enrico fermi

He took the first atomic physics profressorship in Italy when he was only twenty-four years old. Widely regarded as the only 20th-century physicist who excelled both theoretically and experimentally, he contributed greatly to quantum theory and helped develop the first nuclear reactor, winning the Nobel Prize in 1938 for his work on induced radioactivity. His massive intellect notwithstanding, his colleagues marvelled at his extreme modesty and his knack for solving the toughest of problems with the simplest of solutions. Today's great Italian is Enrico Fermi.