In the classroom he studies to graduate as a chemical expert, at home he reads philosophy texts, inspired by Heraclitus, and now he has become a national champion of Italian, among technical high schools. The feat was achieved by Andreas Giovanelli, 18 years old, a 4th A Chemistry student from Urbino at Itis “Mattei”, who excelled at the finals of the Italian Olympics in Ercolano. And to think that grammar was his weak point: “It has always created difficulties for me, paradoxically, even though I feel knowledgeable in humanistic subjects – he says –. Therefore, when Professor Lorenzo Bonetti proposed that we participate in the Championships, I took the ‘opportunity as a challenge. By doing exercises and putting in the effort, I said “let’s see where I get to” and in the end that’s how it went.” It wasn’t the first time at the Italian Olympics for Andreas, who had already participated during the two-year period. This year’s adventure started from the institute phase, followed by the regional phase, both focused on grammar. Professor Filomena Ballerino coordinated everything for Itis, while Professor Lilli Simbari accompanied the student to Herculaneum. There, the test consisted of writing three texts: argumentative, creative and summary. In addition to first place among the Seniors (the three-year period) in the technical area, Giovanelli obtained 15th overall, in the ranking which also included high schools and professional schools from all over Italy. “I chose Itis because I have always been passionate about science and a teacher in middle school fueled this interest of mine. Going forward and talking with friends who attended high school, I realized that I also wanted to delve deeper into the humanistic part so I started reading philosophical texts”. Something that Andreas reiterated during the awards ceremony in Ercolano, after thanking the professors who followed him: Bonetti, Ballerino and Simbari, as well as Roberta Sartori, professor at the Biennium: “Many distinguish the humanistic field from the scientific one, but they are not agreement, so much so that my favorite philosopher is Heraclitus, who talks about the Panta rei, the equality of opposites. I believe that these aspects are two sides of the same coin”.
Nicola Petricca
