Leonardo Senatore
Stanford University
2016 New Horizons in Physics Prize
For outstanding contributions to theoretical cosmology.
Comments
Being honored with this prize makes me stop and look back at my journey in physics so far. It started as a kid, as my parents made me travel and instilled in me the curiosity for exploring, and a family friend guided me through my first science museum. At the Scuola Normale and at the Scuola S. Anna, I became enchanted by physics students writing beautiful mathematical formulae on the blackboard to explain electromagnetic phenomena, and I decided to try to be one of them. Over the years, moving from Europe to America, and being part of some of the most prestigious universities, I have been privileged to meet a group of people who have generously shared their time, knowledge, and even their desks, with me: my advisors Alan Guth, Nima Arkani-Hamed and Toni Riotto, my colleagues and friends Paolo Creminelli, Alberto Nicolis, Eva Silverstein and J.J. Carrasco. I am particularly indebted to Matias Zaldarriaga, who has been a mentor, a close collaborator and a friend. I share this happiness with my parents, who have always supported me; with my wife, Laura, who embarked on this journey with me; and finally with Lorenzo, our son, and greatest gift.
