Programme Boards

Coordinator

Roberto Battiston – University of Trento

Roberto Battiston is an Italian physicist, and full professor of Experimental Physics at the Department of Physics, University of Trento. He was president of the Italian Space Agency (ASI) from 2014 to 2018. He specialises in the field of fundamental and elementary particle physics and is a leading expert on cosmic rays.

He coordinated together with Nobel laureate Samuel C. C. Ting the construction of the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer, operating on the International Space Station since 2011 and dedicated to the search for antimatter and dark matter.  

He conducts research in geophysical remote sensing from space with the CSES satellite.

He has published more than 540 scientific articles in leading international journals. A columnist for La Stampa, Repubblica and L'Adige, he carries out an intense activity as an essayist and populariser. He has written The Alphabet of Nature (2022), The Mathematics of the Virus (2020), The First Dawn of the Cosmos (2019), Making Space (2019), Dialogue between an Artist and a Scientist (2012).

Vice-coordinator

Myrka Zago – University of Rome Tor Vergata 

Myrka Zago is a bioengineer and a full professor of Physiology at the Department of Civil Engineering and Computer Science Engineering of the University of Rome Tor Vergata. She is the Director of the Center for Space Biomedicine at the same University. She studies and teaches space physiology.

She discovered along with her colleagues the brain mechanisms involved in the representation of the effects of gravity on the body. She performed experiments on more than 20 astronauts flying on board the Space Shuttle or the International Space Station.

Her research has been published in the most important international journals, including Science, Nature Neuroscience and npj Microgravity (Nature portfolio).

She applies the results of her research to the development of new neurorehabilitation protocols for patients at the IRCCS Santa Lucia Foundation in Rome.

PhD programme committee

The PhD Program Committee organizes the courses and activities of the PhD program, defines the curricula, and approves new member admissions. It oversees the preparation of the Study Manifesto, which includes the educational activities and schedule. The committee monitors the research progress of each doctoral student to ensure the acquisition of scientific research methodology. It approves the annual educational programs of the PhD students, including timing and methods for the presentation and evaluation of any intermediate work.

The committee assigns each doctoral student a supervisor and one or more co-supervisors and authorizes students to undertake periods of training abroad or internships lasting more than six months at public or private institutions. It approves thesis co-supervision programs and authorizes any supplementary, integrated, or extracurricular teaching and research activities. It evaluates the activities of doctoral students annually and decides on admission to the next academic year or on thesis referee approval for degree attainment. The committee approves the Coordinator's annual report and fosters connections with other universities and public and private entities to enhance research activities. It proposes to the Rector the members of the committees for PhD admission and final examination.

The committee

Student representative