The Neutron TrailEmily Barca, "Olivia Fermi discusses her family's nuclear legacy on the "Neutron Trail"", Vancouver Observer, 12 November 2010 is a cultural project about the development and use of nuclear technology. Its subjects include nuclear power, nuclear disarmament, energy demand, sustainability, and public attitudes toward nuclear energy.Olivia Fermi, "Nuclear Energy still looking good for climate change reduction post–Fukushima", Vancouver Observer, 20 March 2012 The project has included visits to people and places connected with nuclear development, public lectures, workshops, and transmedia projects.Dan Damon, "BBC World Radio Interview with Olivia Fermi", 21 March 2011
Travels Enrico Fermi built the first nuclear reactor (Chicago Pile-1) in an abandoned squash court at the University of Chicago. He ran the historic experiment for 28 minutes. In April 2009 artist Matthew Day Jackson invited Olivia to participate in a ceremonial game of squash. Jackson and the younger Fermi's game tied “the physics of a squash ball to the physics of the first nuclear reactor”;Roger Snodgrass, “Fermi Descendant Visits for Filming”, “The Los Alamos Monitor Online”, 4 April 2009 was filmed in Los Alamos, New Mexico and displayed in a 28–minute video loop at the M.I.T. List Visual Arts Center and the Contemporary Arts Museum Houston.Douglas Britt, “Artist Explores Human Consciousness”, ‘’Houston Chronicle’’, 12 January 2010
Jackson also filmed Olivia's visit to Trinity in Southern New Mexico, location of the first atomic bomb test on July 16, 1945.Roger Snodgrass,“Fermi Descendant Visits for Filming”, ‘’The Los Alamos Monitor Online’’, 4 April 2009
On September 29, 2011, for the 110th anniversary of Enrico Fermi's birth, she visited her grandfather's former lab at Via Panisperna in Rome, where Enrico conducted his Nobel Prize–winning research.Anaïs Schaeffer,“A F(e)rmidable Family” ‘’The Bulletin’’, 24 October 2011 It is now the site of Centro Fermi: Enrico Fermi Historical Museum of Physics.
In October 2011 Olivia visited CERN in Geneva, Switzerland. She toured various key experimental areas including the CERN Control Centre, ATLAS, the SM18 magnet test facility, and ISOLDE; met with Nobel Prize in Physics-winning physicist and former director of CERN Carlo Rubbia; and joined in a discussion with CERN's ConCERNed for Humanity Club founders and guests.Anaïs Schaeffer,“A F(e)rmidable Family” ‘’The Bulletin’’, 24 October 2011
Her visit to Richland, WA in 2012 drew the interest of scientists, students and environmental activists who came to her talk and workshops. She travelled to Hiroshima and Nagasaki in November 2014 extending her dialogue project to speaking with atomic bomb survivors including Toshiko Tanaka and artist who promotes peace.
Public events Fermi has given Neutron Trail talks in the US, Canada and Europe. On Jan 19, 2012, she gave a talk sponsored by the United Nations Association in Canada titled “Positioning Change and Global Nuclear Disarmament.” She presented personal stories of activists, images and timelines of individuals championing the nuclear disarmament movement.“On the Neutron Trail: Positioning Change and Global Nuclear Disarmament”, ‘’United Nations Association –Vancouver’’, 23 January 2012
A TEDx Transmedia Talk in Rome on September 30, 2011, entitled “Becoming the Inspiration We Seek – The Alchemy of Opposites.”“TEDxTransmedia 2011 – Olivia Fermi – Becoming the inspiration we seek”, ‘’TEDx YouTube Channel’’, 18 October 2011 is about the power of embracing contradictions, especially those inherent in our nuclear legacy, such as the thrill of discovery commingled with the pride and shame of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings. It includes a photograph of her grandfather Enrico Fermi, with physicist Edward Teller, holding an image of the Hiroshima bomb cloud.
On March 21, 2011, BBC World Radio contacted Fermi to give an interview regarding the crisis — then taking place — at the Fukushima 1 Nuclear Power Plant in Japan. During the five-minute interview, she spoke about her position on nuclear energy and the Neutron Trail.Dan Damon, “BBC World Radio Interview”, 21 March 2011 On April 15, 2011, Olivia was the keynote speaker for the Society of Italian Researchers and Professionals of Western Canada's inaugural meeting. This Neutron Trail talk was about her grandparents’ lives with personal anecdotes and archival images. During the question and answer period, she offered her opinions on the Fukushima Daiichi disaster: “Today we need nuclear power, and the challenge is to make it safe.”Nigel S. Lockyer, “Quantum Diaries”, 15 April 2011
External links Official Website Fermi Effect Website
References