 and from 1983 to 1995 she was the Dean of the Faculty of Science at Salerno University; from 1983 to 1990 she was the Director of the Salerno Unit of I.N.F.M. (National Institute of Physics of the Matter); in 1994 she was the President of the Board of Governors of the Scientific and Technological Park in Salerno; from 1993 to 2009 she was the President of the Executive Board at the International Institute for Advanced Scientific Studies (I.I.A.S.S.) in Vietri sul Mare; from 1998 to 2005 she was the Chairman of the Degree in Physics Board at the Faculty of Science of Salerno University.
Maria Marinaro died in Naples on May 12, 2009
