Andrea Genre

Abstract

I believe my first conscious inspiration came from my early university studies. Botany lessons opened my mind to an unexpectedly diverse andto a young studentalien world, populated with creatures that I had mostly considered as part of the landscape, but which turned out to have surprisingly complex life cycles, interactions and metabolic capabilities. Plant science lessons took place in the premises of the botanical garden, in a detached, calm atmosphere. At the time, the orto botanico in Turin was literally a secret garden, closed to the public and apparently miles away from the nearby traffic of the city and the crowded corridors of the university main buildings. All that undoubtedly charmed me and motivated my application for an experimental thesis in plant science.Another inspiring moment happened while I was studying for my mycology exam. I had taken a few days off, which I spent at my grandparents' house in the Alps, to fully focus on study. It was late spring, and as I walked in the woods, reading about mycorrhizas in my class notes, I walked among several young birch saplings. Abruptly, I grasped one plant and pulled it out of the soft ground, and there they were: short, club-shaped root tips precisely matching the description of ectomycorrhizas in my notes. That ordinary event provided revealing evidence to my study-excited mind, somehow reinforcing my trust in science books as well as my interest in symbioses.