Gabriele Falloppio – anatomist and physician
Professor made key discoveries about human reproduction
Gabriele Falloppio, one of the most important physicians and anatomists of the 16th century, died on this day in 1562 in Padua. Often known by his Latin name Fallopius, he lived only 39 years yet made his mark with a series of discoveries that expanded medical knowledge significantly. He worked mainly on the anatomy of the head and the reproductive organs in both sexes and is best known for identifying the tubes that connect the ovaries to the uterus, which are known even today as Fallopian tubes. He also discovered several major nerves of the head and face, and identified many of the components of the hearing and balance systems. Falloppio described all of the findings of his research in a book published a year before he died, entitled Observationes anatomicae. Educated initially in the classics, the death of his father plunged his family – noble but not wealthy – into financial difficulties, prompting him to pursue the security of a career in the church, becoming a priest in 1542. Falloppio retained an ambition to study medicine, however, and when the family’s finances had improved sufficiently he enrolled at the University of Ferrara. Read more…
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Vajont Dam Disaster
Catastrophic flood may have killed 2,500
Prone to earthquakes because of its unfortunate geology, Italy has suffered many natural disasters over the centuries, yet the horrific catastrophe that took place on this day in 1963 in an Alpine valley about 100km north of Venice, killing perhaps as many as 2,500 people, was to a significant extent man-made. The Vajont Dam Disaster happened when a section of a mountain straddling the border of the Veneto and Fruili-Venezia Giulia regions in the Fruilian Dolomites collapsed in a massive landslide, dumping 260 million cubic metres of forest, earth and rock into a deep, narrow reservoir created to generate hydroelectric power for Italy's industrial northern cities. The chunk of Monte Toc that came away after days of heavy rain was the size of a small town yet within moments it was moving towards the water at 100km per hour (62mph) and hit the surface of the reservoir in less than a minute. The effect was almost unimaginable. Within seconds, 50 million cubic metres of water was displaced, creating a tsunami that rose to 250m high. The dam held, but the colossal volume of water had nowhere to go but over the top and into the Piave valley below. Read more…
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Salimbene di Adam – historian
Friar's records provided important information on history of Italy
Salimbene di Adam, a Franciscan friar, whose yearly chronicles became a valued source for historians, was born on this day in 1221 in Parma in Emilia-Romagna. Sometimes also referred to as Salimbene di Parma, he was the son of Guido di Adam, a wealthy Parma citizen. Salimbene entered the Franciscan Order in 1238 and served his novitiate in the Monastery of Fano on the Adriatic coast. As Fra Salimbene, he led a wandering existence and never held any office in his order. He transferred from one monastery to another, meeting notable people and becoming an eyewitness to historic events. In the 1240s he travelled to Lucca, Pisa and Cremona, and also visited France. On his return to Italy in 1248 he went to Ferrara where he stayed for several years. But he then went on his travels again, staying in Franciscan convents in northern Italy. Fra Salimbene began to write his Chronicles (Cronica) in 1282 and continued to work on them until his death. Organised as yearly records, the Chronicles cover the years 1168 to 1288 starting with the founding of the city of Alessandria to the south of Milan by the Lombard league. Read more…
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