The Fermi legacy

Fermi marked a full chapters of physics during the last century. In 2001 the world celebrated the 100th anniversary of Enrico Fermi's birth, an event which the organizers of this conference did not ignore. This article covers mainly scientific work that helps to understand Fermi's scientific personnality and work for which he will be remembered in future. The early Fermi's years in the United States, where he released energy from atomic nuclei for the first time, are omitted. Others could describe this period of Fermi's life better than me. I wish to dedicate this article to Paolo Budinich, colleague and friend for many years, on the occasion of his 85th anniversary.