Quotes by Rita Levi-Montalcini

About Rita Levi-Montalcini:

Rita Levi-Montalcini was an Italian Nobel Laureate honored for her work in neurobiology. She was awarded the 1986 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine jointly with colleague Stanley Cohen for the discovery of nerve growth factor (NGF). From 2001 until her death, she also served in the Italian Senate as a Senator for Life.
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

A child from the age of 2 or 3 absorbs what is in the environment and what generates hatred for anyone perceived to be different.

Rita Levi-Montalcini

Above all, don't fear difficult moments. The best comes from them.

Rita Levi-Montalcini

It is imperfection - not perfection - that is the end result of the program written into that formidably complex engine that is the human brain, and of the influences exerted upon us by the environment and whoever takes care of us during the long yea...

Rita Levi-Montalcini

The process for awarding Nobel prizes is so complex that it cannot be corrupted.

Rita Levi-Montalcini

If I had not been discriminated against or had not suffered persecution, I would never have received the Nobel Prize.

Rita Levi-Montalcini

I should thank Mussolini for having declared me to be of an inferior race. This led me to the joy of working, not any more, unfortunately, in university institutes but in a bedroom.

Rita Levi-Montalcini

The instruments, glassware, and chemical reagents necessary for my project were the same as my 19th-century predecessors had.

Rita Levi-Montalcini

Babies did not attract me, and I was altogether without the maternal sense so highly developed in small and adolescent girls.

Rita Levi-Montalcini

I told Mother of my decision to study medicine. She encouraged me to speak to Father... I began in a roundabout way... He listened, looking at me with that serious and penetrating gaze of his that caused me such trepidation, and asked whether I knew ...

Rita Levi-Montalcini

Progress depends on our brain. The most important part of our brain, that which is neocortical, must be used to help others and not just to make discoveries.

Rita Levi-Montalcini

[ ] Born and raised in a Sephardic Jewish family in which culture and love of learning were categorical imperatives, she abandoned religion and embraced atheism. She devoted herself to Science, getting to the point of renouncing marriage for scientif...

Rita Levi-Montalcini

Tutti dicono che il cervello sia l'organo più complesso del corpo umano, da medico potrei anche acconsentire. Ma come donna vi assicuro che non vi è niente di più complesso del cuore, ancora oggi non si conoscono i suoi meccanismi. Nei ragionament...

Rita Levi-Montalcini

I tell young people: Do not think of yourself, think of others. Think of the future that awaits you, think about what you can do and do not fear anything.

Rita Levi-Montalcini

At 100, I have a mind that is superior - thanks to experience - than when I was 20.

Rita Levi-Montalcini

My experience in childhood and adolescence of the subordinate role played by the female in a society run entirely by men had convinced me that I was not cut out to be a wife.

Rita Levi-Montalcini

The four of us enjoyed a most wonderful family atmosphere filled with love and reciprocal devotion. Both parents were highly cultured and instilled in us their high appreciation of intellectual pursuit. It was, however, a typical Victorian style of l...

Rita Levi-Montalcini

I say to the young, be happy that you were born in Italy because of the beauty of the human capital, both masculine and feminine, of this country... No other country has such human capital.

Rita Levi-Montalcini

At 20, I realized that I could not possibly adjust to a feminine role as conceived by my father and asked him permission to engage in a professional career. In eight months I filled my gaps in Latin, Greek and mathematics, graduated from high school,...

Rita Levi-Montalcini

After centuries of dormancy, young women... can now look toward a future moulded by their own hands.

Rita Levi-Montalcini

My life has been enriched by excellent human relations, work and interests. I have never felt lonely.

Rita Levi-Montalcini

Author Bio

  • NameRita Levi-Montalcini
  • DescriptionItalian neurologist
  • BornApril 22, 1909
  • DiedDecember 30, 2012
  • CountryItaly
  • ProfessionNeurologist; Neuroscientist; Biochemist; Politician; Physician
  • AwardsNobel Prize In Physiology Or Medicine; National Medal Of Science; Commander Of The Order Of Merit Of The Italian Republic; Knight Grand Cross Of The Order Of Merit Of The Italian Republic; Grand Officer Of The Legion Of Honour; Albert Lasker Award For Basic Medical Research; Great Cross Of The National Order Of Scientific Merit