A dialogue between Giuseppe Mussardo and Chiara Sabelli about the history of quantum mechanics, retracing the fundamental milestones, key figures, and most significant moments of one of the greatest scientific revolutions of the 20th century.
The event, scheduled for 29 January at 6:00 PM at the Ubik Bookshop in Galleria Tergesteo, Trieste, is part of a series of events organised by SISSA’s Interdisciplinary Laboratory to celebrate 100 years of quantum mechanics. The event will be held in Italian.
What is matter? This question has fascinated and challenged some of the brightest minds of the 20th century: Max Planck, Albert Einstein, Niels Bohr, Erwin Schrödinger, Werner Heisenberg, Max Born, Wolfgang Pauli, and Paul Dirac questioned, debated, and often clashed in their attempts to decipher the essence of physical reality. Out of this intellectual struggle emerged quantum mechanics, a revolutionary theory revealing a microscopic universe governed by probability—an outcome Einstein never fully accepted, rejecting its philosophical implications.
Giuseppe Mussardo explores this extraordinary scientific journey in his latest book, Dio gioca a dadi con il mondo. La storia della meccanica quantistica (Castelvecchi, 2025), weaving together biographies, letters, and symbolic locations, from the quiet colleges of Cambridge to the cliffs of Helgoland. A journey that pays homage to a unique era in science.
Giuseppe Mussardo is a full professor of theoretical physics at SISSA. Alongside his research activities, he has always nurtured a passion for the history of science. He is the author of documentaries and popular science books on great scientists and major scientific themes. He wrote the screenplay for the documentary film Maksimovič. La storia di Bruno Pontecorvo (2013), which won the Grand Jury Prize for best scientific documentary at the International Scientific Film Festival (2014). Giuseppe Mussardo is also the author of the book Maksimovič. La storia di Bruno Pontecorvo (Castelvecchi, 2023).
Chiara Sabelli is a freelance science journalist and communicator. She has contributed to several publications, including Nature Italy, Scienza in rete, and Domani.
