The 62-year-old Luciano Lattanzi, who lives in Montecopiolo, is a researcher in the department of Pure and Applied Sciences at the University of Urbino, finite environment sector. An existence like many others, until in recent days Giorgio Calcagnini, rector of the university where he works, gave an interview in which he shared a large cahier de complaints against the employee who, he claims, would no longer be seen since 2003″ and who, despite receiving a salary between 2,500 and 3 thousand euros, had not published “any research for some time”.
Professor Lattanzi, are the accusations made against you true?
«An invented and distorted version compared to the few words I uttered was told by the press, moreover in very aggressive terms».
Have you ever received any reprimands from the university?
«Never received any communication. It is I who, after this media outcry, made an appointment with the rector for next Tuesday.”
Did you stop your research activity 20 years ago?
«I have always done research in the field of environmental analysis of chemical compounds that pollute, and I still continue to study. Research is not just about writing books, although I have had to deal with various health problems over the years. Previously I had always carried out activities in the laboratory which had become my second home. Going into detail, from 1986 to 1991, even though I was working, I wasn’t paid. I was penniless but on the other hand I spent money on petrol traveling 100 kilometers a day between Montecopiolo and Urbino, including meals outside the home. Years which, among other things, will not be counted for the purposes of pension calculations, precisely because I worked for free. Only in 1991 was I hired as a qualified technician, until in 1997 I joined as a researcher after winning a competition. A time window, the one that began then, where I worked for third parties.”
That is to say?
«Together with my colleagues I went to carry out samples and environmental analyzes for certain companies. The proceeds went to the university, to purchase equipment, and certainly didn’t end up in my pockets. During that period I discovered a product that was of interest to many companies, particularly American ones, as it improved the analytical performance of some categories of chemical compounds. A solution that brought into the university’s coffers a contract for 80 thousand dollars over three years plus another agreement, equally important, for a further two years. At the time the institute management counted on me a lot and, working calmly, I published numerous articles.”
Then what happened?
«I found myself, so to speak, an orphan. And what I suffered was a drip. Over time, the laboratory, which I shared with some colleagues, was emptied of all tools, starting with the computer, making it impossible for me to work on site.”
How do you explain it?
«These are things that happen when a university contact passes away. A difficult situation, I won’t deny it, but it hasn’t stopped me from starting another project with the aim of identifying the causes of ALS, the disease from which unfortunately my mother died in 1994. An idea in which I didn’t navigate alone but involved several colleagues.”
What was it about?
«Taking inspiration from an area with a limited radius, I wanted to verify whether the effect of prolonged exposure to electromagnetic waves could be included among the causes that cause ALS. Any research also proceeds by excluding certain factors to arrive at the real causes. My research, in the worst case scenario, could still be a starting point for subsequent work.”
What went wrong?
«I don’t want to put all the blame on the university, over the years I have experienced some rather serious personal problems. Nonetheless, I have always offered my availability for courses and other jobs. The fact is that in 2010 word of my project reached the management of the department who strongly advised me against proceeding, giving the reason that I was not competent in the matter. After all, who is competent in ALS? I had tried to create a pool of scholars, comparing myself with a biochemist, also from the University of Urbino, but also a physicist and a statistics expert. Later I would involve a geneticist. In short, I was working towards a very important objective and I was deeply disappointed, I won’t deny it, to see a plan that had absorbed all my energy for several years frozen.”
Will he return to the faculty just to calculate how long he has left until his retirement?
«An accusation, the one they made against me, that deserves no comment. I don’t know how many years remain until the end of my career. It’s certainly not the first on my mind. And it hurt me that someone could think such a thing about me.”
